Organizational Factors Supporting Community College Presidential Stability: A Case Stud

The American Association of Community Colleges predicts that by 2025, over 880 of the nation's community colleges will be led by a new president. Simultaneously the average tenure of presidents is shrinking. At a time of high demand the pool of qualified candidates is shrinking which has led to this being termed a "leadership crisis" by scholars and practitioners alike. Retaining strong presidents once hired will be critically important to this sector of higher education. The central research question was: What organizational characteristics influence community college presidential stability in an East Coast community college? Since the question of community college presidential stability had not been previously examined in the literature, a case study methodology was used. The case site was a regionally accredited comprehensive community college located on the East Coast. The college's president had served in that role for more than fourteen years. Four themes emerged from the data collected as relevant organizational factors that support presidential stability at the case site. They include: 1) stability as an organizational value; 2) personal satisfaction; 3) Board supporting the president's vision; and 4) significance of state and local politics. The findings from the study led to five recommendations for practitioners: 1) align personal and organizational values; 2) weigh the impact of the existing Board structure; 3) maintain political neutrality; 4) implement governance best practices; and 5) immerse a new president in the local community. Four areas of future research were identified. They include: 1) the role of faculty in presidential retention; 2) the elements of presidential job satisfaction; 3) the role of culture in higher education retention; and, 4) the impact of performance based funding on shared governance structures.