Education Commons^™

Do Credit-Based Transfer Programs Have An Impact On Intellectual Development From Secondary Education To Post-Secondary Education?, James Uhlenkamp

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This descriptive, retrospective quantitative study identified the influence that credit-based transfer programs have on the intellectual development positions of college matriculates at a private, residential, church-affiliated master’s degree granting university in the Midwest. This determination presents a better success measure for credit-based transfer programs than the measures used in previous studies: academic momentum, persistence rate, college grade point average, and degree attainment. People transitioning through intellectual development positions gain critical thinking skills and adopt more of the habits of mind and of working that characterize a well-educated person.

An evaluation database developed for the target university’s first-year experience program provided …

A Motivated Workforce: A Mixed Methods Study Of Worker Motivation At A Nebraska Manufacturing Company, Kevin Wesley

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The study of worker motivation and human motivation in general, has been the focus of psychologists, sociologists, behavioral scientists, and leadership theorists for more than a century. An understanding of the factors that motivate workers is critical not only to corporate executives who concentrate on the bottom line, but more importantly to the security of our nation as it relates to competing in the global market. The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to examine worker motivation in a Nebraska manufacturing company. A pragmatist worldview informs the convergent parallel design of this study, which consists of a qualitative strand using …

Transition To College: Nonacademic Factors That Influence Persistence For Underprepared Community College Students, Ann M. Paulson

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Community colleges provide access to higher education for a broad range of students. The majority require ‘remedial’ coursework in reading, writing and, especially, math. Most students who begin with this remedial coursework do not go on to earn a certificate or degree. Low levels of college graduation have high direct cost, adversely affect the U.S. economy and contribute to socioeconomic inequity.

The literature review shows that both academic and nonacademic factors influence both completion of remedial coursework and completion of first year in college. It introduces research on a variety of strategies for increasing completion and persistence for underprepared students. …

General Education In Health Science-Focused Institutions: An Explanatory Mixed Methods Study, Peggy K. Rosario

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to describe the structure of general education curricula at baccalaureate colleges of health science in relationship to Bergquist’s Career-Based Model of curriculum. Using an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach, the model was tested by examining whether the curricula were both prescriptive and specific. First, the researcher analyzed how prescriptive the general education curricula at 38 colleges of health science were by evaluating the institutions’ catalogs and websites. In the qualitative phase, the researcher interviewed general education leaders at six of the colleges to confirm the quantitative data and obtain information about how specific the …

Gaining Insight Into Hispanic Students’ Postsecondary Plans, Neel A. Brown

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

While the growth of the Hispanic population in the United States is outpacing other ethnicities, college enrollment and graduation rates of Hispanic students continue to lag behind other groups. This longitudinal, qualitative case study explored when, how, and why a sample of Hispanic high school seniors at a large high school in North Central Texas made decisions regarding their postsecondary educational and career choices.

The foundation of this research relied on a series of 39 individual interviews with 13 Hispanic high school students over the course of their 2012 senior year. Analysis of the data uncovered themes regarding family influence, …

The Philosopher's Stone: How Basic Skills Programs Fare In Troubled Financial Times, Thomas P. Ray

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This mixed methods study examined the relative position of basic skills programs with transfer and career technical programs in a large suburban community college in California during the three-year period of budget reductions from 2009-2010 through 2011-2012. The budget line dedicated to part-time or non-contract instruction was analyzed along with supporting documents such as planning committee minutes and program review data. Knowledge of the budget data and the reduction strategies employed helped to establish a picture of the state of basic skills and the institution’s disposition toward them. The budget data proved to be an inadequate tool to measure investment …

Journal Of The National Collegiate Honors Council, Volume 13, Number 2, Fall/Winter 2012 (Complete Isue)

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

Honors Around the Globe: Countries and Contributors

Australia—Deirdre Barron and Margaret Zeegers

Brazil—Eunice M. L. Soriano de Alencar, Aderson Luiz Costa Jr., and Denise de Souza Fleith

Chile—Frederick J. Conway, Carlos Alberto Cioce Sampaio, and Juan Carlos Skewes

China—Ikuo Kitagaki and Donglin Li

Mexico—Mohammad Ayub Khan and Ruben Morales-Menendez

Netherlands—Vladimir Bartelds, Johannes Boonstra, Trijntje van Dijk, Lyndsay Drayer, Pierre Van Eijl, Stan van Ginkel, Bouke van Gorp, Nelleke de Jong, G. Johan Offringa, Anton Peeters, Albert Pilot, Karin Scager, Ron Weerheijm, Jeske Weerheijm, Fred Wiegant, Marca V. C. Wolfensberger, and John Zubizarreta

