Progress 10/01/01 to 09/30/04
Outputs
The goal for the final year of this three year federally funded research project was to publish a journal article articulating a platform from which community colleges could design mentoring programs on their campuses that would support career and professional development. The journal article has been accepted for publication by the Community College Review. The article was composed by building on the first year results that provided an inventory of current mentoring programs in NYS community colleges to get a lay of the landscape, what programs are offered, what do they look like, how are they funded and/supported institutionally, and so forth. Second year results were used to describe the why and how of the inventory quantitative characterizations of the structure and nature of mentoring programs and relationships. We sought to provide a description of participants perceptions and attitudes of the mentoring relationship how they perceive the relationship from their
individual perspectives and role. The purpose of this inquiry was based on the knowledge that mentoring has been shown to be one of the most beneficial aspects of having a successful career. Most of the research has been conducted, however, in the business sector. The research that has been done in higher education is most often limited to four year colleges. There is relatively little research that has been conducted in the community college context. Of the research that has been conducted, it focuses on top leadership roles and less on mid level administration or faculty. Community colleges realize the inherent value of offering mentoring programs on their campuses but are not as well versed in knowing what sort of program to offer their employees. Our inquiry purposely explored questions about the mentoring relationship, how mentoring supports professional development, and ways in which mentees would change or enhance their mentoring relationship if they were to do it over or were
to design a program in an effort to eventually offer community colleges a research based program design to meet their need of mentoring programs designed more specifically for their context. We used Kram's (1985) delineation of mentoring functions, which she categorizes as career or psychosocial functions. We used these two overall categories as theoretical sensitizing concepts in a qualitative, inductive analysis. This study summarizes the major themes that emerged from the data that tell us how mentees perceive and interpret the benefits of being in a mentoring relationship. An analysis of perceptions allowed us to formulate a platform from which to design mentoring programs on community college campuses that would support career and professional development.
Impacts
Community colleges are in need of understanding how mentoring relationships and formal mentoring work best in their context. This project has allowed us to explore the various aspects of mentoring in community colleges that participants define as working the best in providing mentoring programs with strong institutional support. Strong institution support is defined as providing the resources and materials to carry on mentoring relationships that participants have access to and the choice of how-to information that are not mandated requirements of how to function in a mentoring relationship or participating in a formal mentoring program on their campuses. This finding is somewhat counterintuitive to the mentoring literature, especially, the handbooks available on program design for formal mentoring programs.
Publications
- Hopkins & Grigoriu. 2005. Mentoring Community College Faculty and Staff: Balancing Contradiction of Informal Program Components and Formal Program Structure. Community College Review. In press.
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Progress 01/01/03 to 12/31/03
Outputs
The goal for the second year of this research project was to produce a description of the function of the mentoring relationship in community colleges that offered formal mentoring programs. We built on the first year results that provided an inventory of current mentoring programs in NYS community colleges to get a lay of the landscape (what programs are offered, what do they look like, how are they funded and/supported institutionally,etc.). For the second year we focused on the why and how of the inventory quantitative characterizations of the structure and nature of mentoring programs and relationships. We sought to provide a description of participants perceptions and attitudes of the mentoring relationship, that is, how they perceive the relationship from their individual perspectives and role. The purpose of this inquiry is based on the knowledge that mentoring has been shown to be one of the most beneficial aspects of having a successful career. Most of the
research has been conducted, however, in the business sector. The research that has been done in higher education is most often limited to four-year colleges. There is relatively little research that has been conducted in the community college context. Of the research that has been conducted, it focuses on top leadership roles and less on mid level administration or faculty. Community colleges realize the inherent value of offering mentoring programs on their campuses but are not as well versed in knowing what sort of program to offer their employees. Our inquiry purposely explored questions about the mentoring relationship, how mentoring supports professional development, and ways in which mentees would change or enhance their mentoring relationship if they were to do it over or were to design a program in an effort to eventually offer community colleges a research based program design to meet their need of mentoring programs designed more specifically for their context. We used
Krams (1985) delineation of mentoring functions, which she categorizes as career or psychosocial functions. Career functions refer to such things as coaching, protection, sponsorship, challenging assignments, and so forth. Psychosocial functions refer to such things as role modeling, counseling, friendship, acceptance and confirmation. We used these two overall categories as theoretical sensitizing concepts in a qualitative, inductive analysis. Such an approach allowed us to confirm empirically a consistency with Krams mentoring functions and allowed new information to emerge that we were not anticipating. For example, we were not expecting to find the distinction interviewees make between formal institutional support and informal program structure. This study summarizes the major themes that emerged from the data that tell us how mentees perceive and interpret the benefits of being in a mentoring relationship. An analysis of perceptions allowed us to formulate a platform from which
to design mentoring programs on community college campuses that would support career and professional development. Article in final stages for publibation in referred journal. Presented at an international conference.
Impacts
Community colleges are in need of understanding how mentoring relationships and formal mentoring work best in their context. This project has allowed us to explore the various aspects of mentoring in community colleges that participants define as working the best in providing mentoring programs with strong institutional support. Strong institution support is defined as providing the resources and materials to carry on mentoring relationships but participants have access to and the choice of how-to information that are not mandated requirements of how to function in a mentoring relationship or participating in a formal mentoring program on their campuses. This finding is somewhat counterintuitive to the mentoring literature, especially, the handbooks available on program design for formal mentoring programs.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 01/01/02 to 12/31/02
Outputs
This is a three year research project of which the first year has been completed and has culminated in an ICCD published research brief. The objective of the first year was to develop an inventory of current mentoring programs in the New York State community colleges. As part of its mission to support community college development, the Institute for Community College Development (ICCD) with the Department of Education, Cornell University, inventoried current professional development mentoring programs within the State University of New York (SUNY) and the City University of New York (CUNY) community college systems. Beginning in Fall 2001, ICCD contacted all SUNY and CUNY community colleges and identified 18 mentoring programs serving either faculty or staff. Each program director was asked to provide ICCD with information about the program's purpose, organization, process, and perceived outcomes. Thirteen programs responded to the questionnaire or to open ended
interviews conducted by telephone or in face-to-face settings. Some programs provided additional documents such as program guidelines, program training materials and governance statements outlining program policies and requirements
Impacts
The results of the first year's inventory are meant to inform the remiaining two years of the project. The inventory provides valuable quantitative information about formal/informal mentoring programs and relationships, expectations of mentor and mentee, the type of relationship (career and psychosocial), and variables that appear to be conducive to successful programs and mentoring relationships. These data will inform, to some extent, the second year of a qualitative study to uncover the 'how' and 'why' of what works and what creates roadblocks to successful mentoring relationships. The two types of data available to us will allow us to design and implement researched based program offerings and consulting services to community colleges in New York State after the third year.
Publications
- Hopkins, R., & Grigoriu, E. 2002. Mentoring Provides Professional Development for Faculty and Staff in SUNY and CUNY Community Colleges. The Catalyst: Inquiry for Change. The Institute for Community College Development, Cornell University. (This publication is available on-line in a pdf file at:http://www.iccd.cornell.edu (Research - Research Briefs - Mentoring Provides Professional Development). Sept.
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