The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #71863

Ngoyi K. Z. Bukonda, PhD, MPH¹, C. D. Goar, PhD², and R Mandrelle, MPH¹. (1) School of Allied Health Professions, Northern Illinois University, 956 Quail Run, DeKalb, IL 60115, 815-753-4801, nbukonda@niu.edu, (2) Sociology, Northern Illinois University, P.O. Box 193, DeKalb, IL 60115

Many community health faculty members increasingly resort to class team projects and to either instructor-appointed or otherwise naturally emerging student team leaders as strategies to better prepare students for their future team leadership roles. We surveyed 110 students enrolled in a semester-long course taught in 2001 and 2002 to apprehend the pattern of leadership emergence and assess if African-American undergraduate community health students at a predominantly white college are different from their Caucasian counterparts. Students were randomly assigned to 24 teams which worked naturally without any formally instructor-appointed leaders to complete three team assignments: case study, portfolio and online journal. The response rate was 75%. Caucasian and African-American students represented respectively 51.8% and 32.5% of the sample. Female students (88.4%) outnumbered their male counterparts. We analyzed data from eighteen teams either numerically dominated by Caucasians or made of an equal number of Caucasians and African-Americans. Findings: Leadership clearly emerged in 8 teams (50%), but not in 6 (33.33%). The remaining 3 teams (16.67%) had their members equally split over this question. Only ten teams had members completely willing to disclose the ethnic group of their leaders. There were a total of eight Caucasians, one African-American, and one Hispanic as team leaders, showing that African-Americans were disproportionately under-represented. Due to the very small sample size, these findings cannot be generalized. Any barriers that prevent undergraduate African-American students involved in team projects from accessing leadership roles and developing leadership skills should be identified and addressed.

Learning Objectives:

• a) To apprehend the pattern of leadership emergence in community health class team projects
• b) To assess the extent to which undergraduate community health African-American students at a predominantly white college are different from their Caucasian counterparts in terms of access to and effectiveness in team leadership roles.

Keywords: Leadership, African American

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Northern Illinois University Community health program
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.