Qatar—Byrad …

Nefdc Exchange, Volume 25, Fall 2012, New England Faculty Development Consortium

NEFDC Exchange

Contents

President's message - Tom Thibodeau,

Colleges of Worcester Consortium Offers Certificate in College Teaching - Susan C. Wyckoff, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Why are you making me do this? Buying into the 20/40 paradigm one step at a time - Kristine Larsen, Central Connecticut State University

Teaching and Learning Collaborative of the Colleges of the Fenway Invites Participation in Programs to Enhance College Teaching and Learning

Defining academic challenge: the first step in keeping students on track - Karen St. Clair and Paul Hackett, Emerson College

Using online virtual worlds to enhance students' engagement and learning in online classes …

Instructional Designers In Higher Education, Tami Marie Moskal

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Research about the preparation and competencies of instructional designers in higher education has not been addressed. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore individuals in this context by focusing on their employment and academic backgrounds, as well as their responsibilities, qualifications, and expectations as reported by their supervisors. This study sought to understand who the instructional designers in higher education are, and how they came to their roles in their institutions. An understanding of these instructional designers in higher education could lead to improved teaching and learning experiences for students in higher education.

Five themes emerged from …

Women In Nontraditional Occupations: A Case Study Of Worker Motivation, Katherine Wesley

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupation Act (WANTO Act) of 1992 highlighted an urgent matter facing the American workforce that persists today. The urgent matter in 2012 involves the precarious effect of demographics on the American labor market, placing women at the crux of engaging opportunity or maintaining status quo.

Women must be empowered and encouraged to seek employment opportunities they have never considered, e.g. male-dominated, nontraditional occupations, for the U.S. to keep pace with labor market needs. The need amplifies the myriad of issues for women in male-dominated, nontraditional occupations.

Among the barriers confronting women is the persistence …

Financial Indicators In Strategic Decision Making: Recommended Practices For Financial Officers At Small Private Colleges And Universities In The Midwestern United States, Beth Reissenweber

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study explored whether financial leaders and institutional governing boards use financial indicators as a tool to inform decision making, solely as a compliance measurement tool, or not at all. The purpose of this qualitative study was two-fold to: (a) identify the use of financial indicators in strategic decision making, and (b) investigate how institutions use financial indicators to support governing boards in making strategic decisions. The data were obtained from a survey of 214 financial officers to identify the use of financial indicators, and in-depth interviews with leaders from six institutions who indicated strategic use of financial indicators to …

Mentoring Functions Within The American Council On Education (Ace) Fellows Leadership Development Program: A Mixed Methods Study, Sheri Grotrian-Ryan

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to examine and better comprehend the concept of mentoring within the American Council on Education (ACE) Fellows Program. This study addressed the functions of mentoring and how they applied to those participating in the ACE Fellows Program—from the Fellows’ (or protégés’) perspectives. A sequential explanatory mixed methods design was used, and it involved collecting quantitative data followed by qualitative data. Due to the fact there is a shortage of campus leaders because of increased retirement, gaining knowledge in how to develop future administrators would be beneficial. Such a mixed methods study proposed what functions …

Variables Associated With Sense Of Community In Online And On-Ground Clinical Doctorate Education, Tracy Chapman

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study examined classroom community, as measured by the Classroom Community Scale (Rovai, 2002c), among online and on-ground students (N = 386) enrolled in Doctor of Pharmacy or Doctor of Occupational Therapy courses. Multiple regression analysis identified variables (student and course variables) shown to significantly predict the presence of community among students. Results revealed the set of predictor variables are different for each sub-group of students. Community among on-ground students was predicted by the amount of small group work used in a course, the course’s primary type of learning outcome (affective or cognitive), and the students’ self-reported estimated grade. …

The Impact Of Students' Academic And Social Relationships On College Student Persistence, Lindsay K. Wayt

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this research study was to determine the connection between students’ relationships and their choice to persist at a post-secondary institution. Although other literature has centered around why students chose to leave an institution or the importance of student involvement and engagement, this study focused on who is most influential in encouraging students to work toward their degree attainment. The study includes results of the influence of peers, family, college faculty, and college student affairs staff on student persistence decisions. This research sought to make a contribution to the literature on retention and attrition issues at colleges and …

Developing A Template For Electronic Portfolios In Career And Technical Education, Matthew G. Fowler

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purposes of this multiple case study were to determine if manufacturing and services sector employers found value in the use of an ePortfolio in the hiring process, and to develop a suggested template for an ePortfolio format to be used within career and technical education.

