Education Commons^™

Community College Students' Sense Of Belonging And Care During Covid-19: A Grounded Theory Study, Lisa A. Dougherty

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative constructivist grounded theory research study was to understand and develop a theory about the experiences of community college students accessing online student support services, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when colleges were forced to close their in-person services. Interviews with seventeen students and a review of 57 email communications from the College yielded the data to construct a theory that extends the theories of sense of belonging and ethic of care to virtual student services – the Virtual Caring Campus Theory.

In the absence of a physical campus, colleges can create a virtual caring campus by …

Burnout In Virginia's Community College Adjuncts With Relation To Gender, Age, And Number Of Jobs Held, Justin Barrett Stowe

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Burnout is a psychological condition that affects individuals in high stress careers. Higher education faculty are prone to burnout, with studies showing women experienced burnout at different ages than their male counterparts. Few studies have been conducted to test if age and gender could predict a high level of burnout amongst adjunct faculty in community colleges. In addition, community college adjunct faculty are known to work more than one job to meet economic needs, and the research demonstrates such a condition creates anxiety, but little discussion is present on whether the variables of age, gender, and additional jobs held may …

Exploring Success And Challenges Of Black Students Taking An English Course Online At An Urban Community College, Latoya N. Bond

Theses and Dissertations

Community colleges have expanded access to higher education and were early adopters of online courses. Among literature on online course performance, Black students are least successful in online learning despite being one of the growing populations at community colleges. This case study investigated the experiences of Black community college students taking an online English course for the first time. These experiences were particularly unique because the students participated during the Covid-19 pandemic. The findings indicate that students navigate multiple priorities outside of school, technology challenges, and desire for increased preparation, representation, and support from the campus community. This study assists …

The Recovery Coach: An Intentional, Relational Interventionist As A Response To The Covid-19 Incomplete Grade Trend, Melanie A. Turrano

Education Doctorate Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed many crises in education; fair and just grading was but one. During that tumultuous time, colleges improvised and created many “hold harmless” grading policies to provide empathy and understanding to students as well as to retain students otherwise negatively impacted by the inequities in their personal lives as well as the socioeconomic digital divide. One “due no harm” policy enacted at the community college where this study occurred was the encouragement of Incomplete (I) grades that prevented student failure in the short term, but traditionally results in long-term failure when the grade of Incomplete (I) converts …

A Case Study: Determining Factors On Student Persistence In A Community College Spanish Program, Kristin Ea Peters

Theses and Dissertations

World language study exposes students to more than just language; they are also exposed to different cultures. After graduating, students will be exposed to different languages and cultures in the workforce, and they must be prepared. Students often leave their language of choice after the one or two semester course requirement; it takes more than those one or two courses for students to gain the cultural and linguistic skills needed to succeed. Institutions must start to convey the importance of those skills in order produce culturally aware and global students. Student placement, student motivation, and classroom pedagogy all contribute to …

The Stereotype Threat Experiences Of Men Of Color Persisting In Community College, Robert E. Cortes

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative narrative analysis was to explore how men of color have experienced stereotype threat in their lives and used community cultural wealth to manage stereotype threat and achieve academic success while persisting at a large urban community college. Racial tensions have manifested through blatant acts of racism, discrimination, and microaggressions across college campuses, threatening students of color who are marginalized and targeted. In consideration of the success of men of color attending community colleges in the United States, there is vast inequality and inequity when comparing their graduation, persistence, and retention rates to their White counterparts. …

Environmental Attitudes Of Community College Students Concerning Age, Gender, And Race, Robert W. Fournier

Theses and Dissertations

Many studies have shown the mental, physical, and academic benefits of environmental education to students. Equally important, environmental education can develop our students into more environmentally minded citizens. However, we are learning that most students are not receiving accurate environmental information while in school, which may impact their attitudes toward the environment and subsequent actions to protect it. Understanding current college-aged students' (Generation Z's) attitudes toward the environment are critical as they are next in line to make political and business decisions that will affect our planet. Using the New Ecological Paradigm Scale (NEP), 1,556 community college students were surveyed …

We Made It. Now What? A Qualitative Case Study Exploring How The Transition Of Black Men To A Historically Black Community College Is Influenced By Orientation 101, Eric R. Agee Jr.

