Education Commons^™

Financial Aid As A Predictor For Retention Of First-Year Black Male Community College Students, Malcom Jamar Morgan-Petty

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractBlack male students are retained in higher education at less than half the rate of their Hispanic and White counterparts. At Southwestern Community College (SWCC, a pseudonym), there were indicators that the amount of financial aid received was related to retention; however, the extent of the relationship was unknown. The purpose of this nonexperimental quantitative correlational study was to examine the relationship between the amount of financial aid received and the retention of first-to-second-year Black male students at SWCC. Bean and Metzner’s model of nontraditional undergraduate student attrition provided the theoretical foundation. The research question sought to clarify the extent …

Experiences Of African American Students In A Stem-Focused Community Program, Angela Blount

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The United States has invested millions of dollars in STEM program initiatives; however, African Americans in STEM career fields are underrepresented. The purpose of this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological study aimed to explore the lived experiences of African-American first-year college students from rural communities in a STEM program and whether their experiences influenced their decision to pursue a STEM major in college. Spencer’s phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST) was used to frame the study. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with eight African American first-year college students from rural communities. Coding analysis involved identifying meaning units and situated narratives …

Left Behind: Intersectional Stigma Experiences Of African American College Women With Adhd, Angela Lynnette Anderson-Elahi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American college women with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can experience intersectional stigmas based on race, gender, and learning disability. Intersectional stigmas affect African American college women in self-esteem, social acceptance, and academic progress. The scholarly community has not published literature regarding intersectional stigma experienced by African American college women with ADHD. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of African American college women who had encountered intersectional stigma based on race, gender, and ADHD. Goffman’s social stigma theory and Crenshaw’s intersectional stigma theory served as the theoretical and conceptual frameworks to explore how African …

Attainment Of Superintendent Roles For African American Women In Rural U.S. School Districts, Likisha Tamese Coleman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American women are underrepresented in the attainment of superintendent roles from a racial and gendered standpoint. African American females hold only 1% of superintendent positions in a field in which 27% of superintendents are women and 8.6% of superintendents are African American. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the barriers and supports experienced by African American women in their attainment of superintendent roles in rural U.S. school districts. Black feminist thought and intersectionality provided the conceptual frameworks for this qualitative study. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with eight African American female superintendents from rural …

Qualitative Examination Of Noncustodial African American Fathers' Involvement In Their Children's Education, Christy Ann Wallace

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractParent involvement in children's school experience has been shown to be important to academic success. Although African American parents approach their parenting in culturally unique ways, these have not been adequately explored or described. Many African American children grow up in a household with a single mother and an involved but nonresident father; the purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of these fathers with their grade school children's schools and education. Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory underpinned the research. Using a qualitative phenomenological design, data was collected from a sample of 10 nonresident African American fathers using …

Teacher Perceptions Of Culturally Relevant Strategies To Promote Black Student Achievement, Kimberly Elyse Hendricks

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A long-standing, race-based academic achievement gap between Black and White students has existed in a local district in the southwest United States for more than 5 years. The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive case study was to explore teachers’ perceptions and experiences related to the use of culturally relevant or responsive (CRR) teaching strategies. The study was guided by Hale’s theory explaining how culture shapes a child’s cognition and learning styles, indicating benefits when the teacher used the students’ cultural assets during instruction. Research questions were written to address teachers’ perceptions of, experiences with, and the value of using CRR …

Nonacademic Factors Affecting Retention And Academic Success At Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Charlene Denise Mallory

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractRetention rates for African American students attending historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have been low compared to rates of predominantly White institutions. The problem investigated was the retention rates of African American students enrolled at degree-granting Title IV HBCUs. The absence of research focused on African American students and retention at HBCUs leaves more to be learned about how institutions can improve retention rates for this population. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the association between nonacademic factors (enrollment status, residency status, SES, and family income) and retention rate (full-time and part-time) for African American full-time, …

Qualitative Examination Of Noncustodial African American Fathers’ Involvement In Their Children’S Education, Christy Ann Wallace

