Education Commons^™

Means To An End: A Qualitative Interview Study On Medical Students And Debt, Alberto Juan Diaz Jr

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today, 43.4 million Americans owe 1.7 trillion dollars in student loan debt (Hanson, 2022). The American Association of Medical Colleges (2021) reported that 73% of medical students graduate with educational debt, of which the average medical student borrowed $203,062 in student loans. The problem addressed through this study is that as the narrative about student loan debt grows, the hegemonic understanding of debt revolves around the undergraduate student's experience and their eminent struggles regarding repayment of student loans and employment. However, limited research exists on how medical students understand and experience debt.

Several researchers have discussed the lack of understanding …

When Two Worlds Meet: Academic Advisors’ Understanding Of The Exploratory Student Experience At A Hispanic-Serving Institution, Hazel E. Hooker

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Academic advisors are essential to the college experience (Filson & Whittington, 2013). They serve as students’ higher education guides and translators in addition to being their direct link to the institution. Given the pivotal role they serve in helping students navigate the myriad transitions encountered throughout their college career, tapping into their vast experience with students, parents, and administration provided a unique point of view that would not otherwise be possible. The purpose of this study was to explore academic advisors' understanding of the exploratory FTIC student experience at a Hispanic Serving Institution, which was chosen because of potential unique …

A Qualitative Study Of The Fpcu Student Experience And Outcomes After Graduation Within The South Florida Region, Tania Frederic Abouzeide

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to explore why students enroll in for-profit colleges, outline their student experiences and present their post-graduate outcomes of obtaining a degree (i.e., increased salary, career progression, etc.) from an FPCU. With the rise of for-profit colleges, issues arise such as questionable recruiting practices, dismal graduation rates, poor job placements and minimal income increase and high student loan default rates (Deming, Goldin, & Katz, 2013; Heller, 2011; Macqueen, 2011; Yeoman, 2011). The discourse surrounding for-profit colleges at times does not consider the FPCU graduate perspective – those affected most by the FPCU notoriety. In this qualitative study, I …

Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders At A Hispanic Serving Institution: A Qualitative Case Study Of Students’ Experiences, Stephen P. Loynaz

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study focuses on the experiences of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in higher education. It was important to conduct this study because of the rising numbers of students with ASD in higher education and the scant amount of research available about how to best serve them depending on their actual needs, not the perceived needs stated by experts based on research from K-12 student populations, or the perceived needs of these students stated by their parents or other service providers or faculty. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine students from a Hispanic-serving institution in the Southeast United …

Reproducing Privilege Or Hippocratic Habitus: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Personal Statements And The Use Of Capital To Facilitate Matriculation Into Medical School, Jessica M. Lewis

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A national physician shortage has prompted calls to diversify the demographics of medical school student bodies to address the social determinants of health plaguing underrepresented minority communities. Moreover, the Association of American Medical Colleges predicts a deficit of 104,900 physicians by 2030. Despite this, admission into medical school remains competitive, homogenous, and lacking “underrepresented in medicine” (URM) students.

Underrepresented groups historically absent from medical education show that the medical degree and overall pursuit of a medical career are tacitly affiliated with a dominant social group acting as a power agent in the reproduction of an economic class. Considering the admissions …

We’Ve Come A Long Way (Baby)! Or Have We? Evolving Intellectual Freedom Issues In The Us And Florida, L. Bryan Cooper, A.D. Beman-Cavallaro

Works of the FIU Libraries

This paper analyzes a shifting landscape of intellectual freedom (IF) in and outside Florida for children, adolescents, teens and adults. National ideals stand in tension with local and state developments, as new threats are visible in historical, legal, and technological context. Examples include doctrinal shifts, legislative bills, electronic surveillance and recent attempts to censor books, classroom texts, and reading lists.

Privacy rights for minors in Florida are increasingly unstable. New assertions of parental rights are part of a larger conservative animus. Proponents of IF can identify a lessening of ideals and standards that began after doctrinal fruition in the 1960s …

A Phenomenological Exploration Of The Non-Academic Factors That Cuban Female Non-Native English Speakers Perceived To Have Been Principal Influences On Their Successful Attainment Of A Baccalaureate Degree In The U.S., Nelson Magana

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cubans arrive in the U.S. with more formal education than other Latino immigrants, and they arrive to communities with long standing networks of support. Though their baccalaureate degree attainment is better than their non-Cuban Latina counterparts, Cuban women still lag behind White, non-Latina women. The qualitative study aims to explore the principal influences and non-academic factors that 15 adult Cuban non-native English-speaking women in South Florida attribute to the successful attainment of their baccalaureate degree.

