Financial Aid Awards for first-time college students include a variety of offerings, including scholarships, grants, and loans. One award of financial assistance, Federal Work-study, is different from other types of financial aid awarded in that students must work to earn the funds. Yet, it is included as estimated financial assistance (EFA) and…

Building on the research of National Board Certification and its effect on teacher quality, student achievement, and professional development, this dissertation seeks to explore the factors that influence teachers when it is time to renew their National Board Certification. Using a qualitative methodology, this study seeks to describe the process…

Extensive research has shown that children in the United States present with a myriad of mental health concerns, and that those concerns can develop into mental illness if not treated. The consequences of mental illness on students' life both in an out of school is well documented. The need to provide effective treatment to children is also…

The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to explore African American undergraduate college students' intentions and reasons for participation in study abroad programs. The study involved gathering data from recorded and transcribed semi-structured interviews with 20 African American volunteer participants. Data analysis…

The interpretive nature of this dissertation study was grounded in the field of qualitative research. The purpose of the study was to qualitatively define successful inclusion instruction and/or programming. The units of analysis were three schools at each academic level within the Broward County School District which made Adequate Yearly Progress…

This research deals with factors that explain fundraising success and what types of institutional arrangements or practices exist at four year US public universities which make them successful or unsuccessful. Investment in higher education from state government continues to decline; alumni giving participation rates are falling, and many…

Prior empirical research has taken many varying approaches to determine if differences in funding significantly impacts student academic achievement. However, much of these studies exhibit weak generalizability due to their limited scope, timeframe and dissimilar achievement measures. To expand upon the already robust literature in education…

The qualitative phenomenological study explored the perceived institutional access barriers to distance education at comprehensive high schools with secondary career and technical education programs in central Virginia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather data via email, telephone, and face-to-face. A purposive sample of 24…

Grandparents of children with disabilities have an expanded grandparental role that can include performance of child care, raising the grandchildren, and in some instances taking legal custody of the grandchildren. Grandparents in the extended family of a child with a disability have needs that must be identified in order to facilitate the…

The research problem for this qualitative study was "Effective response to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) by school leadership is critical to public school success or failure in Indiana. Because high schools have been the first and most-often to 'fail' under NCLB, knowing principals' concerns and the leadership and implementation of strategies…

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the presidents of the ten public community and technical colleges in the state of West Virginia perceive their institutions implementing the seven dimensions of college life in support of labor market responsiveness identified by the U.S. Department of Education. The U.S. Department…