The problems posed by the ever-changing environments in which community college leaders work place great demands on their capacity to understand and analyze problems related to personnel management, organizational development, adult learning, technology, community relations, facilities, finance, and (not least) personal development.The Door That Never Closes: Continuing Education Needs of Community College Leaders Joseph N. Hunkin Wanted: Educator with doctorate, evidence of being on top of current-day issues, and possession of the following attributes: ability to capitalize on ambiguity, ability to anticipate situations, a proactive orientation to problems, knowledge of how organizations work, experience in mentoring others to leadership, and experience in creating structures and bureaucracies that make things happen. In addition, the candidate will have demonstrated skills in program planning, decision making, marketing, communications, financial planning, fiscal management, psychology, sociology, statistical analysis, and strategic planning. He or she will be skilled in conflict resolution, stress management, listening, and delegation and organization. He or she will be tactful but firm, react well to frustration, and demonstrate social sensitivity. Other attributes to be discussed. Does this advertisement sound fantastic? Perhaps so, but increasingly, this is the kind of person search committees and institutions seek. Of course, no one person can fulfill all attributes equally, but rarely does the employng body take the position that all the skills must be represented collectively among members of the leadership team rather than individually within the person of the president. Search committees expect a superman or superwoman! In the face of these expectations, many newly minted administrators bewail the fact that their graduate education programs have not prepared them for the real world. They have been exposed to standard courses and content, but rarely to current issues in collective bargaining, sexual harassment, administrative ethics, and other vital areas. Moreover, other, more subtle, skills and NEW DIRECTIONS FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGES, no. 95. Fall 1996 8 Josscy-Bass Publishers 37
