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The 1990's may well be characterized as the decade of renewal. For community colleges, the process of renewal will entail refocusing the mission and redefining the culture of two-year institutions as part of a nationwide attempt to restructure our approach to higher education. But, is it possible to modify both college mission and culture? Since change has become the hallmark of contemporary society, we have the unenviable task of managing the process or being overwhelmed by it. Managing change in this period of restructuring should begin with an examination of organizational values. Values clarification, in turn, starts with a review of institutional purpose. An assessment of purpose allows all groups within an institution to develop insights regarding organizational beliefs; orientation toward clients; treatment of human, fiscal, and physical assets; and salience of mission. The assessment process, which should include a review of college practices that effect the teaching/learning environment, supports the institutional community in redesigning and reordering the processes, procedures, and systems that comprise culture. Once the redefinition of organizational purpose is established, culture will reform itself around the redefined purpose. The new system evolves by establishing a shared vision of the future. Researchers suggest that if institutional values are clear, shared, and affirmed in action, personnel are likely to trust the organization and work to implement its stated purposes. (JMC)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert