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Exploring Resilience In Exemplary Rural School Superintendents, Silas Gaussoin-Radcliffe

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this exploratory phenomenological study was to identify and describe the strategies used by exemplary rural superintendents to maintain personal resiliency based on Everly, Strouse, and McCormack’s (2015) five factors of personal resilience (active optimism, decisive action, moral compass, relentless tenacity, and interpersonal support).

Methodology: This exploratory phenomenological study used purposeful criterion sampling and recommendations from the county superintendents in the identified geographic area. Each of the 8 identified exemplary rural superintendents was interviewed using an instrument aligned to the five factors of personal resilience and their definitions. The researcher collected rich qualitative interview data, that were …

Positive Influences On Why They Stay: A Qualitative Study On The Contributing Factors To Teacher Retention In Rural North Dakota, Jennifer A. Jung

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

An alarming number of educators are leaving the field within the first five years of employment. Midwestern rural schools experience a slightly higher percentage of turnover than do their urban counterparts. Due to this shortage of teachers, many districts across the nation have employed strategies to recruit and retain competent teachers. This qualitative study employs a phenomenological approach seeking to identify common themes among teachers who are long-staying teachers in a rural district (those with 1000 or fewer students). Both the social constructivism and teacher career cycle theoretical frameworks have been utilized to support the researcher’s understanding of rural teachers' …

Rural Leaders’ Experiences Implementing Fape For Students With Intellectual Disabilities, Jessica J. Vogel

Dissertations and Theses

To provide effective leadership and ensure students with intellectual disabilities are receiving an appropriate education, principals must understand the substantial needs of these students. The experiences of rural principals’ leadership in providing a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) for students with intellectual disabilities are not well known. In this study, I sought to describe the experiences of remote rural principals in South Dakota in providing FAPE for students with intellectual disabilities. Eight principals of remote rural school districts, with at least one year of leadership experience, participated in this study. This phenomenological study utilized structured interviews to collect data. …

Access To Full-Time Employment Opportunities: A Phenomenological Study Of Faculty Of Color In Rural Community Colleges, Eduardo Vásquez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The mission of community colleges is to create affordable pathways for students to enter into the workforce or transfer into 4-year universities (Brint & Karabel, 1989; Kisker et al., 2016). However, community colleges have not been successful in efforts to assist Students of Color in completing an associate degree or transferring (Shapiro et al., 2017). Therefore, efforts have been made to increase the number Faculty of Color in community colleges as they are influential in student success (Rodriguez, 2015) but Faculty of Color experience systematic oppression in higher education (Pittman, 2010). Faculty of Color in rural community colleges experience discrimination …

A Phenomenological Study To Understand The Transformation Of The Education System In A Rural Missouri High School In The Wake Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Amanda R. Burdick

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the transformation of the education system in a rural-distant Missouri high school in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Seven content-area educators participated in the study. Data was collected through interviews and archival documents. The data analysis revealed three themes: transition to virtual learning, the new classroom experience, and emotional impact. Within those themes, participants described specific institutional and curricular changes that were made, and the emotional impact that the COVID-19 teaching experience had on them. Results of the study indicated that teachers felt very alone navigating through all of the …

Retention Factors Of Rural East Texas Superintendents, William Z. Crawford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify factors that influence retention of school superintendents in rural Texas. Constant turnover in the position of superintendent has created inconsistent learning environments for students and unstable working environments for staff. Small, rural schools have often served as steppingstones for superintendents who use their experience in these small rural districts to obtain positions in larger, suburban schools. The researcher used semistructured interview questions to conduct this study. In this qualitative case study, participants were recruited from the educational service center of Region VII school districts in Texas. One group included superintendents …

Rural Elementary Teacher Beliefs Regarding The Effectiveness Of Their Homework Practices During The Pandemic, Daniel Clara

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Through the lenses of C.S. Peirce’s Belief and Genuine Doubt, Albert Bandura’s Self Efficacy and Collective Efficacy, Bernard Weiner’s Attribution Theory, and Critical Race Theory, this dissertation captured and codified rural elementary teacher beliefs regarding homework and its effectiveness related to learning, and in particular, the effects brought on by the 2020 COVID 19 school closure. Rural school systems are under-researched and present notable differences in homework challenges, including access to libraries, technology and distance from home to school. Using qualitative research, this study identified themes regarding teacher perceptions of homework. The author explained that many of the long-held tenants …