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractParent involvement in children’s school experience has been shown to be important to academic success. Although African American parents approach their parenting in culturally unique ways, these have not been adequately explored or described. Many African American children grow up in a household with a single mother and an involved but nonresident father; the purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of these fathers with their grade school children’s schools and education. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory underpinned the research. Using a qualitative phenomenological design, data was collected from a sample of 10 nonresident African American fathers using …

A Phenomenological Exploration Of The Leadership Development Experiences Of Black Women, Oresha Sharlene Greenidge Foster

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The leadership pathway for Black women has unique challenges and obstacles due to the double jeopardy of their race and gender. The lack of critical empirical work on the leadership development of Black women has left a gap in the understanding of how racial and gendered identities influence their development as successful leaders. This research was conducted to examine how Black women developed as leaders and how they made meaning of their leadership development experiences. A qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was conducted framed by concepts of intersectionality and gendered racism to produce a comprehensive description of the phenomenon of the …

Comparison Of Gpa And Act Reading And Math Scores For African American Males In Afrocentric Versus Mainstream High Schools, Marissa Irene Prince

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the United States, the academic achievement of African American males is not at the same level as their peers from other ethnic backgrounds. There are negative social and financial implications for African American males who do not experience positive educational outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative study, based on critical race theory, was to compare the effectiveness of traditional high school education and Afrocentric high school education on the educational outcomes of African American males. Three measures of educational outcomes were examined: GPA at graduation, ACT reading score, and ACT math scores. The participants were 143 African American males, …

African American High School Graduates’ Perceptions Of Their African American Principal’S Leadership, Patricia Mitchell Marzett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a need to increase high school graduation rates for African American students, decrease dropout rates, and narrow or close the achievement gap between African American students and White students. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to determine the perceptions of African American students who graduated from high school regarding the leadership of their African American principal. Delgado and Stefancic’s critical race theory and Bass’s transformational leadership constitute the conceptual framework for this study. Nine participants who graduated from high schools led by an African American principal were interviewed, and transcripts were analyzed using in vivo coding. …

Relationship Between Parental Involvement And 4th-5th Grade Students’ Academic Motivation, Charla Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The achievement gap between African American and White students has been well documented. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine whether parental involvement in academics predicted academic motivation of fourth- and fifth-grade African American students in the Southwest United States. Social development theory provided the framework for the study. Survey data were collected from 43 students and 43 parents using the Parental Involvement Scale and the Children’s Academic Intrinsic Motivation Inventory. A t test, linear regression, and multiple regression were used to analyze the data. Findings indicated no significant difference between how parents and students perceived parental involvement …

Child Welfare Workers' Perceptions Of The Effective Black Parenting Program, Kharmynn M. Bullock

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The child welfare system (CWS) serves around half a million families each year in America. Of those, in Texas, hundreds of thousands of African American families represent the greatest percentages of families in the CWS when compared with their respective numbers in the general population. In 2013, African American children made up about 13.9% of the overall population of children in the United States; however, these children represented close to 26% (or 101,938) African American children in the system with CWS. Child Protective Services (CPS) has various programs and services, including parent education referrals to social services agencies that carry …

Afriican American Students' Experiences Of Stress From Discrimination In Online Doctoral Education, Senovia Wyche

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

There is a lack of current research about the experiences of stress related to discrimination encountered by African American students in online doctoral programs. Such discrimination can negatively impact the academics, educational experiences, and overall health of this student population. In this generic qualitative study, how African American students in online doctoral programs interpreted, perceived, and responded to their experiences of stress regarding discrimination was explored. Using the conceptual framework of Lazarus and Folkman’s cognitive appraisal theory, the research questions addressed stress related to discrimination encountered in online educational institutions, discriminatory factors perceived as inhibitors towards earning a doctoral …

Museum Educators' Processes For Creating Inclusive Curricula On American Slavery, Dawn Chitty

