Preparing for governance: orientation strategies of illinois community college boards of trustees

This research focused on gaining insight into orientation programs for trustee members at Illinois community colleges for the purpose of developing their skills as governance leaders. Orientation programs inform and prepare new trustees to function in board meetings, making financial and strategic decisions for their community college. In Illinois, trustees are elected and represent their constituency as stewards of that public trust and typically do not have prior experience with higher education systems or governance. The purpose of this study is to identify the content and successful implementation strategies of orientation programs preparing Illinois community college trustees to lead their institutions successfully as an effective governing body.
This qualitative case study employed purposeful sampling with multiple data sources used for a robust insight of the study purpose. The findings reveal Illinois community colleges vary in the time allocated to board orientation and in the depth to which these programs are able to delve. All colleges in the study place value on conducting board orientation programs, and most conduct a single session in a lecture format. The volume of information as revealed in orientation documents that new trustees are expected to process in a short time is overwhelming, delaying the trustees’ ability to function at a high level until their second or third board meeting.
As a result of the findings, the Seiler Transformational Board Orientation Model is presented. The model guides orientation in trustee-centered learning to develop governing potential. The model recommends conducting orientation in a multiple-session format throughout the year, adding meaning to the information by connecting the orientation to the board calendar.