Educational Leadership Commons^™

Does The Timing Of Money Matter? A Case Study Of The Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship, Jessica Goldstein, Jonathan N. Mills, Albert Cheng, Collin E. Hitt

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

This paper examines the effect of a state-financed merit-aid scholarship—the Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship (ACS)—on post-secondary outcomes at a large university in Arkansas. Exploiting scholarship eligibility requirements, we implement a fuzzy regression discontinuity design to identify the scholarship’s causal impacts on college outcomes. The analysis focuses on currently enrolled sophomores, juniors, and seniors who receive the scholarship to investigate the broad impacts of receiving money at nontraditional points in an individual’s college trajectory. Findings indicate small, negative impacts of scholarship receipt on short-run outcomes such as GPA and credit accumulation, but large statistically significant declines in the likelihood of graduating …

Student Characteristics, Institutional Factors, And Outcomes In Higher Education And Beyond: An Analysis Of Standardized Test Scores And Other Factors At The Institutional Level With School Rankings And Salary, Jonathan Wai, Bich Tran

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

When seeking to explain the eventual outcomes of a higher education experience, do the personal attributes and background factors students bring to college matter more than what the college is able to contribute to the development of the student through education or other institutional factors? Most education studies tend to simply ignore cognitive aptitudes and other student characteristics-in particular the long history of research on this topic-since the focus is on trying to assess the impact of education. Thus, the role of student characteristics has in many ways been underappreciated in even highly sophisticated quantitative education research. Conversely, educational and …

The Elementary School Principal's Influence On Teacher Hiring Practice & Decision Making, Courtney Goodman

Dissertations

In the role of a building principal, the hiring process is among the most critical components of the job, particularly hiring the right people for the right positions. Yet, hiring approaches vary from principal to principal, building to building, district to district. This study surveyed and interviewed principals and administrators about their hiring processes to determine the most effective and evidence-based approaches to hiring. It identifies several strategies to streamline the hiring process, including using a common set of tools for hiring, adhering to a set timeline for the hiring process, and focusing on criteria for hiring decision-making. This research …

A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of Public School Teachers’ Experiences While Teaching During A Pandemic, Andrew M. Bard

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of K-12 public school teachers related to stress and burnout while teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three research questions guided this study: (1) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their lived experiences while teaching during a pandemic?, (2) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their perceptions of stressors related to teaching during a pandemic?, and (3) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their experience as learners while adapting to teaching during a pandemic? Constructivism and social constructivism were applied as the conceptual and theoretical …

The Grit To Not Quit - An Examination Of The Relationship Between Grit And Teacher Retention, Alexia W. Bultman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the level of grit that best predict years in teaching. The study sought to answer the research question, How accurately can years of teaching experience be predicted from the linear combination of grit score (meaning the consistency of interest and perseverance of effort), age, gender, level of education, grade level taught, and subjects taught? Teachers (N = 468) of preschool-12th grade in a large suburban Atlanta school district responded to survey questions from the Grit-S Scale questionnaire along with demographic questions. Multiple linear regression was conducted to analyze the data. The …

Integration Of Non-Traditional Students: Comparing Traditional And Non-Traditional Students' Sense Of Belong, Michelle Leeann Walbeck

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

With an ever-increasing number of non-traditional students enrolling each year, the importance of ensuring their academic success falls primarily on the higher education institutions (HEIs). Each institution has its recipe for success and mostly consists of a student success office to assist when non-traditional students begin to show signs of markers for being at-risk. The reactive approach of waiting for students to show signs of struggle is missing the larger picture. The researcher utilized quantitative correlative and predictive correlative studies to determine if a direct correlation existed between non-traditional students’ perceived sense of belonging, which is at the core of …

Actions Of The Principal: Influences On Teacher Self-Efficacy And Motivation, Amanda Maslen Conner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Classroom teachers are a significant influence on student achievement. Numerous studies indicate that teacher motivation and self-efficacy influence their effectiveness in the classroom. Furthermore, studies indicate that the leadership behaviors of the principal can influence the school culture and have a direct impact on teacher motivation and self-efficacy. This study sought to determine if a relationship exists between certain behaviors of administrators and a teacher's self-efficacy and motivation. The study used a correlational design using The Teacher Motivation & Job Satisfaction Survey (TMJSS), The Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES), and the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI). There were 72 high …

A Phenomenological Study Of Experiences Of Veteran High School Special Education Teachers Who Remain In The Profession, Harold Alexander Russell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This transcendental phenomenological study aimed to understand the experiences influencing veteran high school special education teachers in an urban setting to remain in the teaching profession. The central phenomenon under investigation was defined as the events and incidents that influence the decision-making process of special education high school teachers who remain in the special education profession for more than 4 years. The study’s central research question asked, How do high school special education teachers with more than 4 years of service describe their teaching experiences that influence their decision to remain in special education? The study used a qualitative phenomenological …

