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Unmasking Barriers: A Critical Examination Of Systemic Challenges Facing Bipoc Pre-Service Teachers, Nia V. Fratrik

Education Doctorate Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Harnessing Ai In Legal Education: Opportunities For Innovation, Leadership, And Student Success, Peculiar Awa, Grant Shostak

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly transforming the practice of law, from predictive analytics in policing and algorithmic sentencing to generative AI-assisted drafting and research. Despite this technological shift, legal education remains predominantly doctrinal, inadequately preparing graduates to function effectively in an AI-mediated environment. This paper contends that law and legal studies programs must integrate AI literacy, applied AI skills, and ethical instruction into curricula. By leveraging experiential learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, AI-driven simulations, and critical inquiry, institutions can produce graduates who are both technically competent and ethically grounded, ready to navigate the evolving legal profession.

Changing The Narrative: Exploring Post-Traumatic Growth In African American Women Who Identify As Transformational Leaders After Experiencing The Foster Care System, Leah Angel Vance-Daniel

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of African American women who identified as transformational leaders and who successfully navigated adulthood after experiencing the foster care system. Post-traumatic growth (PTG) theory served as the theoretical framework for this study, which reflects a positive mental shift brought about by struggling with at least one extremely difficult life circumstance. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight African American women, and five themes emerged from the data analysis: (a) Journey to Transformational Leadership: Self-Awareness, Vulnerability, and Self Acceptance; (b) From Repeating to Repairing; (c) You Either Have to Lie …

Teacher Perceptions In Early Childhood Classrooms: Understanding The Disproportionate Suspension Of Black Girls In Preschool, Lachelle Dionne Walker

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this interpretive qualitative study was to examine eight preschool lead teachers’ perceptions of the behaviors of Black girls, with a specific focus on those leading instruction in classrooms of 3- and 4-year-old learners, to assess if their perceptions of the behaviors of Black preschool-aged girls influenced their discipline practices and behavior management. The findings of this study revealed that preschool lead teachers held positive perceptions and early adultified views, also known as adultification bias, of Black girls in preschool settings. Furthermore, early adultified views of preschool lead teachers toward Black preschool-aged girls did not correlate with discriminatory …

Beyond The Bell: Young Black Male Reflections On Teacher Expectations And Postsecondary Outcomes, Raina Lewis

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of seven young Black males after their graduation from high school, focusing on how they recalled and interpreted their high school teachers’ expectations. Using semi-structured interviews with the Black males, aged 18–25, this study sought to understand how participants made meaning of these experiences and the lasting impact on their identity development. Grounded in Tichnor-Wagner’s culture of care theory, this study looked through the lens of culturally responsive, emotionally supportive, and equity-driven educational environments. This culture of care theory framework is particularly relevant for young Black males who …

Systemic Barriers To Educational And Employment Attainment Among Individuals With Substance Use Disorders, Mollie B. Mccann Poblocki

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Substance use disorders (SUDs) and opioid use disorder (OUD) represent one of the most pressing yet poorly understood public health crises in the United States. Despite decades of clinical intervention, recovery outcomes remain deeply unequal, not because individuals lack motivation, but because the structural systems surrounding them are fundamentally broken. This project explored that reality through a comprehensive literature review examining how systemic barriers across educational systems, labor markets, poverty dynamics, and healthcare infrastructure shape vulnerability, treatment access, and recovery outcomes for individuals with SUDs. Major findings revealed a consistent socioeconomic gradient of harm: individuals with lower educational attainment, unstable …

At The Intersection Of Policy, Mission, And Student Needs: How New Mexico Higher Education Professionals Make Transfer Decisions, Roberto P. Vasquez

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Transfer is a critical step for community college students pursuing a bachelor’s degree, yet it remains a complex and inconsistent process. Transfer research highlights tensions related to student experience, institutional mission, and state transfer policy that higher education decision-makers must navigate.

This qualitative study examined how New Mexico higher education decision-makers experience these tensions in practice. Using narrative inquiry, thematic analysis was conducted on interviews with purposively selected decision-makers. Decision-maker stories were interpreted through a Critical Leadership Theory lens, examining how power, discretion, and institutional context shape transfer practices.

