Digital Commons Network^™

Beyond The Chalkboard: Black Oral Traditions And The Kitchen Table As Pedagogy, Gerald D. Smith Jr

Occasional Paper Series

This article positions the kitchen table as a vital pedagogical archive within Black educational history. Drawing on the work of various Black scholars, it argues that domestic spaces—kitchen tables, living rooms, basements, and barbershops have long functioned as fugitive classrooms where Black communities cultivated knowledge, identity, and political consciousness beyond the constraints of formal schooling. Using Carrie Mae Weems’ Kitchen Table Series as a central metaphor, the article traces how oral traditions, storytelling, and community dialogue preserved Black intellectual traditions during eras of segregation, educator displacement, and systemic erasure throughout history. Highlighting Black feminist educators such as Anna Julia Cooper, …

Voices From The Atrato: Reclaiming Afrocolombian Education From The Riverbank, Siris Sulay Mena-Rivera, Karen Chaverra-Mosquera, Maure Aguirre Ortega

Occasional Paper Series

This article reconceptualizes the Atrato River as a living pedagogical archive that participates in the formation of Black education in Chocó, Colombia. Drawing on Black feminist oral methods, it centers a dialogue among Black educators to examine how educational knowledge emerges through relationships with the river, territory, memory, and community life. The analysis argues that river-based pedagogies distinct Afro-Colombian epistemologies that challenge White/Mestizo-centered and standardized models of schooling. Storytelling, river travel, intergenerational memory, and everyday territorial practices are examined as pedagogical processes through which Black communities sustain identity, historical consciousness, and collective sovereignty. The article further contends that the Atrato's …

Recovering A Gem: Melva L. Price, A New York City Teacher, Emmanuelle St. Jean

Occasional Paper Series

The paucity of research on the experiences of Black women teachers in integrated New York City schools underscores the need for further investigation. Studying Black women teachers in integrated school settings opens the door for reshaping the traditional framings of Black women teachers as revolutionary individuals who largely taught and transformed the learning experiences of Black children. This article focuses on Melva Price, a Latin language teacher at a New York City high school. Price became a teacher during a period of intense marginalization and oppression. Her journey to becoming a teacher, her pedagogical practices, and her experiences as a …

Black Pedagogical Excellence From Fugitive Classrooms To Freedom Dreams: An Endarkened Perspective, Romonda Middlebrooks-Jefferson

Occasional Paper Series

This article traces the long tradition of Black Pedagogical Excellence (BPE), a lineage spanning fugitive literacy practices, Reconstruction and Jim Crow classrooms, Black literary societies, Afrocentric schools, and contemporary Hip Hop and Afrofuturist learning spaces. Using Endarkened Feminist Epistemology as a guiding framework, I conceptualize Black educators’ stories as theory and their classrooms as sacred, intellectual, and political sites. Through historical-literary analysis and synthesis of current research, the manuscript highlights four enduring constructs of BPE—care as resistance, ideological clarity, cultural attentiveness, and humanism—while demonstrating how Hip Hop pedagogy, storywork, and speculative literacy practices extend these commitments today. In a climate …

(Re)Membering The Work Of Septima Clark Amid The Gift Of Chaos, Terrance J. Lewis, Alex Chisholm, Kristen E. Duncan

Occasional Paper Series

The current state of American society and the future of its democracy have caused many Americans to develop feelings of hopelessness, especially pertaining to education. In the spirit of Sankofa and using Dillard’s (2021) Spirit of Our Work, we (re)member the work of Septima Clark to seek what can be learned and applied during this period of societal unease and educational uncertainty. By (re)membering Septima Clark, we provide recommendations for thought practice that formal K-12 and community educators might consider as we navigate educational spaces amid an open and direct period of intellectual warfare.

Freedom Is Taught Here: Freedom Schools And The Radical Tradition Of Intergenerational Community Learning In Black Education, Trayc D. Freeman, Wintre F. Johnson, Tiffany D. Meadows, Christine Onyinyechi-Uju Emuka, Naila A. Smith

Occasional Paper Series

The Black American community has always understood the power of literacy and education, and the importance of Black self-sufficiency to attain these. The establishment of Freedom Schools during the 1964 Freedom Summer in Mississippi is an actualization of that understanding. Since 1995, the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) has carried on the work and legacy, with Freedom Schools still taking place all over the United States. For two summers, we, researchers from the University of Virginia, have had the opportunity to partner with a CDF Freedom School as part of a mixed-method research study. This essay serves as a reflection and …

Introduction: Recovering And Reclaiming Black Histories: Integrating Historical Perspectives In Teaching And Research, Mariah Deans Harmon, Taryrn T.C. Brown

Occasional Paper Series

During one of our many virtual writing sessions–spaces that for us had become as much about thinking and collective sensemaking as they were about writing–Taryrn shared plans for an upcoming research visit to Zimbabwe. Supported by an International Center Global Fellows grant at her institution, the research visit was intended to extend her existing research agenda into a more explicitly global and transnational context. Yet, as our conversation unfolded, what began as a discussion of an upcoming research experience deepened into reflection on place, memory, family, and the histories that accompany us into our scholarly work.

