Community College Leadership Competencies: How do Rural Leaders Measure Up? Pamela L. Eddy, Ph.D., CMU Eron Drake, Davenport University

The Rural Context 60% of Community Colleges are rural 72% located in North Central and Southern accrediting regions Small (less 2500 students) 22% Medium ( students) 54% Large (over 5000 students) 24% Residential Living 21% of rural colleges have resident halls Distance Education 52% Internet 24% Broadband

Students 34% all CC students attend rural colleges 49% attend large rural 44% attend medium rural 7% attend small rural Demographics 74% White (54% suburban/45% urban) 41% Full-time (32% suburban/31% urban)

Faculty Recruiting faculty Shortages in specialized fields Lack of culture Difficulty in recruiting diverse faculty Retaining faculty Early and mid-career turnover Familiarity with rural areas Faculty Development Led by individuals/committees Focus on teaching Support Institutional Missions

Leaders Pending retirements (45% of all CC presidents are 61 or older) Truth in Advertising Grow Your Own Programs MidSouth Partnership for Rural Community Colleges Focus on real problems Leadership Development

AACC Competencies for Community College Leaders Organizational Strategy Resource Management Communication Collaboration Community College Advocacy Professionalism

Research Questions 1.How do current rural community college leaders enact the competencies outlined by the AACC? 2.Does leading a rural college make a difference as to what competencies are most critical?

Methods Phenomenology—understanding leading in a rural locale One Mid-Western state President/Vice President Academics 21 Interviews—13 community colleges 10 presidents 11 vice-presidents

Findings Key competencies Collaboration Resource Management Professionalism EMERGING THEMES Leader of the Pack Something out of Nothing Going to the Fair

Leader of the Pack Called upon for community convener Player in partnerships/economic development Assumed roles of advocacy and good communication lines

Something out of Nothing Resource constraints more pronounced Key ties to economic development Community College viewed as a key asset

Going to the Fair Insider versus outsider status Fishbowl status Representing the college at all times

Discussion Generic Nature of AACC Competencies Implications of context Rating of importance Rural Roots Leader Schema Communication patterns Impact Tight coupling See impacts quicker Deep roots

Implications Rural college leaders are the college Hiring decisions Training Role of the rural colleges as a “stepping-stone” for larger presidencies Development of shared meaning Defining AACC Competencies Framing change

Conclusion Commitment to partnerships heightened Need for leadership development Frontier mentality Multiple meaning interpretations of AACC Context driven—changes of outfits

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