'You know how it works, it is a dance, an art, not a science': A qualitative study on decision making by public two-year college presidents

The purpose of this study is to explore the decision making processes of public two-year college presidents. This research examines the factors that influence a public two-year college president's decision to respond or not respond to external stakeholders that request new or improved programming/services from the college. The researcher incorporates the concept of naturalistic decision making to augment Stark and Lattuca's (1997) model that illustrates influences on the college educational environment to examine how presidents respond to requests made by external stakeholders.;The researcher found that when presidents make decisions about responding to external stakeholder requests they are not simply making a choice. Presidential decision making positions an organization for the future. College presidents make decisions by assessing available data and reviewing possible options within the context of their current educational environment. They do this by viewing their educational environment through a lens or filter composed of past experiences and personal beliefs. This lens influences how presidents choose what to do and how they implement decision strategies that will position their colleges for a positive future with key stakeholders.