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

A gap in achievement among Black men who pursue post-secondary education remains. Many Black men start their college education at community colleges, but little is known about their experiences at Historically Black Community Colleges (HBCCs). The purpose of this dissertation of practice was to gain insights into the influence of College 101, also labeled Orientation to College 101 (ORI 101), on the transition of Black men to an HBCC. I utilized a qualitative case study design. The main data source were 15 semi-structured interviews, which were supplemented with closed-ended student survey responses on the ORI 101 course evaluation and the …

The Relationship Between The Diversity Of Illinois Community College Staff And Graduates: An Exploratory Quantitative Study, Rachel Boldman

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The present study sought to answer the research question, to what extent is the staff racial demographic profile, as a numeric representation of staff diversity, related to the diversity of graduating cohorts from public community colleges in Illinois? The exploratory quantitative study used five years of Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) survey data for both the staff and graduate populations. The years connected to staff represented the years the graduating cohorts entered college, and the years connected to graduates represent 150% of the normal time to their degree following the year of entry (cohort year). The sample was comprised …

A Qualitative Case Study Examining Women Of Color’S Experiences As They Pursue A Criminal Justice Degree, David John Dammon Ii

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examined the experiences of women of color (WOC), defined as African American and Latina women for this study, as they pursued a degree in a criminal justice program at a Midwest community college. Utilizing Schlossberg’s transition theory, the qualitative case study sought to learn how WOC experience the transition to being students in a criminal justice program and the support and strategies they utilized to adjust to and navigate it. The study sought to fill a gap in the literature on WOC seeking degrees in criminal justice programs. The study also sought to learn more about student experience …

Touchpoints: How Faculty And Advising Understand And Colloborate On Guided Pathways Reforms To Influence And Support Major Choice In A Community College, Bryant Bates Manning

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Guided pathways is a nationwide whole-college reform that aims to improve college completion rates and times for students, especially in the community college sector. This multisite case study sought to explore how pathways institutions supported students to better align with the right academic and career programs. Through individual semi-structured interviews, faculty members and advisors reflected on if and how they collaborated to better serve students in this capacity. Three themes emerged during data analysis and were reported in narrative form: a.) divergent faculty and advising attitudes about pathways reforms, b.) inconsistent perceptions on levels of collaboration, and c.) criticisms and …

Student Loan Debt And First-Generation Community College Students, Sandra A. Fuentes

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The rising costs of college attendance and changes in financial aid packages leave students with little option other than to incur a debt of some amount. Unfortunately, colleges often fail to provide adequate financial literacy and student loan information so prospective students planning to attend college can make informed decisions. Student loans may seem attractive in the short term because, unlike other loans, repayment does not begin immediately. However, the accrual of student loan debt leads to long-term financial consequences, including the opportunity to build economic wealth after graduation. Utilizing a basic qualitative research design, I explored first-generation community college …

Con Ilusión Y Ganas: Advancing The Transfer Rates Of Latino Male Scholars, Abraham Madrigal Barajas

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

California Community Colleges (CCC) are the largest post-secondary higher education systems in the nation, with an enrollment of over 2 million at a given year. They are also the most affordable and accessible for students after completing K-12 education. With California having the largest Latinx residents (39%), they overwhelmingly makeup 45% of the student population enrolled in CCC. Although Latinx students are pursuing higher education and enrolling in high numbers in CCC’s, they still fall short when it comes to student success outcomes, particularly transfer, when compared with their peers. Only 10 % of Latinx students transfer in two years, …

Early College High School, Dual Enrollment, Traditional College, And Time To Obtain A 2-Year Degree, Christopher D. Mccraw

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Early college high school (ECHS) and dual enrollment programs offer opportunities for students to work toward their 2-year degree while still in high school. The problem for this study was that the ECHS and dual enrollment programs had not been compared to see if they facilitated 2-year college degree completion compared to one another and to a traditional college program. The problem was urgent because there was a need to evaluate two different ECHS screening methods, assuming significantly less time to degree completion for the ECHS students. The purpose of this quantitative project study was to determine if the time …

Rising Scholars: Narratives Of Formerly Incarcerated/System-Impacted Community College Students In An On-Campus Support Program, Jason Durrell Bostick

LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations

This study uplifted the stories of formerly incarcerated and/or system-impacted students attending a California community college (i.e., “Rising Scholars”) to provide qualitative context to a growing literature following the state’s promotion of support programs at the University of California (UC), California State University (CSU), and California Community Colleges (CCC) systems. This study interviewed six formerly incarcerated/system impacted Rising Scholars using a narrative inquiry methodology with a theoretical framework of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Desistance theory to inquire about their educational experiences before and during their enrollment at an urban California community college with reentry support. Key themes in the …

Creating A Sense Of Belonging For Latinx Students In Community College: You Matter, You Fit In, And You Belong, Francisco Javier Bataz