Relationship Between Course Placement Criteria And Mathematics Achievement In An All-Boys Catholic School, Daniel J. Mccue

Journal of Catholic Education

This study explored the mathematics course placement process for incoming students in an all-boys Catholic high school. The sequential nature of mathematics significantly impacts students’ opportunity to learn; moreover, the mathematics course taken by a student during ninth grade can have far-reaching effects. Previous studies have found that ninth-grade students enrolled in Geometry, rather than Algebra 1, have a greater chance of completing advanced mathematics courses and experiencing increased mathematics success. Thus, adequately prepared students should be placed in Geometry whenever possible. To aid this effort, this study investigated whether a relationship exists between course placement criteria and future mathematics …

Creating Safe Schools: An Exploratory Study Of Educator Perspective On Student Behavior And Restorative Practices In Schools Implementation, Rachel Danielle Vargas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Restorative practices in schools (RPS) is an Integrated Student Support process that many U.S. K-12 schools utilize to combat student behavior and racial disparities against students. Initial research suggests that RPS is a successful tool to drop suspension rates, create safe school environments, and help students stay engaged in school. However, there is not sufficient empirical evidence to support a successful implementation model, leading to mixed results and opinions about the effectiveness of RPS. The purpose of this study was to explore the program processes of RPS and determine effective implementation strategies that lead to successful student outcomes. Data were …

Cultivating Crsl Capacity For Marginalized Students And Student Groups, Dusty L. Palmer, Irma L. Almager, Fernando Valle

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this qualitative content analysis was to explore the impact of the instructional coaching model that was conducted over three years during a job-embedded principal preparation residency program.  This study revealed how instructional coaching relationships used culturally responsive leadership to improve teaching practices and advance student outcomes for marginalized students and student groups, specifically addressing English Language Learners and Special Education students.

Interpreting Social-Emotional Learning: How School Leaders Make Sense Of Sel Skills For Themselves And Others, James Bailey, Randy Weiner

School Leadership Review

The need for social-emotional learning for adults has emerged due to accountability stressors and the Covid-19 pandemic. While many school leaders believe in SEL for adults, major disconnects exist between their understanding and belief in SEL and their plans to implement it. The main problem this research sought to address integrated two ideas in the affective world of school leaders: First, research literature today does not describe what competencies from the most commonly used framework for SEL, CASEL, mean concerning school leadership. Second, research literature today does not describe how school leaders explicitly develop SEL skills and operationalize these competencies …

School Leadership Support: Understanding The Experiences Of Elementary-Level Teachers During A Global Health Pandemic, Kathleen M. Crawford, Pamela Wells, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Kristen N. Dickens, Katherine Fallon

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this study was to better understand how the current COVID-19 global health pandemic has professionally and emotionally impacted elementary-level teachers. Teachers experienced diverse challenges during this unprecedented time with a rapid shift from in-person to online learning. Two overarching themes emerged based on participant experiences: abandoning best practices and increased stress and emotional pain. Implications for practice included the need for school leaders to evaluate the current level of support being provided to teachers and assess areas of need to support professional and emotional growth with the backdrop of the pandemic. We encourage future research with all …

Developing Culturally Proficient Leaders Through Graduate Coursework: Examining Student Perspectives, Jean F. Ruffin, Marsha E. Simon

School Leadership Review

The racial and ethnic demographic shifts occurring in the United States had increased the need for educational leaders capable of obtaining the cultural proficiency needed to effectively lead diverse schools. Graduate coursework focused on developing cultural competence provides a unique opportunity for school leaders to explore issues related to identity, bias, and diversity in a scholarly setting. Course design, materials, and assignments should work together seamlessly to provide students a rich opportunity to explore diversity issues. The present study examines the perspectives of students enrolled in a doctoral diversity course in Spring 2021 and how the course contributed to the …

Substantially Silent: Exploring The Variability Of “Voice” At The Intersection Of Race And Dis/Ability In A Restrictive Special Education Placement, Christopher N. Hall

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The overrepresentation of Black students in special education, particularly in the most restrictive educational placements, is well documented in the literature. In addition, Black students are disproportionately placed into far more segregated educational spaces than their same-aged White peers with similar dis/ability labels. With limited qualitative studies that center the voices of students of color labelled as severely disabled in restrictive educational settings, informed by the tenets of Disability Studies in Education (DSE), this study adds to the growing body of research foregrounding the voices of individuals with dis/abilities in telling their own story from their perspective through narrative portraiture. …

