Educational Sociology Commons^™

Finding And Making Home: Poems And Reflections Of Undergraduate Children Of Immigrants, Gladys Perez

Master's Theses

The number of children of immigrants within the United States has grown over the past few decades and more so we are seeing a greater number of these children pursuing a higher education. With a growing number of undergraduate children of immigrants growing, there is a need to understand how they see themselves as a part of the United States. Previous studies take into consideration how these students navigate higher education, however, there is a lack of research on these students’ larger understanding of belonging within the overall nation. Poetry as data and a process was the grounding methodology that …

Skills And Student Affairs: A Discourse Analysis, Shannon Mckechnie

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Media, industry, and other public actors have claimed that a ‘skills gap’ exists in students exiting post-secondary education and entering the workforce. The Ontario provincial government has developed policy, the Highly Skilled Workforce Strategy, to provide directives to universities in the province to provide skills development to students to aid in closing the gap and providing a workplace relevant education. In this study, I explore the experiences of student affairs and services (SAS) staff responsible for enacting provincial policy related to skills development at the university level by investigating the discourses that shape policy and practices of these staff …

An Analysis Of Mentoring And Job Satisfaction In Public And Private College And University Academic Libraries In California, Kevin M. Ross

Education (PhD) Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study is to determine how mentoring correlates with job satisfaction for library employees in academic college and university libraries throughout California. A secondary purpose is to determine if mentoring predicts job satisfaction in library employees who participate in this study. A tertiary purpose measures the relationship between mentoring, job satisfaction and the demographic variables of gender, age range, ethnicity, longevity, and level of position.

The library related literature includes an abundance of secondary resources on the individual concepts of mentoring and job satisfaction, but the association between these two concepts has not been discussed in …

Bullies And Allies Near The Playground: Mothers' Experiences Of Aggression In Their Children's Schools, Mara Vicente Robinson

Dissertations

Despite an increasing understanding of the importance of both parent-involvement and aggression among women, there appears to be little understanding of how these two areas influence each other; specifically, the lack of literature examining the extent to which female guardians experienced aggression from other female guardians and the effect it had on their involvement in their children’s schools. In an effort to investigate the extent to which aggression was prevalent among female guardians, the factors that influenced the aggression, and the effects of that aggression on women’s involvement in their children’s education, a convergent parallel mixed methods design was used …

Between A Rock And A Hard Place: Urbanormativity And Rural Located Private Higher Education, Jonathan Jared Friesen

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

As urban areas have come to increasing dominate the social landscape, rurality is often defined in negative ways such as being backwards, simple, or even deviant. Urbanormativity is a theoretical approach developed to capture the normative and structural impacts and implications of privileging the urban. The result is not only the construction of urban as correct and positive and rurality as abnormal and backwards, the cultural ideology impacts the structural flow of resources which negatively impacts and results in a marginalization of rural areas.

The primary question motivating this research is how does urbanormativity shape the interactions between rural towns …

Race, Identity, And Communication: Experiences Of College Students From Underrepresented Groups, Raya D. Petty

Masters Theses

There is a significant difference of the completion of college between minority students and white students. The achievement gap is influenced by race and socioeconomic status of the students. The purpose of my study was to examine the relationship between academic performance and achievement and sociocultural factors including race and socioeconomic status. My thesis will affirm previous research that recognizes a need for resources specifically dedicated to assist marginalized groups in higher education. It will bring attention to minority students, first-generation college students and students with a low socioeconomic status. The project includes a literature review that explores identity, intersectionality, …

A Photo Illicit Study Of Black Women's Sense Of Belonging At A Predominately White Institution, Kayla Alexandria Slusher

Masters Theses

This qualitative study sought to examine how Black women define and create their sense of belonging while attending a predominately White institution using a photovoice approach. The women took photographs of spaces that they frequently occupy and then engaged in a face-to-face interview to discuss the photographs. The researcher also investigated four Black women, ranging from junior to graduate level, to identify how they developed a sense of belonging at the research site institution. Results of the study showed that a feeling of comfort was most important when identifying belongingness in a space. The participants were able to create a …

A Study Of State College Faculty Trust In Immediate Supervisors, Anna Byrd

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative study investigated faculty trust in their immediate supervisors (academic deans and faculty chairs) in a state college setting. A survey instrument created for this study was based on existing research on trust in schools by Bryk and Schneider (2002) and Tschannen-Moran and Hoy (1998), as well as research on trust in corporate setting. The study’s purpose was to determine the types and frequencies of interactions between community college faculty and deans/faculty chairs – i.e., faculty immediate supervisors – that are related to higher levels of faculty trust. Also investigated were the relationships between faculty trust and demographic characteristics …