Educational Leadership Commons^™

Leadership Competency Perceptions Of Rural Community College Presidents In The Coastal Southeast Region, Keith A. Harkins

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

In a 2012 study, the American Association of Community Colleges noted over three quarters of community college presidents surveyed planned to retire in the next ten years. The rural community colleges in the Coastal Southeast Region face additional and unique challenges beyond the growing leadership shortage. Rural community colleges in the Coastal Southeast Region are often the focus of both educational and cultural development within the community. The rural community college president must lead the effort to advance the mission of the college and ensure the college leads the community in a positive direction. This study explored the perceptions of …

An Analysis Of 2013 Program Evaluation Proposals For The School Leadership Preparation Program, Karen Sanzo

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

This article presents a content analysis of the 2013 School Leadership Program (SLP) grants. SLP projects provide a unique opportunity for participants in the field to explore innovative leadership preparation and development and their impact on program participants, schools, school districts, and students. The article begins with an overview of the SLP, the changing field of leadership preparation, and current research in the field. Findings then reveal a range of evaluation tools, methods, and data, the presence of myriad evaluators participating in the projects, and little focus on external dissemination of program evaluation methods beyond the scope of the projects. …

The Public Fallout Of The Humanities Crisis: Critiquing The Public Turn In Rhetoric And Composition Studies, Mary Beth Pennington, Tonya Ritola, Belinda Walzer

English Faculty Publications

[First paragraph]

RECENTLY, KENTUCKY GOVERNOR Matt Bevin stated unequivocally that college students majoring in electrical engineering were more deserving of state funding than those majoring in French literature (Cohen). In a primary debate for the election of 2016, Republican presidential candidate Senator Marco Rubio cautioned philosophy majors that they would be better off learning how to weld (Rappeport), and within the last two years, the Obama administration proposed that we begin ranking US colleges and universities on earnings after graduation—a proposal that rankled colleges and universities and sent humanities scholars into an even deeper tailspin (Shear).

The Development And Validation Of The Secondary Trauma In Resident Assistants Scale, R. Jason Lynch

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

SECONDARY TRAUMATIC STRESS has been described as "the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized or suffering person" (Figley, 1999, p. 10). College resident assistants often serve as first-responders to students who have experienced traumatic life events such as severe mental illness, substance abuse, sexual violence, and hate crimes. To date, the literature has not thoroughly addressed the impact of providing this level of support on collegiate resident assistants. This study aimed to explore one possible outcome identified in individuals in other helping professions: secondary traumatic stress. The researcher set out to develop and validate an instrument …

Pursuing The "Half Empty Question": Biology Undergraduates' Differential Engagement In A Brief Relevance Writing Intervention, Ting Dai, Avi Kaplan, Ying Wang, Jennifer G. Cromley, Tony Perez, Kyle R. Mara, Michael Balsai

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Whereas relevance-writing interventions have shown effects on students’ achievement, a persistent finding is that interventions benefit students with low, but not high, outcome expectancies—a phenomenon that Schwartz et al. (2016) termed the half empty question. In the current mixed-methods study, we investigated the role of undergraduate students’ patterns of engagement in a relevance-writing intervention and their relations to biology course achievement. Ninety-six students who were administered four relevance writing assignments were found to manifest two patterns: Students who completed at least 50% of the intervention in a timely manner outperformed those who completed less-then-50% or completed it late, regardless of …

An Analysis Of The Peninsula One-Stop Career Center In Virginia: Employment Placement And Retention For Dislocated Workers, Caroline Arielle Knight

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

This study includes an analysis of the Peninsula One-Stop Career Center dislocated worker assistance. Specifically, perceptions of employment placement and employment retention were examined by a qualitative analysis of interview data with dislocated workers and staff members and partners of the Peninsula One-Stop Career Center. This study also focused on these workers’ experiences with One-Stop Career Center partners in securing employment opportunities. The study provides additional literature to explain which service and programs effectively serve dislocated workers.

