Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Ouachita Announces Another Increase For Spring '24 Enrollment, Felley Lawson, Office Of Communications & Marketing

Press Releases

Ouachita Baptist University has reported its highest spring enrollment in more than 40 years with a total Spring 2024 headcount of 1,722.

The university has sustained momentum in student recruitment and retention, maintaining steady growth with a total enrollment surge of 20% since 2016 in contrast to reports of declining enrollment in colleges and universities nationwide.

Ouachita's Fall 2023 Enrollment Highest In 57 Years, Felley Lawson, Office Of Communications & Marketing

Press Releases

Ouachita Baptist University has reported its highest enrollment in 57 years, with a Fall 2023 headcount of 1,815.

Since 2016, the university has sustained momentum that’s reflected in a 20% increase in total enrollment and a 14% growth in undergraduate enrollment. Residential undergraduate enrollment now numbers 1,581. There are 81 students enrolled in Ouachita’s six graduate programs this fall, more than doubling the number who enrolled when graduate programs were reintroduced in 2020 through the university’s expanding catalog.

A Study Of Retention And Recruitment At Southern And Midwestern Weekly U.S. Newspapers, Jessica Fargen Walsh, Jill Martin

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

Daily and weekly newspapers are closing at alarming rates, leaving readers without local coverage in many parts of the country. More than 5,000 of the remaining newspapers in the United States are weeklies, providing meeting coverage, agricultural news and keeping small towns informed. Yet, not nearly enough research exists about the people working at those newspapers. More than 1,000 email surveys were sent in early 2021 to weekly news editors, publishers or owners in seven states seeking opinions on successes and challenges in hiring and retaining weekly journalists. Survey results and follow-up interviews revealed a number of insights including data …

A Pilot Study On The Retention And Turnover Of Ncaa Division Ii Sports Information Directors, David Albrecht

Leadership Education Capstones

This study reports on sports information directors (SID) at the collegiate level limited to NCAA Division II athletic programs. An online survey was used for all participants, and select respondents completed follow-up interviews. Surveys were intended to determine the impact of work-life balance and overall workload of the SID role. Survey questions sought to find perceptions of SIDs by athletic administrators, including the athletic director (AD), and if their role provided opportunities for career advancement within collegiate athletic administration. The results of the study showed that institution/department culture, family, and professional growth factored heavily on retention. Adversely, turnover was linked …

Retention, Retention, Retention: Keeping Our Colleagues In The Trenches, Joel Hefling

Proceedings of the National Developmental Conference on Individual Events

Over a period of years (thirty or more, probably), a number of coaches have left forensics. Some have retired from education. Some have retired from coaching. Some have left coaching to pursue other academic interests. Some of those individuals have returned to positions that are solely teaching positions. Others have moved into administrative positions, at a departmental level, or at a college or university level. Invariably, those individuals have left "holes" to be filled. Filling the positions is not necessarily a concern or a problem.

Positions can and have been filled by competent coaches and educators. The "natural" attrition provides …

The Importance Of The Basic Communication Course In The First-Year Experience: Implications For Retention, Tim Mckenna-Buchanan, Stevie Munz, Anna Wright, Jeremy Williams

Basic Communication Course Annual

This study examines the basic communication course (BCC) as it relates to students’ first academic year at a university. Specifically, we compared students completing both a first-year experience (FYE) course and BCC against students completing only an FYE course. Data was collected over two cohorts of students and after analytical procedures, we found that there is an association between courses taken (both a FYE course and BCC or just a FYE course) and retention at the university. Additionally, the results revealed that the combination of both a FYE course and BCC during the first-year fostered emotional support and classroom connectedness, …

Program, Policy, And Culture Factors Minority Millennials Perceive As Important Within Their Workplace For Retention, Tanesha C. Watts

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Millennials make up the largest segment of the current workforce. However, research about minority Millennials and their needs are relatively unknown. The purpose of this study was to find out what minority Millennials deemed important within an organization’s culture and the policies and programs that would persuade them to remain with the company. Purposeful sampling was used to identify participants for this study. Participants met the criterion of a Millennial by age, identified as a minority, currently worked at an organization with 50 or more employees in an office location and had worked for their current employer for one year …

