Professional Development Planning Tools for Community College Administrators
Why Do I Need a Plan?
John P. Murray, an associate professor
of higher education at Texas Tech University, summarizes
his and others' research on faculty professional development
planning in his article, "Faculty Development in
SACS-Accredited Community Colleges" [Community
College Review Spring 2002]:
"We noticed that many faculty development programs
lack focused goals and objectives and are often little
more than menus of loosely connected efforts. Although
a well formed faculty development plan recognizes that
many diverse activities are needed over a long period
of time, it also recognizes that these activities must
be united around a common institutional mission--the
systemic, demonstrable, and highly regarded improvement
of teaching."
He goes on to quote researchers Richardson and Wolferton:
“Professional development opportunities for faculty members in high-performing institutions were linked in systematic ways to institutional priorities. In several lower-performing districts, faculty had no clear sense of priorities.”
How Do I Create a Plan?
NC-NET’s professional development planning tools for college administrators comprise a three-step process. Each tool (step) is listed below as well as the approximate time it may take you to complete the individual steps. The process will work most effectively if you complete the steps in the order in which they are listed.
Step 1–
Identifying and Analyzing Your Institution’s Demographics
Approximate time to complete: 5-15 minutes, depending on the type of demographics you choose to examine
Step 2–
Analyzing
Your Current Professional Development Program and Identifying
Desired Goals
Approximate time to complete: 10-20 minutes, depending
on knowledge of current professional development activities
and requirements at your college
Step 3–
Goal
Setting and Budgeting Worksheets
Approximate time to complete: Will vary. Worksheet templates
in both Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word format are
available for download. You may choose to complete the
worksheets on your own or assemble a staff team and
complete them as a group.
