Education Commons^™

Belonging: Stories From Multilingual Learners In The Linguistic Minority, Riley Stouffer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study examines how multilingual learners in the linguistic minority (MLLMs) experience connection and belonging in a Rocky Mountain middle school. Although multilingual learners (MLs) have received increased attention, MLLMs, whose home languages are not widely spoken in the school context, remain overlooked. Grounded in Krashen’s (1982) Affective Filter Hypothesis and Wills and Shinar’s (2000) Supportive Functions of Belonging, this study explores how MLLMs navigate school, what fosters or hinders belonging, and how these experiences shape engagement.

Data from semistructured interviews, classroom observations, and field notes with eight MLLM students in grades 6–8 revealed that belonging was fostered …

The Experiences Of School Psychologists Serving Students With Traumatic Brain Injuries: A Phenomenology, E. Grace Ritchie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a complex experience associated with a diverse constellation of symptoms and challenges. TBI scholars have extensively explored the varying needs of youth in the aftermath of a head injury. Likewise, recent literature details recommendations for school psychological services in support of these students. Such recommendations largely reflect insights drawn from broader TBI and disability research, integrated with the established scope of school psychologists’ practice (e.g., the National Association of School Psychologists Practice Model). Nevertheless, school psychologists’ perceptions of these students’ challenges have been inadequately examined. Such perspectives are likely valuable, given school psychologists’ unique training …

A Guidance Practice Model: Reframing Prevention, Identification, And Treatment Of Trauma-Impacted Students With Intellectual Disabilities, Mark H. Thomas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The experience and exposure of trauma among youth, especially continuous traumatic experiences, poses considerable risks of long-term effects. Moreover, untreated trauma and subsequently negative mental health outcomes, like anxiety and depressive disorders, can negatively impact the psychosocial and academic functioning of students. One population that is generally overlooked regarding mental health in schools are students with intellectual disabilities (ID). This is problematic as this population is at an increased risk of traumatic experiences, such as maltreatment and social exclusion.

Moreover, the comorbidity of trauma and internalizing disorders among students with ID can exacerbate already existing challenges and deficits with social …

Oral History Interview With Timothy Clark (Part 2), Timothy Clark

Oral History Collection

The interview covered:

• Teaching and Curriculum
• Research
• Challenges & Future
• Personal Reflections
• Libraries
• Advice
• Advice for Students

A Developmental Evaluation Of A Dental Hygiene Program And A Community Health Partnership, Laura Jacob

Higher Education: Doctoral Research Projects

Today, dental hygiene education commonly occurs in community college settings which are removed from dental schools thus dental hygiene students graduate with relatively little to no exposure to dentistry or directly with a clinically practicing dentist. With dental hygiene workforce shortages at an extremely high level, locally and nationally, it is imperative to matriculate students who are poised to be successful in the changing landscape of healthcare.

The purpose of this program evaluation was to investigate via the developmental program evaluation model, the perceived benefits of a potential collaboration between the Colorado Mountain College (CMC) dental hygiene program and a …

A Phenomenological Study Of Caregivers For Sexual Minority Hospice Patients, Catherine H. Bianchi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals face disproportionate barriers in healthcare across the lifespan that persist and often intensify at the end of life. Despite hospice’s mission to provide comfort, dignity, and patient-centered support, it remains unclear whether these services equitably meet the needs of sexual minority patients. Seeking hospice care presents a unique conundrum for many LGB individuals: it necessitates inviting representatives of a historically exclusionary healthcare system into the privacy of their homes - spaces that often serve as sanctuaries of identity, safety, and autonomy. The already vulnerable experience of seeking care in one’s final days can be …

Establishing Cultivating Dialogic Feedback (Cdf): Enhancing Teacher Evaluation Through The Humanization Of Teachers, Adrian Michael Blumenthal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Current practices in K-12 teacher evaluation look to mechanize the evaluation model, and effectuate better teaching by enforcing compliance to the evaluation model. This practice treats teachers as disseminators of instructional practice and thereby of information to students which dehumanizes teachers. The following research takes a different approach to understanding teacher evaluation by working away from fixing the evaluation model by replacing it with another model. Instead, the research examines the breadth of compliance culture, called performativity, and examines the relationship between teacher and evaluator. At the root of the research is discovering how the relationship between teacher and evaluator …

Beyond The Benefit: A Multi-Modal Narrative Study Of Black Women's Experiences With Employer-Sponsored Tuition Assistance, Britany Patricia Hamilton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the lived experiences of Black women engaging with employer-sponsored tuition assistance programs, focusing on how social, structural, and identity-based factors shape their educational and professional trajectories. While these benefits are often framed as neutral tools for career advancement, this study examines them through the intersecting lenses of race, gender, and labor, revealing deeper dynamics of access, value, and belonging. Guided by a qualitative narrative inquiry approach, this study employed a multi-modal data collection design involving video diaries, semi-structured interviews, and a focus group. Three participants, all Black women between the ages of 30 and 40, shared their …