The findings revealed several themes that contributed to employment placement and retention for dislocated workers. It was found that résumé development, job search …

A Call For Framing Educational Leadership From A Cognitive And Learning Science Lens, Steve Myran

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

[Introduction] One of the dominant themes in the field of educational leadership today is that leadership matters in terms of student learning; that effective school leaders can develop the capacities of teachers which in turn can improve student learning outcomes (Darling-Hammond, L., LaPointe, Meyerson & Orr, 2007; Leithwood, Seashore Louis, Anderson & Wahlstrom 2004; Louis, Leithwood, Wahlstrom, Anderson, Michlin, & Masccall, 2010). More specifically, it is widely cited that school leadership is second only to classroom instruction among all school related factors that contribute to student learning (Leithwood, Seashore Louis, Anderson, & Wahlstrom 2004). Others however have disagreed, (Wiseman & …

Presidents' Perceptions Of Entrepreneurial Strategies In Community Colleges: A Disruptive Innovation, James Tyler Hart

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The community college, like all of higher education, has been significantly impacted by a shifting business model and changes in funding. The purpose of this mixed methods, sequential study was to examine community college presidents’ perceptions of entrepreneurial strategies in the higher education industry. The shifting business model requires presidents to look for alternative ways to innovate and adapt as community college funding models change. Community college leaders have also been proactively seeking out alternative revenue streams in order to help offset decreased state funding. Findings of this study show that community college presidents perceive that they must be entrepreneurial …

Self-Determination Theory And The Educational Motivations Of The Recently Incarcerated, Jason Edward Barr

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The primary research objective of this qualitative study is to determine if self-determination theory is applicable to the population of the recently incarcerated. If it is applicable, self-determination theory may be a new method of examining the educational motivations of prisoners and the recently incarcerated. Twelve subjects from the western region of Virginia were interviewed. Each had been in prison for more than six months within the past five years; each also held a general education diploma or equivalent. Subject responses were coded via the three major tenets of self-determination theory: competence, relatedness, and autonomy. Additionally, the researcher coded language …

The Differences In Teacher Self- Efficacy Beliefs Among Elementary School Teachers, Christopher Litz

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to conduct a study that explores the differences in self-efficacy beliefs among specific teacher subgroups within the elementary school environment. This quantitative study searches for the differences in self-efficacy beliefs among teachers who instruct mandated state assessment subjects and those who do not. In addition, this study also attempts to search for differences in self-efficacy beliefs among elementary general education teachers and elementary specialists. This study utilizes Anita Hoy’s Teacher Sense of Self- Efficacy Scale (TSES) to find the self-efficacy differences in three particular domains: classroom management, student engagement, and instructional strategies.

This study …

A Predictor For Ple Management: Impacts Of Self-Regulated Online Learning On Student's Learning Skills, Cherng-Jyh Yen, Chih-Hsiung Tu, Laura Sujo-Montes, Karen Sealander

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Web 2.0 integration requires a high level of learner-centered skills to create a personal learning environment (PLE). The pedagogical capability of Web 2.0 could support and promote self-regulated learning (SRL) by enabling the constructions of PLEs. This study investigated how will each of the six aspects of self-regulated online learning (i.e., environment structuring, goal setting, time management, task strategies, help seeking, & self-evaluation) respectively predict the level of initiative, the sense of control, and the level of self-reflection in personal learning environment (PLE) management. The study concluded that all six aspects of SRL could predict three types of PLE management …

Teachers', Educational Specialists' And School Leaders' Perceptions Of The Cumulative Impact Of Education Reform Mandates, Lucy Nevins Litchmore

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Throughout the history of education, there have been changes in funding, organization, governance, and curriculum. As a result of these changes, education reform and mandates have become cyclical in nature. However, with so many structural changes, the purpose of reform mandates often fall short of the intended purpose; closing achievement gaps and allowing equal access for all students.

The purpose of this study is to examine the way in which teachers’, educational specialists’, and school leaders perceive the cumulative impact of education reform efforts that will be bounded by subject of mathematics. In a qualitative case study, a combination of …

Ethical Leadership In Today's Community Colleges: Presidents Respond To The Completion Agenda, Monica Parish Trent

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The role of ethical leadership for community college presidents is of concern (Anderson, Harbour, & Davies; Wood & Nevarez, 2014), especially given the added pressure on community colleges to increase completion rates for student populations that have historically underperformed academically. In these times of increased scrutiny to produce more college-educated people ready to enter the workforce, college CEO’s are facing a completion agenda climate that is rampant with financial constraints, greater demands from stakeholders, and governmental mandates. The purpose of this descriptive, multiple case study was to examine how community college presidents execute ethical leadership in responding to institutional policy …

The Role Of The School Leader In Collaboration Between Regular And Special Education Teachers, Jospeh Raymond Sciullo

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

In 2004, the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) aligned to language found in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA 2004). This reauthorization required students with disabilities to have access to the same curriculum as their non-disabled peers. This languages means that practices in instruction and assessment for students with disabilities must be aligned to the academic content standards established in each state (Parrish & Stodden, 2009). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of school leadership within the context of teacher collaboration and the factors that contribute to their level of …

