Educational Leadership Commons^™

I Don’T Really Work Here: Part-Time Faculty And The Adjunctification Of Higher Ed., Maggie Cawley

West Chester University Master’s Theses

This critical action research thesis will explore the 40-year rise of adjunctification, the term coined to describe the increased reliance on adjunct and contingent labor in institutions of higher education. This thesis will examine adjunctification’s detrimental effects on teaching in higher education as a profession, on adjuncts and contingent teachers, and on students. Institutional overreliance on adjunct faculty as cheap, ad hoc labor flies in the face of the role that education should play in society: to develop student potentiality and capacity for critical thought. I believe that the casualization of teaching and the subsequent rise of adjunctification preclude these …

Collective Efficacy: Gaining The Perspective Of Teachers, Ashley R. Lankila

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The purpose of this study is to investigate teachers' view of collective efficacy at their schools, the key events teachers cite when discussing their views, and their views on how collective efficacy can be built at their schools. Certificated personnel from three rural schools in Northern California participated in this study. Key findings indicate teachers view communication, collaboration and accountability as key factors to justify their views of collective efficacy at their schools.

Preparing Suburban School Leaders To Recognize Everyday Narratives That Promote Opportunity Gaps, Deirdra Preis

Education Faculty Publications

The ability of school leaders to recognize and confront marginalizing narratives that prevent equitable access and outcomes for their historically underserved student populations is critical to transforming their schools. This article is designed to build the leadership capacity of suburban school leaders to intervene in inequitable practices by leading them through an exploration of eight beliefs and assumptions - and the problematic decisions often prompted by them - that have been identified in the literature as barriers to the academic and post-secondary advancement of historically underserved student populations attending suburban schools.

Cyberbullying: School Administrators' Perceptions Of Law And Prevalence, And Their Roles In Prevention, Intervention And Discipline, Suzan Gragg Denby

Theses and Dissertations

This study was aimed at investigating secondary school administrators’ experiences with and their perceptions of cyberbullying, as well as their intervention and prevention procedures. As technology has become ubiquitous in our society, students’ use has increased and impacted the school environment. Given the potential for cyberbullying and the negative effects of such, schools harbor the responsibility to prevent and intervene in such occurrences. This can be a tricky process.

This study included 12 administrators of secondary schools across eight school divisions in Virginia. Through an interview process, administrators spoke of their experiences with technology and cyberbullying incidents, and how they …

“It’S Supposed To Be Super Easy And It’S Not”: Black And Latinx Student Experiences In The Doctor Of Physical Therapy Admissions Process, Melissa Yeung

Theses and Dissertations

Data provided by the Physical Therapy Central Application System (PTCAS) suggests that despite the large numbers of applicants to Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs on an annual basis, a gap remains between the number of White and Black and Latinx applicants who are offered admission to DPT programs. Efforts made by DPT programs to increase the diversity of their incoming cohorts include the use of holistic review processes and enrichment programs to recruit more diverse classes. However, research suggests that the undergraduate experiences of students of color have an impact on their aspirations to graduate and professional schools, and …

Inclusion Model Impact On Students With Disabilities In Academic Settings, Michael Anthony Adams

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explored how the special education inclusion model impacted students with disabilities in several South Georgia counties. The researcher determined there were differences in perceptions and actual progression based on the findings from educators’ survey responses and standardized test results concerning the impact of the inclusion model on special education students in general education classrooms. This difference in perception versus reality emerged as a theme and may be attributed to educator’s negative experiences. Specific interest was given to students with disabilities in the categories of specific learning disability (SLD), emotional behavioral disability (EBD), mild intellectual disability (MI), and other …

Understanding Educators’ Experiences During Long-Term School Closures, Jessica Pryor, Jessica Pryor

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

In the spring of 2020, many public places closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most public schools in the United States suddenly closed buildings as educators and students scrambled to adapt to distance education. This phenomenological, qualitative study holistically explores elementary educators’ experiences during the extended school closures. The 18current elementary educators who participated in individual interviews, served rural, elementary students. Individual interviews allowed participants to discuss and explain their experiences concerning methods, materials, time commitments, and communication with colleagues, parents, and students. They also discussed how they used feedback to alter their teaching. The interviews were conducted during …