Exhibiting Rural Consciousness: A Study Of State And Local Level Governance In Rural Higher Education, Steven J. Skadron

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Evolving economies in Craig and Salida, CO, spurred community interest in joining Colorado Mountain College’s taxing district and bringing the college to their communities. When they sought to join, Craig had a local college embedded in its community that was governed by a state-level board; in contrast, Salida had no local college of its own. The two communities’ pursuit of a locally governed college raised a question about governing boards and whether one type of governing board might serve rural communities better. Using a framework of rural consciousness, this nonexperimental, cross-sectional, quantitative study employed data gathered from a survey instrument …

Recruiting, Retaining, And Culturally Sustaining Latine Teachers In A School District With A High Population Of Latine Students, Lisa Garcia Simms

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Latine students make up 52% of the Denver Public Schools (DPS) population, yet only 23% of its teaching force is Latine. This imbalance has real implications for student experience and opportunity. In 2024, DPS commissioned the La Raza Report, which detailed challenges faced by Latine students and educators and called for systemic improvements. The findings highlighted a clear need to strengthen recruitment, retention, and culturally sustaining support for Latine educators.

This improvement science project investigated how DPS might improve the experiences of Latine teachers—engaging educators across career stages, with a particular focus on supporting early-career Latine teachers —through identity-affirming mentorship …

Examining Whiteness: A Narrative Inquiry Into Racial Identity Among White Women In Study Abroad Programs, Audrey Moreno Townsend

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this narrative inquiry study was to better understand race in contexts both domestically and abroad through the perspectives and experiences of white women who studied abroad outside of Europe and the Anglosphere. The investigation explored on how these experiences shaped white women’s understanding of racial identity upon returning to their home institutions. The research question which was addressed was: How do white women experience study abroad programming? Research highlights a critical gap in existing literature on this topic. While white women are centered in the study, it is contextualized considering how People of Color experience the world. …

Making Fractals: Expanding Learning Opportunities In The Classroom, Eliza Leszczynski, Eileen Fernández, Elise Lahiere

LASER Journal

Fractals have long been appreciated for their beautiful, self-similar structure and infinite complexity. Commonly found in art and architecture, fractals are not only visually appealing but they have been found to reduce stress in individuals because of their patterns’ connections to nature. Fractal structures can even be seen in familiar real-life objects like trees or cauliflowers. Fractal geometry, with its ability to create complicated effects from simple formulas, provides a way to connect mathematics with visual results that are “spontaneously attractive, and often breathtakingly beautiful". The act of creating fractals can spark curiosity, enabling participants to generate vastly different results …

Enhancing Cataract Surgery Outcomes: Optimal Use Of Pre- And Post-Operative Eye Drops, Keith Skolnick M.D., Anu Valiaveedu

Mako: NSU Undergraduate Student Journal

Many preoperative and postoperative cataract patients struggle with comprehending the use of prescription medication as directed. Language barriers and low health literacy levels are major factors contributing to improper use of prescriptions. To increase patients comprehension, the Fort Lauderdale Eye Institute employed an educational intervention consisting of a live presentation and an instructional video. Results found that 44% of patients were hesitant to ask questions to clinical staff, 32% felt overwhelmed, and nearly 70% lacked confidence in using their prescribed eye drops. Following the intervention, 91% of patients reported increased confidence in their medications, and most indicated that the video …

From Infection To Restoration: A Case Study On Dental Extraction In The Maxilla Anterior, Melanie Ramirez

Mako: NSU Undergraduate Student Journal

A dental implant is a restorative surgical procedure that serves as a solution to replace missing teeth that imitate the function, sensation, and appearance of natural teeth. The objective of this dental case study is to examine the diagnosis, treatment, and post-operation of a patient with a history of tooth loss and infection in the anterior maxilla. This case follows a 55-year-old patient, Jorge Marquez, name changed for confidentiality, who presented a severe tooth abscess on tooth #10 on the anterior maxilla which had previously undergone root canal treatment (Figure 1B). Radiographic evaluations illustrated the severity of the abscess the …

“Can You Hear Me?” Teacher Stories About State-Mandated Standardized Testing, Michele I. Shelton

Educational Studies Dissertations

This study strives to understand teacher perceptions as a meaningful examination of state-mandated standardized testing's impacts on students and its outcomes by asking:

How do teachers experience the impact of state-mandated standardized tests on the students as evidenced in their stories?

