Crowder College Guiding Principles

Mission
Building a civil, serving, literate, learning community of responsible citizens.

Vision
Changing lives and strengthening communities – one person at a time.

Philosophy
The Crowder College family lives by the principles of servant leadership.  The faculty and staff believe modeling leadership through service creates an environment of academic excellence and encourages our students to lead by serving in their communities.

Values

We are passionate about making a difference.
We care about one another.
We cultivate curiosity and innovation.
We respect diverse perspectives.
We learn from our mistakes.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Vision
To accomplish our mission of building a civil, serving, literate, learning community of responsible citizens, Crowder College is committed to fostering an environment of respect, equity, and inclusion.  Crowder College will provide civic engagement opportunities; thus, forging a diverse society and globally connected world.

To reach this vision, Crowder College will:

• encourage curricular, cocurricular, and professional development activities that prepare stakeholders for informed citizenship and workplace success.
• demonstrate inclusive and equitable treatment of diverse populations.
• respect all students, faculty, and staff from a range of diverse backgrounds, ideas and perspectives.
• model inclusive and equitable treatment of diverse populations in the community.
• support and empower faculty, staff, and the community to share ideas, opinions and ways of thinking.

Organizational Structure and Shared Governance
The Board of Trustees of Crowder College is committed to fostering collaboration, communication, and access to information among its faculty, staff, students, and stakeholders.  The organizational structure of the College is one based on the principles of shared governance.

Administration of policy and management of day-to-day operations are responsibilities of the administrative team under the direction of the College President. The administration believes that operational responsibility, budget development and control, and authority to manage assigned responsibilities should be delegated to the appropriate level, and strives to make the decision-making process one of broad discussion and participation.

As part of its system of shared governance, the College has developed a committee structure designed to include input from a majority of employees. The structure involves the use of leadership, division, and standing committees as well as the establishment of action teams as needed to work on specific assignments.

Institutional Learning Outcomes
Communication and Information Literacy Skills
Students will be able to demonstrate the ability to express ideas and information effectively and disseminate appropriate information.

Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills
Students will be able to gather and synthesize relevant information, evaluate alternatives, and implement creative and effective solutions.

Civic Responsibility and Ethical Reasoning Skills
Students will be able to understand and articulate the various perspectives of ethical issues and understand ways they can exercise responsible citizenship in response to their learning.

Collaboration Skills
Students will be able to apply leadership principles and strategies to enhance personal and professional growth and demonstrate teamwork skills that enable collaboration.

revised: 1/12/2023