Digital Commons Network^™

Fiscal Inequity: A Case Study Of Superintendents And Business Managers In Pennsylvania High Poverty School Districts, Vanessa Renee Scott

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this embedded, single case qualitative case study was to explore how business managers and superintendents in Pennsylvania school districts work together to develop adequate and equitable school district budgets in a time of funding inequity and uncertainty. This case study focused on business managers and superintendents in school districts that are identified by the Pennsylvania Department of Education as high poverty districts based on the district's aid ratio. Eight business managers and five superintendents from Pennsylvania school districts participated in a semi-structured interview that explored the experiences that they encountered in the budget development process. School board …

Examining Steam Implementation Through The Lens Of Organizational Learning, William Louis Grillo

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined STEAM implementation from the qualitative perspective of New Jersey K-12 school leaders and through the quantitative lens of organizational learning. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, sixteen school leaders were interviewed regarding their process of implementing the integrated learning framework known as STEAM. Simultaneously, an Organizational Learning Mechanism Questionnaire was distributed to the teaching faculty of participating districts. This study found that current K-12 school leaders were implementing STEAM with top down administrative support, emergent processes, standards focused curricula, and innovative means of marketing their programs. Significant differences were also found between K-8 and high school …

Perceptions Of Teachers Who Engage In Social Media Networking: A Multiple Case Study, Celese Nolan

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how and why teachers engage in social media networks. Using a case study approach, data was gathered through semi-structured interviews, online observations, direct observations, artifacts, and documents to gain understanding to how and why teachers are using online networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Twitter for professional learning. The underpinnings of constructivism and social constructivism theories served to provide a framework for understanding how teachers perceive their professional use of social media. Moreover, this study sought to gain insight into how this practice may or may not influence teacher practice at …

The Impact Of A Values Clarification Process On The Factors Associated With Retention Of Historically Underrepresented Students At A Public University, Jose Antonio Aviles

Theses and Dissertations

The literature examining the retention of students of color is very much like a puzzle. Many scholars have contributed to the puzzle attempting to make a complete body of knowledge regarding student departure. However, a void in the literature seems to be the role of students' values in the retention puzzle, specifically, whether the process of clarifying personal values would affect the retention of students of color in higher education.

A transitional summer bridge program was modified using a conceptual framework anchored in the examination of espoused values versus values in use. The model was developed using Argyris and Schon's …

Utilization Of A School Specific Intervention Manual To Increase Teacher Perceptions Of The I&Rs Process And Reduce Special Education Referrals, Jacqueline Jade Kelly

Theses and Dissertations

One of the primary purposes of the Intervention and Referral Services (I & RS) process is to assist school staff in addressing students' learning, behavior, or health needs (N.J.A.C. 6A:16-7.1 [a]). This study sought to improve I & RS process and student outcomes in a southern New Jersey elementary school that services students from grades Pre-Kindergarten through second grade. At the outset of the study, school administrators reported that an area of need was to formulate an intervention resource for the school's I & RS committee and teaching staff. It was determined that an online/interactive intervention manual would be created …

Leading Change, Debbie Gaspar

TCLC Program Proceedings

Leading change draws on soft skills, technical skills, and organization acumen. Implementing change is challenging as planning must address existing practices and the web of interpersonal relationships. How can leaders anticipate and plan for the impact on staff members as they guide them through the three steps of organizational change?

The Impact Of A Community Of Practice On The Development Of The Three Tiers Of Organizational Intelligence In The Institutional Research Professional, Rebecca S. Fidler-Sheppard

Theses and Dissertations

The demands and expectations on Institutional Research (IR) have continued to expand over the years, yet there have been no studies on cost effective ways to develop and maintain the knowledge and skills needed by professionals in the field. This quantitative study supplemented with limited qualitative data explored the impact of participating in an Institutional Research (IR) affinity group on the development of the three tiers of organizational intelligence and the strength and nature of the social network that exists among the participants. Surveys were collected from members of a community college IR affinity group in New Jersey along with …

The Impact Of Learning Communities On Student And Faculty Engagement: The Case For Linking College Success And Basic Skills English Courses At "A" Community College, Mary Beth Boylan

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this action research study were to: examine the (a) impact of linking basic skills English and College Success courses on the engagement and satisfaction of students and faculty at a branch campus of a large community college, (b) chronicle changes in scheduling, registration, and assignment of faculty as the initiatives are grown, and (c) examine my espoused servant leadership and social justice orientation, as I lead the project using Kotter's (1996) eight-step process for creating major change.

