ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how community college leaders define team leadership and the influence of gender on the construction of teams. Historically, research on gender differences in leadership suggested that women lead in a more participatory manner relative to men. Team leadership builds on an interactive process among individuals that involves working up and down the organizational chart and across units. Gendered language was evident in how men and women described what it means to be a leader. Gender plays a significant role in teamwork and team leadership. Support for continued gender differences in meaning on the coding of empowering, mentoring, and advocating for others was evident. As a result, leaders and campus members must determine what is required to engage in team leadership based on collaboration and sharing of leadership functions. To really embrace the ideal of team leadership, organizational structures and policies must change and with them individual roles and expectations.
