The purpose of this study was to investigate the work values that motivate higher education professionals, specifically those who work in TRIO programs, to persist in providing support to vulnerable student populations. Higher education professionals employed at two-year institutions are essential in assisting at-risk students with services that…

This study examined the motivations of female student-athletes to participate in intercollegiate athletics at two-year institutions. Utilizing a qualitative grounded theory approach, this study investigated four focus groups, constructed of female student-athletes from three different two-year institutions located in the Upper Midwest region of…

Students who are preparing to become registered nurses are more likely to attend community colleges due to the unequal distribution of financial resources to educational systems that have evolved from the impact of globalization. The purpose of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to increase the understanding of mentoring as it relates to…

Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a growing student support service used to offer students peer-guided activities to improve course learning. The current research was conducted to answer two research questions: 1) Do those who participate in SI perform better in their courses than those who do not attend SI? 2) Are those who participate in SI more…

Using data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, this study explored factors that predict stability of educational expectations among baccalaureate aspirants beginning at community colleges. Based on a nationally representative sample of baccalaureate-aspiring high school seniors of 2004 who entered community colleges as their first…

Almost every institution of higher education engages in late registration. But evidence is mounting that the practice, originally intended to keep the doors of opportunity open for students as long as possible, wreaks havoc on the ability of colleges to achieve the goals of the emerging completion agenda. Despite best intentions, late registration…

This retrospective cohort study characterizes how interest in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) careers changes during high school for more than 6,000 students in a representative national sample of 34 two- and four-year colleges taking mandatory college English courses. Overall, large gender differences in career plans were…

The Lumina Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Columbia University's Teacher's College Community College Research Center, and Appalachian State's National Center for Developmental Education, funded in part by the Kellogg Institute, expended considerable energy researching promising instructional and support practices in the area of…

This qualitative multiple case study explored front-line classified staff interactions with students as a possible strategy for increasing student success. The study was based on the premise that too few students stay at a community college long enough to achieve their academic goals. Therefore, college leaders must identify new strategies to…

This Delphi study explored the instructional practices of community college faculty who were teaching blended or Web-assisted courses and how these practices influenced student persistence. The Delphi method provided qualitative data in the form of expert advice through consensus building on the instructional practices most likely to influence…

The second phase of a new national survey conducted among college instructors and employers shows that 78% of college faculty and 62% of employers believe that public high schools are not doing enough to prepare students for the expectations they will face in college and the working world. Only roughly one in four recent high school grads report…

In an effort to examine the variables contributing to academic persistence, 1,691 St. Petersburg (Florida) Junior College (SPJC) students (960 male and 731 female) were tested two years after their initial enrollment. Ten cognitive variables and 15 non-cognitive variables were examined to determine their relationship to persistence, defined as the…

This study compared the academic success of junior college transfers with native students. They were compared by sex, age, ACT scores, and area of study; the relationship of these factors to persistence and scholarship was determined; and variables that correlated with academic success in terms of persistence and scholarship were isolated. The…

Examined factors that affected persistence in community college transfer students (N=271). Found persistence influenced by students' intent to return, academic performance, academic satisfaction, academic integration, and perceptions of the practical value of the academic program. Presents a causal model of academic factors for transfer students…

This paper argues that, when trying to calculate the success rates of community college students, the criteria used for reporting graduation rates should differ from those used at four-year institutions. There is no known national standard time-to-degree data available. The reporting window of 150% of minimum time to degree has been arbitrarily…