Findings indicate that policy is unevenly enacted, with institutional discretion significantly …

Discipline And Identity: Testimonios Of Queer Chicanxs, Marco Antonio Ortigoza Jr

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Every year, students are pushed away from educational opportunities due to punitive practices. A system of policies and practices that increase the student's likelihood of formal social control, including the juvenile justice system, is often referred to as the school-to-prison nexus (STPN). Existing research suggests a disproportional number of students of color, as well as queer students, are harmed by disciplinary policies. The literature, however, does not fully address students' experiences, particularly queer Chicanxs. This study attempts to narrow that gap by highlighting the disciplinary experiences of queer Chicanxs. Additionally, this study explores how disciplinary experiences impacted their identity formation. …

2026 Nsu Graduate Commencement Program, Nova Southeastern University

NSU Commencement Programs

May 5, 2026

• Shepard Broad College of Law

May 8, 2026

• Barry and Judy Silverman College of Pharmacy
• College of Dental Medicine
• College of Optometry

May 8, 2026

• College of Computing, AI, and Cybersecurity
• College of Psychology
• H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship

May 13, 2026

• Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice

• Halmos College of Arts and Sciences and the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center

May 13, 2026

• Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine and Dr. Pallavi Patel School of Health Sciences

May 14, 2026

• Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of …

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2026 Nsu Undergraduate Commencement Program, Nova Southeastern University

NSU Commencement Programs

May 4, 2026

• Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice

• College of Psychology

• H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship

• College of Computing, Al, and Cybersecurity

• Halmos College of Arts and Sciences and the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center

• Shepard Broad College of Law

May 5, 2026

• Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine and Dr. Pallavi Patel School of Rehabilitative Sciences

• Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine and Dr. Pallavi Patel School of Health Sciences

• Ron and Kathy Assaf College of Nursing

Exploring Culturally Responsive Practices At A Community-Based Organization Serving Incarcerated Men Of Color And Their Families: A Leadership Case Study, Franchesca M. Capellan

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions of New York City community-based organization (CBO) executive leaders regarding how they support families affected by paternal incarceration through culturally responsive leadership practices and the navigation of systemic barriers. Six executive leaders from a multi-site CBO participated in virtual semi-structured interviews designed to examine leadership approaches, family engagement strategies, and organizational responses to structural inequities affecting justiceimpacted families. Using Saldaña’s hybrid deductive–inductive coding process, seven superordinate themes emerged from the data analysis. Findings revealed that the leaders supported caregivers, youth, and incarcerated fathers through trust-based, trauma-informed programming, crisis …

Exploring The Impact Of University-Recognized Spaces On Racial Battle Fatigue Among Black Faculty & Staff At Historically White Institutions, Tiffany M. Courseault

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Black Faculty and Staff (BFS) at Historically White Institutions (HWIs) navigate environments shaped by racial microaggressions, systemic inequities, and institutional marginalization. These conditions contribute to Racial Battle Fatigue (RBF), a psychological, behavioral, and physiological response to sustained exposure to racialized stress. While institutional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives are often positioned as mechanisms for improving campus climate, existing research suggests they frequently fail to address the lived realities of BFS. This study examined how university-recognized communal spaces function as critical sites of support, resistance, and mitigation within these environments.

Using a narrative inquiry methodology, this study explored the lived …

Early Educational Benefits In Criminal Justice Learning And Practice: Efficacy Of High School-Level Criminal Justice Programs, Richard Brewer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The value of educational progress and placing optimally educated agents into the criminal justice career field has been carefully examined throughout the history of justice, and the procurement of skills and knowledge applicable to field operations is aligned with several core Peelian tenets. The safe assumption is that every police action is observed or documented, and efforts must be made to build bridges to amend the law enforcement misconducts of yesteryear. One methodology to reduce the number of undesired incidents, expand occupational growth, and obtain optimal confidence levels among personnel in the volatile policing arena is implementing earlier learning development …

Cultivating The Dream In African American Men Through Black Excellence And Success, Sylvia Lawan Branch

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Achieving Black Excellence has been a goal for African American men for several decades; yet this movement has been hindered by social, emotional, and discriminatory life experiences from early childhood through adulthood. Black Excellence has been a phrase used in recent years to highlight achievements for African American men in wealth, mental health, well-being, fatherhood, and academic achievement. The main objective of this dissertation was to define and examine dimensions of Black Excellence among African American men, including elements that contributed to personal fulfillment and broader social impact. To determine recommendations to achieve Black Excellence (Scott, 2017), 10 semistructured interviews …

The Minutes Of The Marshall University Graduate Council Meeting, April 24, 2026, Marshall University Graduate Council

Graduate Council Minutes

No abstract provided.

