Education Policy Commons^™

Governing Generative Ai In Higher Education: A Global Delphi Study On Policy And Practice, Helen Crompton, Diane Burke, Christine Nickel, Aras Bozkurt, Fengchun Miao, Mike Sharples, Jeffrey Alan Greene, David Parsons, Lucy Gill-Simmen, Adam Edmett, Mark Pegrum, Inge De Waard, Curtis J. Bonk, Manuel B. Garcia, John H. Curry, Leeann Lindsey, Mohan Yang, Stephen Marshall, Maha Bali, Nellie Deutsch, Suzaan Le Roux, Mourad Benali, Mohd Ali Bin Samsudin, Hasan Tinmaz, Matthew L. Bernacki, Mari Van Wyk, Lenandlar Singh, Agnes Chigona, Lance Eaton, Junhong Xiao, Johanna Velander, Jinhee Kim, Francisco Bellas, R. Rajalakshmi, Andréia De Bem Machado, Agnieszka Palalas, Sean Yu

STEMPS Faculty Publications

As GenAI technologies become more pervasive in higher education (HE), scholars call for guidance on AI governance. To meet this need, a Delphi technique and collective writing was used in gathering expert perspectives from across 22 countries/locations and six continents. This resulted in the development of a HE GenAI policy/guidelines framework with eight core areas: (1) academic integrity, (2) ethical use and responsible use, (3) privacy and protection, (4) equitable access, (5) GenAI literacy, (6) integration strategy, (7) human oversight and accountability, and (8) institutional support and infrastructure. In addition, a six-part framework was developed to ensure that policies remain …

Navigating Mental Wellness: A Peer-Led Journey Into Adult Services, Kristin G. Haberek

DSW Capstone Projects

Students with severe emotional disturbances (SED) occupy one of the most underserved intersections in American education and mental health care. As they age out of children’s services, they face abrupt service discontinuation, disrupted therapeutic relationships, and adult systems ill-equipped to meet their needs. These vulnerabilities, including heightened risks of crisis, hospitalization, homelessness, and justice involvement, constitute a central practice problem. This capstone addresses these transitions across three scholarly products: a systematic literature review, a theoretical concept paper, and a practical application paper, tracing a unified arc from diagnosing structural failures to proposing an evidence-informed, equity-oriented clinical response. Synthesizing key findings …

Enhancing Graduate Surgical Education: Recommendations For Development Of Common Surgery Education And Training Accreditation Standards, Edwin Christopher Ellison, David B. Hoyt, L. D. Britt, Gerald B. Healy, John R. Potts Iii, Michael M. Awad, Eric A. Gantwerker, Apostolos Gaitanidis, Carol R. Bradford, Robert Phillip Burns, Mary T. Hawn, John G. Hunter, Cheryl T. Lee, Keith D. Lillemoe, Najjia N. Mahmoud, Jeffrey B. Matthews, Michael W. Neumeister, Kathleen C. Y. Sie, The Independent Committee For Graduate Surgical Education

Department Surgery Faculty Publications

Background:

Concerns persist within the surgical community that completion of an accredited surgical residency no longer consistently ensures that trainees are ready for independent practice. In response, the Independent Committee for Graduate Surgical Education (ICGSE) was established in January 2025 to address the unique requirements of surgical training. The committee’s mandate was to recommend program standards that would potentially optimize education and training for surgical residents, with the goal of improving patient care.

Methods:

The ICGSE, consisting of 71 surgeons across 16 specialties, reviewed the history of surgical accreditation and relevant literature. Workgroup-led discussions identified strategies for improving trainee readiness …

Contextualizing The Aspe Standards Of Best Practice: Reflecting On The Past, Present, And Future Of Sp Methodology, Amelia M. Wallace, Cory Krebsbach, Janice Radway, Lou Clark

EVMS School of Health Professions Faculty Publications

As we celebrate the publication of the Association of SP Educators Standards of Best Practice (ASPE SOBP) for Physical Exam Teaching Associates (PETAs) and corresponding literature review, we, elected leaders of ASPE, offer reflections on SP methodology history, current practices, and future opportunities. Our aim is to contextualize this addition to what is now the third SOBP publication [1, 2] that guides the global simulation community on best practices of simulated participant (SP) methodology.

Thank you to the ASPE members and SP Educators who made time to share their expertise as authors on these new standards- in addition to their …

Stacked Risks, Unequal Returns: Stratified Risk Allocation In Housing And Higher Education, Regina M. Lewis

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

In the United States, public policy does more than distribute resources. It distributes risk. The same policy can create profoundly different consequences for different people because policies operate on landscapes shaped by generations of unequal investment and opportunity.