Retaining Millennials: Values-Based Communication Tactics Employers Can Use To Appeal To A Supposed Risk-Adverse Generation, Erica Santillo

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Millennials are growing within the workforce, but they are becoming difficult to attract and retain for longer than two years at a time. In addition, Millennials have generational-specific values that are different than their predecessors. Identifying and applying these workplace expectations to organizational policies have made it challenging for leaders to appeal to this generation. Millennials desire five aspects from their workplace: work with a purpose, to be their own boss or work for a boss that is a mentor, a collaborative work environment, flexible work schedules, and work-life integration and/or work-life balance. Using a survey research method, this thesis …

Conflict Management And Team Building As Competencies For Nurse Managers To Improve Retention, Jeanette Black

DNP Qualifying Manuscripts

Abstract

Aim(s): To critically review and summarize evidence related to coaching and training nurse managers in conflict management and team building skills and to determine the relationship of these skills to retention.

Background: Retention of nurse managers is a significant challenge to healthcare organizations.

Evaluation: The databases searched were CINAHL, PubMed, evidence-based journals, JANE, Cochrane, SCOPUS and Joanna Briggs. The keywords searched were conflict management, team building, nurse manager retention, retention, teamwork, healthy work environment, conflict management theory, organizational culture, coaching nurse managers, and nursing. Articles with the strongest evidence were critically appraised using the Johns Hopkins Research and …

Ouachita Baptist Sets Retention Record, Enrollment Increases, Ouachita News Bureau

Press Releases

Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia begins the fall semester with a record freshman-to-sophomore retention rate of 83.4 percent and student enrollment of 1,660, an increase of 7.45 percent from a year ago.

Ouachita Trustees Approve Director Of Nursing, Receive Positive Updates On Enrollment, Retention And Fundraising, Ouachita News Bureau

Press Releases

Members of Ouachita Baptist University’s Board of Trustees have affirmed a major step in Ouachita’s plans to establish a Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, endorsing the appointment of Dr. Brenda Trigg as director of nursing.

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 …

The Efficacy Of A Goal-Based Study Skills Course For Academically At-Risk, First-Generation, African American, Female Students, Sarah Beth Garrison

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to identify effective intervention strategies used in a goal-based study skills course for academically at-risk, first-generation, African-American, female students. Based on the theoretical framework from goal, motivation and achievement theories (Covington, 2000; Kuh, 2007; Nicholls, 1984), this study provided an analysis of research regarding the academic success and persistence of at-risk students. An explanatory mixed-method design was employed that consisted of two phases. The first phase of the study used quantitative data to test for difference in GPA and academic status between the control and treatment group. Quantitative data was also used to identify …

Socialization And Retention: The Effects Of Socialization Tactics On New Hires And Longitudinal Employment, Katie Zarback

Masters Essays

No abstract provided.

Revealing Gender Bias: An Experiential Exercise, Linda M. Dunn-Jensen, Scott Jensen, Mikelle A. Calhoun, Katherine C. Ryan

Organization Management Journal

Stereotyping and biases continue to be a problem in many facets of society. Understanding how biases may affect recruitment and retention of employees has become a priority issue for companies, not only from an image perspective but also from a firm performance perspective, since both research and industry experience have shown that diverse teams generate better results. The need to address these issues, particularly with students who will become leaders in organizations, remains a priority in business education. In this article, we present an experiential activity that management instructors can use to help students understand and appreciate the reality and …

Cedarville Retains 100% Of International Students, Mark D. Weinstein

News Releases

Just two years after implementing the proactive intervention and advising program for international students, Cedarville University has had an astounding 100% retention rate of international students for the 2014-15 academic year.

