Education Commons^™

Understanding Incarcerated Education: A Review Of The Digital And Gender Inequality Impacts Of Accessibility And Inclusivity Of Higher Education For Incarcerated Students, Bianca R. Parry Phd

Journal of Prison Education Research

Education in the correctional environment is endorsed as an effective rehabilitative tool linked to reducing recidivism and improving reintegration. Unfortunately, while researchers from the Global North are particularly active on the subject of the accessibility of digital education in corrections, the same cannot be said for the Global South. Of further concern is that few of the studies conducted have focused specifically on incarcerated women’s access to education. As discussed in the literature review to follow, research regarding higher education in corrections has the potential for expanding academics, stakeholders, and policy makers understanding of incarcerated students’ pathways towards education attainment. …

Exploring The Role Of Institutional Culture In Student Affairs Assessment Practitioners’ Experiences Implementing Equity-Centered Assessment, Jaime L. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

Student affairs assessment is a field in higher education that emphasizes the measurement of effectiveness and student learning in student serving programs that take place outside of the classroom. Outcomes-based assessment is the basis of most assessment practices in student affairs, and focuses on the continuous improvement of out-of-classroom programs, services, and student learning. Many assessment practices stem from traditional research methods, which have been developed by people who hold mostly majority identities. These methods were not created with the rapidly changing demographics of today’s college-going students in mind. To help address the increasing diversity of college students and the …

A Lifelong Network: Perceptions And Experiences Of First-Generation Alums After Graduation, Allison Toney

Theses and Dissertations

As first-generation students transition to college graduates, the question lies in whether institutions of higher education are continuing to provide opportunities for them as alums. As a result of first-generation college students being the first in their family to attend college, students may enter college not knowing what to expect. But institutions have evolved to provide services, resources and opportunities that support their success while enrolled. Upon graduation, the process of transitioning out of college can be a challenging time for students as they seek post-graduation success. Some institutions offer support and resources tailored specifically to first-generation graduates or graduates …

Understanding The Implications Of Work Based Learning For Students Pk-12 School Systems Institutions Of Higher Education And Hosting Organizations, David Naff, Amy Corning, Meleah Ellison, Albion Sumrell, Zehra Sahin Ilkorkor, Jennifer Murphy, Ciana Cross

MERC Publications

This literature review by the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC) and Institute for Collaborative Research and Evaluation (ICRE), in partnership with the Virginia Talent + Opportunity Partnership (V-TOP) and State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) explores work-based learning and its implications for PK-12 institutions, institutions of higher education, and hosting organizations (e.g. employers). The report also provides background information about the foundations of work-based learning and concludes with a series of recommendations for practice, policy, and future research related to work-based learning. There is also an accompanying podcast episode where report authors discuss the key takeaways with …

E Pluribus Unum: Increasing A Shared Understanding Of Mission At Marine Corps University, Edward Greiner, Kirstin Pantazis, Christopher Reid, Dominick White

Doctor of Education Capstones

E PLURIBUS UNUM: INCREASING A SHARED UNDERSTANDING OF MISSION AT MARINE CORPS UNIVERSITY

By Edward Greiner, Kirstin Pantazis, Christopher Reid, and Dominick White

A capstone project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Educational Leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2023.

Capstone Chair: Beth E. Bukoski, Ph.D., Department of Educational Leadership

Mergers between higher education institutions present unique challenges to creating and maintaining a shared understanding of mission. Additionally, professional military education institutions with civilian faculty and staff must blend military and civilian cultures in the workplace. …

An Exploration Of Factors Influencing Faculty Engagement With Open Practices At The School Of Education: A Pilot Study, Preeti Kamat, Jessica Kirschner, Hillary Miller, Sergio Chaparro, Jose Alcaine, Nina Exner

Graduate Research Posters

Background:

