Four-Day Modified School Systems In Rural Oklahoma, Bryan D. Akins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past 40 years, school districts in rural areas have been forced to move to a modified four-day school schedule. As of 2019, 650 schools in over 25 states operate on a four-day modified school model. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore teachers’ and administrators’ perceptions of the four-day school week. Four research questions guided the study: (a) How do teachers and administrators perceive the four-day school system in Oklahoma?, (b) Why do teachers and administrators support or not support a four-day school system in Oklahoma?, (c) How do teachers and administrators perceive the impact …

The Impact Of Disruptive Physician Behavior On Support Staff And Patients: A Quantitative Secondary Analysis, Michael C. Marino

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this quantitative secondary analysis, the purpose was to examine the nature of disruptive physician behavior (DPB) from the support staff and patient perspectives. Healthcare staffing shortages existed prior to the global pandemic and have increased, creating importance for employee retention and recruitment. I wanted to understand the impact of physician behavior on staff turnover rates in a private oncology practice, its effect on patient satisfaction rates, and to compare these rates of physicians that display DPB with physicians that do not display this behavior in a private hematology oncology community outpatient setting in the Southwest United States. To answer …

Going Backstage: Examining Justice Perceptions Of Electronic Performance Monitoring, Maurice Harris

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Organizations are rapidly adopting emerging technologies, popularly known in the media as “bossware,” that track the behaviors of employees. The use of these technologies to monitor worker performance is known as electronic performance monitoring (EPM) in the academic literature. EPM systems increasingly utilize advanced algorithms, equipping companies with the capabilities to expose employees' actions, thoughts, and feelings. Prior research on EPM has focused mainly on the reactions of front-line workers, ignoring the perceptions of employees who work at different hierarchical levels within their organizations. An organizational justice perspective is used to examine how a company’s decision to grant employees the …

Tech-Savvy School Principals Leveraging Crisis Leadership To Support Teaching And Learning In Their Schools Through Covid-19 Pandemic, Mohsen Alzahrani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory case study was to learn about the effective practices that recognized tech-savvy principals enacted to support teaching and learning in their schools during the first academic year of the COVID-19 crisis. The study involved semi structured interviews with five recognized tech-savvy school principals. It also involved analyzing supporting materials and documents.

The findings of this study indicated that tech-savvy principals were not stuck in the structural rut that most principals found themselves in during the COVID-19 crisis. Four main themes emerged from the data. The first theme addressed how recognized tech-savvy principals demonstrated decisive decision …

Experiences Of Chinese American Psychology Trainees In Multicultural Education, Helen Weng-Ian Chao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although research has established that students of color have unique experiences in their multicultural training, few studies have examined the experiences and needs of specific subgroups of students of color. This study examined Chinese American psychology trainees’ experiences in multicultural education. Qualitative data was collected from individual semi-structured interviews with Chinese American doctoral students (N = 6). Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to understand participants’ perceptions of their experiences in multicultural courses. Data analysis resulted in four themes: the (1) burden of being minoritized, (2) Chinese American identity inflection points, being (3) sidelined by whiteness, and (4) …

Application Of An Organizational Evaluation Capacity Assessment In A Multinational Ngo: A Case Study To Support Applied Practice, Ryan James Smyth

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As evaluation capacity building (ECB) has rapidly emerged as a practice in human service organizations and as a field of academic inquiry, attention has focused on methods of evaluation capacity building while assessment of organizational evaluation capacity (EC) has lagged behind. To examine the practice of organizational evaluation capacity assessment, this dissertation presents two separate but related studies. In sub-study 1, I present a qualitative evidence synthesis of the research theorizing organizational evaluation capacity models. In sub-study 2, I support the implementation of one of the tools from the evidence-synthesis at a multinational human service organization. I use a concurrent …

Interrogating Whiteness In Graduate Education Culture: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Southeast Asian American Graduate Student Experiences, Lesley Nina Sisaket

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand the role that whiteness has in shaping the graduate education experiences of Southeast Asian American students in the United States. This study explores two research questions. 1) How do Southeast Asian American graduate students describe their graduate education? 2) How do Southeast Asian American graduate students describe concepts of whiteness, if any, throughout their graduate education? According to the experiences from six selfidentifying Southeast Asian American students, their graduate education experiences were described to be racially taxing, unchallenging, and isolating experiences. These findings stemmed from their graduate education experiences, which …

A Phenomenological Study Examining How The Covid-19 Pandemic Changed The Way Teachers Use Technology To Deliver Instruction From March 2020 - May 2021, Dedra Lamb