Uplifting And Shifting Graduate Professional Preparation Programs In Higher Education At Hbcus, Pietro A. Sasso, Justin Alexander, Ashley Gray, Adriel Hilton, Fred Bonner

New York Journal of Student Affairs

Scant research elucidates the contributions of both master’s-level and doctoral higher education administration professional preparation programs at HBCUs. These programs exist across only approximately 20% of these institutions. In this conceptual research piece, the researchers will explore the historical legacies and contemporary status of HBCU higher education graduate programs in higher education. Recommendations and future directions are provided to enhance capacity and amplify the contributions of these significant programs. These include strategies for program distinction, professional connectivities, and increasing scholarly contributions.

Chatgpt Employment Anxiety And Career Confidence: Discipline-Contingent Evidence From Malaysian Undergraduates, Fahd A. Raza, Abtar D. Singh, Rabia Anwar, Jonathan Js Kovilpillai, Analisa Hamdan, Fumiko Konno, Husna Hr Azami, Murali Raman

Higher Learning Research Communications

Background: The rapid diffusion of generative artificial intelligence (AI) has raised concerns about graduate employability, yet evidence on how ChatGPT employment anxiety relates to career confidence remains limited, particularly in non-Western contexts.

Objectives: We examined whether ChatGPT employment anxiety is associated with career confidence among Malaysian undergraduates and whether academic discipline or usage intensity moderates that association.

Methods: Using the Malaysian subset of the 2024–2025 Global ChatGPT Student Survey (Aristovnik et al., 2025; N = 315 ChatGPT users), we constructed a four-item employment anxiety index (α = .80) and estimated hierarchical ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions predicting a single-item measure …

Spectrum, Volume 57, Issue 5, Sacred Heart University

Newspapers (Obelisk & Spectrum)

Highlights include: Students and Faculty on the Cornell Case -- ProjectConnect -- Master of Public Health Program -- Camaraderie, Chemistry and Consecutive Wins -- Women’s Rugby Makes a Comeback

Lessons From Media Narratives About Displaced Students In Higher Education, Lisa Ruth Brunner

Critical Internationalization Studies Review

No abstract provided.

Report On Open Educational Resource And Open Access Publication Practices Of Winona State University Educators, Kayla Olson

Library Faculty Works

This report presents the findings from a survey disseminated to all employees over Winter 2026 that focused on Winona State University educators' knowledge of and practices around copyright/intellectual property, open educational resources (OERs), and open access (OA) publishing. It establishes a baseline understanding of our educators’ advanced information and professional development needs, and can be replicated in the future if needed. In all, responses suggest that there may be continued interest in professional development and support around OERs, some interest in professional development around OA publishing, and potential benefits to further faculty and staff development around copyright/intellectual property. The author …

Fines, Fees, And The Carceral Economic Conditions Of Public Education, Thalia González

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

In this Article, I apply an expanded concept of education carcerality to identify and analyze a largely unexamined modality of punitive economic governance—intra-system educational fines and fees. Distinguished from other forms of childhood financial sanctions, including the criminalization of ordinary child and adolescent behavior in schools through the use of municipal fines and fees, these carceral-penal practices are exclusively defined, imposed, and collected within school systems themselves. Drawing on original data from 101 publicly available policies governing the two largest school districts by student population in each state and the District of Columbia, this Article contributes to the literature with …

Constructing The Cyber Workforce Gap: Measurement And Its Consequences, Ryan Straight

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

Cyber workforce-gap figures steer federal strategy, industry advocacy, and the growth of educational programs. Rather than estimating the U.S. gap, this review examines how the estimates are made: through job-posting analytics, survey-based estimation, and federal accounting, each of which must assume its way from instrument to labor market. A census of this journal's complete run illustrates what those figures underwrite in one venue: of 176 items published across eleven years, 51 invoke a labor-market workforce claim, 46 treat it as settled fact, and only one, an editorial, interrogates it. Meanwhile, the producers and auditors of those figures have diverged. Between …

Sjsu Erfa Annual Meeting Minutes, May 8, 2026, San Jose State University, Emeritus And Retired Faculty Association

SJSU ERFA Minutes

SJSU ERFA Annual Meeting Minutes

May 8, 2026

Sjsu Erfa Board Minutes, May 4, 2026, San Jose State University, Emeritus And Retired Faculty Association

SJSU ERFA Minutes

SJSU ERFA Executive Board Minutes

May 4, 2026

Ai Across The Curriculum: Early Insights From Unr Students And Faculty, Elisabeth Linn, Elena S. Azadbakht, Rosalind Bucy

