Education Commons^™

Restorative Supervision: Experiences Of Mid And Senior-Level Professionals In Using Restorative Practices As Supervisors In Residential Life, Brandin Howard

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Student affairs professionals often enter their first supervisory positions with little to no training on how to effectively supervise others (Calhoun & Nasser, 2012; Shupp & Arminio, 2012). As professionals advance to mid- and senior-level positions, they often inherit direct and indirect supervisory responsibilities over multiple levels of staff of which they must attend to the performance, development, and morale. How student affairs professionals supervise and build supervisory relationships is essential to the success of departments and can significantly impact the development, morale, and retention of student affairs professionals (Bolman & Deal, 2013; Davis & Cooper, 2017; Winston & Creamer, …

A Qualitative Study Of School Transiency Among Students With Disabilities, Laura R. Nugent

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This qualitative multi-phase study explores the impact of school transiency on students with and without disabilities through interviews with teachers and administrators in six school districts in Vermont. The goal of the study is to describe the effects of school transiency on the education and socioemotional development of students with disabilities, expose the causes of school transiency, and provide guidance to educators on mitigating the impact of these factors on student growth. Repeated interviews were conducted with 11 teachers and administrators between 2017 and 2020.

This research was primarily focused on determining whether students with disabilities are more likely to …

The Intersection Of Organizational Form And Employee Relationships: A Social Network Analysis Of Rural School Educators, Randi Beth Lowe

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Public schools in the United States are organized in a formal structure with a principal serving as a hierarchical lead, teachers in a variety of professional roles reporting to them and paraeducators supporting the work of teachers. As is seen in an increasing number of organizations, there are informal networks built on the inter-personal relationships of the members of the community (Krackhardt, 1993). The purpose of this study is to measure and describe four types of informal networks, to compare these networks to each other, and to learn about how professional roles influenced the formation of the networks. This study …

Measuring The Implementation Fidelty Of Usa Hockey’S American Development Model, Leon Lifschutz

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Critics of youth sports in the United States have lamented a system that creates issues of access and could be detrimental to the physical and mental health of its young participants. In response to these concerns, USA Hockey, using Long Term Athlete Development Theory (LTAD) as a key theoretical framework, created the American Development Model (ADM) to improve the delivery of youth hockey in the US. While USA Hockey has invested greatly in bringing ADM to scale across its constituents, it is not known to what extent the model is being implemented in its member organizations. Implementation fidelity of a …

Being Myselves To Belonging Together, Jill Kristen Pardini

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation utilizes an autoethnographic methodology to explore experiences and memories from my own life, while applying a critical cultural and multidisciplinary lens to tell a story about how (un)learning is intertwined with living. By creating a story combining autobiographical elements, science fiction, and cultural critique, this work both draws the reader into reimagining what is possible (Dixon-Romån, 2017), while encouraging the reader to step outside of the conventional modes of academic learning, just as I did in writing it (Sousanis, 2015). This autoethnography includes five encounters inspired by Styres (2017) framework for centering indigeneity in learning (Adams & Jones, …

As The World Interns: The Impact Of Identity And Social, Economic, And Cultural Capital On College Student Internship Engagement, Amanda Chase

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Internships have become a critical credential for employment, and college students with internship experience reap significant gains compared to their non-interning peers. Students who have engaged in internships are more likely to find work post-graduation, earn higher starting salaries, have better retention and engagement while still in college, and are more engaged in their workplaces many years after their internship experience has concluded. Companies who hire interns benefit from a steady pipeline of new talent, cost-savings in the hiring process, and employees who stay longer and are more engaged. Despite the significant advantages of internships, limited information exists about the …

The Fear Of Failure As An Athlete And An International Student: The Search For Meaning Making Outside My Comfort Zone, Loftur Páll Eiriksson

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

When I was young, I always looked at the world with frightened eyes. Growing up I was so afraid of dying I placed myself inside a bubble. The comfort zone I created around my parents and our family home was a place my mom never imagined I could leave. I never imagined I would leave. Here, shielded from my perceived dangers, I felt happy and safe.

Using the method of Scholarly Person Narrative, I will tell the story of my development and growth into a stronger individual—mentally and physically. I will examine my personal history and explain how I found …

The Performing Arts: An Equalizer In Education For All Students, A Teaching Artist’S Perspective, Annalisa Ledson

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This thesis explores the topic of performing arts integration in public education from the perspective of a teaching artist. The writing is comprised of a series of personal narratives woven together with scholarly references addressing education policy, applied behavior analysis, inequities in exclusionary practices and Autism Spectrum Disorder research. The intention is to draw awareness to the accessible role of teaching artists in public schools, the benefits of performing arts integration in education, and potential education policy shifts that could allow for students to learn empathy, vulnerability and sense of belonging. These narratives are used to support my position that …

Recalibrating Our Moral Compass: How America's Narrowing Value System Is Erasing Lgbtq+ People In Schools, Andrew Levalley

