Education Commons^™

One Size Does Not Fit All: A Case For A More Diversified Approach To Identifying And Supporting First-Generation College Students, Alexander J. Thorngren

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

ABSTRACT

First-generation college students earn college degrees in the United States at much lower rates when compared to non-first-generation college students. These students frequently face different challenges accessing and completing college degrees than those encountered by their peers with college-educated parents. A key challenge for institutions of higher education (IHE) is to develop effective policies, programs, and resources that support college completion among first generation college students.

First-generation students are far from a homogenous group. Rather, they exist on a spectrum of familial experiences with higher education. For instance, important differences may exist between students who have a parent who …

An Examination Of College Persistence Factors For Students From Different Rural Communities: A Multilevel Analysis, Andrew Hudacs

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Students transitioning into college from public school require more than just academic readiness; they also need the personal attributes that allow them to successfully transition into a new community (Braxton, Doyle, Hartley III, Hirschy, Jones, & McLendon, 2014; Nora, 2002; Nora, 2004; Tinto, 1975). Rural students have a different educational experience than their peers at schools in suburban and urban locations (DeYoung & Howley, 1990; Gjelten, 1982). Additionally, the resources, culture, and educational opportunities at rural schools also vary among different types of rural communities. Although some studies have examined the influence of rural students' academic achievement on college access …

An Examination Of Correlation Between Preadmission Indicators Of College Readiness And Clinical Performance Of Nursing Students, Kenneth Allen

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

A significant body of literature supports the proposition that the development of a culturally competent healthcare workforce is enhanced by diversity in the cohorts of students graduating from post-secondary educational programs related to careers in health and healthcare. However, increasing diversity in these programs is contingent upon increasing acceptance rates of historically disadvantaged students, such as students from racial/ethnic minority groups and/or low socioeconomic status, into highly selective post-secondary institutions, such as state flagship universities, and highly selective majors such as nursing. A significant barrier to increasing enrollment of disadvantaged students at more selective post-secondary institutions is the combined effect …

How Cultural Capital, Habitus, And Social Capital Impacts Pell-Eligible Vermont Students In Navigating The Financial Systems Of Higher Education, Xavier De Freitas

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

With the US recovering from a recession, a college diploma has become more valuable to avoid unemployment. Despite a college degree's importance, the access to higher education is a challenge for lower income Pell-Eligible Vermont students. For the past three decades, higher education continues to rise in cost faster than family income. Cost is not only an inhibitor for Pell-Eligible Vermont students. The complexities of navigating the financial systems of higher education to acquire aid in order to make college obtainable is also an issue for Pell-Eligible students. In order to successfully navigate these systems, a Pell-Eligible student's habitus, cultural …

A Seat At The Table: The Unspoken Values And Benefits Of Student And Academic Affairs Collaboration And Partnerships In Higher Education, Tynesha Mccullers

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

After almost two semesters as a graduate student at the University of Vermont, I decided that I wanted to do more in my second year of graduate school. It was through conversations with my colleagues that I determined that stepping out of my comfort zone of student affairs and looking into academic affairs would help develop me as not only a student affairs professional but as an educator as well. During the fall semester of 2016, I participated in an independent study where I served as a Teaching Assistant for a university diversity requirement course titled “The Political Economy of …

College Students' Development Of Civic Commitment: Experiences Of Service Learning Across The College Years, Kailee Ann Brickner-Mcdonald

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Functional democracy in a just society requires citizens who are complex thinkers and skilled, caring leaders. This study examines how undergraduate college students become committed citizens, the kind demanded by our changing world. In particular, it addresses the developmental and experiential factors that influence students' journeys of commitment to the public good, and how students understand their lived experiences integrating these diverse influences. Framed by my constructivist epistemology, I used the qualitative tradition of narrative inquiry to address these questions. I interviewed twelve highly engaged students about their experiences in diverse community-based work and learning over four years of college. …

Exploring The Reciprocal Relationship Between A Comprehensive Living-Learning Program And Institutional Culture: A Narrative Inquiry Case Study, Christopher Paul Marquart

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Over the past 50 years, living-learning programs (LLPs) have emerged as a dynamic curricular innovation in higher education. These programs are residentially based, seeking to seamlessly integrate the classroom and residence hall environments and blur the traditional boundaries between the academic and residential experiences for students (Kuh, 1996; Inkelas & Soldner, 2012). However, efforts to implement LLPs at some campuses have been met with resistance; this is not surprising, as institutions of higher education are often charged in part with preserving cultural and social norms, therefore making them naturally resistant to change (Shapiro & Levine, 1999). One of the most …

The Distinctive Mission Of Catholic Colleges & Universities And Faculty Reward Policies For Community Engagement: Aspirational Or Operational?, Joan Wagner

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

ABSTRACT

College and university mission statements commonly declare contributions for the public good and the development of engaged and responsible citizens as central to their institution's work. Yet, a different narrative is often revealed when rhetoric meets reality in the promotion and tenure policies for faculty. Since Ernest Boyer's seminal work Scholarship Reconsidered (1990) called for an expansion of the way we think about and reward scholarship in academia, a preponderance of studies have considered the degree to which community engagement and public scholarship has been integrated into higher education faculty reward policies. Such research has helped chart the progress …