Open practices in academia are emerging as affordable tools in widening research access by removing many barriers in the scholarly research and learning process. While faculty engagement with open practices is increasing, there remain some barriers to widespread participation. Though research to date suggests faculty perceptions about promotion and tenure (P&T) policies influence faculty engagement with open practices, many studies limit their focus on a few influencing factors. Answering calls for more research, this pilot study aims to explore the influence of various factors on faculty engagement with open practices, with a focus on promotion and tenure (P&T) policies …

Facilitating Equitable Access And Retention For Underrepresented Students At The University Of Mary Washington, Michael K. Abelson, Alvin R. Bryant, Marra Hvozdovic

Doctor of Education Capstones

Higher education institutions are facing increasing pressure to find new ways to attract, retain, and graduate the diverse populations of college students. As a result, colleges and universities need to adapt to the changing demographics of students who benefit from more sustained and engaged forms of support that are responsive to their specific social, cultural, and economic backgrounds. This sequential mixed methods study seeks to understand the ways in which the University of Mary Washington serves its underrepresented students in order to develop strategies to enhance the recruitment and retention of Black, Hispanic/Latinx, low-income, and first-generation college students. Building on …

What Can Be Taught In College In Prison? Reconciling Institutional Priorities In Clashes Over Incarcerated Students’ Access To Instructional Materials, Magic M. Wade

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

This research was inspired by allegations of censorship of college curricula in an Illinois state penitentiary. This example highlights the confusion and controversy that may ensue when disagreements arise over what students in prison-based college programs are permitted to read and learn. Following this, my research considers these relevant questions: First, do many programs and prisons encounter disagreements over certain instructional materials? Next, to what extent are these rooted in clashing institutional values and priorities? And finally, what can be done to quell controversy, reduce confusion, and strengthen relationships between colleges and prisons? To shed light on these questions, I …

Service-Learning Community Partner Impact Assessment Report, 2021, Rebecca Hoppe, Katie Elliott, Lynn E. Pelco

Division of Community Engagement Resources

In 2021, the Service-Learning Office at VCU conducted an assessment of the impact of service-learning on community partner organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The assessment aimed to collect actionable feedback to inform and improve upon current service-learning course practices. Partners (N = 18) were prompted with questions to assess the following topics: operational capacity, economic functioning, social environment, and partnership quality, both prior to and in concurrent with the COVID-19 pandemic. Quantitative findings suggested an overall improvement in scores from the 2017 assessment. Qualitative findings indicated the importance of relationships, concluding that adaptation, communication, and involvement were key factors …

The Effectiveness Of The Virginia Network For Women: A Mixed Methods Study, Stevara Haley Clark, Jenae' D. Harrington, Reshunda L. Mahone, Kristin L. Smith

Doctor of Education Capstones

Over the last 50 years, higher education institutions across the country have experienced growth in enrollment and degree attainment by women. However, despite the increase in educational merit, the representation of women in administrative and leadership roles within higher education is still not equitable to that of men. The Women’s Network, a non-profit subsidiary of the American Council on Education’s Inclusive Excellence Group, aims to identify, develop, advance, and support women in higher education at the local, state, and national levels. The Virginia Network is a state constituency of the Women’s Network that promotes women’s leadership in higher education throughout …

Analyzing Advanced Placement (Ap): Making The Nation's Most Prominent College Preparatory Program More Equitable, David Naff, Mitchell Parry, Tomika Ferguson, Virginia Palencia, Jenna Lenhardt, Elisa Tedona, Antionette Stroter, Theodore Stripling, Zoey Lu, Elizabeth Baber

MERC Publications

This report from the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC) explores research related to Advanced Placement (AP) courses through an equity lens. It answers five questions: 1) What are AP classes? 2) Who enrolls and succeeds in AP classes? 3) Why do disparities in AP matter? 4) What factors contribute to disparities in AP participation and performance? 5) What policies and practices help to address disparities in AP access, enrollment, and performance? The report comes from the MERC Equitable Access and Support for Advanced Coursework study.

Editorial: Critical Reflections On Higher Education In Prison, Helen Nichols Dr, Suzanne Young Dr, Cormac Behan Dr.

