Education Commons^™

Unopa Notes, Volume 48, Issue 10 -- Summer 2010

UNOPA Newsletters

Message from Our Presidents — Past and Future

UNOPA 2010-2011 Elected Officers

Summer Social

Calendar

The Academic Success Of Homeschooled Students In A South Carolina Technical College, Jack N. Bagwell Jr

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In 2010, homeschooling was increasing in prevalence in the United States. Yet, little was known about the academic achievement of these students as they matriculated into colleges and universities. The purpose of this mixed methods sequential explanatory study was to examine the academic success achieved by the homeschooled population (N=273) and a sample of the traditionally educated students (N=273) who had enrolled in credit courses between the years of 2001 and 2008 at York Technical College, a comprehensive community college in South Carolina. In the quantitative phase of the study, academic success measures included COMPASS placement scores in writing, pre-algebra, …

Building Leadership: The Knowledge Of Principals In Creating Collaborative Communities Of Professional Learning, Chad M. Dumas

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Research literature is replete with the importance of collaboration in schools, the lack of its implementation, the centrality of the role of the principal, and the existence of a gap between knowledge and practice--or a "Knowing-Doing Gap." In other words, there is a set of knowledge that principals must know in order to create a collaborative workplace environment for teachers. This study sought to describe what high school principals know about creating such a culture of collaboration.

The researcher combed journal articles, studies and professional literature in order to identify what principals must know in order to create a culture …

An Examination Of Changes In Program Offerings And Program Enrollments In Selected Nebraska High Schools During The Era Of Standards-Based Reform, Kenneth E. Schroeder

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to examine whether or not there were changes in certain characteristics of educational programs in grades 9-12 Nebraska public high schools during the era of standards-based reform. This purpose was accomplished by testing for changes between the 1993-94 school year and the 2007-08 school year in the courses high schools offered and in the courses students took. The total program and each of ten designated subject areas that comprise the program were examined. Those ten designated subject areas were language arts, science, social science, mathematics, foreign language, vocational education, visual and performing arts, personal …

Applying Schlossberg’S Transition Theory To Nontraditional Male Drop-Outs, Monica S. Powers

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this exploratory and phenomenological study was to investigate how nontraditional males who dropped out of a western four-year, Title IV authorized, public university before completing a bachelor’s degree described their perceptions of their situation, self, support, and strategies while moving in, moving through, and moving out of the college process. Fourteen interviews were conducted in person. Participants met the following criteria: (a) only included males; (b) met four or more nontraditional criteria to be included in the study; (c) were enrolled in an undergraduate degree program; (d) were enrolled within the last two calendar years with the …

Appreciative Advising From The Academic Advisor's Viewpoint: A Qualitative Study, Nancy G. Howell

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Appreciative Advising represents a revolutionary new approach to the field of academic advising. Based on Appreciative Inquiry, which was developed by David Cooperrider at Case Western Reserve University in the 1980’s, Appreciative Advising is also influenced by positive psychology, reality therapy, and strengths based advising. The Appreciative Advising model makes use of positive, open-ended questions and a the development of a reciprocal relationship between student and advisor to help students achieve their academic and career goals.

Pioneered by Bloom, Hutson, and He, Appreciative Advising is fully student centered and shows great promise in helping students from a wide variety of …

Understanding The Influence Of Strengths On The College Experience: A Qualitative Case Study Of Undergraduate Business Students, Jennifer A. Mostek

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this qualitative, interview-based study was to identify the way that students and advisors utilized knowledge about students’ strengths in college. Strengths were defined by StrengthsQuest, a product of The Gallup Organization. Five college students and three academic advisors from the business college at a large, public research university, representing various cultural backgrounds, family statuses and ages participated in the study. Student and advisor participants explored the influence of strengths on self awareness, confidence, relationships, academic matters, as well as future plans. Advisor participants also discussed the need for additional courses or integration of strengths-based education in existing …

A Study To Determine The Influence Of Student Status And Gender On The Learning Styles Of Freshmen Students, Ali J. Morris

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to compare the learning styles, as defined by David A. Kolb, of traditional freshmen students and non-traditional freshmen students to determine if there is a significant difference between them. The researcher also collected data to determine if there is a correlation between learning styles for gender and traditional/non-traditional student status.

Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) was used as the survey instrument and was administered to all students in the sample. The stratified random sample population consisted of 550 students selected from the freshmen class and provided to the researcher by the Office of Institutional …

Can Student Reflection Predict Academic Success And Clinical Performance In A Physical Therapist Education Program?, Jeanne L. Cook

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine if a predictive relationship existed between student reflection and student academic and clinical success as determined by student performance on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) and the Clinical Performance Instrument (CPI). Secondary questions included whether higher and lower reflection scores would correspond with higher and lower NPTE and CPI scores respectively, and whether students’ reflection scores would increase between the first and fourth clinical internships. Journal entries were submitted by students from a physical therapist education program at a large North Central Region university over the course of two clinical …

An Examination Of Core Course Admission Deficiencies And Their Impact On Six-Year Graduation Rates For Transfer Students At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln., David S. Belieu

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to examine the six-year graduation rate of transfer students who enter the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a deficiency in a core course admission requirement. The study explored the odds of a transfer student graduating in a six-year period if he/she were admitted with a deficiency. Specifically, the study examined graduation rates for transfer students who entered UNL with a core course deficiency in mathematics and foreign language. The study also examined graduated transfer students admitted with one or more core course deficiencies GPAs versus graduated transfer students who were admitted without a deficiency. After …

Making The Great Journey: International Students’ Experiences At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Anh Le

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The main purpose of the study was to produce an overview of international students’ experiences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) as articulated via their own words. The knowledge drawn from this study served as useful reference information for programs and courses geared toward international students. Given the many challenges facing international students and the great benefits that they bring, this study explored the experiences of international students at UNL. Although there has been a substantial amount of literature about international students, most of the research has been focused on a particular aspect of international students such as advising relationships …

The Impact Of Undergraduate Experiences On The Decision To Become A Student Affairs Professional, Jay A. Fennell

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study explored the undergraduate experiences of student affairs professionals and how those experiences impacted their decision to enter the student affairs profession. The study explores how student affairs professionals perceived their undergraduate experiences and how this time in their lives impacted their career decision, their career path, the way they interacted with students as professionals and what they do as student affairs professionals to encourage students to enter the field. Three themes emerged in this study: (a) The importance of campus involvement, (b) mentor relationships, and (c) encouraging students to enter student affairs. The results of this study help …

Interactions Of Senior-Level Student Affairs Administrators With Parents Of Traditional-Age Undergraduate Students: A Qualitative Study, Tanya A. Winegard

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this research was to explore the interactions between senior-level student affairs administrators and the parents of traditional-age undergraduate students. Student development theory had little to say about a role for the parents of college students, yet senior-level student affairs administrators who participated in this study acknowledged spending more time responding to parental concerns, questions, and complaints than they did five years ago. Semi-structured phone interviews were conducted with 16 senior-level student affairs administrators at mid-size, private, highly residential master’s colleges and universities according to the Carnegie Foundation’s classification (2009).

The researcher addressed the grand tour question: How …

Presidential Leadership During Strategic Transition: A Case Study Of Two Christian Institutions Of Higher Education, Douglas N. Searcy

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This qualitative research addressed presidential leadership during the strategic transition of the respective Boards of Trustees at Gardner-Webb and Wingate Universities (private, Christian institutions in North Carolina). In addition to interviewing each institutional President, personal 60-minute interviews were conducted with selected faculty members, trustees, administrators, and students and relevant documents were perused for substantiating information. The objective of the study was to learn how each institution’s President guided their respective constituencies toward acceptance of change while conveying a sense of stability and focus on visioning.