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

In July 2025, the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) joined librarians, educators, and administrators across 15-20 institutions to participate in an Ithaka S+R AI cohort. Ithaka S+R has worked with academic libraries, teaching and learning centers, and college administrators across more than 60 institutions, leading cohorts focused on teaching and learning with AI, integrating AI literacy into the curriculum, and more. This third cohort focused on defining, implementing, and scaling AI literacy initiatives across higher education. Through interviews with faculty and students, cohorts investigate needs surrounding AI literacy specific to their campus. This presentation will describe the preliminary results of …

Occupational Therapy Student Perceptions Of Sexuality And Intimacy Education: A Cross-Sectional Study, Jennifer H. Barnett, Amanda K. Giles

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Sexuality and intimacy are meaningful activities within the scope of occupational therapy (OT), encompassing valued roles and occupations that contribute significantly to a person’s health, well-being, and identity. Despite acknowledgement of their importance, many occupational therapists overlook these areas during routine assessment and intervention because of feelings of insufficient knowledge, comfort, and confidence. This study used a cross-sectional design to electronically survey 149 occupational therapy doctoral (OTD) students across their first, second, or third year of education to determine their perceptions of sexuality and intimacy education. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and qualitative data were analyzed via codebook …

Infrastructure Versus Ethnicity: An Examination Of Digital Competency Development Among Vietnamese Preservice Teachers, Tieu Thi My Hong, Le Thi Van Anh

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objectives: This study examined digital competency levels and influencing factors among Vietnamese ethnic minority preservice teachers to test whether infrastructure transformation challenges deficit-based assumptions about ethnic minority students’ digital competency.

Methods: Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, we surveyed 1,405 preservice teachers across Vietnam (41.4% ethnic minorities) using a DigCompEdu-adapted instrument across five domains, followed by semi-structured interviews with 24 participants.

Results: Ethnic minority preservice teachers demonstrated competency equivalent to Kinh-majority peers (M = 3.57 vs. 3.59, p = .541, d = .02) across all five domains. Preparation pathway was statistically associated with competency, although the effect was small …

Permission Granted? Navigating Ai Use In Graduate Speech-Language Pathology Education, Megann Mcgill, Ana Rivera Rodriguez, Alayna Townsend, Kelly Roy, Christine Fiestas

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI (GenAI), is transforming higher education and raising important questions about its role in graduate professional training. Speech-language pathology (SLP) programs face the dual challenge of preparing students to engage with AI technologies that are increasingly present in clinical and academic environments while also safeguarding academic integrity, ethical practice, and skill development. This tutorial paper describes the development and delivery of a one-hour, synchronous virtual AI training created for graduate students in a hybrid online Master of Science in SLP program at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences. The …

A Discipleship Framework Of Godly Leadership For Coaches And Athletes, Matthew Page

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a systemic lack of deliberate discipleship in Christian athletics, specifically observed in the wrestling program at Trinity Christian Academy. Despite professed faith, coaches and athletes lacked a systematic, theologically viable method for integrating biblical truth into training, competition, and team leadership. This project created and implemented the Game Plan for Godly Leadership handbook, a resource integrating Scripture, mentorship protocols, leadership principles, and assessment tools for the wrestling context. The handbook was developed as part of a strategic plan designed for implementation across two academic years and two wrestling seasons; however, the documented implementation and assessment period occurred from …

Cultivating A Culturally Relevant And Inclusive Elementary Music Classroom, Elisabeth Virginia Marie Buzzell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

While programs such as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Act (DEI) and the practice of Culturally Responsive Education (CRE) existed for much of the last decade, representation of marginalized and intersectional identities in traditional music education is often limited to world culture units, rather than being consistently integrated throughout the curriculum. The social understanding of CRE and DEI often limits their purpose to racial diversity; however, these philosophies affirm people from any marginalized class, including those based on gender, disability, race, culture, community, orientation, socioeconomics, or simply bringing one’s lived experiences into a valued perspective. The lack of integration happens …

A Case Study Of Medical School Leadership Perceptions And Experiences In Implementing Academic Support Services For Students, Elda Martinez Muller

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the perceptions and experiences of medical school leadership regarding the implementation of academic support services at a medical university in the Southeastern United States. The study was guided by the central research question: How did medical school leaders perceive and experience the implementation of academic support services for students within their institutions? Servant Leadership Theory (Greenleaf, 1970, 1977) provided the theoretical framework, emphasizing the leader’s responsibility to serve first, prioritizing the growth, development, and well-being of others while fostering shared decision-making and a culture of care. This framework offered a …