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine teacher perception of changes in the instructional delivery and learning opportunities via technology during and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020 until May 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected educational organizations. School closures in March 2020 forced teachers to change their instructional delivery from an in-person platform to a virtual platform. This disruption to the delivery of instruction with the use of technology changed the way teachers plan for learning, delivery content, present learning activities, and assessment. The urgency required teachers to develop new strategies and experiment with adaptations …

The Relationship Of Hospital Ceo Gender And The Patient Experience: The Role Of The Mediating Effects Of Hospital Characteristics, Lanean M. Lang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this quantitative study, I investigated CEO gender and the patient experience in acute care hospitals in Texas for 2019. As the patient-experience has been the metric for quality patient care and hospital reimbursements, hospital CEOs play an important role in promoting positive patient experience as they lead the organization in strategic goals. The study is relevant as a shortage of experienced and qualified healthcare leaders is expected as baby-boomers retire. The lack of women leaders remains a challenging issue. The purpose of the study was to assess the gender differences of the CEO on the impact of patient experience …

Trauma Informed Care In Alternative Education Settings, Cydney V. Quinn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Schools are considered to be the primary location for providing children with prevention and treatment for mental health symptoms, however, it is well documented that children’s mental health needs remain underserved. Especially at risk are children who have experienced trauma and other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Many children in this group are subject to disciplinary action, and are often removed from primary classrooms to alternative education placements (AEP) in an effort to manage behaviors. Therefore, it is important that alternative education teachers are trained in trauma-informed care (TIC). While it may be presumed that AEP staff would be well-versed in …

Teacher Perceptions Of Shifts Within The School Culture After Implementation Of A Trauma-Informed Program, Jennifer Green

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the educators’ perceptions of shifts within the culture of Jefferson Elementary School after the implementation of a trauma-informed approach. This study focuses on examining changes to the school culture after implementing trauma-informed practices. As educators continue to feel the pressure of increased academic expectations alongside the social and emotional demands that arise from childhood trauma, increased support through trauma-informed practices becomes necessary for the wellbeing of everyone. However, there are challenges in the implementation of these practices which can impact the culture of the school.

The researcher used the qualitative method of …

Educator Perceptions Of The Organizational Change Experienced In The Shift From Traditional Grading To A Standards-Based System, Melinda Ford Rainey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine elementary education teacher perceptions of the change process that occurred in a public-school district during the four-year transition from a traditional grade reporting process to a standards-based system. The director of elementary education and a district leadership team provided oversight as the initial teacher cohort participated in a full school year of planning and designing the new standards-based report card for kindergarten and was executed the following school year. First-grade cohort teachers began their initial year of planning and design the same year kindergarten began implementation. The second-grade teacher cohort followed …

Servant Leadership And Conflict Adaptivity In Local Government Leaders, June F. Mighty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Government organizations’ focus on public service provides a fertile ground for conflict due to competing interests and goals. Conflicts exist and persist because of workplace pressures such as unstable political climates, budget restrictions, technological advances, a diverse workforce, disruptive change, and organizational transformation. Although typically risk-averse, these organizations need flexible and adaptive leaders who exhibit the appropriate behaviors in the best interests of the organization and the community. Servant-leaders seem likely to demonstrate conflict adaptivity due to their focus on serving the needs of followers and other stakeholders, which may require different conflict styles at different times and in different …

A Study Of The Association Of Teacher Efficacy And Students' Achievement In A North Texas School District, Ruth E. Schackmann

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The field of education places great importance on measurable student achievement and the role of teaching competencies for maximizing success. Whereas much focus has been given to professional development and improving teachers’ skills, this quantitative study examined whether teachers' self-efficacy and judgment about their skills and capabilities were significantly associated with improving student achievement in third grade reading. This dissertation involved a study of teacher self-efficacy using a sample group of third grade English/Language Arts teachers from one Texas urban school district. Targeted teachers were invited to complete a valid and reliable teacher efficacy survey, the Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy …

An Organization’S Ability To Improve Outsourcing Outcomes In Information Technology Outsourcing Initiatives By Increasing Organizational Knowledge: A Case Study, John Michael Mello

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem addressed in this study was the literature gap regarding how internal organizational knowledge can be increased effectively within outsourcing projects. The study was a qualitative social constructionist case study composed of senior technology leaders. The purpose this study addressed was to understand the current structure of technical outsourcing contracts and how future contracts could be structured to address the problem of this study. The research incorporated how a reconceptualized absorptive capacity model, sociocognitive theory, and digital leadership mindsets could improve knowledge transfer outcomes between a vendor and client. Research shows that increasing an organization’s knowledge during an outsourcing …