Online Learning And Effective Leadership: The Importance Of Relationship Building And Culture, Nadine K. Rupp

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Online and blended learning are becoming more important in k-12 public schools because of their flexibility and increased opportunity for students in urban as well as rural environments. Implementing and sustaining technology-based learning is a complex process that requires educational leaders to have a broad spectrum of knowledge and skills which are critical to the success of online programs. This case study research used in-depth interviews to gather data on how one district was able to provide a successful program using effective leadership skills. Three areas critical to success were identified in the data: clear vision and achievable goals, appropriate …

The Experiences Of Stakeholders In District-University Administrator Preparation Partnerships, Jacob Mckinley Wilson Iii

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Collaborative partnerships between school districts and universities focused on school leadership development are a part of a recent effort to provide the field of public education with leadership for the 21st century. The research clearly indicates that the demand for educational administrators far outweighs the number of available qualified candidates. This qualitative research proposal, influenced by the research tradition of phenomenology, was designed to examine an important but often overlooked component of the school district–university partnership process. The stakeholders, representatives from both the school district and the university involved in the partnership, are key to the successful development and implementation …

The Principal's Role; Distributed Leadership, Kathryn R. Hermann

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The role of the principal role has become very complex with the increased focus on accountability and student achievement. Principals can no longer do their jobs alone. Distributed leadership has been the subject of considerable educational research and discourse in recent years. This study explores how principals employ or do not employ distributed leadership with their staffs. The study found that the school principal plays a key role in supporting the school by communicating a common purpose, that distributed leadership is developed within a school climate built upon collaboration, the principal models leadership using tools and routines, and situational decision …

Developing Critical Collaboration Skills In Engineering Students: Results From An Empirical Study, Pilar Pazos, Nina Magpili, Zikai Zhou, Luis J. Rodriguez

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In highly technical organizations, work is becoming increasingly distributed; requiring practicing engineers to master virtual collaboration skills while acquiring expertise in a range of collaboration technologies. Although there has been great emphasis on developing collaboration competencies in the engineering curriculum, empirical evidence of successful strategies for distributed team settings is scarce. As an attempt to fill this gap this study investigates the impact of a scalable intervention in developing virtual collaboration skills. The intervention, based on instructional scaffolds embedded with collaboration technologies, is aimed at supporting specific processes including planning, goal setting, clarifying goals and expectations, communication, coordination and progress …

Disaster Prevention Literacy Among School Administrators And Teachers: A Study On The Plan For Disaster Prevention And Campus Network Deployment And Experiment In Taiwan, Sung-Chin Chung, Cherng-Jyh Yen

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Taiwan is located at the high-risk region of natural disasters with the frequently occurred earthquakes. The importance of the disaster prevention education on campus is made even more obvious by the fact that natural disasters often occur during the school days. Given the leading roles the school administrators and teachers playing in the disaster prevention education of their pupils, this study purposed to investigate how disaster prevention literacy was among them and how disaster prevention literacy differed across various background variables of them. Furthermore, the current study also examined if disaster prevention literacy changed by participation in the disaster prevention …

Stakeholder Experiences In District University Administrator Preparation Partnerships, Karen L. Sanzo, Jacob Mckinley Wilson Iii

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Our qualitative study explores the lived experiences of district stakeholders in university-district leadership preparation programs. Collaborative partnerships between school districts and universities focused on developing quality school leader are a part of recent efforts to provide the field of public education with exemplary leadership. The stakeholder experience in these partnerships is a little understood phenomenon lacking research. Thirteen district stakeholders in grant funded leadership development partnerships participated in the phenomenology informed study. Findings show that prior experiences, trust, issues of time, sustainability, and the power to build bridges were critical components of the district stakeholder experience in partnerships.

Examining The Potential Of Massive Open Online Courses (Moocs) At Historically Black Colleges And Universities (Hbcus), Andrés Castro Samayoa, Thai-Huy Nguyen, Marybeth Gasman, Felicia Commodore, Ufuoma Abiola

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

This article reviews the extant literature on distance learning technologies and historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In the context of increased attention to massive open online courses (MOOCs), this article argues that HBCUs’ challenges with respect to their technological infrastructure suggests that they may be better suited to serve as advocates for bridging the persistent digital divide in the nation rather than adopters of MOOCs as a new instructional platform. The authors offer some suggestions for further research to ensure that HBCUS leaders can address larger systemic issues affecting the quality of education on their campuses.