Leadership theories and studies were introduced illustrating presidential considerations, roles, and implications encountered during institutional …

A Ray Of Light: A Mixed-Methods Approach To Understanding Why Parents Choose Montessori Education, Emily M. Zarybnisky

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study explored why parents choose Montessori schools for their children. Parents from two public (n = 40) and two private (n = 10) Montessori schools responded to a written survey designed to discern what characteristics parents valued in making their decision. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, and chi-square tests were used to understand the trends present in parents‟ responses. Comparisons were made between public and private Montessori parents to explore the overarching themes and to determine differences that existed between the two types of parents. The researcher conducted thirteen interviews designed to elicit additional information about why the parents chose Montessori …

The Experiences Of International Students In A Predominantly White American University, Lawrence Ejiofo

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The events of September 11, 2001 ignoble acts by few individuals on students’ visas in the United States have brought consequent restrictions of visas for international students into the United States institutions of higher education. These restrictions undoubtedly brought a fall in number of international students’ applications to American higher educational institutions. The last few years have witnessed once again a growth in the number of international students that come to study in the United States. However, the events of the terrorists’ attack have drastically influenced the ability of international students to integrate into American universities. As a result of …

Unpacking Evidence Of Gender Bias, Connie L. Fulmer

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

The purpose of this study was to investigate gender bias in pre-service principals using the Gender-Leader Implicit Association Test. Analyses of student-learn- ing narratives revealed how students made sense of gender bias (biased or not-biased) and how each reacted to evidence (surprised or not-surprised). Two implications were: (1) the need for leadership programs to help students identify and unpack gender bias, and (2) to provide new leaders with strategies to con- front and reduce gender bias in the organizations in which they will lead. A model for identifying, confronting, and reducing gender bias is presented as scaffolding to help educational …

You Gotta Be Determined To Get In There: Voices Of Women Higher Education Technology Leaders, Marilyn Drury

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

Three women higher education Chief Information Officers (CIOs) provided their lived experiences and perspectives on barriers they encountered and methods used to overcome the barriers as they pursued and achieved their current positions. The conceptual framework intersects gendered organizational theory, feminist standpoint theory, and occupational jurisdiction. This research, being unique in specifically studying women CIOs in higher education, expands the knowledge base regarding women seeking or maintaining leadership positions by revealing many barriers encountered and that higher education information technology organizations contain gendered organizational elements. Actions organizations and individuals can take to foster gender-friendly cultures are suggested.

Journal Of Women In Educational Leadership, Marilyn Grady, Sharon C. Hoffman, Sarah A. Hall, Joseph L. Eckenrode, Jean Haar

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

57 Firsts- Marilyn L. Grady

59 You Gotta Be Determined to Get in There: Voices of Women Higher Education Technology Leaders- Marilyn Drury

81 Unpacking the Evidence of Gender Bias- Connie L. Fulmer

Firsts, Marilyn Grady

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

Wilma Mankiller was a first-the first woman Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, the second-largest U.S. tribe. Her death on April 6, 2010 focused attention on her accomplishments as a legendary leader.

Wilma Pearl Mankiller, born November 18, 1945, in Tahlequah was sixth of eleven children. In 1956 her family moved to San Francisco as part of a Bureau of Indian Affairs relocation effort that promised jobs in the city. In 1963 she married Hugo Olaya, an Ecuadorean businessman, and had daughters Gina and Felicia. The takeover of Alcatraz by Indian demonstrators was a life-changing event for Wilma. …

Book Review: Motion Leadership-The Skinny On Becoming Change Savvy., Candace F. Raskin

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

Michael Fullan's Motion Leadership-The Skinny on Becoming Change Savvy provides what he describes as the skinny or the "core unobscured essence of the matter" (p. 2) on how to move individuals and organizations through the process of change. The book is designed as a precursor to an online series of experiences called Motion Leadership the Movie-a product that will provide footage and interactive tools to help a leader with system improvement. The intent of the book is to increase readers' knowledge and insight about change in an efficient and succinct manner. Fullan provides basic insights and ideas about becoming a …

Children's Books As A Source Of Influence On Gender Role Development: Analysis Of Female Characters Using Jung's Four Archetypes, Shirley J. Mills, Anita Pankake, Janine Schall

Journal of Women in Educational Leadership

The purpose of the study was to answer this question: Do children when choosing a book to read for pleasure receive a stereotypical impression of the female role as opposed to the male role as defined by the literature? A qualitative study reviewed main female characters of the Children's Choice books of 2008 with Jung's archetypes (Great Good Mother, Wise Old Man, Hero, and Trickster). Content analysis was conducted using Hershey-Freeman's critique. Hero archetype was most common with Great Good Mother as second. Female characters analyzed appear to epitomize traits of a new generation of leaders "modeling the way".

