The SUGAR Program Manual was designed based on an extensive literature review on bullying, adolescent development, resilience and protective factors, and anti-bullying programs. Literature on anti-bullying programs showed a deficit for older adolescents, particularly high school students. A whole-school approach is proposed by incorporating…

Much research has been published on leadership, leadership development, and strategic leadership relating to theories, styles, strategies, and practices. However, there has been little published research on the influence of adolescent experience and the impact those influences have on the leader they become (Liu et al., 2019). This study aims to…

This qualitative case study examined leadership development and mentoring in a chapter of Jack and Jill of America (JJOA), a national organization for African-American women and their children focused on leadership, cultural awareness, and civic duty. While JJOA is a national organization, individual chapters are self-governed, and there is no…

This qualitative research aimed to identify factors contributing to the formation and development of effective partnerships that foster positive youth development. The study involved interviews with eight adult military mentors and nine youth cadet mentees to gain various perspectives regarding mentoring relationships within the youth leadership…

Identity is a foundational element in a person's development and can influence all aspects of a person's life. Although research on adolescent identity development is a growing field, there are opportunities for additional research on this stage of development, with specific focus needed on the role of asynchronous development. This study utilized…

The need for change is clear. Researchers and educators must pay more attention to the needs of African American adolescent girls. The transition to middle school is a complicated time as adolescent girls are questioning who they are and where they fit in. It is the time when they are also trying to gain a sense of independence and begin…

With rising rates of adolescents experiencing suicide-related thoughts and behaviors (STB), schools have been identified as key sites for suicide-prevention initiatives. Research on the roles of school professionals has centered on the identification of risk and referral of students for treatment. Less is known about the ongoing, subtle ways…

The overall aim of this grounded theory multiple-case study was to better understand how K-12 independent schools ("schools") in the United States cultivate a connection between children and adolescents ("students") and the natural world ("environment") by exploring the interplay between this connection and (a) the…

Accelerating the Boys and Girls Clubs to continued learning and growing in their practices is one key to transforming the young boys and girls which they serve. The purpose of this study was to examine the affects that the Boys and Girls Clubs have had on the membership and to utilize the information learned to endorse the Clubs work going…

The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis was to better understand the senior year experience concluding with the post-secondary transition, stress, and coping through the eyes of recent high school graduates and members of the Class of 2020. Schlossberg's (1984) transition model was used as a theoretical framework to study the…

This dissertation examines the relationship between healthy adolescent development associated with school success in an alternative high school. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the influence of educators who implement youth development strategies to equip students with the internal locus of control to take responsibility…

Pre-adolescent and adolescent engagement in regular physical activity (PA), more specifically moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), is associated with improved educational performance. Similarly, children's engagement in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity has shown to improve cardiovascular fitness levels, which can provide long-term…

Young people identifying as Black, Latino/a/x, Hispanic, Asian, and other races and ethnicities that are minoritized and marginalized have constrained opportunities for positive development in the United States due to oppression grounded in white supremacy (NASEM, 2019). Importantly, youth of color engage in critical consciousness: interrogating…

The purpose of this study was (1) to examine the impact that small ensemble free improvisation experiences had on dispositional empathy development when compared with other forms of collective music making; and (2) to examine the relationship between co-performing musicians' empathy levels and their performance achievement in small ensembles using…

Experiencing stress at high levels during pivotal developmental years can have a detrimental impact on adolescents' overall development and well-being (Rahdar & Galvan, 2014; Romeo, 2013). Extensive research has shown the positive effects a strong student-teacher relationship has on students' resiliency to counteract the negative effects of…