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the perceptions of Latinx sense of belonging in a Midwest community college and how their academic and social experiences are impacted. Sense of belonging is meaningful to community college students because Latinx students are historically underserved in postsecondary education. The goal is to better understand the perceptions of Latinx students in a community college setting and to find out what factors impact sense of belonging. This study is significant because Latinx student retention outcomes in higher education are very low. The Latinx population is the fastest growing group in the United States. Therefore, providing support and an …

A Narrative Inquiry On The Leadership Of Latina Women Practitioners In Community Colleges, Cynthia Padilla-Gaytan

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation of practice explored the experiences of Latina women student affairs practitioners as they engage in leadership at community colleges. Guided by LatCrit, this study combined a narrative inquiry approach with the use of pláticas. Data was collected via interviews with five Latina women student affairs professionals. Through the use of pláticas, the findings narrates participants’ reflections on their experiences of navigating white, masculine leadership norms. Specifically, white, masculine norms of leadership led to Latina women not seeing themselves as leaders growing up and early in their careers. white, masculine norms of leadership also created barriers for when Latina …

A Phenomenological Study Exploring Arab Muslim Students At Community College And Islamophobia, Dustin French

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Arab Muslim students continue to face various forms of islamophobia on campus despite efforts from the college to make campus more welcoming and inclusive. As Muslim students express concern about the rise of islamophobia on campus and bigoted rhetoric on social media, college leaders, administration, and faculty have an imperative role to play in curbing anti-Muslim sentiments, xenophobia, and racism across campus and in the classrooms. To address these concerns effectively and meaningfully, it is important for colleges to understand who their Arab Muslim students are and the challenges they face as college students amid islamophobia. This dissertation explored how …

Large Scale Open Educational Resources (Oer) Initiative In Mathematics, Alioune Khoule, Abderrazak Belkharraz Idrissi, Sandra Sze

Publications and Research

A team of LaGuardia Community College math faculty designed and launched the OER (Open Educational Resources) project in Spring 2017 to allow to take mathematics courses at zero or low textbook cost. Our first pilot phase started with 10 sections in Fall 2017 using three different OER platforms: Myopenmath, Webwork and Khanacademy. One out of the three platforms, Myopenmath used in phase 1 was selected to pilot 34 sections in Spring 2018. In Fall 2018, the OER team moved to a full-scale implementation on all remedial and gateway courses of 164 sections including Fundamentals of Algebra, Intro to Algebra, Elementary …

Exploring Factors Influencing The Transition Of Adult Students From Noncredit To Credit Community College Courses, Kevin Baker

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the factors that former Adult Basic Education (ABE) students perceived were important in their transition from noncredit courses to credit coursework offered at 2 community colleges in San Bernardino County and Riverside County, California, using Schlossberg’s (1984) transition theory and 4S system elements. A second purpose of this study was to determine which factors facilitated or hindered their transition from noncredit courses to credit coursework.

Methodology: This qualitative research study utilized a phenomenological approach to explore the transition experience of former ABE students. Semistructured interviews were used to discover …

Examining The Relationship Between Library Services Use And Fall-To-Fall Retention In Community College Libraries, Eric Deatherage

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Community college libraries exist to support institutional outcomes. One such outcome is student retention. This study’s purpose was to fill the gap in the literature at the community college level, proposing that a model including all library service use types would explain variance in student retention beyond that explained by total library financial expenditure. Services included were numbers of physical materials circulated, digital books circulated, e-serials used, reference transactions, library presentations, attendees at presentations, gate counts, and interlibrary loan materials borrowed. Additionally, it was proposed that the relationship between gate counts of physical entry into the library and student retention …

Access To Full-Time Employment Opportunities: A Phenomenological Study Of Faculty Of Color In Rural Community Colleges, Eduardo Vásquez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The mission of community colleges is to create affordable pathways for students to enter into the workforce or transfer into 4-year universities (Brint & Karabel, 1989; Kisker et al., 2016). However, community colleges have not been successful in efforts to assist Students of Color in completing an associate degree or transferring (Shapiro et al., 2017). Therefore, efforts have been made to increase the number Faculty of Color in community colleges as they are influential in student success (Rodriguez, 2015) but Faculty of Color experience systematic oppression in higher education (Pittman, 2010). Faculty of Color in rural community colleges experience discrimination …

Recalibrating Student Services: Examining Staff Perceptions Of Services During Covid-19, Justin White

