Digital Commons Network^™

Crafting Connections: Stewardship, Leadership, And The Student Learning Lifecycle, Lara Miller Rivera, Leslie Sult, Jeremiah Paschke-Wood

Loex Conference Proceedings 2025

No abstract provided.

Technology Competency Road Map In Rhode Island: Reforming Professional Rules And Continuing Legal Education With Modern Educational Frameworks And Instructional Design Principles To Protect Clients, Myrta L. Ventura

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Readiness To The Privatization Of The Health System In Saudi Arabia: Translation And Factor Analysis Of Readiness To Organizational Change (Roc) Scale, Ahmed Ali Alasiri, Qi Zhang

Epidemiology, Biostatistics, & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) began a major transformation as a part of version 2030 for its health system. These reform initiatives aim to privatize health services and improve efficiency. Despite this meaningful change, there is a knowledge gap in how healthcare providers prepare for or perceive this shift. Specifically, there has been a lack of validation of Arabic instruments that gauge the individual readiness to this change. This study bridges the gap by localizing and validating the Readiness to Organizational Change scale (ROC) to provide empirical evidence and to understand adaptability for the KSA context.

Method

The …

Performance Auditing Trends At A Supreme Audit Institution: Uk National Audit Office, 1999 To 2021, Amir Michael, Laurence Ferry, Bruce Mcdonald, Henry Midgley

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

Performance audits have become increasingly important across the world. Scholars know that a variety of practices are incorporated within performance audits and have mapped this diversity. However, few quantitative studies examine performance auditing as a practice. This study fills that gap. By analyzing the published performance audit documentation of the UK National Audit Office (NAO), the study explores the influences of governmental change and crises behind changes in a supreme audit institution's performance audit. It also examines whether performance audits are diverse by examining the language used by the auditors. The study provides evidence that neither crises nor changes of …

Candidates' Perceptions Of A University's Consultancy Requirements With For-Profit/Nonprofit Partnering Organizations, Candace S. Parson

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This dissertation in practice is an action research study that investigated the perceptions of students within the Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership (DEOL) program under the University College of Education experiences in consultancy organizational partnerships in terms of key benefits, key factors, and barriers/limitations that existed in the partnership. This study provided feedback to the University College of Education that was used to understand candidates’ experiences, it identified continuous improvement and developmental opportunities that will be used to evaluate consultancy organizational partnerships. A qualitative research design was used to collect data from 10 DEOL students via one-on-one interviews. The …

Understanding The Challenges And Satisfaction Among The Medical Professional Preceptors, Cornelia Ko

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This study evaluates the Penn Medicine Family Medicine Clerkship program through a mixed-methods approach, exploring the challenges and factors influencing the satisfaction of medical professional preceptors when precepting students. A quantitative survey with 54 preceptor participants reveals the top challenges preceptors face: workload, conflicts with patient care, and limited clinical space. Despite this, there is strong support for the program, with 89% of preceptors enjoying the role and 85% expressing willingness to continue to precept for the next three years. Finally, data analysis shows no statistical correlation between preceptor motivation with gender, ethnicity, age group, years of serving, or total …

Screening For Relative Energy Deficiency In Sport (Reds) And The Female Athlete Triad In Female Undergraduate Collegiate Athletes: A Quality Improvement Project, Maria A. Marziano

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This quality improvement (QI) project investigated female collegiate athletes’ knowledge and prevalence of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) and the Female Athlete Triad (Triad). The increase in female athletics brings a growing concern for performance-related health risks, including low energy availability (LEA), menstrual dysfunction, and low bone mineral density (BMD). This study assessed the effectiveness of education and self-screening in identifying at-risk athletes and encouraging resource application for intervention. A mixed-methods design was employed, utilizing retrospective data along with pre- and post-intervention surveys. The study involved 33 female collegiate athletes from lean endurance sports, assessing knowledge, risk factors, and …

