Thriving and Surviving on Campus

Bob Jensen has worked at "big & small" institutions, at all levels, in both Student Services and Instructional Services. He has been privileged to work with great colleagues to learn from and serve Community and Students, always trying to improve the Institution and build on its strengths. He believes "good leadership" can make a difference, one reason he wrote this book. Ray Giles had a 40-year career in the community colleges, working at four different districts as well as two statewide community college associations. He ended his career as director of a national community college consulting firm.

Contents



Preface

Terminology Used in This Book



Chapter 1: What Am I Getting Into? Choices and Personal Decisions



The First Management Experience

Sidebar:Who is More Powerful?

The Next Step: Climbing the Organizational Ladder

The Big Step: President and CEO

The Difference Between Being President and Being CEO

CEO/President of a Single-College District

Sidebar: Advantages and Disadvantages

Chancellor of a Multi-College or Multi-Campus College District

Sidebar: Multi-College District – Advantages and Disadvantages

Sidebar: Multi-Campus College District – Advantages and Disadvantages

President in a Multi-Campus College or Multi-College District

Sidebar: Advantages and Disadvantages

The Single-College District

The Multi-College District

Sidebar:Multi-College and Single-College Districts: Issues for administrators to consider

Sidebar:RAM and “Bucket” Budget Models

The Multi-Campus College District

The Nomadic Lifestyle

Sidebar:To Move or Not to Move

Are Small-Town Politics Really Easier?

Sidebar:Working at a Small-Town College

Commuter Marriages

Sidebar:The Sting

Chapter 2: Thriving and Surviving on the Job



What Administrators Really Do

Building Career Bridges

Watch What You Say or Do…

Winning Characteristics

There is No “Middle” in Middle Management

Sidebar:Now get out there and stretch

Division and Department Leadership

Communication on Campus

Sidebar:Bring Options, Not Just Problems

Instituting Change: Everyone Is a Leader

Sidebar:The Lessons of the COVID epidemic (and other disasters)

Hiring and Managing a Consultant

Sidebar: A Unique Way to Use a Trusted Outside Advisor

Adjusting to a Changing of the Guard

Chapter 3: Institutional Politics



Peer Bullies

Sidebar: The 10/90 Rule

The Importance of Loyalty

Sidebar:Don’t Forget Support Staff

Can It Pass the “Do You Want Your Loved Ones to Know” Test?

Shared Governance: The Contradiction We Love to Hate

Sidebar:Peer Review, Faculty Cop-Out

Chapter 4: Presidential Issues



Call of the Headhunter

Sidebar:Multiple Paths to a Presidency

Finding a Good Fit

Your First Contract

Working Out the Board-CEO Working Relationship

Assessing the Board

Care and Feeding of the Board

The First 100 Days on the Job

Picking Your Team

Building Your Own Faculty Leadership

Sidebar:Leaving a Legacy

The Theory of Political Capital

Ignorance is Bliss, Sometimes

Trustee Election Politics

Votes of No Confidence

Can You Hear the Posse Coming?

Chapter 5: Not For Trustees Only



Becoming a Trustee

Starting Off on the Right Foot

Rabbits Carrying the Lettuce

Pick Up the Phone

Presentations to the Board

Selecting the Board Chair

Keeping a Good CEO

Evaluating the CEO

Sidebar:Suggested Steps for Developing a CEO Evaluation Process

When It’s Time to Make a Change

Sidebar:When a CEO becomes ill or incapable of doing the job

Selecting a New CEO

Sidebar:Does Your District Need a Search Consultant?

Sidebar:Rule #1: Stay Involved

Sidebar:Do We Need An Interim CEO?

Ten Truths of Community College Leadership



About the Authors