Health messaging can be a successful tool in encouraging pro-social behavior, such as bystander intervention in sexual violence situations. This dissertation explored the development of a social media message to encourage bystander intervention among college students using multiple theoretical frameworks: social norms approach and bystander…

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are purely online learning environments that are typically available for free for anyone with internet access. These courses have attracted hundreds of thousands, if not millions of learners around the world and the number of users has increased rapidly along with the growth of new platforms and a wide diversity…

First-generation college student success is a matter of significance to college leaders across the United States. According to a recent study, over half of all undergraduate students are first-generation (RTI International, 2019). The problem, however, is that first-generation college students are more likely than continuing-generation students to…

Extensive research illustrates the positive effects of inclusive education for all students, including those with severe disabilities. These positive effects can only occur if students with severe disabilities are successfully included in academic, behavioral, and social activities throughout the day. An inclusive model that can facilitate the…

Evidence-based early interventions for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been shown to improve child outcomes and quality of life (Lord et al., 2018; Reichow et al., 2018; Smith & Iadarola, 2015). However, response to intervention is variable across both children and implementation contexts. Understanding factors that influence this…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether factors in school climate and culture and the educator's role in evaluating adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), trauma-informed situations, and disruptive classroom behaviors, enable a school to generate interventions needed to help students succeed. This qualitative study evaluated the ACEs and…

Engagement in online classes can promote student success but can be met with challenges associated with students feeling isolated from their peers, their instructors, or the course when learning online. Building opportunities for student interaction is one way to combat this isolation. A common activity in online courses that allows for student…

This design-based research study examines the pedagogical role of social, digital annotation (SDA) in teaching reading as rhetorical invention, particularly the kind of invention necessary for thoughtful democratic participation in the contemporary discursive era, often described as troubled. In this dissertation study, I deployed a…

The 2012 report by the US President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) predicts a deficit in the workforce for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in the following decade and emphasizes the importance of addressing this shortfall. According to the report, less than half of the three million students…

Student misconduct continues to trouble institutions, negatively affecting institutional mission fulfillment. Although student codes of conduct and related processes exist to establish standards and address behavioral concerns, little research has proactively explored what characteristics impact student moral behavior intentions and understanding,…

Students with extensive support needs (ESN) are a heterogenous group of students with the most pervasive and ongoing support needs who typically receive special education services under the categories of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disability, or multiple disabilities and often qualify to take their state's alternate assessment…

As evidence for the discriminant validity of SCT continues to emerge, researchers must further examine the ways in which SCT affects functioning in order to eventually tailor treatments to this population. The current study examined whether SCT symptoms in college students are predictive of social functioning and risky behavior, particularly…

High-risk alcohol use on college campuses is associated with several negative consequences for students. Social norms campaigns are a widely used intervention aimed at decreasing high-risk alcohol use in a university population but their efficacy can vary based on students' peer groups and gender. Research on gendered drinking norms for college…

This study examines the effects of Jayhawks Give a Flock, a bystander education program adapted from "Bringing in the Bystander," on first-year students' intentions to intervene as bystanders and prevent sexual violence using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) (Fishbein & Azjen, 1975; 2010) as a theoretical framework. This study…

At North Middle School--a Northeastern public school with a large African immigrant population--Black males were overrepresented in disciplinary referral by a factor of three in 2017-2018. A literature review framed by network theory (Neal, J. W. & Neal, 2013) and the concept of the serial stream of discipline (Irvin, Tobin, Sprague, Sugai,…