There are many differences among the various immigrant Latino communities in the U.S., and Cuban women are largely absent from the research. Nearly 75% of …

Do Mentoring Programs Make A Difference? A Qualitative Case Study On The Journey Of Latino Students In A Stem Track, Juan M. Morata

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A number of studies have sought to identify factors influencing STEM students’ success in colleges and universities (Crisp et al., 2009; Excelencia, 2011; Hagedorn & Purnamasari, 2012). However, there are few qualitative studies focusing on students’ perspectives and how they make meaning of their experiences as participants in a mentoring program.

The main purpose of this research was to explain the perceptions of Latino students in a STEM Mentoring Program at Miami Dade College. Because this study sought to gain an in-depth understanding of how students involved in a mentoring program make meaning of their experiences, the type of qualitative …

Examining The Relationships Between Gender Role Congruity, Identity, And The Choice To Persist For Women In Undergraduate Physics Majors, Bronwen Bares Pelaez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Persistent gender disparity limits the available contributors to advancing some science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. While higher education can be an influential time-point for ensuring adequate participation, many physics programs across the U.S. have few women in classroom or lab settings. Prior research indicates that these women face considerable barriers. For university students, faculty, and administration to appropriately address these issues, it is important to understand the experiences of women as they navigate male-dominated STEM fields.

This explanatory sequential mixed methods study explored undergraduate female physics majors’ experiences with their male-dominated academic and research spaces in the U.S. …

Higher Education Reform And The Increased Cost Of Post-Secondary Education In The U.S.: A Policy Review Of Current Policy Plans And Policy Proposals, Arthur C. Evans Iii

South Florida Education Research Conference

Within the last decade, there has been an ever-increasing attention on the need for higher education reform. Measures to mitigate the increased cost and different policy proposals have been introduced to increase the accountability and value. This paper examines current higher education polices and looks at some overarching ideas involved.

Students With Physical Disabilities - Reflections On Their Experiences With Work Preparation Programs, Services And Accommodations In A Higher Education Institution, Claudia Castillo

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For a variety of reasons, college students with disabilities encounter stressors beyond those of students who do not have disabilities. One of the more salient examples is that students with disabilities are required to disclose that they have a disability and to communicate with faculty and staff in order to receive academic accommodations, as afforded to them under sub-part E of Section 504 of the Education and Rehabilitation Act of 1974. Therefore, postsecondary institutions are required to make appropriate accommodations available to students with disabilities, but they are not required to proactively seek them out.

The purpose of this study …

Globalization And The Public Provision Of Higher Education: Empirical Evidence From Selected Countries, Claudette Nyang'oro

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research study was designed to examine the relationship between globalization as measured by the KOF index, its related forces (economic, political, cultural and technological) and the public provision of higher education. This study is important since globalization is increasingly being associated with changes in critical aspects of higher education. The public provision of education was measured by government expenditure and educational outcomes; that is participation, gender equity and attainment. The study utilized a non-experimental quantitative research design. Data collected from secondary sources for 139 selected countries was analyzed. The countries were geographically distributed and included both developed and developing …

The Impact Of A Classroom Performance System On Learning Gains In A Biology Course For Science Majors, Nilo E. Marin

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted to determine if the use of the technology known as Classroom Performance System (CPS), specifically referred to as “Clickers”, improves the learning gains of students enrolled in a biology course for science majors. CPS is one of a group of developing technologies adapted for providing feedback in the classroom using a learner-centered approach. It supports and facilitates discussion among students and between them and teachers, and provides for participation by passive students. Advocates, influenced by constructivist theories, claim increased academic achievement. In science teaching, the results have been mixed, but there is some evidence of improvements …

The Role Of Emotional Intelligence In College Students' Success, Joyce G. Walsh-Portillo