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

To close a gap in the literature, this study sought to develop a deeper understanding of the processes museum educators use to create inclusive curricula on American slavery. The research design was a qualitative, descriptive, multicase study using data collected from a purposefully selected sample of museum educators, along the Eastern Seaboard region of the United States, who had previously created inclusive curricula on slavery. Null's radical curriculum theory formed the conceptual framework for this study. Individual interviews of 11 museum educators were recorded, transcribed, and coded in two cycles, using in vivo and pattern coding methods. Additionally, examples of …

Differentiating Instruction To Prepare African American Males For High School Accelerated Courses, Monique Carson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Differentiating instruction is important in helping students with diverse backgrounds and learning styles understand curricula; however, this can be challenging for educators. The educators at the study site reported that teachers’ instructional practices could be affecting African American males’ preparedness for accelerated courses. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine how rigorous, differentiated instructional practices were being used in the classroom to prepare African American male students for accelerated courses at an urban, Title I school in the Southwest United States. The study was guided by Tomlinson’s differentiated instruction framework. Research questions addressed the types of instructional …

Strategies To Obtain Loans For Black-Owned Small Businesses, Trenessa Baker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Less than 30% of Black business owners successfully obtain small business loans to sustain their businesses longer than 5 years when compared to evidence that shows that more than 65% of White small business owners obtain small business loans to sustain their businesses longer than 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the experiences of 3 Black owners of small businesses who successfully obtained small business loans and maintained operations longer than 5 years in the Research Triangle Park area of North Carolina. The conceptual framework for this study was systems theory and contingency theory. …

African American Male Veterans' Perceptions Regarding Factors That Influence Community College Completion, Author Edward Solomon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American, male, veteran (AAMV) students are not completing their degrees at a

local community college. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to examine veteran student perspectives regarding factors that influence community college completion to better understand their unique needs as veteran students. The conceptual framework was Bean and Metzner's model of nontraditional student attrition. The Schlossberg situation, self, support, and strategies transition model served as a foundation to examine each veteran student's personal experience of navigating available community college services to reach their educational goals. Data were collected from interviews with 10 AAMV students. Interview transcripts were …

Resiliency Factors In African American Female Students In Single-Gender Educational Settings, Phyllis Lynette Hill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Resiliency is a critical factor in educational success; the gap exists in the research regarding the effect of resiliency in the educational success of African American female students. The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological research (IPR) study was to explore and describe the lived experience of single-gender education through African American female student alumnae to capture and distill their shared experience of educational resilience and competence. Framework drew on gender-relevant education, social capital, racial identity and socialization. Research perspective that participants were viewed consisted of critical race feminism theory and competency versus deficit or risk perspective. Research questions focused on …

Experiences Of Parenting For African American Female Survivors Of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Chelsea Sharpe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been linked to a number of adverse effects in adulthood including higher levels of depression, shame, guilt, self-blame, somatic concerns, anxiety, dissociation, repression, denial, relationship problems, and sexual problems. Little is known, however, about the influence CSA has on parenting, specifically among African American mothers, as previous researchers have primarily focused on the trauma experienced by survivors. Examining the impact of CSA on African American mothers' parenting is important as those children of survivors will often also experience the impact of the long-term sequelae associated with CSA. Guided by womanist theory, the purpose of this …

Language Of Instruction And Puerto Rican First Graders' Ethnic Categorizations, Margarita Marichal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The use of subtractive bilingual models in Puerto Rico may influence children's construction of social categorizations. There is a gap in the literature related to linguistics, ethnicity, and systems of education and acculturation of a majority group. The purpose of this multiple case study was to examine the influence of the language of instruction and teachers' communicative practices in private and public schools on first graders' ethnic identity construction in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The conceptual framework of the study was based on Markus's unified theory of race and ethnicity, Berry's bidimensional model of acculturation, Tajfel and …

Perceptions Of Nursing As A Career By African American College Students Attending Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Brenda Marie Owens

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Previous studies and official organizations have indicated that African Americans are underrepresented in the healthcare workforce and that patients belonging to minority groups feel they are treated slightly differently in healthcare settings. Limited research examines perceptions of the nursing profession among a variety of demographic groups, and exploratory investigations into the perceptions of nursing as a career by African Americans are limited. The purpose of this quantitative descriptive study was to explore perceptions of nursing as a career by African American students who attend an undergraduate program at a historically black college or university (HBCU) in an attempt to further …