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This thesis bridges the effects of society—meaning politics, policies, norms, and values—and school on LGBTQ+ students. Paramount educational philosophers, namely Dewey, Freire, Berliner, and Illich, understood that schools are a reflection of the communities they serve. I apply this common philosophy to the LGBTQ+ community to uncover the systems of inequalities that have negative effects on LGBTQ+ youth in order to promote better systems that include both LGBTQ+ youth and the larger LGBTQ+ community. To illustrate the effects of society and school on the LGBTQ+ community and youth, I use traditional peer reviewed researched data, current events that showcase America’s …

Becoming Giants Themselves: Advocating For Greater Inclusion Of Students' Scholarly Ideas And Experiences In Academia, Richard Parlato

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Introduction and Purpose

Institutions of higher learning have been a bulwark against regression for centuries and have safeguarded the knowledge of our past so that we may learn from it, and are not doomed to repeat it. These remarkable establishments at once serve to broaden our scope of worldly perception, as well as specializing us so that we may find our particular niches in an ever complexifying society.

Attending a college or university has often become expected. An undergraduate degree is increasingly being seen as an essential ingredient in the mixture needed for success. This is due to many factors. …

College Coaches’ Experiences, Knowledge And Attitudes To Support Student-Athlete Mental Health, Cathy Rahill

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to develop a better understanding of college coaches’ experiences with student-athlete mental health concerns, knowledge to address these concerns, and dispositions and attitudes toward student-athlete mental health. Although student-athlete mental health has been the subject of previous research, this is the first study to ask college coaches their perspectives on the topic. Data for the study were collected using a Web-based survey with a sample of college athletic coaches who coach male and female student athletes at Division I athletic programs in the Northeastern United States. The study’s findings confirm coaches’ concern and care …

Sense Of Place And Ways Of Knowing: The Landscape Of Experience For Black, Indigenous, And People Of Color In Natural Resources, Environmental Education, And Place Based Learning, Marie Cadiz Vea

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This collaborative qualitative research addresses challenges faced by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) in higher education and environmental programs as a result of academic imperialism (Chilisa, 2012) and epistemic injustice (McKinnon, 2016), as well as other systemic challenges that marginalize, diminish and invisibilize ways of knowing and narratives of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Historic and ongoing erasure of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color from the Land contributes to the perception and narrative that BIPOC are disinterested in environmental issues.

Using a strengths-based perspective, I alongside a circle of nine leaders in the environmental fields collectively …

Resilience Amidst Adversity: The Sine Qua Non Principle For Meaningful And Effective Leadership In Education, Jennifer Jang Helgesen

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Have you ever encountered difficult moments that trigger you? Do you find it difficult to monitor your internal dialogue after a setback? Do you struggle to find meaning and purpose amidst all the hardship? As leaders in higher education, we must prioritize others, often giving ourselves away in the process only to find there is nothing left within. We might feel empty, beaten down, and exhausted as others need us to repeatedly and reliably show up as competent leaders. I believe the art of cultivating resilience is the antidote for us as leaders to be meaning-filled and effective at work …

Exploring Intersectional Typologies Of (Dis)Advantage In United States Medical School Applicants, Alison Howe

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Increasing diversity in the medical workforce is necessary to address public health needs and reduce health disparities, particularly in low-income and minority communities. The populations that experience these inequalities are the same populations that remain underrepresented in medicine. Research has demonstrated that social-concordance in the physician-patient dyad is associated with better patient outcomes and that students from underserved communities are more likely to return to practice in underserved areas. Despite academic medicine’s continued commitment to admitting and training diverse individuals to address health disparities and increase cultural competency in medical students, a three-decade trend of the majority of medical students …

The Challenges Of Inclusive Education Policy Implementation In Ghana: Stakeholders’ Perspectives, Sefakor Grateful-Miranda Ama Komabu-Pomeyie

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

ABSTRACT

People with disabilities (PWDs) from countries around the world, including Ghana, deserve the right to education, but are often deprived of it. Statistics from the World Report on Disability in 2011 estimate that literacy rates for PWDs may be as low as 1%. The World Bank Report also reports that more than one billion people may experience some form of disability. Individuals with disabilities typically have worse socioeconomic outcomes than those without disabilities. They often have poorer health, lower levels of employment and earnings, and higher poverty rates. In developing countries, the prevalence of disabilities and its impacts on …

More Than A Scholarship: College And Career Outcomes Of Mitchell Institute Promise Scholars, Loren Bowley Dow

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

The transition into and out of higher education is challenging for first-generation college students from limited income backgrounds. Though educational attainment gaps between low- and high-income students exist, students from low-income households can and do earn college degrees with access to appropriate resources. Increasing socioeconomic diversity in higher education is necessary to address societal needs and to reduce educational and income inequality. The purpose of this study is to examine how economic, social, and cultural capital influences the transition of low-income, first-generation students into college and into the workforce. Through the stories of nine “at-promise” students who received a Mitchell …