Digital Commons Network^™

Threading The Needle: Teaching Critical Reading And Writing In The Age Of Ai, Emily A. Durham, Andrea A. Berta

Humanities

All instructors--but particularly instructors who must teach students specific disciplinary ways of reading and writing--face a difficult position with AI. Students will need to use AI in collegiate and professional writing, but using AI for assignments can hinder critical thinking skills crucial to analyzing and correcting AI output. This presentation demonstrates three practices from our developmental English classrooms: a critical reading and writing summary assignment, AI-resistant rubrics, and an exercise to help students evaluate AI-generated suggestions on how to review their work. These activities are designed to help students develop crucial AI-literacy skills to help them succeed in an increasingly …

Postsecondary Enrollment Demand-Gap Estimation Model: Projecting The Postsecondary Demand-Gap For California By 2035, Manish Ranjan Shrivastav

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The postsecondary education system in California has been under the pressure of expansion by the means of opening a new campus for several years. The Legislative Analyst’s Office has been recommending whether to open new campus or not as a part of its mandate. In 1990, it recommended opening up of one campus of CSU, however, its projections grossly underestimated the future demand. In 2017, the LAO in its report recommended that given the demand projections there is no need for a new campus. The study commissioned by the Chancellor’s office of California State University also made the same recommendation. …

2024-2025 Annual Security And Fire Report – Weatherford Campus, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

ANNUAL SECURITY & FIRE REPORTS

This is the 2024-2025 Annual Security and Fire Report of the Weatherford Campus by Southwestern Oklahoma State University.

2024-2025 Annual Security And Fire Report – Sayre Campus, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

ANNUAL SECURITY & FIRE REPORTS

This is the 2024-2025 Annual Security and Fire Report of the Sayre Campus by Southwestern Oklahoma State University.

Intersections Of Inattention: A Qualitative Inquiry Into The Experiences Of Multiply Marginalized Students In Community College Settings, Jana N. Knibb

Open Access Dissertations

Educational research has examined the impact of expanded access to higher education for historically marginalized groups. However, research on the experiences of students who are both racially minoritized and dis/abled is limited. Findings suggest that, due to their intersectional identities, multiply marginalized dis/abled students (MMDS) navigate policies and practices related to racist ableism, which further marginalize them and create additional barriers in their higher education experiences. Expanding this research requires theoretical frameworks that account for students' identities, experiences, and barriers in higher educational spaces and contexts. This qualitative study, grounded in Dis/ability Studies and Critical Race Theory in Education (DisCrit), …

A Difference-In-Differences Investigation Of The Impact Of State-Mandated Campus Carry Laws In Texas On Violent Campus Crime Rates, Ryan Matthew Gibson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The purpose of this study is to examine the potential impact of state-mandated campus carry laws on sexual misconduct and other violent crime statistics at public, four-year institutions. The study focuses on the state-mandated campus carry law put into effect in Texas starting in 2016 to analyze whether or not it had an impact on campus crime rates. Findings of the study showed that reported campus crime increased at Texas institutions post-2016 at a larger rate than the states that explicitly ban campus carry. Due to a lack of data on the number of individuals carrying guns on campuses in …

The Role Of Leadership In Creating Dei Plans In U.S. Higher Education, Beatriz Desantiago-Fjelstad, Leslie Darmofal, Kelly Meier, Henry Morris, Luis Posas

Educational Leadership Department Publications

This brief discusses the challenges and strategies in creating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) plans in U.S. higher education. It highlights the importance of leadership in this process, particularly the need for courageous leadership to overcome the barriers posed by resistance to DEI plans. This brief illustrates the complexities of creating DEI plans and offers strategies to foster inclusive environments. The discussion emphasizes the need for a long-term commitment and actionable DEI plans beyond performative steps, instilling confidence in the potential for significant institutional evolution.