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if higher academic performance was positively correlated to higher emotional intelligence among traditional age male and female college students enrolled in an Introduction to Business course at a large multi-campus state college in Florida. The Bar-On 2004 (Emotional Quotient Inventory) EQ-i 133-item inventory was used to assess students’ emotional intelligence. Within the scope of this ex-post facto study, a quasi-experimental design was included to further determine if emotional intelligence could be increased through the inclusion of a curricular component on emotional intelligence. Four groups of students (N=111) participated in the …

In Favor Of Hospitality-Management Education, Michael J. Tews, Hubert B. Van Hoof

Hospitality Review

Despite the almost one-hundred-year history of hospitality-management education; the hundreds of well-established two-year, four-year, and graduate programs worldwide; and the hundreds of thousands of graduates those programs have prepared for careers in the industry, hospitality-management education’s merit and place in higher education are still questioned at times, to the dismay of hospitality educators the world over. This article delineates several features of hospitality management that make these programs valuable and unique and provides compelling arguments in its favor. The arguments include: 1) courses tailored to the hospitality industry, the world’s largest industry; 2) focus on small-business management as well as …

An Investigation Of The Strategies Used By Organizations Participating In The Welfare-To-Work Network Programs And Correlation Of The Strategies With The Retention Data To Determine Best Practices For Job Retention Among Former Welfare Recipients., Pauline J. Smith

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This ex post facto study (N = 209) examined the relationships between employer job strategies and job retention among organizations participating in Florida welfare-to-work network programs and associated the strategies with job retention data to determine best practices. An internet-based self-report survey battery was administered to a heterogeneous sampling of organizations participating in the Florida welfare-to-work network program. Hypotheses were tested through correlational and hierarchical regression analytic procedures. The partial correlation results linked each of the job retention strategies to job retention. Wages, benefits, training and supervision, communication, job growth, work/life balance, fairness and respect were all significantly related to …

The Role Of Community College Faculty In Teaching And Learning For Sustainable Development, Anouchka Rachelson

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of community college professors regarding education for sustainable development (ESD). In-depth interviews with 14 professors from different disciplines were conducted. The participants taught at Miami Dade College, Florida, a Talloires Declaration signatory since 2006, and all had attended Green Studies professional development workshops. Written documents such as assignments and samples of student work were used for triangulation. The annual report of the college’s Earth Ethics Institute and its Web site served as additional sources. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for common themes. The Talloires Declaration’s …

Women Of African Descent: Persistence In Completing A Doctorate, Vannetta L. Bailey-Iddrisu

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the educational persistence of women of African descent (WOAD) in pursuit of a doctorate degree at universities in the southeastern United States. WOAD are women of African ancestry born outside the African continent. These women are heirs to an inner dogged determination and spirit to survive despite all odds (Pulliam, 2003, p. 337).This study used Ellis’s (1997) Three Stages for Graduate Student Development as the conceptual framework to examine the persistent strategies used by these women to persist to the completion of their studies.

Developing A Leadership Identity: A Case Study Exploring A Select Group Of Hispanic Women At A Hispanic Serving Institution, Suzanne M. Onorato

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Leadership is a socially constructed concept shaped by the context, values and experiences of society (Klenke, 1996); the historical context of gender and ethnicity in society affects views about leadership and who merits a leadership role. Therefore, developing an understanding of Hispanic women students’ leadership identity development is critical in broadening how we define leadership and develop leadership education. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and describe the leadership identity development of a select group of women leaders at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in the southeast. A psychosocial approach to the study was utilized. In-depth …

Effects Of Management-Development Practices On Hospitality Management Graduates' Job Satisfaction And Intention To Stay, Edwin Torres, Howard Adler

Hospitality Review

Companies have long recognized the importance of training and developing their managers to prepare them for their short- and long-term careers. Formal management-development programs and other less formal means of management development abound in the hospitality industry. Therefore, one may ask whether the entry-level managers for whom these programs are designed perceive them to be effective. The present study explores management-development practices, procedures, and techniques, and their effects on job satisfaction and organizational commitment

Assessment Of Higher-Education Hospitality Programs, Matt A. Casado

Hospitality Review

The function of assessment in higher-education hospitality programs is to improve student learning. Although the assessment process is common in higher-education institutions, examples of assessment practices in hospitality programs have not been made available to academic practitioners. This paper describes a method successful at formulating assessment in a hospitality college professional program.

