Leadership Studies Commons^™

Virtual Student Engagement Through The Admissions Process, Sonya Hernandez

Leadership Education Capstones

Students pursing higher education are inundated with information meant to recruit them to the college or university. Institutions compete for a prospective student’s attention through multiple mediums and platforms (Hagedorn, 2006). It is to the institutions benefit to continue to update recruitment practices to maintain a competitive advantage. The university admissions office central role is to recruit students and implement recruitment strategies. The COVID-19 global pandemic forced admissions offices to pivot efforts into increasing or relying solely on virtual student engagement to meet safety requirements. The transition highlighted the need to fill gaps in virtual student engagement initiatives and knowledge. …

Grounded Roots Applied To Women Presidents In The California Community Colleges System, Penny Shreve

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this explanatory mixed methods study was to identify and describe what exemplary female presidents in California community colleges do to stay grounded and maintain physical, emotional, intellectual, social, vocational, and spiritual health.

Methodology: This mixed methods study identified and described the perceptions of 16 women presidents in the California Community Colleges system regarding strategies they use to remain grounded in their current positions. Respondents were purposively chosen based on specific criteria. Data were gathered through the Stay Grounded survey from 16 participants and interviews with 5 of the participants. Quantitative data were tabulated to determine mean …

Leadership And Professional Development Amongst Student Interns, Amanda Brown

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

Research shows that students who participate in an on-campus internship during their time as an undergraduate can have positive impacts on their leadership and professional development (Matteo & You, 2020). The positive impact of partaking in an on-campus internship has prompted higher education professionals to investigate the specific benefits that are provided through these internship programs as well as the structure of such programs. This study sought to improve my understanding of being a mentor and how I can create space and opportunity for my student interns to work towards leadership and professional development and how those skillsets can be …

Higher Education Business And Technology Leaders’ Behaviors That Drive Outcome Alignment, Katherine Lynch-Holmes

Dissertations

Higher education institutions (HEIs) face unprecedented challenges, including capacity alignment, financial sustainability, and even public confidence (Grajeck & Brooks, 2020; Grawe, 2019; Oblinger, 2019; Simone, 2020, Wheeler, 2020, Witt & Coyne, 2019). Financial challenges force HEIs to reduce costs by making decisions like cutting programs, laying off staff or merging institutions to reduce operating costs (Chen et al., 2019; Sellingo, 2017; Witt & Coyne, 2019). Higher education leaders (HELs) must act as trusted partners and broker technology to align processes, support, and outcomes (Luftman 2000; Petkovics, 2018; Reinitz, 2019). Unfortunately, higher education’s business-technology (BITA) alignment remains lower than other national …

Allyship Training Programs In Higher Education: Creating A Critical Curriculum Of Change, Macy Marin Keith

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Allies Training Programs (also known as Safe Space/Zone training) are found in many institutions of higher education. Usually provided by an LGBTQA+ or Gender and Sexuality Center staff, the goal is to prepare participants for an allyship role in hopes of promoting safe spaces on campus and decrease instances of queerphobia. This thesis examined current allies training programs to determine what content is being presented and compare to the latest critiques and definitions. After analysis it is determined that current allyship trainings are inadequately preparing higher education staff and faculty for an ally role. Using the results of this study …

Higher Education's Immunity To Change: Understanding How Leaders Make Meaning Of Their Student Success Landscape, Brittany Motley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Closing equity gaps in the higher education sector is a long-standing issue. This issue has become exacerbated with the impact of COVID-19 and racial injustices happening across America. Now more than ever it has become imperative to use participatory action research to understand how leaders make meaning of their student success landscape and use that meaning to influence their strategic action for equity. I engaged two student success stakeholders from one university as co-researchers to help identify a problem in practice as it relates to equity gaps in student success. We used a modified approach to immunity to change (ITC) …

First-Gen Mental Health: The Experiences Of First-Generation Graduate Students At The University Of San Diego, Edith Mendez

