THE COHORT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT MODEL: A THREE PART SERIES

Christine Johnson McPhail, Mary Robinson, and Harriette Scott

Community College Leadership Doctoral Program,

Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

This study examined how graduate students enrolled in a university based cohort community college leadership doctoral program perceived their leadership development experiences. A total of 50 doctoral students enrolled in the Morgan State University (MSU) doctoral program were surveyed. A separate group of students (20) participated in a focus group. Results indicated that although doctoral students generally reported positive experiences, some students reported that certain factors or characteristics and behaviors of cohort members were not beneficial to the cohort experience. The positive results (structure, instructors, networking, and curriculum) of the cohort experience seem to support the findings of a number of works in the previous research relating to cohort learning environments. The findings further indicated that such factors such as dominant group members, lack of commitment to the cohort, failure to meet group expectations, traditional instructional modalities, and inadequate facilities negatively impacted perceptions of the cohort experience.

A central concern of community college leaders for the past decade has been the goal of replenishing the community college leadership pipeline. This is a growing realization that our community colleges, with their ever more diverse populations, cannot ultimately succeed if we fail to attract and retain leaders from all racial and ethnic groups. Shults (2001) reported that 45% of current presidents plan to retire by 2007. In the next 10 years, community colleges will need to replace 800 of their 1,150 presidents. Yet, the preparation of presidents and other community college leaders has declined, and the number of people prepared to step into leadership roles at higher levels, including the presidency has dramatically diminished. The number of advanced degrees conferred in community college administration decreased 78% between 1983 and 1997.

Romero (2004) suggested that leading community colleges has become more complex in the 21st century and demands a greater range of skills. She argues that while no single individual can fulfill all of these leadership needs every individual leader must be willing to coordinate his or her activities with other leaders within the institution, or the quality of decisions and the ability of the institution to truly serve its community will be hurt (p. 30).

In 2005, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) released a set of leadership competencies that indicated a framework of knowledge, skills, and values that the organization believed was necessary in order to perform effectively as a leader within a community college setting. These competencies included (a) organizational strategy, (b) resource management, (c) communication,(d) collaboration, (e) community college advocacy, and(f) professionalism. However, there is still uncertainty about the extent to which these competencies are being addressed in the curriculum of leadership preparation programs.

Over the past several decades, university approaches to offering doctoral programs for educational leaders have under gone very little change. Most of the doctoral programs in education and related fields are designed to train future researchers and university professors. Conversations about meaningful changes in these structures are infrequent. Until recently, most graduate students were young and expected to engage in a full-time program of study. Currently, a form of group learning, ‘‘cohorts,’’ has emerged as an attractive option for administrators, instructors and participants alike (Fahy, 2000). Today, many emerging community college leaders are looking for opportunities to pursue advanced degrees without interrupting their current jobs (McPhail, 2001; Nesbit, 2001).

THE RESEARCH CONTEXT: THE COHORT EXPERIENCE
Part two of this three part series will be posted on July 15, 2009