The Transition Experiences Of Deaf And Hard Of Hearing Students Into Postsecondary Education, Christy S. Adkins

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what the transition experiences of deaf and hard of hearing students into postsecondary education were and what barriers, exist within the transition process. It is evident that deaf and hard of hearing students, face a number of challenges throughout their academic career. Aspects of deaf culture, language acquisition, and communication method, along with lack of support services further exacerbate, an already difficult transition from secondary school to college. This study sought to shed light on the additional obstacles faced by deaf and hard of hearing students, as they transition into their first …

Campus In Crisis? Process Optimization Can Help, Jessica De Perio Wittman, Kathleen (Katie) Brown

Faculty Articles and Papers

Assessment, academic success, and retention are at the forefront of higher education. When budgets and programs are systematically reduced, higher education institutions can face these challenges by applying process optimization techniques. In times of crisis, cross-functional teams employing these techniques create direct change in higher education environments. This article provides college and university presidents, provosts, deans, and other senior leadership with a foundation on process optimization methodologies, such as Lean Six Sigma and Agile. It also also provides a primer for department and unit heads on the application of specific tools and techniques.

Cocreate: Collaborative Curriculum Reimagining And Enhancement Aiming To Transform Education, Barry J. Ryan, Adrienne Fleming, Catherine M. Deegan, Claire Mcavinia, Colm O'Kane, David Williams, Edmund Nevin, Eric Bates, Fionnuala Darby, Jen Harvey, Lesley Murphy, Maebh Coleman, Miriam O'Donoghue, Nicola Duffy

Teaching Fellowship Reports

The establishment of TU Dublin in January 2019 provided a unique opportunity to create a bespoke curriculum framework for students, staff and stakeholders of TU Dublin, produced by the students, staff and stakeholders of TU Dublin. A curriculum framework is a set of guiding values that inform the design of teaching and learning activities within TU Dublin. A Teaching Fellowship Team, comprising eighteen teaching academics from across the three TU Dublin campuses and supported extensively by the Learning Teaching and Technology Centre (LTTC), was formed to collaboratively craft, in partnership with all stakeholders, a curriculum framework for TU Dublin. Working …

Managing Students As Volunteers: Community Organizations’ Perspectives Of Service-Learning Placements, Bradley Wolfe

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This qualitative study examines how students are managed as volunteers in community organizations. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eleven professionals in Southern Minnesota who oversee student-volunteers as a part of their position. The research covers the roles of student-volunteers in community organizations, the community benefits of student labor, and the management models used for supervising students. The results demonstrate different models used to manage students as volunteer, which vary by the depth of the volunteer commitment. Under all models, the sample of participants attested to an overall benefit of students as volunteers in their respective organizations.

Transformational Teaching In A Culturally Passive Environment In Higher Education: A Phenomenological Study Of Stem Professors, Julie M. Kjeer

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in this country has come under increasing scrutiny as employers, government agencies, and postsecondary institutions point to the lack of prepared students in STEM-related fields. Evidence compels higher education institutions to improve the quality of teaching to better prepare students for lives of productive service. While such evidence has spurred multiple reform movements, little substantive change has actually occurred. Despite a culture of passive and transmissive learning in higher education STEM disciplines, inspirational STEM professors exist who dramatically impact students in positive and meaningful ways. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was …

Teacher And Principal Perceptions Of Principal Leadership Practices Having The Strongest Relationship To Student Achievement, Michael C. Conran

Dissertations

This qualitative case study examined the perceptions of high performing elementary, middle and high school teachers and principals, as evidenced by their students' high achievement levels, relative to the principal leadership practices having the strongest relationship to student achievement. The Marzano Focused School Leader Evaluation Model, which contains six domains and 21 elements identifying comprehensively researched and evidence-based principal leadership practices, was used as a conceptual framework. The identification of the specific principal leadership practices having the strongest relationship to student achievement hinged on the delineation of the perceptions of the teacher and principal study participants relative to the principal …

Precarity In Feminism And Feminist Art Education: Decentering Whiteness Through Reproductive Justice Activism, Michelle Bae-Dimitriadis, Olga Ivashkevich

