Higher Education Commons^™

Student Perceptions Of Academic Advisement At A Public Suburban Community College: A Qualitative Case Study, Amanda L. Fox

Theses and Dissertations

This research study examined student perceptions of advisement experiences with a primary role advisor in a centralized advising office. The intent was to explore the connection between academic advising and student connectedness to the institution. This study utilized Tinto’s theory of student departure to provide an understanding of how student success can be impacted by institutional relationships, particularly in a community college environment. Tinto asserted that a student’s decision to stay or depart from an institution was largely impacted by interactions and relationships between the student and other members of the institution (Tinto, 1975). This study aimed to explore students’ …

The Stereotype Threat Experiences Of Men Of Color Persisting In Community College, Robert E. Cortes

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative narrative analysis was to explore how men of color have experienced stereotype threat in their lives and used community cultural wealth to manage stereotype threat and achieve academic success while persisting at a large urban community college. Racial tensions have manifested through blatant acts of racism, discrimination, and microaggressions across college campuses, threatening students of color who are marginalized and targeted. In consideration of the success of men of color attending community colleges in the United States, there is vast inequality and inequity when comparing their graduation, persistence, and retention rates to their White counterparts. …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Students’ Perceptions Of Their Experiences In Undergraduate Online Courses, Glenda Lander Lugo

Theses and Dissertations

The advancement of instructional technology has significantly influenced course delivery in higher education institutions and online learning has increased considerably as an instructional course delivery method. In addition, the changing student demographics and increasing cost of education have spurred the growth of online learning and have demonstrated the inevitability of online learning as an alternative to in-class instruction. Further, the ad-hoc implementation of online learning in higher education due to the COVID-19 pandemic has validated the use of online environments as a viable educational platform, but has also amplified the challenges associated with providing an optimal online education experience for …

The Impact Of Participation In Co-Curricular Activities On Academic Performance And Retention Utilizing Data Collected For The Co-Curricular Transcript, Harry Mars

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact that participation in co-curricular activities has on the academic performance and retention of students at an urban community college. This study utilized archived data to make quantitative analyses of the impact of participation in co-curricular activities on GPA scores and one-semester retention. The study included all of the students at Metro Community College who participated in one of the following activities during the 2018-2019 academic year: club member, club leader, leadership training, and mentee by a peer. Multiple regression was run to test the impact of participation in these activities …

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy In Pre-Service Teacher Preparation Programs, Kerri Durante

Theses and Dissertations

This descriptive multi case study will describe practices in teacher preparation programs in two urban universities to support Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) for teachers in the training programs in one of the most diverse cities in America and the outcomes of these practices. Recent alumni, faculty, and administrators of the selected universities were recruited to participate in this study to share their perceptions of CRP as it occurred for them in their course work, syllabi, and assignments while enrolled in the programs. This study will provide an in-depth analysis to explain the current use of CRP in practice, adherence to …

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Community College Faculty Awareness, Practices, And Professional Development, Kristyn Sacrestano

Theses and Dissertations

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are increasingly selecting to participate in postsecondary education. These individuals often face a number of challenges and barriers to success resulting in poor persistence and completion rates. For institutions of higher education, it is imperative that appropriate supports be put in place and faculty are prepared to support learners with ASD to allow for positive student experiences and successful completion. The purpose of this study was to examine disability awareness and faculty preparedness for working with students with ASD in order to move towards creating welcoming campuses which appropriately support and retain learners with …

Cracking The Code To Effective Marketing In Higher Education: A Case Study Of Recruitment And Retention Of First-Generation, Latinx Community College Students, Manuel L. Romero

Theses and Dissertations

Marketing strategy involves selecting a target market and determining the desired product positioning to attract the desired customers (Silk, 2006). Recently, community colleges have seen a decrease in student enrollment. In some cases, this was brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic; in other cases budget constraints have posed challenges to community colleges and their recruitment marketing efforts. Successful advertising involves a marketing strategy where the student is considered the customer (Guilbault, 2017) and creative “edvertising” (DiMartino & Jessen, 2018) campaigns entice students to select one college above other competitors. With a growing Latinx population in the United States, college recruitment …

The Perception Of Mattering From Black Male Alumni Of Historically White Institutions, Gretchen Rodney

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative narrative study explored the lived experience of high achieving Black men who recently graduated from very highly selective historically White institutions (HWI). The research was guided by Nancy Schlossberg’s (1989) theory of marginality and mattering and Shaun Harper’s anti-deficit achievement framework. Building on the work of Rosenberg and McCullough (1981), Schlossberg’s research shows that non-tradition students attending community college are more willing to persist to graduation when they feel they matter to the institution (Schlossberg, 1989). The dimensions of mattering are attention, importance, ego-extension, dependence, and appreciation. Harper’s anti-deficit framework counters the popular discourse in the literature around …