Electronic portfolios “allow students to showcase their abilities in a more dynamic way….through text, graphics, and video….than a GPA or transcript ever could. And because they are digital, it is easier to share, review, and provide feedback” (Murphy, 2003, p. 1). These ePortfolios are an obvious example of an authentic assessment method that provides …

Generativity In Young Adults: Comparing And Explaining The Impact Of Mentoring, Lindsay J. Hastings

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this embedded explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to examine the impact of mentoring relationships on generativity in college students. Generativity refers to concern for establishing and guiding the next generation The first, quantitative phase compared generatvity levels among general college students, college student leaders who do not mentor, and college student leaders who mentor through a program called Nebraska Human Resources Institute (NHRI) at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. Data were collected via surveys (N = 273) using the Loyola Generativity Scale (LGS), the Generativity Behavior Checklist (GBC), and the Personal Strivings measure. A multivariate …

Reclaiming Our Voice: Strengths First-Generation African American Males Use To Succeed In College, Kelly A. Irby

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to add to the small body of literature exploring the successes of African American males in college. In this particular study, I sought to explore the strengths that first-generation African American males perceived as important to their success at a primarily White institution in the Midwest. Personal interviews were utilized to learn which self-identified strengths were important to success in college for each participant. The result was a candid portrait of the difficulties African American males face and an in-depth understanding of the strengths they utilized to overcome difficulties and succeed.

This study explored …

Exploring The Effectiveness Of Late-­‐Night Programs To Curb Underage Alcohol Consumption, Kathryn E. Reising

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This research study explored the effectiveness of late-night programming as a tool to deter underage alcohol consumption of students. At the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, Campus NightLife provided these late-night activities for students as an alternative to drinking. A survey was completed by student attendees of two Campus NightLife events in the Fall 2011 semester to gauge if students attending late-night programming sponsored by Campus NightLife (CNL) at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln were satisfied with the types of programs being put on by CNL and were choosing to attend these events as an alternative to engaging in …

Creating Experiences That Matter: A Qualitative Study Exploring Honors Program Peer Mentoring And Self-Authorship Development, Samantha K. Mosier

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this case study was to explore the role that peer mentoring in a university honors program plays in self-authorship development for the student mentors at Midwestern University. Self-authorship was identified through participant responses identified in the three actions grounded in Baxter Magolda’s (2001) Learning Partnerships Model: (a) validate students as knowers, (b) situate learning in students’ experiences, and (c) define learning as mutually constructed meaning.

Research on student, peer-to-peer mentor relationships is often focused on the mentee rather than the mentor, so the goal of this research was to look further into the role and experiences of …

Color Them Pink: An Exploratory Study Of Women And Other Underrepresented Minorities In Master's Stem Programs, Maggie J. Jobes

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This quantitative, exploratory study was designed to examine and compare socialization and mentoring in two groups of students, and the influence these factors had on their ranking of academic and overall experience in Master’s degree level science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) programs at a large, Midwestern university. The subjects were University of Nebraska-Lincoln Master’s degree recipients who had completed the Master’s Degree Graduate Studies Exit Survey and had identified themselves as being part of a STEM graduate program. Literature displayed the underrepresentation of women and individuals of certain racial or ethnic backgrounds in STEM fields and particularly in graduate …

Sorority Life: Would You Do It All Over Again?, Lorena Zamarripa-Lovo

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe and compare the joining experiences of women in Traditional Greek Sororities and Latina-Based Greek Sororities at a Midwestern Predominantly White Institution (PWI). In this study, experience was based on how the students learned about Greek life, the process of joining the sorority, the expectations students had of their sororities, and whether or not the participants would have joined the sorority if they had known what they knew about sorority life at the time of their interviews. There were eleven participants who were interviewed as part of the research. The participants were …

Senior-Level Administrators’ Leadership In Internationalizing A Public Research University In The Midwest: A Case Study, Sylvia S. Jons

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The importance of the internationalization of higher education is well documented, however there is little research that focuses on senior level administrators and their pursuit in developing an internationalization strategy. Internationalization as defined by Knight (2004) is “the process of integrating an international, intercultural or global dimension into the purpose, functions or delivery of post-secondary education”. This case study addressed this pursuit and examined the process that university top-level administrators use in internationalizing a public research university in the Midwest. A case study is the appropriate qualitative research method because it explored senior-level administrators pursuit of internationalization within a bounded …

The Third Culture: Exploring The Experiences Of International Graduate Assistants At A Public, Four-Year Institution In The United States, Stephanie Herzog

