Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Gifted And Unserved: Evaluating The Effectiveness Of The Promise Scholar Program On Reducing The Racial Segregation Of Gifted Education, Reby Helland

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

There is a crisis in gifted education across our nation. Gifted programs are disproportionally identifying and servicing middle-class White students while systematically ignoring minority students. The Promise Scholar Program was developed by the Kent School District as a method to tackle the underrepresentation of minority students in their gifted education program. This elementary talent development model places promising minority students into gifted classrooms, exposing the participants to advanced and accelerated curriculum. This study sought to determine the effectiveness of this program as way to increase the identification of minority students for gifted education. Through the analysis and comparison of student …

Surviving Or Thriving: Educator Change Following School-Based Trauma, Mona M. Johnson

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

Situated in the Pacific Northwest, this qualitative study explored coping, change, and systemic support experienced by thirteen K-12 educators following a school-based trauma. It is based on a theoretical framework of posttraumatic growth, the systematic study of how individuals are changed by traumatic encounters in positive ways. Study participants witnessed school shootings, physical assaults, or accidents resulting in injury or death and were responsible to care for the life and death needs of others.

Research questions guiding this study: (1) How do educators cope following school-based trauma? (2) How do educators change following school-based trauma? (3) What systemic supports are …