Award Date

1-1-1981

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Educational Administration and Higher Education

Number of Pages

196

Abstract

This research analyzed administrative response to unsatisfactory faculty performance at 158 Western public community colleges. Participating administrators completed a questionnaire which described nine personnel situations involving unsatisfactory faculty performance. The situations differed as to the length of employment, tenure status, racial background, and political influence of the faculty member; Chi square analysis was used to analyze responses to the nine personnel situations based upon seven institutional variables determined from the questionnaire. Participants were also asked to enclose a copy of their current personnel policy manual. Seventy-six documents were received; Results were as follows: (1) A very narrow range of strategies was used by administrators when confronted with unsatisfactory faculty. Dismissal and counseling were the most frequently employed methods. (2) Dismissal was the strategy of choice in situations describing clearly documented incompetence. Respondents were somewhat less likely to choose this strategy if a minority faculty member or a politically influential faculty member were involved. (3) Counseling was preferred for recently tenured faculty who had become unresponsive, or for unsatisfactory faculty who had been with the institution for many years and had a history of satisfactory performance. (4) No statistically significant differences in administrative response to unsatisfactory faculty performance were found based upon institutional size or history of dismissals within the last five years. (5) Administrators from campuses with tenure were more likely to choose the dismissal response for untenured, unsatisfactory faculty who had been at the college two to three years than were administrators from institutions which did not grant tenure. When the unsatisfactory faculty member was tenured in the same situation, the administrators from institutions with tenure were more likely to select the counseling approach than administrators from non-tenure granting institutions. (6) Nearly 89 percent of the colleges reported that they had written personnel policies. Only 13 colleges reported a lack of written personnel policies. (7) Nearly 72 percent of the surveyed colleges reported faculty dismissals within the last five years. (8) Only two respondents reported unsuccessful dismissal attempts. (9) Sixteen documents addressed the unsatisfactory performer. Thirteen of these documents described professional improvement plans.

Keywords

Administrative; Colleges; Community; Faculty; Performance; Response; Selected; Unsatisfactory; Western

Controlled Subject

Community colleges

File Format

pdf

File Size

5652.48 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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