What are the benefits and disadvantages to the use of state-mandated standardized tests?

To what extent has state-mandated standardized tests created inequalities in the educational system?

This study utilized a Narrative Research approach with [descriptive] interpretive qualitative research. Questionnaires and interviews were analyzed using the Thematic Inductive Analysis approach. The theoretical framework was adopted from Robinson & Robinson: centering …

The Residual Impact Of Slavery On How Enslaved Black Females Defined And Made Meaning Of Sexual Violence: A Content Analysis, Suzanne R. Bates

Dissertations

Thompson-Miller & Picca (2016) and Feimster (2023) argued that enslaved African American women, and even free African Americans after the Civil War were victims of non-consensual sexual activity and rape. The NISVS report revealed that before the age of 18 years old, 35.5% of African American women experienced contact sexual violence, 29.5% experienced non-contact unwanted sexual encounters, and 20.7% experienced rape (Basile et al., 2022). Researchers of slave scholarship have made the case for the importance of including discourse on slavery and enslaved Black females’ experiences when discussing present day sexual violence among Black women in the US today (Balfour, …

Aligning Novice Special Educators Classroom Practices, Mentoring Support, And Needs With Discrit Classroom Ecology, Kaitlyn Stillwagon

Theses and Dissertations

This multiple case study investigates the alignment of novice special educators’ classroom practices, mentoring supports, and expressed needs with DisCrit Classroom Ecology. Situated in a large, urban city in the Northeast United States, this study centers the experiences of novice special educators and their mentors to examine this alignment to uncover gaps and best practices for improved mentoring support for novice special educators. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, classroom artifacts, and teacher reflection journals. Thematic analysis using both deductive and inductive coding revealed that novice special educators demonstrated emerging entry points toward DisCrit aligned practices, particularly in the use …

August 22, 2025 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

The Minutes Of The Marshall University Graduate Council Meeting, August 22, 2025, Marshall University Graduate Council

Graduate Council Minutes

No abstract provided.

Impact Of Retrieval Augmented Generation And Large Language Model Complexity On Undergraduate Exams Created And Taken By Ai Agents, Erick S. Tyndall, Colleen Gayheart, Alexandre Some, Joseph Genz, Torrey J. Wagner, Brent T. Langhals

Faculty Publications

The capabilities of large language models (LLMs) have advanced to the point where entire textbooks can be queried using retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), enabling AI to integrate external, up-to-date information into its responses. This study evaluates the ability of two OpenAI models, GPT-3.5 Turbo and GPT-4 Turbo, to create and answer exam questions based on an undergraduate textbook. 14 exams were created with four true-false, four multiple-choice, and two short-answer questions derived from an open-source Pacific Studies textbook. Model performance was evaluated with and without access to the source material using text-similarity metrics such as ROUGE-1, cosine similarity, and word embeddings. …

Building Family Partnerships Toward Equitable Community Engagement And Integration In Stem Education, Juan Salinas, Sheila Cardenas-Vazquez, Sherlyn De Alva, Elizabeth Salinas, Griselda Salinas, Virginia Santanas

Organization and School Leadership Faculty Publications

In their quest to further their understanding of the power of plática (authentic dialogue) in community engagement efforts, the researchers/practitioners embedded themselves in deep, critical conversations with family leaders from a community-based organization on issues of equity and excellence in education. A family-centered theory of change developed by trusting relationships and partnerships with students, their families, and educators, was incorporated in the professional development of STEM faculty, revision of STEM curricula, and the transformation of teaching practices. This study advances the body of knowledge on the operationalization of servingness and provides insight on the utilization of sense of belonging metrics …

Infographic: Pisa 2022 Insights – Effort And Persistence In Maths, Dominique Russell

Teacher infographics

Each cycle of the global Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) includes a student questionnaire. One questionnaire topic – effort and persistence in mathematics – is essential for students’ success and skill development. The data provide useful prompts for teachers when considering their own students.