April 24, 2026 Minutes, Swosu Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Crimmigration Pedagogy In An Age Of State Violence: Reclaiming Human Rights Education In Public Health And Social Work, Juan Carlos Ruiz Malagon, Belinda Marie Hernandez-Arriaga, Alonso R. Reyna Rivarola

International Journal of Human Rights Education

This essay calls for a transformative shift in public health and social work education to confront the racialized violence embedded in U.S. immigration enforcement, especially intensified during the second Trump administration (2025 -2029). Policies and enforcement events like the reinstated Remain in Mexico program and the widespread ICE raids in Los Angeles are part of a troubling rise of "crimmigration," which blends immigration and criminal law. This merging has normalized cruelty, heightened legal insecurity, and fostered fear within immigrant communities, leading to a sharp increase in mass detentions and deportations. Despite the sociopolitical reality, many public health and social work …

From Bars To Bytes: Ai, Digital Dignity, And The Fight For Incarcerated Youth’S Futures, Karima M. Almazroui

International Journal of Human Rights Education

Over 1.4 million youth enter detention annually, confronting what scholars term a digital death sentence, exclusion from the literacies and infrastructures that underpin education, employment, and civic participation. This empirically grounded mixed-methods study investigates how artificial intelligence (AI) in carceral education either reinforces surveillance or enables rehabilitation, demonstrating that outcomes depend less on algorithmic sophistication than on the ethical, pedagogical, and governance contexts in which AI is deployed.

Drawing on comparative data from the United States, Japan, Norway, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the research integrates cross-national policy analysis, 78 semi-structured interviews, quantitative outcome measures, and participatory action research …

Beyond Measurable Success: An Autoethnographic And Phenomenological Study Of Resilience And Educational Transformation After Incarceration, Robert L. Hudson

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how formerly incarcerated students make meaning of their higher education experiences as a means of navigating systemic barriers, fostering resilience, and reconstructing identity during post-incarceration reintegration. Existing scholarship on formerly incarcerated students in higher education emphasizes barriers, recidivism, and completion outcomes while paying limited attention to the subjective meaning making processes through which students interpret their educational experiences (Abeyta, 2022; Bozick et al., 2018; Donaldson & Viera, 2021). Formerly incarcerated learners have largely been positioned as subjects of inquiry rather than as knowledge producers about their own educational lives. This qualitative study …

Culturally Diverse Undergraduate And Graduate Students Speak Out: Overcoming Leadership Barriers At A Predominantly White Institution, Davonte Mcclam

Undergraduate Research Symposium

On October 15ᵗʰ, 2025, Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSU), hosted an annual leadership conference. Within the programming was a panel designed to explore the experiences of culturally diverse student leaders on campus. The intention was to have an honest conversation, regarding the environment for which they exist on campus. Using a qualitative thematic analysis, results uncovered four themes: the unspoken expectation of perfection, tokenism, the burden of representation, and the acceptance of discomfort.

Leveraging Critical Social Media Literacy To Safeguard Youth Against Violent Radicalization And Extremism, Muhammad Akram, Adeela Arshad-Ayaz, Muhammad Ayaz Naseem

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Social media is inundated with radical and extreme propaganda. Such information is often left unfiltered due to platform algorithms that are economically driven and socially unethical in design. It puts social media users, mostly youth, in danger of becoming radicalized and vulnerable to supporting and engaging with extremist beliefs. When young people lack sufficient critical social media literacy (CSML), radical and extremist information impacts their perspectives, affecting behavior in the real world. A PRISMA-guided systematic review of the Web of Science core collections and the Scopus database was used to find peer-reviewed articles about how CSML skills can be used …

Spectrum, Volume 56, Issue 10, Sacred Heart University

Newspapers (Obelisk & Spectrum)

Highlights include: Daybreake Making Breakthroughs, Women in Sports Symposium Preview, Automatic Selective Service System, Pickleball Springing Excitement Onto Campus, Commuting to Their “Home Away From Home”, Painting a Picture of Talent at SHU, Men’s Lacrosse Gearing Up For MAAC Playoffs

2026 Undergraduate Research Symposium Program, Coastal Carolina University

Undergraduate Research Symposium Programs

17th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, April 21-22, 2026.

The 2026 CCU Undergraduate Research Symposium included 72 oral presentations, 127 poster presentations, and 22 team pitch presentations comprising 50 students who participated in the Wall College’s Chant’s Tank Pitch Competition.

