What’s Next? In the attachment below use pages 181-185 to complete question: Practical Leadership in Community Colleges text: “Conclusion,” pages 18 -

What’s Next?
In the attachment below use pages 181-185 to complete question: Practical Leadership in Community Colleges text:

“Conclusion,” pages 181185.

Don't use plagiarized sources. Get Your Custom Assignment on

What’s Next? In the attachment below use pages 181-185 to complete question: Practical Leadership in Community Colleges text: “Conclusion,” pages 18

From as Little as $13/Page

Question:
400-500 words
Read the concluding studies and share your thoughts on issues, trends, challenges, and best practices that may not have been covered.
In addition, share your thoughts on what leaders should prepare for next in addressing the needs of community colleges and their surrounding communities.

137

ORGANIZATIONAL
CHANGE TO PROMOTE

STUDENT SUCCESS

Leading Organizational Change

Community colleges have a proud history of serving their communities, but
they are in the midst of an evolution that will more clearly focus increas-
ingly limited resources on the success of their students. Like many institu-
tions that have several years of history, the policies, practices, and structures
that may have worked in an earlier time no longer make sense in an era of
constrained resources, increased accountability for student success, and the
demand to close achievement gaps. Leaders frequently encounter practices
that are historically based and perhaps memorialized in college policies or
union contracts that prove to be hindrances to effective management of the
colleges and their ability to serve students and their communities.

Leaders are often selected for their positions with a mandate to imple-
ment changes in their institutions. Both new and existing leaders might be
asked to deal with institutional problems that include financial or
accounting issues, low employee morale, enrollment decline, poor
community relations, or a need to improve student success rates. However,
changing higher educational institutions is rarely an easy task, and it can
be risky. Leaders invariably encounter resistance and, sometimes, hostility,
and they may even lose support for needed changes and perhaps even
their jobs if changes are not approached carefully. It is wise to approach
change cautiously and gradually. Leaders should not try to initiate too
much change at once. When George Boggs was a new college president, a
seasoned leader cautioned him to pick your battles. There are always a
great many practices, procedures, and policies that need to be revised, but
a wise leader should focus on the most important ones and those that are
possible to change first.

Boggs, George R., and Christine J. McPhail. Practical Leadership in Community Colleges : Navigating Today’s Challenges,
John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/capella/detail.action?docID=4560554.
Created from capella on 2020-09-15 20:10:02.

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

138 practical leadership in community colleges

Daniel Phelan, President of Jackson College in Michigan, points out
how important it is for a college president to have the full support of the
board of trustees before initiating significant institutional change. He
relates a particularly meaningful interaction he had at a retreat with the
sevenmember board of trustees at Jackson College about driving institu-
tional change through the collective bargaining contract negotiations
process. He said to the board members, If I am going to deal with this
issue, I want to know that when things get roughand they willthat
when I am pushed back one step, I will feel fourteen hands on my back.
The board members all agreed and lived up to that commitment
(Phelan,2016, p. 84). Although topdown directives can work in private
businesses, they do not often succeed in public higher education. A more
appropriate approach for higher education might be to follow the
example of the leaders who facilitated social change, leaders such as
Martin Luther King, Jr., who, standing in the shadows of the symbols of
our nation, pointed out that our country was not living up to its own
democratic ideals while he described a vision of a better future for all of
our people.

People are often less resistant to change when there is a clear need,
especially during times of significant challenge to the institution. When
Rahm Emanuel was chief of staff in the White House, he was famously
quoted as saying, You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. It is
often much easier to implement organizational change during a recog-
nized crisis. Recommendations from outside groups, especially accredit-
ing agencies or consultants who are recognized authorities, can also help
leaders bring about change. Affiliation with nationally recognized pro-
jects, such as Achieving the Dream or Completion by Design that intend
to bring about improvement in outcomes, can be effective in getting the
necessary internal support for change. The models described in this
chapter can be utilized for any desired organizational change. For illus-
tration, one of todays most urgent challengesimproving student suc-
cess ratesis the change described in this chapter.

Policy makers, researchers, and educators are in the midst of an
extended national debate about the very future of community colleges.
The narrative not only challenges programs and services offered by the
community college sector but also the policies and practices that imple-
ment them. The demand to improve college completion rates is at the
center of the current call for change, one that both critics and advocates
label the Completion Agenda (American Association of Community
Colleges [AACC],2010; Complete College America, 2014; MDRC,2013).
The core concern is that students are not completing what they start, and

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

organizational change to promote student success 139

community colleges can and must do better. To advance the Completion
Agenda, institutions must change.

