Educational Leadership Commons^™

An Examination Of Concussion Understanding Among Parents Of High School Female Student Athletes, Kelly Hartley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Few online concussion education programs have been developed specifically for parents, and those that have been tend to neglect the fact that concussion rates are higher in female rather than male student athletes (Donaldson et al., 2016; Macdonald & Hauber, 2016; Williamson et al., 2014). This quantitative study is important because it addressed gaps in the concussion education literature. The purpose of this study was to examine whether concussion symptoms knowledge and general youth sports-related concussion knowledge was significantly higher among parents of female student athletes who watched the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Heads Up concussion videos (intervention …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Of Novice Teachers Administrative Support Experiences In High-Poverty High-Minority Rural South Carolina Schools, Celestine Lavan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to develop a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of novice teachers who remain teaching in high-poverty, high-minority rural schools in South Carolina in relation to the administrative support they received. The research questions guiding this study are: (1) How do novice teachers describe their administrative support experiences in high-poverty, high-minority schools? (2) How do novice teachers in high-poverty, high-minority rural schools describe administrative emotional and social support experiences? (3) How do novice teachers in high-poverty, high-minority rural schools describe administrative instructional support experiences in high-poverty, high-minority rural schools? This study intended …

Quantitative Content Analysis Of Virginia Doctoral Dissertations 2007-2017: Trends In Degree Types And Methodologies, Craig Krueger

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study was a trend analysis of the choices made by doctoral candidates in the state of Virginia who sought degrees in the field of education. It analyzed frequencies of degree types (EdD degree compared to the PhD) and research methodologies (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods). This research is important because no such study has been done since 1994. The information will be useful to both those who lead doctoral programs and to people who seek to understand philosophical implications and practical applications of these degree and methodology types. The purpose of the study is to bring up to date …

How Intra-District School Choice And Competition Among Schools Impacts School Leadership: A Case Study Of Secondary School Principals, Chris Kohan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative, explanatory case study was to describe how traditional, magnet, and charter school principals in one Delaware school district responded to an environment of total school choice and how they made sense of their roles as a principal in the era of school choice. Hess’s (2010) organizational theory was the theoretical foundation for this study as selective enrollment schools, such as magnet and charter schools, would have direct and indirect effects on traditional schools The research questions for this study were: (a) How do traditional, magnet, and charter school principals make sense of the competition generated …

A Case Study Exploring Effective Leadership In Technology Integration In Three Southeastern U.S. Elementary Schools, Lauren Woodward

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the characteristics of effective leadership in technology integration for school leaders and staff members in three southeastern, U.S. elementary schools. The theoretical framework that guided this study was based on Spillane’s (2005) distributed leadership model and Kouzes and Posner’s (2012) model of transformational leadership. These theories provided an understanding of leadership practices and characteristics that fostered an environment, which successfully supported the process of technology integration. The rationale for the study was that there is a gap in the literature that addresses effective leadership and practices for technology integration. …

An Analysis Of 8th Grade Student Achievement Of Private And Public Schools In The Dominican Republic In Rural And Urban Settings, Daniel Boyd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the difference in student academic achievement in private and public schools in the Dominican Republic in rural and urban settings. The 2016 8th Grade National Exams school mean scale scores were analyzed to determine if statistically significant differences existed among the different school types and school settings. There was a lack of literature on student academic achievement in the Dominican Republic, in particular on private and public school and rural and urban school students. The extant literature indicated that in the Dominican Republic, private school students historically had higher academic achievement on …

School Library Access As Related To Student Reading Comprehension In An Urban East Tennessee School District, Lori Church

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of school library access on student reading comprehension as measured by the Easy CBM universal screener test. The population consisted of 5^th and 6^th grade students enrolled in one intermediate school in an urban school system in East Tennessee. Data were analyzed for the population of the 2016-2017 academic school year. Specifically, this study considered the impact of school library access on students who qualify for free or reduced meals.

A quantitative study was used to find correlations and differences in the reading comprehension data and library checkout …

The Private School Advantage: Evidence From School Vouchers And Educational Leadership, Mohammad Danish Shakeel

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

School choice is becoming increasingly popular around the globe. Broadly the term ‘school choice’ is used to describe the options available for families to send children to school(s) other than the one they are residentially assigned to. Private school choice interventions known as ‘school vouchers,’ offer public or private funding to enable families to send their children to private school.