The quality of the relationship between the learning community faculty members had an impact on satisfaction for students and faculty. …

The Implementation Of A New Teacher Evaluation Model: A Qualitative Case Study Of How Teachers Make Sense Of The Marzano Evaluation Model, Brian P. Donahue

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how teachers understood and changed their instructional practice in response to imposed teacher evaluation requirements. The strategy of inquiry was a single case study, representative of a large suburban high school adapting to the changes required under the provisions of Achieve NJ, the policy mandating new teacher evaluation (Yin, 2009). The theoretical framework of sensemaking and sensegiving guided the analysis of how teachers processed the changes to their evaluation system and the role the context played in the implementation of the MTEM (Weick, 1995, Gioia & Chittipeddi, 1991). Data was …

Exploring My Leadership Practice In Connection To The Support System For Second- To Fourth-Year Non-Tenured Teachers, Joseph Patrick Vespignani

Theses and Dissertations

This autoethnography study offers a personalized story of an elementary school principal's leadership growth and application to practice as a result of the Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership program at Rowan University. Specifically, this study explored leading change to support second- to fourth-year non-tenured teachers. It is connected to the larger issue of new teacher attrition that continues to plague public schools across the nation. It is also aligned with the recent mandate of AchieveNJ that every public school in New Jersey must establish a School Improvement Panel (ScIP). Through reflective practice, I conducted a self-analysis of my leadership …

Organizational Development And Learning Technology In The Workplace: The Migration Of University Reporting Tools, Anne C. Pinder

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation study focused on organizational development (OD) as it related to implementing a new technology, the Cognos reporting tool, within working groups at a mid-sized University, in southern New Jersey. In this study, I intended to understand how these two work groups accomplished this change on an individual, team, and organizational level, while they achieved success through dealing with stressors associated with the software implementation. I was especially interested in how individuals in the two workgroups dealt with a major change within their organization. I was also interested in evaluating my personal leadership skills as a contributor to the …

Adjunct Faculty Sensemaking In The Context Of A Student Success Initiative At A Community College, Denise-Marie Coulter

Theses and Dissertations

Now that community colleges are being pressured by external forces to improve student completion and transfer rates, it is important to determine how part-time faculty are conceptualizing change and implementing it in their practice. They comprise the majority of the teaching staff at these schools, so they are a vital component to ensuring comprehensive change. I undertook an embedded case study to examine how adjunct faculty teaching a gateway English course make sense of the shift in mission to emphasize one school’s commitment to improving student success and whether or not their understanding of this change is impacting their pedagogy. …

Interrupting The Silence: An Action Research Study To Transform A Juvenile Justice Culture For Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, And Intersex (Lgbtqi) Youth, Dawn N. Mcrae

Theses and Dissertations

This action research (AR) study explored practitioners’ knowledge of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Intersex (LGBTQI) youth issues in a juvenile justice setting. A research and service approach was employed to develop a LGBTQI policy and training. This study was motivated by three research questions. Does sensitivity training increase practitioner knowledge concerning LGBTQI youth in juvenile justice? What are the attitudes of juvenile justice practitioners concerning the stigmatization of LGBTQI youth in a juvenile correctional setting? How can the findings of this study improve support networks for LGBTQI youth in a juvenile correctional setting? To examine these questions, pre-test …

Transcending We/They: A Qualitative Formative Evaluation Of The Transformative Potential Of An In-District Leadership Development Program, Jennifer Anne Sharp

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative formative evaluation study revealed how teacher participation in an in-district leadership academy at a New Jersey school district engaged participants in preparing for future leadership roles. A program evaluation using qualitative methods can provide feedback on initiatives so that informed decisions can be made about program improvements (Patton, 2002b; Powell, 2006). Using a series of focus group discussions and interviews to gather such feedback, the study has informed decisions about one program’s evolving structure. Themes that emerged from the data provided by 13 participants were viewed through a constructivist framework, and using Mezirow’s (1981; 1985; 1994; 1997) theory …

Increasing Intrapreneurial Intentions Among Business Students: Using A Net-Enabled Business Innovation Cycle (Nebic) Theory Team Project, Jennifer Nicholson, Yide Shen, Darren Nicholson

Rohrer College of Business Departmental Research

Institutions of higher education are placing greater emphasis on entrepreneurship education. Yet, in reality, few students will actually use their entrepreneurial skills to start a business. Instead, many will go to work for existing organizations as intrapreneurs – those who contribute to entrepreneurship at the firm level. This paper describes how we developed and implemented a team project using the Net-Enabled Business Innovation Cycle (NEBIC) theory as a means to promote intrapreneurial intention in a Technology Entrepreneurship course. We also present pre- and post-project survey results showing that completing the NEBIC project increased students’ intention to become intrapreneurs.