Journal Of The National Collegiate Honors Council, Vol. 11, No. 1, Spring/Summer 2010

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

CONTENTS
Call for Papers
Submission Guidelines
Dedication to Norm Weiner
Editor’s Introduction • Ada Long

FORUM ON “HONORS AND ATHLETICS”
College Sports, Honors, Five Liberal Lessons, and Miloof Crotona • Sam Schuman
GO HONORS! • Joan Digby
Bridging the Jock-Geek Culture War • Bradley J Bates and Carolyn A Haynes
A Collaborative Recruitment Model between Honors and Athletic Programs for Student Engagement and Retention • Rich Eckert, Ashley Grimm, Kevin J Roth, and Hallie E Savage
Student Athletics and Honors: Building Relationships • James J Clauss and Ed Taylor
Honors Director as Coach: For the Love of the Game • …

Nefdc Exchange, Volume 22, Number 1, Spring 2010, New England Faculty Development Consortium

NEFDC Exchange

Contents

Message from the President: Where would you be - Tom Thibodeau, New England Institute of Technology

From the editors -

Spring 2010 Conference, Friday, May 21, 2010, Westford, Massachusetts, United States; theme: Teaching for Learning; keynotes speaker: D. Christian Jernstedt, Dartmouth College, "How Learning Changes Brains"

A Book and Readings List for Thinking about the Human Mind - G. Christian Jernstedt, Dartmouth College

Embracing the Intimidating: Assessing Student Learning in a Non-major Online Science Course - Kristine Larsen, Central Connecticut State University

Save the date! 2010 Fall Conference, November 19, 2010, Westford, Massachusetts, United States; theme: Better Teaching, Better …

Scandal On The Plains: William F. Slocum, Edward S. Parsons, And The Colorado College Controversies, Joe P. Dunn

Great Plains Quarterly

This is a story about a scandal that took place on the western frontier, a sexual harassment crisis involving one of giants of late-nineteenth and early twentieth-century education and the disgraceful treatment of the man who pursued the case. The treatment of the two related incidents in the several official histories of the institution constitutes a travesty that one is tempted to call "scandalous." The physical place of this saga is important because the original events transpired within a burgeoning frontier community and at a young western institution that was successfully carving out its place in the national academic scene. …

Pod Network News, Spring 2010

POD Network News

No abstract provided.

The Social Inclusion Of Young Adults With Intellectual Disabilities: A Phenomenology Of Their Experiences, Sarah A. Hall

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Social inclusion enhances the quality of life of young adults with intellectual disabilities (ID). Young adults with ID continue to face prejudice and discrimination that limit their social inclusion. They experience limited social inclusion because there are not enough appropriate activities available and they have limited opportunities to develop friendships. The social inclusion that people with disabilities experience within their local community varies greatly.

There is a deficiency in the literature concerning the social inclusion of young adults with ID. Previous considerations of disability have focused primarily on physical access and reflect the local contexts in which the participants live. …

Making The Transition: African American Female Sophomores At A Midwestern Research-Extensive University, Sheena M. Kennedy

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to explore the college experiences of African American females in their sophomore year at a Midwestern Research-Extensive institution. This study investigated these individuals’ transitions to college and sought to understand their lived experiences. Also, the study examined what strategies these individuals employed to persist in college. The intent of this study was to contribute to research on African American women in higher education by documenting their experiences.

This study upheld the literature that African American students encounter feelings of isolation, alienation, and marginality on the college campus (Allen & Haniff, 1991; Fleming, 1984; Gossett, …

Peer Review Of Teaching Project - Castl: Expanding The Sotl Commons Cluster Final Report, Jennifer Meta Robinson, Paul Savory, Gary Poole, Tom Carey, Dan Bernstein

Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Reports

In 2006, the Peer Review of Teaching Project at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln was selected to join the Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) Institutional Leadership Program. Our participation in this national leadership program (“Expanding the Teaching Commons: A social and technical infrastructure to promote and support effective learning & student success, through teacher community collaborations to develop, adapt, share and mobilize pedagogical content knowledge, exemplary practices, and shared resources.”) allowed us to engage a broad audience to help define, develop, refine, and share the models and approaches of our project. The combined group effort for …

2010-11 Unopa General Meeting Minutes

UNOPA Minutes

No abstract provided.