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Editorial: Critical Reflections on Higher Education in Prison

Learning Together: Localism, Collaboration And Reflexivity In The Development Of Prison And University Learning Communities, Amy Ludlow, Ruth Armstrong, Lorana Bartels

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

This paper engages with challenges of localism, collaboration and reflexivity in thinking about the conceptualisation and development of partnership learning communities between higher education and criminal justice institutions. Grounded in experiences of partnership working in the UK and Australia, our arguments are twofold: first, drawing on missions, policy and practice challenges, that there is a case to be made for partnership-working between higher education and criminal justice institutions; and second that, although there is a need to think about collaborative international structures, there is also a need to reflect critically on how different socio-political and cultural realities (both within and …

Vol 6 #1 Special Issue, Preeti Kamat

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Vol 6 #1 Special Issue_2019

Dark On Campus: A Phenomenological Study Of Being A Dark-Skinned Black College Student, Kiara Lee

Theses and Dissertations

As recent research finally starts to recognize colorism, a form of discrimination where light skin is valued over dark skin within an ethnic group, as a legitimate form of discrimination in the Black community, research on colorism in higher education still wanes. A limited amount of scholarship focuses on the manifestation of colorism in education and even less research examines the implications of complexion on Black college students and their intersectional identities. As empirical studies describe how complexion often denotes institutional degradation for dark-skinned Black students in K-12 and beyond -- from teacher perceptions, to the school-to-prison pipeline, to social …

Debate For Civic Learning, S Bodnar-Deren, E Coston, D Mthethwa, L.E. Pelco, E Peron, M Pyles, T Swecker

Division of Community Engagement Resources

No abstract provided.

Why Women Give To Women: A Portrait Of Gender-Based Philanthropy, Amy C. G. Beck

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

WHY WOMEN GIVE TO WOMEN: A PORTRAIT OF GENDER-BASED PHILANTHROPY AT A PUBLIC COLLEGE IN VIRGINIA

By Amy Gray Beck, Ph.D.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2019

Chair: Katherine Cumings Mansfield, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Educational Leadership and Cultural Foundations, School of Education, UNC Greensboro

The cost of public higher education is steadily increasing, with state and federal government cutting its support year after year. Students are having to pay more out of pocket for classes and tuition, and institutions rely on …

Vcu Peer Mentoring Program: 2017-18 End-Of-Year Report, Lynn Pelco

The 2017-18 End-of-Year Report provides background information on the VCU Peer Mentoring Program and end-of-year data based on evaluation, feedback and recommendations. This report also contains participant demographics, a complete cohort listing and a summary of the end-of-year feedback survey. The VCU Peer Mentoring program is part of the VCU Office of Faculty Affairs.

Why Service-Learning?, Audrey Trussell, Katie Elliott

Division of Community Engagement Resources

Data from VCU's "High Impact Practices (HIPS) Assessment Model: 2015-16 Pilot Mid-Year Report" offers three compelling reasons for why service-learning matters for student success.

2015-2016 Service-Learning Impact Measure Report, Samantha Poelstra

Division of Community Engagement Resources

The VCU Service-Learning Office distributes the Service-Learning Impact Measure (SLIM) at the end of every semester to evaluate the impact of service-learning classes on student learning. Results are used to guide professional development opportunities, as well as to further improve the quality of and recruit additional tenure-line faculty members to teach designated service-learning classes.

Different Tools For Different Tasks: Strategies For Assessing Student Learning From Civic Engagement At The Student, Program, And Institutional Levels, Lynn E. Pelco

Division of Community Engagement Resources

This presentation was given at the SCHEV Civic Engagement Education and Assessment meeting on June 9, 2017.