School Counseling In An Oppressed Society: Examining The Relationships Between Social Justice Advocacy Competence, Empowerment, And Social Justice Self-Efficacy, Michelle Tanner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current nature of oppression that exists in the United States can be seen in the structure and process of American schools, impacting students’ social/emotional, academic, and career development. The defined role of school counselors along with their educational background; strategic position within schools to make meaningful change; access to critical student, teacher, family, and community data; and their professional dispositions and experience make them the most logical choice to help remove systemic barriers and to create equitable opportunities for the marginalized students. School counselors must work as social justice advocates to lead these diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts; however, …

Subepidermal Moisture Measures And Their Relationship To Early Identification Of Pressure Injuries In Both Dark And Light Skin Tones In The Acute Care Setting, Cecilia Zamarripa

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background: Pressure injuries are an important quality measure. Most are avoidable and can be prevented by implementing nursing care strategies early. Pressure injury prevention is significant to nursing practice. There is a gap in the ability to detect early skin damage through standard visual skin assessment in dark skin toned individuals. Subepidermal moisture (SEM) values have been shown to detect early tissue damage in people with dark skin, prior to it being detected through standard visual skin assessment.

Objectives: This study sought to explore the relationship between visual skin assessment and SEM as indicators of pressure injury and …

Space To Lead: Cognitive Coaching As Mindful School Leader Practice., Jennifer Helm Cox

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anxious, stressed school leaders can adversely affect the climate and culture of the communities they serve. The multiple roles a principal must fulfill for their schools leave little room for renewal, self-development and reflection leaving principals feeling drained of energy and a true sense of continual mastery, leaving them with low self-efficacy and primed for burnout. Leaders engaged in growing their flexibility, mindful awareness, professional and personal development may be more resilient, agile, and responsive to the high demand of school administrator’s job. This study examined the experiences of 5 principals in a suburban school district as they engaged in …

Leader–Member Exchange Turnover: How Does Dual Leadership Impact Employee Turnover In Head Start?, Dana P. Clark-Brocks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Several studies have centered around the effects of positive leader–member exchange and low employee turnover. Research has been expanded to include the effects of dual leadership on employee turnover. This qualitative phenomenological study examined how the leader–member exchange relationship and dual leadership affect employee turnover intentions in a Head Start program. A purposive sampling technique was used to gather information. The goal of this study was to examine the subjective experiences of employees’ relationships with supervisors. Standardized, open-ended interview questions were used to gather information from subordinates. Additionally, a survey was used to rate leader-member exchange experiences of subordinates. Participants …

Portraits Of Visionary Leaders: Technology Directors’ Leadership Characteristics And Experiences In K–12 Independent Schools During The Covid-19 Pandemic, William Jeremiah Womack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study’s goal was to examine technology directors’ leadership characteristics and their experiences leading information and communication technologies in K–12 independent schools in Tennessee during the COVID-19 pandemic. As information and communication technologies’ use expanded in education, exploring Organizational Leadership characteristics and experiences with information and communication technologies integration in K–12 was critical, especially as teachers and students depended upon remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using narrative inquiry, this study’s findings described experiences and illustrated certain visionary leadership characteristics technology directors used as they navigated information and communication technologies integration in K–12 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two prominent themes …

Determination Of Causal Relationship For Increasing Nurse Burnout: A Correlational Analysis, Ashley K. Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nursing leaders continue to face issues related to nurse satisfaction and retention. Burnout, exhaustion, and low motivation have a direct impact on the care nurses provide. There are many economic and non-economic factors affecting nursing morale, motivation, and productivity. This employer’s All Employee Survey for 2017 and 2018 showed a significant increase in nurse reported fatigue, exhaustion, low engagement, and burnout scores over a 12-month period. Based on general systems theory, this project utilized secondary data from the survey to perform a correlational analysis to identify whether supervisor relationships, workplace characteristics, and workgroup characteristics were related to burnout, exhaustion, and …

Teachers' Perspectives Of Restorative Disciplinary Practices, Asma Anwar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this phenomenological qualitative study, the perceptions of middle school teachers regarding the implementation of restorative practices with their students with disabilities were examined. Exclusionary suspensions have been overwhelmingly employed to handle student discipline, and students with disabilities experience these harsh punishments at higher rates than their general education peers. However, an increasing number of school districts have started to utilize alternative therapeutic methods, such as restorative practices, to handle conflict and build relationships. The researcher’s goal was to understand better the lived experiences of teachers when implementing these practices and understand the challenges they faced while building connections with …

Implementing Culturally Diverse Strategies In Higher Education Classrooms, Christina M. Corona