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of international graduate assistants at a public, four-year institution in the Southwestern U.S. This study concentrated on graduate-level (both master’s and PhD) international students who were at the time the research was conducted, employed within a graduate assistantship. The study was conducted in order to identify the essence of the phenomenon of being an international graduate assistant in the U.S. Explicitly, this study addressed how international graduate assistants simultaneously balanced the threefold experience of being an international student, pursuing a graduate-level degree, and working within a professional capacity …

Freshman Year Living Arrangements And College Experiences For Local Students, Sara E. Sanchez

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to investigate and compare the freshman-year college experiences of University of Nebraska-Lincoln students based on whether they lived in a residence hall or at home with their parent(s) or guardian(s) their freshman year. Specifically, the study’s participants were students with permanent addresses of Lincoln, Nebraska; this group was selected in order to focus on the lived experiences of students who had the option between remaining to live at home or moving onto campus for their freshman year. This is not an option for all incoming UNL freshman as there is a first-year live-on …

Chancellor’S Scholars Program: Exploring The Transitional Influence On Freshmen College Students, Alison P. Tepoel

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to explore the fears and situations of Hispanic freshmen students enrolled at a large Midwestern University who had received the Chancellor’s Scholarship and were participating in the 2011-2012 Chancellor’s Scholars Program through the Office of Academic Success and Intercultural Services at this University. How participation in the Chancellor’s Scholars Program aided them in the transition process was also determined. Schlossberg’s Transition Theory (1981) presented factors that influenced a person’s ability to cope with a transition: situation, self, support, and strategies, which are also known as the 4 S’s. These four categories were viewed in …

A Character Campaign: Exploring A Common Morality In Fraternity Life At A Post-Secondary Institution, Christopher Devlin

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study is to explore the potential impact on Greek life of the “Show Your Red Character Campaign,” a campus-wide character development program, on the moral development of fraternity members. This study also hopes to explore how to ensure the productivity of the Campaign and how the outcomes decided upon by the Campaign student leadership can be met. Chickering (1969) said college students moved through seven "vectors" which contribute to the formation of identity. One of these vectors, labeled developing integrity, concerned moral development. The college experience forces students to shift from a literal belief in the …

First Year Student Development: Sophomore Students' Perceptions Of Growth And Contributing Factors, Catherine B. Holbrook

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The first year of college is critically important to student success, often shaping the amount and nature of growth and learning over the entire collegiate career in complex and profound ways. For this reason, higher education experts have called for colleges and universities to establish integrated, intentional programs for new students with identified outcomes which are regularly assessed to evaluate effectiveness. The purpose of this concurrent nested study was to investigate how college sophomores perceived their personal development during the first year of college against 10 specific competencies and to understand what types of first year experiences contributed to any …

Campus Blueprint Enrollment Management Council’S Strategic Enrollment Management Plan 2012-2017

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Administration: Papers, Publications, and Presentations

Report Outline

Building a Big Ten University

The Case for Enrollment Growth

Student Recruitment Outlook

-A Decade of Recruiting Success

- Power of the Big Ten Brand

The Case for Student Retention

Enrollment Growth Initiatives

Part One: Student Recruitment Initiatives

- Sharing Our Story of Quality

- Improving the Academic Profile and Student Diversity

- Priority One: Nebraska

- Expanding the University’s Outreach

- Expanding National Recruitment Travel and Outreach

- Enhancing Marketing and Web Services

- Increasing the Prospective Student Pool

- Expanding Capacity for Campus Visits and On-Campus Events

- Building UNL’s International Student Recruiting Program

- Developing …

On Honors Students Dreaming The Gothic, Mark Boren

Honors in Practice Online Archive

Filling an honors basic studies class in Gothic literature and culture was not a difficult challenge. By design, this course attracted students ranging from freshmen to seniors and from a wide variety of majors that included English, psychology, business, education, and chemistry. The trick was creating an even intellectual playing field, establishing and sustaining a high level of discussion in which everyone participated daily, and making the course intellectually rigorous for each student in the class. At the same time, I wanted to give to these students from different disciplines a flexible analytical method they could master for understanding the …

Honors Analytics: Science, An Interdisciplinary Lab-Based Course On Visual Perception, Stephen R. Campbell, Robert T. Grammer, Lonnie Yandell, William H. Hooper

Honors in Practice Online Archive

Interdisciplinarity has consistently been a hallmark of honors courses, particularly in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. Such an approach has been less universal in honors courses in the natural sciences, particularly in laboratory- based courses (Ramaley). We believe that a mark of success of any such course is the degree to which it moves from multidisciplinary to interdisciplinary. Moreover, if the course fulfills a general education requirement in science, it needs to include exposure to the scope of scientific investigation, the techniques of science, and the nature of the scientific process. At Belmont University, we created and for ten …