Digital Commons Network^™

Beyond Teaching: A Qualitative Exploration Of The Impact Of Active Learning On Faculty Job Satisfaction In Christian Higher Education, Alisha Castaneda, Grace Michele Baker, Marsha Baker, Hanna Byrd, Kahlib Fischer, Folashade O. Odedina

Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

Abstract

This research aims to examine the lived experiences of university professors at a Christian university regarding active learning (AL) and job satisfaction. Using Herzberg’s two-factor theory as a guiding framework, the researchers employed a qualitative transcendental phenomenological study to gauge the perceptions of six faculty members who teach using residential or online delivery formats. Data were collected through individual interviews, reflection journals, and discussion groups. Thematic analysis was utilized to identify initial codes and emerging themes, giving voice to the participants' firsthand knowledge and perspectives. The research noted four dominant themes regarding AL and professor job satisfaction: positive student …

Critical Information Literacy In Higher Education: An Evolution In Theory, Practice, And Assessment, Dan Williford

Communications in Information Literacy

This article offers a critical synthesis of scholarship on critical information literacy (CIL) in higher education from 2015 to 2026, extending and recalibrating prior longitudinal reviews to account for post-2020 theoretical, political, and technological shifts. Drawing on a corpus of 48 peer-reviewed publications published between 2020 and 2026, the study employs thematic cluster analysis—building on Tewell’s four-domain framework—to examine developments in theory, pedagogy, digital and political engagement, reflexive critique, and assessment. Rather than treating critical information literacy as a settled framework, this review positions it as an evolving and contested practice shaped by the political economy of higher education. It …

Introduction: 18(3) 2026 Emerging Scholar Research Summaries, Rosalind L. Raby

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

From Ethical Principles To Executable Governance: A Policy-As-Code Framework For Trustworthy Ai In Higher Education, Edmund Evangelista, Syed M. Salman Bukhari

All Works

Artificial intelligence holds great potential to transform higher education, but a persistent gap remains between ethical aspirations and their practical, auditable enforcement. This study addresses that gap by developing and validating an end-to-end executable governance framework grounded in a policy-as-code (PaC) paradigm. Using student dropout prediction as a high-stakes example, the framework operationalizes governance through an automated gatekeeper, a multi-strategy fairness mitigation toolbox, and a tamper-evident audit chain for full reproducibility. The governance compliance was tested across sixteen fixed model configurations evaluated under five policy tiers (strict, medium, lenient, and two deployment-realistic variants). None were approved, as fairness violations, dominated …

Dear Higher Education: I Am Still Learning To Belong Here, Veneice Guillory-Lacy

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Dear Higher Education,

I am still learning how to belong to you.

I did not grow up dreaming of becoming a professor. I did not map my childhood ambitions onto the tenure-track. The professoriate was not a destination I saw in my future, nor was it a path carefully groomed by legacy admissions, elite fellowships, or connections. I arrived here by way of classrooms filled with adolescents who needed an English teacher who believed in them. I arrived here through a principal’s office, where I tried—perhaps naively—to make a school more equitable for all students. I arrived here after being …

The Dual Dilemma Of Language Barriers Faced By International Students In Higher Education: A Literature Review, Song Wang

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

This literature review summarizes and analyzes existing research on the language barriers faced by Chinese and Indian international students in American higher education. Drawing on previous research in second language acquisition and academic English, this paper summarizes the differences in language education between China and India and how limited academic English preparation impacts students' participation and learning experiences in American higher education classrooms. The paper also explores how higher education institutions can address these challenges through language support and learning environments. Overall, this literature review emphasizes the role of institutional practices in influencing the academic language development of international students.

Full Pdf Issue 18(3) 2026, Rosalind L. Raby

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Dissertatin' While Black, T. Gertrude Jenkins

Black Educology Mixtape "Journal"

Dissertatin’ While Black (DWB) is a racial affinity space that employs a community-engaged approach to completing dissertation elements. More than a writing retreat, DWB centers holistic care, creating a site for mentorship, celebration, and the exchange of ideas. Rooted in BlackCrit (Dumas & ross, 2016) and Black Liberatory Educational Subversion (Jenkins, 2024), DWB emphasizes that participation in Black institutional third spaces can counter the isolation often experienced by Black doctoral students, especially at predominantly white institutions. Ultimately, DWB operates as a “homeplace” where Black doctoral students can feel seen, valued, and supported in their research (hooks, 1994). We believe that …

Academic Identity Construction Among 1.5-Generation Students In Esl Business Communication Courses At A U.S. University, Rachel K. La Russo

