Education Commons^™

Child Welfare: Workforce Retention, Competence, And The Connection To Social Work Education, Brittany Stanley

DSW Capstone Projects

While there are many avenues to discuss and explore, the key area of interest for the Capstone Project is that of retention of a competent frontline workforce. Each state has their own set of guidelines for hiring frontline workers which allows for variety in the educational backgrounds of the investigative and ongoing workers. This can become problematic when the educational background may not be the most suited for the work and challenges faced by child welfare workers.

During the development of the Capstone Project, one could not help but wonder that if workers were adequately prepared for the demands of …

Retention Of First-Generation College Students At A Four-Year Regional Public Institution, Matthew Andrew Schumacher

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Every year a significant number of college students stop out of college and fail to persist and complete their degree. First-generation college students are more likely to exit college without a degree than continuing-generation students. The purpose of this quantitative, archival, nonexperimental study was to explore how first-generation college student demographic, academic background, college academic, and student engagement factors were related to and predict first-year to second-year retention at a mid-sized, public regional university. The factors explored were gender, age, race/ethnicity, income status, high school GPA, ACT, cumulative GPA, first term attempted hours, housing, participation in a Living Learning Community, …

Understanding The Impact Of A First-Year Engineering Program On Undergraduate Student Persistence In Engineering, Brad Hubbard

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

The goal of this research study was to understand the impact first-year engineering programs have on undergraduate student persistence in engineering. First-year engineering programs feature a uniform first year curriculum for undergraduate engineering students and are designed to strengthen retention and increase graduation rates. This study sought to understand which factors present in first-year engineering programs influence student persistence in engineering. This study took place in the local context and examined the experience of engineering undergraduate students enrolled in a first-year engineering (FYEng) program at a state-level flagship land grant research institution in the southern region of the United States, …

It’S Not The Programs; It’S The People: Building Human Levers Of Retention In Community Colleges, Kyle Barron

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Student attrition prior to the completion of a credential is an issue that has increasingly demanded the attention of stakeholders in higher education, particularly in the community college sector, in which less than half of all students complete a credential after six years. The costs of student attrition are high and widespread, ranging from the financial costs for institutions and federal and state governments to the personal and monetary costs paid by those students whose personal and professional goals are not achieved. With the ever-increasing focus on accountability for institutions of higher education and the growing movement toward performance-based funding, …

At The Heart Of Policies And Programs: Community College Faculty Members And Peer Mentors As Human Levers Of Retention, Kimberly Russell

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Student attrition prior to the completion of a credential is an issue that has increasingly demanded the attention of stakeholders in higher education, particularly in the community college sector, in which less than half of all students complete a credential after six years. The costs of student attrition are high and widespread, ranging from the financial costs for institutions and federal and state governments to the personal and monetary costs paid by those students whose personal and professional goals are not achieved. With the ever-increasing focus on accountability for institutions of higher education and the growing movement toward performance-based funding, …

Factors Contributing To Job Satisfaction, Retention, And Attrition Of Agricultural Educators: A Synthesis Of Research, Lee Nolan Thomsen

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

In recent years, School-Based Agricultural Education has been facing a shortage of secondary teachers, due in part to low retention rates of these valuable educators. In light of this shortage, a multitude of research has been conducted throughout the country on challenges faced by agricultural educators, some as indicators of intent to leave the profession. This thesis sought to synthesize the research conducted on job satisfaction, retention, and attrition of School-Based Agricultural Educators order to identify prevalent problems facing these teachers which may contribute to the decision to leave the classroom. From the research, seven themes emerged as job-related factors …

The Effect Of Admissions Viewbooks On Students’ Expectancies And Engagement, Hayley C. Hoffman

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This study seeks to explore the impact that admissions viewbooks have on students’ expectancies of an institution as well as their academic and social engagement. Because few studies exist on admissions viewbooks, the literature review seeks to establish a base for the importance of viewbooks in students’ college choice and their development of expectancies of their chosen institution, as well as the subsequent impacts of violated expectations on engagement and retention. Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, this study examines (1) the promises made by institutions in their viewbooks as found via textual analysis and (2) the impact of violated …

Designing For Universal Success, Nicole Martin, Trey Conatser

Greater Faculties: A Review of Teaching and Learning

Dr. Deb Castiglione is the Universal Design and Instructional Technology Specialist at CELT. She has worked to get a campus-wide license at the University of Kentucky for the software Read&Write Gold, which follows principles of universal design for learning. We asked Dr. Castiglione about what the software can do for learners, and why we should think more about inclusive practices such as universal design in our teaching.

“Warming Up” In The Developmental Sequence? Upward Transfer Conditional On Dependency Status, Cody Davidson, Kristin B. Wilson

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

The purpose of this study was to determine predictor factors of upward transfer for Kentucky community college students enrolled in a developmental algebra course. For independent students, a mother with a college degree, a declared major, a federal work-study position, greater adjusted gross income, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer. For dependent students, a father with a college degree, a declared major, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer.

Does Kees Help Retain High-Performing Students In-State For Higher Education?, Rachael Clark

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Kentucky’s merit-based program, the Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship (KEES), started in 1998 providing financial assistance to students attending higher education in-state based on high school academic achievements. The intended goal of KEES is elusive, however two key objectives are often mentioned with KEES. These are incentivizing and rewarding high school academic achievement and keeping high-performing students in Kentucky for their college education. This study aims to investigate whether Kentucky’s merit-based program keeps high-performing students in Kentucky for higher education.

