Education Commons^™

Local Norms And Gifted/Talented Identification In Arkansas, Sarah C. Mckenzie, Josh B. Mcgee, Bich Tran, Kathryn Barnes, Charlene A. Reid

Policy Briefs

In this brief, we summarize recent research from OEP examining if using school- or district-level norms from state assessments would increase the racial and programmatic diversity of Arkansas students identified as Gifted and Talented (G/T). Using ten years of administrative data to analyze the outcomes of a local norms approach compared to the current G/T identification strategies, we find no consistent evidence that using a local norms approach for G/T identification would improve racial or programmatic diversity.

College Transition : Voices Of First-Generation Minority Stem Students, Grazia Gangitano

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) college transition experience for first-generation minority students can be arduous. Despite advancements with inclusivity in higher education institutions in the U.S., first-generation college students of color from lowincome households (FGML) find their first-year college transition difficult to navigate. Higher education institutions were created and still are in some ways encapsulated in white, Christian, male ideals (Alenuma-Nimoh, 2016). Therefore, when FGML start their college transition they can feel out of place and can struggle with the academic adjustment in their pursuit of a STEM degree (Bowman & Sharon, 2016; Dika & D’Amico, 2016; Goonewardene, …

Critical Pedagogy In The Intercultural Classroom: The Influence Of Values On Participatory Patterns In The Classroom, Misheel Mandalsaikhan

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This thesis explores the influence of values on students’ participatory patterns within higher education settings and considers the importance of value exploration in art therapy education. Based on the theory of critical pedagogy by Paulo Freire, the influence of historically oppressive pedagogical practices on international and minority students is examined. Drawing on literature that identifies factors in students’ participatory patterns, students’ participatory patterns were found to be determined by values more than race or ethnicity. Though broader values exist within racial and ethnic groups, the reduction of ethnic and racial groups to singular values strips individuals of their unique and …

The Impacts Of Discrimination On Mental And Physical Health, Mahal Alvarez-Backus

Honors Theses

The present studies investigated the role of campus climate and discrimination on college students’ mental and physical health. Young adults completed measures that assessed their perceptions of campus climate, sense of belonging, depressive symptoms, anxiety levels, sleep quality, physical health symptoms, and experiences with discrimination. Despite the fact that there were not any differences in physical health or sleep quality, there were significant differences in phycological health, specifically with depressive symptoms. Across both studies, there were significant group differences in mental health, particularly that students of color reported higher levels of depressive symptoms than white students. Having empathetic faculty was …

Minority Student Perceptions Of Mental Health, Emily Camacho

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

The current study explored the use of mental health services by minority students at South Dakota State University (SDSU) using thematic analysis. There are numerous reasons that college students choose not to utilize counseling services even though they may be needed. For example, students may avoid counseling out of fear of cultural stigma associated with help-seeking (Ægisdottír et al., 2011). Further, minority students may be more likely to use non-counseling help services such as religious organizations or friends and family in place of formal counseling because they believe that counselors are racially biased, or that there is a lack of …

Montgomery County, Md Public Schools: Student Performance And Achievement Of Low-Income And Minority Students, Richard Joseph

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

The student demographics of Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland have changed dramatically since 1970 resulting in a majority-minority de facto segregated school system. A major concern of MCPS is the student performance and achievement gap between students of different racial, ethnic, and economic backgrounds.

Using data available from MCSP the performance and achievement of MCPS high school students will be examined for differences between students attending high, medium or low poverty schools. Six high schools will be selected for examination, two for each of the three poverty categories. Primary focus will be to compare the performance and achievement …

Thinking Like A Scientist: A Thematic Analysis Of Students' Experiences At The Sacnas Research Conference, Rosa Perez, Rachael D. Robnett

McNair Poster Presentations

The underrepresentation of minority students in STEM fields is a concern in today’s society. Research suggests that identity plays a major role in students’ ultimate success within these fields. Using identity theory as a theoretical framework, this study explores the ways in which identity affects the academic careers of underrepresented students in STEM. The participants of this study consisted of undergraduates from various colleges and universities around the United States that attended the SACNAS 2010 research conference. Thematic analysis was used to identify four overarching themes from a set of narrative responses collected after the event. The identified themes include …

