The lower retention and success rates of Black and Latine students in the Cinema/TV Department at a Hollywood-based community college reflect a broader diversity issue in the entertainment industry. This qualitative, arts-based study focused on student voice and the power of counternarratives by utilizing participatory action research to determine…

Professional development training is a crucial aspect of educational institutions worldwide, but its role in shaping and enhancing school culture is not always well-defined. This study explores the effects of professional development training on student-to-staff connections, students' sense of security, and their perception of safety within a…

The North Carolina General Assembly allocated funding for the expansion of adult learner initiatives. The North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) distributed $50,000 to each of the ten schools in FY 2022 which was from the John M. Belk Endowment (JMBE), other partners, and the state. The colleges were given until June 30, 2023 to spend the…

Recruiting in today's higher education landscape is not without challenges. Prospective students have options which means the market is saturated with advertisements and messages from postsecondary institutions of all types. And when you add the layer of recruiting students who are no longer in high school and often have competing demands, the…

In 2021, the John M. Belk Endowment (JMBE) launched NC Reconnect -- an initiative aimed at re-engaging adult learners in North Carolina. The goal of the program is to ensure adult learners across North Carolina have maximum opportunity to pursue a degree or credential at one of the state's 58 community colleges. Starting with five community…

This report presents the findings from the National Behaviour Survey (NBS) Academic Year 2023-24. The NBS is designed to provide the Department for Education with termly survey data related to pupil behaviour in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools in England collected from multiple respondent groups (school leaders, teachers,…

This study examines the school experiences of Black students and the perceived impact that we (the researchers) as Black women educators have had on these experiences. We conducted a series of focus groups with thirty-four former and current students, all of whom identify as Black. Our questions centered around various aspects of the students'…

The need for school belonging is crucial for adolescents and affects academic performance (Goodenow, 1993). School belonging refers to the extent to which students feel accepted, valued, and included in their school environment. It encompasses a sense of connectedness to peers, teachers, and the broader school community, contributing to students'…

As colleges and universities seek to ensure accommodating academic experiences for all students, it is becoming increasingly clear that the concepts of diversity and disability extend beyond easily identifiable conditions but must also include invisible differences. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of college students…

This qualitative case study aims to better understand the institutional impacts of implementing Competency-Based Education (CBE) at a large, multi-campus community college through the perspectives of college staff and administration and non-academic units. Recent United States Presidential Administrations have put community colleges at the…

National efforts have been made to increase STEM participation among racially marginalized individuals (Ro & Loya, 2015). However, women, especially African American women, remain underrepresented in STEM fields, particularly in engineering and computer science disciplines. The purpose of this basic interpretive qualitative study was to…

This study examines the impact of a comprehensive college transition program, the Thompson Scholars Learning Communities (TSLC), on psychosocial outcomes using an experimental design. We estimate overall and heterogenous effects of program participation on students' sense of belonging to campus, feelings of mattering to campus, sense of academic…

The agenda for widening participation in higher education has led to increasing numbers of students with a broader range of education and family backgrounds. However, transitioning to the university landscape remains a highly complex negotiation process, especially for first-in-family students, who cannot draw on previous experience from higher…

The present study aims to investigate the emotions students experience in the school environment and the reasons for experiencing these emotions. This research was conducted using the case study method, one of the qualitative research designs. The study group of this study consisted of 24 eighth-grade students studying at a public school in the…

The purpose of this study is to examine the experiences of students who are actively engaged in sports. The study seeks an answer to the following questions: "To what extent do students who engage with sports maintain a balance between their school life and sports life? The study is based on a qualitative study focusing on the lived…