The Completion Agenda

The focus of the debate about student success is on organizational change,
the need for it, and whether community colleges are up to the challenges.
Although access to higher education is still an issue for some populations,
the concern most commonly expressed today is that not enough students
are progressing through the institution and attaining degrees or certifi-
cates or transferring to fouryear colleges and universities. Traditionally,
community colleges have stressed access, especially for underrepresented
students. Community colleges enroll large numbers of lowincome, adult,
and minority students, providing educational opportunities that were not
available to these students at other institutions. The access to education
and training and the opportunities provided by community colleges are
the reasons they are referred to as the opendoor colleges. As important
as access and opportunity are, however, they are not sufficient. As early
as 2000, Robert McCabe, president emeritus of Miami Dade College,
argued that it was necessary to guarantee quality in order to keep the
open door open. McCabe observed that, even though hundreds of
underprepared college students enter community colleges, many of these
students successfully complete remediation and go on to do as well in
standard college courses as those students who begin academically pre-
pared (Callan, 2000; McCabe,2000). Leaders of the community college
movement are often asked, How can community colleges respond to the
Completion Agenda without sacrificing either the opendoor mission or
academic rigor? As educational reform and accountability efforts
especially since 2010have placed an increasing number of demands on
community colleges nationwide, the leaders of local institutions have
been forced to reevaluate their commitment to both access and student
success. There are a number of ways community colleges can improve
student success rates while maintaining or even improving access and
quality, and all of them require a commitment to organizational change
and to thinking differently about how to use resources to educate, train,
and support students (Alfred & Carter,1999; AACC,2013).

As a first step, community college leaders must acknowledge that
existing policies, practices, programs, and services are not producing the
desired results. It is important to set appropriate goals for improvement
before developing corresponding change strategies to achieve them.
Leaders need to identify the key stakeholders and their roles in realizing

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

140 practical leadership in community colleges

the vision of the future of the institution (AACC,2012). Finally, in imple-
menting change, community college leaders will need to more effectively
utilize resources and the skill sets of employees to produce desired results.
In short, organizational change must go beyond changes in strategic
planning models or changes in job descriptions, as important as they are.
Effective organizational change must involve all constituent groups:
boards of trustees, administrators, faculty, staff, students, and community
partners (AACC, 2012; Kotter, 2008). Essentially, colleges will have to
make necessary adjustments in the way they conduct the business of the
institution in order to produce the desired results (AACC,2012).

Leaders need to create an environment in which the college community
can work collaboratively to define the changes needed and to develop
strategies to respond to the diverse learning needs of students. Active
leadership support to incorporate a variety of innovative strategies and
new policies and procedures is necessary to improve student pathways to
learning that stimulate, bring to scale, and institutionalize an effective
array of learning experiences (Jacobs & Dougherty, 2006; Watson,
Williams, & Derby,2005).

Models for Change

There are many ways of thinking about organizational change that can
apply to community colleges (Kotter,2008; Maginn,2005; Weick,1995).
As colleges struggle with the challenges of the Completion Agenda,
leaders need to undertake a careful review of the role and purpose of the
institution (AACC,2012). At the same time, leaders must define the pro-
cess by which the college should determine changes in structure, strat-
egies, operational methods, technologies, or organizational culture and
assess the effects of those changes on the organization (AACC, 2014;
Floyd, Haley, Eddy, & Antczak,2009). Leaders must always be aware of
the fact that organizational change can be contentious, time-consuming,
highly political, and, at times, risky to the career of a leader.