Think Again: How Communication Eportfolios And Work-Based Learning Foster Resilience Through Double-Looping, Megan Mize, Alison Lietzenmayer, Gary Beck

Communication & Theatre Arts Faculty Publications

In a changing professional landscape, students need more than disciplinary knowledge; they need tools for reflection, adaptability, and purpose-driven growth. At Old Dominion University (ODU), ePortfolios and work-based learning (WBL) are strategically embedded across the Communication curriculum to foster double-loop learning, a recursive, metacognitive process through which students not only reflect on outcomes but also interrogate the assumptions behind their choices. Drawing from a decade of institutional practice, course-based examples, and student reflections, this chapter illustrates how these high-impact practices (HIPs) help students connect coursework to career goals, revisit self-perceptions, and build resilience over time. By linking academic learning to …

Barriers To Transfer: Navigating The Obstacles Community College Students Face When Moving To Four-Year Universities, Tirth Desai

A with Honors Projects

Research project, analyzing and examining the social, financial, and institutional problems community college students face while preparing to transfer to a four year university.

Jasmine Mata Diaz Honors Portfolio, Jasmine Mata Diaz

Honors Capstone Portfolios

Jasmine Mata Diaz's honors portfolio captured in May 2025.

2024-2025 Continuous Improvement, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

Assessment Center Reports

The 2024-2025 Continuous Improvement report produced by the SWOSU Assessment Center.

Keeping Company: Genuine Conversation As A First-Year Honors Seminar Pedagogy, Richard Badenhausen

National Collegiate Honors Council Monographs: Chapters

Despite the challenges of a conversational approach to the FYS, the pedagogy has become engrained enough in the gateway seminar to the Westminster University Honors College that it would be hard to imagine adopting another strategy. Faculty tend to improve over time at leading such classrooms and regularly focus on the conversation-based features of their classes in their end-of-term self-reflections, as two teaching partners did in the following comments about the honors core course Global Welfare and Justice: “The strength of the class was the group dynamic and constellation of voices. It was an incredibly engaged class. Students challenged and …

Reflection In First-Year Honors Courses: Why We Can’T Take It For Granted, Kevin W. Dean, Zachary Wooten

National Collegiate Honors Council Monographs: Chapters

Existing scholarship suggests that intentional reflection, during or shortly following an event, can impact future vocational choices and generate memories that participants can recall years after the undergraduate experience. Inspiring accounts of reflection, decades following honors City as Text experiences, demonstrate the influence that reflective experiences played in vocational formation (Daniel; Schock). Given the community focus of an honors FYS, studying the long-term impact of that experience on alums would be interesting.

Developing Peer Mentors As Co-Educators For The Honors First-Year Seminar, Kimberly Baldus, Gerianne Friedline, Ann Torrusio

National Collegiate Honors Council Monographs: Chapters

Our decision at the University of Missouri–St. Louis (UMSL) to develop a peer mentor program in the Pierre Laclede Honors College (PLHC) First-year seminar (FYS) began in a spring 2014 campuswide FYS committee meeting. Having previously developed three essential cornerstones that all variations of the FYS on campus would need to include—campus connections, academic engagement, and development support—university leaders decided that best practices in FYS courses demanded the inclusion of peer mentors in all versions of the course. As honors faculty, we had frankly never contemplated this addition to our fully developed and successful academic FYS program. In fact, without …

2025-2026 Graduate Msn-Fnp Handbook, Morehead State University. Nursing Department.

Nursing Department Publications Archive

2025-2026 Graduate Student Handbook for the Department of Nursing at Morehead State University.

Toward A Welcoming Classroom: Assessment Of Student Perceptions Of Writing Education In Introductory Honors College Courses, Hilary K. Snow

Honors in Practice Online Archive

This study examines student perceptions of an introductory-level writing program in honors at a large, public R1 university. Author considers the efficacy of pedagogical interventions aimed at identifying gaps in the experience of writing for students from BIPOC and first-generation backgrounds and at developing more inclusive teaching practices. Collective revisions to the program’s writing philosophy, objectives, and rubrics helped instructors gain clarity and consistency across sections. A two-part survey was conducted at the beginning and end of the semester, and metrics were calculated for all respondents (N = 176) and targeted subgroups (n = 37; n = 30). …