Climbing The Broken Ladder: A Narrative Exploration Of How Racially And Economically Minoritized Students Successfully Navigate The College Pathway, Sugeni A. Pérez-Sadler

Theses and Dissertations

Sixty six years after Brown v. Board of Education’s (1954), disparities in educational opportunity and outcomes continue to be a major civil rights issue that threatens the well-being of our society (Chetty et al,., 2018; Farmer-Hinton, 2008a). Despite the often-explored systemic barriers and oppressive forces, many do enroll in college and persist (Harper et al., 2018). This research applied the frameworks of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Yosso’s Community Cultural Wealth Model (CCW) to explore the barriers low-income Black and Latinx students face in accessing higher education and examine what these students might have in the way of personal assets …

Perceptions Of Shared Governance: Do Faculty And Administrators Share The Same Perceptions?, Laurie Pezzullo

Theses and Dissertations

Shared governance is important to accreditation because it informs assessment for Standard VII of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (Governance, Leadership, and Administration), building trust, increasing effective communication, policy and procedures, and decision making on an institutional level. However, prior research has indicated that there is not one standard method of shared governance and there is no consensus as to whether shared governance benefits the institution. This study employed a cross-sectional survey to gather pertinent information on the constructs of shared governance. Collected data were analyzed using: (a) a t-test to determine whether there is a significant difference …

Focusing On Retention: Creating A Supportive Environment For First-Generation Latino College Students, Genette Alvarez-Ortiz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this narrative study is to explore the role of student-faculty interaction and how this interaction may affect student success and completion of a college degree for first-generation Latino students. The study adopted a narrative methodology to explore students’ educational experiences. The purpose of the study is to expand the understanding of the experiences of first-generation Latino college students and recognize the value of their narratives. The framework examines the intersection of Tinto’s Integration model and social capital theory. The rationale and significance of the study were to examine the intersection of the two models and whether student …

Discrimination, Acculturative Stress, And Academic Achievement, Rebecca A. Steele

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers report an association of racial discrimination to academic achievement for racial/ethnic minority students. Racial discrimination is manifest on multiple levels, including interpersonal discrimination, discrimination in schools, and societal and cultural discrimination. Researchers have generally focused their efforts on examining the effects of one type of discrimination on academic achievement. Further, mediators of this relation have not been fully explored. In a sample of 78 college students, only interpersonal racial/ethnic discrimination, and not school-based or societal discrimination, was negatively associated with GPA. However, the effects did not hold once controlling for demographic factors. Two potential mediators of the relations of …

Teacher Perspectives Of The Impact Of Socratic Seminars And Collaborative Discourse On Students’ Reading Comprehension And Critical Literacy, Paula Walters

Theses and Dissertations

Academic success is contingent on multiple factors not the least of which is literacy and comprehension. However, research demonstrates that literacy and comprehension levels for traditional aged high secondary school students, as well as non-traditional adult college students threaten the academic success of these demographics. Identifying instructional practices that reinforce all literacy levels and sustain students’ motivation and engagement in the classroom is warranted as it may support students at the earliest levels of instruction, as well as offer support for the non-traditional adult college student who faces a plethora of challenges in pursuit of advanced credentials. The purpose of …

We Could Be Heroes: The Moral Of The Policy Story Of Florida Sb 1720, Sandra J. Pugh

Theses and Dissertations

With the developmental education (DE) reform movement at postsecondary still apace, this qualitative study seeks to understand the policy impacts of Florida Senate Bill 1720, major legislation mandating developmental education reform in the state of Florida. The body of literature thus far has focused on quantitative analyses of secondary data compiled and mandatorily reported to the state by Florida’s 28 state and community colleges. Developmental reading and writing instructors engaged in teaching during the DE reform era at a state college in northwest Florida were interviewed to explore a deeper understanding of corequisite/co-enrollment developmental instruction alongside the gateway English composition …

Prácticas Efectivas De Liderazgo Transformacional En Los Profesionales De Trabajo Social, Alejandra Borges Alverio

Theses and Dissertations

Este estudio fue desarrollado con el objetivo de describir las prácticas de liderazgo transformacional que han empleado diversos profesionales del trabajo social para lidiar con los retos y las demandas del entorno cambiante de las organizaciones sociales. Se logro contar con la participación de 15 profesionales del trabajo social que ocupan posiciones de liderazgo en escenarios como agencias gubernamentales, instituciones educativas y organizaciones sin fines de lucro.