Presentations at the Undergraduate Research Symposium were judged by almost 90 faculty and staff, and prizes were awarded in three categories: Best Oral Presentation, Best Poster Presentation, and Best Chant’s Tank Pitch Presentation. Here are the following award winners and their mentors in their respective categories:

Best Oral Presentation:

• 1st Place: Ryan Ryan Avallone, Applied Mathematics. Faculty Mentor: Bong Jeong (Management …

Book Review Of Suburban Refugees: Class And Resistance In Little Saigon, Phoebe T. Pham

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

In Suburban Refugees: Class and Resistance in Little Saigon, Jennifer Huynh challenges the common view that refugee resettlement follows a straightforward path toward assimilation, stability, and upward mobility. Focusing on Vietnamese refugees in Little Saigon, Orange County, California, Huynh examines how refugees navigate displacement, housing insecurity, and political exclusion in suburban spaces often idealized as homogenous and prosperous. Drawing on extensive data, the book presents suburban resettlement as a prolonged process shaped by structural forces and community resistance. Huynh situates her analysis within growing suburban inequality and enduring racialized policies that limit refugee opportunities long after formal resettlement. Her …

The Current - Volume 36 Issue 9, Nova Southeastern University

Student Newspapers

No abstract provided.

Investigating Racial Bias And Attribution Error In Grading Student Performance, Tony Reibel, Rachel Roegman

Mid-Western Educational Researcher

Standards-based grading (SBG) is a relatively recent alternative model of grading designed to increase the reliability of grading while reducing the influence of teacher biases that can distort student evaluations. This study investigated whether SBG mitigates race‑related bias and attribution errors through a mixed‑methods 3×2 factorial vignette experiment with in‑service teachers. A total of 219 teachers scored the same student essay using a common SBG rubric and provided a 1-4 proficiency score, a binary evaluation concerning success criteria and written feedback. “Learning profiles”– a description of the student’s current and past abilities – varied by tone (positive, negative, none: name-only) …

The Impact Of School Resource Officers (Sros) On Background Juvenile Arrest Rates, Marcell D. Dely

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

School Resource Officers (SROs) are widely used in U.S. schools with the goal of improving safety and preventing violence. However, research shows mixed results regarding their overall effectiveness. While SROs can help deter serious threats and create a safer school environment, their presence is also associated with increased disciplinary actions and arrests for minor, non-violent behaviors. This study examines whether SROs reduce school violence or contribute to the criminalization of student misconduct. Findings suggest that outcomes largely depend on factors such as implementation, role clarity, and school policies. The paper highlights the need for clearer guidelines, limited involvement in minor …

From Books To Justice: Public Libraries Strengthening Legal Access Across Kansas, Lauren J. Franks, Ziwei Qi

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

Legal self-help centers across Kansas allow access to legal information for self-represented litigants in civil court cases. However, there is a lack of these centers in rural areas. In areas where this resource does not exist, libraries, which already serve as a trusted community-centered hub, can help provide legal information and resources. This project aims to identify best practices in increasing access to legal information and survey key staff including self-help center staff, court staff such as court clerks and judges, and librarians, to help inform our integration of legal self-help services into public libraries. By executing a short anonymous …

The Role Of Dna Exoneration In The Bloodsworth Case, John T. Brasfield

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

In the Kirk Bloodsworth case, a man was falsely convicted for the rape and murder of Dawn Hamilton. He spent eight years in prison after being convicted through witness testimony, where he learned about DNA profiling. After submitting a request to check his DNA against the DNA left at the scene, he was exonerated. Later, the DNA left at the scene was checked against a database and got a hit on a convicted rapist who had been charged shortly after Mr. Bloodsworth. If there had been the same access to DNA technology during the trial or if they had listened …

False Confessions Of A Teenage Boy: The Case Of Brian Boles And Charles Collins, Rebekah Bottner

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

On February 8, 1994, James Reid was found dead in his apartment in New York. In the days following the murder, detectives spoke to several people who lived in the building, looking for potential leads or suspects, including 17-year-old Brain Boles. Boles was initially released from questioning after he signed a statement confirming his alibi and that barely knew Reid. A month later, Boles was arrested for a separate assault and robbery. For this crime, Boles confessed, but he was then subjected to an intense and lengthy interrogation for the murder of James Reid. Eventually, Boles also confessed to the …