To explore this process, I introduce the Stratified Risk Allocation (SRA) Framework to demonstrate how facially neutral policies reproduce inequality by allocating risk across populations with unequal capacity to absorb it. Drawing on risk society theory, historical institutionalism, critical race theory, intersectionality, and stratification economics, the SRA framework distinguishes between Exposure, the likelihood of encountering policy-generated risk, and Capacity, the resources available …

Examining Challenges For Sociology Master’S Degree Students At California State University, David Ortuno

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify the lived experiences of CSU sociology graduate students pursuing a master’s degree. Seven sociology graduate students from six of the eight (75%) total sociology MA programs throughout the entire CSU system were interviewed. Their responses were designed to analyze the support systems and challenges they face while pursuing a master's degree, as well as to investigate whether their experiences correlate with or fail to correlate with the promises in the CSU mission statement, and to answer the study’s research questions and achieve the purpose of this qualitative study.

Four themes emerged from …

Examining Inclusive Computing Education For Blind Students In India, Akshay Kolgar Nayak, Yash Prakash, Md Javedul Ferdous, Sampath Jayarathna, Hae-Na Lee, Vikas Ashok

Computer Science Faculty Publications

The growing demand for computer professionals, driven by the expanding Information Technology industry, has led to numerous inclusive computing education efforts. These efforts have even included blind or visually-impaired (BVI) students, who are being increasingly encouraged to pursue education and a career in computing, despite the visually-oriented nature of the discipline. Extant literature has predominantly focused on identifying and addressing the accessibility barriers faced by BVI students to promote more inclusive learning environments. While few studies have also investigated the accessibility of computing education from the perspectives of BVI learners and instructors, these have been primarily situated in the Global …

Experiential Learning: Making It Matter In Early Childhood Preparation, Laura Mccorkle, Sheena Jennings, Dana Childress

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

In recent years, the Division for Early Childhood (DEC) of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) has put forth recommendations for the field through the development of the Position Statement on Ethical Practice and Personnel Standards in Early Childhood Special Education. Additionally, principles outlined in the Early Childhood Education/Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education (ECE/EI/ECSE) Crosswalk and the DEC promote supervised, community-based learning across varied environments and the birth-to-age-8 continuum. This article, which includes four figures, provides support to faculty in developing experiential learning opportunities (ELOs) within their programs of study for EI, ECE, and/or ECSE preservice professionals.

Where Perspectives Meet: A Comparative Case Study Of How Participatory Practices Shape Deliberation During District-Level Educational Change, Gregory Vincent Massara

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Public education in the United States is socially and politically constructed, and ongoing reforms increasingly require collaborative engagement among diverse stakeholders amid heightened divisiveness. This mixed methods comparative case study examined how educational stakeholders make sense of one another’s perspectives during district-level collaborative work and the conditions that may foster conscientization, the critical reflection on one’s positionality. Two school districts developing a Profile of a Graduate (POG) and one engaged in deliberation about the relationship between public and charter schools within its community serve as comparative cases. The study triangulated meeting observations, a post-deliberation survey of stakeholders (N = 43), …

Exploring Youth Soccer Coach Recruitment Practices, Han-Earl Lim

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This qualitative single-case study examined how a private-interest, nonprofit youth soccer club in the Midwestern United States recruits coaches, what coach qualities are prioritized in hiring, and how organizational and sociocultural conditions shape those practices. The study was guided by three research questions focused on (a) recruitment and early support processes, (b) hiring criteria and decision rationales, and (c) the organizational and sociocultural contexts influencing recruitment. Data were generated through five semi-structured interviews with four participants who were involved in recruitment practices (the Executive Director, the Assistant Director, and two full-time head coaches). Additional sources included an organizational mapping survey …

Ai Ethics And Governance For Leaders In Higher Education: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology Of Faculty Early Adopters’ Sensemaking, Pedagogical Innovation, And Transformation, Freddie Seba

Doctoral Dissertations

Artificial Intelligence (AI), especially Generative AI (GenAI), is transforming how we work, learn, acquire, produce, and deliver knowledge, as higher education experiences existential pressures, including demographic changes that reduce enrollment and revenues, as well as shifting public and government perceptions of higher education's value.

This hermeneutic phenomenology dissertation study explores how faculty early adopters critically engage, innovate, and experiment with this nascent transformational technology in their pedagogies amid multilevel pressures: macro—market-driven (neoliberalism) logic, Big Tech, and demographic change; meso—institutional policy, broader faculty community, and pedagogical innovation; micro—widespread student adoption, pedagogical experimentation, and innovation.

