Graduate Program

College Student Affairs

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Semester of Degree Completion

2005

Thesis Director

Charles Eberly

Thesis Committee Member

Jeff Cross

Thesis Committee Member

Lou Hencken

Abstract

Community colleges in the United States serve many student populations and purposes. In order to be successful, these institutions of higher education have hired both full-time and part-time faculty members. Between 1970 and 1993, the number of parttime faculty members hired increased by 355 percent (Morphew, 1999). The present study examined the differences in perceptions between full-time and part-time faculty members in regards to their view on shared governance. In order to study these differential perceptions, faculty members at a Midwestern community college were surveyed. A total of 225 full-time faculty members and 395 part-time faculty members were surveyed via a web-based survey instrument, based on the National Data Base on Faculty Involvement in Governance, with a response rate of 13.2 percent.

Results showed that, on average, full-time faculty members were more involved in governance than their part-time colleagues. Both full-time and part-time faculty members agreed on the characteristics necessary in an ideal governance process, although full-time faculty members more strongly agreed on the ideal characteristics. A significant difference in perceptions was found when the two groups of faculty members were surveyed about the role of the faculty in the college association. Full-time faculty members were more likely to agree that the college association faculty members should convince the administration that the faculty "voice" was valuable in decision making.

This study included a review of literature on community college shared governance, the data analysis used in the study and conclusions based on the data. Recommendations for future research on this topic were also listed.

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