Adult and Continuing Education Commons^™

Cs4autism: Supporting Neurodivergent Students In Computer Science Pathways Beyond High School, Darlene Bowman

Open Educational Resources

Students on the autism spectrum are increasingly participating in computer science (CS) education at the K-12 level. However, the transition from high school to postsecondary education, employment, or technical training remains a significant challenge.

This resource provides educators, counselors, and program coordinators with practical strategies to support autistic students as they navigate pathways in computer science beyond high school. It emphasizes inclusive practices, structured supports, and strengths-based approaches aligned with neurodiversity.

The Rhetorical Agency Of Student-Parents: Assembling, Archiving, And Naming Practices And Interpretations That Transform Worlds, Dhipinder Walia

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is an interdisciplinary project that uses interview data collected from six student-parents attending Bronx Community College during 2024 to 2025. Using rhetorical and critical discourse analysis, this dissertation argues student-parents enact their rhetorical agency to transform their college experience. Specifically, student-parents use their rhetorical agency to interpret time and place in a way that centers their own wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of their children. This dissertation focuses on interpretations and ordinary practices that reimagine what time and place can look and feel like on a college campus. Additionally, student-parents enact their rhetorical agency through ordinary practices …

An Autoethnographic Study Of A Technical Services Librarian’S Teaching Journey During The Tenure Track: “Define Myself For Myself To Both Survive And Thrive”, Junli Diao

Publications and Research

This autoethnographic study explores the disorienting dilemma that a technical services librarian experienced while alternating between working behind the scenes to fulfill professional responsibilities and teaching in the library to meet organizational expectations as a faculty member. The analysis of personal data accumulated during the tenure track period reveals three themes: teaching as learning to become, teaching as learning to challenge the system, and teaching as learning to research. Reflection focuses on three themes interconnected by the concept and practice of mindful learning. With the acknowledgement of limitations, this autoethnography concludes it was the self-reflective lifelong learning mindset that helped …

Graduate Student Retention: Examining Why Master’S Students Leave And What Motivates Their Return In A Large Public University System, Sonja Prophete

Theses and Dissertations

Graduate student persistence is a relatively unexplored area in the literature of higher education studies; specifically, at a multi-institutional scale at the master's level. This research study examines the factors which cause students to discontinue their master's degrees, and what conditions could possibly support them returning to their program at a large urban public university system. The current study was guided by Hoyt and Winn's (2004) distinction between non-returning students, and Bean & Metzner's (1985) theoretical model of student attrition. A sequential mixed-methods study was conducted to examine the institutional and environmental influences on students' decision-making processes.

The quantitative data …

Active Learning: Eight Models That Shape Instructional Practice, A.E. Dreyfuss, Ana Fraiman, Karmen T. Yu

Publications and Research

Developed since the mid-20^th century, several instructional models have provided practical means to shift the emphasis in learning from lecture to engagement by students. The snapshots of models presented in this paper include Cooperative Learning, Problem-Based Learning (PBL), Supplemental Instruction (SI) (also PALS, PASS), Team-Based Learning (TBL), Emerging Scholars Program (Mathematics Workshop, MathExcel), Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL), Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), and Learning Assistants (LA). These models have been well-disseminated, widely adopted, and incorporated in disciplines beyond their origins. For purposes of exploration and consideration of implementation, these “snapshots” provide an overview. Features of each model are …

Living Heritage, Resilience And Ethically Informed Infrastructures In Malawi, Martha B. Lerski, Frank Puluputu Mwale

Publications and Research

Rooted in a rural community’s needs, this paper explores how historically, and ethically informed infrastructures can support community engagement towards identification, documentation, and dissemination of local, traditional, and indigenous knowledge relating to climate change. The paper examines climate adaptation and sustainability issues through the lenses of community organizing and Library & Information Science best practices. It draws on a growing body of literature identifying a role for expanded epistemological and subject discipline perspectives. While the impacts of climate on material culture are increasingly recognized, intangible, and biocultural heritage have not received as much attention. Living heritage traditions and knowledge systems …

Arts-Based Sustainability: From New York To Malawi, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Recognizing that libraries serve multiple constituencies and subject areas, this chapter documents and advocates for development of transdisciplinary arts-based research (ABR) and culture-related projects linked to environmental challenges. Libraries contribute collections and spaces, as well as the research of library and information scientists. Libraries are currently among invisible contributors to sustainability planning and services. The chapter will link this invisibility to the value of what visual arts refer to as negative space elements in subjects ranging from traditional ecological knowledge to environmental science. Library collections, projects, and research contribute to education for sustainable development (ESD) as required to achieve the …

A Broken Glass And Its Pieces: The Psychological Impact On Children In Gaza, Qamar Bazar