Challenging Life Events Of Undergraduate Students, Kristi Lewis, Gayle Roux, Catherine Dingley

The Qualitative Report

College students often face many difficult or stressful personal life events such as academic pressure, financial worries, family stress, or a relationship breakup. These events can impact their mental health and academic performance. Amid the growing mental health crisis on college campuses, it is important to explore the strategies that college students employ to tackle challenging life events. The purpose of this study was to (1) explore the experience of college undergraduates as they navigate challenging life events; and (2) examine strategies and resources utilized by the students. We conducted a qualitative descriptive study informed by phenomenology (Giorgi, 2009) using …

20250822: Office Of Assessment, Program Reviews, 1983-2024, Academic Affairs

Guides to University Archives

These items include materials from the office of Academic Affairs at Marshall University from 1983-2004. Items were received in 2025 and include program reviews for undergraduate, graduate, and MU SOM programs. Of these programs include the MS in Communication Disorders; PhD in Biomedical Sciences; BA in Communication Studies; BS in Biomedical Engineering; BS in Civil Engineering; Doctor of Nursing Practice; MS in Dietetics; MS in Biomedical Sciences; BS in Dietetics; BS in Engineering; MS in Engineering; Associate of Science in Nursing; BS in Nursing; MS in Nursing; BS in Respiratory Care; Bachelor of Social Work; Associate of Applied Science in …

Enhancing Research Training Curricula Through The Ethical Integration Of Ai-Powered Tools: Opportunities And Challenges For Counselor Educators, Joshua C. Watson, Chris Leeth, Kevin Wong, Justen Schroeder

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

This article reviews existing training models used to teach research courses and facilitate researcher identity development in counselor education curricula and suggests how generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) can be incorporated into these courses as an instructional aid that improves researcher efficiency. Various GenAI tools used across stages of the research process are introduced with a discussion of their ethical implications and how they can be integrated into exiting lesson plans.

Counselor-In-Training Perceptions Of Artificial Intelligence: Implications For Counselor Education, Leo Gonzalez Jr., Deija Mccalla

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

This study examined the perceptions of counselors-in-training (CIT) on artificial intelligence (AI) in counseling practice and training. 31 CIT responded to three open-ended questions about the benefits, drawbacks, and overall attitudes of integrating AI into counseling practice and education. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the responses. The findings showed that CIT perceive AI as a clinical support tool, especially for tasks such as diagnosis and treatment planning. Additionally, CIT voiced concerns of potential overreliance on AI, ethical risks, confidentiality concerns, and the possible loss of human connection. Furthermore, although several CIT expressed cautious optimism regarding AI's use in counselor …

A Pilot-Study Evaluating The Fidelity Of Chatgpt In Client Simulations, Eric Tod Beeson, Yusen Zhai, Russell Fulmer, Andrew M. Burck, Rakesh Maurya

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Generative AI (genAI) is expanding in counselor education. This pilot study evaluated ChatGPT 4o's voice mode for simulating client scenarios during 53-minute mock-intake sessions with master’s-level counseling students. Analyzing eight domains (authenticity, consistency, emotional expression, empathy, cultural dynamics, self-awareness, goal setting, and role play confusion), ChatGPT’s responses showed good to excellent fidelity when compared to a typical client. Limitations such as formulaic and idealized responses raised authenticity concerns. ChatGPT offers a scalable, cost-effective tool for pre-practicum training, with potential to enhance skill development across the curriculum. Educators are encouraged to integrate genAI thoughtfully, prioritizing ethical considerations and iterative prompt refinement.

Utilizing Artificial Intelligence Therapeutic Adjuncts To Support Autistic Adults Between Counseling Sessions, Carlos J. Castaneda Jr, Nicole Noble, Afroze N. Shaikh

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into mental health care presents innovative opportunities for therapeutic interventions. This pilot study examined the use of a customized Artificial Intelligence Therapeutic Adjunct (AITA) as a supplementary counseling tool for adults with level one autism spectrum disorder who attended weekly counseling sessions. Using a Single Subject Design to review trends in mental health symptoms and perceptions of the AITA, participants engaged with the AITA over four weeks, completed weekly anxiety and depression assessments, and post-intervention and satisfaction surveys. Thematic Analysis identified common counseling concerns and the AITA’s use of counseling techniques. Although findings suggest …

Reimagining The Counseling Profession: Preparing Counselors For Ai And Digital Health Integration, Carl J. Sheperis, Dusti L. Annan-Coultas, Caronne C. C. Rush

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Digital health technologies including artificial intelligence (AI) are transforming mental healthcare delivery, creating new opportunities and challenges for counseling practice. This article examines digital health applications in counseling, including telehealth, mobile apps, digital therapeutics, virtual reality, and AI-powered tools. We explore key implications for practice, including enhanced accessibility, impacts on therapeutic relationships, and ethical considerations. The article presents a six-domain competency framework covering privacy and security, technical proficiency, ethical literacy, clinical integration, therapeutic adaptability, and administrative management. A case study illustrates the practical application of hybrid digital care, while a discussion of counselor education highlights the need for curriculum updates. …

Letter From The Editors: Special Issue: Artificial Intelligence In Professional Counseling And Counselor Preparation, Rachel Jacoby, Sandra Logan-Mckibben

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

No abstract provided.