Journal of Social Theory in Art Education

The article addresses precarity in mainstream feminism and feminist art education as a systemic dismissal and exclusion of the critical concerns and voices by disenfranchised women of color from its narratives and agendas. It draws on a case of the reproductive justice feminist activism to illustrate how the mainstream pro-choice feminist movement neglected the urgent and often life threatening reproductive concerns by Black, Brown, Indigenous and immigrant women, which led to an establishment of the reproductive justice coalitions by activists of color. The reproductive justice movement is an important call to action to challenge and decenter Whiteness in mainstream feminism …

Academic Backgrounds, Career Paths And Presidential Success : A Mixed Methods Study Of State University Of New York Presidents, Kishmar Best

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Higher education in the United States has grown from a single course designed to educate administrators and faculty to serve within colleges and universities, to a robust field of study with hundreds of graduate programs across the country. Despite a lengthy body of research on college and university presidents, there is little to no research that demonstrates the efficacy of higher education programs to prepare their graduates to serve as presidents. Additionally, an anticipated leadership shortage is on the horizon, as the current generation of presidents nears retirement age. It is important to learn more about the backgrounds of current …

Panel Discussion: The Right To Education: With Liberty, Justice, And Education For All?

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Secondary School Principals' Orientations Toward And Uses Of Data For Improvement, Lisa Cala Ruud

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This descriptive and multiple case study was designed to explore and understand secondary principals’ role orientations and decision-making regarding data, evidence, and research in three urban-suburban called “positive outlier schools” (POS). POS are New York State schools that are identified as exemplars in closing educational opportunity and outcome gaps among diverse high school youth, including African American, Hispanic/Latino, and English language learner students (ELLs).

Hidden Resistance In Rural Education : A Study Of Two School District Consolidation Attempts In New York State 2008-2014, Casey T. Jakubowski

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This study explores two rural school consolidation attempts in upstate New York during the “Great Recession” between 2008 and 2014. One consolidation received voter approval, the other was defeated. Case study research (Stake, 1995; Yin, 2018) formed the structure examine how the two attempts were alike and different. Official school documents, reports in local newspapers, and online discussion boards formed the source material used in this dissertation. Gee’s (2014) Discourse Analysis became the methodological framework used in analyzing source materials. As part of the analysis process, a hole in policy implementation literature became apparent, namely the lack of local voter …

A Comparative Study Of Leadership And Management In Rural Schools Achieving Above Predicted Graduation Outcomes, Brian David Rhode

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

School systems are expected to demonstrate outcomes that are equitable for all students. Despite an abundance of educational legislation aimed at raising all students’ achievement, gaps persist, especially among critical populations such as economically disadvantaged, English language learners, African-American and Hispanic/Latino students. This study is a comparative study of leadership and management in positive outlier schools and typically performing high schools, the first type has demonstrated a trend of above-predicted graduation outcomes for rural youth.

Growing A Gritty Culture: A Grounded Theory Study, Andrea Lee Meyer

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study explores building level administrators’ thoughts on the role grit plays in a school’s culture and how building level administrators can foster a culture of grit. Duckworth’s (2016) text Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance was used as a basis for this study. This is a qualitative study using the grounded theory research method. This inquiry-based research method afforded the researcher the immediate opportunity to explore relationships among the data collected from the participant interviews. The findings are grounded in their responses. Eight building level administrators participated in this grounded theory study. The study found that grit plays …

Professional Growth: How Do Cooperating Teachers Grow Through The Experience Of Having A Student Teacher?, Ashton D. Coppley

Doctor of Education Dissertations

Cooperating teachers and student teachers share a unique internship that allows the development of skills for both individuals. The literature states that cooperating teachers can grow from student teachers; however, there are a few sources that state the areas in which this growth occurs. The purpose of this study was to determine if growth or impact happened in the areas of instructional practices, coaching skills, and self-efficacy during the student teaching process. This mixed methods study included a survey, focus group interview, and single interviews to determine whether any change was made. The survey created descriptive statistics, a Pearson correlation …

African-American Women Superintendents: Perceived Barriers And Challenges Experienced While Accessing And Serving In The Superintendency, Shelly Goines-Harris