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Although 1.5-generation students complete most of their K-12 schooling in the United States, at the university level they are often placed in ESL courses due to deficit views of multilingualism that assess their writing as grammatically inaccurate. Research shows ESL courses often fail to foster 1.5-generation students’ academic development, resulting in low educational achievement and high drop-out rates (Barsony, 2016; di Gennaro, 2016; Marchese, 2021; Uman, 2018). The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate academic identity construction among 1.5-generation students enrolled in two de facto ESL Business Communication courses at a large urban university in Fall 2022. Drawing …

Institutional Responses To The College Mental Health Crisis: A Critical Systems Review, Angel Huerta

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

The mental health crisis among U.S. college students continues to escalate, exposing structural, cultural, and systemic failures within higher education. This review synthesizes evidence on institutional responses, drawing on Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory and Critical Theory, to examine how policies, faculty interactions, campus climate, and resource distribution influence student mental health outcomes. Findings reveal persistent gaps between policy intentions and practice, insufficient counseling capacity, inconsistency in faculty accountability, and inequities affecting marginalized student groups. The review highlights how organizational structures can unintentionally reinforce power imbalances and reproduce harm. Recommendations include system-level alignment of policies and practices, mandatory faculty training, enhanced …

Equity, Identity, And Representation In Community College Leadership, Jacob Fry, Tashaka Merriweather, Jennifer Hoeger

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

Community colleges provide important access to higher education for many diverse student populations, yet aspiring leaders still face equity, representation, and structural barriers for women and underrepresented groups. Prior research highlights the persistence of gendered norms, gatekeeping practices, and underdeveloped leadership pipelines despite the increased attention to diversity within leadership in community colleges (Eddy & Khwaja, 2019; Hines, 2023; Burmicky & Hartman, 2023). This qualitative phenomenological study examines how leadership perceives the role of women and underrepresented groups in leadership. The study focused on the School of Continuing Education at Santa Ana College and involved semi-structured interviews with 11 leaders …

Leadership Practices And Subordinate Perceptions In Continuing Education: A Case Study At Santa Ana College, Jacob Fry, Jennifer Hoeger, Tashaka Merriweather

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

Community colleges play a critical role in expanding access to higher education and workforce development for diverse populations, yet traditional leader-centric models remain prevalent, despite growing calls for collaborative and distributed leadership approaches (Eddy et al., 2023; Fulton-Calkins & Milling, 2005). This qualitative phenomenological study explores leadership, styles, strategies, and perceptions of subordinates among continuing education leaders at a California community college. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 administrators, faculty, and classified professionals at Santa Ana College’s School of Continuing Education. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase thematic analysis approach. Findings identified four dominant leadership approaches: collaborative/participatory, …

Ai-Augmented Pedagogy In Higher Education: An Ethical And Equitable Framework For The Governance And Operational Integration Of Ai In Teaching And Learning, Asrat G. Amnie

Publications and Research

Abstract

Higher education faces a convergence of pressures that no single institutional response has yet resolved: widening demographic diversity, pandemic-exposed structural fragility, and the persistent inequity of whose learning gets supported and how. Artificial intelligence (AI) has entered this landscape not as an optional enhancement but as an infrastructural reality— embedded in adaptive platforms, feedback systems, and early-alert protocols at institutions worldwide. Yet adoption has consistently outpaced governance, and tools celebrated for democratizing access carry real risks of encoding and amplifying the inequities they promise to address. This article introduces the AI-Augmented Pedagogy (AAP) framework, developed through a Sequential Explanatory …

Philosophical Orientations And Their Influence On Responsive Curriculum Development In Tanzanian Universities, Ibrahim Barnaba Mtweve, Ignasia Mligo, Alcuin Mwalongo

Journal of Curriculum, Teaching, Learning and Leadership in Education

This study aimed to explore how the selected universities in Tanzania apply underlying philosophies to make their curriculum development process more responsive.  Curriculum responsiveness has gained significant importance in university education; however, most universities still struggle to keep pace with the demands of a rapidly evolving society, particularly in social, technological, and labour-market needs. Having a clear understanding of how philosophical orientation affects curriculum development can help create a more flexible and meaningful curriculum. Nevertheless, studies on the impact of philosophical orientation on the development of responsive curricula in Tanzanian universities remain scarce. This study, therefore, aims to fill this …

Urban Removal: The Long-Term Impacts Of The Displacement Of Denver’S Auraria Neighborhood, Sophia Krout, Reginald A. Byron

