This study examines the use of individual development plans (IDPs) in a structured mentoring program as an effective mechanism for reducing identity-related anxiety for underrepresented trainees and increasing their learner agency. Social cognitive theory served to provide the theoretical framework for our implementation of IDPs and our…

This phenomenological qualitative study examined the intersection between TRIO Upward Bound participation and resilience theory to determine how participation in TRIO Upward Bound impacted the resiliency of its at-risk youth participants. Accordingly, the participants of this study are alumni of the federally funded TRIO Upward Bound program, a…

Over the past decade the concept of taking a gap year has become mainstream in the US. This idea of delaying enrollment, or taking a break from college, before beginning a bachelor's degree, has gained popularity, especially as the cost of attendance in higher education has soared and the burden of paying for it has been placed on the student as…

This paper reports the results of a narrative inquiry study on exchange programs, intercultural awareness, and professional development in eight former participants of the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant--FLTA--program. This study used written narratives to collect data from eight participants of the FLTA scholarship program who…

Through a year-long study of welfare-to-work students in the community college CalWORKs program, we investigated what self-authorship development looks like by examining developmental progress, and whether there are patterns in development along the three dimensions of self-authorship. Findings demonstrate progress toward self-authorship, but…