Community College Leadership Commons^™

Mapping A Course To Success: The Relationship Of A College To Career Navigation Exploratory Course To Academic Success, Patrick D U Davis Sr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative, comparative study was to determine the relationship between retention and academic success of students who participated in a College to Career Navigation exploration course and students who did not participate in the course at a rural, community college serving a 14-county area in the Southeast U. S.

Archival data were collected from the participating community college’s student information system. Other data examined for this study included the student’s gender, at-risk status, and age. Retention data of the first-year, full-time students were collected and measured in accordance with the enrollment requirements of the community college’s governing …

Community College Foundation Board Members: The Overlooked Partners, Christopher S. Downing

Theses and Dissertations

Due to shifting funding polices for community colleges, the role of the community college foundation has changed greatly from passive fund managers for the institution into active fundraisers. With over 15,000 individuals nationally serving in the volunteer role of community college foundation board member, and managing nearly one billion dollars in annual contributions, this is a key stakeholder group for community colleges. The importance of foundation board members will grow even faster as community colleges ask their foundations to expand as a revenue source for the college to complete their mission. With this increased role in the financial health of …

Engagement Requires The Institution Too: A Case Study Of A California Community College Using Assessment Data To Improve Student Success Practices, Duane Brooks

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

While the collection of assessment data by educational institutions is important, these activities are not sufficient to create an institution that is fully “engaged” with not only the data, but also in using data to improve decision making and student success practices within the institution. The institution must be ready to use the data for action and improvement. Understanding the process that transforms data into institutionalized knowledge is an important component of what institutional engagement looks like. This qualitative single case study explored the scope and nature of institutional engagement in the case of one California community college by examining …

People Look At You A Little Bit Differently: Self-Authorship And The Homegoing Experiences Of First-Generation College Students Of Color, Michelle Boettcher, Stacy Dillard, Kimbell Dobbins, Keenan Jones, Nick Lang, Hailey Palmer, Esther Philip, Kierra Richmond, Dylan Wilkes, Wen Xi

New York Journal of Student Affairs

First-generation college (FGC) students represent 56% of college students in the United States (RTI International, 2019). Studies on the role FGC family in students’ campus experiences by Covarrubias et al. (2015) along with Orbe’s (2008) work on the role of culture in FGC identity development provide a foundation for understanding FGC experiences. The role of FGC self-authorship (Carpenter & Peña, 2017) on campus also helps support FGC student success. Unexamined are FGC students’ homegoing experiences in their communities of origin. This study helps fill a void in the literature about FGC students’ experiences in their home communities through the voices …

Which Role Shall I Perform? The Doctoral Experience Of Women, Aviva Vincent, Megan Weber, Danielle Sabo

New York Journal of Student Affairs

Doctoral women experience disparities in self-efficacy, degree completion, and mental fatigue compared to men-identified colleagues. Women pursuing doctorates express hardships mirroring those reported in the 1970s. Applied qualitative methodology yielded emergent themes, contextualized by the frameworks of role theory and academic resilience theory. The experiences shared by the women in this study support that the expectations of women regarding the doctoral process do not align with the situational reality, specifically regarding imposter syndrome, mentorship, family-planning, financial support, and social expectations. Recommendations for departments and universities are provided to create a more just experience.

The Provision Of Educational Needs Of The Old City Of Sana'a According To The Concept Of Sustainable Preservation, Ali Amer

Journal of the Arab American University مجلة الجامعة العربية الامريكية للبحوث

The idea of sustainable development begun in the eighties of the 20th century, soon after, this concepts started to be use in different fields, including the preservation of historical cities, which known as sustainable preservation. Sustainable preservation cares about using the valuable cultural heritage to meet the modern needs of the historical cities as a way of continuously preserving the heritage, and to bring it to the next generations as good as possible.

The current lack of educational environment in the old city of Sanaa is one of the main dangers to preserve the authentically of the ancient city, especially …

Center For Teaching And Learning Impact On Adjunct Job Satisfaction: Examining Their Lived Experiences, Winsome S. Brooks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adjunct faculty have become a significant part of the collegiate workforce in times of financial constraints; however, they are not supported like their full-time counterparts and have lower career and job satisfaction. Some institutions have responded to the increase in dependence on adjuncts by developing support systems in the form of teaching and learning centers. This phenomenological case study’s purpose was to explore the lived experiences of adjunct faculty using a center for teaching and learning (CTL) and explore the impacts the CTL has on adjunct job satisfaction. A purposive sample of six adjunct faculty, two CTL leaders, and one …

Exploring The Voices, Experiences, And Leadership Career Paths Of Women Of Color In Higher Education, Tonya P. Cooper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the voices, experiences, and factors promoting the leadership career paths of senior-level women of color in higher education and to capture the voices of senior-level women of color on how they were able to overcome the barriers and challenges to breaking the glass ceiling on their leadership career paths to senior-level administration in higher education. A phenomenological research method was employed to capture the participants’ voices, experiences, and leadership career paths of their roles in higher education. Results show that the women of color in the study confirmed the perceived challenges …

Doctoral Student Online Learning: Addressing Challenges Of The Virtual Experience, Dejuanna M. Parker, Kent Willis, Barbara D. Holmes

Journal of Research Initiatives

Abstract

This qualitative study sought to understand student beliefs and perceived levels of confidence in a primarily online professional doctoral degree in education. Before accessing course material and formal instruction, respondents assigned scores to a Likert-style survey and answered open-ended questions about their understanding of basic educational research methodology. The rise of distance education follows the rapid growth of technological advancement, yet, much is still unknown about pedagogical practices that contribute to improved learning outcomes for students in the virtual environment. Themes that emerged from this study suggest that (1) student expectations do not align with prior preparation, (2) student …

The Therapeutic Nature Of Qualitative Interviewing: Benefits Of Research Participation, April Perry, Mary Grace Bigelow

Journal of Research Initiatives

This research explored the notion that interview studies can be therapeutic for participants. It examines the common themes that participants report as beneficial from participating in a study about the transition from higher education to post-university life. The findings are presented as common themes and illuminated by participant excerpts. It is concluded that there are therapeutic characteristics to the qualitative interview process that mirror some of the benefits individuals can receive from the counseling process.