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

In this qualitative case study, the researcher determined how student cultural differences influenced Western Coastal University (WCU, pseudonym) faculty pedagogies within their courses. Additionally, the researcher clarified how WCU faculty described their understanding and awareness of culturally diverse teaching strategies. Further investigation also uncovered what successes and challenges professors faced when implementing culturally diverse strategies in the classroom and what differences they discovered in their teaching and student learning as a result. The researcher used in-depth interviews, artifact documents such as the WCU’s Diversity Rationale Statement and Strategic Plan, and course survey data. Three overarching themes emerged from the …

A Qualitative Case Study On The Hiring Practices Of The President At A Four-Year Public University In Alabama, Clifton Skeeter Sellers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The topic of this dissertation was the hiring practices of college and university presidents. This particular study focused on a rural college in the Southeast United States and perceived governance as it pertains to selecting a president to lead the institution. This qualitative study utilized a case study format to answer the question of the relationship between hiring a university president and the influence of governing board members, key faculty and staff, student/alumni leaders, and individuals that have the knowledge or were associated with the hiring practices of the university president at a rural university in the southeast United States. …

An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Of Leadership And Interprofessional Conflict In A Chronic Joint Venture Setting, Jeffrey Thomas Stevey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The logics of medical professionalism and managerialism often result in differences in perspectives and conflicting prioritization of healthcare delivery, resulting in interprofessional conflict that stymies healthcare reform initiatives. In the context of dialysis joint ventures in the chronic healthcare setting, interprofessional conflict threatens the collaborative processes needed to deliver the desired clinical and financial performance outcomes. This study sought to explore the influence of leadership behaviors on the manifestation of collaboration and conflict in dialysis joint ventures to provide leaders with recommendations on how to modify behaviors to achieve desired outcomes. Six dyads of physicians and managers, three dyads from …

A Case Study Of Introverted Leadership In A Suburban High School In Central Texas, Jill Reynolds Hotz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Introverted leaders are instrumental in building relationships and teams, setting benchmarks and pursuing academic goals, and planning and strategizing the implementation of performance initiatives. This qualitative case study illustrated how Organizational Leadership has been previously isolated to extraverts and clarifies the need for introverted leadership. The purpose of this study was to explore ways in which high school leaders identify themselves as introverts and demonstrate the strengths of introverted leadership within the parameters of their professional roles. This study followed three introverted administrators at a suburban Texas secondary campus. Participants were observed in their professional settings: in meetings, correspondence, duty …

The Duality Of Reality: Perception Creation Using Symbolic Management, Christopher J. Thomas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

People have historically used different types of symbols to signal an ideology, to create a sense of prestige, or to gain legitimacy. Examples of these types of symbols can be seen in displays ranging from marketing ads to presidential election materials. While these types of symbols tend to be socially constructed, and universally identifiable, the consequences of their use are less uniform in nature. This study explores the gap that currently exists between a symbol’s inherent value and the expected consequences of its use. My theoretical prediction includes two principles: The use of symbolic management to create symbolic environments and …

We Make The Path By Walking Together: A Case Study Of How Community Engagement At The University Of Mississippi Impacts Students And Community Partner Organizations, Laura Martin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The community engagement field has grappled with critical questions around its failure to effectuate institutional change that will permit colleges and universities to create a more just society. At the same time, the University of Mississippi has struggled to reconcile its own institutional legacy of forced integration alongside an ambitious public mission in a state recognized for persistent poverty and inequality.

Rap1a Overlaps The Age/Rage Signaling Cascade In Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Stephanie Burr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Diabetic individuals have an increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease due to stiffening of the left ventricle, which is thought to occur, in part, by increased AGE/RAGE signaling. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) accumulate within the body over time, and under hyperglycemic conditions, the formation and accumulation of AGEs is accelerated. AGEs exert their effect by binding to their receptor (RAGE) and can induce myofibroblast differentiation, oxidative stress, cell-extracellular matrix contraction, and cell migration. Previous findings from our lab have demonstrated that preventing the production of Rap1a, a Ras-like GTPase signaling protein, in cardiac fibroblasts will decrease type 2 diabetes …

Equity, Social Justice, And Ethical Responsibility In Higher Education: Voices Of Business Students At A Pervasivley Sectarian University, Van Brooks Poole

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This proposed study explores the perceptions and experiences of business students who attend a pervasively sectarian university in the South (MPSU) regarding their perceptions of equity, social justice, and ethical responsibility through their experiences on campus and in their academic program. This study will discuss socio-political influences at the national, state, and local levels and examine existing university policies and practices to identify recommendations for organizational change using Lewin’s unfreezing model as a theoretical framework.