Honors In Practice, Volume 21, 2025, Emily Allen

Honors in Practice Online Archive

CONTENTS

Editorial Policy, Deadline, and Submission Guidelines

Editor’s Introduction, Emily Allen

2024 NCHC CONFERENCE REMARKS 2024

Presidential Address, Eddie Weller

2024 Founders Award Remarks Elizabeth Cole Beck, John Zubizarreta

RESEARCH ESSAYS

Read Yourself In: Enhancing First-Year Student Belonging through Place as Text Pedagogy, John Andrews

Campus Legends and Mysteries: Building Institutional Identity through Campus Lore, Viktoria Basham

Building Place-based Experiential Learning into the Honors Curriculum at Ohio University, Geoffrey L. Buckley, Nicole Finnicum, Michelle O’Malley, Jennifer Bowie, and Yolonda Youngs

Why the Museum Matters to Honors, Mimi Killinger How to Create a Self-Sustaining Meditation Garden, Heather Salazar, Lydia Barrett-Miller, and …

Deceptive Recruitment Practices By Admissions, Francis Dugbartey

Graduate Student Work

This paper investigates the pervasive issue of deceptive recruitment practices employed by higher education institutions, with a particular focus on for-profit colleges. It explores how misleading advertising regarding job placement rates, tuition costs, financial aid, and institutional accreditation misguides prospective students, leading to financial hardship, unmet academic expectations, and erosion of trust in the higher education system. Through historical cases including Corinthian Colleges, the University of Phoenix, and Temple University’s Fox School of Business this study highlights the legal and ethical implications of such misconduct. It evaluates the regulatory responses by the U.S. Department of Education and the Federal Trade …

More Than Money: Holistic Outcomes Of Catholic Higher Education, Jason King

Journal of Catholic Education

In an era dominated by financial metrics and return-on-investment rhetoric, this study offers a counternarrative by examining the holistic outcomes of Catholic higher education. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 2,000 college graduates, it compares alumni of Catholic and secular institutions across three domains: life satisfaction and personal fulfillment; civic engagement and community involvement; and ethical development. The findings reveal that graduates of Catholic colleges report higher life satisfaction, greater civic participation, and a stronger ethical orientation than their secular peers—patterns that persist across demographic subgroups. While Catholic colleges perform well on traditional financial indicators, their distinctive value lies …

“I’M Doing Good For Her”: Stories Examining The Employment Experiences Of Undergraduate Students With Pell-Eligibility, Jennifer Ruggiero-Patel

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Students of low socioeconomic status are a growing demographic in higher education, in part because of historical advances which provided more access to this population. To afford their education, as well as necessities, students of low socioeconomic status usually need to work while earning their degree. Higher education institutions are often not structured to support students of low socioeconomic status (Lee, 2024). The purpose of this qualitative, narrative inquiry was to examine the stories of employed undergraduate students of low socioeconomic status, while also studying their motivation for working while in college. The data for this study was collected through …

“Made For Me”: Stories Of Discovery Among Autistic Students Traveling Abroad, Cherie A. Fishbaugh

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative, narrative analysis shares the stories of triumph and challenges recalled by autistic college students who participated in customized, short-term, faculty-led, study abroad trips, and their recommendations for future inclusive trips. This study included eight undergraduate, autistic participants ranging in ages from 19-24. Participants completed an in-person or virtual 60-minute structured interview, that focused on recalling stories of triumph and challenges they had experienced when they were studying abroad. Utilizing Critical Disability Theory, these interviews provided the exploration of stories that revealed themes of discovering me, “Made for Me,” and recommendations for future inclusive trips. Key findings included the …

Adjusting Your L.E.N.S: Learn And Educate With Neurodiverse Students, Jenna Potter

Entry Level Occupational Therapy Doctoral Capstone Projects Class of 2025

This doctoral capstone project, Adjusting Your L.E.N.S: Learn & Educate with Neurodiverse Students, focused on how occupational therapy (OT) can play a unique role in contributing to an inclusive postsecondary higher education (IPSE) program at a local university. This capstone project focused on supporting faculty, staff, and peer academic coaches, developing a transition camp for high school students, and enhancing the university’s current IPSE program to ensure that students with intellectual disability and autism can access higher education and learn within an inclusive and supportive setting. A faculty, staff, and academic coach training program was implemented to equip participants with …

