| dc.description.abstract | LeaderShape is an independent, not-for-profit organization that develops and delivers leadership development programs primarily targeting college and university students. LeaderShape’s growth platform includes a strategic goal to reach new market segments within higher education, such as community colleges, to serve a more diverse student population. Yet an admitted gap exists in LeaderShape’s understanding of the need, importance, and/or appropriate program characteristics for community college student leadership development. Through our research questions, this study sought to uncover: (a) community college stakeholder (students and administrators) views on student leader identity, (b) to what extent inclusion of leadership competencies and pedagogical program elements contribute to student leadership development, and (c) potential environmental and sociological constraints to program adoption. A mixed-methods approach generated breadth via a survey instrument to collect perceived identity and sociological factor impacts from the student point of view and depth from administrator semi-structured interviews, a program document review, and historical program effectiveness data. We used descriptive and comparative statistics (including correlation) and an abductive coding process to facilitate our analysis. Our key findings include: 1. Community college students that attended LeaderShape build a strong leader identity, across leadership competencies, though overall modern leadership construct coverage differs between (a) LeaderShape and community college stakeholder expectations and (b) students’ rating of themselves and a “good leader.” 2. Environmental (e.g. funding) and sociological factors (e.g. economic hardship) can negatively impact student engagement in leadership programs or the ability to deliver them, with administrators taking a stronger view of the impact than students. Our recommendations focus on adjusted content and structural programming approaches to meet community colleges’ unique sociological, environmental, and student identity needs, including: (a) further development of program objectives and content to balance modern leadership constructs and competencies and (b) creation of a program which addresses time, fiscal, and sociological constraints without sacrificing leadership content quality. | |
