Attending and graduating from college or university has profound influences on financial earnings and career opportunities. Beyond these financial and career benefits, attending higher education also offers social and emotional benefits. While there are many potential benefits to going on in one's education, there are known disparities in who goes…

This phenomenological case study explored the benefits and challenges of participation in a formal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) mentoring program for women and under-represented minorities (URMs) in the Natural Sciences & Engineering Technology (NSET) department at Point Park University. This study included the…

Background: Suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) are prevalent among American college students, yet only a small percentage of suicidal college students receive mental health treatment. Many avoid seeking help due to help-negation or the refusal to seek available mental health help when needed. To better understand why suicidal college students…

Both fashion design and education are areas where new technologies can have a significant impact. This dissertation examines the potential of virtual reality (VR) for fashion design education and focused on the profound affordances that virtual reality offers - immersion and agency. Using a phenomenological approach, the study combined arts-based…

Online learning is becoming more prevalent (Aylmer, 2020) and institutions are seeing an increase in disabled students (HEFCE, 2017; Italian National Agency for the Evaluation of the University System and Research [ANVUR], & National Conference of University Delegates for Disability [CNUDD], 2021; Rao, Edelen-Smith, & Wailehua, 2015).…

Because the failure rate for college algebra is large and sometimes up to 50%, college algebra serves as a gatekeeper to STEM fields and degree completion. Therefore, it is critical to examine students who are at risk of dropping, withdrawing, and failing college algebra help-seeking behavior. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to focus…

Physical activity offers many benefits, yet the majority of college students do not meet the recommended weekly amounts. This study investigated African American students' perceptions of barriers, benefits, and cues to action at Lincoln University. There was a gap in the literature because no qualitative studies regarding African American…

Learning in adulthood should be a meaningful experience through which adult learners are able to re-examine their values and beliefs acquired over the years. Mezirow (1978a, 1978b)stated that learners' engagement with this process of reflection and making meaning leads to a change in one's perspective. To facilitate such a transformational…

There is increased interest in the competency-based education (CBE) learning modality, and higher education institutions (HEIs) in the United States are experiencing increased enrollment in courses and programs offered in this format (Nodine T. R., 2016). This learning modality creates an opportunity for students to progress through a course or…

The purpose of this study was to analyze Latinx student success in online education and how culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) contributes to removing barriers for success. CRP has proven to be successful in small scale studies in K-12 sector. This study analyzed how CRP can be effective in higher education and if applied to online education how…

This study explores resiliency among former foster youth enrolled in four-year universities and seeks to understand what makes this unique population resilient enough to achieve and maintain academic success despite remaining underserved and largely absent from educational discourse (Johnson, 2020). The qualitative approach of this study involved…

This convergent mixed method study examined the supports and barriers of Black male student persistence at a predominantly White institution in the southeastern United States through four research questions: 1) To what extent do mean graduation rates vary across self-described racial designations and gender over the academic years 2013-2021 at a…

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevents the immune system from fighting infections effectively. One in 48 Black women will acquire HIV throughout their life if current trends continue. Black women have the highest HIV infection rates compared to White and Hispanic women. In 2019, 55% of women with HIV in the United States were Black. There…

The purpose of this study was to analyze and examine the support that is available to students at a North Central Texas Higher Education Institution. There is a global and national effort to increase the number of individuals entering STEM professions. Overall, there are not enough trained individuals to fill the number of STEM jobs that are…

According to the definition developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2011, sexual health is an innate part of a person's overall health and includes multiple dimensions of a person: physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual. As sexual health is an intrinsic part of a person's health, understanding and improving it is…