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This research study was designed to add to the existing but limited literature that explores perceived barriers and challenges African-American women superintendents experienced while ascending and serving in the superintendency. According to the literature, African-American women are underrepresented in the role of public school superintendents. This study examined the impact of gender and racial discrimination on African-American women superintendent aspirants and those currently serving in the role. This study surveyed and interviewed African-American women superintendents serving in public school districts in North Carolina and South Carolina, examining their perceptions of barriers and challenges experienced while ascending and serving in the …

Principal Perceptions: The Impact Of Positive Behavioral Interventions And Supports On Discipline Disproportionality, Courtney K. Johnson

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study explored the impact of the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework on discipline disproportionality in an Eastern Virginia school division. Nationally, African American students are suspended and expelled at a much higher rate than their peers (Skiba et al., 2016). This study explored the impact PBIS had on this rate. The work is valuable to those interested in introducing the PBIS framework in their school division or school. A phenomenological, qualitative study was conducted with the first research question using discipline data from the division to track trends. The second research question was answered by interviewing principals …

Supervisors Matter For College Students: Relationships Between Employment Type And Student Outcomes, Daniel W. Eadens, Justin D. Hultman

Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Although student persistence is an important metric for higher education administrators and working while attending school is pervasive among those who attend college, the extent to which work supervisors may impact students while attending college through interactions is underexplored. This study examines the relationship between supervisor interactions and student outcomes in relation to type of employment, academic persistence, and competencies. The literature review indicates the relationship between type of employment and academic persistence is important and interactions may provide useful benefits. However, interactions within the type of employment experience is lesser known. The study site for this research is Alpha …

Growth No. 19 (2020) - Full Issue

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

The full issue of the nineteenth edition of Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development.

The Campus Rape Frenzy: The Attack On Due Process At America's Universities, Britney N. Graber

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

No abstract provided.

Teaching About Race And Racism In The College Classroom: Notes From A White Professor, Jeffrey Tabone

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

No abstract provided.

In Praise Of Consent: Why Talking About Sex On Christian Campuses Matters Differently Than We Think; A Review Essay, Kristen L. Guidero

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

For many contemporary evangelical Christians, the concept of consent tends to evoke marked squeamishness. Popular essays have construed consent as a mark of a dangerous, God-forsaking world or of a modernity that can only form shallowly contractual, liability-avoiding relationships (Franks, 2017; Harrison Warren, 2017). But revelations of abuse and assault by high-profile perpetrators in contexts as varied as sports, entertainment, education, and, yes, churches, should prompt renewed deliberation. This review essay engages with Donna Freitas’s work on consent to argue that Christians in higher education ought to heed her wisdom and adapt such conversations. The essay traces Freitas’s research-driven definitions …

Functional Assessment Of Behavioral And Social Supports, Beth S. Rous

Educational Leadership Studies Faculty Publications

The Functional Assessment of Behavioral and Social Supports is a practice-oriented assessment tool designed to help early childhood teams identify children’s behavioral, social, communication, classroom, work, and self-management skills and the supports needed for successful participation in early childhood settings. The assessment allows teams to document whether skills are present, emerging, inconsistent, or not present; identify adult or classroom supports; describe patterns of support; and summarize priority skills for intervention. The tool is intended for use by teachers, families, and assessment team members as part of early childhood transition, intervention planning, and classroom support processes.

Instructional Strategies Manual, 4th Edition: For The Helpful Entry Level Skills Checklist, 4th Edition, Beth S. Rous

Educational Leadership Studies Faculty Publications

The Instructional Strategies Manual, 4th Edition is a companion resource for the Helpful Entry Level Skills Checklist. The manual provides teachers, families, and early childhood teams with strategies, activities, and adaptations to support young children’s development of social, behavioral, communication, classroom, work, and self-management skills during the transition from preschool to school-age programs. The manual is organized around five major skill areas: classroom rules, work skills, communication skills, social behavior skills, and self-management skills. It includes strategies that can be embedded into daily classroom routines, family activities, and individualized supports, with adaptations for children with hearing, vision, cognitive, physical, speech/language, …