Se utilizó un diseño de investigación cualitativa descriptiva con un enfoque fenomenológico basado en una categorización de temas y subtemas mediante un protocolo de entrevista. Esta metodología permitió generar información individualizada sobre las …

Udl: Practicing What We Preach, Peter E.L. Temple

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the use of UDL in a special education program’s coursework and analyze how it affects college students outcomes beyond their classrooms. Past research has suggested that UDL has been increasingly used in college-level coursework design, and courses designed with UDL have higher reports of college student achievement. Based on the principles of UDL and andragogy, this study identified four central research questions. Specifically, a small qual/large quant mixed-method research design was used to investigate instructor utilization of the UDL principles, teacher candidate corroboration of UDL elements in their coursework, and an exploration …

Improving College Students’ Views And Beliefs Relative To Mathematics: A Systematic Literature Review Followed By A Multiple Case Mixed Methods Exploration Of The Experiences That Underpin Community College Students’ Attitudes, Self-Efficacy, And Values In Mathematics, Marquita H. Sea

Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics is particularly important due to its relevance in our daily lives. It is a general requirement throughout schooling. Unfortunately, many students openly declare negative views/beliefs regarding math in their personal and academic lives. These in turn, negatively influence students’ achievement related behaviors and outcomes. First, a systematic literature review was conducted to determine what types of studies/initiatives have aimed to enhance students’ views/beliefs relative to mathematics, including domain general and specific perceptions of math as well as their judgements of who is successful in mathematics and if they themselves can be successful. Specifically, the review centered on the components …

The Lived Experiences Of Higher Education Academic Advisors With Counseling Degrees In Addressing Their Role In Student Success, Shajuana Isom-Payne

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to examine the lived experiences of academic advisors with a counseling degree in addressing their role in student success. If student retention rates are not addressed, higher education institutions are at risk of losing students, which is costly to the institution and the student (Himes, 2014). Most college students are in a state of change and need academic advising support to achieve success during a college transition (Tinto, 2012). Academic advisors can assist students in finding the right career for students’ specific strengths. Academic advisors with counseling degrees address advising through the lens …

An Exploration Of A Researcher-Instructor Partnership In Implicit Racial Bias Awareness And Mitigation In College Stem Classrooms, Jacqueline Johnson Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

Seventy-six percent of all minority students who enter college with declared majors in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) do not graduate with STEM degrees. Black students represent 40% of minority attrition from STEM. Implicit racial bias was indicated as a contributor to the challenges faced by Black students. The purpose of this study was to explore whether a researcher-instructor partnership brought awareness to and the potential for mitigation of implicit racial bias in course delivery and instructor interactions with Black students in STEM classes. A case study design was used over three phases to gather survey, observational, and interview …

Understanding Chinese International Students' Engagement And Belongingness In U.S. Universities, Yingying Jiang

Theses and Dissertations

Little research has been conducted on Chinese international students’ engagement and belongingness in U.S. universities. This study used a non-experimental quantitative survey research design and adapted survey items from past literature to target Chinese international students’ experiences. Prior to the survey administration, pretesting including expert reviews and a think-aloud were carried out to validate the survey. A total of 76 Chinese students from various universities participated in the survey data collection. The quantitative analytical processes included Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to ensure construct validity; measurement invariance testing between groups and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) included four major factors/predictors (English proficiency, …

Addressing The Equity Gap In California Community Colleges’ Transfer Pathways: A Transfer Center Guide For Supporting Underrepresented Student Success, Nune Mikayelyan

Theses and Dissertations

California Community Colleges (CCC) are integral in ensuring student enrollment, persistence, and subsequent higher education degree attainment. As one of the most affordable institutions of learning, community colleges symbolize access to various degree and certificate completion options, transfer opportunities, vocation and remedial education, as well as workforce training. However, a high percentage of students, especially from underrepresented backgrounds, systematically falls short of the set institutional guidelines and do not complete a degree or transfer within the expected timeframes. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the effective strategies utilized by CCC transfer center directors (TCDs) for supporting underrepresented …

The Chemistry Laboratory Experience Of El Camino Students While In Emergency Remote Teaching Due To The Covid-19 Pandemic, Shaun A. Cook

Theses and Dissertations

Future college environments, including those in chemistry, will entail flexible formats. The pandemic spurred appreciation of the need, and though it has largely passed, adaptability to multiple formats in the future has been a critical part of planning for a rapidly changing future. Experiences during the pandemic will guide pedagogical changes and practices in the future. At El Camino College in Southern California, the chemistry department provided varied laboratory instruction to students during Emergency Remote Teaching. Understanding the experience students had during this extraordinary time is essential. Students who took courses that had an online laboratory course completed a mixed-methods …

The Axis Of Access: A Quantitative Ethnography Of Presidential Discourse On The Construct Of College Access In The United States, Pamela M. Donnelly

