Higher Education Commons^™

When Prayers Aren’T Enough: The Need For Mission Formation And Professional Development For Lay Faculty At Catholic Colleges And Universities, Lucy A. Pesce

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Current literature suggests that administration and faculty must make a more intentional effort within Catholic higher education to articulate the mission of these religiously-affiliated institutions in response to two current issues: dwindling numbers of clergy and vowed religious faculty and administrators, and fewer students nationwide who self-identify with any form of organized religion. However, few studies have examined the experience of lay faculty at Catholic institutions who are entrusted with advancing the mission, regardless of their religious affiliation, and their professional development needs.

Using the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities’ Catholic Identity and Mission Assessment (CIMA) as a framework …

Deaf College Students’ Lived Experiences In Pk-16 Education: A Deaf Crit-Informed Qualitative Study, Bridget Catherine Taylor

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This qualitative study focused on Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, and orally Deaf college students, examining Deaf education from the perspective of linguistic and cultural minority students. The study offers theoretical perspectives for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers by examining the lived experiences of students who took part in Deaf education in the United States from PK–16. Deaf Critical Theory (DeafCrit) was the theoretical framework used to analyze the qualitative data.

2025 Fall - Commencement Program, Office Of The Registrar, East Tennessee State University

ETSU Commencement Ceremonies and Programs

No abstract provided.

Book Review: Academic Coaching: Coaching College Students For Success, Corinne Bishop

Journal of Graduate Librarianship

Book review: Howlett, M. A., & Rademacher, K. (2023). Academic coaching: Coaching college students for success. Routledge. 196 pp. ISBN: 9781032272214 (paperback), 9781032265711 (hardcover), 9781003291879 (ebook).

Caring More For Our First-Year, First-Generation And Low-Income Students: Perceptions Of Barriers And Transitional Success, Joshua Burns

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

First-generation and low-income (FGLI) students often encounter challenges during their transition into higher education, including limited access to institutional knowledge, social networks, and financial resources. While many colleges and universities offer targeted programs to support FGLI populations, not all eligible students enroll in or engage with these initiatives. This qualitative phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of first-year, nonprogrammatic FGLI students who are not actively participating in formal support programs to better understand how they navigate the transition to college. Through in-depth interviews, the study investigated the types of support these students seek independently, the institutional and social barriers they …

Building Resilience One Connection At A Time: A Guide To Developing Retention Programming On College Campuses, Stephanie Sibley, Rachel Daltry

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

Despite college students having the potential to be more socially connected than ever before thanks to technology and social media, many students still struggle with isolation, loneliness, and a lack of belongingness and community. These feelings and experiences not only increase the risk for suicidal behavior and diminish resilience, but they can also negatively impact student retention. Outreach programming that targets social connectedness will be described. Specific guidelines developed from first-hand experiences with implementing such programming will be highlighted, and readers will be encouraged to consider how similar programming could be implemented by various offices or personnel at their own …

Bridging The Gap: Exploring The Impact Of Graduate Preparation Programs On Undergraduate Stem Students, Faika Tahir Jan, Thomas Nelson, Travis Chan, Tremayne O. Waller, Cynthia Hampton, Sherif Abdelhamid

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

This study explores the impact of the "A Step to the Doctorate" (S2D) program on the academic trajectories of undergraduate STEM students, focusing on how it fosters academic success and prepares participants for graduate education. Drawing on data from pre and post surveys and semi structured interviews of 60 participants, the research addresses two primary questions: (1) Which program components do participants find most impactful? Moreover, (2) How has the program influenced their academic aspirations and preparedness for graduate school? The findings highlight that mentorship, peer networking, and targeted workshops are key in boosting academic self-efficacy and enhancing participants’ confidence …

The Success Equation: Scaling The Pivot Framework For Stem & Healthcare Student Success, Ryan Clark, Jarrod Lockhart

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

Student success in STEM and healthcare increasingly depends on intentional design of equitable, scalable pathways that integrate structured programming, immersive experiential learning, and modern workforce-aligned upskilling. This manuscript introduces the PIVOT Framework— Pathways, Innovation, Vision, Opportunity, and Transformation—as a comprehensive, evidencedriven model for reimagining student success strategies in STEM and healthcare education. The framework emphasizes early engagement, longitudinal support, and competency-based preparation, ensuring students develop the skills and professional identities necessary for success. Drawing from a range of high-impact practices—including paid internships, research-based learning experiences, mentoring structures, digital skills integration, and stackable credentialing—the manuscript demonstrates how coordinated institutional strategies improve …

The Power Of Intentional Programming: Amplifying Student Voices As A Catalyst For Student Engagement At Hbcus, Jason D. Etheridge

