Digital Commons Network^™

"Hopefully This Thing Is Legit:" Student Experiences Of Administrative Burden With A Promise Program, Rosa Maria Acevedo, Denisa Gándara, Sasha Smith

Journal of Student Financial Aid

Despite the expansion of tuition-free college (Promise) programs as a financial aid strategy, little is known about how students learn about, navigate, and experience them. This qualitative case study examines how second-year students encounter administrative burdens in a Promise program (PROMISE) at a large university that seeks to minimize compliance costs. Findings reveal a tradeoff between ease of access (low compliance costs) and program-related information (high learning costs). Minimal eligibility requirements contrast with limited marketing, leaving students misinformed about key aspects of their aid. Elevated learning and psychological costs generate stress and uncertainty. Despite these challenges, students draw on navigational, …

Readiness Roadblocks: Identifying Financial Challenges And Financial Wellness Among First-Year College Students, Vanessa Peña, Daniel J. Wilson, Susan P. Farruggia, Annette Wright, Aisha El-Amin

Journal of Student Financial Aid

This paper explores the financial challenges and financial wellness of first-year students from a large, public, urban research university in the Midwest. Utilizing a financial wellness lens, we uncover students’ financial preparation and identify key financial challenges they face in managing college expenses while exploring how institutions can better support students in understanding and planning for the financial costs of higher education. Our findings highlight students were encouraged to attend college but lacked financial preparation and support, limiting their ability to manage their college expenses; the financial advice and resources provided often did not align with students’ actual experiences and …

Oer Review For Intermediate Microeconomics: An Open Resource, Naveen Sunders

Open Educational Resources Publications

This paper reviews Intermediate Microeconomics: An Open Resource, a freely accessible, instructor-developed textbook created over six years of teaching at Bentley University. Designed primarily for undergraduate business students, the resource integrates core topics such as consumer and producer theory, cost analysis, market structures, game theory, and welfare economics, balancing mathematical rigor with applied intuition. Built from evolving course materials, it is paired with a comprehensive suite of supporting resources, including lecture slides, videos, problem sets, quizzes, and interactive visualizations, forming a cohesive instructional package. The textbook’s modular structure allows flexibility in sequencing and adaptation across diverse instructional contexts, although …

The Myth Of Long-Standing Precedent, Max Stul Oppenheimer

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Solving Affordability Challenges In Education, Housing And Childcare, Brad J. Hershbein, Michelle Miller-Adams, Brian J. Asquith, Chloe R. Gibbs

Presentations

These three presentations emphasize that affordability challenges across education, housing, and childcare stem from structural market and policy frictions, and that effective solutions require coordinated public investment, simplified systems, and attention to both supply and demand. The first presentation argues that while college tuition growth has slowed and aid has increased, affordability challenges persist due to complexity, misperceptions, and uneven costs, and it advocates for simple tuition-free programs combined with investments in advising, streamlined pathways, and stronger school-to-work connections. The second presentation highlights a growing housing affordability crisis in the Rust Belt driven by aging housing stock and limited supply, …

The Undaunted: How Young Adult Activist Literature Depicts The Fight For Social Justice, Emma Stack

Master's Theses

In this thesis, I will explore a wide range of young adult fiction novels that feature themes surrounding activism. My goal will be to use a number of novels to illustrate the importance of analyzing literature that features young people as activists within social justice movements. My main overarching question is: How are young people represented as activists in young adult literature, and how can young people use such literature as a catalyst for social change? I also plan to explore questions relating to how young people are represented as activists, why their voices are so integral when promoting social …

The Impact Of Participation In Career And Technical Education (Cte) On High School Graduation, College-Going Status, And Entry Into The Workforce, Paul Wambugu

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study examined the relationship between high school students' participation in Career and Technical Education (CTE) and three postsecondary student outcomes using the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09). CTE participation was measured by the number of Carnegie credits earned in CTE. Three student outcomes were analyzed: on-time high school graduation, college enrollment, and workforce entry. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and multivariate logistic regression models were estimated while controlling for socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, sex, disability status, and academic performance indicators. Results indicated that CTE concentrators who earned 3 or more Carnegie credits in CTE had higher odds of graduating …

May 13, 2026 Blazer Weekly, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

Blazer Weekly (student newsletter)

No abstract provided.

Ai And The Prudent Investor Rule, Eliot T. Tracz

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Charting The Technological, Ethical, And Academic Concerns And Potentials Of Generative Artificial Intelligence In Qualitative Research, Joseph A. Villarama, Bench G. Fabros, Abegail V. Dela Fuente, Jordan Dale L. Canosa, Samapika Roy

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objectives: This research determines the academic, ethical, and technological concerns and potentials of GenAI as perceived by teacher–researchers and explores the concerns and potentials of using GenAI in academic classrooms and qualitative research undertakings.

