Judgment of Compliance: The College certifies COMPLIANCE.

Narrative:

Wayne Community College Policy on Professional Development

Wayne Community College (WCC) has a comprehensive professional development program that is dedicated to the development of both employees and the organization. The program's extensive annual offerings of professional development activities for instructors and staff are planned, administered, and evaluated by a broadly representative fourteen-member Professional Development Committee (CPM 07-0101, Professional Development Program).

WCC is dedicated to encouraging professional development and to providing opportunities for all its faculty and staff to assess their own development needs, determine individual goals, and plan and implement effective programs of personal and professional growth. Each year, all employees are encouraged to include professional development objectives in their annual performance appraisal plan. Although maintaining professional development is largely an individual responsibility, various WCC policies, procedures, recurring activities, and funding sources are in place to assist employees in their goals and to institutionalize the importance of this value (WCC Board Policy 07-01).

The college's goal to "Enhance the performance of faculty and staff through learning opportunities and incentives" and the strategic area of emphasis to enhance instructor/staff competencies are satisfied by a comprehensive program of professional development activities designed to promote the personal and professional growth of all institutional employees (WCC 2005-2010 Strategic Plan Guide, Goal 3: Strategic Areas of Emphasis).

Planning and Oversight – WCC Professional Development Committee

The Office of Planning and Research administers the Professional Development Program. Administration and oversight are conducted via an interdisciplinary Professional Development Committee (PDC) that assists in the planning, development, operation, and decisions of the program. The director of the PDC is the Director of the Office of Planning and Research. The position of the PDC Chair rotates every year and is held by a faculty member. The committee normally meets monthly (PDC 2001, 02, 03 minutes).

Together, members of the PDC collect college data on staff development needs; plan annual professional development activities, including faculty and staff training seminars/workshops; review/approve individual professional development requests; and assess the activity results. Each department plans for the professional development of its employees in its annual planning and budget review. However, individuals can apply for additional funds through the PDC to cover unforeseen or supplemental professional development travel/training, such as the pursuit of formal coursework or degrees, travel to other community colleges or professional meetings, or attendance at professional conferences/training seminars/courses.

The PDC is normally allocated an annual budget of approximately $20,000 and provides funds in the following fiscal categories:

• Restricted Faculty Upgrade Allotment Program: Provides learning experiences in technical skills and retraining programs.
• Faculty/Staff Upgrade Allotment Program (funded by the North Carolina Community College System Office): Provides for a variety of professional development activities; however, at least one-third of the annual allocation must fund Return-To-Industry activities. The PDC reviews the professional development requests and allocates the funds until all of the appropriated money is spent.
• Return-To-Industry: Provides on-the-job-training and hands-on experiences in business and industry.
• Carl Perkins Federal Vocational Education Funds (Local Plan): Provides for various professional development opportunities directly related to improving the quality of vocational and technical education programs, services, and activities offered by the college. The PDC reviews the requests and awards the funds for this federally funded grant.

Updates on faculty professional development activities and expenditures are reported to the North Carolina Community College System Office at the end of the academic year (NCCCS Faculty-Staff Upgrade Reports 2001, 02, 03).

Professional Development Activities

The Office of Planning and Research and the PDC oversee a number of activities that provide professional development opportunities for faculty and staff:

Workshops & Seminars. When a professional development need is identified that affects enough employees, the administration and/or PDC seeks to provide that training internally through existing staff or by employing an external consultant to conduct a workshop or seminar. Participant evaluation on the value of the workshop or seminar is collected and shared with the PDC. The workshops listed below are examples of professional development activities that have been hosted on campus and open to all WCC employees. The links provide details on participants and evaluations of each workshops.

How to Deal with Difficult People (January 29, 2003)
Just Bend the Nail: Learning Styles for Students (March 18, 2003)
Critical Thinking (October 13, 2003)
Techniques to Improve Student Learning: Connecting CATs (Classroom Assessment Techniques) and COLTs (Collaborative Learning Techniques) (March 25, 2004)

Staff Development Tuition Assistance Program. Through the Professional Development Program, employees may receive tuition assistance for coursework undertaken at other institutions of higher learning. The Tuition Assistance Program is open to full-time, part-time (employed 30 hours per week at ¾ prorated amount), and continuing part-time (employed on a nine-month contract) faculty and staff. Funding is dispersed under the Professional Development Program upon review and approval of the PDC. Depending on the availability of funds, employees may be reimbursed up to $400.00 per fiscal year for tuition, books, and fees. Reimbursement of tuition and fees is contingent upon completion of the course with the grade of a "C" or better and completion of a staff development evaluation form (CPM 07-0104, Tuition Assistance).

Professional Development Special Projects & Grants. Periodically, WCC will seek external grants to establish special campus-wide projects related to professional development. These grants are generally initiated by a grant writer associated with the Office of Planning and Research. If the grant is awarded, the grant writer monitors its progress, and the Director of Planning and Research provides regular updates on its implementation to the PDC. For example, in 2004, WCC was awarded a $24,000 Carl Perkins Federal Vocational Technical Education Professional Development Grant. Under this grant, a special project with two training components was planned and implemented. One is entitled "Enhancing Instructional Skills Training Program" (EISTP), and the other is "Web-Based Instructional Technology Training." This project provides for the year-long modular training of all new instructors (full and part-time) in the instructional skills necessary to effectively motivate the adult learner and to succeed in the community college environment. The modules also provide group and one-on-one technology training for new instructors and vocational/educational instructors.

