Higher Education Commons^™

Full Issue, Winthrop Mcnair Research Bulletin

The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin

Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin Volume 5, Full Issue

A Look At Mentorship In A Structured Undergraduate Program, Ta'niss Robinson

The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin

From the great deal of research previously done in the area of mentorship, we know that it can be very valuable to individuals across all ages and fields. However, there has not been much research done on how mentorship affects undergraduate students while in a structured program. In this study, we examine aspects of mentorship in a structured undergraduate program from the perspectives of the undergraduate protégés. We aimed to look at what specific mentorship interaction protégés had with their mentors and what aspect of satisfaction protégés had with their mentors. The structured program was the Ronald E. McNair Scholars …

Invisible Barriers: Experiences Of First-Generation College Students Navigating Academia, Frances "Ana" Barkley

The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin

Twenty-four percent of undergraduates in the US are considered first-generation and low-income (Engle & Tinto, 2008), while TRiO student support services serve less than 5% of these students (Mortenson, 2011). Previous research reveals that these students are less prepared for collegiate-level academic rigor, have fewer financial resources, and have less cultural and social capital compared to their non-first-generation and non-low-income peers (Engle & Tinto, 2008; Chen & Carroll, 2005; Engle, 2007, Willet 1989). Based on their testimonies, are there specific challenges that first-generation, low-income students are currently experiencing while navigating higher education in 2018? How can these testimonies inform the …

Assessing Stress In College Students After Breathing Meditation With And Without Music, Joshua L. Le Clerg

Graduate Theses

College students face increased levels of stress due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which can adversely affect their academic performance. Therefore, it is critical for students to have access to practices that reduce stress, such as breathing meditations and listening to calming music, which are cost effective and require minimal time commitment. This study aimed to examine the efficacy of combining breathing meditation and listening to music for five minutes a day, five days a week, for two weeks. Fifteen undergraduate students completed the study and were randomly assigned to a control group who completed the breathing meditation without music (n=8) …

The Political Intervention And Public Policy Influencing High Tuition Rates At South Carolina Colleges And Universities, Zuri Anderson

Showcase of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE)

Winthrop University students often ask why the institution’s tuition rates are so high. This is an important question for students, who wonder why they pay higher tuition and fees to Winthrop compared to other universities with similar services. This investigative journalism project informs people, especially curious Winthrop students, about the complex reasons for Winthrop’s tuition rates. Open records, government documents, primary and secondary sources, public sources, news articles, in-depth interviews, and statistical research were utilized and analyzed for the research. Following the 2007 recession, which changed the financial landscape for colleges and universities, postsecondary and higher education faced funding issues. …

Preparing Millennials As Digital Citizens And Socially And Environmentally Responsible Business Professionals In A Socially Irresponsible Climate, Barbara Burgess-Wilkerson, Clovia Hamilton, Chlotia Garrison, Keith Robbins

Winthrop Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Higher Education, Adaptive Change, And The Adult Learner: Moving From Academic Access To Transformative Excellence, Patrick Guilbaud, Heather Tillberg-Webb

Winthrop Faculty and Staff Publications

As the profile of postbaccalaureate students across the country continues to become older and more diverse, colleges and universities of all sizes and types — state, private, technical, and community — are repositioning themselves to effectively serve a broader mix of learners. However, due to the unique background, professional goals, and academic interests of adult learners, higher education institutions (HEIs) must be adaptive across all of their program development, education delivery, administrative service, and student support units to meet the challenge of serving all of their learner constituencies effectively.

We propose implementing the supporting transformative excellence (STE) framework, which focuses …

A Few Parting Thoughts As We Reach The End: A Toast To The Teachers, Who Have Faith In A Seed, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Changing Lives, Having Your Own Life Changed: Reflections On Forty Years As A Teacher, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Coming To The End, This Time For Good: Reflections On Forty Years Of Teaching And Learning, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Alternative Facts: Learning Only Happens In The Classroom, Jessica Martin, Amy Phillips, Clarissa Elmore

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

Just as learning occurs in the classroom, it also occurs out of the classroom. In Winthrop University’s Department of Residence Life, professional and student staff instructs residential students in the “laboratory of life” with emphases on civility, integrity, communication, conflict management, and community building. With an increased demand from employers looking for students with strong soft skills and the ability to communicate with others, the value of a residential education cannot be overstated. Residential Learning Coordinators get to facilitate this out-of-the-classroom learning regularly. Attend this session to discover ways that Residence Life professional staff blends students’ academic and residential lives …

Teaching Teachers: Targeted Professional Development For Adjunct Faculty, Laura A. Tamberelli, Kim Buch, Caryl Gordon

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

Adjunct faculty are a growing and significant portion of teaching faculty at Universities across the United States. They are, however, vastly different from the traditional faculty member in terms of their needs, challenges, goals, and professional development options within their respective role and department. The proposed session would discuss the results of an adjunct faculty needs assessment conducted at UNC Charlotte. Additionally, it would present the steps that have since been taken to better serve adjuncts at this institution in terms of clarity, communication, networking, and professional development. Initial responses from department heads and adjunct faculty will also be discussed …