Van de Ven and Poole (1995) argued that change is measured by the
observation of difference over time in one or more dimensions of an insti-
tution. Burnes (1996) noted that organizational change requires under-
standing alterations within organizations at the broadest level among
individuals and groups and at the collective level across the entire orga-
nization. However, these general descriptions of change do not entirely
capture factors inherent in community colleges such as the demographics
of stakeholders and their values. It can be informative to think of change

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

organizational change to promote student success 141

through a cultural or socialcognition lens, focusing on values and beliefs
of the stakeholders within the organization. Although there is no single
model for organizational change, certain concepts are common across
change models, such as the overlap between elements of the Kotter (2008)
and Lewin (2007) models. For example, Kurt Lewins model proposed a
straightforward change management process consisting of a threestage
theory of change commonly referred to as unfreeze, change, freeze (or
refreeze). Kotter (2008) believed that change followed a process consist-
ing of eight sequential phases:

1. A sense of urgency

2. The guiding team

3. Visions and strategies

4. Communication

5. Empowerment

6. Celebrating shortterm wins

7. Never letting up

8. Making change stick

Both models examine why change happens and refer to outcomes of
the change process. Based in observational theory, these models can
assist leaders as they prepare to chart a course for change in their col-
leges. In particular, when colleges engage in a change process, constituent
groups need to know why change is important, how much change is
needed, and what might be the best approach to implement the change
(Gumport,2000).

Resistance to Change

Community college leaders who want to improve their institutions must
carefully determine the changes that will move their institutions toward
desired goals (AACC,2012). The changes that community colleges will
need to make should align with the core values of the institution (Alfred
et al.,2009; Erwin,1997; Kim & Mauborgne, 2003). However, institu-
tional leadership is embedded in a network of influence and power that
comes from a variety of sources. Leaders cannot assume that all of the
sources will even agree that change is necessary. Even if they do, they may
not agree on what needs to be changed or what strategies to use.
Leadership within this context calls for an effective analysis of stakeholder

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

142 practical leadership in community colleges

values and resistance to change. What does resistance to change look
like? What are its causes, and where does it come from? Resistance to
change can emerge from both internal and external sources and can be
viewed as the act of opposing or struggling with modifications or trans-
formations that alter the status quo in the workplace (Kotter, 1998).

Overcoming resistance to change is often extremely challenging.
Although Burke (2008) argued that organizations strive to succeed in an
increasingly complex global, political, and economic environment that
requires change to remain viable, he noted that organizations experience
different types of change, and some changes are more difficult than
others. Resistance to change can emerge from internal or external groups
or individuals. It can be covert or overt, organized or spontaneous. In
some instances, resistance emerges when there is a threat to something
the individual values. For example, Evans (2001), in discussing the human
side of school change, noted that resistance may arise either from a gen-
uine understanding of the change or from a misunderstanding of the
issues. Failure to adequately consider the complexity of the resistance can
compromise the implementation of the change or even stop it. Viable
change requires the involvement of the entire campus community.
Resistance to change can affect the entire institution in areas such as the
feelings, opinions, and work habits of employees at all stages of imple-
mentation of the change process.

If community college leaders are to be successful in implementing
change, they must first examine the key reasons people might resist it.
Implementing change involves altering human behavior and the
acceptance of change. According to John Tagg (2012), one of the leading
spokespersons for the Learning Paradigm:

The key to designing and executing productive institutional change
is not simply to build a better academic mousetrap. Faculty will not
beat a path to the doors of those with the best arguments. We need
to not only design change for our institutions but also redesign our
institutions for change. At base, we must recognize that we cant
change without changing. We cannot create a better future unless we
are willing to embrace a future that is different from the past. (p. 6)

There are a number of reasons people resist change: a lack of clarity of
the rationale for the change, a lack of appropriate consultation and com-
munication, a perceived threat caused by the change, or weak perceived
benefits and rewards for making the change (Demers,2007; Erwin, 2009;
Kotter2008).

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

organizational change to promote student success 143

Resistance Management

Strebel (2006) observed that the reason for the less than favorable success
rate in leading change is differences between the perceptions of leader-
ship and employees. It is necessary to develop a distinctive approach that
bridges these perceptions in order to change higher education
(Hearn,1996). Hearn noted that overlooking these factors may result in
mistakes in analysis and strategy, and using concepts foreign to the values
of the academy will most likely fail to engage the very people who must
bring about the change.

The leader must be able to identify and manage resistance at different
levels of the organization (Benjamin & Carroll,1996; Maginn,2005). In
an organization that has a culture of trust, transparent communication,
involvement, engaged employees, and positive interpersonal relation-
ships, resistance to change is easy to seeand also much less likely to
occur (Kotter,2008). In this type of environment, employees feel free to
tell the leadership team what they think and to have open exchanges
with unit administrators. When a change is introduced in institutions in
which people feel engaged, the resistance to change is decreased.
Resistance is also minimized if there is a widespread belief that a change
is needed. The president and leadership team must communicate the
need for change and must highlight the consequences that may develop
if the change is delayed. Kotter (1995) recommended that effective com-
munication should be used to promote or market the proposed changes,
while at the same time demonstrating the shortcomings of the old way of
doing business.