An Equal Opportunity Rejection, Katherine M. Patterson

SURGE

Let’s talk about applications. We’ve all been there. You write your application, work on draft after draft and then you send it all off to the college or job of your dreams. And you wait…and wait…and wait. You wait for some sort of letter or phone call that says something along the lines of, “We love you! You’re awesome, and smart and special, and we think you’d be a great asset!” And maybe you’re lucky and you do get that letter, but let’s be real - that doesn’t always happen. It can be frustrating to receive a rejection letter (or …

The Urban Scholars Program At University Of Massachusetts Boston, David Lemmel

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

Urban Scholars provides talented and gifted students—especially those from low income and minority backgrounds—with the resources to develop the skills and self-motivation needed to enter and successfully complete postsecondary education. The program accommodates 120 students, 75 students at the high school level and 45 at the middle school level.

A Developmental Approach To Civility And Bystander Intervention, Jennifer Q. Mccary

College Life Publications

The students of color in your classroom experience discrimination every day, in small and large ways. They don’t often see themselves represented in their textbooks, and encounter hostility in school, and outside. For them race is a constant reality, and an issue they need, and want, to discuss. Failure to do so can inhibit their academic performance.

Failure to discuss race prevents White students from getting a real, critical and deep understanding of our society and their place in it. It is essential for the well-being of all students that they learn to have constructive conversations about the history of …

Multicultural Education Policies And State Legislatures: Analyzing The Factors Affecting Policy Adoption, Leander D. Kellogg

Graduate Research Symposium (GCUA) (2010 - 2017)

Introduction: This study looks at the factors that contribute to the adoption of multicultural education policies in the fifty US state legislatures plus the District of Columbia. The demographics of the US are changing significantly. According to Frey (2011), “The 2010 census showed that among infants, almost half—49.8 percent—are minorities, and a quarter of these are Latinos.” Furthermore, it is now projected that by 2023 Whites will become a minority in the student populations nationwide and by 2042 Whites will be a minority within the general US population. In fact, according to the 2010 census there are already 11 states …

The Urban Scholars Program At Umass Boston, David Lemmel

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

Urban Scholars Program provides talented and gifted students—especially those from low income and minority backgrounds—with the resources to develop the skills and self-motivation needed to enter and successfully complete postsecondary education. The program accommodates 120 students, 75 students at the high school level and 45 at the middle school level

Partnering With It To Help Disadvantaged Students Achieve Academic Success, Janet H. Clarke

Library Faculty Publications

This case study will describe how the Stony Brook University Libraries instruction program partnered with another student support service (student computing office) to nurture a relationship with the Educational Opportunities Program (EOP) over several years to provide their students with the library research and computer skills needed to succeed in college. EOP is a state-funded program aimed at economically disadvantaged students whose high school education has not fully prepared them for college success.

Summer Youth Housing Career Camp, Carol Goodemann

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

With the recent growth of the Hispanic population in Nobles County from 0.6% in 1980 to 18.2% in 2008 and Watonwan County from 1.8% to 18.6% in 2008 (Northwest Area Foundation, 2009), a need to assist in the development of professionals within emerging markets populations was identified as a primary goal of Southern MN Emerging Markets Homeownership Initiative. The Summer Youth Housing Careers Camp was on approach to achieving the goal.

Dollars For Sense: Assessing Achievement Gaps In Arkansas In The Context Of Substantial Funding Increases, Joshua H. Barnett, Nathan C. Jensen, Gary W. Ritter

Arkansas Education Reports

Over the last half century, more than forty states across the nation have experienced school finance lawsuits as a consequence of perceived and real funding gaps between rich and poor districts (Rebell, 2001). Arkansas is one such state, with a long history of school funding battles in the courts. The legal challenges began in 1983, when the Arkansas Supreme Court initially found the state's school funding system unconstitutional under the equal protection clause of the state constitution .