Publications and Research

This review article is on the psychological effects of ongoing violence on children living in Gaza through a trauma-informed approach to bring together research from academic articles, clinical studies, and journalistic reports published between 2023 and 2025. Based on the sources selected, their focus is on children’s mental health and whether they came from trusted and credible platforms. Rather than just summarizing the research, the paper uses relevant sources to understand how distress shows up in children with mental health struggles such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), dissociative amnesia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Questions like how they are related to …

“Like A Fish Being Judged By My Ability To Fly”: Barriers To Accessibility In Postgraduate Study, Molly E. Thompson

Publications and Research

This research paper explores the unique accessibility challenges faced by disabled postgraduate students and what can be done to address them. Testimonies and formal studies alike show how disabled graduate students have to deal with stigmatizing attitudes from their instructors (especially if they hold intersectional marginalized identities) on top of systemic barriers such as strict deadlines, unsustainably heavy workloads, inaccessible travel requirements, and disability services that are not suited to undergraduate needs. These problems are especially prominent in medical school where demands on time and energy are especially rigorous. To address these issues, disability service programs must be reformed to …

Chatgpt Didn’T Write This: Evaluating The Impact Of Llms With A Case Study In Grading Cuny Language Immersion Program Student Essays, Benjamin Inbar

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study evaluates the capabilities and limitations of large language models (LLMs), specifically OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4o, in grading essays from students in the City University of New York’s Language Immersion Program. The program serves English language learners with diverse linguistic and demographic backgrounds, offering intensive language instruction to prepare students for academic success in college. Using a dataset of 30 pre- and post-program essays scored by program instructors and ChatGPT-4o under three paradigms, this research explores the alignment between human and AI-generated scores across five rubric-based competency areas. Findings reveal that ChatGPT-4o aligns moderately with human grading, with the strongest agreement …

The Cuny Community Colleges Consortium: Workforce Development Transformation Through Systems Change, Daniel Matishek, Lori Conkling

Open Educational Resources

In 2021, Queensborough Community College (QCC) was awarded a $5 million Strengthening Community Colleges (SCC) Training Grant from the United States Department of Labor to develop and oversee a Consortium of six community colleges – named the CUNY Community Colleges Consortium (CUNYCCC) - within the City University of New York (CUNY), with the goal of transforming the University’s workforce development programs and addressing the needs of unemployed New York City (NYC) residents impacted by Covid-19. CUNYCCC offered participants workforce pathways in the labor sectors of education, technology, and health. Each college enhanced their workforce training programs through a variety of …

Eng 110: Narrative Essay, Justine Matias

Open Educational Resources

This assignment asks students to compose a reflective narrative essay examining a significant moment in their language and literacy development. Drawing from literacy studies and linguistic justice frameworks, the assignment positions students' diverse language experiences—including multilingualism, code-switching, and various communication modes—as valuable resources for meaning-making rather than deficits requiring correction. Students select a meaningful personal moment related to language or literacy, develop it through rich sensory detail and narrative techniques, and analyze its broader social significance by connecting individual experience to larger cultural, educational, or societal patterns. The assignment incorporates Universal Design for Learning principles through multiple pathways for success: …

Leveraging Ai Tools In University Writing Instruction: Enhancing Student Success While Upholding Academic Integrity, Daisuke Akiba, Rebecca Garte

Publications and Research

The emergence of AI-powered Large Language Models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini, presents both opportunities and challenges for higher education, particularly regarding academic integrity in writing instruction. This exploratory study examines a novel pedagogical approach that integrates LLMs as required feedback tools in a university-level psychology writing assignment. The exclusive online approach emphasizes improvement through revision, requiring students to obtain AI-generated feedback on ungraded initial drafts based on an instructor-provided rubric, with final assessment focused on the quality of subsequent revisions. Analysis of survey data from 39 undergraduate students, incorporating both quantitative measures and qualitative responses, revealed several …

Finding Language For The Experience Of Pltl, A.E. Dreyfuss, Lesley Howell, Maria Cecilia Barone, Sofia Delgado, Sally Faulkner, Ana Fraiman, Robin Frye, Redwan Shahid

Publications and Research

The purpose of this paper is to share a means of communicating why Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) has provided a sense of deep connection among practitioners, including Peer Leaders, faculty and administrators. To arrive at finding the qualitative language of emotions, three discussion sessions were facilitated over the course of three days during the 11th Annual Conference of the Peer-Led Team Learning International Society (June 2023, University of Houston Downtown). Facilitators’ techniques, prompts and the necessary pivots used to question assumptions are presented. We found that despite the many variations in the institutions where PLTL is practiced, we are united …

On The Lower Levels Of The Ivory Tower: What Color Collars Do Adjunct Faculty Wear?, Frederick Tucker

