Seamless transition in the 21st century: Partnering to survive and thrive.

摘要

This study examines the collaborative process by which a premier engineering university sought to establish strategic partnerships with a select group of community colleges. Specifically, it focuses on the development and implementation of one strategic partnership in particular in which both the espoused and enacted common goal is to improve transition of students from the two-year to the four-year institution. Another important dimension involves ties not only between the institutions but also with business and industry largely due to the unique nature of the co-operative education component of the engineering university. Both institutions reside in the same economically ravaged city. Yet another dimension of the strategic partnership involves heightened levels of interaction with the surrounding community.; Although the literature speaks of the promise, as well as the challenges, of collaborative undertakings, it is virtually silent on clear definitions of the various forms. It is hoped that this study has provided at least the beginnings of a working definition of "strategic partnership."; The study relies on case study methodology to examine the collaborative process. Interviews, direct observation, and document analysis yielded important insights into the nuances and intricacies of working together. In addition, the study utilizes negotiated order theory and Kanter's model of innovation as theoretical frameworks for understanding how the strategic partnership came about and how it might transfer to other contexts.; The key findings suggest that several factors contributed to the success of the collaborative effort: a significant environmental motive, shared perception about a common goal, the capacity to develop infrastructure through negotiation, the ability to create interdependence among stakeholders, the transformation of faculty as they began to develop a cosmopolitan attitude, and the centrality of a champion. Although the development and implementation of the collaborative model presents challenges, it also offers higher education faculty, administrators, and policymakers with the means by which to improve institutional effectiveness. By working together, institutions can better respond to the complex problems now facing higher education. The era of independence and institutional autonomy has passed. The collaborative model described within is built on interdependence and integration. It is hoped that lessons learned from one collaborative undertaking would be applied to others, thus creating an increasingly successful model for responding to the issues and challenges inherent in the current environment of higher education.