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A Qualitative Exploration Of Social Capital And Its Influence On Baccalaureate Degree Completion Of First-Generation African American Men At The University Of Louisville., Joseph Marshall Goodman Iii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative dissertation was designed to examine influences which various forms of social capital have on post-secondary degree attainment of first-generation individuals who self-identify as African American men. Additionally, the sample population consisted of Black men who successfully matriculated to earn baccalaureate credentials across differing academic disciplines at a public historically White institution located in the mid-south region of the United States. The research data was extracted from one-on-one, semi-structured interviews using authentic dialogue through open-ended questions. Theoretical paradigms of the study involved a phenomenological approach and an ontological philosophical assumption, integrated with critical theory, critical race theory and social …

Telling Our Stories: Exploring The Path Toward Successful Mathematics Degree Attainment At An Under-Resourced Predominantly Black Institution, Lauren E. Mckittrick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The under-representation of Blacks in mathematics related professions stems from an American educational system of inequity. Many Black students, including a substantial proportion of those who enroll at Predominantly Black Institutions, attend elementary and secondary schools in under-resourced districts with limited access to quality teachers and rigorous, culturally-relevant instruction that would adequately prepare them for college attainment in mathematics.

The primary research question guiding this study was: What are the challenges and opportunities associated with building and sustaining a successful mathematics degree program at an under-resourced Predominantly Black Institution? Concurrently, this interpretive case study examined and documented the experiences of …

We Gotta Work With What We Got: School And Community Factors That Contribute To Educational Resilience Among African American Students, Denae Bradley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how Black residents in the Mississippi Delta claim and deploy agency and resiliency in a rural community context entrenched in a legacy of oppression. Black, low-income communities are implicitly labeled non-resilient when macro-level community capitals and resiliency literature are applied. However, I find that resiliency is culturally distinctive and oftentimes detected in ritual, daily processes in Black communities. This thesis rejects dominant narratives that Black communities in Mississippi are only poor, backwards, and lacking. It questions the assumption that dominant institutions have created inescapable boundaries for Black people in this region and challenges the notion that the …

Improbable Dreams: A Qualitative Case Study Of Elite High School Football Players, Noah Stephen Webb

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a qualitative case study of an elite high school football program in the American Southeast. I conducted twelve interviews with former players from Lake Kolofa High School to better understand how young men are socialized into pursuing elite levels of sport. Using the society spectacle framework, this thesis extends current debates about primary sources of encouragement for participation to include the collective spectacle of sport. Here, the sporting spectacle acts as a major contributing factor in how young men come to view their chances of achieving upward social mobility through football. Other primary findings focus on the …

African American Public School Principals In East Tennessee: Motivation For Leadership., Joe L. Canada

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore and document the factors that motivated African American public school administrators in a selected school system in East Tennessee to become school leaders. The study highlighted barriers and challenges, support mechanisms, and perceptions of training. If minority educators are to be actively recruited and retained, there must be an understanding of the factors that motivate them to progressively seek administrative leadership positions.

The African American public school administrators' experiences were collected through 17 one-on-one personal interviews. The interviews were audio-taped, transcribed, coded, and used to answer the 4 research questions.

The primary …