Practical Leadership in Community Colleges: Navigating Today's Challenges - Hardcover

Boggs, George R.; McPhail, Christine J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1119095158 ISBN 13: 9781119095156

Publisher: Jossey-Bass, 2016

Synopsis

Anticipate, manage, and overcome the complex issues facing community colleges

Practical Leadership in Community Colleges offers a path forward through the challenges community colleges face every day. Through field observations, reports, news coverage, and interviews with leaders and policy makers, this book digs deep into the issues confronting college leaders and provides clear direction for managing through the storm. With close examination of both emerging trends and perennial problems, the discussion delves into issues brought about by changing demographics, federal and state mandates, public demand, economic cycles, student unrest, employee groups, trustees, college supporters, and more to provide practical guidance toward optimal outcomes for all stakeholders. Written by former presidents, including a past president of the American Association of Community Colleges, this book provides expert guidance on anticipating and managing the critical issues that affect the entire institution. Both authors serve as consultants, executive coaches, and advisors to top leaders, higher education institutions, and leadership development programs throughout the United States.

Community colleges are facing increasingly complex issues from both without and within. Some can be avoided, others only mitigated―but all must be managed, and college leaders must be fully prepared or risk failing the students and the community. This book provides real-world guidance for current and emerging leaders and trustees seeking more effective management methods, with practical insight and expert perspective.

• Tackle the college completion challenge and performance-based funding initiatives
• Manage through economic cycles, declining support, and calls for accountability
• Delve into the issues of privatization and employee unionization
• Execute strategies to align institutional goals and mission
• Manage organizational change and new ways of thinking that are essential in today's competitive environment
• Manage issues involving diversity, inclusiveness, and equity
• Prepare adequately for campus emergencies

Community colleges are the heartbeat of the nation's higher education system, and bear the tremendous responsibility of serving the needs of a vast and varied student body. Every day may bring new issues, but effective management allows institutions to rise to the challenge rather than falter under pressure. Practical Leadership in Community Colleges goes beyond theory to provide the practical guidance leadership needs to more effectively lead institutions to achieve results and serve the students and the community.

About this title

From the Back Cover

PRAISE FOR PRACTICAL LEADERSHIP IN COMMUNITY COLLEGES

"For both current and aspiring leaders, Practical Leadership in Community Colleges offers a highly effective balance of historical, contextual, and practical information. This book will help prepare campuses for what many foresee as perpetual and often dramatic change."
―Walter G. Bumphus, president and CEO, American Association of Community Colleges

"This book serves as a field guide for current presidents already immersed in the fray, as well as a primer and reality check for anyone who aspires to become a community college president. For both groups it is a must-read."
―Rob Jenkins, "Two-Year Track" columnist for The Chronicle of Higher Education; author of Building a Career in America's Community Colleges

"As George Boggs and Christine McPhail point out in this important book, American community colleges are on the brink of massive changes nationwide. The authors' balanced approach to presenting existing challenges and opportunities for the next generation of colleges and their leaders is refreshing."
―Eduardo J. Padrón, president, Miami Dade College

"This is a 'must-read' for community college leaders everywhere. Written by two national leaders with more than seventy years of leadership experience and success in community colleges, the book addresses the issues and challenges facing today's and tomorrow's community colleges."
―John E. Roueche, president, Roueche Graduate Center, National American University

"Practical Leadership in Community Colleges is an extraordinary work. It offers models, case studies, and practical advice on some very thorny issues leaders face. It should become the desk manual for community college leaders across the nation."
―Terry O'Banion, chair of the graduate faculty, National American University, and president emeritus, League for Innovation in the Community College

From the Inside Flap

Practical Leadership in Community Colleges is an essential resource for leaders who must meet the myriad challenges community colleges face every day. Grounded in field observations, reports, news coverage, and interviews with leaders and policymakers, this important text offers a clear examination into the issues confronting college leaders and provides clear direction for managing through difficult times.

Written by former college presidents, including a past president of the American Association of Community Colleges, Practical Leadership in Community Colleges is a real-world guide to more effective management methods and contains practical insight and expert perspective.

The authors cover a broad range of issues including managing the ups and downs of the economic cycle, dealing with performance-based funding legislation, increasing college completion ratios, calls for accountability from both the public and the government, and much more.

There are no one-size-fits-all answers for addressing these complex issues or responding to cases, but Practical Leadership in Community Colleges can help prepare leadership teams for the inevitable difficult issues they will face as they lead these dynamic institutions that are so important to our society.

Edition details

• Publisher: Jossey-Bass
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1119095158
• ISBN 13: 9781119095156
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240