Outsiders-Within: Critical Race Theory, Graduate Education And Barriers To Professionalization, Carolann Daniel

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This article uses the lens of critical race theory to examine the experiences of minority students in and outside of the social work education classroom. Research has not critically analyzed the structures, policies and practices of graduate education programs and how they influence the socialization experiences of students. Qualitative interviews with 15 African American and Latino students reveal that their experiences are often characterized by marginalization and conflict. They suggest that certain aspects of the professionalization process create and support forces that reproduce stratified social relations. These problematic relations have a negative impact on minority students threatening their persistence and …

Wealth And Achievement Gaps: An Examination Of Virginia Middle Schools, Paulette Natasha Richmond

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Achievement gaps, the focus of this research, result from unequal achievement and the variance in achievement existing between different segments of the student population, for example, the difference in achievement between minority students and non-minority students. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) focus on achievement gaps despite contradictory expressions about the efficacy of the act. The No Child Left Behind Act has created discussion and awareness of race, SES (economically advantaged and disadvantaged) and academic achievement.

There are conflicting beliefs about the impact of resources, funding and wealth on student achievement. This study …

Alternative School Administrators "At Risk": What Does It Mean For Children?, Christopher Dunbar Jr.

Trotter Review

Alternative public schools have evolved from their origins in school choice and the progressive education movement of the 1920's into a system of schools that have become the assigned "dumping ground" for a population of ill-prepared, behaviorally disruptive youth, a population that is also disproportionately composed of minority students. Research suggests these schools fall short of providing an optimal educational opportunity for their students. There are multiple factors that place alternative school administrators "at risk" of failing in their charge to educate. Using a case study from a Midwestern alternative school, the author focuses on policy and the role of …

Enhancing Multicultural Education Through Higher Education Initiatives, Porter L. Troutman Jr.

Trotter Review

This paper describes a comprehensive initiative intended to increase multicultural education and the amount of ethnic diversity among college of education faculty and undergraduate teacher education students at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The paper details six components of the on-going initiative: 1) staff development: to enhance the sensitivity of college of education faculty regarding cultural issues, 2) a minority mentoring program: to provide a stronger support system for under-represented populations enrolled in the teacher education program, 3) the multicultural education project (MCE): a collaborative effort with the public school district in multicultural education, 4) the College of …

Expanding The Pool Of Women And Minority Students Pursuing Graduate Study: The Development Of A National Model, Bernard W. Harleston

Trotter Review

The underrepresentation of women and minority students in certain disciplines in the graduate schools of American colleges and universities is a matter of great national concern. This concern has been intensified by the decline during the last fifteen years, especially from 1978 to 1988, in graduate school enrollments of all categories of American students. But, even before this most recent period of decline and during a time when the enrollment of women and minority students was at its highest (between 1968 and 1974, as a consequence, primarily, of the civil rights movement), the representation of women and minorities in the …

A Comparison Of Minority And Non-Minority Engineering Students On Selected Personality And Program Variables, Thomas Mercer Collier Jr.

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there are common characteristics associated with 226 Hispanic, African American, and White engineering students who persist at predominantly White colleges and universities. A personality profile of minority and non-minority engineering students was developed. Information regarding factors influencing choice of major, university, study, work and extracurricular involvement, possible reasons for withdrawal from college, awareness and satisfaction with student support services and selected academic courses was also compiled. Components of Minority Engineering Programs (MEPs) which are most used or valued by minority engineering students were identified.

Analysis of Variance identified four of the …

Factors Influencing College Choice Of Minority Students And Their Implications For Recruitment, Linda Blount Mccluney

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This study was designed to determine factors of college choice and to evaluate their implications for the development of recruiting guidelines for minority students. The intent was to survey two hundred freshmen of two urban universities to determine which factors were influential in their college choice process and to design recruiting guidelines. The use of these guidelines may provide the impetus to direct more blacks to predominantly white urban universities and more whites to predominantly black universities.

The criterion group approach allowed for the two groups (black students attending a predominantly white university versus black students attending a predominantly black …