Distinguishing Symptoms Of Racial Trauma From Conventional Trauma, Michelle Yoong

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Trauma research in psychology has traditionally been shaped by a White-centric framework, leading to the underrepresentation of racial and ethnic minority experiences. This study aims to establish racial discrimination as a distinct traumatic stressor with significant psychological consequences by exploring the distinction between racial and conventionally recognized traumatic stressors and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). It also aims to address inconsistent and exclusionary assessment methodology involving underrepresented racial minority (URM) populations, including the neglect of racial trauma and discrimination measures in trauma research. Participants consisted of URMs who sought enrollment in a clinical trial for opioid use disorder at a community …

The Effects Of Curriculum Changes On Teacher Instruction And Teacher Perceptions On How These Changes Impact Student Learning, Seon Sloley

Doctor of Education Dissertations

Curriculum across North Carolina has seen many changes over the past few years. It is necessary for changes to take place in the curriculum, as an updated curriculum allows for success. Although teachers do not have a voice in these changes, changes are made to improve classroom instruction and adapt to the mission, vision, and goals of schools focusing on teaching and learning. A study on the effects of curricular changes on teacher instruction and teacher opinions on how these changes impact student learning in North Carolina was conducted with teachers from across North Carolina in elementary, middle, and high …

A Mixed Methodology Study On Effective Products And Services For Consulting Firms, Doc S. Dillard

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study evaluated organizational effectiveness within small- to medium-sized educational technology and technology-adjacent organizations for consulting firms to develop appropriate products and services for clients. This allowed consulting firms to develop innovation in their approaches. More specifically, this research supported consulting firms specializing in educational technology in developing products and services for industry leaders to improve organizational effectiveness. The research employed a mixed methodology consisting of 10 educational technology leaders. Data were collected from survey questions and through evaluating related literature. The literature compiled included organizations across education, technology, and technology-adjacent industries. The research evaluated organizations through McKinsey’s 7S framework. …

An In-Depth Interview Study On Needed Professional Development For Assistant Principals Within One Rural School District In North Carolina, Jeffery N. Webb

Doctor of Education Dissertations

The purpose of this interview study was to gain better insight and understanding into what professional development is needed for assistant principals to be successful in the principalship. During this study, 17 participants were interviewed across three different groups: central office administrators, principals, and assistant principals within one rural school district. Based on the three different groups interviewed, the data provided that the perception is that assistant principals need more development in budget/finance, K-12 curriculum knowledge, school improvement, evaluations/observations, day-to-day operations, policy/law, curriculum/instruction, and professional development. It was determined that professional development in those areas needed to be continuous throughout …

Factors That Motivate Special Education Teachers To Stay In Their Profession In A Rural South Carolina School District, Sherrod J. Davis

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study was designed to contribute to our understanding of the different motivating factors that contribute to the long-term retention of special education teachers after they have been in the field for over 5 years. They set out to ascertain predominant mechanisms that motivate these teachers to stay in their positions as well as to inform on the associated struggles and support structures that are helping to both retain their teaching workforce as well as to support their commitment to their teaching lives. Using a descriptive convergent parallel mixed methods design, the study combined quantitative data from online surveys with …

Exploring Psychological Capital In Student Pharmacists: Insights, Outcomes, And Instructional Considerations, Joseph Aaron Dikun

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background/Objectives

The positive psychology movement served to create momentum to move from treating disease to exploring what makes life worth living, emphasizing the exploration of what contributes to human flourishing. One’s psychological capital has provided a practical framework for personal development that highlights the potential for individuals draw upon resources to thrive amidst challenges. As students face numerous stressors, including academic pressures, uncertainties, and personal struggles that threaten their well-being and performance, self-awareness and ability to utilize these intrinsic resources provide an actionable target for development. First, a measure of psychological capital was adapted and refined. Next, positive psychological capital …

A Study Of Human Services In The Town Of Natick, Caitlin E. Coyle, Mary Krebs, Morgan Clark, Matt Frye

Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging Publications

The Town of Natick has committed to engaging the community to guide efforts to update and modernize municipal policies, procedures, and programs such that they appropriately reflect the needs and interests of the community.