Research in 1970s and 80s by James Coleman and his colleagues showed a private school advantage in student achievement and graduation rates, in comparison to traditional public schools. Competing evidence was presented by Christopher Lubienski and Sarah Lubienski in 2013, …

The Impact Of A Learning Community On The Perceived Wellness Of First Year Doctor Of Physical Therapy Students, Angela Mae Holland

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Healthcare education guides students in obtaining skills to promote health in others. In working towards this goal, graduate students in healthcare programs potentially suffer from increased stress while undergoing the rigor of a medically based academic program. The purpose of this study was to determine if the addition of a learning community program had an effect on the perceived wellness of first year doctor of physical therapy students. A repeated measures quasi-experimental design was used to answer the three research questions, which guided the investigation. Three groups of participants completed the study, one serving as the experimental group with the …

School Climate: A Comparison Of Teachers, Students, And Parents, James A. Jacobs

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine the benefits of positive school climate and to measure the perceptions of school climate for intermediate grades in a Northeast Tennessee School district. An online school climate survey was used to collect responses from participants in intermediate grades and focused on the 3 major components of school climate: school engagement, school environment, and school safety. Data were collected for 2 consecutive years in 2016-2017 and 2017-2018. Response totals included 1,955 student responses, 116 teacher responses, and 210 parent responses that were analyzed and used for this study. Of the student totals, some students that …

Promoting And Establishing An Effective Campus-Wide Academic Advising System, Katie Kerr

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study explored the role of directors of campus-wide academic advising programs and their contributions to promoting and establishing effective campus-wide academic advising systems. Specifically, directors of campus-wide academic advising addressed how they engaged academic units within a unified campus-wide advising system. This included an exploration of how academic advising organizational structures in higher education institutions and leadership styles of directors of campus-wide advising contributed to the effectiveness of their work. Three themes materialized from this study: (a) emergence of the position of director of campus-wide advising, (b) advising organizational structure and culture, and (c) leadership strategies of directors of …

Understanding Disinterest: How Online Undergraduate Students Perceive And Respond To Disengaged Faculty Members, Blake Clifford

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this interpretative, qualitative study was to discover reasons students participating in asynchronous online undergraduate courses perceive faculty as disinterested, the significance of this perception, and how students respond to disinterested faculty. Online education continues to evolve and change how students learn and how online undergraduate students perceive and respond to faculty members. With these changes, understanding which elements influence and impact the success of online undergraduate students becomes more complex. The distinctive social context of virtual learning environments often contributes to online students characterizing faculty as disengaged. Online students often have limited opportunities to interact directly with …

The Persistence Of Community College Students: A Single Site Case Study, Michael K. Blanchard

All Theses And Dissertations

Only 22% of all students who enroll in community colleges complete an associate degree within three years, and only 16% of students at urban community colleges earn a degree in the same time frame. Community college administrators recognize that a majority of their student population desires to earn a degree, but many lack the knowledge, skills, and support to complete college. The purpose of this single site qualitative case study was to understand how community college students perceive wraparound services and how these services impact students’ persistence. Deil-Amen (2011) was used as the theoretical underpinning for this study. The setting …

The Knowledge And Perceptions Of Generational Cohorts Of K-5 Elementary Educators Who Use Technology For Teaching And Learning, Zachary A. Fodor

All Theses And Dissertations

This study examined the perceptions and knowledge of generational cohorts (Baby Boomer, Generation X, and/or Millennials) of elementary (K-5) educators regarding the use of technology for teaching and learning. The remarkable pace of the transition to digital-age learning environments has made it challenging for schools to build sustainable, program-wide systems for the purposeful use of educational technology during instruction (Stevens & South, 2016). This underscores the need for schools to prepare staff from every generational cohort to be confident, experienced, and ready to lead with technology in their classrooms (Stevens & South, 2016). The first research question was how do …

A Qualitative Exploration Of The Current State Of Observation And Feedback In The Seminaries And Institutes Of Religion Of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, Christopher B. Garner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

While the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion (S&I) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expect supervisors of teachers to observe teachers regularly and provide feedback, they have not provided those supervisors with adequate training materials, or explained how these supervisors are expected to accomplish this.

