As a community college administrator with an eye on the presidency, Dr. Walter Bumphus wanted to ensure he would be competitive when the time came to climb the career ladder.

"I had great professional experience and I wanted to complement that with the best education I could get," he said. "I really wanted to make sure that when it was time for me to compete for a presidency, that my credentials were beyond reproach. I wanted to pick the best program and without exception this program has that reputation, but also has the reputation of not only accepting people of color, but also of graduating people like me."

Bumphus chose to attend the Community College Leadership Program at the University of Texas at Austin.

"This is probably the most rigorous program anywhere," said Bumphus, who graduated in 1984 and is currently president of Brookhaven College in Texas and chairman of the board of the American Association of Community Colleges. "But the expectation is that you are going to go through the program and do well, The professors don't take pride in how many people they flunk out, they take pride in how many people they help to succeed."

Since 1971, the program has been led by Dr. John E. Roueche, who can point to a long list of presidents, vice presidents, deans and other educators who have graduated from his program. For students and graduates of the program, his knack for tapping some of the most promising young administrators for advanced study is only one factor in the prominence of the program and their own success. Many have credited Roueche and a dedicated faculty with providing the support, encouragement and motivation to ensure their completion and advancement in their careers.

According to some graduates, that attitude and expectation of success made CCLP the obvious choice when they were searching for a program that would help them meet their career goals.

"It is a doctoral program that is not competitive. ... You are competing against yourself," said Dr. Jerry Sue Thornton, president of Cuyahoga Community College in Ohio, "Much of what you get done, you have to get done in cooperation with other people."