Springfield Or Bust? A Qualitative Analysis Of The Organization Assimilation Of Young Professionals In Springfield, Missouri, Nii Kpakpo Ekow Abrahams

MSU Graduate Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate to what extent have Millennial young professionals assimilated into Springfield, Missouri's culture. Using organizational assimilation and sensemaking as the theoretical framework, this qualitative thesis research study utilized four focus groups (n=20) to draw its results. Based on a previous foundational study and additional research, five characteristics Millennials want in a city were identified—affordability, community engagement and involvement, Millennial collaboration, entertainment and meaningful experiences, and authenticity. These characteristics also served as the criterion for the results. The findings revealed that Springfield young professionals, based on the five characteristics, have fully assimilated into Springfield's …

Experiences Of Newly Licensed Registered Nurses Who Stay In Their First Jobs, Lisa D. Kirkland

Doctoral Dissertations

Most newly licensed registered nurses go to work in acute care hospitals, which means they enter an increasingly complex healthcare environment where they experience staffing shortages, high nurse-patient ratios, and workplace violence. The purpose of this study is to attempt to understand the experiences of newly licensed registered nurses who have endured the early years of bedside hospital nursing and continue to work in their first nursing job. The existential phenomenological philosophy of Merleau-Ponty serves as the guiding framework for this qualitative research study. Following IRB approval, criterion and snowball sampling were used to recruit newly licensed registered nurses who …

Causes Of Turnover And Employee Satisfaction: A Case Study Of Otterbein University Telefund, Brandy L. Stiverson

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

Organizational communication professionals seek to improve the overall communication needs of organizations and the social interaction processes that occur within. A special focus is given to those communication processes that are aimed at improving relationships between subordinates and employees. Supervisors aim to improve the organizational life for their employees so that they have a happy, effective, and productive run in the organization. However, employees can sometimes feel dissatisfied with their jobs and factors pertaining to their life in and out of the organization. Through examining a call center on a university campus, a greater understanding of employee satisfaction, motivation, and …

Campus Storytelling Networks And Student Retention Intent, Dale Howard Davis

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

In an effort to better understand retention, a survey was developed to ask students at a southern land-grant university how they communicate with each other. Communication Infrastructure Theory (CIT) was previously used to identify communication networks in urban neighborhoods. My thesis adapted this theory and networks to identify the strength of three communication techniques of college students and how it effects a student’s sense of belonging which can impact that student’s intent to stay in school.

Strategic Planning For Recruitment And Retention Of Older African Americans In Health Promotion Research Programs, Laura Dreer, Cynthia Owsley, June Weston

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The purpose of this study was to 1) describe a strategic plan for recruitment and retention used in conducting eye health education research with African-Americans living in urban and rural areas of Alabama and 2) characterize recruitment and retention patterns for this project.

We evaluated an eye health education program tailored specifically to older African Americans. InCHARGE was designed to promote eye disease prevention by conveying the personal benefits of annual dilated comprehensive eye care and teaching strategies to minimize barriers to eye care. The InCHARGEÓ program or a social contact control program was delivered at 20 senior centers in …

Student's Perception Of Teacher Immediacy Behaviors On Student Success And Retention, Rebecca Rae Mullane

Theses and Dissertations

This investigation tested the relationship and the fit for a causal model between both verbal and nonverbal teacher immediacy behaviors in the classroom and affective learning, cognitive learning, and student success and retention. Data was collected from two distinct populations, a large Midwestern university and a Midwestern community college. Results indicate that both verbal and nonverbal teacher immediacy behaviors independently predict or cause a level of affective learning and cognitive learning, and affective learning predicts or causes cognitive learning, further supporting that path model. Practical implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations for areas of future research development are …

The Impact Of Message Sequencing In The New Product Introduction Process: Boosting Message Retention And Its Impact On Product Attitude, Bobi Ivanov, Kimberly A. Parker, Jeanetta D. Sims, Chan Yun Yoo

Atlantic Marketing Journal

This study focused on providing a more nuanced understanding of the message retention-attitude (cognition-affect) relationship in new product introductions. Using advertising and publicity as independent and combined promotional tools, this study aims to determine an effective approach to strengthen the retention-attitude relationship as well as the level of new product information retention and, through it, the attitude toward the product. To that end, a two-phase experiment was conducted involving 423 participants. The results revealed that publicity, compared to advertising, in general, was a more effective strategy in boosting retention and that the publicity-publicity sequence strategy was the most effective in …