Additional Professional Development Activities

A number of additional professional development opportunities are available to faculty and staff through programs other than the Professional Development Program. While the Director of Planning and Research makes sure that all employees have access to information about these additional activities, neither he nor the PDC plans, implements, nor monitors them.

Tuition Free Courses. Full-time college faculty and staff may enroll in one curriculum or extension course per semester in the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) without having to pay tuition or registration fees. Class attendance during normal work hours is allowable but must be arranged through one's supervisor and must provide reasonable enhancement of one's duties as evidenced by an approved planning objective (CPM 02-0228, Tuition).

Educational Leave with Pay. Educational leave refers to an official release from duties or time normally required of a full-time employee to carry out his/her assigned duties in order to pursue a formal education program. If this leave is granted, the college will pay the individual his/her salary during the agreed upon leave time.

Educational Support Technology Office (Technology Training/ Distance Learning). This office helps faculty integrate technology into instructional delivery by providing classes and tutorials on programs such as PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat 6.0, FrontPage, Photoshop, etc. These training sessions are available to faculty on a continuing basis throughout the year. In addition, one-on-one distance learning instruction also provides year-round Blackboard training for faculty.

Semi-Annual New Faculty/Staff Orientation. WCC provides a comprehensive semi-annual new faculty and staff orientation program that covers essential school policies. Both full and part-time employees attend. In addition, each new employee is assigned a mentor to ensure a smooth transition into his/her respective job.

Recognition of Professional Development

Staff Development Newsletter. WCC places great value on the pursuit of professional development and recognizes that the acknowledgement of individual achievement is vital. Each spring the PDC Chair develops and distributes a college-wide staff development newsletter. The Chair seeks input from the PDC and from all employees across campus to highlight instances of professional development. The newsletter also serves to motivate all employees to continue to seek out additional professional development opportunities.

Integration of Professional Development into Annual Employee Evaluations. The importance of professional development is also reflected in the annual employee feedback and evaluation process. Each year in June and/or July, supervisors and subordinates meet formally to set goals for the upcoming year. Although performance appraisal is based primarily on one's job description, the establishment of professional development goals is also key to this process. Effective with the 2004-05 academic years and, as a result of significant improvements and revisions to the WCC faculty and staff performance appraisal process, the reference to professional development activities on the evaluation forms was changed from "recommended professional development activities" to "professional development goals." The supervisor and employee use this form as a tool to discuss and to plan professional development opportunities throughout the upcoming year. Employees then report on the attainment of these goals with their supervisors at the end of the year.

Salary Increases Related to Professional Development. When an individual completes the requirements for a degree included in his/her professional development plan and is approved through the WCC Salary Administration Program process, he/she may be granted a salary increase. Salary adjustments are made at the beginning of the following fiscal year and are subject to the availability of funds. Annual increases for twelve-month employees are determined as follows:

Evaluation of Professional Development

The PDC regularly evaluates professional development activities by tracking Professional Development Travel expenditures and by collecting and reviewing the staff development evaluation forms all participants must complete when they finish a sponsored activity. The evaluation form asks the participant to assess how the activity has enhanced his/her effectiveness in his/her area and benefited students. The information garnered from these assessments has led to the creation of new courses, improvements in current courses, and changes in curricula.

In April 2004, the PDC administered a professional development activities survey-inventory to all college employees to assess individual levels of participation in professional development activities since 2001. Specific results from this assessment are attached. A total of 105 full-time and 26 part-time faculty completed the survey and reported their participation in eleven different types of professional development pportunities.

In late Fall 2001, the North Carolina Community College System contracted with the Center for Occupational Research and Development to develop and conduct a web-based professional development survey and to evaluate the results. Approximately 1600 curriculum faculty and 450 administrators from the 58 community colleges in North Carolina participated in the survey. For the purpose of this compliance certification, 69 faculty (64 full time and 5 part-time) participated in this survey. In October 2002, the NCCCS published a report titled Framework for the Future: Professional Development Needs among North Carolina Community Colleges discussing the results of the survey along with recommendations for future planning.

WCC's policy on professional development is primarily voluntary as opposed to mandated professional development in many other community colleges. The data from the NCCCS report, however, places WCC very much in line with the state's percentages. This similarity suggests that a mandatory versus voluntary institutional policy on professional development may have little effect on the quantity and quality of professional development activities. Certainly, the college's supportive professional environment and recognition of each individual's professional responsibility to stay current as a teacher, scholar, and practitioner have resulted in a strong, active professional development program. Faculty and staff take advantage of the opportunities available and neither need nor want a mandatory policy defining the required professional development activity hours one must accumulate in an academic year. The only mandatory element is the annual employee professional development goals which are now part of each employee's annual performance appraisal.

The WCC Procedures Manual clearly explains that the responsibility for planning professional growth and development rests with the individual employee while the institution's role is to provide conditions conducive to the participation of faculty in such activities. That the college has fulfilled this role is evident in WCC professional development policies, procedures, recurring activities, and funding sources. A variety of documented assessment portfolios also speak favorably to the institution's support in this area.