Office of Community College Research and Leadership

Office of Community College Research and Leadership Improving policies, programs & practices to enhance community college education & college transition.

As AI continues to reshape education and the workforce, community college leaders face important questions about how to ...
09/10/2026

As AI continues to reshape education and the workforce, community college leaders face important questions about how to prepare students for the future.

In this Voices & Viewpoints piece, Dr. Xinran Zhu argues that the focus should be less on specific AI tools and more on designing learning and work environments that expand human capacity. From AI literacy to workforce development, she explores what leadership looks like in the age of AI.

Read the article: https://occrl.illinois.edu/our-products/voices-and-viewpoints-detail/current-topics/2026/09/10/leadership-in-the-age-of-ai--designing-for-the-future-of-work-and-learning

Illinois community colleges are facing a changing higher education landscape, but they also have a unique opportunity to...
09/08/2026

Illinois community colleges are facing a changing higher education landscape, but they also have a unique opportunity to meet the state's workforce needs.

In a new Voices & Viewpoints blog post, Jim Reed, executive director of the Illinois Community College Trustees Association and pictured below, explains why community college baccalaureate degrees can help address workforce shortages, expand opportunities for working adults, and strengthen local economies across Illinois.

🔗 Read more: https://occrl.illinois.edu/our-products/voices-and-viewpoints-detail/current-topics/2026/09/08/community-college-baccalaureates--illinois--answer-to-the-enrollment-cliff

Building a more diverse STEM faculty workforce requires more than individual programs. It requires collaboration, sustai...
09/04/2026

Building a more diverse STEM faculty workforce requires more than individual programs. It requires collaboration, sustained partnerships, and a commitment to equity.

In our latest Voices & Viewpoints blog, OCCRL reflects on lessons learned from the NSF-funded Aspire Alliance Regional Collaboratives, which brought together community colleges, universities, and regional partners to strengthen pathways into STEM faculty careers.

The Summer 2026 issue of New Directions for Community Colleges explores:

✅ Teaching practica and mentorship opportunities for future faculty
✅ State and regional strategies for recruiting and supporting educators
✅ Partnerships that build more inclusive STEM faculty pipelines
✅ Institutional tools that help turn reflection into action

The issue concludes with a powerful message: advancing equity for STEM community college faculty requires collective movement, not isolated efforts.

Read the blog and access the full issue: https://occrl.illinois.edu/our-products/voices-and-viewpoints-detail/current-topics/2026/09/03/how-aspire-regional-collaboratives-are-reimagining-stem-faculty-pathways

🎓 Doctoral students: Do you have research that could shape the future of workforce education?The National Council for Wo...
09/03/2026

🎓 Doctoral students: Do you have research that could shape the future of workforce education?

The National Council for Workforce Education (NCWE) is accepting applications for the 2026 James Jacobs Scholarship Award, which recognizes outstanding doctoral research with the potential to strengthen workforce education policy and practice.

The scholarship recipient will be recognized at the NCWE Annual Conference, taking place October 20-22 in Palm Springs.

This opportunity, along with additional updates, resources, and news from across the field, is featured in today's Network News newsletter:

📖 https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/16/852443316.html

What makes program review truly meaningful?After five years working with Program Review Illinois, Dr. Jewel A. Bourne ha...
09/02/2026

What makes program review truly meaningful?

After five years working with Program Review Illinois, Dr. Jewel A. Bourne has come to a clear conclusion: the most important driver of improvement isn't a rubric, template, or reporting tool. It's relationships.

In her Voices & Viewpoints reflection, "Relationships as Infrastructure: Lessons from Five Years of Program Review," Jewel shares insights from working alongside community college practitioners across Illinois and explores how trust, collaboration, and peer learning transform program review from a compliance exercise into a catalyst for continuous improvement.

The article highlights practical strategies for strengthening connections among practitioners, including peer mentoring, communities of practice, and cross-college collaboration, all aimed at helping colleges better support students while advancing equity.

As Jewel writes, relationships are of course a nice addition to the work, but they are also the infrastructure that makes meaningful change possible.

📖 Read the piece: https://occrl.illinois.edu/our-products/voices-and-viewpoints-detail/current-topics/2026/08/31/relationships-as-infrastructure---lessons-from-five-years-of-program-review

🎉 Congratulations to OCCRL graduate research assistant Jeongsan Hwang on the publication of "Disability in Adult Educati...
08/28/2026

🎉 Congratulations to OCCRL graduate research assistant Jeongsan Hwang on the publication of "Disability in Adult Education: A Literature Review Since the Field's Inception" in Adult Education Quarterly, co-authored with Dr. Chang-kyu Kwon.

Their review examined disability-focused scholarship across three leading adult education journals and found that just 15 of 4,801 published articles centered on disability. The study highlights important opportunities to expand research, theory, and practice that support adults with disabilities as active learners and contributors.

This important work advances conversations around equity, inclusion, and lifelong learning in adult education.

📖 Read the article: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/07417136261466155

Who should have the greatest influence over K-12 education: the federal government or the states?In this Forum on the Fu...
08/26/2026

Who should have the greatest influence over K-12 education: the federal government or the states?

In this Forum on the Future of Public Education article, Karla Velasco examines one of the most significant shifts in modern U.S. education policy, from the highly prescriptive accountability measures of No Child Left Behind to the state-centered flexibility of the Every Student Succeeds Act. The piece explores how evolving approaches to governance, accountability, and educational equity continue to shape schools nationwide.

Read the article: https://publish.illinois.edu/forumarticles/from-federal-overreach-to-state-autonomy-the-shift-from-nclb-to-essa-in-u-s-education-policy/

OCCRL has released the PATH Evaluation Report, offering a comprehensive assessment of the Pipeline for the Advancement o...
08/25/2026

OCCRL has released the PATH Evaluation Report, offering a comprehensive assessment of the Pipeline for the Advancement of the Healthcare Workforce (PATH) program.

The report examines participant outcomes, equity-focused goals, workforce diversification efforts, program implementation, and student experiences. Drawing on surveys, focus groups, interviews, program documents, and student success stories, the evaluation provides valuable insights into how PATH is supporting healthcare career pathways across Illinois.

Learn more about PATH and read the report: https://tinyurl.com/4bssxsp6

Who gets to shape the future of public education?In the article "Local School Councils: The Impact of Participatory Gove...
08/24/2026

Who gets to shape the future of public education?

In the article "Local School Councils: The Impact of Participatory Governance in Chicago Public Schools," Karla Velasco examines Chicago's unique model of school governance, where parents, educators, students, and community members play a direct role in decisions that affect their schools.

The article explores how Local School Councils have expanded community participation, increased representation for Latinx families, and contributed to school improvement efforts across Chicago.

Read the piece here: https://publish.illinois.edu/forumarticles/local-school-councils-the-impact-of-participatory-governance-in-chicago-public-schools/

What role do you feel local communities should play in shaping educational policy and practice?

Under a symbol of growth and connection, OCCRL staff gathered yesterday at the I Hotel and Conference Center for our Fal...
08/21/2026

Under a symbol of growth and connection, OCCRL staff gathered yesterday at the I Hotel and Conference Center for our Fall 2026 Staff Retreat, strengthening relationships and shaping priorities for the year ahead.

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