This research explores the use of human-centered design as a lens through which to view the work of leaders in highly innovative schools. I propose that human-centered design is a model for change leadership, customizable to the varying contexts in which a school may exist. As human-centered design has captured the imagination of innovators as…

The role of the building administrator as the special education leader of inclusion is one of major importance when supporting students with disabilities. The building administrator may face a multitude of decisions dealing with areas of special education such as eligibility, least restrictive environment, services, discipline, and instruction.…

This autoethnographic study sought to answer the question: What is the impact of the chief information officer's (CIO) organizational structure on his/her ability to impact his/her influence as a university leader? This study used semi-structured mind mapping, a Venn diagram, a cubic framework, and a qualitative, autoethnographic interview of the…

Expulsion from school is the most severe form of student discipline allowed under California law. The primary facilitator of student expulsion is the school administrator. This study examined the school administrators' experiences with student expulsion, their decision-making process, and implications for bias. The study employed qualitative…

Differentiated instruction is defined as providing all students access to the same set of curricula while at the same time providing tasks and instruction tailored to a student's specific learning style. This expectation has led researchers to study and understand differentiated instruction for embedded applications across all classroom and…

Extensive research has proven that integrating experiential learning techniques with traditional teaching methods improves student learning, success, and outcomes in higher education institutions (Derous & Ryan, 2008; Dolan & Stevens, 2006; Eyler, 2009; Kuh & Ikenberry, 2009; McCarthy & McCarthy, 2006; Pierson & Troppe, 2010).…

The representation of Black women in senior leadership positions within higher education hovers at a dismal 5.8% (Wilder et al., 2013). Though Black women's degree attainment has increased substantially in comparison to other racial groups (NCES, n.d.), they are not recruited and supported in these roles (Jackson & Harris, 2007), especially in…

The Auburn University Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) degree program has enrolled fewer women in comparison to their male counterparts in each cohort since the inception of the program. The percentage of women has varied year-to-year but has never exceeded 35%. As women continue to increase their roles in upper management in the…

District administrators at a Midwestern K-6 school were concerned that despite a Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework required by the state department of education, school leaders had continued to experience high rates of discipline referrals. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the conceptual…

This interpretive phenomenological inquiry was an exploration of how a woman executive in higher education made sense of her leadership identity. As a single participant case, this study was a deep inquiry into how the participant made sense of her (a) leadership experiences in relationship to her identity, (b) the accounts she created and shared…

There was relatively little research investigating the mentoring relationships phenomenon in an entrepreneurship education context. The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive study was to describe the experiences of minority transfer students in an entrepreneurship pipeline program, at a four-year public research university in Maryland, who had…

Studies show beginning agriculture teachers have different experiences than their seasoned colleagues, but how are their experiences different? This phenomenological collective case study tells the story of traditionally certified beginning agriculture teachers throughout their first three years of teaching. The study began with eight teachers in…

The lack of women in leadership positions within the domain of athletic administration is a phenomenon that is widely understood (Galloway, 2012). To address the dearth of research in this area, the current study explored the experiences of African American women athletic administrators at Division I HBCUs. The research questions that guided this…

This Dissertation in Practice highlights a problem of practice within the field of Higher Education regarding the work place experiences of Black staff and administrators at Predominantly White Institutions. The dissertation seeks to understand more about the experiences of Black professional staff and administrators at Predominantly White…

Research on perceptions of critical tacit knowledge retention in business is prevalent; however, minimal research has been conducted on participant perceptions of this loss specifically within higher education due to unintentional siloing. The problem addressed in this study was that high employee turnover in higher education may result in the…