Participation in non-classroom activities has been documented to extend the intellectual, social, and psychosocial outcomes of the college experience. However, the benefits of non-classroom activities are often difficult to quantify due their voluntary nature, with findings mostly related to students within four-year institutions. The purpose of…

Resettlement can be an overwhelming experience for refugee families with young children but early care and education (ECE) services have been found to help refugees integrate into their new communities. However, refugee families are less likely to utilize ECE than U.S. born and other immigrant families. Although ECE utilization is low among…

In 2008, state legislatures provided $6 billion in financial aid to 2 million low-income young adults. When low-income young adults receive state financial aid and do not complete college, states lose their investment because fewer people with degrees will contribute to the state's economy. Declining states' budgets have led to (a) the rising cost…

This study examined the relationship between intercollegiate participation and persistence in college. In addition, it explored the different factors that influenced student athletes' persistence patterns as compared to non-student athletes at residential liberal arts schools. Using data from the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education…

The issue of teacher shortages across the state and nation, especially in rural areas, is a complex one. The disparity between the number of teachers produced and what is needed to fill classrooms across the nation in states where student populations are growing is exacerbated by issues of attrition of current educators. Mandates for production of…

Community colleges play a key role in serving the higher education needs of students in this country. This includes more than 40% of all Bachelor Degree graduates in science and engineering and approximately 50% of all students from traditionally underrepresented minority groups. While it is well known who attends community colleges and who majors…

This case study examined how the campus culture influences the existence of a Black cultural center and a multicultural center at a predominantly White university. A qualitative ethnography was conducted using focus group interviews, personal interviews, archival research, and anecdotal observation. The results of the study identified five themes:…

The education attainment level of residents in rural Appalachia has consistently ranked below the remaining populous of the United States. Although distance education initiatives have attempted to bridge the disparities between rural Appalachia and the rest of the nation, online community college students in this region are likely to drop out or…

Although implemented in 1975, the inclusion of students with special needs into the mainstream general education environment has taken a slow path. Now in an age where federal and state mandates affect the ways in which schools are run, the least restrictive environment mandate has been met with increasingly wide acceptance. In order for all…

This qualitative phenomenological study examined the lived experiences of persisting as described by ten African American men in persisting in a community college program. The primary research question was: "How do African American males describe their lived experiences of persisting in community college health and public programs?" African…

The purpose of this study was to advance understanding of self-directed learning characteristics of first-year, first-generation college students participating in a summer bridge program. Understanding the experience of these students in higher education can lead to the development of programmatic and pedagogical strategies to better meet the…

First generation college students are a diverse group of students who enter college with unique challenges and varying abilities. Understanding the college experience for first generation students involves an examination of their background characteristics as well as the barriers and supports that impact their college success. This study explores…

Although the study of college student development has progressed during the last decades to address various aspects of identity development across a wide range of diverse populations, there is a noticeable gap in the literature about Muslim-American college students and how the university experience impacts their development as young adults. The…

This study explores persistence and non-persistence among adult undergraduate students with particular focus on these students' lives, their stressors, their coping resources including academic supports, and their styles of coping. The study approaches the issue of non-persistence not as a personal failure but rather as a consequence of multiple…

Federal and state policies have long sought to address the social inequities faced by limited English proficient (LEP) students through the improvement of English language acquisition. English language acquisition policy has focused on access to resources, qualified teachers, and instructional methodologies (e.g. pedagogy) that create a learning…