Service-Learning Community Partner Impact Assessment Report, Jennifer Jettner, Lynn Pelco, Katie Elliott

Division of Community Engagement Resources

In the summer of 2017, VCU’s Office of Service-Learning conducted an evaluation of the impact of service-learning on community partner organizations. This assessment aimed to collect actionable feedback from partners and to inform improvements to service-learning courses at VCU that successfully address partners’ concerns. An external researcher conducted phone interviews with a representative sample of 22 community partners. Partners were asked how a specific service-learning course impacted their organization in three areas: organizational capacity, economically, and socially. Partners were also asked about faculty interactions and the likelihood of recommending the service-learning course to other organizations like their own. This report …

2017-18 Guide For Participants: Virginia Commonwealth University Peer Mentoring Program, Lynn E. Pelco, Cristina Stanciu

Division of Community Engagement Resources

The Peer Mentoring Program Guide for Participants provides information for both university faculty mentees and their faculty mentors to help establish and develop a productive mentoring relationship. This Guide is the handbook for the Virginia Commonwealth University Peer Mentoring Program, which seeks to support early career faculty members, enabling them to succeed and thrive in the academy as both scholars and educators. The VCU Peer Mentoring program is part of the VCU Office of Faculty Affairs.

Vcu Peer Mentoring Program: 2017-18 Guide For Participants, Lynn Pelco, Cristina Stanciu

The Peer Mentoring Program Guide for Participants provides information for both university faculty mentees and their faculty mentors to help establish and develop a productive mentoring relationship. This Guide is the handbook for the Virginia Commonwealth University Peer Mentoring Program, which seeks to support early career faculty members, enabling them to succeed and thrive in the academy as both scholars and educators. The VCU Peer Mentoring program is part of the VCU Office of Faculty Affairs.

Called To Teach: A Mixed Methods Exploration Of Community College Adjunct Faculty’S Teaching Self-Efficacy, Christy L. Tyndall

Theses and Dissertations

Adjunct faculty teach over 50% of courses in U.S. higher education but little is known about them as educators. Strong evidence has been found in the K-12 literature demonstrating the link between teachers’ beliefs, instructional practices, and subsequent student outcomes. Teaching self-efficacy, beliefs in one’s capabilities to perform specific tasks in a particular context, is an important contributor to motivation and performance (Tschannen-Moran et al., 1998). This research advances teaching and learning literature in higher education and provides insight into an understudied population of educators by exploring adjunct faculty’s teaching self-efficacy and factors that influence those beliefs. In this mixed …

Virginia College Access Resource Study: Region One Report, Amy Corning, Kate Daly, Jesse Senechal

MERC Publications

This research brief shares the results of a MERC study commissioned by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) and supported by Virginia 529 about college access in central Virginia. The purpose of college access providers is discussed as well the current areas of need. A list of access providers in Virginia are listed at the end of the brief.

Answering The Question, "To What End?": Building A System Of Enterprise Data Measurement To Track And Assess Our Engagement With And Impact On Our Communities, Valerie Holton

Division of Community Engagement Resources

This was presented at the Florida Campus Compact held February 8-10, 2016.

Smarter, Better, Stronger Together: Working In Community-University Partnerships, Valerie Holton

Division of Community Engagement Resources

This presentation was facilitated by Valerie Holton at Florida Atlantic University on April 15, 2016.

A Neighborhood Team Approach To Strengthening University-Neighborhood Relations, Tito Luna

Division of Community Engagement Resources

At an urban university like Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), people and programs often blend into the cultural fabric of its surrounding neighborhoods. Opportunities and challenges inevitably arise. How can a university partner with contiguous communities to develop mutually-beneficial relationships? This presentation describes how a neighborhood outreach director works closely with neighborhoods, a neighborhood liaison group, university police and the City of Richmond. Learn how various university units came together to form the VCU Neighborhood Team.

High Impact Practices (Hips) Assessment Model: 2015-2016 Pilot Mid-Year Report, Lynn E. Pelco, Janice Baab

Division of Community Engagement Resources

A systematic institutional assessment model was developed to investigate the impact of high impact educational practices (HIPs) on undergraduate student success at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). The proposed VCU HIPs Assessment Model provides a systematic framework for assessing the impact of high impact educational practices on VCU undergraduates. Recommendations for institutionalizing the VCU HIPs Assessment Model are made.