Must Be Present To Win: Principals' Perspectives On Exclusionary Discipline, William Jeremy Cohen

Dissertations and Theses

One of the persistent challenges in United States elementary schools is the ongoing use of exclusionary discipline practices. In Oregon, despite the application of a number of legal and policy shifts intended to reduce the use of suspension and expulsion in K-5 and K-8 schools, particularly for students of color, there continues to be an increase year-to-year of the number of students being excluded, the percentage of students excluded, and an increasingly disproportionate use of exclusion for students of color. Although the research shows that removing students from the learning environment does not improve student behavior nor improve overall school …

An Exploration Of Effective Communication Strategies For Secondary Educational Leaders To Increase African American Family Engagement Within An Urban School District, Stephen Mcclure

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership Dissertations

This research study examined effective communication strategies with African American families for secondary educational leaders. The purpose of this investigation was to explore African American family engagement within an urban school district. Interviews were conducted with 14 parent participants and the data was analyzed utilizing the ATLAS.ti survey software. The findings were that overall, parents were pleased with the amount and modes of technology that schools utilized for communication. Parents were also satisfied with the high school experiences of their children; however, many parents preferred more personal contact and in-person interactions with the teachers and administrative staff. Parents also felt …

First-Generation College Students: Persistence And Adaptability In Post-Secondary Institutions, Charlie Elberta Lewis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT In post-secondary education, degree attainment for first-generation college students (FGCS) is essential. The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed-methods study is to explore the first-generation college student's persistence from their first year to the second year at a private or public post-secondary institution. The second purpose is to investigate whether the GEAR UP Services program impacted FGCS persistence at these institutions. Social capital theory and self-determination theory served as a foundation of the study. These theories are linked to the social interaction and behavior that leads to motivation, commitment, and relationships. Previous research suggests that college persistence correlates with …

Female Leadership Values In Mexican Graduate Students, Eduardo R. Diaz

School Leadership Review

The present study addresses the gender gap in leadership roles in Mexico through the lens of three leadership constructs. The objective was to compare female and male individual cultural values to explain differences in leadership style and agentic behavior. The sample consisted of 185 graduate students in Baja California, Mexico. Participants were surveyed using the Short Schwartz Value Scale. The responses were analyzed by running independent samples t-tests. The results suggest that males attribute greater importance to Power and Achievement values, which are associated with transformational and transactional leadership constructs. No differences were found across several values associated with other …

Which Police Departments Make Black Lives Matter, Which Don’T, And Why Don’T Most Social Scientists Care?, Robert Anthony Maranto, Wilfred Reilly, Patrick Wolf, Mattie Harris

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

In part via skillful use of social media, Black Lives Matter (BLM) has become among the most influential social movements of the past half century, with support across racial lines, and considerable financial backing (Fisher, 2019). Will this translate into public policy reforms which save Black lives? After all, higher education is a key institutional backer of BLM, and a considerable literature dating back decades (e.g., Lindblom & Cohen, 1979) casts doubt on the effectiveness of social science in solving social problems, for numerous reasons. Often, the best social science is simple counting. This paper makes two unique contributions. First, …

A Qualitative Study: Examining Students' Involvement In A Career And Technical Student Organizations And Practicing And Promoting Mental Wellness, Cindy Beck, Gustavo Loera, Jonathan Nakamoto, Jan Parsons

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

This study aims to explore career technical education (CTE) students' involvement in practicing and promoting mental wellness in schools and communities. Specifically, this study focused on students enrolled in a career and technical student organization (CTSO) leading youth-defined activities raising awareness of risk factors and protective factors associated with psychological distress and wellness. This study is grounded in resilience theory expounding on the resilience of HOSA students and their motivation to thrive and overcome adversities as they advance their career and college readiness and their civic engagement. Purposive sampling was used to select 94 students from seven high schools with …

Leading For Excellence, Erin Riley

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study is to determine the degree of importance for the 12 step principles of leadership proposed by Harvey, Drolet, and DeVore (2014) to create a K-12 school environment that fosters high student achievement as perceived by public middle school principals. A secondary purpose is to explore and describe the leadership strategies for implementing the 12 step principles of leadership proposed by Harvey, Drolet, and DeVore (2014) to create a K-12 school environment that fosters high student achievement as perceived by public middle school principals.

Methodology: This explanatory mixed-methods study was completed to examine …

Learning To Fly: The Impact Of Project-Based Learning On Development Of The 4cs In The Elementary Grades, Deborah Francois

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the impact of project-based learning on K-5 students’ development of the 4Cs (Critical Thinking, Communication, Creativity, Collaboration) as perceived by elementary charter school teachers.