One of the key factors in reducing resistance to change is widespread
acceptance that a change is needed. So, one of the first tasks for the leader
is to build the case for the reasons for change (Amey, VanDerLinden, &
Brown, 2002). Specifically, the leader must first inform the college
community about the need for change. But it does not stop with an
information session. The leader must engage the campus community in
active dialogue and spend time discussing the urgency for change, how to
implement the change, and how to make it work. Among the major rea-
sons for engaging the campus community in conversations about change
is that leaders can share their vision for a better future and personally
identify the benefits of change to individuals, departments, and the orga-
nization. Further, stakeholders must feel that the time, energy, commit-
ment, and focus necessary to implement the change are compensated by
the benefits they, the institution, and students will attain from making
the change.

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

144 practical leadership in community colleges

Employee Pride as Motivation for Change

Most community college educators and staff members are proud of their
colleges and the work they do, but these are challenging times for
community colleges as pressure builds to improve the ways they meet the
needs of the students and communities they serve. Leaders interested in
facilitating organizational change must understand the critical link bet-
ween the employees pride in the institution and willingness to support
organizational changes. Jon Katzenbach (2003) recommended that senior
management sponsor and support activities to inspire employees to take
pride in the organization. Katzenback made the point that pride is more
powerful than money. Employee pridethe admiration of coworkers as
well as family and friends, the spirit of teams in pursuit of a dream, and
the high that comes from having done a job wellis the powerful moti-
vational force that compels individuals and companies to excel (p. 24).

Community college leaders can build upon employees pride in the
organization by ensuring that the mission, vision, and institutional goals
are made clear to all employees and to let them know how their work
supports the college mission. Leaders must strive to help all employees
take pride in their work and to understand how their work contributes to
institutional excellence. Helping employees to take pride in their jobs
takes time and effort. Individual pride in the organization and the buyin
to overall instructional excellence cannot be mandated. Leaders must
make pridebuilding a continuing part of their leadership agenda.

We have visited a great many community college campuses and are
often told by faculty and administrators, Our college is the best
community college in the country. It is always rewarding to hear the
sense of pride that employees have, but we often wonder what data the
colleges have to back up the claims. Leaders should recognize and cele-
brate the pride that employees have in their college and then use outcome
data to show that the college can help more students to succeed. Then,
leaders should ask for recommendations from the employees about how
to improve.

Organizational Change and Classroom Practice

Community colleges have made some meaningful changes in the teaching
and learning environment to help more students experience success
(Achieving the Dream,2012). The following teaching and learning prac-
tices illustrate some of the most promising strategies that have been
shown to be beneficial for community college students from a variety of

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

organizational change to promote student success 145

backgrounds. These practices can take many different forms, depending
on learner characteristics and on institutional priorities and contexts.

1. Guided Pathways

As mentioned in chapter2, in October 2015, AACC announced a national
partnership to build capacity for community colleges to implement a
pathways approach to student success and college completion (Bailey,
Jaggers, & Jenkins, 2015). There is almost universal agreement that
giving entering students more guidance is necessary if we are to improve
rates of student success. Davis Jenkins, senior researcher at the Community
College Research Center (CCRC) at Columbia University and an early
proponent of guided pathways for students, has identified key compo-
nents of the Guided Pathway model:

Clear road maps to success are provided and academic programs
are clearly defined.

Exploratory majors are designed for students who do not have
majors when they enter the college.

Contextualized instruction in foundation skills are linked to the
students field of interest.

Predictable schedules provide a defined program of study on a
fulltime and parttime basis.

Students are provided frequent feedback on how they are doing.

Colleges use early alert systems to keep students informed about
their progress so that they can stay on track.