Methods: This study employed the hermeneutic phenomenological postmodernism approach, which is a qualitative research design that, in the present study, delved into the intricate tapestry of lived experiences of 120 purposely selected teacher–researchers from France, India, Nepal, and the Philippines. The teacher–researchers participated in hybrid in-depth interviews and informal conversations guided by 10 interview questions. Responses were thematically analyzed following the phases of the hermeneutic phenomenology …

Barking Up The Right Tree: A Proposal For Uniform Canine Evidence Standards, Karly Koenig

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

African American Faculty Members’ Perspectives On The Challenges To Obtain A Position At Predominantly White Colleges In The Southeastern United States, Sonya D. Thomas

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Becoming Our Best: Professional Identity Formation As A Pathway To Lawyering Excellence In The Age Of Generative Ai, Jessica Lynn Wherry, Frances C. Delaurentis

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Redefining The Law Of Bloodstain Pattern Analysis, Richard Caldwell

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Reining It In: From Reflexive To Intentional Instructor Self-Disclosure, Rona Miles, Alla Chavarga, Chelsea Blaney

Essays in Education

Instructor self-disclosure is often promoted as a means of humanizing the classroom environment and improving learning outcomes. Though disclosure has the potential to be highly beneficial, it also carries a risk to students and learning that is often overlooked. This paper presents a point of departure perspective that instructor self-disclosure should be approached with far greater caution than most educators consider. We argue that disclosures should occur only when they are justified with a clear pedagogical purpose. Casual or spontaneous disclosures, by contrast, carry sufficient potential for unintended harm such that their risks outweigh presumed benefits to classroom rapport and …

Tony Award Winner Audra Mcdonald Announced For Alys Stephens Center In 2027, Shannon Thomason

Browse All News

No abstract provided.

An Equity-Based And Culturally Responsive Bill Of Rights For Early Childhood Students Of Color With Exceptionalities, Evette Simmons-Reed, Michelle Frazier Trotman Scott, Gloria Tardash, Mildred Boveda, Donna Y. Ford

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing disparities in early intervention (EI) and early childhood special education (ECSE) services for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) disabled children, exposing critical gaps in access, services and support. systemic inconsistencies in implementation, training, and funding, remain barriers limit opportunities for CLD students to benefit, despite the aims of the Individuals with Disabilities Improvement Act (IDEA). To address these inequities, this manuscript proposes an expanded and updated Culturally Responsive Equity-Based Bill of Rights for EI and ECSE. Building upon Ford and colleagues' (2018) work, this revised document extends protections to children aged zero to five, emphasizing …

Phenomenological Variant Of Ecological Systems Theory (Pvest): Implications For Early Childhood Education, Kathryn L. Fletcher, Qunishia N. Carter

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

The current article provides an introduction for researchers and educators in the field of early childhood education to Spencer’s Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems theory (Spencer’s PVEST; Spencer et al., 1997; Spencer, 2006). Spencer has expanded the importance of context with her position that children experience contexts differently, particularly children from marginalized groups (Spencer et al., 1997; Spencer, 2006). Two main goals for this article are: 1) introduce Spencer’s PVEST to the field of early childhood education; and 2) apply components of this theory to young children’s self-awareness. The overarching aim of this paper is to argue that Spencer’s PVEST …

Practical Applications Of Play Therapy Principles In Early Childhood Classrooms, Colleen D. Martinez, Beth A. Trammell

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Play in early childhood is a central tenet to everyday life for children and is thus of great importance to early childhood practitioners. However, the wide variety of definitions, policies, and practices related to play make implementing it effectively in the classroom nuanced. This article explores components of both child-led and adult-led practices—viewed through the lens of play therapy—to aid early childhood educators in applying these practices in the classroom. Case examples from the authors are included to further explore these topics in real-life situations.

A Tutorial For Identifying And Comparing Change Points In Developmental Trajectories, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Researchers in a variety of social science fields work with sequential data, such as measurements made over time. In some instances, one or more of the moments (e.g., mean, variance) of the series may change abruptly at some point in the sequence, yielding what is known as a change point. There is a broad literature describing methods for changepoint detection. Researchers working with multiple sequential series containing change points may be interested in comparing the locations of these changes. The purpose of this manuscript is to demonstrate how a researcher can detect changepoints and compare changepoints between two or more …

Using Effect Sizes, Confidence Intervals, And The Bayes Factor To Better Understand The T-Test, Analysis Of Variance, And Regression Results, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Null hypothesis testing is a widely used paradigm for assessing research hypotheses across the social sciences. Despite their ubiquity, researchers have discussed a number of problems and limitations to hypothesis testing and have suggested alternatives that might provide greater depth and explanation of research results. The purpose of this paper is to describe the use of several such alternatives and to show how they can be integrated with one another and with null hypothesis testing in order to provide a more holistic view of research hypotheses.