For this study, three administrators and three teachers were interviewed about their experiences with observation and feedback in S&I. Their responses provided clarification on the purposes of observation and feedback, revealed that a lack of supervisor training has resulted in teachers’ experiences with observation and feedback being different from administrator’s expectations in …

“It Is Hard Right Now”: High School Educators Working With Undocumented Students, Carolina Valdivia, Marisol Clark-Ibáñez

Latino Public Policy

This project began with an interest in learning about the experiences of educators working with undocumented high school students in San Diego County. The backdrop for this study is the current anti-immigrant climate, specifically targeting Latinx undocumented immigrants. Educators in the San Diego County are working in a context where immigration authorities are deporting their students’ family members. Our aim is to begin painting a picture of who these educators are and some of the practices they employ to support their undocumented students. We hope our findings will begin to support educators and in turn their students.

Advanced Systemic Process Approach Vs Michigan Department Of Education Non-Systemic Process Approach To School Improvement, Diane P. Fleming

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The author of this correlational study examined the differences in academic achievement and school improvement between Michigan schools accredited by AdvancED, which uses a systemic process approach for school improvement, and schools accredited by the Michigan Department of Education, which does not use a systemic process approach. The data for the study was a random sampling of Education YES! self-reports, fed by the School Systems Review (SSR) completed by Michigan-accredited schools and the Interim Self-Assessment (ISA) completed by AdvancED-accredited schools. Schools that follow a systemic process were more likely to be successful than schools that do not. In addition to …

Catalyzing Capacity: Absorptive, Adaptive, And Generative Leadership, Elizabeth A. Castillo, Mai P. Trinh

Management Faculty Publications

Purpose

Organizations increasingly operate under volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) conditions. Traditional command-and-control leadership can be ineffective in such chaotic environments. The purpose of this paper is to outline an alternative model to help leaders and organizations navigate effectively through VUCA environments. By developing three fundamental capacities (absorptive, adaptive and generative), leaders can cultivate organizations capable of continuous synchronization with their fitness landscapes. Central tenets of the framework include diversity, slack, learning, humility, reflection in action and abductive logic.

Design/methodology/approach

This framework is designed based on literature insights, conceptual analysis and experts’ judgment. The paper integrates knowledge from a …

Revealing Luz: Illuminating Our Identities Through Duoethnography, Carrie Diaz Eaton, Luz Marizza Bailey

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Hispanic Americans make up 15% of the current US workforce, but they only account for 7% of the STEM Education workforce [8]. One effective way to reach this population, particularly Latinas, is by providing stories and ethnographic biographies of successful Latinas they can relate to. It is important to note that Latinas have been earning PhDs in STEM disciplines outside of the US much longer than US-born Latinas have been earning them inside. Thus we offer the story of a mathematics educator, from Peru, Dr. Luz Antonia Mendizábal Gálvez de Rodriguez, a girl who was given a chance to be …

Dragon Ambassador Manual: A Guide For Dragon Ambassadors And Supervisors, Jamie Wepking

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

This Action Plan B Project is the creation of the Dragon Ambassador Manual. This comprehensive manual was created to aid in the supervision of the Dragon Ambassadors and to provide information and resources to Dragon Ambassadors as they participate in the student leadership program.

Significant research exists that student leadership programs provide great service to our student leaders, faculty, staff, and campus communities. Implementing this manual to Dragon Ambassador program will allow the involved student leaders to work with prospective students and their peers more effectively while creating meaningful experiences and interactions.

Prospective students of MSU Moorhead will benefit from …

Separate But (Un)Equal: A Review Of Resegregation As Curriculum: The Meaning Of The New Racial Segregation In U.S. Public Schools, Katherine H. Burr

The Qualitative Report

Resegregation as Curriculum: The Meaning of the New Racial Segregation in U.S. Public Schools (2016) by Rosiek and Kinslow exposes the reality of systemic racial resegregation occurring in U.S. public schools. The authors center the stories of students, educators, and community members affected by the resegregation in a powerful narrative that blends critical race theory and agential realism as theoretical frameworks. This book review offers a review of the authors' findings, commentary on their methodology, and recommended audiences.

Teacher Retention: Advice From Missouri's Top Districts, Joshua Flores

Educational Specialist Scholarly Papers

Teacher attrition, particularly within the first five years of teaching, is a persistent problem that negatively impacts schools, school districts, and communities across the globe. Missouri, in particular, is one state that reports higher rates of teacher attrition than the national average. This beginning exploratory analysis of a few of Missouri’s top teacher retaining districts looks to offer suggestions, recommendations, and strategies aside from raising salaries or increasing benefits packages that schools, their leaders, and districts can implement to bolster teacher retention.

