This capstone investigates the integration experiences of new faculty at Somerset Community College (SCC) through Organizational Socialization Theory (OST). Acknowledging the multifaceted challenges that new faculty encounter, ranging from adapting to an unfamiliar academic culture to navigating institutional policies and building relationships…

There is an emerging need to better understand how orientation practices and strategies affect a sense of belonging for new faculty members, especially the growing number of adjunct faculty hired at community colleges throughout the U.S. each year. Establishing an orientation process for newcomers helps to ensure that new members are better able…

Community colleges are a 20th-century phenomenon. This sector of higher education started in 1901 and historically served any number of varying purposes, such as teacher training, homemaking, and, potentially, transfer credits for admission to a four-year college and the receipt of a baccalaureate degree. In the early 20th century, because of its…

This study explored best practices for onboarding new faculty in nursing programs in Washington State of the United States. The purpose of this study was to examine, (a) onboarding practices to orient new faculty currently used at nursing programs that provide an Associate Degree, (b) the perceived nurse administrator's role in providing…

Mature students are making up an increasing proportion of the student population at Canadian colleges and universities. At Assiniboine Community College (ACC), in southwestern Manitoba, an average of 360 mature students enrolled in various programs each year from 2008 to 2013. These mature students bring with them unique strengths and challenges.…

During the 21st century Great Recession, college enrollments increased as displaced workers trained to advance their skills (Baum & Ma, 2012). At the same time, state funding to community colleges declined (Baum & Ma, 2012; Ehrenberg, 2012). Although higher enrollments increased tuition revenues, they were insufficient to cover the gap…

An effective faculty is essential to student success, and faculty development programs help sustain that effectiveness. Central to the faculty development programs at Hillsborough Community College (HCC) in Tampa, Florida, is the philosophy that they should lead to strengthened teaching and learning and, ultimately, improved student success. At…

The purpose of this descriptive study was to investigate the adjunct faculty's perception of professional development and support services offered and needed at Tidewater Community College, a multicampus community college. This study involved adjunct faculty only. A survey was created and contained 58 survey questions. The majority of these were…

In North Carolina (NC) there are a total of 58 community colleges, each of which provides a unique approach to handling support for adjunct faculty. The NC Community College System provided a good setting to explore how one state in particular compares to current research on administrative support of adjunct faculty in the areas of hiring,…

The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives of staff and faculty regarding factors affecting student success in distance learning at a California community college (CCC). Participants were members of the leadership group known as the distance learning committee. Data were collected through in-depth interviews using open-ended…

This report provides descriptive national data on the prevalence and characteristics of services and support programs for military service members and veterans at postsecondary institutions in the United States. This survey provides the first nationally representative data on this topic. The data presented in this First Look were collected for the…

In spring 2012, after a year of intensive data analysis and planning, the colleges participating in Completion by Design announced strategies for creating clear, structured routes through college for more students, often referred to as accelerated, structured pathways to completion. These strategies contain elements unique to each college, but all…

While much discussion about student success as it relates to access, equity, and underpreparedness at the collegiate level is taking place nationally and statewide, a strong and specific concern prompted some of the faculty at Pasadena City College (PCC), a large urban community college located northeast of downtown Los Angeles, to address the…

This report updates the status of bills that the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) is tracking. It has positions as adopted by the Commission at its June 14, 2011 and earlier meetings. A matrix of bills tracked by CPEC staff is included.

This report presents the findings for community colleges with twenty percent or more Black students enrolled that participated in ACT's 2010 "What Works in Student Retention survey." The report contains information pertinent to only these institutions. The following are appended: (1) Data for Two-Year Community Colleges with greater than or equal…