Meta-analytic Structural Equation Modeling (MASEM) is the combination of meta-analysis (MA) and structural equation modeling (SEM). With new MASEM methodologies developed over the past few years, there is an opportunity to compare the past approaches with the new ones. The purpose of this dissertation is two-fold. First, the parameter estimates,…

The purpose of this qualitative exploratory single-embedded case study was to explore novice teachers' perceptions of unprofessional school culture, school performance, and teacher retention. The study focused on six licensed middle school novice teachers employed with school districts located in the southeastern region of the United States. This…

As the enrollment cliff, fueled by declining birthrates and fewer students graduating from high school, continues to challenge colleges and universities to find new enrollment and revenue streams, one area of opportunity is increasing the enrollment of adult learners in on-campus, hybrid, and online programs. Colleges, like Northeast Religious…

This qualitative case study explores the story of celebration for kindergarten teachers at a suburban elementary school in northern New England. This study explored the reality of self-celebration in kindergarten teachers' current practices during staff meetings, planning meetings, response to intervention (RTI) meetings, with their colleagues,…

Why do teachers do the job that they do? With teachers leaving the profession in droves and heightened levels of stress put on new professionals, it is essential that organizations start reflecting on what may increase motivation and retention for K-12 classroom educators. This may start with professional development opportunities that are…

Women of Color faculty remain underrepresented across all fields of postsecondary science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM). Although extant literature describes the collective institutional-level experiences of Women of Color faculty, an effort to understand the departmental-level experiences and contextually how the…

Online courses are popular in community colleges among students of different backgrounds. However, compared to community college students who take face-to-face courses, those who take online courses earn lower grades and are less likely to receive a diploma or transfer to a four-year institution. Designing courses to facilitate social presence, as…

Questioning individuals about future behavior influences the subsequent performance of that behavior. This question-behavior effect may be enhanced when questions include positive self-identity prompts. To evaluate the effectiveness of this intervention in a testing context, we randomly assigned examinees to one of three conditions prior to…

The sudden outbreak of COVID-19 made universities switch rapidly to e-learning, which enabled continuous access to education. Thus, the evaluation of e-learning engagement is essential to ensure students are engaged in their studies just as it is in the conventional face-to-face classroom. The students are totally in control of their participation…

The COVID-19 pandemic devastated many communities and exacerbated existing inequities, particularly for Mexican American communities along the South Texas border. During this tumultuous time, many Mexican American college students balanced coursework, work, and familial responsibilities in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), a Texas borderland region…

While college was once just for a few people, college access has increased. More students are attending college than ever before, but access does not correlate with degree persistence. Many prospective students cannot attend college due to the increasing cost of tuition. Affordability is a risk to all students, but it is especially difficult for…

Nationally, teachers are leaving at heightened levels, and school culture has been identified as one possible root cause. Research has identified environments that are conducive to a positive school culture and ways to positively impact teacher retention. Furthermore, research highlights national initiatives that have been created to retain…

This qualitative study examined perceptions of current special education teachers in one large school district outside a major metropolitan area and their willingness to stay in the field of special education. The number of fully certified special education teachers in U.S. schools has reached an all-time low. Special education teachers are more…

Although single student mothers are the largest and fastest-growing student demographic in higher education institutions, the experiences of single mothers in academia remain under-explored, as the increase in literature addresses the experiences of women in higher education. Obtaining graduate level education is an ongoing challenge for single…

A quantitative nonexperimental ex post facto approach studied the relationship between student characteristics and online course retention over three different periods. The research reviewed online student characteristics like gender, ethnicity, Pell eligibility, previous online experience, GPA, total credit hours, and age to test for pre, intra,…