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

Higher education professionals can better support struggling students by having more of an awareness of their experiences and how their mental health is related to the identities they hold. As a first-generation Latina college student, I am reminded of my own experiences and struggles, which impacted my sense of belonging and academic success. My action research responds to the question: "What are the mental health concerns that first-generation students studying at the University of San Diego (USD) encounter?" After making changes to my research because of unforeseen circumstances, I designed a study focusing on graduate students with cycles consisting of …

An Integrated Developmental Model And Measure Of Intercultural Competence, Natasha S. Dumerville

Dissertations, 2020-current

This study presents a synthesized model of intercultural competence, the Integrated Developmental Model of Intercultural Competence (IDMIC), based on six existing constructs and models of intercultural competence commonly used in postsecondary education. The IDMIC Index is a scenario-based instrument designed to measure intercultural competence as depicted by the developmental model. Undergraduate and graduate students were surveyed during the Spring 2019 semester. Data was collected and analyzed using quantitative techniques. Results of data analyses did not provide evidence to support the hypothesized unidimensional structure of the IDMIC Index; however, there was evidence to support the measurement reliability and validity of the …

Paving The Way: Enhancing The Transfer Admission Practices At The University Of San Diego, Andrew Alsoraimi-Espiritu

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

The purpose of this study is to examine how the University of San Diego’s (USD) Office of Undergraduate Admission can better serve prospective students from local community colleges by striving towards a Transfer Receptive Culture (Jain, Herrera, Bernal, & Solórzano, 2011). Using my positionality as an admissions counselor at USD, I explored the following question with current and prospective transfer students, as well as local community college partners: how can I enhance the practices of my department to better support transfer students during the pretransfer phase at USD? My findings indicate that the transfer path to USD is hectic and …

Faculty Management: An Examination Of The Dual Role Of Faculty As Managers In Higher Education, Rume J. Azikiwe

Full-Text Theses & Dissertations

This research study offers a better understanding on the role of faculty when they are given managerial/leadership roles beyond their teaching and research duties. It focuses on why faculty members accept initial roles with a university; how they become faculty managers; how they are transitioned into faculty management roles; what challenges are with having faculty managers in the role; how the concept of academic freedom/empowerment plays a role in challenges of faculty managers; and how university leadership can respond to, support, and prepare faculty managers to be successful in these administrative roles. To better understand faculty managers, the researcher conducted …

“To Study The Self Is To Forget The Self”: Zen Lessons On Ego And Leadership In Higher Education, Jody Condit Fagan

Libraries

Theories of charismatic leadership present leadership as an influence process where part of the leader’s role is to attract followers through individual example and vision. Charismatic leadership acknowledges the potential dangers of narcissism in the leader and leader-obsession among their followers. Meanwhile, central tenets of Zen philosophy include that of non-attachment to self, interdependence of all beings, and impermanence. Interviews with four American Zen practitioner-leaders were analyzed for themes related to the influence of ego on leadership. This paper presents findings from the interviews, and discusses these along with observations from other Zen scholars and practitioners. The discussion is complemented …

Leading Ethically Ii Spc 506, Joanna Burkhardt

Library Impact Statements

No abstract provided.

Capstone Project: Nonprofit Leadership Ii Spc 551, Joanna Burkhardt

Library Impact Statements

No abstract provided.

Capstone Project: Nonprofit Leadership I Spc 550, Joanna Burkhardt

Library Impact Statements

No abstract provided.

Leading Ethically I Spc 505, Joanna Burkhardt

Library Impact Statements

No abstract provided.

How Navy And Marine Corps Veterans Make Meaning Of The College Choice Process In The Post-9/11 Gi Bill Era, Derek Abbey

Dissertations

The Post-9/11 GI Bill was implemented in 2009. Since then more than 1,900,000 people have used the benefit and more than $90 billion have been paid to institutions of higher learning and to Post-9/11 GI Bill users. During this period there has been a shift in the types of college and universities veterans attend, as well as the educational models they select. These shifts are different than the general population of students. This period also included a spike in questionable recruiting practices by some colleges. In response to many institutions taking advantage of veterans, the President of the United States …

