Recruiting and Retaining Higher Education Leaders for the Rural Community College “Lifestyle”

Abstract

A significant amount of recent research and media coverage has focused on the challenges related to K–12 teacher shortages, particularly in rural regions of the United States. Far less research, however, has been conducted on the challenges faced by rural community colleges related to recruiting and retaining both academic and professional personnel. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to understand how current rural community college leaders are perceiving and addressing these challenges regarding recruitment and retention of personnel. A total of eight senior leaders in rural community colleges or state oversight agencies throughout one Mountain West state were interviewed. Through their experiences and insight, the authors synthesized their collective concerns to construct various promising practices on how to employ and hold on to personnel at rural community colleges.