The dataset available for this research was provided by the Kentucky Center for Education and Workforce Statistics from their high school …

Student Characteristics And Retention In Merit Preparatory School: An Analysis Of Retention In A New Jersey Charter School, Alyssa Mckenzie

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Charter schools are publicly funded schools that operate with fewer limitations on hiring and firing staff, and that have more flexibility with curriculum than traditional public schools. The goal of charter schools is to improve education and that goal often is measured through test scores in math and reading. This paper is a case study of one charter school, Merit Preparatory Academy, located in Newark, New Jersey, over two academic years. The school operated as a free-standing charter in the first year and was managed by a charter management organization in the second.

Schools are often evaluated by comparing the …

Good Leavers And Bad Stayers: Exploring The Influence Of Defining Student Success Outcomes With A Composite Measure Of Performance And Persistence, Curtis T. Sandberg

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Not all college “stayers” and “leavers” stay or leave for the same reason or with the same experience. However, traditional measures and studies of academic success have limited their scope to either performance or persistence as individual variables. This study explored whether a more nuanced definition of success as a composite of both performance and persistence (GPA and retention) produced different results than when using the variables separately. The influence of academic self-efficacy on student success served as the context for this exploration. The study used an existing incoming student survey dataset from a small private liberal arts college. Subjects …

A Critical Analysis Of The Identification And Treatment Of First-Generation College Students: A Social Capital Approach, Michael Peabody

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

This paper examines institutional identification of first-generation college students and corresponding campus retention programs utilizing a Social Capital lens. Building on the theoretical foundation of Astin and Tinto this article argues that all student retention programs are based on Social Capital theory and provides recommendations for improving campus retention programs.

The African American Male Initiative At The University Of Louisville, Michael D. Anthony, Lyston Skerritt, Joseph Goodman

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

Following a year of data gathering and planning during the 2010-2011 academic year, the University of Louisville launched the African American Male Initiative (AAMI) in the fall 2011 semester. The AAMI was designed using national best practices and current research findings as it relates to supporting African American male undergraduates. Now at the end of its first year, this practitioner’s brief provides an overview of the AAMI structure, design, and implementation.

Measuring Job Satisfaction Among Kentucky Head Principals Using The Rasch Rating Scale Model, Xavier J. Webb

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

The continued expansion of principals' responsibilities is having a detrimental effect on their job satisfaction; therefore, it is increasingly challenging to retain these important leaders. Effective principals can impact student learning and other vital outcomes; thus, it is important to be able to retain effective school leaders. Examining the perceived sources of principals’ satisfaction and dissatisfaction with their work has strong implications for policies and practices that can be implemented to increase principal retention.

The purpose of this study was to measure the job satisfaction of head principals in Kentucky. The research conducted was an exploratory study using survey research …

A Work In Progress: The Lived Experiences Of Black Male Undergraduates At One Predominantly White University, Wayne D. Lewis, Steven Thurston Oliver, Jennifer L. Burris

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

This exploratory study examines the lived academic and social experiences of current black male undergraduate students, including their perceived barriers and their strategies for persistence and achieving success. Study participants included black male undergraduate students at one predominantly white, four-year, public research university. Data collection methods included two focus group interviews with a purposeful sample of 12 undergraduate, black male students. Students reported that explicit and implicit messages of racial hatred have contributed to a general campus atmosphere of discomfort for black male students. The students described an environment where they continually encounter racial micro aggressions and prejudice. Students reported …

Status Of Credit For Prior Learning (Cpl) At The University Of Kentucky For 2008 & 2009 Official Cohorts, Randolph Hollingsworth

Undergraduate Education White Papers

This paper explores the college readiness levels of University of Kentucky's incoming first-year students, especially in preparation for success in UK's STEM majors. Attention is paid to the statewide standards using ACT sub-scores in English, Reading and Mathematics, as well as the students’ scores from nationally recognized assessments (e.g., Advanced Placement scores). Evidence regarding a significant number of our entering cohorts for 2008 and 2009 (first time first-year, full-time, degree-seeking) who bring in credit for prior learning (CPL) is examined, and the paper discusses briefly how CPL affects their placement in their fall semester courses.

First-Time First-Year Full-Tim Students Transitioning From High School To The University Of Kentucky: The Academic Readiness Program, 2009-2010, Randolph Hollingsworth

Undergraduate Education White Papers

This documents the collaborative efforts between the Deans Council, Office of Enrollment Management, Office of Institutional Diversity, Division of Student Affairs and the Office of Undergraduate Education in rolling out the University's response to the state's regulations on college admission and placement for students whose ACT scores are below the regulated cutoff scores. The Academic Readiness Program was developed using the learning outcomes developed by the Directors of Undergraduate Studies in the UK departments of Mathematics and English as well as the expert consultants in the Collaborative Center for Literacy Development. This paper includes the assessment of the 2009-10 Program …

University Of Kentucky Early Alert System Outcomes Fall 2007, Randolph Hollingsworth

Undergraduate Education White Papers

Assessment of the first semester's results from the University of Kentucky's Early Alert System implemented as part of Provost Subbaswamy's War on Attrition 2007.

Research And Analysis On The Success Of African American Students At The University Of Kentucky, Randolph Hollingsworth

Undergraduate Education Faculty Presentations

A summary of a year-long analysis campus-wide at the University of Kentucky by the Committee for Research and Analysis on the Success of African American Students was presented to the Deans Council and Faculty Senate Council in Fall 2006. The report is the result of five separate research projects designed to help the UK leadership better understand the African American experience on campus and the correlates of success. Interim Provost Scott Smith charged the Committee members (listed below) to (1) analyze those factors that predict and/or propmote success of African American students at the University of Kentucky, and (2) assist …