Community College Presidents and Campus Safety: Perspectives on Critical Issues

Authors

Chad C. Sartini, Virginia TechFollow
Dennis E. Gregory, Old Dominion UniversityFollow
Kim E. Bullington, Old Dominion UniversityFollow
Mitchell Williams, Old Dominion UniversityFollow
Joshua Howell, College of the AlbemarleFollow
William L. Nuckols, Old Dominion UniversityFollow
Minghui Hou, Old Dominion UniversityFollow

Abstract

Community college presidents must understand the phenomenon of campus safety. For this mixed-methods study, community college presidents in one state were surveyed, and three presidents from the same community college system participated in in-depth interviews. Descriptive statistics measured the levels community college presidents’ knowledge and perceptions on campus safety. The in-depth interviews provided a deeper understanding of the connections between community college presidents and campus safety.

Overall, the results show that campus safety is important to community college presidents, who believe that, overall, their institutions are safe. We found that community college presidents believe they should be proactive and reinforce values that promote and prioritize campus safety, follow regulations, and provide sufficient resources to ensure campus safety measures. However, inadequate funding also plays a role in what can be allocated, and community college presidents voiced that they were concerned about promoting safety in the face of declining budgets and resources.

Recommended Citation

Sartini, C. C., Gregory, D. E., Bullington, K. E., Williams, M., Howell, J., Nuckols, W. L., & Hou, M. (2023). Community College Presidents and Campus Safety: Perspectives on Critical Issues. Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges, 26 (1). Retrieved from https://commons.vccs.edu/inquiry/vol26/iss1/4