Leadership From The Middle Pays It Forward: An Academic Administrator Of Color’S Career Development Narrative In Postsecondary Education, Cecil Dean Campbell

The Qualitative Report

The ongoing underrepresentation of administrators of color in higher education suggests that traditional career pathways make racial equities in administrative leadership elusive. This personal narrative explores middle-manager educational and career experiences—some often-overlooked aspects of higher education administration. Using leadership and career development theories, I draw on qualitative approaches to examine my own career journey as one academic affairs administrator of color who has experienced a history of career change, lay-off, and non-traditional moves within and across diverse institutions. Through an inductive approach for analyzing data in my career narrative, emergent themes incorporate data references “calling,” citizenship, and cultural change in …

2018-07-23 President's Message, Morehead State University. Office Of The President.

Faculty Senate Records

Message from the president to faculty and staff sent via e-mail on July 23, 2018.

This Is How We Did It: A Grounded Theory Approach Of Black Male Success, Aaron Smith

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

For decades, literature has described success for Black males as a hard-to-obtain phenomenon due to the nearly insurmountable hardships they face. Although this previous negative narrative has positively shifted within the last 15 years, there are still insignificant amounts of research on how to obtain Black male life success. This study sought to discover how 14 Black males in Central Virginia achieved life success. In this study, life success for Black males was defined and explored utilizing the psychological construct of well-being. This grounded theory study identified a framework for Black male life success which included a definition for life …

Are Leader Behavior And Emotional Intelligence Related To Teacher Efficacy?, Edward E. Leonard, Wanda Maulding Green

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

There is general agreement and the research supports the contention that school leadership is related to student learning/achievement (Hallinger & Heck, 1996; Ross & Gray, 2006; Francera & Bliss, 2011; Shatzer, Caldarella, Hallam, & Brown, 2014). However, the nature and strength of that relationship is still uncertain. Identifying the effects, whether direct or indirect, leaders have on student learning/achievement is imperative to the further development of school leadership theory. Direct leader effects on student achievement/learning may be identified at some point. However, given that a leader impacts many factors related to student achievement/learning indirectly, the identification of indirect leader effects …

Cultivating A Professional Culture Of Peace And Inclusion: Conceptualizing Practical Applications Of Peace Leadership In Schools, Whitney Mcintyre Miller, Annmary S. Abdou

Education Faculty Articles and Research

Beyond the role of educating students across all academic domains, school leaders are tasked with the monumental responsibility of creating positive, engaged systems and cultures that embrace the growing cultural, economic, linguistic, and cognitive diversity in the United States landscape. With collective goals to create peaceful learning environments with capacity to serve diverse learners, many school leaders have embraced school-wide prevention and intervention efforts, such as Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for social-emotional and behavioral development of students. Unfortunately, due to the inherent complexities and fragmentation of such efforts, many school leaders have continued to experience significant barriers to sustainable …

Principal And Teacher Beliefs About The Impact Of Cbas On School Performance: Five High Performing High Schools In Oregon, Kevin Jon Ricker

Dissertations and Theses

This qualitative study examined how school leaders work within the structure of individual district collective bargaining agreements to improve student achievement. The study examines real or perceived barriers to improving student achievement within educational organizations from the perspective of the principals and teacher-leaders.

This study included two qualitative instruments, one for building principals and one for the building teachers, administered in five Oregon high schools recognized as successful by the Oregon Department of Education in 2014-2015. This dissertation determined the impact collective bargaining agreements had on the ability of high school principals to reduce educational disparities and close the achievement …

2018-07-13 Pac-2 Revision And Approval, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

PAc-2 revision and presidential approval as signed on July 13, 2018.

American Indian Student Motivation At A Tribal College, Rebecca L. Izzo

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships between motivational characteristics of American Indian college students attending a tribal college. The Inventory of School Motivation (ISM) was utilized to identify motivational constructs. The literature in general continues to portray American Indian students as the lowest academically achieving subgroup as well as having a lack of persistence and high dropout rate in higher education. This study identified areas that support motivation to attend college, which then can be shared with the tribal college to develop programs and innovations to recruit and sustain American Indian students in education, as well as …