Strategic Vision: Navigating Change, Deborah Gaspar

Libraries Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Stimulating Diversity Outcomes? A Multicase Study Exploring Entrepreneurial Architecture And Storytelling In Higher Education Institutions, Noel Criscione-Naylor

Theses and Dissertations

There is limited research that explores the relationship between entrepreneurial architecture and diversity and its significance to the university and in higher education (Morris, 2010; Nelles & Worley, 2011; Nelles & Worley, 2010). This qualitative, multicase study explored how entrepreneurial architecture and storytelling by administrators contributes to university diversity agendas by investigating the linkages between entrepreneurial structure, process, and strategies and institutional diversity outcomes at two, New Jersey, public, four-year institutions. Semi-structured interviews took place with 12 administrators in which the characteristics of entrepreneurial architecture and storytelling at the universities was evident. Three main themes were identified including diverse voices, …

Preparing For Change: An Examination Of An Urban School's Extra-Curricular Activities And Professional Learning Communities In Creating A Culture Ready For Change, Linda Brown-Bartlett

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study is to examine the use of extra-curricular activities and professional learning communities to create a school culture ready for academic change. This unique approach to implementing change, in a historically failing urban middle school, utilizes a two pronged approach focusing on personalizing strategies specific to the school based on student and staff expressed needs. The study takes place at Sonia Middle School located in the United States' fifth most dangerous and impoverished city, Bartlett, New Jersey. Numerous academic reform models have failed to improve teaching and learning. The researcher hypothesizes these programs failed …

Faculty Expectations And Perceptions Of Writing At A Community College, Lynn Kraemer-Siracusa

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this multi-method qualitative study was to determine the nature and extent of any gaps that exist between the writing skills faculty members across disciplines at a community college expect their students to utilize in intermediate-level writing intensive courses, their perceptions of the students' general ability to demonstrate those skills, and the importance of the learning outcomes of the two semesters of FYC courses. The faculty members identified a majority of the FYC learning outcomes as having some level of importance to their courses across disciplines. In addition, the directions for the writing assignments used by these faculty …

How A Secondary School As An Organization Defines And Embeds The Term College Readiness, Michele Critelli

Theses and Dissertations

With the many reforms and initiatives regarding college readiness, understanding how organizations use rhetoric to determine and define what college readiness is and what it looks like can either reinforce dominant institutional structures and practices, or create new definitions and understanding leading to institutional change. Through a rhetorical framework (Alvesson, 1993), members of an organization are not only conformists but also strategic agents who through the use of rhetoric construct and shape knowledge and institutional life. A case study was conducted of one secondary high school that included administrators and teachers who work within the context of college readiness. Through …

Transforming A System: Leadership To Implement An Intervention And Referral Services Process That Assists Teachers, Michael Lee

Theses and Dissertations

Improving instruction to meet diverse student needs via early, intensive, and continuing intervention is an essential part of a comprehensive strategy to serve all students now and to produce the graduates 21st century society requires. Yet, meaningful school reform with transforming leadership, innovative vision, conversations among teachers, and authentic student achievement still remains elusive today. Our limitations in putting new ideas into practice come not from a lack of will or effort, but, in part, from the influences of our personal stories, mental models, and an immunity to change. This action research study explores educators' perceptions and behaviors in implementing …

Problematic Eating Behaviors Among College Women: Suggesting A Subgroup, Danielle Genovese

Theses and Dissertations

Problematic eating behaviors and attitudes are a major problem for men and especially women across the country. A particularly vulnerable group of women to eating disorders and skewed perception of their bodies are college women with 86% of women reporting onset of their eating disorder by the age of twenty (ANAD, 2000). Previous research suggests that women in sororities report higher insistences and experiences with eating behaviors and attitudes associated with eating disorders. The current study hypothesized that sorority women will have higher reported levels of problematic eating behaviors and attitudes associated with eating disorders than non-sorority women. The participants …

Measuring The Efficacy And Quality Of A Professional Development Training On Prejudice Reduction And Reflective Practice: Transforming The Delivery Of Change Through Collective Insight And Informed Action, Berdine Gordon-Littrean

Theses and Dissertations

The overall objective of school improvement planning is an enhanced level of student achievement through an enhanced leadership framework and successfully implemented program. The improvement plan process requires focus on specific priorities to effect real change. The purpose of this action research study was to provide professional training as part of a continuum change initiative. The study analyzed the salient factors or areas of critical concern, impacting prejudice and controversial issues settings. These variables included levels of leadership, and significance of the following: diversity of identity and experiences, stereotyping, internalized oppression, building pride and capacity, becoming allies, making commitments to …

