This cross-sectional qualitative study was designed to examine the educational and professional development needs of existing entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship students in educational and professional development in Gloucester and Cumberland Counties in Southern New Jersey. The organization that sponsored the study, the Division of Business…

This research paper explores the relationship between dynamic capabilities and innovation performance in research universities in the United States, with a focus on technology transfer as a means of promoting economic and societal development. The study draws on the dynamic capability's theory developed by Teece et al. (2007), which offers a…

This qualitative case study explored stakeholders' perceptions in Baxter County, Arkansas, regarding workforce development initiatives at Mountain Home High School Career Academies and Arkansas State University-Mountain Home. The purpose was to understand if these initiatives met local employers' needs and contributed to creating a skilled and…

The cause of African countries' perennial low-income status and failure to achieve lasting social transformation has proven to be a consistently vexing puzzle. This dissertation was an exploration of a conceptual framework that addressed this important query. The framework was informed by existing literature, including works on the ideas of social…

Workforce development is a critical part of successful community economic development initiatives. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore, understand, and interpret local leaders' perceptions of workforce development through interviews with key stakeholders who held one of four specific staff roles, in two Georgia communities. A…

This dissertation consists of three essays in development economics. The first chapter studies the effects of migrant remittances on economic development and education investments. The second chapter examines the drivers of charitable donations on an online charity platform. The third chapter studies the political economy of education in…

Researchers contend that higher education organizations and systems, no matter their description (public, private, two-year, or four-year), build society. Nationally, many higher education leaders discuss metrics and measures such as graduation rates, class sizes, intercollegiate athletics, famous alumni, and the extent of community engagement, as…

The cultivation of solid leadership abilities and the implementation of effective strategies are of utmost importance in facilitating collaboration among community college institutions and businesses, fostering agility and creativity, promoting diverse thinking, facilitating effective pedagogical practices, supporting professional development, and…

Schoolteachers in China are required by the government to transition from teacher-centered to student-centered instruction. Researchers have shown the challenges of and successes in implementing the instructional changes; however, a gap exists surrounding the challenges and successes of reforms from the perspective of teachers. The purpose of this…

This dissertation consists of three chapters that contribute to the fields of macroeconomics, economic development, and entrepreneurship. In the first chapter, "Entrepreneurship Selection and Performance in the U.S. and Across Countries: The Role of Human Capital," I seek to establish a set of stylized facts related to entrepreneurship…

Many public agencies and private organizations work to promote and support forestry and the forest products industry, including economic developers. Connections among these groups, though, are limited; and current and pending retirements from Baby Boomer-era employees at public agencies are further reducing these connections. This action research…

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between vocational/ technical education (VTE) and economic growth in Nigerian. This purpose is motivated by the consideration that human capital development through enrolment in vocational and technical education is expected to stimulate economic growth. Quantitative correlational research…

This paper describes the effects of workers' investments in their own education in light of the complementarity the Acemoglu (1997) and Redding (1996) showed to exist between R&D and education investments. Despite the different investment efforts that economies pour into their economies, many developing, and least developed countries are…

This research evaluates the role of urban universities in economic growth. The study employed inherently rich data from IPEDS to create a panel dataset aggregated at the county level for 1065 colleges and universities in the Middle Atlantic region of the US. Using linear regression analysis, this study found that increases in expenditure per…

This dissertation explores how entrepreneurs form strategy, organize, and compete in nascent markets that emerge within institutional fields. In these settings, entrepreneurs face the dual challenges of creating successful ventures while also navigating (and perhaps changing) the institutional field. Despite the challenges, nascent markets within…