Advisory Board Partnership Model
Definition:     Industry professional serves as board member and provides expertise, information and guidance to develop, sustain, and improve educational program.

Examples:    Advisory committee, advisory council, business-industry leadership team.

Implementation Strategies
  • Be respectful of advisors’ time (efficient meetings, detailed requests, etc.)
  • Set clear, specific expectations
  • Ensure members understand the benefits of participation
  • Communicate and meet regularly
  • Provide various methods for meeting, collecting feedback
  • Ensure the board is representative of industry diversity
  • Provide opportunities for students/board interaction
  • Make these relationships a priority

Reported Impacts
  • Maintained or improved program currency and relevancy
  • Established or improved curricular alignment with industry needs
  • Provided opportunities for students (mentoring, internships, job placement)
  • Promoted program to industry, community, college administration
  • Provided assistance with recruited industry, updating of board
  • Obtained direct or in-kind support

Reported Challenges
  • Scheduling meetings, handling logistics
  • Finding the time and resources to build, sustain industry relationships
  • Engaging industry members to obtain deep, meaningful feedback
  • Involving the right mix of industry members for your project/center’s needs
  • Overcoming industry misconceptions of two-year programs
  • Maintaining membership, dealing with turnover
  • Navigating conflicting interests of advisors
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Advisory Board Case Study


The National Convergence Technology Center (CTC) provides leadership and support to a national network of educational programs that prepare technicians for IT-related jobs.  To better support these programs in staying current, the CTC created and refined the Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) model, a modified advisory board structure. The BILT model has been adopted nationally and has proven highly successful in facilitating and maintaining effective industry involvement.​