Digital Commons Network^™

How Can Coaches Properly Prepare Student-Athletes For A Career After Athletics?, Joel Krenz

Leadership Education Capstones

Most of the time a student-athlete’s athletic career will end after college, but what then? So many collegiate athletes have put so much focus into their sport over the previous 10-15 years that they tend to struggle when faced with the reality that they are done. No collegiate athlete can make the transition from sport to career alone, which is why coaches, administrators, and teachers need to know how to properly prepare student-athletes for a career after athletics. This study will look to find the best ways that the faculty of an institution who work closely with student-athletes can help …

Covid-19’S Influence On Mental Health Among Collegiate Student-Athletes, Jacob Balliu

Leadership Education Capstones

The world was struck by turmoil as the COVID-19 virus surged to the surface. Affecting the lives of many. In a matter of days, the process of daily living got a new meaning. The new lifestyle of living consisted of wearing masks, self-quarantining for fourteen days, and socially distancing six feet apart. From the perspective of a college student, life was flipped upside down. Classes were moved online, and students were asked to not be on campuses across the country for months on end. Collegiate student-athletes had it much rougher. Due to the global pandemic multiple sport seasons were cancelled …

The Advantages And Disadvantages To Small Town School Districts And Their Communities After Athletics Consolidation, Kacey Lane

Leadership Education Capstones

Nothing brings a small rural town together like high school sports. Unfortunately, when high school sports hit challenging times, support for programs and participation in programs decrease. When sports programs hit low numbers in participation they need to think about the program's future. Some schools consider eliminating the programs. Graves (2010) stated that communities often resist full school consolidation to be able to protect their sports teams. Graves (2010) believes that to lose a school and its colors would relinquish one’s identity. Small communities thrive off the school districts and take pride in their academics and athletics. With the lack …

Gamification, Game-Based Learning, And Student Engagement In Education, Alan May

Leadership Education Capstones

Over the past few years the application of educational technology in the classroom setting has been increasingly popular. Educators at all levels, primary, secondary, and post-secondary have been exploring best practices in the use of educational technology and the impact that educational technology has on student learning. Many educators have explored the idea of gamification and game-based learning in their classrooms to improve student learning and student engagement. Using technology to create a gamified or game-based learning shows positive results and has fostered an environment that encourages students to collaborate with their peers, engage with content material, and stay motivated …

An Assessment Study Of Student Experiences In A University Conduct Process, Lucas Jay Morrill

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study implements a quantitative assessment survey to explore how experiences of students who participated in a conduct hearing process during the 2020 fall academic semester align with the conduct process learning outcomes of a private liberal arts institution located in northeast Florida (Northeast University). Survey descriptive statistics indicate Northeast University’s conduct process facilitated student understanding of university policies, understanding of their impact on the campus community, and facilitated a process that resulted in a student’s intention to no longer violate university policy again in the future. Data collected also presents trends for students held responsible for COVID-19 related policy …

College Athletes’ Safe Return To Play: Perceptions Of Strength And Conditioning Training In A Midwest University, Reid Peters

The Journal of Advancing Education Practice

This study focused on exploring the lived experiences of student-athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic at a midwestern university in the United States of America. Survey responses from collegiate athletes regarding perceptions of strength and conditioning training during the pandemic uncovered meaningful information to inform practices of strength and conditioning personnel during unexpected disruption to daily operations. Sixteen student athletes from a Midwest university were the respondents providing feedback to open-ended survey questions during fall semester of the 2021-2022 academic year. Student perspectives offer important insight about cares and concerns that athletic administrators, coaches and institutional leaders should consider when developing …

Midwest University Coach Perspectives On Student-Athlete Recruitment During Unprecedented Disruption, Jonah Bradley

The Journal of Advancing Education Practice

Recruiting student-athletes is one of the fundamental elements of success for college-level athletic coaches. The COVID-19 pandemic made student-athlete recruitment next to impossible due to restrictions on in-person activities. Utilizing Participatory Action Research (PAR), this study sought to understand the experiences of four athletic coaches in one Midwest college basketball program. Three themes from this study that informed the recruitment process during disruption were: theme 1: traditional recruiting replaced with technology-enabled recruiting. theme 2: inability to engage in person hinders interactions and communication, and theme 3: roster management and player development inconsistent with disruption. This study reveals a need for …