A Theoretical Framework For Effective Education In Rural High-Poverty Schools, Harley Ramsey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated “why” some educational leaders are effective in serving rural high-poverty populations and to better understand “how” to enact effective leadership in similar spaces. Core principles of Critical Social Theory, Systems Leadership Theory, and Emotional Intelligence informed this work. Using a Grounded Theory methodology, a theoretical framework for effective educational leadership in rural high-poverty schools emerged. This framework suggests that effective educational leaders take a systems leadership approach to guiding their organizations to more equitable and socially just ends. Such leaders honor student and family voices and actively seek to understand and respond to their lived realities. They …

The Advantages And Disadvantages To Small Town School Districts And Their Communities After Athletics Consolidation, Kacey Lane

Leadership Education Capstones

Nothing brings a small rural town together like high school sports. Unfortunately, when high school sports hit challenging times, support for programs and participation in programs decrease. When sports programs hit low numbers in participation they need to think about the program's future. Some schools consider eliminating the programs. Graves (2010) stated that communities often resist full school consolidation to be able to protect their sports teams. Graves (2010) believes that to lose a school and its colors would relinquish one’s identity. Small communities thrive off the school districts and take pride in their academics and athletics. With the lack …

Principal Leadership Strategies In Addressing Teacher Recruitment And Retention In Rural Schools, Amanda Durnen

Education Doctorate Dissertations

This qualitative study explored principal leadership practices in addressing teacher recruitment and retention in rural schools. One-to-one interviews, a focus group interview, and a review of documents were the data sources for the study. The study produced three emergent themes from collected data: Influence of Structured Mentoring on Teacher Recruitment, Aligning Leadership with Rural Contextual Changes, and Leveraging Intentional Principal Support. Findings from the study conclude that principal leadership practices, including building supportive and transparent relationships with teachers and community, influence teacher recruitment and retention in rural school districts. The following recommendations are offered for related research in the field …

Exploring Actions Toward Supporting English Language Learners In A Rural Remote Secondary Setting, Annamarie Valdez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ESL students make a small population in rural, remote secondary schools. One ESL student can have a profound impact on the academic measures taken on state accountability tests. The gap between an ESL student’s achievement and that of native English-speaking peers is disproportionate. The actions of principals and campus leaders directly impact the teacher’s ability to support English language learners’ (ELL) ESL needs. A problem exists on what principals and campus leaders can do to help ESL students’ needs in a rural, remote secondary setting. The purpose of this exploratory single case study was to identify the actions campus leaders …

Senegalese Parent, Family, And Community Engagement In Education: An Ubuntu-Inspired Inquiry, Nikysha D. Gilliam

LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between families and schools, and the importance of parents and families to a child’s academic success is well documented internationally. However, the development of frameworks, theories, policies, and programs has not resulted in an increase in parent or family engagement in public schools, nor has it remedied the historical alienation and marginalization of families of color in the United States; positive comprehensive programs in communities of color at the middle and high school levels often seem to be missing. Because of African American families’ cultural connection to countries in Africa resulting from the Atlantic Slave Trade, I used …

Leadership Storytelling Of Rural School Superintendents Engaged In Change And Innovation, Tony Barrett

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

This dissertation examined the leadership storytelling uses and practices by rural, public school superintendents in North Georgia who are engaged in change and innovation through agreements with the state in exchange for flexibility waivers from Title 20 of the Georgia Code. This study was the result of the participation of five rural, Appalachian superintendents in semi-structured interviews. Two of the districts were Strategic Waivers School Systems (SWSS) and three of them were Charter Systems. The context of this study was framed by Georgia’s broad flexibility waivers which encourage school districts to promote and pursue innovative approaches in K-12 education. The …

Human Capital Formation And Return Migration Within Mong Communities In Rural/Semi-Rural Northern California, Chong Yang

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This research uses computational grounded theory to explore the human capital formation and stay/return migration experiences of well-educated Mong adults living in various rural/semi-rural Northern California localities within Butte, Yuba, and Sutter Counties. Rural vitality is dependent on the return of these well-educated rural-raised adults. Out-migration of rurality’s best and brightest contributes towards a brain drain and the hallowing out of rurality’s human capital. Findings of this research is conveyed using two research articles examining two different points on the continuum of rural vitality. The first article examines 19 Mong adults’ educational experiences within their rural communities and college education. …

Differences In Education In Urban And Rural Areas, Jacob Shreve

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research project examines the educational differences and disparities of urban and rural schools in Ohio. The focus school districts are Switzerland of Ohio Local and Akron Public Schools. Demographic information from each of the focus school districts is examined and compared to the outcomes of the schools to determine if factors such as poverty inhibit student learning. Data and statistics, published research, and personal experience will be used to make connections between the school districts, their students, their environment, and their learning. Differences in educational quality, opportunities, and funding will also be discussed.