Education Commons^™

Ua42/2 Delo Continuing & Professional Development, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Continuing & Professional Development.

• Subseries 1 Center for Training & Development
• Subseries 2 Continuing Education
• Subseries 3 Lifelong Learning

Corporate Training; Summer Bridge Programs Support & Training Resources & Event Planning Services are part of Continuing & Professional Development.

Design Thinking As A Common Language Between Higher Education And Employers, Johnna Denning-Smith

Dissertations

This qualitative study explores student skill preparedness for the work force through semi-structured interviews and focus groups with current college students, faculty members, and employers. Responses from study participants were transcribed, coded, and thematically organized into the following four categories of skills that employers seek in recent college graduates: critical thinking skills, resiliency, workplace skills, and discipline specific skills. The findings include participant perceptions of the importance of these skills and whether higher education effectively prepares recent graduates for the workforce. As part of this discussion, design thinking is presented as a bridge between these groups and as a solution …

College Choice Decisions: An Analysis Of University Honors Students, Thomas Tyler Clark

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to analyze the importance of various institutional attributes in the college-choice process of honors students. The study surveyed honors students (N = 279) currently enrolled in an honors college at one university. Students rated 51 items on the degree of importance in their college decision. An exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the underlying factors in the college-choice process.

The results indicated that cost was the most important issue students considered when determining an institution to attend. Cost of attendance and financial assistance offered were followed by quality of course instruction, safety on …

The Russian Research Center At Harvard Versus Cambridge Analytica: Influencing The Public In A Cold War, Robert Joshua Howard

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Support Programming For Children On The Autism Spectrum: An Evaluation Of Current Programming And Components Offered By A Postsecondary Autism Program, Lisa Michelle Elkins

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to determine how stakeholders value the current components of a Postsecondary Autism Program (PSAP). The evaluation assessed the efficacy of the program’s six components and the improvements needed to ensure the desired outcomes were being achieved. A mixed-methods approach using both surveys and focus groups was used to obtain data. The surveys were administered to students who were currently enrolled in the PSAP program and parents of students who were currently enrolled. A focus group format using six questions was administered to the five full-time staff of the PSAP program. The results of the …

Governors And Public Higher Education: A Multiple Case Study Of Governors Bill Haslam And Paul Patton, Shannon W. Gilkey

Dissertations

Governors can impose tremendous influence on public policy. In their attempt to address issues that their states face, and in order to sustain and improve the present and long-term health of its citizenry, some governors invest significant resources to shape the direction of their state’s postsecondary system of education. This study examined the critical elements that led two different governors to enact large-scale impact on state postsecondary education by investigating three research questions through a qualitative multiple-instrument case study: (a) How do governors’ vision for their state intersect with their view of postsecondary education as a key policy priority area …

"Change Is The Essential Process Of All Existence:" Transformation Through Civic Learning & Democratic Engagement's Theory, Molly Kerby

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

During the early years of the American Association of State Colleges & Universities’ (AASCU) American Democracy Project (ADP), a handful of civic-minded leaders in higher education began to grapple with what it meant to teach students to be engaged citizens. The project began with seven initiatives focusing on efforts such as voting, stewardship of land, political engagement, and citizenship to build a foundation for increasing civic literacy, democratic agency, and community engagement among college students (American Association of State Colleges and Universities, 2019). Membership and participation in ADP grew quickly and it seemed an organic revolution of sorts was building …

Book Proposal: Reimagining Higher Education: A Guide To Creating The Competent College Graduate, Molly Kerby

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

Given the climate of distrust, colleges and universities are examining strategies to enable them to remain relevant. Efforts to answer the recent outcry for productive, effective, and evidencedbased outcomes include adapting curricula and degree programs to better prepare graduates for employment. Competency-based education (CBE) programs are at the forefront of these approaches. Although not a new concept, CBE has shifted from its vocational training roots to its current attention on student results. The acquisition of competence requires an engaged learner who practices self-reflection (Dreyfus, 2004). Albanese, et al. (2008) suggest competencies should be outcome focused, emphasize applied-learning, and be measurable. …

American Association Of University Women - Danville, Kentucky (Mss 681), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid for Manuscripts Collection 687. Records of the Danville branch of the American Association of University Women, including minutes, president’s reports, newsletters, historical information, programming materials and other miscellaneous items. Also includes more limited material about the state and regional divisions of the AAUW.