Support Services For Formerly Incarcerated Students, Janelle Brown-Peters

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

The purpose of my study was to improve and/or create support services for formerly incarcerated students at the University of San Diego. I sought to discover first if there were any existing support services available for these students at USD. I also sought to discover what kinds of support services existed at other local colleges and universities in order to compare and contrast with USD. Through 1:1 interviews, surveys, focus groups, and community restorative justice organizations, I learned that USD was one of the only higher education campuses in San Diego not currently providing support services for this population of …

Workplace Incivility: A Quantitative Study Of Public University Staff Member Experiences In The Northeast, Tracy M. St. Pierre Ma

All Student Scholarship

Workplace incivility is a construct similar to sexual harassment or bullying in that it is unwanted behavior and can cause negative emotions for those who experience it. However, it lacks the clear definition and legal repercussions that have been established for sexual harassment and bullying.

Essential Leadership Competencies For College Presidents In A Metrics-Driven Community College System, Mark Mclean

Dissertations

Leaders in higher education face more change than ever before in a complex, challenging, and continually shifting social, political, and economic environment (Kezar & Holcombe, 2017). As a result, presidents are increasingly accountable for performance and metrics serve as an important component of accountability (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2017). However, presidents may not possess the “rare combination of skills that enables them to be both strong transactional and operational leaders as well as more visionary and transformational ones” (Pelletier, 2016, p. 31). As a consequence, leadership failure produces significant adverse results for presidents and institutions including the loss of positions and the threat …

How Professional Physical Therapist Education Programs Develop Cultural Competence Within Their Students: An Exploratory Concurrent Mixed Methods Study, Dustin E. Domingo

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this exploratory concurrent mixed methods study was to describe experiences that shape the factors of cultural intelligence (CQ) as perceived by students of professional physical therapist education programs. In addition, it was the purpose of this study to determine whether any particular factor of cultural intelligence influenced one’s overall cultural competence according to the cultural competence continuum by Cross et al. (1989).

Methodology: Students in a professional physical therapist education program completed a questionnaire, which included Likert scale questions, open ended questions, and a 37-item self-assessment based on the expanded cultural intelligence scale by Van Dyne …

The Incidence And Impact Of Workplace Incivility: A Quantitative Study Comparing Public University Staff Member Experiences In The Northeast, Tracy St. Pierre

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Workplace Incivility (WI) is a construct similar to sexual harassment or bullying - it is unwanted behavior and can cause negative emotions for those who experience it. However, it lacks a clear definition or legal repercussions that have been established for sexual harassment and bullying. Thus, incivility is able to thrive in the workplace with little intervention and can create adverse consequences for employees and the organization. Several studies demonstrate that up to 96% of employees have experienced WI (Porath & Pearson, 2010, p.64). Employees who experience WI reduce their work effort and decrease productivity by “venting” to co-workers (Cortina …

The Perceived Relationship Of Student Engagement: An Analysis Of Underrepresented Student Achievement At A Predominantly White Land Grant Institution, Antomia Farrell

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Over the course of centuries, agriculture has carried a negative connotation for those who identify as an underrepresented minority. The University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (CAFE), Office of Diversity (OOD) has worked strategically over the course of the last twenty years, in enhancing recruitment and retention mechanisms to increase the enrollment of underrepresented minority (URM) students and to change the face of agriculture within the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

The purpose of this study is to identify and examine the student engagement and academic achievement of underrepresented students who are juniors and seniors at the University of …

The Influence Of Engaging Centralized Student Support On The Academic Achievement Of Student Veterans, Paul Morgan

Dissertations, 2014-2019

As more veterans and service members enroll in higher education, institutions are investing greater resources in the establishment and enhancement of centers to support them. However, little is known about the outcomes associated with utilization of the centers. Furthermore, researchers have consistently aggregated veterans and service members under “student veterans” with little regard for potential differences. Using regression analyses and analysis of variance, this case study explored the effect of visits to a veterans center on grade point average (GPA), the effect of academic need on frequency of visits, and differences in academic achievement for different types of military-affiliated students. …

The Initial Planning Process Of An International Service-Learning Pilot Initiative Under Development, Denise P. Krohn

