High teacher turnover and a pervasive teacher shortage has the education industry investigating new ways to attract and retain talent. Texas, specifically, has invested in compensating teachers for performance in hopes of retaining top teachers in the classroom through the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA), which was established and authorized by…

The past two decades have seen an overall increase in the number of students pursuing a graduate degree in the United States. Gaining a more nuanced understanding of how graduate students navigate the academic, personal, and professional challenges of post baccalaureate education will help programs better support them and ensure student success.…

Nationally, a shortage exists of qualified cybersecurity persons entering the field, posing challenges for higher education institutions in locating qualified educators to help fill the gap. A wealth of literature discusses the needs of students, yet literature outlining qualities of attracting graduates to become educators is lacking. The purpose…

This phenomenological study focused on examining how administrative support leads to successful environments conducive to prominent levels of teacher leadership. The purpose of this study was to research teacher leaders' perspectives on how administrative trust supported their role at elementary schools in an East Texas suburban district. The…

In this study, we investigated Texas teachers' perceptions of instructional coaches' (ICs) practices that improve professional learning communities (PLCs) to enhance teachers' instructional capacities. The study's participants included 67 teachers from rural, urban, and suburban school districts across the state of Texas. They enrolled in a…

Background: College students need the ability to generalize and apply solutions through reflective practice. University faculty need professional development to use authentic cases to prepare students for the future. Purpose: This study was to explore the experiences of faculty through a year-long professional development program that included a…

Although obtaining advanced degrees in higher education has become increasingly important in society, women and racial and/or ethnic minorities are still underrepresented in the college president position (Gargliardi, Espinoza, Taylor, & Turk, 2017). The 2017 American College President Study indicates that women only made up 30.1% of people in…

College students engage with religion, faith, and spirituality for a variety of reasons; however, current literature exploring these motivations is limited. We utilised a constructivist, qualitative, phenomenological design and surveyed 201 students to understand their motivations for pursuing faith, religion, or spirituality. Of those surveyed,…

The problem of vaping, or e-cigarette use, is of epidemic proportions in secondary schools in the United States, so administrators face the daunting challenge of dealing with it on their campuses and keeping students safe, healthy, and as focused as possible on learning. To address a gap in the existing literature, this phenomenological,…

The debate about mental illness and the importance of good mental health especially in the classroom has surged. Promoting child mental health is a global priority, and educators have an important role to play in mitigating this public health crisis. Early identification, accurate diagnosis, and effective treatment of mental health disorders can…

The study sought to qualitatively capture and examine the leadership experiences of six superintendents who led their school districts during the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of the Boin et al., (2017) Five Critical Tasks of Strategic Crisis Leadership framework centered on sensemaking, decision-making and coordinating, meaning making,…

The expectations and demands of an instructional leader can be overwhelming for a first-year principal. Understanding the complexity of leadership in today's school system and meeting the needs in educating our minority students while working to meet state and federal guidelines is a challenging feat for any principal. This phenomenological study…

This study sought to understand how a leader's leadership is affected by their salient identities. To achieve this, the study employed a qualitative paradigm using a phenomenological methodology. Ultimately, the study worked to craft a shared understanding of how identity is experienced by leaders within the context of their own leadership.…

The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of Hispanic Unaccompanied Homeless Youth (HUHY) enrolled in public high school in Texas. Homeless students face unique living challenges. However, homeless students have proven abilities critical for their academic pursuits. The study results showed homeless students are resilient and…

With the 84th Legislature's House Bill 505 expansion of dual credit in Texas in fall 2015, students became eligible to begin coursework as early as ninth grade. Allowing students to begin college earlier in their high school journey triggered questions about their college and career readiness during transition to postsecondary coursework, which…