Faculty Hiring Criteria In Hospitality Education Programs, Robert H. Woods, Seonghee Cho, Raymond S. Schmidgall

Hospitality Review

This study examined criteria used in selecting faculty at I-CHRIE hospitality-management education programs in the United States. Results provide a baseline for consideration of faculty at all ranks. The three most important hiring criteria for assistant professors were a PhD or equivalent terminal degree, publication/research, and hospitality-industry work experience. For associate and full professors, the three most important factors were a PhD or equivalent terminal degree, publication/research, and college teaching experience. Results indicated that most programs use similar criteria in evaluating faculty applicants. This study also found that leadership ability is the most important factor in hiring department heads/directors. Results …

Searching For The Holy Grail Of International Education: Feedback From Hospitality Management Study Abroad Participants, Hubert B. Van Hoof

Hospitality Review

This article reports on a study done among hospitality management students who participated in study abroad programs between January 2001 and May 2003. The participants in the study were both incoming students to the US and outgoing students from the US. The study investigates, among other things, why they had decided to study abroad, why they had selected a particular institution, how their home institution compared to the partner institution abroad, and what they perceived to be the benefits and relevance of their international experiences. It was found that respondents were generally very positive about the study abroad experience. Some …

Strategic Approach To Smoking Bans: Delaware Gaming Industry, John W. O'Neill, Qu Xiao

Hospitality Review

A study of Delaware’s statewide smoking ban suggests that it may have had a significant negative economic impact on the state’s gaming industry. However, such impact may vary in different segments of the hospitality industry, and therefore, must be examined strategically and on a case-by-case basis. The specific market environment, including both demand and competition of each state or each municipality, should be carefully analyzed by both governmental decision makers and by hospitality operators who influence these decision makers.

Beverage Ethics: Education For Alcohol Responsibility, Carl J. Pfaffenberg

Hospitality Review

The study looked at the processes in the development of an alcohol responsibility program for post-secondary students in the service management major at the University of Tennessee: he program has been certified by the State of Tennessee to satisfy the Alcohol Beverage Commission requirement for server training related to the handling and service of alcoholic beverages. A managerial viewpoint was adopted so as to provide the greatest benefit to service management graduate.

Hospitality Education: Prevalent Perceptions, Matt A. Casado

Hospitality Review

The composition of hospitality curricula has been debated by educators, alumni, and industry professionals for the last 30 years. Some higher education programs have emphasized the teaching of professional courses, while others have focused primarily on management. This study recalls highlights of curriculum research conducted since the late 1970s and provides current perceptions of alumni, lodging, and restaurant professionals on core, support, and advisor-approved electives.

Alternative Degree Program For Hospitality Educators, Dana V. Tesone, George Alexakis

Hospitality Review

Hospitality and tourism education programs are becoming increasingly popular, as is an increased demand for qualified faculty Tends suggest that an insufficient number of qualified candidates exist relative to the demand for new faculty appointments. The authors present a proposed model for newly developed doctoral programs in hospitality education and suggestions for administrators considering the development of terminal degree programs for hospitality educators.

Administering An International Hospitality Education Program, Karen Lieberman

Hospitality Review

Understanding the political structure of educations and applying principles of political action may help avoid the destruction of educations alliances formed between partners of divergent backgrounds. The author discusses how this form of analysis may also be of benefit in understanding the problem technically-oriented hospitality programs from abroad often have articulating with the academic administrations in most American universities.

Overcoming Barriers To Restaurant Food Safety, David Walczak

Hospitality Review

Food safety is critical to the success of restaurants. Yet current methods of controling foodborne illness are inadequate, including time and temperature control, safe food handling procedures, good employee hygiene, cleaning and sanitizing techniques, and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plan. Several barriers to food safety in restaurants are identified and recommendations for management are suggested.

Casino Drink Policies: Limiting Third-Party Liability, Larry D. Strate, Thomas J. A. Jones

Hospitality Review

In their efforts to provide an atmosphere or hospitality to their casino customers, many operators will provide complimentary alcoholic beverage service. This practice is fraught with liability, particularly in venues outside of Nevada. Conscientious operators must take every precaution to mitigate the possibility of lawsuit.