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Institutional reliance on tenure-line faculty reached a historic low after the Great Recession in 2009, remaining at approximately a third of all faculty through 2022. Postsecondary institutions have steadily increased their reliance on full-time adjunct faculty over the last two decades. Part-time adjuncts, meanwhile, were hired in great numbers before and during the Great Recession, as student enrollment increased, but have steadily declined since 2012, as college enrollment waned. Almost all evidence suggests that tenure expansion would benefit both the recipients of tenure and their students, but would come at a cost. There are few studies, however, that distinguish between …

Use Generative Artificial Intelligence (Genai) To Learn: A Presentation Deck For Learners, Brett Whysel

Open Educational Resources

This presentation explores the effective and ethical use of Large Language Models (LLMs) by students, in higher education. It covers the purpose of higher education, the potential use cases of LLMs as tutors, editors, creative directors, and coaches, and offers guidance on how to use these tools to enhance learning while avoiding common pitfalls. The presentation also emphasizes the importance of critical thinking, ethical considerations, and prompt engineering in maximizing the benefits of LLMs while maintaining academic integrity.

Edc 2400 Teaching Emergent Bilingual, Ivana Espinet

Open Educational Resources

This is a syllabus for the course "Teaching Emergent Bilinguals". This course explores language acquisition theories, the historical, philosophical, and pedagogical evolution of how educational institutions have approached their work with emergent bilinguals, and pedagogical strategies for teaching emergent bilinguals. It focuses on the role of educators in supporting emergent bilinguals’ learning language and literacy across content.

Unshackling Our Youth Through Love And Mutual Recognition: Notes From An Undergraduate Class On School Discipline Inspired By Ta-Nehisi Coates And Bell Hooks, Gene Fellner, Mark Comesañas, Tahjuan Ferrell

Publications and Research

This research essay challenges educators to embrace mutual recognition when interacting with students. Our data are the words of the young people who participated with us in one particular undergraduate class on school discipline at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey, in the United States in the fall of 2022. Tahjuan, who had been our student in the 7th grade in 2011, co-taught the class with us. In writing this essay and in teaching the class, we were inspired by a short passage fromTa-Nehisi Coates about the shackling young people of color endure and another, by bell hooks, that proposes …

Motivation, Learning, And The Workplace: A Study Of Community College Student Affairs Professionals And Continued Professional Learning, Joseph M. Ginese

Theses and Dissertations

Continued professional learning is a consistent focus of attention for the field of student affairs within higher education. Yet, very little research has been conducted on the factors that influence the motivation of student affairs professionals to pursue continued professional learning, especially professionals within community colleges. This study utilized a quantitative research design to examine the physical and psychological factors of the work environment that can influence a community college student affairs professional’s motivation to pursue continued professional learning. Through the theoretical lens of Lewin’s Field Theory and Eccles’ Expectancy-Value Theory, I designed a 58-item survey (N = 41) …

Online Technologies And Culturally Responsive Pedagogy Workshop Presentation Slides, Daniel Matishek

Open Educational Resources

The workshops address online technologies such as learning management systems, screen capture tools, communication tools, online teaching pedagogy, and online learning assessments. Additionally, through an emphasis on culturally responsive pedagogy, participants will explore how knowing students' values and experiences can be used to inform teaching, selecting curriculum content with students in mind, using student-centered teaching techniques, and creating a supportive environment online.

Whiteness As The Standard: Shifting Ideologies, Race, And Social Context, Kelsey Swift

Publications and Research

In previous work, I have documented and analyzed the persistence of mainstream ideologies around ’standard’ and ’nonstandard’ American English in the adult ESOL classroom and their connection to linguistic racism and anti-Blackness. This study explores how these ideologies developed more broadly, employing elements of raciolinguistic genealogy and metapragmatics to analyze historical language scholarship. I find that while the linguistic features of ‘nonstandard’ English have remained remarkably consistent in the popular imagination, they became increasingly linked with Blackness, especially during and after white backlash to the Great Migration (and other cultural and political changes) in the mid-20th century. I argue that …

Stock Stories Versus Counterstories: A Contemporary Retelling And Centering Of Disenfranchised Narratives, Karen C. Pitt

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study examines the literacy narratives of disfranchised educators. It unveils the toll the “literacy myth” has taken on their educational pursuits in American institutions. Through these published narratives, the study explores the ways in which the Eurocentric ideology dominates academic institutions, noting the marginalizing effects this dominant ideology has had on minoritized students, teachers, and administrators. Understanding that the narrators have remained at the margins in their own stories, this study seeks to address this shortfall by exploring the author’s own literacy teaching narrative. It uses critical race theory (CRT) and CRT counterstory as an innovative methodology to retell …