Leveraging The Science Of Learning To Enhance Student Success: An Application Of Syfr Learning’S Principles Of Practice, Jennifer S. Jones, Christopher L. Thomas

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of the current article is to describe a set of empirically validated principles of practice with the potential to enhance student learning and academic performance. Specifically, we provide an overview of Syfr Learning’s principles of practice – a collection of scalable instructional techniques derived from decades of research in the domain of learning science. Further, we provide an illustrative example of the benefits of Syfr Learning’s principles of practice when incorporated into existing curricula in a K-12 setting.

The Power Of Kindness And Positivity In The College Environment, Kayla M. Vasilko, Joseph T. Stewart

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Research has shown that positivity in school climates has a direct connection to academic success. Building high self-esteem and recognizing the value of kindness in terms of emotional learning are key factors for schools to prioritize when aiming to help students succeed (Gadermann & Reichil, 2016). Additionally, it has been shown that kindness and positivity naturally trigger upward spirals of improvement, and have been noted to promote better social interactions, relationships, and health. Positive emotions, such as happiness, also broaden thought-action repertoires, which in turn builds intellectual, physical, social, and psychological factors in all of us (Otake, 2006; Bhujade, 2017). …

The Case For Mandatory Literacy Training For Elementary Education Principals, Catherine Mcgeehan, Meganlyn Norris

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

The focus of this study was to examine how well Educational Leadership programs prepare principals to serve as literacy leaders. The role of a school leader is complex and multifaceted involving managerial duties and resource allocation (Jenkins, 2009). Yet, the primary role of the school leader is “…to promote the learning and success for all students” (Lunenburg, 2010, p. 1). In a 2017 report commissioned by the Learning Policy Institute, Sutcher, Podolsky and Espinoza noted a strong positive correlation between instructional leadership and student achievement. This raises questions and concerns regarding the extent to which leadership preparation programs are preparing …

Student And Faculty Engagement And Support In A Pandemic, Ericka Hackman

Instructional Leadership Abstracts

It’s been seven long months since our world was turned upside down with the onslaught of COVID-19. We all remember clearly the chaos of March 2020 transforming our in-person, on-campus instruction to remote models; frantically securing technology for students, faculty, and staff to work remotely and standing up phone and videoconference operations for all of our support and administrative services. Our campus faculty and staff worked incredibly hard to pivot teaching and learning to support students’ successful completion of the Spring 2020 semester. I think many of us thought it was a pipedream to get to Commencement and actually graduate …

Students On The Spectrum, Kristin Mallory, Dana Burnside

Instructional Leadership Abstracts

changed many aspects of our lives this year. Things we’ve taken for granted in the past are now different, and we’re being forced to become comfortable with ways of doing things that are unfamiliar, and often initially uncomfortable. Last week, I had an issue with my Verizon bill and had to call customer service. I understood that because of COVID-19, customer service representatives were working from home, and wait times would be considerably longer. The wait was long. It was almost an hour long, whereas in the past connecting to a representative might have taken 10 minutes. I felt impatient; …

Access And Stratification: One City, Two Dual Enrollment Programs, Clancy Ratliff, Daniel A. Smith

Faculty Publications

This article analyzes and reflects on dual enrollment programs at a two-year college and a four-year research university in the same city and branches into a critique of dual enrollment and an argument for the need for inter-institutional collaboration toward goals of student access and opportunity.

Can Self-Determination Theory Be Used To Increase College Student Retention?, Agnieszka Zak-Moskal, Mark J. Garrison

New York Journal of Student Affairs

This paper first introduces self-determination theory (SDT) to retention researchers and higher education professionals. Highlighted are the three basic psychological needs, that when met, are theorized to give rise to intrinsic motivation, which is associated with high levels of human performance. These are the needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. This theoretical overview is followed by a discussion of how this theory has been applied to understand the role of intrinsic motivation in fostering educational success. An outline of how SDT can be applied to increase college student retention is presented. The second part of the paper applies the understanding …

Don Heath Morris Presidential Records, 1942-1974, Mac Ice

University Archives and Records Finding Aids

No abstract provided.

First In College: A Qualitative Exploration Of Experiences Of First-Generation Students, Rebecca Evans, Don Stansberry, Kim E. Bullington, Dana Burnett

Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to investigate first-generation students’ perceptions of how their lived experiences have impacted their academic and non-academic success. We utilized focus groups consisting of first-generation students who attended a rural community college and a large, public, metropolitan, research university, and compared their lived experiences. Our findings confirmed some past research that found that a lack of social capital, academic preparation, financial resources, and family support challenge this population of students in their transition to college. However, some of our results contradict past findings which have concluded that part-time enrollment increases the risk of first-generation …

G.R.A.C.E. Under Pressure, Kimberly Lowry

Instructional Leadership Abstracts

As we welcome faculty, staff and students back to campus and implement the first weeks of classes and activities, we do so while facing one of the greatest challenges higher education has ever seen. The COVID-19 pandemic has completely disrupted nearly every aspect of how we teach, how we serve students and how students attend college. In just five short months, we have re-examined and adjusted all that we had relied upon in our professional and personal lives. And yet, we will come together, continue adjusting, and focus on how best to ensure we take care of one another while …