Theses & Dissertations

This research explored the initial planning process of an international service-learning (ISL) initiative under development that involved a collaboration among a south-central Texas private university, a ministry of Catholic Sisters in Peru, a U.S. non-profit organization, and a Peruvian optometry school. Three collaborators were founded by the same religious order. An overlapping in mission and values influenced the context. By delving into the expectations of higher education and its pedagogical practices, ISL’s history and conceptualizations, and concepts of program planning and designing related to the fields of ISL and adult learning, this study presented significant program development aspects. Furthermore, the …

Developing A Study Abroad Program For Student Veterans, Andrea Dame

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

Universities across the nation are seeing an increase in student veterans who are taking advantage of the educational benefits offered for life after the military. These students are non-traditional and come from diverse backgrounds bringing in a unique perspective to higher education institutions (Howard and Brode, 2013). Since 2009, there have been more than 1.7 million Post-9/11 GI Bill users (Department of Veteran Affairs, 2017). This educational benefit has been instrumental in helping veterans and their dependents go to school and obtain a two or four-year degree but there is a 36-month limit to this educational benefit which reduces the …

Underrepresented Student Involvement With The Office Of Sustainability, Jelitsa Fonseca

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

The purpose of this study is to further understand the disconnect between sustainability efforts and the underrepresented student population at the University of San Diego (USD). One of the main concerns of this study is why underrepresented students are not getting involved in sustainability activities on campus, and whether or not that is due to being a minority on campus, which may impact how they choose to get involved in these efforts. The main research questions are: How can I help the Office of Sustainability at USD reach out to underrepresented students who may have stigmas and/or stereotypes towards sustainability? …

Examining Generativity Development Among College Student Leaders Who Mentor, Hannah M. Sunderman

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the influence, if any, of age cohort on generativity among college student leaders who mentor. While previous research has revealed that college student leaders who mentor tend to demonstrate higher levels of generativity than other college student leaders and general college students (Hastings, Griesen, Hoover, Creswell, & Dlugosh, 2015), research as to the development of generativity among college student leaders who mentor has not been determined. Additionally, a need exists for further research on the antecedents of generativity (McAdams, 2001, p. 434). The current study sought to fill these gaps in …

In Our Time: Advancing Interfaith Studies Curricula At Catholic Colleges And Universities, Eboo Patel, Noah Silverman, Kristi Del Vecchio

Engaging Pedagogies in Catholic Higher Education (EPiCHE)

People who orient around religion differently are interacting with greater frequency than ever before. These interactions, especially in the context of college and university campuses, require young people to grapple with their own identities in ways that previous generations could more easily avoid. Conversations about religious diversity have become elevated at colleges and universities, which has led Drs. Douglas Jacobsen and Rhonda Hustedt Jacobsen to claim that religion is “no longer invisible” in the context of American higher education.

As an organization that works with hundreds of American colleges and universities every year, Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) believes that Catholic …

Argument Education In Higher Education: A Validation Study, Paul E. Mabrey Iii

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Argument education can play an important role in higher education for leadership development and responding to increasing calls for post-secondary accountability. But to do so, argumentation teachers, scholars, and practitioners need to develop a clearer definition and research agenda for the purposes of teaching and assessing argumentation. The research conducted here contributes to this project by first establishing a definitional construct and observable behaviors associated with learning and practicing argumentation. Second, an argument education assessment instrument was created based off of the literature-supported definition of argumentation. Third, debate and argument education subject matter experts reviewed the definition, behaviors, and assessment …

School Of Strategic Leadership Studies Leadership Instruments Library 1.0, School Of Strategic Leadership Studies

Leadership Instruments Library

Created by the School of Strategic Leadership Studies (SSLS) program at James Madison University. Anyone should feel free to suggest updates, expand the information on instruments or add new instruments. Send the information to SSLS and we’ll screen the info before adding it to the library. Suggested changes/additions need to be well documented with citations. To provide corrected or new information, please contact the School of Strategic Leadership Studies at James Madison University: [email protected]. We hope you find it useful!