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

In the early 1970s, the Auraria Center for Higher Education was developed, displacing a well-established Denver Latino neighborhood, which encompassed a 38-block district at the time, including 155 families, 49 single individuals, and 237 businesses, and clearing the way for the establishment of the Metropolitan State University of Denver, the University of Colorado Denver, and Denver Community College. The implementation of remedial measures for the displacement has fallen short of meeting the needs of displaced residents. The residents were promised affordable education through a program named the Displaced Aurarian Scholarship, which has similarly stated intentions of improving the educational attainment …

“Being Comrades And Friends”: Friendship Networks Of Activists In College, Lance Paul L. Sunga

Sociology Undergraduate Senior Theses

Friendship is often thought of as a byproduct of activism. People naturally get close and form bonds as they become involved and participate in collective action with others. While scholars have focused on how social networks influence mobilization, there has been a lack of research on the other direction of this relationship, the already commonly held assumption. Using the case of student networks at a liberal arts college, this leads to the following questions: “To what extent do variations in social movement mobilization explain patterns and outcomes of friendship network types? How does activism impact a respondent’s understanding of friendship …

The Faculty Advisor's Role In Student Retention And Success: A Case Study From The Student Perspective, Alice Lorraine Buchanan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this collective case study was to understand the role of faculty advisors in student retention of traditional full-time undergraduate students in their final year of study at a four-year university. Guided by Bean’s theoretical model of student attrition, this study examined how organizational interactions influence students’ attitudes, advising satisfaction, and subsequent intent to leave. The Central Research Question was: How do faculty advisors influence student retention for traditional full-time undergraduate students in their final year at a four-year university? The setting was a small, faith-based, highly residential, private university in the Midwestern United States, where faculty advisors …

Social Networking Influences In The Challenges Of West African Immigrant College Students In Kentucky – A Hermeneutical Qualitative Study, Martin Chukwusolum Akwari

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative hermeneutical phenomenological study is to explore how social network groups modulate the lived experiences of West African immigrant students in colleges and universities in Kentucky. Grounded in Bourdieu’s social capital theory and informed by a social constructivist interpretive framework, this study explored how shared experiences within social network groups influence how West African immigrant students interpret their academic and social environments during college years. The study is anchored on a central research question: How does social interaction with others influence how immigrant students of West African origin interpret their lived experiences in higher education institutions …

Do Universities Underpay Professors? Yes, Especially Women, Zhanhan Yu, Alfonso Flores-Lagunes

Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs

No abstract provided.

Contending With The Digital Age: Faculty Insights On Collaborating With Administrators For Technology Integration In Higher Education – A Qualitative Study, Letty N. Kisten

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the experiences and perceptions of higher education faculty members who collaborate with administrators to integrate technology into the classroom. The study was designed to inform administrative decision-making by highlighting ways to align institutional technology goals with teaching practices that promote faculty effectiveness and student academic success. Through the lens of Bruner’s (2004) constructivist theory, the study framed technology integration as a means of fostering active learning and student engagement. The central question guiding this study was: What are the experiences and perceptions of higher education faculty members who collaborate with …

Improving Quality Of Distance Education: An Illustration And Implications For Universities, Sadia Raisa, Ismet Anitsal, Nebil Buyurgan

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Discussing Barriers And Solutions To Address Student Accommodation And Support Services, Anna K. Garst

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Accommodation and support services are essential for fostering academic achievement and positive well-being among college students with disabilities, yet many students delay or avoid seeking support. The present study used an explanatory mixed-methods design to examine disability and mental health service utilization among college students with disabilities, while also exploring the prevalence and intersecting experiences of basic needs insecurity. Quantitative survey data were collected from 275 students with diagnosed disabilities at a large public Mid-Atlantic university. Results indicated that perceived lack of need for support was the most frequently reported reason for not using services, followed by self-stigma, lack of …

Reining It In: From Reflexive To Intentional Instructor Self-Disclosure, Rona Miles, Alla Chavarga, Chelsea Blaney

Essays in Education

Instructor self-disclosure is often promoted as a means of humanizing the classroom environment and improving learning outcomes. Though disclosure has the potential to be highly beneficial, it also carries a risk to students and learning that is often overlooked. This paper presents a point of departure perspective that instructor self-disclosure should be approached with far greater caution than most educators consider. We argue that disclosures should occur only when they are justified with a clear pedagogical purpose. Casual or spontaneous disclosures, by contrast, carry sufficient potential for unintended harm such that their risks outweigh presumed benefits to classroom rapport and …