Digital Storytelling With Sway, Stephanie D. Jacobs

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

Sway is a NEW innovative web-based learning tool that can be used on any device you may have access to in the classroom. Develop your most creative and innovative abilities. This tool can be used to share your stories, experiences, or reflections. Join us as we learn how you can use Sway to build important skills such as research, writing, organizational, problem solving, presentation, assessment and communication. Students can easily create great digital stories also. Learn how to integrate a variety of media components (audio, videos, images, music, social media, documents/charts) in a matter of minutes. Bring your device and …

Cultivating Academic Habits Of Mind: Key Skills For Collegiate Success, Katarina Moyon, Amanda Hiner, Kelly Richardson

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

The value of a 21^st-century college education comes from the expectation that college graduates are cognitively prepared to deal with complexity, change, and diversity through the application of transferable and practical skills such as written and oral communication and analytic problem-solving. Winthrop University’s General Education Core, consisting of three specific courses completed by all students, provides a shared intellectual experience for students and equips them with powerful, college-level tools in critical reading, critical thinking, and academic writing. Moreover, the Core cultivates valuable academic habits of mind that are particularly valuable in a today’s dynamic world where college graduates …

Facilitating Teacher Reflection Through A Mutual Understanding Of The Characteristics Of Exemplary Teachers, Seth E. Jenny, Geraldine Jenny

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

Teachers meet challenges as they make a plethora of daily choices. It is a responsibility to learn from past choices. An exemplary teacher is a person who accepts the challenge of lifelong learning experiences in the domains of Leadership, Diversity, and Technology. Moreover, exemplary teachers must demonstrate competencies in the themes of School Context Expert, Master Practitioner, Learning Theorist, Curriculum Designer, and Instructional Leader (American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education, 2010, p. 24).

Making the commitment to become an exemplary teacher is a choice one should make with care because it is a decision that will affect the …

Vietnamese American College Students’ Experiences And Strategies Of Engagement On College Campus In The United States, Nhu Nguyen

Winthrop Conference on Teaching and Learning

Several previous studies explored the destructive effect of social exclusion on Asian American college students in U.S. colleges. Previous studies reported that Vietnamese American students, as one of largest Asian American minority groups in the United States, faced numerous challenges in reaching their academic s in higher education partly due to the experience of cultural and social alienation and exclusion. The purpose of this study is to examine how Vietnamese American college students perceive the concept of “engagement” on college campus and beyond and how they develop different engagement strategies to promote their academic and social integration. Structured as phenomenological …

Lessons From Linda Nilson: Self-Regulated Learning And How To Help Our Students Learn How To Learn, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

This week, lessons on self-regulated learning from Linda Nilson, Clemson University.

Those Funny Academics: Deadlines, Procrastination, And One Last Call For Proposals, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Crying In Class, Once Again—Literature, Loneliness, And Our Human Need For Connection, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Here We Go Again—And Again, And Again, And Again: Thoughts On Starting Yet Another Semester, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Mark Twain!: Reflections On A Writer, A Scholar, And Teaching And Learning, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Slow Learning—Sounds Like A Problem, But Just May Be A Very, Very Good Thing, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

The Case Of Affirmative Action In Undergraduate Admissions: United States And Brazil, Taylor Toves, Adolphus Belk Ph.D.

The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin

In the realm of higher education, Affirmative Action has been a matter of dispute amongst college administrations, state legislatures, and even the Supreme Court of the United States. Affirmative Action was created in order to help ensure that underrepresented groups have a fair chance at obtaining a college education. This has not only affected colleges and universities in the United States but also Brazil. This research did a cross-country comparative analysis of two nation states that posses a similar history when it comes to race relations and how that has affected the condition of equity in higher education. Though both …

Getting Rid Of Procrastination, Writing Like A Rabbit, Learning To Rewrite: Some Advice About The Writing Process, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

No abstract provided.

Those Crazy Millennials!: Some Thoughts On The Vast Majority Of Our Students, Or, Why Did The Millennial Cross The Road?, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

This week, some thoughts about those crazy millennials!

Be Personal, Not Perfect—A Special Guest Column From David Schary, Pesh, David Schary, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

This week, a guest column by David Schary, PESH. David tells us we don’t need to be perfect—and that can be a plus. Welcome words in this busy week!

Living Life Deliberately, Teaching Deliberately: Lessons From Walden Pond To Winthrop Teachers And Learners, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

This week, a trip to Walden Pond.

Surfing Around The Country, Learning About Teaching And Learning, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

This week, surfing the web to find resources to make us better teachers. There’s a lot out there!

Oh What A Mistake We Make When We Assume We Know What Our Students Know How To Do…And What To Do About It, John C. Bird, Teaching And Learning Center

The Weekly Reader

This week, making assumptions about what students can and can’t do, and what to do about that.

The Puzzle Of The Class Personality—Why Is This Section So Lively, And Why Is This Other One So Dead?, John C. Bird

The Weekly Reader

This week, trying to solve the puzzle of class personalities.