This dissertation is composed of three studies linking general education astronomy to student performance, course-taking, graduation, and identity. The first study examined demographic and academic predictors of astronomy performance among a cohort of N=1,909 community college students enrolled in astronomy courses in a large suburban community…

The purpose of this study sought to examine how midterm math performance can impact a student's final math performance, STEM performance, overall performance, as well as retention and graduation with a STEM major. The sample consisted of 283 first-time full-time undergraduate students who were admitted in Fall 2014 as STEM majors within a liberal…

This study investigated whether instructional modality in an undergraduate degree program, either traditional on-campus or asynchronous online, and racial/ethnic group could predict students' reports of satisfaction with the institution, retention year-over-year, and graduation within an eight-year award rate. Data from surveys and enrollment…

The interest and participation in dual credit programs and courses has grown over the past several decades, especially within Texas; however, there is a lack of research that shows how the participation in dual credit programs and courses has impacted leading and lagging student success metrics once they enroll at a post-secondary institution. The…

Physics education research to date has predominantly focused on the undergraduate level. This has left critical avenues of research in graduate education relatively understudied and has motivated much of my research. Numerous studies across the education research landscape have analyzed undergraduate admissions practices, but few have critically…

This study was designed to determine whether the alignment of state and local priorities was a predictor of improving results, specifically the reduction in the percentage of inexperienced principals and percentages of low-performing schools and the increase in graduation rates. The population of this study included 115 North Carolina school…

The purpose of this quantitative correlational-predictive study was to determine if and to what extent students' Cognitive Ability, first-term GPA, and ethnicity predict student graduation status from a CTE college in Texas. Student retention rates continue to be a cause for great concern for higher learning, even more so for CTE institutions.…

While students have enrolled in college at increased rates since 1996, graduation rates have remained mostly stagnant (NCES, 2022). First-generation Appalachian students, specifically, had lower college completion rates but higher college enrollment rates than their peers (ARC, 2018). Since 2007, researchers have supported the use of non-cognitive…

This study highlights the role and importance of advanced, machine learning-driven predictive models in enhancing the accuracy and timeliness of identifying students at-risk of negative academic outcomes in data-driven Early Warning Systems (EWS). K-12 school districts have, at best, 13 years to prepare students for adulthood and success. They…

This study sought to examine if students' self-perceptions of learning skills and abilities predict timely graduation at an elite university. The study investigated potential differences or disparities in specific student groups (i.e. underrepresented students, sex) with regard to these perceptions and assessed how these perceptions were related…

The study represented an examination of the factors influencing students' ability to successfully graduate from postsecondary institutions and whether this differs between high school equivalency credential earners and high school diploma earners. The study has clarified a predictive relationship among type of high school credential and graduation…

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the relationship between district-level per-pupil expenditures and district-level student achievement in rural South Carolina school districts. School districts in rural South Carolina are synonymous with higher concentration of minority students and students living in poverty (Showalter, 2019). The…

This correlational study utilized secondary, longitudinal data to examine the extent to which student-influenced and institution-influenced factors predict the academic success and degree completion of engineering transfer students at public four-year institutions in North Carolina. The sample included students who transferred from community…

This study examined the factors that statistically predict student's degree attainment within agricultural education as a course of study. The study is based on a population of first year agriculture students (n = 616) at a private four-year college in Southwestern Ohio. The study is correlational design, which employed cross-sectional archival…

Non-first-time students make up a large portion of higher education nationally, particularly in the two-year institution sector, and yet their completion outcomes are largely unstudied. Unfortunately, higher education as it is currently designed does not work well for many non-traditional students. The purpose of this study is to investigate the…