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Balancing The Demands Of College And Athletics: First-Generation Female Student Athletes’ Perception Of The College Experience, Adrienne Rodriguez

Theses & Dissertations

Research Focus. The launch of the 1972 Title IX regulation education amendment arrived at a pivotal time for women in sports. “Title IX recognized the uniqueness of intercollegiate athletics by permitting colleges and universities to have separate and equal athletic programs for women” (Hogshead-Makar, & Zimbalist, 2007, p. 2). As more women began to participate in sports, pressures to perform both competitively and academically presented different challenges for female athletes during their collegiate career. For a female student-athletes to be successful in both academics and athletics, the student-athlete must discover a means to sustain a reasonable balance academically and athletically …

Interim Administration In Higher Education, Charles Hentges

Culminating Projects in Higher Education Administration

Higher education, like any other field, goes through constant change. It is not uncommon to see constant changes in administration in institutions of higher education. In many of these cases, an interim administration is hired to provide transition, stability, and time to find the best candidate to serve in a permanent capacity. Research has indicated that leadership turnover in higher education is continual and is most often seen at the dean level. During these times, well-prepared leaders assist in the smooth transition for the organization and help the interim candidate become a stronger leader.

In the Minnesota State system, there …

Perceptions Of Higher Education Faculty Of The Quality, Benefits, And Consequences Of Dual Enrollment Participation, John Philip Mcelveen

Theses and Dissertations

In this qualitative study, the researcher sought to address a gap in the literature related to identifying and understanding perceptions of collegiate faculty of the quality, benefits, and consequences of dual enrollment participation upon students, their higher educational organization, and their own career paths. Study participants included 36 collegiate faculty and administrators with faculty standing employed full-time by Columbus State University who have taught dual enrollment students in college settings, high school settings, or in both settings. The sequential qualitative design identified perceptions of the participants through application of a survey instrument. The initial phase of data collection was followed …

The Value Of Interactive Multimodal Online Higher Education Classrooms: Examining The Impact Of Interactive Multimedia-Based Instructional Design (Imbid), Andrea Munro

Dissertations

Purpose: Despite their affordability and convenience, online courses have higher student failure and dropout rates than ground based-courses. The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative single-case study was to determine if there is a difference between interactive, multimedia-based online instruction and traditional text-based online instruction as it relates to the level of student performance, engagement, and satisfaction in higher education.

Methodology: This quantitative research design used inferential statistics to analyze the research questions. The researcher selected 13 text-based courses that were redesigned to become interactive, multimedia-based courses. Archival student performance, engagement, and satisfaction data was abstracted from both the text-based and …

Biblical Leadership Principles And Practices Used By University Leaders, William C. Hackett Jr

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

This study was conducted to ascertain the leadership principles and practices of those persons in leadership positions at a private, Christian university. The purpose, therefore, was to determine to what degree the leaders at the Christian university under study did practice biblical principles and practices in their leadership. The research design was an explanatory sequential mixed methods study. The same private, Christian university was used for both the quantitative and the qualitative study. The quantitative method employed the Leadership Practices Inventory which asked 30 questions using a Likert scale to determine to what degree 50 leaders at the university practiced …

Theory And Practice In Doctoral Dissertation Research, 2007-2017: A Content Analysis By Degree Type, William Friel

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

In response to the overwhelming presence of professional practice doctoral degrees in the early 2000s, universities offering Doctor of Education (EdD) and/or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in higher education studies began to question the purpose and value of each degree. These universities asked: What is the value of academic research if it does not aim to improve the condition of what is being studied? This led to a theory-practice debate among departments offering the EdD and the PhD from the perspective of the goal of the dissertation research: Truth or improvement. To address this tension, the Carnegie Project on …

Creating And Implementing Online Courses Through The Development Of An E-Pedagogy, Drew Kean

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Post-secondary education in Ontario is rapidly transforming due to the changing needs of students which include an expectation of technology-enabled teaching methods and access to flexible learning options, such as online courses. The province of Ontario has responded by including innovative teaching methods and access to flexible learning options in their vision for post-secondary education. The institution discussed within this OIP has responded by offering online courses, however, there is a lack of development tools to support faculty when creating and implementing online courses. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) examines how a polytechnic college can address this problem by developing …

A Gift From God: An Analysis Of Social Media Policies Adopted By Catholic Institutions Of Higher Education And How They Cover Faculty, Mckenna L. Schray

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This dissertation investigates the development of social media policies in higher education. This study differentiates itself from existing social media policy research by analyzing the content of social media policies themselves, focusing on how social media policies cover faculty, and examining policies at Catholic higher education institutions. Using multiple data sources and quantitative content analysis, this study found 28.7 percent of Catholic higher education institutions have a published social media policy and 27.5 percent of Catholic higher education institutions have a social media policy that covers faculty.