"How It's Done": The Role Of Mentoring And Advice In Preparing The Next Generation Of Historically Black College And University Presidents, Felicia Commodore, Sydney Freeman Jr., Marybeth Gasman, Courtney M. Carter

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

The college and university presidency is one of the most coveted positions in academe. Due to the projected retirements of current Historically Black College and University (HBCU) presidents, the researchers interviewed 21 current presidents, institutional board members, and presidential search firm personnel to explore what current HBCU leadership identifies as important mentoring/mentee practices, mentoring/mentee opportunities, and professional advice for HBCU presidential aspirants to consider. The findings, based on the coding and analysis of semi-structured qualitative interviews, revealed that self-awareness, focusing on the essential aspects of the job and not merely the perks, openness to being mentored and willingness to shadow …

Critical Reflection And Professional Accountability: One Team's Experiences At The Teach To Lead Summit, Jori S. Beck

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Making Cell Phones Work For You And Your Students, Helen Crompton

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Navigating The Pre-Tenure Review Process: Experiences Of A Self-Study Researcher, Brandon Butler

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Four years after the first Castle Conference, Cole and Knowles (1998) wrote of teacher educator concerns in conducting self-study research: "Concerns about institutional responses to self-study mainly are rooted in issues associated with tenure and promotion ... " (p. 225). The publication of Studying Teacher Education and increased acceptance of self-study research in teacher education journals provide an avenue for self-study researchers to publish in respected, refereed journals. Questions of self-study's validity, rigor, and trustworthiness have a long history (e.g., Bullough & Pinnegar, 2001). However, questions remain around the acceptance of self-study research among tenure and promotion committees. Institutional context …

The Change Process And Sustainability: The Experience Of School Administrators, Heidi R. Brezinski

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The aim of this study was to determine the perceptions and experiences of school administrators with change initiatives in their district to reveal the factors necessary for sustainability of effective change. The study was established on research concerning organizational change and change sustainability. For the purpose of this study, the research on organizational change was examined, while utilizing a lens of Michael Fullan’s Model for Change and Eight Elements of Sustainability. In this design, the perceptions and experiences of the school administrators within Coastal City School District were examined based on a 10-year timeframe of change initiatives within the district. …

Relationship Between State Educational Fiscal Effort And State Juvenile Incarceration Rates, Jessica Mcgrath Ellison

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The issue surrounding the effect of education funding using state per pupil index spending has been the subject of research studies in connection with various student outcomes since the advent of the Coleman report in 1966. Education is indeed an investment as it alleviates a myriad of social issues, but it needs to be made wisely. Included among social concerns is incarceration. Adults in prison show a disproportionate amount of illiteracy and most lack a high school education. An analysis of each state's educational fiscal effort, viewed as a ratio of gross per capita state product and per pupil index …

Effect Of Psychological Capital On Elementary Teacher Stress And Workplace Affect, Scott Stephen Casad

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Calling upon principles of positive psychology, the quantitative study used structural equation modeling (SEM) to explore the relationships between teacher psychological capital (PsyCap), role ambiguity, role conflict, role overload, workplace stress, job satisfaction, job commitment, and intention to quit. Valid and reliable instruments from the literature were incorporated into a 64-item survey and distributed to 830 third through fifth grade teachers at seven northern Virginia school districts. In total, 225 complete responses were received. SEM testing rejected the exact-fit hypotheses and revealed insufficient overall fit between the study data and hypothesized models; thereby, providing no support for the proposed causal …

The Relationship Between Avid Site Team Leadership And Program Capacity: A Qualitative Case, Kellie A. Mason

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The identification and implementation of programs that create positive academic changes school—wide are greatly needed. The Advancement Via Individual Determination College Readiness System (AVID) is believed to be such a program. The purpose of this study was to evaluate to what extent leadership practices foster leadership development in teachers and how that transfer of leadership influences the academic achievement of students in the AVID program. Program theory evaluation (PTE) was selected as the preferred framework for this summative evaluation to assess the extent to which AVID is meeting its objectives. Findings indicate enhancing instructional capacity, providing scaffold support, building teacher …

Research And Leadership Development Through Participation On A Inter Professional Research Team, Kaprea F. Johnson

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

This case study details one research team and includes a conceptual tri-level leadership model for team participation and project organization. Participants included seven students and one assistant professor. Findings highlight team development, recruitment, expectations, leadership gains, and implications for the profession.