Retention Of New Graduate Gen Y Nurses, Joyce K. Kutin

Joyce K Kutin RN, MSN, MOL

The purpose of this paper is to review the research of new residency programs on Generation Y retention and the quality implications that influence the organization. General orientation of all nurses upon hire has been the standard practice with preceptoring of senior nurses from the individual units. The process of each unit’s orientation and standards was different without respect to the individual nurse’s experience. Prior to the implementation of the Nurse Residency program for new graduate generation y nurses, the turnover rate within the first year was greater than 50 percent. Health care organizations and their leaders need to anticipate …

Trapped In Transition: Examining First-Semester College Students’ Discursive Struggles About Home And School, Molly A. Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

The study examines how messages to, from, and concerning home may impact first-semester college student retention. The current study extends previous retention research in several ways. Rather than collect data regarding retention after students drop out, this study analyzed free write responses of 135 participants while they were enrolled in 15 sections of CIS 110 (Composition and Communication I) throughout the course of the Fall 2010 semester. Using relational dialectics theory (RDT) (Baxter & Montgomery, 1996) as a sensitizing framework, this study identified three discursive struggles and associated radiants of meaning present in the free write responses of these 135 …

Leaders Of Today Are Challenged By Generation X Workforce Retention, Joyce K. Kutin

Joyce K Kutin RN, MSN, MOL

Many organizations today are comprised of a culturally diverse workforce. In addition to organizational diversity related to gender, ethnicity, race, or religious beliefs, there are also four different generations working side by side. Today’s workforce includes the Silent Generation, the Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y. The Silent Generation is known for their lifestyle approach of consistency, uniformity, conformity, law and order, hard work and playing by the rules. Baby Boomers were the first generation to grow up with television; they were the first to have broad access to news, issues, advertising, and a variety of programming. Generation X …

Training For Diversity In Journalism: Tracking The Columbia Summer Program Graduates, 1968-1974., Mary Alice Basconi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Columbia University's Summer Program, created by Fred Friendly, was the first enduring effort to prepare non-whites for jobs in the news media. It operated from 1968 to 1974 at the Graduate School of Journalism, training 223 journalists for print and broadcast jobs. Three decades after the closing of this elite program, 110 graduates responded to a telephone survey on attitudes toward first employers, careers, and their experiences at Columbia. Results from this exploratory study show respondents spent an average 17.6 years in news media after the Summer Program, and 30.9 percent of respondents spent thirty years or more in journalism. …

Work In Progress: The Wsu Model For Engineering Mathematics Education, Nathan W. Klingbeil, Richard Mercer, Kuldip S. Rattan, Michael L. Raymer, David B. Reynolds

Kno.e.sis Publications

This paper summarizes progress to date on the WSU model for engineering mathematics education, an NSF funded curriculum reform initiative at Wright State University. The WSU model seeks to increase student retention, motivation and success in engineering through application-driven, just-in-time engineering math instruction. The WSU approach involves the development of a novel freshman-level engineering mathematics course EGR 101, as well as a large-scale restructuring of the engineering curriculum. By removing traditional math prerequisites and moving core engineering courses earlier in the program, the WSU model shifts the traditional emphasis on math prerequisite requirements to an emphasis on engineering motivation for …

There Is Nothing More Diverse Than "New", Frederick A. Miller, Roger Gans

Communication Faculty Publications

In the organizational competition for talent, successful retention of newly recruited workers is at least as important as the initial hire. Still, many organizations fail to establish a sense of inclusion for new people in much the same way they often fail to create a sense of inclusion for people of color, women, people with foreign accents, or anyone with obvious differences from the “traditional group.” In most organizations, even those that have embarked on “diversity initiatives,” newly hired people often do not feel welcomed. Consequently, turnover rates in the first two years of employment are seven times greater than …