Methodology: A phenomenological design was selected to address the research questions for this study. Through purposeful sampling, 12 charter elementary teachers who met a pre-determined set of criteria (including the routine integration of project-based learning within their instructional programs) were selected to participate in virtual, semi-structured interviews. All teachers were employed by charter schools located in six counties within California. The interviews were conducted using …

Exemplary Latino School District Superintendents’ Use Of Emotional Intelligence As They Lead Their Organizations, Ivan Chaidez

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to describe the emotional intelligence strategies that exemplary Latino school district superintendents use as they respond to leadership challenges in their school organizations based on Goleman’s (1995) four domains of emotional intelligence (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management). A secondary purpose of the study was for exemplary Latino superintendents to explain how their use of emotional intelligence strategies supported their success and tenure as they responded to leadership challenges in their school organizations.

Methodology: This multicase study was conducted through interviews of five exemplary Latino public school district superintendents in …

Distress, Burnout, And Lived Experiences Of Special Education Teachers Working In Self-Contained Classrooms With Students With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders: Illuminating Their Perspectives And Experiences., Jennifer L. Wooldridge-Mccormick

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This study was conducted to give voice to local special education teachers working with students with emotional disabilities, and to allow them to co-create meanings from their lived experiences in the classroom. It utilized a qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological approach through a series of three individual interviews over the course of a six-month period. Five special education teachers from three local school divisions and private day schools participated in the study between July 2021 and December 2021. Over the course of the three interviews, the five special education teachers in the study were situated as co-researchers. In addition to the three …

A Qualitative Study On Nurse Facilitators Of Mind-Body Skills Groups, Paula D. Blake-Beckford

Mindfulness Studies Theses

The Center for Mind-Body Medicine (CMBM), founded by Dr. James Gordon, provides communities with evidence-based Mind-Body Skills Groups (MBSGs) that foster self-care, self-awareness, and self-expression. MBSGs range from 8 to 12-week series on various mind-body practices wherein group members meet, practice, and reflect on the impact of mind-body skills in their lives. Research has demonstrated that participants in MBSGs have positive outcomes. Healthcare professionals (HCPs), especially nurses, gain resiliency from MBSGs. As facilitators of MBSGs, nurses develop essential skills transferable to clinical and educational settings. MBSGs are therapeutic for adult participants with chronic stress. Prior to this thesis, only one …

The Madness Of March: A Quantitative Look At Cinderella Stories In The Ncaa Division I Men’S Basketball Tournament, Joseph J. Fresco

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study looked to determine if being classified as a Cinderella Story team in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, also known as March Madness, led to a statistically significant change in NCAA Division I men’s basketball spending for that team’s respective institution one, two, and three years after being labeled. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of men’s basketball spending on teams that are Cinderella Stories in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. It aims to understand how spending differs between athletic programs whose characteristics mirror those of Cinderella Stories and how expenses change before …

The Conditions For Success: How The Future Search Conference Method Uses Dialogue To Spur Stakeholder Integration, Daniel Bender

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

A Future Search (FS) Conference is a systems based large group intervention that utilizes a dialogue process among interdependent stakeholders to analyze the past, understand the present, envision a better future, and agree to action plans to work towards the desired future. This study uses an instrumental case study design (Stake, 1995) to consider two education-based future-oriented conferences to understand the real-life applicability of the conditions for success framework by Weisbord and Janoff (2010). Participants’ perceptions of the action research conferences were positive. The framework illustrated factors related to the core principle of getting the “whole system” in the room …

The Experiences Of International Graduate Students From Latin America In Their Transition Of Graduating And Finding A Job In The United States, Natalia Hernandez

Master's Theses

The purpose of this thesis project is to conduct a qualitative phenomenological study to understand the lived experiences of international graduate students from Latin America in the United States as they transition from their studies to finding a full-time job in the United States. The most common themes mentioned in the different sections of the interviews were: the different dynamics in their identity, the benefits, and limitations of their status in the American context, and how their professional development and economy are impacted while being international graduate students from Latin America. Student service departments such as the Career Service department, …

Gatekeeping Experiences Latina Superintendents Encountered As They Attained Their Superintendent Position, Julie Corona

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to describe the career path progression and the gatekeeping experiences as Latinas advanced to a superintendent position. The second purpose of this study was to describe the gatekeeping experiences of Latina superintendents’ application and interview process of their superintendency. Additionally, this study described Latina superintendents’ gatekeeping experiences of gender and ethnicity. Last, this study examined the strategies that Latina superintendents used as they ascended to their superintendent positions. Methodology: This phenomenological multicase study was conducted through interviews of five Latina superintendents of California public schools. The researcher selected a qualitative method …