Education Commons^™

An Examination Of How Feminist Perspectives And Generational Differences Lnfluence The Leadership Practices Of Women Administrators In Higher Education, Marlene Kowalski-Braun

Dissertations

This study explored how feminist perspectives and generational differences influence the leadership practice of women administrators in higher education, specifically, how they lead and create institutional change. It examined the experiences of seven women who identified as feminists, who were part of Generation X, and who were at the mid-level, aspiring to senior-level, or in senior-level positions.

Phenomenology was the qualitative methodology used in this study to uncover how these women made meaning of their feminist and generational identities. The approach was grounded in feminist methodology and utilized feminist standpoint theory to legitimize women as “knowers.” It drew on a …

Exploring The Validity Of Established Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual Stage Models Of Sexual Identity Development: A Grounded Theory Study Of Women And Ethnic Minority Men., Omar Ali Shabaaz Troutman

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to develop a foundational understanding of how women and ethnic minority men come to espouse a lesbian, gay, or bisexual identity in an effort to develop a coherent theory. While stage models of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender identity currently exist, their validity with the female and ethnic minority male populations was called into question. A grounded theory approach was used with participants from the southeastern United States who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Three main patterns emerged: Recognition and Progression of Identity Endorsement; Barriers to Identity Endorsement; and Rejection of Categorical Labels. …

Division I Collegiate Women Athletic Directors' Perceptions Of Sexism And Career Experiences, Ashley L. Kies

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated eight Division I (DI) collegiate women athletic directors' (ADs) career experiences and perceptions of sexism within their careers and athletics as a whole. Over the last century, women's sports have made great strides toward equality in athletics. Specifically, the last four decades have yielded notable progress including the amendment of Title IX in 1972, which allowed women and men equal access to federal funding for sports, as well as the creation of women's professional sports leagues, increased numbers of girls and women participating in athletics, increased numbers of women's collegiate teams, and increased rates of women employed …

Coming Of Age In Neoliberal New York, Jennifer Hope Sugg

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Thirty years of neoliberal policies have left New York a divided city, with ever-rising rates of income inequality and widening social disparity. Structural transformations associated with global capitalism have led to divergent experiences for male and female youth coming of age in the 21st century. Girls are experiencing greater social integration and social mobility whereas, boys are facing social exclusion and limited opportunities. As young men precariously forge new transitions to adulthood, young women are constructed as ideal flexible subjects, benefiting from feminist achievements, and advancing in the new service economy. Yet in reality, girls continue to face gendered base …

The Journey To The Top: Women's Paths To The University Presidency, Ann Marie Klotz

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

The history of women in higher education reflects a constant battle for access and equity. Although the number of post-secondary institutions steadily increased after Harvard University opened its doors in 1636, almost two hundred years would pass before women students were allowed at some institutions. In the last 50 years, the number of women graduating from four-year institutions has dramatically increased. The same delayed access for women students to gain admittance mirrors the challenges that women faculty and staff have seen in obtaining leadership roles within higher education. Despite enrollment numbers that indicate women students are enrolling and graduating at …

Sex-Crazed And Bloodthirsty: The Misrepresentation Of Female Nazis In American Popular Culture, Catherine L. Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the Nazisploitation trope of the Ilsa-type within its political, social, and cultural context. A product of the 1950s men's adventure magazines, the Ilsa-type continues to be a familiar and popular character within American pop culture. Popularized through the 1970s torture porn, Ilsa, She-Wolf of the SS, the character has since influenced mainstream film, fashion, and various other popular culture outlets. This thesis discusses why such an ahistorical figure has seized hold of public imagination, how she has developed in the decades since her first appearance, and why she matters. A work of feminist historical scholarship, this thesis …

A Qualitative Study Of Women High School Principals' Career Life Histories, Jan Bradshaw Hansen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Gender inequalities in the workplace continue to plague aspiring career-directed women. In public education, it is established that there are fewer women high school principals than there are men. In a profession predominantly employing women, the question remains, “Where are the women high school administrators”? This study examines the sociopolitical genders systems and psychological dynamics that perpetuate gender inequality. It then discusses the encumbered or constrained choices women make that are burdened or made more complicated by gendered sociopolitical or psychological dynamics. This study explored the unintentional career journeys of seven women high school principals and analyzed their career life …

Informally Educating The Community: St. Louis Phyllis Wheatley’S Ywca Committee On Administration Speaks On The Decline Of The Organization Through Historical Narratives, Cheryl Denise Osby

Dissertations

Immediately following the end of the Reconstruction period, Negro Americans were forced to live in the second wave of racial bondage resulting from the institutionalization of Jim Crow Laws. For Black females, this bondage carried a double-edged sword, as the weight of this oppression encompassed every aspect of their lives. Unfortunately, many viewed that there was no outlet from this misery. Even before the official end of slavery, free Black women that rose to the middle-class economic status had begun club work and established clubs in their communities. These organizations not only provided a social outlet for these privileged women, …

An Exploratory Study Of Diversified Mentoring Relationships Among Graduate Students And Their Advisors In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics Fields, Krystin R. Bodden

Open Access Theses

Minorities and women continue to be underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. In graduate education, factors such as racism, prejudice, discrimination, sexism, stereotypes, tokenism, and a lack of role models can all plague students and contribute to uncompleted degrees and non-entrance into STEM fields. One of the tools being used to combat these barriers is effective mentoring. Graduate students and their advisors generally have close working relationships and advisors serve in a tremendously important role in the development of the graduate student, so an effective mentoring relationship is vital.

The purpose of this study was to explore …

Women In Leadership And The Politics Of Power, Caitlin Maeve Kendall

Master's Theses

With the use of intimate interviews, this qualitative research study employed an experiential, story-telling approach to gather a more thorough understanding of individual female experiences in leadership positions in the field of education in relation to the literature on female leadership in a gendered workforce. Although this study only included the experiences of several women leaders in the field of education in the Chicago area, the preexisting research on the topic guided the interview questions and divulged the nexus between a culture of systematic gendered hierarchy in the workplace and the strategies and characteristics of success employed by female leaders …

Beneath The Glass Ceiling : What Causes Some Qualified Female Educators To Remain In The Classroom While Others Obtain Leadership Roles?, Allison J. Jordan

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

There is a dispoportionate number of female administrators in relation to the number of female-helmed classrooms in the United States. Jordan tackles the issue of gender in educational leadership. While the removal of legal and social barriers to administrative leadership in the twentieth century may have seemed to point the way toward a female-dominated leadership structure, she finds that female educational leaders are underrepresented at all levels. The study focused on Central Virginia. Jordan tried to uncover the common themes among female educators, including what differences existed between qualified classroom teachers and women who held positions of educational leadership.

Longevity Of Women Superintendents, Kim C. Sethna

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Public schools are facing a leadership crisis regarding the lack of women superintendents in the United States. Although, historically, women have dominated the positions of classroom teachers and outnumbered men in receiving administrative leadership certificates, there is a disproportion in the number of men and women superintendents leading the nation's approximate 14,000 public schools. While current researchers describe the complex roles that the superintendency entails, there is little data on gender differences, specifically, how women superintendents achieve longevity in this role. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the longevity of women superintendents in public school …

Education And Women Mathematicians In The Middle East, Syeda Tooba Zahra

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Middle Eastern women have made important contributions in the field of Mathematics. The purpose of this thesis is to understand the educational background for women in the Middle East and look at the life and contribution of a sample of women mathematicians in representative Middle Eastern countries such as Turkey, Lebanon, Iran, and Pakistan.