California community college budget, strategic planning, resource allocation, and dialogue: Does program review provide the link

The Problem. The main purpose of this study was to substantiate the extent to which the new program review process at Ohlone College has helped to increase linkages to budget allocation process, increase linkages to the strategic plan, increase the use of data for analysis, enhance campus-wide dialogue, provide understanding of the budget allocation process, increase the frequency of program evaluation and evaluate the effectiveness of college-wide programs.;Method. The faculty, staff, and managers who had participated in the program review pilot project and/or the implementation year were asked to complete a survey and participate in a focus group to measure their level of agreement with questions that focused on each of the research questions. Levels of agreement were measured and matched with various demographic information. The open-ended questions and the focus group responses were used to provide texture and insight into the variances among groups.;Results. The new program review process does appear to be on the right track to achieving the desired outcomes, especially with linking resource allocation and strategic planning, enhancing the use of data for analysis, increasing the frequency of program review, and as an effective way to evaluate programs. The greatest improvements could be gained by using program review as a method for increasing knowledge about the budget process and increasing dialogue. The rich nature of the data provided insight and recommendations not only in areas of deficiencies but also in the areas of the highest agreement. In addition, the survey will act as an evaluation tool to measure progress as the college makes changes in the program review process and completes its implementation.