This dissertation study centers on shifting AI …

Child Care For Student Parents: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Policy And Politics In Nys, Elizabeth M. Starks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This policy analysis dissertation explores the complex and multifaceted challenges that exist within New York State’s early childhood care and education (ECCE) system by critically examining the amendment of one NYS social services law. Guided by Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis, this study examines two research questions (under one overarching question):

1. What language and arguments are effective in making change in Early Childhood policy in NYS?
   1. What is the policy discourse surrounding the amendment of subdivision 1 of section 410-w social services law in NYS?
   2. What is the political discourse surrounding the amendment of subdivision 1 of section 410-w social services …

Preparing Students For College And Careers: Recommendations For Scaling College And Career Pathways In Southwestern Illinois, Laura Monteagudo

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

Education Systems Center (EdSystems) at Northern Illinois University provided strategic counsel and support to Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) for a 12-month period to develop comprehensive college and career pathways. Our support included the development of a unified, regionwide college and career pathway system aligned with Illinois’ College and Career Pathway Endorsement framework, Perkins V, and the State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides.

Instead of each district building pathways independently, this regional approach brings together high schools, community college faculty, and local employers to create shared structures that reflect real workforce needs and rural access challenges.

In this report, …

Taking Back The Trades: Southwestern Illinois Work-Based Learning Inventory Report, Alexia Santiago

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

In 2025, Education Systems Center at Northern Illinois University (EdSystems) partnered with Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC), regional school districts, and industry partners to build a strong and comprehensive system of work-based learning opportunities for K-12 students that is aligned with Illinois statutes and frameworks. In this report, EdSystems identifies the existing regional events and activities that promote high-quality work-based learning for college and career pathways in the health sciences and manufacturing sectors.

Equity By Design: A North Glenn High School Equitable Practices Policy Guide, Kelli Andrews Jarrett

Theses and Dissertations

This capstone project addresses equity gaps in dual enrollment programs in Mississippi, with a focus on North Glenn High School, a pseudonym for a high-poverty rural school. While dual credit opportunities have expanded statewide, disparities remain for first-generation, low-income, and minority students. A significant barrier is Mississippi’s reliance on ACT benchmarks for eligibility, which disproportionately excludes marginalized groups. The study examines the potential of the Pre-ACT in grades 9 and 10 as an early diagnostic tool to identify readiness gaps and inform targeted interventions before students take the ACT. Grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory and the Dual Enrollment Equity …

Advancing Equity In Adolescent Mental Health: A Literature Review And Telehealth Program Design For School-Based Access, Renatta Lindsey

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents in the United States (U.S.) are experiencing a mental health crisis, with disproportionately high prevalence rates among marginalized youth. Approximately 1 in 5 adolescents are diagnosed with a mental, emotional, or behavioral condition (Panchal, 2024; Sappenfield et al., 2024). Yet, an estimated 40% (1.8 million) of adolescents aged 12-17 who experience a major depressive episode did not receive treatment (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, 2024). This project examines existing barriers that hinder access to care for this population. While schools are the most common settings for adolescent mental health supports, more than half report difficulties with meeting …

Can Schools Sustain The Rising Cost Of Retiree Health Care?, Robert Bifulco, Iuliia Shybalkina

Center for Policy Research

Many New York State school districts spend significant amounts each year for retiree health care benefits, and these payments are expected to grow over the coming decades. This brief summarizes findings from a study examining approximately 300 New York State school districts. Unlike retiree pension plans, which are typically prefunded, retiree health care benefits are funded on a pay-as-you-go basis, meaning that benefits for past employees who are currently retired are paid using current district revenues. In the average school district, pay-as-you-go spending currently amounts to 4.5 percent of district revenues. Assuming current benefit and funding policies remain, spending is …

More Girls In The Classroom Improves Adolescent Mental Health, Monica Deza, Maria Zhu

Population Health Research Brief Series

Mental health challenges are common among adolescents in the United States. This brief summarizes findings from a study using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), a nationally representative survey of middle and high school students conducted in 1994-1995. The analysis included over 17,000 students from 133 schools across the United States. The authors find that the mix of boys and girls in a classroom affects adolescent mental health and school satisfaction. When classes have more girls, both boys and girls experience better mental health outcomes. Boys in classes with more female peers are 10% less …

Pre-Service Teacher Preparation In Over/Underrepresentation Of Students From Culturally Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds In Special Education: A Systematic Review Of State-Level Policies, Enso Yushu Liu

Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Important Of Female Coaches: What Barriers They Face, Why They Stay, And What Can Be Done To Attract More., Hayley E. Yourous

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

After the passage of Title IX, there has been an increase in the number of females participating in sports; however, the same cannot translate to women in coaching or leadership positions (Acosta & Carpenter, 2014; Hart et al., 1986; LaVoi & Baeth, 2018). The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of females who had served as head coaches in the high school setting with at least eight years of experience as a head coach. The NCAA (2022) reported in 2020 that female coaches accounted for 41.3% of female teams' head coaches, both intercollegiate and …