What Is The ‘E’ In Esol? Three Papers On Linguistic Borders, Normativity, And Race In Adult English Education, Kelsey Swift

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this three-paper dissertation project, I explore how ‘English’ becomes a recognizable object within the context of adult ESOL education. Building on scholarship on named languages (García, 2019; Makoni & Pennycook, 2006), the historical construction of languages (Bonfiglio, 2010; Irvine & Gal, 2000), and raciolinguistic ideologies (Flores & Rosa, 2015; Rosa & Flores, 2017), I analyze how language, both as an abstract concept and as a collection of linguistic features, is treated within adult ESOL, looking at specific contemporary classrooms, as well as historical texts. This work culminated in the three studies I present here – focused, in turn, on …

Coh 1700: Health Care Coordination Syllabus, Sasha Harry

Open Educational Resources

This is the syllabus for a Health Care Coordination course.

The goal of health care coordination is to improve patient outcomes with better health care services. Care coordinators play a critical role in improving patient care. Students will learn how to effectively advocate for patients and interact with members of the healthcare team in finding solutions to provide high quality, value-based, and efficient care. Effective communication styles, assessing patient’s needs and goals, and helping with patients’ transitions of care are among many topics covered in this course. Upon course completion, students will have acquired basic knowledge and skills to educate, …

Children And Technology: Why Technology Is Important For Our Children, Jill Mactiernan

Student Theses

Many people get scared when they hear about how much technology runs the world today. They tend to get frightened when they go to a store and have to use a selfcheckout instead of a cashier. Parents are scared of the dangers of the internet and how it will affect their children, so they tend to try to prevent/limit their children’s usage of the internet and other technologies. However, that may not always be the right move. Technology can not be avoided; it is a part of our everyday lives. With proper guidance and teachings, children can learn how to …

The ‘Ezel Project’ Inquiry: Mesotransformative Praxis To Decenter Whiteness In Racialized Organizations And Schools, Justin Gerald

Theses and Dissertations

In this study, a Black scholar in the midst of understanding his neurodivergence and his identity as someone who has been dis/abled reacts to the prodding of white peers by creating a course on decentering whiteness. The scholar then interviews ten of the participants in said class to understand how they came to select such a course and what they might have accomplished in attempting to challenge the structure of whiteness in their institutions. Drawing on Critical Race Theory, Critical Whiteness Studies, Dis/Crit, and in particular the work of Victor Ray, this work seeks to examine the narratives that brought …

A Queens Community Teacher Storytelling Project: A Qualitative Research Study Of Five Local Afro-Caribbean And Latina Public School Teachers And Community Teachers In New York City, José Alfredo Menjivar Ortéz

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation thesis examines the lived experiences, life stories, and storytelling of five Afro-Caribbean and Latina people, who are all local from the borough of Queens, alumni of New York City’s public schools, and since then, became their local public school teachers, classroom practitioners, and local community teachers. We refer to this specific and unique population of teachers as alumni-community teachers and to these and other similar stories as teacher life stories.

This qualitative research and study were conducted through a series of writing workshops and semi-structured interviews. The study’s main examination is preoccupied to understand how local teachers make …

Effect Of The Virtual Simulation Paired Prebriefing-Debriefing Strategy On Nursing Students’ Self-Efficacy Perceptions And Virtual Simulation Performance In The Care Of Patients Experiencing A Myocardial Infarction, Laura M. Penalo

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Through the use of virtual simulations (VS) in nursing education, nursing students are exposed to a variety of clinical scenarios that may potentially improve their learning of competencies, increase their self-efficacy, and enhance their future clinical performance. Despite limited quantitative research incorporating evidence-based strategies such as prebriefing and debriefing as part of the VS experience, this educational technology continues to gain popularity. In 2020, the use of VS in the nursing curriculum exponentially increased when the global COVID-19 pandemic impacted traditional in-person clinicals, laboratory, and human patient simulation (HPS) experiences. Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) programs have benefited from the use …

Muslim Fashion Influencers Shaping Modesty In The Twenty-First Century On Social Media, Awa Sanno

Student Theses and Dissertations

The depiction of Muslim women in Western media has been a long-running joke, as they are framed to be oppressed by the burdens of their religion and the hijab. However, Muslim women have used the power of social media to counter that narrative through their large followings as fashion influencers, digital creators, food bloggers, makeup artists, lifestyle bloggers, musicians, and so much more. Specifically, Muslim fashion influencers are changing and redefining the notion of modesty throughout their posted content on social media. Many people in Muslim communities see this redefinition of modesty as a conflict with the "proper" ways of …

Credit For Prior Learning Memorandum Of Understanding Template, Daniel Matishek, Kelsey Harro

Open Educational Resources

Template agreement to be used between an educational institution and a partner to establish a credit for prior learning agreement.