Between 2021 and 2022, the Community Services Department underwent some organizational restructuring, which included staffing changes and the inclusion of Recreation & Parks and the Sassamon Trace Golf Course as divisions within the department, which already included the Council on Aging & Human Services, Veterans Services, and the Natick Community Organic Farm4. The Community Services Department is “charged with responding to the needs, interests and quality …

How Inclusive Are Degree Programs In Operations Research And Analytics In The U.S.?, Michael P. Johnson Jr., Tayo Fabusuyi, Elham Hesari, Salina Chu

Public Policy and Public Affairs Faculty Publication Series

Academic programs in colleges and universities in the United States have increasingly embraced principles of equity and inclusion to support student success and diversity within professions. Innovations in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in university programs require baseline data on students, faculty and administrators, curricula, and programmatic support. A review of data shows that underrepresented groups in the US workforce have limited visibility in operations research and analytics. A review of DEI-related research reveals some relevant insights including a gap in studies specific to operations research and analytics.

To provide evidence in support of DEI initiatives in OR/analytics, we describe …

Do Food Planner Apps Enhance Responsible Food Consumption? The Impact Of Perceptual Antecedents And Moderating Effects On Usage Intention, Rajat Subhra Chatterjee, Irfan Hameed, Ranjan Chaudhuri, Demetris Vrontis, Sumana Chaudhuri, Sheshadri Chatterjee

Plymouth Business School

Purpose: A food planner app helps users to create meal plans and recipes to their preferences, dietary requirements and lifestyle needs. Many food planner apps also could assist with grocery lists, calorie tracking, food waste management and reminders to users. But there is less adoption of such apps. Limited studies examine reasons for non-adaptability, emphasizing the need for more research. This research addresses this gap by observing the effect of pertinent factors such as expectant outcome and openness to change on the extended technology acceptance model. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on theories and extant literature, a theoretical model was developed. The model …

Enhancing Traceability And Sustainability In Smallholder Oil Palm Plantations Through Gap Analysis And Machine Learning, Kursehi Falgenti, Yandra Arkeman, Khaswar Syamsu, Erliza Hambali

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requires all products entering the EU market to comply with deforestation-free requirements by using a traceability system that tracks products back to their plantation of origin. However, ensuring traceability for fresh fruit bunches (FFB) supplied by independent smallholders (ISHs) presents challenges. These challenges arise from the segregation of internal and external FFB trucks at weighbridges, where only the FFB weight is recorded, without identifying its source. To address this, a new segregation system was introduced, based on the level of sustainability implementation in plantations. This study aimed to develop an FFB traceability system using …

Asean Centrality In The Era Of Great Power Competition: Hedging For Survival And Prosperity, William J. Jones, Chanya Supakul

Journal of Social Sciences

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was formed in 1967 with the Bangkok Conference as a bulwark against the spread of Communism in Southeast Asia. In its 57 years of existence, ASEAN has proven to be a durable organization capable of organizational change. Furthermore, as the oldest and only standing regional organization with full membership of its region, or sub-region, ASEAN has a large degree of credibility in international affairs. With the end of the Unipolar moment where the ‘West’ led by the United States exercised hegemony and the beginning of a multipolar world, ASEAN and its member states …

Leadership In 21st Century Policing, Joseph L. Keating

M.S. in Leadership

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Ceo Changes On The Recovery Of It Firms That Have Experienced Substantial Reductions In Value (2010-2024), Amanda Dee

CMC Senior Theses

The informational technology (IT) industry is one of the most dynamic industries, and the CEO plays a crucial role in steering innovation. The dependence on innovation is associated with dynamics that bring heightened volatility and force firms and their CEOs to confront significant challenges, particularly when navigating periods of substantial reductions in value. I define distress as three-year cumulative returns that are negative and underperform the market by more than 30%. Firms that meet this criteria during 2010-2017 are analyzed using regression models to assess how CEO change influences the likelihood of their recovery, defined as achieving nine-year cumulative returns—including …