2. Flipped Classrooms

The flipped classroom is a pedagogical model in which the typical lecture
and homework elements of a course are reversed. Students view short
video lectures at home and read supporting text before the class session,
and inclass time is devoted to exercises, projects, debates, or discussions.
The video lecture is often seen as the key ingredient to the flipped
approach; the instructor or guest presenters create the lectures that are
posted online or selected from an online repository. The notion of a
flipped classroom draws on such concepts as active learning, student
engagement, hybrid course design, and course podcasting. The value of a
flipped class is in the repurposing of inclass time into an active work-
shop in which students can inquire about course content, test their skills

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

146 practical leadership in community colleges

in applying knowledge, and interact with one another in handson activ-
ities. During class sessions, instructors act as facilitators, moderators,
coaches, or advisors, encouraging students in individual inquiry and col-
laborative effort (Bichsel,2012).

3. Online Classes

The convenience of online education has attracted working adult stu-
dents who benefit from education delivered in ways that meet their
schedules and the demands of working, family obligations, and social
lives. However, learning under these circumstances is not easy. Major
problems reported by students are feelings of isolation, lack of self
direction, time management, and eventual decrease in motivation
(LudwigHardman & Dunlap,2003). Faculty who teach online courses
must find ways to engage students, to keep them motivated, and to
encourage them not to fall behind in their assignments.

4. Blended Classes/Learning

The traditional learning environment, especially lectures in which stu-
dents are passive, simply does not engage most students. Blended classes
utilize both the classroom environment and technology to meet the
learning and motivational needs of students. Ideally, a blended classroom
offers deeper content online, gives students the ability to master basic
skills, and grants them more autonomy (Bonk & Graham,2006).

5. ProjectBased Learning

Projectbased learning, focused on learning through engagement in
individual or group assignments, is a meaningoriented and student
centered instructional approach that allows students to discover content,
engage in higherlevel thinking, make personal connections, construct
their own meaning, and reflect on what they have learned (Savage,2007).

6. FirstYear Seminars and Experiences

Many schools now build into the curriculum firstyear seminars or other
programs that bring small groups of students together with faculty or
staff on a regular basis. Firstyear experiences place a strong emphasis on
critical inquiry, frequent writing, information literacy, collaborative
learning, and other skills that develop students intellectual and practical
competencies (Franklin,2000; Gardner & Barefoot,2011).

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

organizational change to promote student success 147

7. Learning Communities

The key goals for learning communities are to encourage integration of
learning across courses and to involve students with big questions
that matter beyond the classroom. Students take two or more linked
courses as a group and work closely with one another and with their
professors. Many learning communities explore a common topic and/or
common readings through the lenses of different disciplines (Levine &
Shapiro,2004).

8. Collaborative Assignments and Projects

Collaborative learning combines two key goals: learning to work and
solve problems in the company of others; and sharpening ones own
understanding by listening seriously to the insights of others, especially
those with different backgrounds and life experiences. Approaches range
from study groups within a course, to teambased assignments and
writing, to cooperative projects and research (Gabriel,2004).

9. Service Learning and CommunityBased Learning

Fieldbased experiential learning with community partners is an
instructional strategyand can be a required part of a course. The idea is
to give students direct experience with issues they are studying in the cur-
riculum and with ongoing efforts to analyze and solve problems in the
community. A key element in these programs is the opportunity students
have both to apply what they are learning in realworld settings and to
reflect in a classroom setting on their service experiences (Hatcher,
Bringle, & Muthiah,2004).

10. Cooperative Work Experience

Internships, cooperative work experience, and apprenticeships are
included in a wide range of integrated work and education strategies.
Typically, institutions use an external worksite as a source to provide the
skills training required for the program of study. Participating students
earn college credit for their work experience attaining the skills and
knowledge related to the program of study. Institutions use the coopera-
tive work experience programs to bridge the gap between the institution
and business and industry. Collaborative work experience programs also
contribute to local economic development efforts by providing a flow of
qualified and skilled employees for local business and industry partners
(Cates & Cedercreutz,2008).

C
op

yr
ig

2
01

6.
J

oh
n

W
ile

y
&

S
on

s,
In

co
rp

or
at

ed
. A

ll
rig

ht
s

re
se

rv
ed

148 practical leadership in community colleges

11. Supplemental Instruction

Academic assistance programs that utilize peerassisted study sessions are
classified as supplemental instruction (SI). SI sessions are regularly sched-
uled, informal review sessions in which students compare notes, discuss
readings, develop organizational tools, and work on predicted test items.
Stud

Related Questions:

Related questions

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply