Oakton Community College (Illinois) opened in 1970 with the proviso to have five or six groupings of professionals directly concerned with the learning process. To meet stated goals, two basic departures from the usual academic practice were (1) to hire a minimum of line administrators, and (2) to abandon subject area departments and organization.…

This paper reviews the student-centered cluster college concept of organization employed at Oakton Community College (Illinois) and compares this approach to traditional organization by academic department or division. The advantages offered by the division structure include intradisciplinary interchange among teachers, coordinated budget…