A Phenomenological Study Of Career And Technical Agricultural Education Instructors’ Lived Experiences Teaching Students With Disabilities: A Qualitative Study, Evelyn Renae Newton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Career and Technical Agricultural Education instructors at the secondary level as they taught and supported students with disabilities in Career and Technical Agricultural Education programs in the eastern-central Georgia region. At this stage of the research, the phenomenon was defined as understanding the skills and actions teachers used to help students with disabilities succeed in Career and Technical Agricultural Education programs. Disability theory informed this research because it addressed the societal barriers to disability that hindered the participation of individuals with disabilities in educational settings. The …

Sixth-Grade Inclusive Chorus Curriculum, Lauren Rancourt Eubanks

Masters Theses

This curriculum is an eighteen week block plan for sixth-grade inclusive chorus. Emphasizing adaptive activities and specific strategies for students with disabilities, this curriculum can be used with any middle school repertoire concert plan. Through visual aids and color coding, students with disabilities can participate effectively in the performance of melodic contour, rhythm, and repertoire. This curriculum is for a sixth-grade chorus that is preparing for a concert, in which students rehearse two to three times weekly. Drawing from the Orff approach and Dalcroze techniques, this curriculum has adaptions to activities in which students can demonstrate their understanding of musical …

Spatial Distribution And Ecological Implications Of Phenolic And Chlorinated Pesticides In The Drainage Systems Of Alexandria, Egypt, Manal G. Mahmoud, Mohamed Amer, Laila A. Mohamed, Tarek O. Said

Blue Economy

Anthropogenic activities contribute substantially to the release of toxic organic contaminants into aquatic environments. In the present study, selected organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and phenolic compounds were investigated in twelve hotspot drainage systems in Alexandria, Egypt. The abundance of organochlorine pesticides across the investigated sites followed the sequence ∑HCHs > ∑CDs > ∑DDTs. Total HCH concentrations ranged from non-detectable levels to 84.0 ng L⁻¹, with an overall mean of 24.1 ng L⁻¹. Concentrations of cyclodiene pesticides (CDs) varied from below the detection limit to 18.52 ng L⁻¹ and averaged 9.36 ng L⁻¹. Meanwhile, total DDT levels ranged from

Phenolic compounds, including phenol, dichlorophenol, …

Higher Education Pathways For Native American Students In Nevada, David Damore, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Policy Briefs and Reports

This policy brief examines educational performance and outcomes for Native American learners in Nevada using data from the Nevada P-20 to Workforce Research Data System provided by the Nevada Department of Education and the Nevada System of Higher Education. Based upon analysis of these data and information collected from state and national sources, we propose public policy interventions to support Native American students in Nevada. The brief also evaluates the significant measurement and data challenges that limit researchers’ ability to evaluate Native American educational pathways and the implications this has for policy decisions.

‘Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind’: Refugee Students And Internationalization Practices In Canadian Higher Education Institutions, Zuhra Abawi, Nidhi Menon

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

As of 2024, over 123 million people have been forcibly displaced due to war, persecution, climate catastrophe, and geopolitical instability. Among them, young people constitute a significant portion, many of whom aspire to rebuild their lives through higher education. Canada, a top destination for refugee resettlement, remains deeply inequitable for refugee access to postsecondary education. Although lauded for its commitments to diversity and inclusion, Canadian settler-colonial hierarchies and racialized politics of belonging continue to shape which displaced bodies are seen as deserving of education, opportunity, and protection. These dynamics underscore how forced migration, race, and higher education intersect within the …

Lost In Translation: How Higher Education Studies Conflates Latinx And International Latin American Experiences Through Misplaced Racialization, Eduardo Santander

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

This autoethnographic study examines how higher education studies conflates international Latin American and domestic Latinx student experiences through what I term “misplaced racialization”, namely, the imposition of domestic racial categories onto international students that fundamentally misrecognizes their distinct positioning as temporary residents, adult-onset racialization subjects, and transnational knowledge holders. Colonial logics are not merely structural; they breathe through the field’s racial grammars. Drawing on Fricker’s (2007) hermeneutical injustice, I argue that higher education’s epistemological boundedness, its lack of native theory and reliance on borrowed American frameworks, does not merely contain colonial logics but is constituted by them, rendering those logics …

The Myth Of Familiarity: Racialization & Intra-Faith Marginalization In Malaysian Islamic Higher Education, Rangga T. Nugraha

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

This article examines how intra-faith marginalization operates within South–South international student mobility, challenging the assumption that shared religion and linguistic proximity facilitate belonging. Drawing on an autoethnographic study of an Indonesian Muslim scholarship student in Malaysian Islamic higher education, the analysis introduces the myth of familiarity as a critical conceptual framing, describing how shared religious or cultural identity may produce more granular hierarchies of legitimacy, thereby contradicting the belief that similarity guarantees inclusion. Using neo-racism and symbolic violence, three narrative vignettes illustrate how hierarchies of piety, nationality, and class are enacted and normalized within a shared Islamic context. The findings …