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As a result of the 2019 global coronavirus pandemic, nearly every business and industry in the United States was forced to adapt its operations to accommodate the restrictions that a community health crisis necessitated. This study examined the experiences of front-line Enrollment Services staff while serving students during the pandemic at one community college in the Midwestern United States. The study focused on staff perceptions of how college policies, processes, and leadership affected the student onboarding experience that encompasses the complete path a student takes from beginning as an applicant to becoming an enrolled student in the classroom. The study …

Immigrant Learning In Community Colleges: Unpacking Student Experiences In Minnesota, Abdulrazzaq S. Mursal

Education Doctorate Dissertations

This study explored lived experiences of Somali immigrant students as they studied at a community college in Minnesota. Although, many Somalis are pursuing educational opportunities in MN community colleges. Little research is available on their community college experiences. The aim of this study was to extend the limited research on Somali immigrant students by providing valuable information regarding their community college experiences. A qualitative study design with a phenomenological approach was employed to examine the lived experiences of six students who participated in semi-structured focus group and individual interviews. Findings of the study show that Somali students face many challenges …

The Effects Of Embedded Orientation On Online Developmental Mathematics Students' Performance In Community College: A Causal-Comparative Study, William Randal Swenson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Students in developmental mathematics courses exhibit poor pass rates. This problem is exaggerated for traditionally aged online community college learners, who frequently demonstrate few self-regulatory skills. Self-regulated learners are intrinsically motivated, plan for success, monitor their progress, and reflect on their learning. These learners are significantly more likely to pass and eventually graduate. Self-regulatory skills can be taught through direct instruction and reflection over a protracted learning experience. This form of instruction was attempted using an embedded orientation in online developmental mathematics courses at a community college. Embedded orientations provide consistent training, opportunities for socialization, and increased instructor-to-learner interaction within …

Examining The Experiences That Promoted Completion: A Phenomenological Study Of Single-Parent Community College Students In Noncredit Programs, Esther Campbell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the experiences that promoted completion among single-parent students who completed a noncredit program at a community college in East Texas named Pine Tree College (PTC). The theory guiding this study was Tinto’s (1975) theory of student departure as it explains experiences that lead a student to dropout of higher education and not persist to completion. The student departure theory (Tinto, 1975) provided the theoretical framework for the study to answer the central research question and sub-questions: (a) What are the experiences that support noncredit program completion among single-parents in the …

A Comparative Analysis Of Levels Of Importance, Satisfaction, And Engagement Among Adult Learners And Tennessee Reconnect Recipients At Two Community Colleges, Kelly A. Moore-Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This primary goal of this study was to compare the levels of importance, satisfaction, and perceived engagement between adult learners and Tennessee Reconnect adult learners at two Tennessee community colleges. A two-group comparison research design using existing data from two survey instruments was used for this study. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics based on the scales and subscales of the two surveys: Adult Learner Inventory (ALI) and Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE). Because Tennessee Reconnect is a new program, very little literature has been conducted targeting this specific population. Therefore, this study attempted to add …

Tale Of The Tape: A Study Of Two-Year College Student-Athletes, Dustin Grover

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Two-year athletic programs bring many unique elements to a college campus, many of which help to create a comprehensive student experience. Quantifying this experience is difficult as little data has been collected historically on two-year college athletes. The purpose of conducting this study was to create a profile of a rural two-year college student-athlete and to utilize the data to determine if participation in athletics had any effect on student success measures. This study will help college administrators build a better understanding of the two-year college student-athlete, aiding their decision-making regarding the prioritization of college athletics on their campuses. These …

Systemic Functional Linguistics In The Community College Composition Class: A Multimodal Approach To Teaching Composition Using The Metalanguage Of Sfl, Jennifer James

Education (PhD) Dissertations

This qualitative research study sought to understand the affordances and limitations of a systemic functional linguistics (SFL) approach to teaching composition at the community college level. The study took place over the course of a semester in two developmental college composition classes using the language of SFL to teach writing through multimodal assignments. The study was developed in response to the increasing diversity in writing skills and educational goals of students in the community college composition class. The increase in diversity is a result of legislation in California that restructures developmental class offerings and affects placement in the transfer-level composition …

Developing A Culture Of Care And Support: A Review Of Institutional Practices And Growth Opportunities Affecting Black Male Student-Athletes At Southtown Community College, Roberto D. Torres

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

In December 2018, the Dean of Academic Affairs (DAA) was approached by the coach and members of the Southtown Community College (STC) basketball team regarding academic support for the team. The academic affairs team would delve into this situation and discover several areas where the college had failed these students. This study examines the conditions and climate that lead to the maltreatment of Black male student-athletes at STC and the feedback from the students affected. The feedback from these student-athletes gives a glimpse of their feelings of being mistreated because of their race and arguably their gender. The three goals …