The Higher Education Health Insurance Trap: How Underinsurance Fuels Health Inequity And Educational Inaccessibility, Hallie E. Vanney, David J. Satin

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Higher education institutions are increasingly committed to recruiting more diverse students. As these efforts succeed, institutions face the parallel challenge of meeting an evolving student body's broader and more complex healthcare needs. This article highlights how student health insurance is a critical need that may be unmet by institutions traditionally designed for young, healthy, able-bodied students. Graduate and professional students are particularly vulnerable to a “health insurance trap”; they may discover, only after enrollment, that their plan does not cover essential care, they can no longer work full-time to gain commercial insurance, they have aged out or do not have …

Not Retirement, But A Rewiring And Fresh Perspectives Post-Dbs, Says Piyush Gupta [Interview With Business Times], Su Shyan Lee, Piyush Gupta

Oral History Collection

In an interview with The Business Times, SMU Chairman Piyush Gupta discussed topics ranging from meditation and conservation to the future of education. On his role at SMU, he emphasised his desire to help shape tertiary education and noted that the rise of AI makes it critical to rethink how we learn. Mr Gupta believes that in an AI-driven world, students must move beyond domain knowledge to focus on interpreting information, "connecting the dots," and engaging others with genuine empathy. He is supportive of a more experiential curriculum at SMU — one that focuses on regional exposure through internships and …

A Study On Community And Technical College Students' Identification Of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, Cynthia J. Carow Schiebe

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether students could identify culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) and, to what extent, in a community or technical college classroom where a set of goals and strategies had been established to guide methodology. Previous research on CRP traditionally focused on the educators’ or administrators’ interpretation of what students had learned when CRP was used as a methodology to reduce the opportunity gap. Students in classrooms where CRP was used were able to identify content that was aligned with their needs and wants, bring their own lives into the class without fear, balance their …

Not An Afterthought: Addressing The Academic And Social Challenges That Create Barriers To Belonging For Transfer Students, Brooke Jankowsky

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the academic and social barriers to belonging for transfer students at four-year institutions, with particular attention to the University of Mississippi. The goal is to bring attention to the issues that surround transfer student populations in general by identifying some of the most pressing structural and interpersonal challenges that shape their experiences. A qualitative approach was used, drawing on existing literature, prior unpublished research at the community college level, and reflective analysis to explore themes such as transfer shock, creating and maintaining social networks, and gaps in institutional support. Findings suggest that transfer students often face a …

Leading While Black: An Examination Of The Black Supervisor Experience Overseeing White Subordinates In Higher Education, Colette Marie Tobias

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This study examines how systemic racism and social capital hierarchies shape the supervisory experiences of Black supervisors. While existing literature has explored leadership and race, it has not fully examined how systemic racism shape Black supervisors’ experiences or how social capital hierarchies play into the behavioral responses of white subordinates. This study addresses that gap by centering the lived experiences of Black supervisors within higher education.

Grounded in narrative inquiry, this research focuses on how participants make meaning of their experiences through their stories. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and reflective journals with 19 Black supervisors who had at …

The Transformational Role Of Perceived Self-Efficacy In Combating Online Exam Anxiety, Ana Pereles, Carmen Romero-García

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objective:This study investigates how university students’ perceived self-efficacy influences anxiety levels during online examinations, a pressing issue amplified by disruptions caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI)–driven assessment concerns. The aim is to analyze the relationship between self-efficacy and online test anxiety, identifying effective strategies to mitigate its effects.

Method: A systematic review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methodology was conducted. Searches in Scielo, Web of Science, Scopus, ProQuest Education, Google Scholar, and Dialnet databases included peer-reviewed articles in education, psychology, social sciences, and computer sciences, published …

Educator Perceptions And Uses Of Generative Artificial Intelligence (Genai) In Middle Level, Secondary, And Higher Education Classrooms, Rachel Stowers

Honors Capstones

GenAI has experienced rapid growth and controversy over its benefits, drawbacks, and ethicality in education. This study examines Illinois educators’ attitudes and classroom use of GenAI across middle school, high school, and higher education. Data was collected through a digital survey containing both quantitative and short-answer questions, yielding 330 respondents who were practicing teachers, along with five supplemental interviews. Preliminary results show that respondents ages 20–29 reported the highest understanding of how to use GenAI yet were also the most likely to express ethical discomfort, with 45.9% disagreeing that they feel comfortable using it ethically. While responses varied, educators generally …