College Choice And College Match Among High-Achieving Pell-Eligible Students: An Instrumental Case Study Exploring Social Actor Influence, Jennifer A. Perkins

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

College undermatch, the pattern of well-qualified students applying to and attending less selective colleges than their academic qualifications would permit, disproportionally affects low-SES students, a particular concern since attending a match college increases the likelihood that a student will graduate and reduces the amount of time to degree. The number of college-going individuals in one’s social network (including parents, peers, teachers, mentors, etc.) has a strong influence on whether a student attends a good academic match college, but little is known about the nature of the interactions between students and these college-going influencers. This instrumental case study sought to fill …

Value-Added Model (Vam) Component Of Teacher Evaluation And Job Satisfaction, Efficacy, And Retention: Perspectives Of Secondary Teachers Of Historically Low-Scoring Students And Recommendations For Alternative Student Performance Measurements, Maureen A. Martin

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study aimed to research the perspectives of four teachers who teach low-scoring populations of students traditionally. The research questions focused on job satisfaction, self-efficacy, and retention in education about Value-Added Model scores in their evaluations. The secondary purpose was for the teachers to recommend authentic assessment of student growth which is weighted 33% of teacher evaluations. I conducted a series of three open-ended interviews with each of the four participants. The interviews were designed to allow rich data to be collected. The significant findings have been discovered using the constant comparative method. The analysis revealed that the teacher’s …

Evaluating Individualism As A Predictor Of Workplace E-Learning Training Transfer, Allison Kendall Archer

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Organizations have long invested in employee training as a means for development. Returns on these investments are limited, however, when, as commonly observed by practioners and researchers, knowledge or skills acquired from training fails to be implemented. This is referred to as the training transfer phenomenon. Workplace training has historically been designed by and for individuals accustomed to Western learning culture, yet increased globalization has reshaped the workforce of the 21st century. Further, there has been a recent shift in workplace training methods from instructor-led/classroom training to online/e-learning. The purpose of this study is to evaluate individualism (a dimension of …

Pre-College Expectations Of First-Generation College Students: A National Study Based On Institutional Characteristics, Justin Michael Sipes

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Much of the research on first-generation college students (FGS) tends to focus on comparing this population of students to its continuing-generation peers and focuses on in-college experiences. This research looks to answer: (1) are there demographic and pre-college characteristic differences between full-time, FGS at different institutional types; (2) are there differences between institutional types across five cognitive and non-cognitive expectations for FGS; and, (3) do these differences remain after introducing moderating variables. The data are a random sample of participating institutions from the Beginning College Survey of Student Engagement, implemented by the Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University, …

Measuring Employee Engagement And Adaptive Leadership During Higher Education’S Accountability And Performance Era, Karine Sandra Stukes

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Back in 2015, the Board of Governors for the state of Florida implemented new funding policy within its public state university system, as a mechanism to hold institutions accountable to their performance. According to the performance-funding policy, lower performing institutions were at risk of losing state funding if university metrics were not met. This challenging accountability and performance environment can cause much strife within lower-performing institutions, where it is relevant to explore positive workforce strategies that keep university employees engaged in the work that is needed to get the job done while keeping employees adaptive to challenges presented to them. …

Social Emotional Competence In School Leaders, Melanie Sanders

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

School principals are responsible for the recruitment and retention of effective teachers, leading the instructional program, maintaining the climate and culture of the building, ensuring school safety, and improving student achievement, among other things. Social emotional learning (SEL) has become an important part of K-12 education and has been found to improve climate and culture, student achievement, long term student outcomes, and many other benefits. Research has been conducted on many of the student outcomes associated with SEL but there is limited literature in the area of the social emotional competence (SEC) of adults who work in schools, particularly school …

Student Retention In Higher Education: Effect Of The Campus Fitness Center On Women, Leslie Marie Gordon

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Of the 3.5 million first-time in college, full time students who began college in fall 2017, 74% returned for fall 2018, with 61.7% retained at their starting institution. Covid-19 has negatively impacted retention; in addition to normal attrition, one of every five students did not return to campus in fall 2020. Researchers have gauged both academic and social factors that positively influence retention and note the use of the campus fitness center (CFC) as one social factor; however, women are less likely to use the CFC, are one third as likely to exercise, and experience more numerous fitness obstacles and …

