ABSTRACT Supporting community college faculty with a framework of culturally responsive teaching as a lens through which they can approach their classroom environment is important. Professional development is usually developed and delivered without first learning from faculty about their motivation and current knowledge on the topic. In this article, I describe how a community college first gathered information from faculty before designing and implementing a culturally responsive teaching program. Fourteen community college faculty members at a rural west Texas community college participated in interviews about their teaching experiences and motivations before participating in a six‐week virtual professional development program focusing on culturally responsive teaching. Some had several years of experience working at the college, but most had only been in their positions for less than five years. The study had four major findings. The first was that faculty have a desire to improve their teaching. The interviews showed that faculty who participated in the program did so because they felt a need to change. The second finding was that community college faculty understand the need for change and have a desire to improve, but they may lack the pedagogical training to effectively communicate that desire. Faculty do not always have the frameworks needed to know how to improve their teaching, so concrete support in providing frameworks such as culturally responsive teaching can be useful for faculty members. The third finding was that faculty developers need to understand the faculty they are working with in order to effectively provide faculty development. In this study, the interviews allowed for better understanding of the faculty participating. The final finding was that interviews can help to develop a sense of community between the developer and the faculty member. They establish a sense of trust and encourage the faculty member to share their story. Based on the findings from the interviews and my own reflections, I offer several suggestions to faculty developers who are working with community college faculty.
B. Jeneé Higgins (Fri,) studied this question.