A study of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System's Leadership Development Institute and the impact of participation

Begun in 2001, the Leadership Development Institute (LDI) was created by the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) as a means of improving the leadership abilities of faculty, staff, and administrative personnel throughout the system, a “grow your own” leadership program (Leadership Development, 2006). LDI has evolved into a nine-month program of presentations, lectures, mentoring, self-exploration activities, and internships. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to determine the impact of participation in LDI on the career and educational goals of former cohort members. Phase One of this research project, the qualitative portion of the study, was composed of individual interviews with 5% of located former LDI cohort members. The interviews were completed over the phone so as to allow for participation by former LDI participants located throughout the state of Louisiana. The qualitative portion of the research and a thorough review of the literature provided the basis for the Leadership Development Long-term Impact Survey (LDLIS) that was developed by the researcher. The second phase of the research, the quantitative phase, was the administration of the LDLIS to all identified LDI former cohort members. The survey results were tabulated and indicate that LDI participation does significantly impact the career goals of former cohort members. Although the results for educational goals were not significant, a positive impact was noted. The following information could be used to develop new or improve existing leadership programs for community college or university leaders.