This dissertation consists of three essays focused on policies that hold the potential to reduce gender and socioeconomic gaps in the developing world. The first two chapters focus on higher education while the last chapter focuses on STEM gender gaps during primary school. Chapter 1 looks at the impacts of new transportation infrastructure on…

The purpose of the study was to contribute to the literature regarding how STEM experiences affect preadolescent female students. More specifically, the purpose was to better understand the experience of 250 female fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students at a summer STEM camp and how those experiences might impact their interest in STEM subjects…

The randomized research study assessed the effect of an inquiry-based science (IBS) program on non-cognitive outcomes and academic achievement. The study was the result of a grant that was awarded by Professional Resources in Science and Mathematics (PRISM), a program affiliated with Montclair State University in conjunction with Bristol-Myers…

African American and Black women are twice as likely to enroll in higher education in comparison to Black men. However, when it comes to engineering degrees awarded in 2015, only 24% of the Black recipients were women. A potential solution may be to introduce engineering to pre-college Black female students through extracurricular program. Being…

This dissertation study concerned the lack of underrepresented minority students matriculating through the health professions pipeline. The term pipeline is "the educational avenue by which one must travel to successfully enter a profession" (Sullivan Alliance, 2004). There are a significant number of health professional pipeline…

Colleges and universities are being held more and more accountable for outcomes. Therefore, it is important that a college knows how its curriculum truly prepares individual students for their desired field of employment. This study was completed to determine the extent to which graduates of a physical education and exercise science program…

The use of high stakes testing to improve educational outcomes falls short in many settings. Proposals for improvement include providing more opportunities for students to extend their thinking, gaining experience in the social nature of science, and learning how to interpret, explain, and justify results. This phenomenological qualitative project…