School Psychologists Involvement With Response-To-Intervention And Students With Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Difficulties, Katelyn Hickman-Poloney

Theses and Dissertations

The current school reform is being driven by shifts in thinking about school improvements, including a willingness to consider prevention versus remediation. Response-to-Intervention is a buzz word in education right now as it is the framework by which this shift in thinking is to be implemented. Preventatively addressing the mental health needs of students is a pressing issue for educational professionals as the population of students who exhibit social, emotional, and behavioral problems continues to be underserved. Since school psychologists are trained in Response-to-Intervention procedures, the purpose of this study was to determine if school psychologists are involved in Response-to-Intervention …

Diamond To Coal: An Educational Leadership Doctoral Program's Evolution And Devolution, Eva Ross

Theses and Dissertations

Extant research on educational leadership preparation programs (ELPPs) is cross-organizational and quantitative in nature. This descriptive sequential explanatory mixed-method study provides contextual depth by looking at the evolution (and devolution) of an on-campus doctoral-level ELPP model. This study examined contextual influences and programmatic effectiveness over time, as well as its uniqueness, integrity and import, from various key stakeholder standpoints. Data collection methods included a primarily quantitative alumni survey and follow-up interviews, as well as core faculty and program developer interviews. Qualitative data analysis methods included grounded theory analytic techniques; quantitative analysis methods used descriptive statistics. Findings and results indicated contextual …

Registration, Attendance, And Reality: African-Americans Engaged In Sat Preparation, Don Coleman

Theses and Dissertations

There is limited research into the persistence, participation, and efforts of African American students in their preparation for college admission exams (SAT, ACT). Registration, attendance, and the experienced reality of African American students who voluntarily enrolled in an SAT prep program as well as perceptions of African American instructors were the foci of this mixed methods action research. This study examined the development of a Saturday SAT preparation program over an 18 month period. Theoretical frameworks of Stereotype Threat (STT) (Steele, 1992; Steele & Aronson, 1995) and schooling effects (Diamond, 2007; Kao & Thompson, 2003; Ladson-Billings 1995, 1997; Starratt, 2003; …

An Autoethnographic Analysis Of School Leadership In An Alternative Education Environment, Leroi Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This research represents an extremely personalized account of the complicated field of educational leadership and analysis of my journey through two very different alternative education environments. I documented my leadership experience for this self study to further understand how my leadership impacted two alternative educational settings. Through the vantage point of my lens, I documented and recorded my experiences through artifacts, a digital journal, and personal documentation as an administrator using the qualitative method of autoethnography. This type of qualitative research brings the reader inside of my personal experiences as an administrator. Every school district has its own climate and …

Using Reflective Practice To Study School Leadership, Cheryl Smith

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this investigation were to critically examine my principal leadership and to use reflective practice to improve my leadership practice and create positive change in the practices of teachers in the school. While scrutinizing critical incidents of practice, I utilized four reflective practice cycles to develop new action theories and new paradigms of leadership behavior. Reflective practice Cycle I focused on me as an individual. Revisiting who I was conceptually opened reflection about my identity, prompting me to think differently about my leadership. My partnering with another principal consisted of reflective practice Cycle II. Our emphasis was on …

The Role Of School Psychologists Regarding The Implementation Of The Anti-Bullying Bill Of Rights Act, John Kowalcyk

Theses and Dissertations

Current school psychologists in New Jersey were contacted in order to determine the attitudes, roles, and approaches of different school psychologists in relation to the new HIB (Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying) legislation for all New Jersey Public Schools. This study gauged school psychologists' level of involvement in implementing the new legislation and their overall roles with regard to maintaining a safe and positive school climate. The survey, which was sent via email to school psychologists across the state, asked questions about their perceived roles in schools, the time they spent on various obligations during the workday, their involvement with the …

Supporting African American Involvement In A Doctoral Program At A Regional Comprehensive University: A Research Study Of The Experiences And Perceptions Of African American Current Doctoral Candidates And African American Doctorates, Frankie Nicholson

Theses and Dissertations

Education has been the path to battle moral injustice and to encourage self-governing dialogue about doing the "right thing" (Freire, 1998; Fullan, 2007; Hurtado et al., 1999; Tatum, 1992). Fullan (2007) claims that education is the "vehicle" to diminish inequities for the academically disadvantaged. Through interviews and conversations regarding their experiences and perceptions, this research study "gives voice" to African American doctorates, current doctoral students, and doctoral students who chose not to complete the doctoral educational leadership program at a regional comprehensive university in a Mid-Atlantic State (Allen, 1992, 2000; Delgado, 1995; Freeman, 1997; Soloranzo & Yosso, 2000, 2001). Using …