As central social and political institutions, U.S. universities have an important public service calling that extends beyond their teaching and research mandate. Over the past two decades, increasing numbers of U.S. universities have reoriented their institutional priorities towards becoming more sustainable across the board, which includes…

"It's only okay to call a Black person an idiot"--this statement marks the launch point for a personal essay about one family's negotiation of an act of racism that occurs in an afterschool conversation among 6-year-olds. A work of educational criticism, the essay takes on the school's passive refusal to acknowledge race and racism,…

This study explored parents' strategies for home educating their children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) during the COVID-19 period in Harare Urban District in Zimbabwe. Embedded within international research findings on the subject, this qualitative study drew on a purposive sample of eight parents. Telephonic individual interviews,…

Purpose: Existing research on loosely coupled educational systems has largely ignored the social and affective dimensions of such systems. Drawing on literature from organizational behavior, this study examines how "human" factors, including role identity dynamics, power dynamics, and stereotyping, shape the implementation of state-led…

Using a piloted convergent mixed-methods design, I investigated role understanding and collaboration between school counselors and principals. Specifically, this intervention situated aspiring school counselors and principals in a curriculum implementation on the role of their counterpart and then brought the two professions together in a…

The ways in which high schools allocate their staffing and assign individual roles related to career development are pertinent to students with and without disabilities accessing career preparation that equips them for employment following graduation. Rural school districts can especially benefit from strategic role allocation that addresses gaps…

This manuscript focuses on the role of Black megachurches in addressing the historical educational exclusion that continues to affect Black students' college access. Secondary data analysis of semistructured qualitative interviews with 27 church and ministry leaders of three Black megachurches in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. uncovered how…

Science teacher leaders have been identified as an important lever for the implementation of science education reform. However, science reform implementation is locally controlled and not uniform across districts; therefore, the work of STLs within a reform context can vary. In this descriptive case study, we explore the work of 11 science teacher…

Nationwide, almost one in two of full-time undergraduate students are employed. This qualitative study investigates how 69 workers and learners, who were full-time students in a Los Angeles County public college or university and who had a job, leveraged the wealth of knowledge and resources embedded in their familial and peer networks to…

This dissertation explores the dynamics of a formal classroom and an informal nature-based learning environment, focusing on their impact on student subjectification and knowledge authority. The study, conducted with a cohort of 27 fifth-grade students and their teacher, employs a comparative case study methodology to analyze how teaching…

Background: Many studies show a positive link between student achievement and family participation in school. Family participation in school can also benefit the whole educational community, contributing to a shared community responsibility for education. Despite this, in many schools, family participation can be incidental or superficial. There…

This qualitative case study explores the perceptions of school leadership that future school counselors have regarding leadership roles for women in rural Appalachia. Using a feminist-geographical lens, several cultural, economic, geographic, and identity-based themes were found. Participants' definitions of ideal school leadership included strong…

Introduction: There remains some consensus that pre-service teacher education should be centered on the development of teachers' content knowledge, as it is considered to be essential for quality teaching and learning. The development of more effective forms of pedagogical content knowledge requires pre-service physical education teachers to…

This qualitative study sought to gather data from secondary school principals to increase understanding of why from their perspective trauma-informed practices have failed to take hold in public secondary schools. Ten secondary school principals in a large urban school district participated in interviews to explore their understanding of chronic…

District "equity director" (ED) roles have grown rapidly over the past decade. Drawing on interviews and surveys with over 70 EDs across nearly 30 states, this study documents dramatic ED role growth from 2018 to 2022 specifically and examines why, according to EDs, such roles were established locally. Findings, drawing on scholarship on…