Principal Preparation Program Effectiveness: Novice Administrators' Perceptions From One Regional University, Robert King

Dissertations

School Leadership has evolved over the years requiring school administrators to perform as both a facilities manager and transformational leader inspiring teachers to take risks and utilize innovative strategies to increase student achievement. This increased focus on educational leaders has created a challenge for colleges and universities to effectively develop programming to properly equip students to become educational leaders that schools desperately need, as illustrated by a review of the literature. New leadership standards, coupled with Kentucky’s new star-rating system increases the expectations of school leaders as they work with diverse populations of students.

This study is a qualitative case …

Implementation Of The Focus Act In Tennessee: A Case Study, Carol Byrd Clark

Dissertations

The purpose of this single-case holistic descriptive case study was to document and describe the implementation of the FOCUS Act from the perspective of presidents and senior leaders at the Tennessee universities that transitioned from system-level governance by the Tennessee Board of Regents to governance by institutional boards of trustees. The decentralization of governance mandated by the FOCUS Act is an infrequent occurrence in higher education and presented a unique opportunity to examine how the universities prepared for the governance change and how university leaders viewed the governance change after implementation.

The central research question of this study was: What …

Mapping The Literature Of Dental Hygiene: An Update, Carol L. Watwood, Terry Dean

DLPS Faculty Publications

Objective: This study updates Haaland’s 1999 dental hygiene mapping study. By identifying core journals and estimating database coverage, it characterizes changes in dental hygiene research and aids librarians in collection development and user education.

Method: Cited references from a three-year (2015–2017) sample of core dental hygiene journals were collected, categorized into five formats, and analyzed by format and publication year according to Bradford’s Law of Scattering. CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE, and EMBASE were surveyed to determine the indexing coverage of cited journals.

Results: The number of cited journal titles increased from 389 in 1999 to 1,675 in 2018. Core Zone 1 …

The Impact Of Campus Facilities On The Recruitment Of Students In Higher Education, Lucinnda Sue Mcdonald

Dissertations

The statement often has been made over the years that university recruitment efforts are strongly impacted by campus facilities. The subject has been a topic of research over the past several decades. This study indicates that as generations change and times change, the significance of various aspects of the university to the prospective student change as well.

This research effort is a mixed-methods study to provide insight on the facilities current students deem most important when determining which college or university they will attend. The research for this study was conducted through an online survey asking students to:

• Choose …

Examining Collegiate Students’ Perceptions Of Date Rape And Sexual Assault, Jalen Rhodes

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine how collegiate males and females perceived date rape and sexual assault by looking into their views on sexual scripts, consent, and alcohol in dating situations. Participants consisted of 323 male and female undergraduate students enrolled in psychology classes at a mid-south university. All participants were directed to an online questionnaire and were randomly assigned to one of four versions of a vignette where a man and a woman are at a party together. After reading their vignette, all participants answered researcher-created questions pertaining to the behavior of the people in the vignette …

Wku’S Brand Personality, Nicole E. Childress

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The University Brand Personality Scale was introduced in the Journal of Business Research in 2016. It establishes six dimensions for evaluating a university’s personality: prestige, sincerity, appeal, lively, conscientious, and cosmopolitan. The scale also illustrates how these dimensions relate to brand love, positive word-of-mouth, and students’ intentions to support their university as alumni. The goal of this project was to evaluate Western Kentucky University’s brand personality on these six dimensions based on student surveys. Results showed that among the six dimensions, sincerity and appeal ranked the highest, followed by prestige, lively, and conscientious, then finally, cosmopolitan. However, on average, each …

A Look Into The College Readiness Needs Of First Time College Students, Lindsey Coomer Cox

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study examines the college readiness needs of first year college students based on experiences from students and staff involved with a first year transitional initiative program at Western Kentucky University. The purpose of the study is to share students’ college readiness needs with public school systems in hopes to intervene with these needs before students arrive at college. A total of 45 participants volunteered to be in focus groups, an interview, and complete a survey. Two research questions were proposed: What college readiness needs still exist for first time college students upon entrance to a four year public university? …

Cornette, James Percival, 1908-1986 (Sc 3374), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 3374. Letter, 5 June 1956, to WKU faculty member Frances Richards from James P. Cornette, a former colleague and now president of West Texas State College, expressing his appreciation of a recent visit with her. Also includes a 1962 letter to Richards from WKU alumnus and West Texas State College history professor Lowell H. Harrison enclosing a lengthy clipping about Cornette’s recent “Man of the Year” award, and a 1963 speech of Cornette’s on the occasion of the college’s renaming as West Texas State University.