Theses and Dissertations

Federal discourse pertaining to college access requires clarified definition. Use of the college access construct has become commonplace, yet no unified refinement of meaning exists. This study, which covered U.S. presidential communications from January 2009 to October 2021, addressed the abstraction of language as leaders presented ideas, policies, and opinions. Observable trends impacting social mobility for students from underserved populations were of central interest. The research methodology, Quantitative Ethnography (QE), used the tool of Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA). Eight codes were identified through grounded analysis: Affordability, Pathway Program, Underserved Populations, Class Systems, Upward Mobility, Career Readiness, Trajectory, and Career Technical …

University Faculty Experiences: Workplace And Personal Stress, Stress Management, And Coping, Whitney Matthews Gass

Theses and Dissertations

University faculty have work responsibilities and duties that encompass teaching, research (scholarship), and service and experience pressure from administrators, students, institutions, and disciplines. They also have expectations placed on them outside of their institutions by their families, peers, and communities. A gap exists in the literature regarding the workplace and personal stressors that university faculty experience including the coping strategies they employ to manage stress. This qualitative study utilized a general strain theory framework for guidance and modified informal conversational interviews with University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock) faculty. Interview questions were about the lived workplace and …

Placing Value On Environmental Literacy: A Case Study Of Biology Faculty Experiences, Ilene Sigrid Eberly

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to explore how contingent biology instructors place value on environmental literacy in their instruction and the instructional strategies used to foster their student's environmental literacy. This study also investigated the contextual experiences of contingent instructors influencing the value they place on environmental literacy. Participants included 11 faculty teaching introductory biology courses from two public universities in the Northeast. Our analysis focused on triangulation of participants semi-structured interviews, instructor-generated artifacts, and field notes from classroom observations, interviews, and artifacts. Findings revealed contingent biology instructors understand the importance of placing value on environmental literacy in …

Planning And Teaching For Student Learning In Mathematics: How Graduate Student Instructors Develop And Implement Instruction, Jennifer S. Crooks-Monastra

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore undergraduate mathematics teaching from the perspective of a graduate student serving as a first-time precalculus instructor of record. A multiple case study was designed to follow three mathematics graduate student instructors (MGSIs) through one semester of teaching to understand their goals for student learning, efforts to achieve these goals, influences on planning, and to identify challenges they encountered. For each MGSI, data collection included four interviews, three observations of teaching, weekly journal entries, and written assignments from a pedagogy course. A focus group, field notes from the pedagogy course, audio from mentor …

#Blackfemaleteachersmatter: The Experiences Of Three African American Female Teachers Who Left The Classroom During Their Induction Years, Ashlye Victoria Wilkerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study captured the lived experiences of three African American, female classroom teachers who left the profession within three years of beginning their careers. The main goal that led this research was to center the perspectives of African American women in the conversation about teacher retention, turnover, and attrition percentages that plague the field of education. The primary questions that guided this study were: (1) “What can be learned from the life stories of former African American female teachers who left the teaching profession from South Carolina public classrooms during their induction years?”, (2) “What do their life stories reveal …

Improving Outcomes Assessment Through Silo Integration, Jeffrey Scott Harmon

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to leverage the experiences and perceptions of academic administrators at Mountain State University to disrupt the negative aspects of silo-based decision-making within closing the loop assessment practices. Siloed operations naturally begin to operate in contradiction to one another and often to the detriment of the organization. Focusing specifically on siloed operations across academic schools at Mountain State University, this study reveals issues of inefficiency and redundancy, and develops intervention strategies in an effort to improve closing the loop assessment efforts. These strategies include structural changes leading to a more integrated assessment model …

On The Socialization Of Transfer Physics Majors Enrolled Within Upper-Division Physics Courses At Transfer Receiving Institutions: Qualitative Research, Patrick Lee Chestnut

Theses and Dissertations

A host of individual and institutional sociocultural factors mediate transfer physics students' socialization experiences at 4-year transfer receiving institutions. The purpose of this study is to understand how sociocultural factors mediate transfer physics students' socialization while participating in upper-division physics coursework at a 4-year public transfer-receiving university. This study, rooted in sociocultural constructivism, aimed to shape discussion of seven transfer physics students, six regular admit physics students, and a physics course instructor's experiences connected to physics studies that emerged from qualitative data. These data included student and faculty surveys, interviews, and classroom observations. Several key findings emerged. First, a multitude …

Misunderstood: A Phenomenological Study On Intersectionality And The Lived Experiences Of Black Millennial Student Affairs Professionals At Pwis, Emily P. Dixon

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to further understand the lived experiences of Black millennial student affairs professionals navigating and advancing through a predominately white institution in the southern United States. This phenomenological study, framed by critical race theory and intersectionality, sought to ultimately use these lived experiences to advocate for change. A review of the literature highlighted the needs, values, and experiences of Black Millennials based on both identities, the experiences of working in student affairs/higher education with these experiences, and the need for intentional diversity efforts by higher educational institutions.

The researcher interviewed nine participants to learn more about …