Related to social media policies at Catholic higher education institutions, this study revealed …

Does Family Income Determine A Children Future Educational Attainment Level?, Diaisha T. Richards

Applied Economics Theses

Family income and education have been a major concern in a variety of researches, and as a topic in society. These two components are a major concern because they are known to be key elements in determining future success for an individual. Various studies investigated the significance, correlations and impacts these two factors have on one another. It is common for the amount of family income obtained to determine how much education one will receive in the future. This study focuses on testing the hypothesis that family income determines how much education a child will receive in the future. By …

Toward A Holistic Approach Of Evaluating Higher Education Institutes, Yidan Chen

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In this thesis, I argue that higher education institutes generate significant positive externalities and other virtual benefits to the society they embedded in, which often dwarf the direct economic returns created. It would be an unfortunate oversimplification to throw economic theories developed from the private sector directly to higher education institutes without acknowledging their unique social values. Following a long tradition of integrating social and economic perspectives, I proposed a conceptual paradigm for higher education system to cover its social as well as economic role. An institute sets strategic intents to live up to stakeholders’ expectations and then develops an …

School Optimism: Fast Life And Slow Debt In The Financialized University, Mark Alan Porter Webb

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Over the past two decades, educational debt has quickly transformed US colleges and universities into spaces of cruel optimism: the higher education that students desire is all too often an obstacle to their flourishing. This study maps the contours of the white, middle-class attachment to the college dream, paying particular attention to the moments when the optimism surrounding higher education turns cruel. As this optimism wanes in the face of mounting educational debt, students deploy a myriad of fast life strategies—a flurry of actions that include work, activism, protest, leaving school and/or satirical critique—with the hope of mitigating the impact …

Art Across The Disciplines: How The Integration Of Fine Arts Across The Curriculum Is Influencing And Changing Stem Pedagogy, Ida Bazan

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Within the past decade, several academic institutions have begun to investigate techniques combining the fine arts and humanities into STEM coursework and curriculum. The resulting trend STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) indicates that the arts could contribute to critical thinking, transfer across subject domains, and higher order thinking skills. This work examines the theoretical foundations of STEAM along with early and recent methodologies. Case studies are evaluated and the thesis concludes with recommendations suggesting how academics could apply these concepts to undergraduate studies.

Higher Education For At-Risk Youth In Santa Cruz County, Abbye Bohon

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Friday Night Live, County of Santa Cruz is an adult-youth led partnership that advocates for the communities’ aids and needs. At-risk youth undergo higher chances of violence, disruption, demeanor, and staying in trouble due to the minimal amount of exposure when it comes to general education. Too many at-risk youths do not pursue higher education in the county of Santa Cruz due to the lack of exposure of higher education in this particular community. The purpose of this project is to raise awareness of what higher education looks like to this population through an 8-weekly session implementation and evaluation process …

Measuring Undergraduate Student Satisfaction As An Indicator Of Customer Service In Higher Education, Sanaz Shahi

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to measuring undergraduate students' satisfaction at Rowan University. The theoretical framework that guided this study was Tinto's Theory, Astin's IEO Model, and Hezberg's Theory. This study use the quantitative method, which includes a survey focused on students' satisfaction of seven areas including: university staff, services provided by the university, academic advisor, class availability, academic major, and campus safety. One hundred seventy nine subjects completed a Likert-type survey using a five-point scale to assess their satisfaction in the seven focus areas. The Statistical Program for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to input all …

Investigating Student Service Member And Veteran Support In Higher Education, Andrew Robert Mcdonough

Masters Theses

Since the passing of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act, more than 817,000 service members have participated in higher education. In this time, little research has been done to study student veterans as a unique college population; and to gauge whether the current best practices to support these students are impactful and effective. The purpose of this study is to further the scholarship on student veterans by investigating the transition into higher education and the factors that influence their engagement with academia. Both survey and interview data were collected to inform this research. 45 survey responses and 4 interview conversations …

The Effect Of High Impact Practices On Student Thriving In College, Cody Lloyd

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of campus involvement, specifically high impact practices, on college student thriving. This single institution quantitative study was conducted at a mid-sized Christian university in the southeastern region of the U.S. Using preexisting data, a predictive analysis was conducted via multilinear regression techniques. Through evaluating college student participation in high-impact practices (HIPs), in addition to “alternative engagement indicators,” as independent variables and college student thriving, using the Thriving Quotient, as the dependent variable there were several notable findings. When considering “alternative engagement indicators”, three of the 11 included in the study …