Identifying Adverse Childhood Experiences And Mental Health Needs Among A Small Sample Of Pregnant Women Who Use Cannabis, Aubrey Jones, Lisa M. Blair, Julie A. Kurzer, Kathy Rademacher, Letitia Ducas, Cynthia Cockerham, Kristin Ashford

Social Work Faculty Publications

Introduction: As the legalization of cannabis becomes more widespread use has steadily increased. Approximately 5 percent of pregnant individuals self-report use during pregnancy.

Methods: This study uses a mixed methods approach to examine adverse childhood experiences, mental health needs, and cannabis use among a small sample (N =59) of women. Cumulative ACE scores of four or more were considerably high within this sample compared to the US average.

Results: Results of a binary logistic regression indicate an association between ACEs and Cannabis use (OR 1.27, 95% CI (1.002- 1.616) when controlling for maternal age and anxiety. Qualitative results identified two …

A Systematic Literature Review On Resilient Digital Transformation, Examining How Organizations Sustain Digital Capabilities, Thira Chavarnakul, Li Da Xu, Zhuming Bi, Achyut Shankar, Gaurav Dhiman, Wattana Viriyasitavat, Danupol Hoonsopon

Information Technology & Decision Sciences Faculty Publications

In an era marked by relentless technological shifts and market volatility, digital transformation (DT) alone is insufficient. Organizations must develop Resilient Digital Transformation (RDT)—the organizational capabilities required to sustain DT over a medium-term horizon—to navigate these challenges effectively. This study primarily aims to propose a guideline for fostering RDT. Drawing on the PRISMA guidelines and a systematic review of 77 peer-reviewed papers, this study identifies and synthesizes key targets and drivers across three core pillars: Technology, Organization, and External Environment. These elements collectively foster organizational resilience. Specifically, this study highlights how adaptability, innovation, and scalability form the technological underpinnings of …

Exploring Adaptive University President Narratives To Generate Growth And Sustainability, Ryan Charles Weber

Theses and Dissertations

This mixed-methods study explores how university presidents leverage adaptive leadership principles and learning organization frameworks to generate institutional growth and sustainability in higher education. Through analysis of presidential narratives, the research examines the intersection of Heifetz et al.’s (2009) adaptive leadership theory and Senge’s (2006) five disciplines of learning organizations, revealing patterns in leadership communication that drive change. The study analyzed narratives from eight university presidents who demonstrated success through their institutions’ minimum 30% endowment growth over five years. Using thematic analysis and frequency counts, the research identified 198 references to learning organization disciplines, 90 adaptive leadership phases, and 100 …

Women’S Leader Development: Examining The Impact Of Leadership Grants, Bias Interrupters, Stereotype Threat, And Purpose On Leader Identity, Emily L. Chan

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Leader identity is a proximal outcome of individual leader development processes, particularly important for women leaders who may face systematic denials of their leadership. Understanding the mechanisms that bolster and hinder leader identity is crucial for emerging women leaders. In two simulation experiments, I proposed and tested strategies for mitigating the negative impact of leadership denials and stereotype threat on an individual’s leader identity. In the first experiment, I hypothesized that perceptions of granted leadership claims through written bias interrupter statements (i.e., “women are encouraged to apply”) buffered the negative relationship between leadership denials (ads without the statement “women are …

Artful Approaches For The Study Of Multiracial Student Experiences: Not Artifact, But Aperture, Orkideh Mohajeri, Victoria Malaney-Brown