Postsecondary Writing Program Collegiality, Job Satisfaction, And Self-Efficacy Teaching Writing: A Quantitative Analysis Using Self-Determination Theory, David A. Mackinnon Ii

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Calling on Ryan & Deci’s (2000) Self-Determination Theory framework, the author sought to explore the relations among writing program faculty collegiality in their work (i.e., teaching, research/scholarship, and service), their job satisfaction in teaching writing courses in postsecondary settings, and their sense of self-efficacy for that teaching. The author surveyed writing program faculty across the State University System of Florida and analyzed collect evidence towards addressing if faculty collegiality behaviors and beliefs relate to faculty job satisfaction in teaching writing or faculty self-efficacy around the teaching of writing. Using exploratory factor analysis and linear regression modeling, the author analyzed the …

2020-12-09 Undergraduate Curriculum Committee Meeting Minutes, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate., Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.

Faculty Senate Records

Undergraduate Curriculum Committee meeting minutes for December 9, 2020.

A Pilot Study On The Retention And Turnover Of Ncaa Division Ii Sports Information Directors, David Albrecht

Leadership Education Capstones

This study reports on sports information directors (SID) at the collegiate level limited to NCAA Division II athletic programs. An online survey was used for all participants, and select respondents completed follow-up interviews. Surveys were intended to determine the impact of work-life balance and overall workload of the SID role. Survey questions sought to find perceptions of SIDs by athletic administrators, including the athletic director (AD), and if their role provided opportunities for career advancement within collegiate athletic administration. The results of the study showed that institution/department culture, family, and professional growth factored heavily on retention. Adversely, turnover was linked …

Conditions For Change: Implementing Principal Talent Management Policies And Practices In Three Districts, Evangeline Chiang

Teaching and Learning Theses and Dissertations

This mixed methods case study examines how central office leaders in three school districts implemented policy and practice changes to more effectively recruit, support, and retain school principals. By examining interview, focus group, survey, and artifact data from three districts actively working to implement and improve principal talent management practices and policies, this study sought to identify what conditions best explained variation and progress on implementation. Using Honig’s (2006) implementation framework that examines how policy, people, and places situate implementation effectiveness, I sought to understand how policy reform information flows among people, particularly between the central office staff and school …

The Underrepresentation Of Women Of Color In Senior Management Athletic Administration At Ncaa Division I Institutions, Shaquita M. Renelique

Student Theses and Dissertations

Mamie. Jezebel. Sapphire. Nurturer. Sexual. Emotional. The archetypes of women of color are powerful in their imagery and ability to limit the full identity of these women. The structural effects of these prototypes are visible in the lack of access that women of color have to college athletic administration and the treatment they face when they hold administrative positions. This study examined how the organizational culture of intercollegiate athletics promotes a hegemonic ideology based on gender and race, which leaves women of color marginalized. The purpose of this study was to explore the structural and ideological barriers shaping the pathways …

Virtual Recruitment Resource Guide, Elizabeth Niehaus

Leadership Education Capstones

To identify best practices for the purpose of developing a virtual recruitment resources guide.

Preferred Leadership Styles Of Coaches: Collegiate Athletes’ Perception Of Quality Coaches, Paul Preston

Leadership Education Capstones

The purpose of this study was to determine the most effective leadership styles judged by collegiate football athletes. Six participants were recruited from the team spanning over three grade levels. Data collection involved conducting semi-structured interviews. Data analysis revealed three main themes: (1) Leadership qualities (2) leadership styles and (3) and motivation. Results of the study support previous literature and participants preferred supportive style leadership as well as the qualities of accountability, leading by example and confidence. The implementation of these qualities and style of leadership may benefit a leader looking to improve relationships and trust with their followers.

Leadership Change For Athletic Academic Advisors Serving Student-Athletes With Self-Reported Mental Health Issues, Tyler Schoh

Leadership Education Capstones

Athletic academic advisors find themselves in conversations about the personal lives and issues of student-athletes as mental health issues become more prevalent in college athletics. The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of athletic academic advisors serving student-athletes with self-reported mental health issues in relation to leadership styles, traits, and strategies. This study involved interviewing current athletic academic advisors who are affiliated with NCAA Division I or Division II schools. Geographically, the sample included athletic academic advisors in the Midwest. All of the sample participants have earned a master’s degree.