Challenges Of African American Female Veterans Enrolled In Higher Education, Latrice Jones Tollerson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American women represent 19% of the 2.1 million living female veterans. They are the largest minority group among veteran women; however, little is known about the challenges that they face when they transition to a postsecondary learning environment. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand better how this cohort of veterans who served in the U.S. Army during military campaigns in the Middle East overcame transitional challenges to higher education. This study utilized Schlossberg's adult transition theory and identity formation as described in Josselson's theory of identity development in women. The focus of this study was on …

Examining The Intersection Of Teachers' Expectations, African American Males, And Equitable Strategies, Adell Cothorne

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Elementary African American males achieve proficiency at a lower rate than their peers in both reading and math. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand how elementary school teachers described their use of equitable strategies in teaching elementary African American male students, how these teachers described the experience of teaching African American male students, and how they used equitable strategies to shape the classroom environment to engage African American male students. Two theories provided the conceptual framework for this study-human development theory and critical race theory in education. Seven participants were selected through convenience sampling. Semistructured interviews …

Elementary Teacher Knowledge Of And Practices For Teaching Reading To African American Students, Camille Jacqueline Little

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

State standardized tests results indicated that between 2012 and 2016, fewer African American students at a rural, Title I elementary school met state standards in reading compared with other racial/ethnic groups of students. A gap in practice existed because the school and district had not conducted studies to understand teacher knowledge and practice as they related to teaching reading to African American students. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to address the problem and gap in practice by exploring elementary teacher knowledge and understanding of the learning needs in reading among African American students. Tomlinson's theory of differentiated …

Spiritual Leadership: Achieving Positive Health Outcomes In African-American Christian Churches, Cynthia Bracey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the United States, African-American residents are an underserved population with evidence of higher health disparities than those associated with any other race, contributing to escalating health care costs. Despite the absence of health promotion and wellness training, pastors in predominately Black churches accept the responsibility for addressing more than the spiritual needs of their church members. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory research study was to explore the perspectives of African-American Christian pastors on giving health guidance and their lived experiences as health promotion advocates. A total of 10 African-American Christian pastors were voluntarily recruited from 3 southern …

Determinants Of Academic Success Of Cambodian American Students, Chanthol Oung

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Cambodian Americans' (CAs) children still exhibit the second lowest rate of academic achievement in the United States, despite the tenets of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 that promote equality in American education. Furthermore, there is a gap in the literature on the relationship between the academic success of Cambodian American students (CASs) and the parents' and the children's factors. Using a structural strain theory of deviance of functionalism theory, this correlational study (a) explored whether education, income, birthplace, and gender of parents and age at immigration and gender of children the determinants of academic success of CASs …

Teachers' And Parents' Perceptions Of Special Education Referral For African American Students, Darlene Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Patterns of representation of African Americans in K-12 special education programs vary across the United States. A school district in Arizona has a 13% African American population, yet the African American special education representation is 17%. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to generate an understanding of the processes related to special education referral and assignment of African American elementary students as perceived by 7 teachers and 6 parents in the school district. Inductive analysis including open, axial, and selective coding led to the categorization of three themes: complexity in the referral process, inadequate teacher-parent communication and lack …

Exploration Of Perceptions Of Marriage Dissatisfaction Among African American Couples, Terrence Schofield

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Perceptions of Marital Dissatisfaction Among African American Couples

by

Terrence Schofield

MS, Walden University, 2012

BS, Knoxville College, 1994

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy

Clinical Psychology

Walden University

August 2016

The Influence Of Historically Black Colleges And Universities Experience On First Year Retention, Andrea White-Mcneil

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Student retention in higher education, specifically after the first year, has long been a focus of institutional strategies, especially among students with financial, academic, and social risk factors. The issue of retention was a priority for administration at the 4-year private Sea Port University, a historically black university in the southern United States, which is the focus of this case study. The university has shown a rapid decline in its retention rate since the period 2008 - 2012. The purpose of this study was to identify students' perceptions of factors in their Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) experience and …