Improving The Rigor Of Online Education: Exploring Characteristics Of Faculty And Syllabi Within An Online Program Assessment Process, Brad J. Hamel

All NMU Master's Theses

As online course enrollments grow, overall perception of rigor still lags compared to that of traditional face-to-face education. The purpose of this research was to tie faculty and syllabi characteristics to the rigor of online courses. This study explored the relationship between faculty and syllabi characteristics and performance on an online entry-level course design quality assurance assessment (pass, pass with concern, or fail). A decision tree analysis was used to predict the relationship of the independent (faculty and syllabi characteristics) and the dependent (entry-level course design assessment) variables. Findings suggest that faculty rank and writing intensive are key characteristics predictive …

Impact Of A Leadership Development Intervention On Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Of Community College Students: A Quasi-Experimental Research Design, Sarah Jane Mcelroy

Theses and Dissertations

The overall purpose of this quasi-experimental research study was to determine if a formalized leadership development program had an effect on a community college student's level of career decision-making self-efficacy. This research study utilized the Career Exploration & Decision-Making Learning Experiences Scale (CEDLE) and the Career Exploration & Decisional Self-Efficacy Brief Decisional (CEDSE-BD) questionnaire to determine a student's level of career decision-making self-efficacy before and after participation in a leadership intervention (n = 411). Propensity Score Matching was utilized to account for a variety of confounding variables and self-selection bias. Results showed that community college students who participated in a …

The Practice Of Assessment Data Use In Student Affairs: The Need For An Expanded Conceptualization, Mark D. Manderino

Dissertations

Over the past three decades, student affairs assessment, as an organized functional area, has matured and established itself as an essential and expected component within higher education in the United States (Elkins, 2015; Ewell, 2002; Henning & Roberts, 2016). While professionals know that data use is part of the process of assessment (Banta & Blaich, 2010), there has not been sufficient evidence of what use of assessment looks like both in higher education and specifically student affairs, or how best practice strategies encourage assessment data use (Kinzie, Hutchings, Jankowski, 2015). There is a dearth of empirical evidence related to use …

Navigating The Career Pipeline: Experiences Of Female Community College Presidents, Andrea Allen Deal

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

Despite holding a majority of lower and middle management positions in public two-year institutions, women still hold only one-third of current community college presidencies. This study explored the gendered phenomenon of navigating the career pipeline in higher education to reach the office of community college president. The purpose of the study was to examine the educational backgrounds and career paths of recently-appointed female community college presidents, as well as the barriers and sources of support they encountered while navigating the career pipeline.

A phenomenological approach was utilized for this qualitative study. Data was primarily collected using semi-structured interviews. Additional sources …

Experiences Of Music Therapy Junior Faculty Members: A Narrative Exploration, Carol A. Olszewski

ETD Archive

Very few music therapists have educational background or training to be proficient at teaching at institutions of higher education. With only minimal (if any) training in andragogy and in research methodology, music therapy junior faculty (MTJF) members find themselves novice academics in the highly structured, competitive environment of the academy. In order for music therapists to be successful in their career change from clinical work to the academy, improvements and modifications to the education of future music therapy professors are likely, but data are necessary to intimate and to guide those changes. This narrative research study explored the lived experiences …

Utilization-Focused Evaluation: Exploring The Academic Self-Efficacy Of Paramedic Students In A Hybrid Learning Program, Amy Connerton

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

The purpose of this study was to conduct a utilization-focused evaluation of the paramedic hybrid learning program at Colorado Mountain College, a rural community college. The study examined the relationship between student academic self-efficacy (SASE) and learning in a hybrid program and the effect of SASE on program satisfaction. Data were collected through multiple methods, including a questionnaire of program graduates from 2014 to 2018, interviews of seven past graduates, and a focus group involving eight stakeholders. These data were carefully analyzed for accuracy and then coded for relevant elements. The findings, evaluated in relation to two guiding research questions, …

Orientation For College Success: A Utilization-Focused Evaluation Of The Student Orientation And Registration Program At The Steamboat Springs Campus Of Colorado Mountain College, Jacquelyn B. Brazill

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

Successfully transitioning into postsecondary education can be challenging for new college students, particularly for students who are academically or socially underprepared for college. Transition programs can assist students with this process, thus increasing the likelihood of student retention. The author of this paper conducted a Utilization-Focused evaluation of the Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR) program at the Steamboat Springs campus of Colorado Mountain College with the intention of improving the program. The study examined the program through the lens of students’ perceptions of their academic and social preparation for their first semester of college after attending the SOAR program.