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

Student engagement is a critical factor in retention and success, particularly at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This study explores the development and implementation of intentional programming designed to foster inclusion, leadership, and academic success at an HBCU in the southeastern United States. Using a student-centered approach, initiatives such as leadership conferences, study halls, and identity-affirming programs were developed to address gaps in student engagement. Through qualitative data collection and student feedback analysis, findings suggest that integrating student voices into programming enhances institutional responsiveness, strengthens campus culture, and improves retention. This study highlights best practices, challenges, and implications for …

Mentoring Through A Cultural Lens: Faculty Mentorship Experience In The Bunche Fellows Undergraduate Research Program, Audrey Devost, Passion Lord, Kiana Billot-Vasquez, Zeyna Faucette, Ketema Paul, Walter Allen

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

This manuscript explores the significance of faculty mentorship in underrepresented student success within a culturally engaged on-campus research program. Drawing on data derived from the Pathways Through Research case study, a mixed-methods empirical study of the Bunche Fellows Program at the University of California, Los Angeles, this paper centers student voices to better understand the manifestations of cultural engagement among faculty mentoring experiences, and how these cultural experiences shape student development among the program’s alumni. Guided by Critical Race epistemology and the Culturally Engaging Campus Environments (CECE) Model, this research highlights the effectiveness of mentoring relationships within a structured on-campus …

Rethinking Academic Integrity: Deconstructing Academic Norms In A Technologically And Culturally Shifting Lanscape, Ilknur Sancak-Marusa

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

The rise of generative AI use in higher education calls for a critical reexamination of academic integrity, revealing its culturally-constructed and context-dependent nature. While institutions scramble to create generative AI policies, many rely on Western-centric definitions of integrity that overlook the diverse cultural and linguistic students’ backgrounds. Traditional frameworks often misunderstand behaviors like patchwork writing or collaborative learning, viewing them as misconduct rather than culturally influenced practices. This paper argues that academic integrity standards differ across cultures and institutions rather than follow universal principles. As generative AI further complicates ideas of authorship and originality, institutions must move beyond punitive responses …

Foreword, Orikideh Mohajeri

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, John B. Craig

Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Mental Health Literacy In Biology Graduate Teaching Assistants: Perception, Knowledge, And Training Needs In College Stem Education, Kanza Arshad, Ricardo Montoya, Nicole Scheuermann, Heather E. Bergan-Roller

Honors Capstones

College students experience a high prevalence of mental health challenges, and STEM students exhibit lower mental health literacy than students in other disciplines. Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) play a crucial role in supporting undergraduate students, yet little is known about their mental health literacy (MHL) or how they navigate student disclosures in instructional settings. This preliminary study examines MHL among GTAs in biology, as well as their knowledge, perceptions, and training needs regarding MHL. We used semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis to examine how biology GTAs understand mental health, their responsibility related to student well-being, and what supports they identify …

December 12, 2025 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

Unpacking Identity Work Mechanisms For A Person-Centered Approach To Business And Management Education, Carla Campana, Pablo Leao

International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

We explore identity work among undergraduate business students who resist the identity prevailing in traditional business schools. The study investigates an educational program that fosters identity work, allowing students to add facets to their emergent identity. Through in-depth interviews, the researchers uncovered a process in which students resist the hegemonic identity of business administrators, seeking alternative experiences that redefine their identity. Our research contribution is two-fold. First, we extend the concept of identity workspaces by introducing three mechanisms: autonomy, a psychological safe space, and group embeddedness. These mechanisms enable students to engage in an identity work process and reidentify with …

Becoming A Competent Graduate Librarian, Wendy Doucette

Journal of Graduate Librarianship

Becoming a competent graduate librarian is a cumulative process. This article is a reflective summary of over ten years of evolution as a graduate librarian. By treating real-life encounters with reality-based methods and empathetic teaching and reflection, I have developed personal recommendations and strategies to interact successfully with students, as well as the reasoning behind personal shifts in approaching graduate students and services. This process includes unscripted interactions, the necessity of becoming a scholarly contributor, and providing contextualization and incremental assistance against a framework of empathy and andragogy. Combined with ongoing self-assessment, this results in an evaluation cycle that responds …

“I Learned How To Be More Autistic”: Experiences Of Autistic-Centered Constellation Mentoring, Helen Rottier, Ben Pfingston, Tamar Heller

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

Peer mentoring is a common support service for autistic students in postsecondary education. This study explores the potential of peer mentoring as a space for autistic-centered connection and proposes a novel mentoring model, constellation mentoring, to enhance peer mentoring for this population. Constellation mentoring is informed by mentoring literature, critical disability praxis, and lived experiences of autistic community members to address limitations in existing mentoring programs. This article presents findings from the inaugural constellation mentoring program. Four autistic young adults who were past or present group members participated in focus group interviews about their experience. Researchers used reflexive thematic analysis …

Creating A Neurodivergent Peers Network For Faculty, Staff And Librarians, Nancy C. Johnston

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

This article describes the creation of a peer-led group of neurodivergent faculty, staff and librarians at the University of Toronto, Scarborough. It introduces both the author’s personal motivations for launching a network and seeking partners. It offers suggestions for other neurodivergent educators or organizers to support their peers in higher education workplaces.