The interviews were analyzed with the Constant …

Transformation Leadership And Youth Development Soccer Coaches: Behaviors That Enhance Coaching Performance, Diego Barros Dos Santos

Leadership Education Capstones

This quantitative study investigated the potential relationship between youth development soccer coaching style and transformational leadership behaviors. An anonymous survey was the source of data for this study. Participants responses were categorized into the four factors of transformational leadership which include (1) intellectual stimulation, (2) inspirational motivation, (3) idealized influence, and (4) individualized considerations. Recommendations for future research encompass expanding the demographics, sample size and field observations. Additionally, further research could include a contrast and comparison between coaches perspective x athletes perspective about transformational leadership behaviors. Furthermore, transformational leadership workshop and post survey intervention might expose how coaches leadership style …

Influences Of Coach Leadership Related To Nutrition On Collegiate Student Athletes Dietary Choices, Maria Fruechte

Leadership Education Capstones

The purpose of this study is to better understand how coach leadership related to nutritional information influences collegiate student athletes’ acquisition and application of nutrition. This will be followed up to consider how the information and expectations of coaches influences athletes’ knowledge and dietary choices.

Leadership Strategies: Developing Millennial Entrepreneurs For Start-Up Micro-Gyms, Esdeina Gonzalez

Leadership Education Capstones

The purpose for this study is to explore the experiences of small business owner’s best practice strategies leading to successful business operations. Learning about these experiences will permit the millennial generation to understand what is needed for their business to start up their micro-gym. This study may be used as an introduction to millennial entrepreneurs for the survival of their own micro-gym setting a priority of importance in leadership development since research have explored the lack of development in the leadership area.

Developing Mentoring Relationships Among Collegiate Coaches Using Developmental Leadership Strategies, Lawren Mckinney

Leadership Education Capstones

A mentor is described as a role model with influence on another’s professional career (Abiddin, 2006). Mentoring comes from a development of an individual (Abiddin). Where this development is the growth of the individual to develop a leadership style (Day, 2011; Day et al., 2014). The purpose of this study is to explore how developmental leadership can help increase mentoring relationships between collegiate coaches in Division II athletics. The experiences of this phenomenon among collegiate coaches gives the opportunity to hear from them the individuals directly involved in these mentoring relationships within the program striving for continuous growth. This study …

Impact, Prevalence Of Cognitive Overload And Athlete Burnout: Division Ii Athletics, Luke Teague

Leadership Education Capstones

The purpose of this study is to explore how collegiate coaches and student athletes contribute to cognitive overload and athlete burnout.

A Phenomenological Approach On Communication Experiences Between Strength And Conditioning Coaches And Head Sport Coaches, Benjamin Charles

Leadership Education Capstones

This study investigates communication experiences between Strength and Conditioning Coaches and Head Sport Coaches using a phenomenological approach. Sixteen Strength and Conditioning Coaches were surveyed, via Qualtrics, to obtain basic demographics and answer open-ended questions to understand communication experiences and strategies Strength and Conditioning Coaches use to have effective relationships, teamwork, and athletic performance with Head Sport Coaches. Participants were required to be currently working for a DI-DIII 4-year University in the United States, have at least 1-year of Strength and Conditioning experience, an accredit certification related to training athletes at the college level, and be at least 21 years …

Leadership Styles Of Head Nascar Executives: A Historical Perspective, Joseph A. Hurd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to explore the leadership styles and theories employed throughout the existence of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The research examines the decision process and subsequent outcomes, exploring how they ultimately affected the business and trajectory of the sport. NASCAR is the product of unique and specific characteristics of racing enthusiasts who turned their passion into an international empire. This illustrates how leadership styles, specifically dictatorial leadership, successfully managed decisions of the business. Through the use of qualitative research to review historical accounts of events, this study strives to explain how leadership guided the …

The Impact Of Trauma-Informed Environment On Middle School Teachers' Self-Efficacy Towards Students With Disruptive Behaviors: A Causal-Comparative Study, Daniel Wayne Mcgraw

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to examine whether there is a difference in teacher self-efficacy (TSE) for educators who participate in, receive training for, and work in a trauma-informed environment (TIC) versus teachers who do not. Trauma-informed education is a growing trend in K-12 academic settings. But, no known study has shown whether working in a trauma-informed environment has an impact on teacher behaviors and attitudes. The results of this study did not find any statistically significant difference in survey responses from middle school teachers. The researcher used the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) to collect data …