The …

Community Of Inquiry: Discovering Social, Cognitive, And Teaching Presence In A Hybrid Master Of Divinity Program, Vincent J. Tango

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

This doctoral research project examines how students and instructors define and build community and ascertains what role community plays in student learning. This research was conducted utilizing a qualitative embedded case study at a private graduate theological school. The theoretical framework of Community of Inquiry (CoI) provided the foundation in which to discover the elements of social, cognitive, and teaching presence in student learning. This project elicited stories that reveal how community is at the center of the learning experience and that community building should be a priority in developing the curriculum. Three main themes emerged about building and sustaining …

Rankism In Higher Education: A Critical Inquiry Of Staff Experiences, Erin M. Christensen-Mandel

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

Missing from the discussions of inequitable treatment of employees in higher education are the experiences of staff members. In work interactions, staff are frequently treated differently (often as inferiors), depending on their level of education and their role in the hierarchy on the non-academic side of an institution (Anonymous, 2006; Young, Anderson & Stewart, 2015). This difference in treatment has been termed, “rankism” in the broad sense or “hierarchical microaggressions” for smaller incidents and is especially troublesome as higher education is presumed to create upward mobility and lead towards a more equitable society (Young et al., 2015).

The research questions …

Student Satisfaction With Canvas Use In Face-To-Face Courses At Colorado Mountain College, Chris N. Wenger

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

By examining the relationship between the use of LMS tools and student course satisfaction, institutions can purposefully target areas most in need of improvement. The inconsistency in the application and use of LMS tools has resulted in a fragmenting of the student experience and has had a potentially negative affect on student attitudes toward its use. In order to address these issues and to support CMC’s mission, college leadership has created a minimum usage requirement for Canvas in all credit courses. This evaluation aims to provide insight for improving the use of Canvas tools and increasing student course satisfaction in …

The Role Of Higher Education In Rural Economic Development: A Program Evaluation Of The Colorado Rural Jump-Start Program, Maureen T. Stepp

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

Since the financial crisis of 2008 and the subsequent recession, some urban and metro areas have experienced economic recovery, but not all geographic areas are recovering at the same pace. Federal, state, and local programs developed to help rural communities with their economic development efforts have failed to make much of a difference. In 2015, as a potential solution, Colorado spearheaded an initiative to incentivize economic development in rural communities. The Rural Jump-Start (RJS) Zone Act provides tax relief to new businesses and employees of those businesses, with the idea that because of these benefits, more businesses would retain, start, …

Reducing The Attainment Gap For Low Socio Economic Status Students: Concurrent Enrollment Program Evaluation Colorado Mountain College, Jeremiah Fernandez Johnson

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

A gap in college degree attainment is growing in the United States as college tuition and fees have drastically increased creating many barriers for students in low socio economic status (SES) families. These barriers are just the beginning in the many hurdles low SES students face in entering a college pathway and persisting to completing certificates or bachelor’s degrees. The state of Colorado has addressed this equity gap in higher education by creating a state wide initiative they have called Colorado Rises. This initiative is centered on increasing college completion statewide to 66% by 2025. In order to achieve this …

Women Coaches Navigating The Leadership Labyrinth At A Division Ii Regional Comprehensive University: Queering Discourse And Narratives, Julie A. Wienski

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

Representation by female head coaches in the NCAA is at an all-time low. This study analyzed an institution (LSU) where women’s representation and gender equity is higher than average. Using a qualitative inquiry approach applying Critical Narrative and Foucauldian Dispositive Analyses in a queering fashion, the study explored ways in which institutional (macro) discourses shaped individual (micro) daily narratives. The overarching goal for this study was to reveal themes, language and discourse informing women’s coaches’ recruitment, retention and persistence at an NCAA Division II and Regional Comprehensive University excelling in gender equity and inclusivity.

Findings indicated power-knowledge connections via Foucauldian …

Higher Education Financial Health - A Case Study Of The California State University (Csu), Amber Blakeslee

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Higher education is in a challenging financial time. Overall, states are investing considerably less in higher education than they did a decade ago and students are paying significantly more in tuition and fees. Simultaneously, the higher education landscape is changing – changing in terms of demographics, modes of delivery, workforce needs, funding and cost structures, and perceptions of value. Almost every day there is a new media story about a college or university experiencing financial difficulties. With decreasing confidence from campus financial officers in the long-term sustainability of their institutions and campus closures expected to escalate in the coming years, …