Objective/Research Question: This paper reports on data collected in a multi-year National Science Foundation grant project involving a professional development (PD) model built to support community college faculty as change agents (CAs). The research question was: How do disciplinary communities of practice (CoP) emerge among community college…

Researchers in higher education frequently evaluate institutional effectiveness as the difference between an actual and predicted graduation rate, but little is known about whether such a method is reliable or valid. This study examines the measurement properties of effectiveness scores derived from regression residuals for community colleges in…

Remedial mathematics has been considered the roadblock to obtaining a college degree by students and educators for years. The purpose of this research is to determine the optimal time and delivery method of the three presented (fully module, module with a traditional lecture component, and fully on-line) for teaching remedial mathematics. This is…

Design thinking is a strategy for innovation popularized in the business press and recently investigated in academic literature. Some research points to design thinking as an enabler of an organizational culture of innovation. Much research demonstrates a link between a culture of innovation and successful business outcomes in every sector, and…

Technical schools are an integral part of the education system, and yet, little is known about student learning at such institutions. We consider whether assessments of student learning can be jointly administered to both university and technical school students. We examine whether differential test functioning may bias inferences regarding the…

This paper examines the graduation rates between 2000 and 2015 of United States colleges and universities at the national, state, and institutional levels. This research focuses on two-year and four-year programs. Rates are investigated longitudinally along with variables that distinguish between public/private institutions, percentages of…

This study examined the differences between a multi-campus sample of university students who reported consistent participation in formal leadership development programs (n=414) and a comparison sample (n=153) with no prior experience across three diverse post-secondary institutions in the United States. Both samples were matched with regard to…

Developing countries have significantly expanded efforts to import more flexible short-cycle institutions based on the United States community college model. The U.S. community college model addresses human capital needs of the labor market in developing countries by increasing access to an affordable education. However, there is limited research…

As the socio-linguistic make-up of the United States shifts from an English monolingual country to a multilingual society, it becomes imperative that a pool of linguistically, knowledgeable, competent nurses are in the pipeline to the nursing workforce to meet the needs of a diverse lingual patient population. The continued lack of…

To support the long-term success of underprepared students, many community colleges are experimenting with accelerated developmental education models, which allow students to complete remediation and enroll in college-level math and English within a shorter time frame. This study examines three developmental acceleration programs, including two in…

The purpose of this qualitative comparative case study was to understand how front-line student services staff experience transition from a traditional model of service to an integrated model of service. There were three fundamental questions framing this research study: 1. What strategies and support systems were utilized by staff making the…

The community college baccalaureate and the university-center baccalaureate models are gaining traction in the state of California as alternatives to addressing the need for greater access to baccalaureate degree programs and to increase the baccalaureate-educated workforce. Little is known about the characteristics and factors associated with the…

This study confirmed appropriate measurement model fit for a theoretical model, the STEM vocational choice (STEM-VC) model. This model identifies exogenous factors that successfully predicted, at a statistically significant level, a student's vocational choice decision to pursue a STEM degree at transfer. The student population examined for this…

At community colleges, student preparedness for college-level work is a significant initial barrier. Over 70% of community college students are reported to be inadequately prepared for college mathematics. Because students need to pass college-level math in order to enroll in subsequent courses required for their majors or to complete general…

Objective: This study analyzes how ethnicity, gender, and non-traditional student characteristics relate to differential online versus face-to-face outcomes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses at community colleges. Method: This study used a sample of 3,600 students in online and face-to-face courses matched by…