What Does Organizational Culture Tell Us About Developmental Education Reform? Co-Requisite Implementation in Texas

• In Event: Cultivating a Culture of Change: Creating Environments for Successful Transformation in Higher Education

Abstract

In 2017, Texas passed HB 2223 requiring all public postsecondary institutions to implement corequisite education, a form of developmental education where students enroll in a developmental course in the same term as the associated college-level course. While various factors contribute to decision-making in policy implementation, in this qualitative case study, we used theory on organizational culture and subculture to characterize institutions and their practices during the statewide corequisite implementation. Findings revealed that on one end of the spectrum, a bureaucratic dominant culture gave way to efficiency in corequisite offerings, while on the other end, an anarchical culture caused confusion and inconsistency in course options. Enhancing subcultures dutifully carried out corequisite implementation, with a counterculture hindering corequisite course enrollment.

Authors

• Holly Henning, Florida State University

• Morgan Danyi, Florida State University

• Toby Park-Gaghan, Florida State University

• Christine Mokher, Florida State University