Performance policy in higher education: Implementation among institutions in the Florida college system

Educational accountability is predicated on the notion that holding institutions accountable for the performance of their students will improve efficiency. Higher education institutions have not seen the same changes in federal requirements regarding accountability as have K-12 institutions. However, with the American Graduation Initiative announced in 2009 by the Obama administration aimed at increasing the number of higher education graduates by 2020, higher education institutions, particularly community colleges, and the performance of their students have been thrust into the national spotlight. How are colleges responding? Little to no research exists on how performance accountability measures have influenced higher education institutions, specifically Florida community colleges.;This paper examines the implementation of Florida's performance policy at three Florida College System institutions. Community colleges are driven by the needs of the local community and their program offerings tend to reflect this notion; however, the performance measures set by the Legislature are standardized. Are colleges with a significant program enrollment in the Associate in Arts program responding differently than those with a significant enrollment in career and technical programs? Three institutions with diverse program enrollment were examined. Interviews with multiple staff serving various administrative functions from each institution as well as observations over an extended period of time were conducted for purposes of this study. Documents regarding performance policy at each institution were also evaluated. The findings of this study indicated that colleges developed student support mechanisms, required retraining of faculty and staff while restructuring job requirements, and expanded data collection efforts in order to respond to performance mandates. The findings of this study revealed that institutions with like program enrollment responded similarly in terms of implementation efforts. All colleges implemented student support mechanisms, required retraining of faculty and staff and restructured job duties, and expanded data collection efforts but did not do so in the same fashion, dependent upon local community and program enrollment. The local community tended to reflect how colleges in the study responded to performance policy. The policy implementation literature.