Early Education Indirect Service Research With Generalization Data: A Systematic Review Of Single-Case Design Methodological Rigor, Zachary C. Labrot, Brittany D. Garza, Tyler Smith, Emily Maxime, Abigail Lawson

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Consultation and coaching are both forms of indirect service delivery that have been found to be effective for improving early childhood educators’ implementation of evidence-based practices. These indirect service delivery modalities have also been found to be effective for promoting early childhood educators’ generalization of evidence-based practices. However, less is known regarding the methodological rigor of early childhood indirect service delivery research that collected generalization data. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to apply the 2020 and 2020 What Works Clearinghouse single-case design standards to this literature base to determine the extent to which these studies were conducted in …

Haapxtàm Ka'Ál Yimisapʰíkʰ We Dream For Our Children Indigenous Pedagogies In Early Childhood Education: Survivance, Truth Telling, And Healing On Native Land, Sara Anne Koyano

Dissertations and Theses

Since Time Immemorial, Indigenous Peoples have lived, learned, and thrived on this continent, exercising their inherent sovereignty as Original Peoples and passing down Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and learning across generations. US settler colonial violence and assimilation policies have had historical and contemporary detrimental impacts on Native children, families, and communities by attempting to disrupt the intergenerational transmission of Indigenous knowledges. Consequently, many young Native children in Oregon do not have access to educational opportunities that value, honor, and affirm their Indigenous identities and cultures, nor do they see themselves reflected in their classrooms and curricula. Furthermore, in 2019, …

South Carolina Administrator Workforce Profile For 2024–25, Brian Cartiff, Angela Starrett, Svetlana Dmitrieva

Reports

This report details South Carolina’s public school administrator workforce for the 2024–25 academic year. The analysis draws on statewide data to examine the demographic characteristics of South Carolina’s principal and assistant principal workforce. Findings are based on data from 1,385 principals and 2,351 assistant principals employed in South Carolina public schools in 2024–25. The report also incorporates data from previous years to track longitudinal trends, offering insight into workforce patterns. These f indings can support data-informed strategies to strengthen administrator recruitment and retention, which in turn may contribute to broader efforts to improve the stability of South Carolina’s educator workforce.

Bridging The Language Gap: Enhancing Interpreter Support And Service For The Benefit Of The Lep Community, Morgan Kuchta

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

English is the language of the court, but when it intends to serve a multilingual public, there must be a strong commitment to uphold the rights of limited English proficient (LEP) individuals. LEP individuals, particularly those that speak rare languages, are disadvantaged by various issues impacting interpreters and the courts. When only the interpreter’s words are reflected in the courtroom and the transcript, it is essential that the court ensures the accessibility of qualified interpretation, as any omission or misinterpretation can hinder access to justice. We must protect the interests of LEP individuals trying to navigate the court system, and …

The Higher Education Health Insurance Trap: How Underinsurance Fuels Health Inequity And Educational Inaccessibility, Hallie E. Vanney, David J. Satin

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Higher education institutions are increasingly committed to recruiting more diverse students. As these efforts succeed, institutions face the parallel challenge of meeting an evolving student body's broader and more complex healthcare needs. This article highlights how student health insurance is a critical need that may be unmet by institutions traditionally designed for young, healthy, able-bodied students. Graduate and professional students are particularly vulnerable to a “health insurance trap”; they may discover, only after enrollment, that their plan does not cover essential care, they can no longer work full-time to gain commercial insurance, they have aged out or do not have …

Learning To Get Out Of The Wing - The Motivations Of Learners Incarcerated In Québec Provincial Prisons, Frédérick Armstrong

Journal of Prison Education Research

41 men and women incarcerated in the Québec provincial prison system were asked why they enrolled in educational activities. Relying on self-determination theory’s to describe and categorize their motivations, we found that most respondents had extrinsic motivations to participate in educational activities and that only three respondents could be described as intrinsically motivated. Respondents joined programmes to escape boredom, to receive financial compensation or to receive some other benefits; not for the pleasure of learning. These results are different from other research reporting that a majority of incarcerated learners were intrinsically motivated. After addressing this contrast and arguing that it …

May 12, 2026 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

A Developmental Lens For Understanding The Preparation Of Culturally Responsive School Leaders, Shanna Dawn Anderson

Department of Educational Leadership Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to examine how pre-service leaders enrolled in a district–university leadership preparation program expressed their understandings of culturally responsive school leadership (CRSL).

Design/methodology/approach: We apply developmental adult learning theory, connecting Drago-Severson's four ways of knowing for social justice to specific CRSL practices, to qualitatively analyze interviews with pre-service leaders.

Findings: Our findings indicate disproportionate emphasis on instrumental capacities and the infrequent discussion of self-transforming capacities. We also identify an overemphasis on being critically conscious and engaging in critical self-reflection on leadership behaviors, as well as an underemphasis on engaging students, families, and community contexts. …

Examining The Development Of Resilience Through Youth Sports, Mae Grigsby

Graduate Teacher Education

Research has indicated that resilience was an essential skill necessary for facing life’s adversities. The completion of 15 qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method studies in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Slovakia, and The United States determined that sports provided numerous benefits in childhood and into adulthood. Based on this research, sports offered a stable, supportive environment with positive interpersonal relationships that fostered resilience and supported youth when faced with setbacks, giving them skills they would use well into their futures. With a growing number of youths impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), protective factors such as resilience …