Education is critical to a democratic nation and in creating a strong economy (Verstegen, 2008). The importance of education is clear across society as an important tool in creating equal opportunities for all children regardless of race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. As school accountability increases, it is critical to determine what…

As low-income, first-year, rural community college students struggle to find their place and space at their institutions to achieve socio-academic integration, current research fails to fully examine the hardships that are placed on this population of students or how they navigate these environments for ultimate success. This study examined how…

Teacher attrition adversely impacts the academic future of the students in public schools. Each year, thousands of classrooms go without qualified teachers to provide instruction. Without qualified teachers to instruct students using college and career readiness standards, education agencies, including state departments of education, districts,…

Online course enrollment is increasing but online course completion and retention rates are decreasing in public community colleges and this study suggests more increases in online course enrollment are underway. Student affairs professionals are met with adversity to provide adequate support to online students due to substandard administrative…

Research is needed on rural, first-generation college students and what supports them in attending and persisting at a private Catholic university. Specifically, this dissertation sought to understand participant experiences for those who attended Gaspar University, a Catholic university in the Northeast. Analysis of qualitative interviews,…

Educational reform and the development of performance measure policies have remained a continuous debate throughout the past several decades. These accountability policies and increased performance standards can have a significant effect on teacher practice and student outcomes. Policy initiatives have now shifted the definition of teacher quality…

The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study with correlation analysis was to examine the extent to which mentor program experience and job embeddedness are related to teachers' intention to remain in their current teaching assignment in Catholic schools in the southeastern United States. The research questions asked whether any…

This study demonstrates a leadership professional development (PD) with a goal to build a coalition for attracting and retaining a diverse STEM teaching workforce in K-12 schools. In 2019, 111 participants of 21 teams from across the US participated in the leadership PD. Each team was comprised of 5-6 teachers and administrators representing their…

Storytelling is a cultural practice and tool supporting Black collective persistence and resilience against racial oppression. As incidences of racial tension have increased at historically White colleges and universities (HWCUs) over the past 10 years, little is known about the ways storytelling may be engaged as a coping mechanism in this…

Purpose: The number of students with disabilities pursuing a college education has increased dramatically in recent years (Hall and Belch, 2000; Hitchings et al., 2011; Horn et al., 2006; Retish and Horvath, 2005; Snyder et al., 2016; Stodden et al., 2001), yet, evidence suggests that these students continue to encounter significant challenges and…

The problem addressed by this study is beginning teacher attrition. Beginning teachers are leaving the field of education at a steadily increasing rate, and teacher education programs may be negatively influencing their decision. With many teacher preparation programs only providing pre-service teachers with a semester-long, student-teaching…

This study explored the relationship of cognitive and noncognitive variables within academically underachieving high school students. The research on academic achievement variables is plentiful in the literature among high performing populations. Past studies reveal that a multitude of factors effect academic achievement in high school students.…

Non-traditional students make up a majority of post-secondary learners in the United States. The addition and development of online learning modalities has transformed the educational landscape, providing expansive options and vastly improving access to programs offered by institutions around the world. After decades of growth and advancement,…

While eighty percent of students enrolled in community colleges express the intent to transfer to a 4-year institution and earn a bachelor's degree, only seventeen percent actually reach that goal within 6 years of transferring. This study addressed the problem using case study methodology to identify, understand, and describe factors at a…

Although calls for a more diverse workforce in biomedical fields have been widespread, racial and ethnic gaps in biomedical degree attainment remain. Contextualist perspectives seek to understand persistent STEM inequities by examining person-in-context experiences and how systemic factors filter into students' proximal contexts shaping their…