V A Note of Appreciation Among the key issues and problems dominant at this stage of the spectacular growth and development of the two-year collegiate institutions of the United States, none is more fundamentally important than the three cardinal ones affecting teaching: the need for more teachers, their adequate preparation, and improvement of the climate for junior college teaching careers. Improved teacher status, incentives, and other overall environmental factors certainly will bear upon future recruitment and training preparation and, indeed, must precede, in a sense, the securing of more and better teachers. An almost equally imposing task, as the present study reveals, will be the attainment of fuller opportunities for continuing in-service professional growth on the part of all junior college faculties. In noting the impact of technology upon man's environment, Marshall McLuhan has written, "In our time the sudden shift from the mechanical technology of the wheel to the technology of electric circuitry represents one of the major shifts of all historical time." So, too, has the American people's commitment to bettered educational opportunity, coupled with the mid-century population surge, led to a quick and deep shift in the nation's historic educational structure, typified by the ascendance of the junior college. The study of the two-year college faculty "climate" conditions, and the means of enhancing them, as Roger H. Garrison has so brilliantly herein set forth, doubtless will prove to be a landmark delineation and critical appraisal. The basic questions articulated and the action conclusions posed should command the forward attention of all working toward, or concerned with, the future of America's "people's colleges," soon to be, perhaps, the largest segment of higher education. On behalf of the trustees and staff of United States Steel Foundation, Inc., it is my pleasure to record the sense of privilege experienced in being associated, from its inception, with Mr. Garrison's study and in providing the financial grant for its execution. It follows, of course, that the study content and the views expressed are those of the author; the Foundation did not participate in the content, procedures, or conclusions reached. VI The basic idea for sponsorship of the study project arose in a conference of the Foundation's staff. There followed enthusiastic directional guidance conferences with Edmund J. Gleazer, Jr., and his associates of the American Association of Junior Colleges which, in turn, led to the announcement by the Foundation trustees of the substantial grant required. By coincidence, a second foundation proposed almost simultaneously to finance a related study to be undertaken by the American Association of Junior Colleges. The foundations and the Association worked out the desired boundaries for the two grants, thereby expanding the utility of both of them. This coincidence is cited solely to emphasize the wisdom of improved communication among all types of donors toward the end of discovery of the most effective utilization of all private philanthropic resources for research and resolution of the manifold problems of the junior colleges. New York, New York W. Homer Turner Vice-President and Executive Director Introduction & 1 The genesis of this study of current issues and problems affecting the faculty member in junior colleges was the long-standing recognition by the American Association of Junior Colleges of the need to have more specific knowledge of faculty concerns than has been available. The Association intended that the study would appraise in some depth these faculty concerns; and from the appraisal, find bases for specific action programs for the benefit of faculty on the national level as well as in individual junior colleges; and further, that the study would identify needed areas of research to be conducted by universities and/or under educational research provisions of existing federal enactments. As the burgeoning junior college moves towards achieving its own special character within the framework of higher education, a range of unresolved issues continues to develop around the role of junior college faculty. There is, for example, the problem of a clear professional identity for those who teach in these institutions. And, with the rapid increase in both the number of colleges and the number of instructional personnel, the need to define these issues and problems becomes more acute. Accordingly, the Association proposed, as a practical first step, a sampling of representative faculty opinion in varied two-year colleges around the country. It was proposed that a qualified person conduct enough interviews with faculty that certain trends and common areas of concern could be pinpointed; 2 and that recommendations for further programs to assist faculty could be derived from this material. Such an approach was considered a positive beginning. The study was not designed to be a systematic appraisal-in-depth involving all junior colleges. This would have been a massive, long-term project, requiring extensive staff. Such a project was not felt to be necessary, especially since the kind of information to be sought was needed soon. Primarily, the viewpoints of faculty members themselves were to be looked for in such areas as academic rank; the role of the faculty in institutional policy making; appropriate professional affiliations; the teacher's "image" of his status in higher education; junior college teaching as a permanent career; opportunities for research and professional advancement in subject-matter field; faculty views about preparation for junior college teaching and in-service programs; the rewards and frustrations of junior college teaching; and commitments to teaching students with a wide range of abilities. These, and other areas of concern, perhaps not perceived at the beginning of the study were, to the degree possible, to be discovered and, where possible, interpreted. Further, it was the Association's intention that the scope of the study should go well beyond simply identifying problems. The ultimate value of this study will lie in the development and application of its recommendations for specific programs directed toward resolution of the problems discovered. Funds for this one-year study were provided by the United States Steel Foundation, Inc. It was the Association's opinion that the basic qualifications of a person to direct this project should include: (1) no less than five years of teaching experience in a junior college; (2) administrative experience (other than the presidency) or major teaching position in a junior college; or the position of academic dean or dean of instruction; (3) evidence of writing proficiency and the capacity to organize; (4) evidence of demonstrated leadership ability and competence relating to junior college faculty matters, through published articles, professional activities, responsible positions in junior college faculty organizations, participation in summer institutes or workshops. |