Stimming Toward Something: Misreading, Method, And Neuroqueer Becoming, Kara Fahringer-Baer

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

This autotheoretical piece examines the epistemic injustices faced by a neurodivergent individual in higher education, tracing how institutional cultures demand legibility while extracting and erasing the knowledge produced at their margins. Drawing on the personal experience of a queer, cis-passing, neurodivergent scholar-practitioner in the U.S. community college system, the narrative enacts theory through lived friction, institutional residue, and creative refusal. By naming the margins as method, the piece offers both scholars and practitioners a framework for recognizing how neuroqueer ways of knowing unsettle dominant logics while making new forms of understanding possible.

When Writing Becomes Community: Reflections On The She Writes Circle For Racialized Graduate Students, Bahareh Razavian

Critical Internationalization Studies Review

No abstract provided.

Paradigm Pivot: Envisioning A New Education System To Cultivate An Era Of Human Intelligence, Heather J. Leslie Phd

Learning Design Center: Staff Scholarship

This think piece proposes a new paradigm for the education system that moves towards more humane practices and away from more mechanistic, standardized practices in order to cultivate intrinsic motivation, authenticity, and the capacity for each person to develop their unique human abilities in the era of artificial intelligence.

Exploring The Experiences Of White Passing And White-Assumed Latine College Students, Emanuel Magaña

Dissertations and Theses

Between 2009 and 2019 Latine college enrollment has increased, yet retention and graduation rates lag those of their white peers. While barriers for Latine students are well-documented, the influence of colorism, particularly among lighter-skinned or white passing students, remains understudied. This study utilized a qualitative case-study approach grounded in CRT and LatCrit and based on a Street Race Praxis framework. This study explored the experiences of twelve white passing and/or white-assumed Latine students at an emerging HSI in the Pacific Northwest. Using Testimonio informed approach and Counterstory, I drew from interviews, pláticas, site observations, and document analysis to create four …

University Of Northern Iowa Graduate Council Minutes, December 11, 2025, University Of Northern Iowa. Graduate Council.

Documents - Graduate Council

Meeting minutes from the Graduate Council of the University of Northern Iowa.

December 2025 Graduate Council Minutes, University Of Nebraska At Kearney Graduate Council

Graduate Council Minutes

No abstract provided.

2025-12-11 Message From The President, Morehead State University. Office Of The President.

Staff Congress Records

A message sent by the Office of the President to the campus community on December 11, 2025, regarding upcoming events on campus, winter break procedures, and campus personnel updates.

Counseling And College Access Programs Impact On College-Going Rates In Rural Tennessee, Dustin Lee Rawls

Tennessee State University Alumni Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative comparative case study examined the sharp decline in Tennessee's college-going rates (CGR), which fell from a high of 64.4% in 2015 to a low of 52.8% in 2021, creating significant concern for the state's workforce and economic future. Despite state initiatives and the presence of school counselors and grant-funded college access programs, substantial disparities in post-secondary enrollment persist, especially across the state's rural counties. Using the American School Counselor Association’s (ASCA, 2003) National Model as a theoretical framework, this research examined the processes and perspectives of school counselors and college access professionals in the top and bottom 10% …

Hear The Grateful Dead's "Blues For Allah" Performed By Don Was And The Pan-Detroit Ensemble On Feb. 6, Shannon Thomason

Browse All News

No abstract provided.

Sustainability In Culinary Arts Education, Nimra Farooqui

Education Department Student Publications & Research

No abstract provided.

Bridging The Rural Justice Gap: A Scalable Solution Rooted In Clinical Legal Education, Michelle Paxton

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

The rural justice gap significantly impacts child welfare legal representation, exacerbating the challenges families face when navigating juvenile courts in rural America. Attorneys in these communities frequently encounter geographic isolation, limited access to specialized training, professional burnout, and inadequate resources, all of which hinder effective advocacy for vulnerable children and families.

This article argues that clinical legal education, when paired with structured post-graduate training and multidisciplinary consultation, offers a replicable model for addressing the rural attorney shortages in juvenile court advocacy. The Nebraska Children’s Justice and Legal Advocacy Center (NCJC) illustrates how this model can be designed and scaled to …