Neurodivergent Students And Higher Education: Barriers, Challenges, And Supporting Measures, Courtney Tricarichi-Funk

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

When neurodivergent students attempt to go to colleges and universities, they often face barriers in accessing higher education and encounter challenges post-admission. This study explores what measures higher learning institutions can develop and implement to make postsecondary education more accessible and less challenging for neurodivergent students by answering the following questions: • What barriers do neurodivergent students face when planning to access higher education? • What challenges do neurodivergent students encounter in higher education after they are admitted? • What measures can be developed and implemented to help neurodivergent students access and succeed in higher education? To address these questions, …

Perceptions Of Implementation From Higher Education Participants In Online Course Design Professional Development, Scott B. Thesen

All Capstone Projects

Many higher education instructors treat online teaching as a modern form of correspondence, believing students learn on their own when content is placed in a learning management system, but learning also takes place through other forms of interaction beyond solely with content. To show best practices for the online modality, instructors at a Midwest regional mid-sized higher education institution participated in professional development using the Improving Your Online Course (IYOC) workshop from Quality Matters™ (QM), a globally recognized authority in best practices for online course design. Level 3 of Kirkpatrick’s Four Levels of Training Evaluation was used to evaluate the …

Case Study: Impact On Student Outcomes, Kyoungeun Song

Bakerman Student Research Awards

Effective literacy instruction requires more than teaching by instinct. Teachers must make decisions based on research. This case study began while I was working with Zaya (a pseudonym), a kindergarten student who struggled with reading. Zaya was eager to learn, but her baseline data showed serious difficulties. Her Initial Sound Fluency (FSF) score was zero, and she could not name letters without constant teacher prompting. She often waited for me to start first and then copied me. These results showed that Zaya was experiencing real challenges in phonological processing. This led to an important research question: How can a research-based …

Mental Health And Belongingness Of Doctor Of Physical Therapy Students: A Mixed Methods Study Centering Black Student Voices, Robyn Redline

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Background: Despite efforts to increase recruitment and enrollment, the physical therapy profession lacks Black students and clinicians. Racially marginalized students have higher rates of academic difficulty during physical therapy education (PTE) than White students. Mental health and belongingness have been proposed as prerequisites for reaching academic achievement and attaining one’s full potential. Conversely, poor mental health and lack of belongingness during PTE may contribute to the underrepresentation of Black Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students and clinicians. Yet not enough is known about the relationships between mental health, belongingness, and the academic achievement of DPT students. Purpose: This study aimed …

Domestic Student Engagement With International Peers: Local Insights, Global Connections, Alissa Sutton

Masters Theses

As competition to recruit international students grows, institutions must prioritize fostering a sense of belonging that supports their retention and success. Central to this is the quality of interactions between international and domestic students, which shape both groups’ social and academic experiences. This study examines the barriers and facilitators influencing domestic students’ engagement with international peers and the role of institutional support in promoting meaningful cross-cultural connections. Findings reveal that domestic students recognize the importance of engaging with international peers but they often encounter challenges such as lack of awareness, uncertainty about how to connect, and limited institutional opportunities. Support …

The Honors Beacon, Issue 23, 2024-2025, Honors Program At Minnesota State University, Mankato

Honors Beacon

2024-2025 newsletter of the Honors Program at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Dataset For "The Role Of Metacognition And Confidence In Quantitative Reasoning In College Biology Courses", Joseph Dauer, Anum Khushal, Brian A. Couch, Robert L. Mayes, Kent Rittschof

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Quantitative modelling is a fundamental skill for biology students with performance determined by a host of cognitive and metacognitive resources and requiring instructors to integrate key quantitative dimensions into teaching biology. Using an assessment of quantitative modelling in biology, we explored biology students’ (n = 930 higher education students) modelling practices (i.e., abilities to create, test, revise), metacognition about the nature of models and confidence in their capabilities to model. Students performed best on items related to understanding variables used in models and performed more poorly on items related to interpreting, creating, and using models to understand biological phenomena. …

Critique Of Genai Learning Cycle/5e Model, Ann M.L. Cavallo

Center for Research on Teaching and Learning Excellence Publications-Archive

No abstract provided.