Wilson, Effie Gertrude, 1903-1986 (Sc 3337), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 3337. “Burkesville’s Colleges,” a paper by Effie G. Wilson, Marrowbone, Kentucky, outlining the history of Alexander College and Burkesville College, two nineteenth-century schools in Burkesville (Cumberland County), Kentucky.

Ray, Joseph Malchus, 1907-1991 (Sc 3329), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid and full text scan of memoirs and photographs and digital files of interviews (Click on "Additional Files" below to access) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3329. Memoirs, sundry papers, and oral histories of Joseph Malchus Ray, a native of Warren County, Kentucky, who went on to teach at universities in Texas, Alabama and Maryland. He ended his career as president of the University of Texas at El Paso in 1968, but stayed on afterwards as the H.Y. Benedict Professor of Political Science at UTEP. The memoirs discuss in detail his professional and personal life and the values that shaped …

From The Hill To The World: Increasing Diversity Abroad Through Intentional Outreach, Ar'meishia Burrow

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This summer I had the honor of studying abroad in Spain for four weeks where I studied Spanish language and culture. As an African American female I experienced study abroad both as a scholar and as a minority. Through research and personal experience I have developed a thesis that aims to increase diversity and inclusion abroad, increasing representation of ethnic/minority U.S. students in education abroad. By sharing my journey through outreach I will educate students of color about financial opportunities to study abroad, in addition to resources regarding the minority experience abroad. This outreach series will help minority students better …

Ua1c4/2 Faculty/Staff Photos, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Images of faculty and staff groups and associations of Western Kentucky University and its founding institutions.

Ua1c4/5 Class Photos, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Images of class groups from Western Kentucky University and its founding institutions.

Ua42/3/3 Delo Extended Campuses Wku Owensboro, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about the extended campus of WKU Owensboro.

Ua66/8/2 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Geography & Geology Centers & Institutes, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Centers and Institutes administered by the Geography & Geology Department. Including:

• Center for Cave & Karst Studies
• Center for Local Government Services
• Hoffman Environmental Research Institute
• Kentucky Climate Center
• Resources Management Institute
• Small Public Water System Technology Center

Ua66/14/2 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Nursing Accreditation, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

The accreditation file for Nursing.

Ua1c4/17 Bowling Green Business University Photos, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Images of Bowling Green Business University students.

Ua42/3/1 Delo Extended Campuses Wku Elizabethtown/Ft. Knox, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about the extended campus of WKU Elizabethtown / Ft. Knox.

Determining First-Year College Students' Capacity For Active Engagement In Their Own Learning, Melanie Jan Mcdaniel Duvall

Dissertations

First-year students are at a higher risk of dropping out of college; therefore, student retention and success are at risk. The purpose of this study is to find statistically significant differences among five demographic variables: (1) first college semester hours earned; (2) first college semester GPA; (3) ACT composite score; (4) high school GPA; and (5) first-generation college students and the 10 Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) subscales: Anxiety, Attitude, Concentration, Information Processing, Motivation, Selecting Main Ideas, Self-Testing, Test Strategies, Time Management, and Using Academic Resources, to better determine how to help students be more successful. The LASSI instrument …

Making ‘The Ask’ To Internal Stakeholders: The Influence Of Organizational Identification On University Faculty And Staff Giving, Lora Haley Ashley

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore faculty/staff identification with their employing university and how that, in turn, may influence their decision to financially support the institution, or not. This study employed a case study approach and a mixed methods research design utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data. An online survey using Cheney’s (1982) Organizational Identification Questionnaire measured faculty/staff members’ identification with the organization and with their specific departments. The survey also collected data on faculty/staff past charitable giving. Following the survey, qualitative focus groups and interviews were conducted with faculty/staff members to explore what factors contributed to their …

Ua12/9 Wku Counseling & Testing Center, Vol. 5, Issue 4, Wku Counseling & Testing Center

WKU Archives Records

Newsletter created by and about the WKU Counseling & Testing Center.