Educational Leadership & Higher Education Administration Faculty Publications

Within higher education, various methodologies are used to collect data on student experiences, including both quantitative and qualitative approaches. This paper highlights the importance of attending to artful methodologies particularly when learning with/from mixed and multiracial postsecondary students. We share three artful productions generated by multiracial undergraduate and graduate students from three separate studies, conducted over a range of time from 2017 to 2020. We argue that in each case, the art itself goes far beyond an artifact or "thick description" and instead serves as an aperture to new possibilities for inquiry and analysis. Not only are artful methods a …

Creative City Making As A Theoretical Research Practice By Using Soft Systems Methodology, Salfitrie Maryunani, Togar Simatupang, Isti Mirzanti

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This study proposes a novel conceptual framework for creative city development that integrates cultural and economic perspectives, moving beyond the traditional singular focus of existing literature. It identifies three core variables – culture, creativity, and the creative economy – within a balanced model. Using Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) as a structuring tool, the framework conceptualizes these interrelations within a complex urban system. Its originality is demonstrated through a design for application in Bandung, Indonesia, an underexplored context, providing a foundation for empirical validation. The paper concludes with actionable activities for implementation, offering a comprehensive tool for integrated diagnosis and planning …

From Uncertainty To Alignment: The Role Of Internal Public Relations In Supporting Employee Adjustment During Leadership Transitions, Margaret Ny Asare

Theses and Dissertations

Frequent leadership transitions in today’s organizations present complex challenges that disrupt employee engagement, productivity, and overall organizational stability. This study explores how internal public relations (iPR) functions as a strategic communication mechanism to support employee adjustment during these pivotal transitions. Drawing on Lewin’s change management model (CMM) and uncertainty reduction theory (URT), the research examines three interrelated areas: the impact of early internal communication on employee attitudes, the role of informal employee networks in fostering readiness, and the adaptation of communication strategies to align with incoming leadership styles.

Using qualitative methods, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with internal communication professionals …

“Don’T Panic, It’S Just Ai:” A Qualitative Study On Internal Communication Strategies For Managing Ai-Driven Change”, Edikan Nkanta

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study investigated how organizations utilize internal communication strategies to navigate AI-driven change effectively. Through semi-structured interviews with eleven communication professionals and change leaders across various industries, the research identified key communication approaches that facilitate successful AI implementation. Findings revealed three primary strategies: framing AI as a tool that enhances rather than replaces human capabilities, connecting AI initiatives to organizational purpose and business goals, and demonstrating practical use cases through concrete examples. The study also highlighted the importance of establishing clear guidelines for responsible AI use, making initial adoption optional rather than mandatory, and directly addressing job security concerns. …

Reframing Equity Gaps: A Descriptive Analysis Of Reported Spending For Underrepresented Minorities At Illinois Community Colleges, Terrance Marshall Bond

Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative descriptive analysis investigates reported institutional spending and associated equity gaps for underrepresented minority (URM) students in Illinois community colleges from FY2017-FY2021. Guided by Critical Sensemaking (CSM) theory, the study examines correlations between targeted expenditures and enrollment and completion outcomes for Black and Latinx undergraduate students. Utilizing data from Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) Underrepresented Groups (URG) reports, this research identifies patterns in institutional financial commitments toward equity initiatives, analyzing their relationship to enrollment and completion disparities. Key findings reveal substantial variability in institutional spending directed toward underrepresented minorities, despite statewide mandates and strategic goals focused on reducing equity …

Developing An Evidence-Based Culture Through Journal Club: A Pilot Study, Allison Davidson

DNP Scholarly Projects

Evidence-based practice is essential for improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs, yet its implementation in nursing remains limited due to persistent barriers such as lack of knowledge, leadership support, time, and resources. Despite these challenges, nurses generally hold positive attitudes toward EBP, indicating a strong foundation for future initiatives aimed at enhancing education, training, and organizational commitment. To fully integrate evidence-based practice into nursing care, healthcare systems must address these barriers and invest in sustained support, ensuring that clinical decisions are consistently guided by the best available evidence. A pilot nursing journal club, led by an evidence-based practice mentor …