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The state of Texas has mandated a performance-based funding system for its state-supported community colleges. In this system, 10% of state appropriations are allocated to community colleges dependent on meeting key success indicators. Each of the 50 state-supported community colleges will be awarded an operational base appropriation of one million dollars; 90% of the institution’s appropriations will be funded based on enrollment and contact hour factors; the remaining 10% of the allocations will be awarded based on performance measures. The purpose of this study was to explore how academic and student affairs divisions have prepared to respond to the newly mandated performance-based funding system for Texas community colleges that will be fully implemented by the 2016-2017 academic year. The settings for this study were four community colleges located in Texas; two were located in the High Plains region of Texas and two were located in the Prairies and Lakes region of Texas. Through a constructivist lens, a qualitative methodology and a collective case study research approach were used to address the four research questions that guided the study. The participants were seven community college administrators who served as the chief academic officer, chief student affairs officer, or a combined position that addressed both of these divisions at their institutions. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, field notes, reflexive journaling, and other documents. The constant comparative method of data analysis was used to analyze the data collected. The processes of open and axial coding were also used. The findings of this study indicated that communications about performance-based funding from external sources, as well as internal communications and preparations are strong determinants of success in institutional responses to this type of funding system. The participants noted that the senior administration, budgeting, and student advising structures, in addition to an institution’s ability to collect and report data related to student success measures for performance-based funding, will have significant effects on institutional success under this type of funding. In addition, the participants perceived that institutional, academic affairs, and student affairs cultures can influence institutional and student success under a performance-based funding model. Finally, the participants offered nine recommendations to increase the levels of collaboration between academic and student affairs divisions. The divisions should: (1) maintain a focus on the student; (2) support first-year experience courses; (3) involve faculty in advising; (4) communicate across divisional lines; (5) empower the formulation of collaborative recommendations; (6) plan together; (7) engage in professional development jointly; (8) create a student success division; and (9) encourage the state to develop a statewide reporting system. The results of this study led to several implications for higher education practice, including that performance-based funding mandates must be prepared for and communicated about at all levels of the institution; data collection, disaggregation, and reporting should remain a significant institutional focus; and institutions will be challenged to achieve more success with fewer financial resources while operating under a performance-based funding mandate, if they do not reallocate the resources effectively. The results of this study lead to several recommendations for higher education practice. The first is the need for institutions to help ensure the success of their students by mandating academic advising for all students and enrollment in freshman orientation coursework. Academic and student affairs divisions need to have intentional cross-divisional communications and collaborations on student success initiatives, as well as need to provide professional development opportunities for all employees that are focused on how to support student success. The final recommendation is that higher education administrators at all levels need to assess and allocate resources effectively and efficiently to support student success, which is the key measure under a performance-based funding system.

Background The multifunctional Ca2+‐ and calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is a crucial mediator of cardiac physiology and pathology. Increased expression and activation of CaMKII has been linked to elevated risk for arrhythmic events and is a hallmark of human heart failure. A useful approach to determining CaMKII's role therein is large‐scale analysis of phosphorylation events by mass spectrometry. However, current large‐scale phosphoproteomics approaches have proved inadequate for high‐fidelity identification of kinase‐specific roles. The purpose of this study was to develop a phosphoproteomics approach to specifically identify CaMKII's downstream effects in cardiac tissue. Methods and Results To identify putative downstream CaMKII targets in cardiac tissue, animals with myocardial‐delimited expression of the specific peptide inhibitor of CaMKII (AC3‐I) or an inactive control (AC3‐C) were compared using quantitative phosphoproteomics. The hearts were isolated after isoproterenol injection to induce CaMKII activation downstream of β‐adrenergic receptor agonist stimulation. Enriched phosphopeptides from AC3‐I and AC3‐C mice were differentially quantified using stable isotope dimethyl labeling, strong cation exchange chromatography and high‐resolution LC‐MS/MS. Phosphorylation levels of several hundred sites could be profiled, including 39 phosphoproteins noticeably affected by AC3‐I‐mediated CaMKII inhibition. Conclusions Our data set included known CaMKII substrates, as well as several new candidate proteins involved in functions not previously implicated in CaMKII signaling.