Successful colleges require effective leadership and governance. Effective governing boards are comprised of trustees who are committed to excellence in performing their duties. How do governing boards assure they are effective? One way is through ongoing board and trustee education and development, to provide the skills necessary to govern well.…

California community colleges have been inconsistent in their efforts to meet the program review and planning accreditation standards established by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). To assist colleges in their effort to meet the accreditation standards and to improve educational quality, the ACCJC developed the…

This document presents the assessment instrument used in Glendale Community College's (California) instructional program review and improvement self-study report. This document contains the following chapters: (1) response to demand, which looks at demand, offerings, and scheduling in the areas of enrollment, FTES by course/program, number of…

Provides a review and critique of current institutional approaches to quality and offers suggestions for the enhancement of quality in the two-year college through self-assessment and program design encompassing inputs, outcomes, the educational process, and the integrality of these concepts. (AYC)

Describes the National Testing Network in Writing's College Assessment Program Evaluation (CAPE) process, which was developed to encourage local control of writing skills assessment by highlighting relations among testing, curricula, students, and institutional mission. Offers a brief overview of CAPE guidelines and documentation for conducting a…

Reviews the benefits a community college can accrue through a search for institutional distinctiveness, focusing on the value of the research process itself, the findings, and the changes that will take place if the findings are used effectively in planning and marketing. (DMM)

The Snowmass Institute for Advanced Management Studies' workshops on "Achieving Excellence through Strategic Planning" are designed to assist college personnel in developing a strategic approach to planning and managing their department, division, college/school, institution, or system. Participants in the workshop's first track: (1)…

Provides guidelines for conducting research on a community college's past as a means of gaining insight about institutional strengths and weaknesses and future directions. Suggests groups to interview and documents to analyze to construct the factual history and ways of seeking out campus lore and customs to enrich the history. (DMM)

Presents Golden West College's (GWC's) (California) 1999-2000 accreditation self-study report. Contains the following chapters: (1) report abstract, which summarizes the ten standards of GWC: mission, integrity, effectiveness, educational programs, student support and development, information and learning resources, faculty and staff, physical…

Guidelines for self-study and evaluation criteria are presented for use by community college governing boards. For each of 10 areas, a discussion is provided, questions regarding the board's performance are posed, a summary evaluation of the board's work in the area is solicited, and space is provided for additional comments or suggestions. The 10…

There are a variety of ways in which the two-year or community college can be distinguished from other institutions of higher education. These differences affect the ways in which evaluation is implemented at the two-year college. One difference relates to the mission of the community college. The community college's open-door policy changes the…

In this day of increased competition for students, educators need to know what makes their institution exceptional or how it is perceived as providing something of value that other institutions in the local area do not. Without this information, community colleges will find it difficult to thrive and adapt in the future. Efforts to determine the…

A description is provided of the self-study program review process developed by Genesee Community College (GCC) as an alternative to the traditional Middle States evaluation process. First, the paper examines the history of self-study at GCC from 1980, when a committee was created to coordinate a study of the college which would fulfill…

Reviews the strategic elements of an institutional plan: assessment of the external environment, auditing of institutional strengths and weaknesses, and matching of institutional strengths with external opportunities through the process of strategic goal setting. Urges community colleges to take action-oriented, dynamic, purposeful steps to shape…

This report shows the results of 1998 student opinion survey at Rogue Community College (RCC) (Oregon). Results of the survey provide broad insight into strengths and weaknesses of the college's programs, services, and image. As part of the additional questions that RCC incorporated into the survey, students were given the opportunity to offer…