This basic interpretive qualitative research study explored the personal and professional backgrounds, training experiences, perspectives, and perceptions held by adult volunteers serving as crew advisors in the Venturing program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Venturing is the BSA's adventure oriented youth development program for coeds age…

Although Title IX legislation has been in effect since 1972 and has created unprecedented positive change on intercollegiate athletics, educational institutions have still had difficulty meeting the basic requirements set forth by Title IX and ensuring gender equity in their athletic programs. Additionally, specific research has been largely…

The majority of college students consume alcohol. Some college students consume heavily and these abusive patterns of alcohol use can be associated with substantial negative consequences. Drinking game participation has increased in popularity among college students and is associated with high levels of alcohol consumption and an increased…

This dissertation studies consumer search behavior in markets where buyers have incomplete information about available goods, such as markets with many sellers or frequently changing prices. In these markets, consumers engage in costly search in order to collect information necessary for making a purchase. Our method of investigation combines…

This dissertation examines issues regarding the educational attainment of the U.S. workforce. Specifically, I investigate the impact of various factors on the growth of postsecondary educational attainment. This includes issues pertaining to improving the skill-level of the workforce at the regional or state level, as well as for the domestic…

This study examined the adequacy of education financing in three regions of New York State by comparing the cost of per-pupil education in high schools that meet the No Child Left Behind standard of 90 percent graduation rate and those high schools with 80 percent or less graduation rate in 18 counties of New York State. Also examined were the…

In "Practice Makes Practice: A Critical Study of Learning to Teach" Deborah Britzman (2003) points out that teacher candidates enter their education programs with their own conceptions of teaching, "bring(ing) to teacher education their educational biography and some well-worn and commonsensical images of the teacher's work" (p. 27). Similarly,…

I focus on three critical autobiographies in the field of composition studies: Mike Rose's "Lives on the Boundary: A Moving Account of the Struggles and Achievements of America's Educationally Underprepared," Keith Gilyard's "Voices of the Self: A Study of Language Competence," and Victor Villanueva, Jr.'s "Bootstraps: From an American Academic of…

African American students are often at odds with their education. Instead of being viewed as a place that can offer help, support, and a catalyst for social change, school is viewed by many African American boys as a place that does not recognize or understand their own lives, and where their knowledge and understandings of the world are not…

The purpose of this study was to determine if third grade reading performance of students enrolled in south Mobile County Title I schools improved as a result of the first year implementation of the Scott Foresman "Reading Street" program. Attempts were also made to identify predictors that may improve future reading performance and data were…

The literature on counselor development suggests that the development of a professional identity is a fundamental aspect of counselor training. The unique demands placed on counselors to integrate aspects of both personal and professional identity into the therapeutic process (Skovholt & Ronnestad, 1995) make development of a professional identity…

This dissertation investigates the importance of vocabulary development in kindergarten. The purpose of this qualitative case study design was to explore and describe how kindergarten teachers in 1 Midwestern U.S. suburban school district perceive and value the task of teaching vocabulary. The results were based on data collected from 2 focus…

This study examined the experiences of three vocal jazz ensemble directors who influenced the field through their successful programs at the university level. These directors, Dr. Gene Aitken, Professor Larry Lapin, and Dr. Stephen Zegree, were chosen because of their national reputations as well as their program's longevity and success. The…

This dissertation is an exploration of stories of uncertainty in the lives of elementary teachers and the value that the ideas of Hannah Arendt lend to the discussion around uncertainty. In "The Human Condition" (1958) Hannah Arendt theorizes the life of action, the "vita activa". Arendtian action is inherently uncertain because to be "capable of…

Computer assisted guidance systems may adapt well to various models of academic advising, and they have the ability to address the challenge of meeting the diverse advising needs of community college students without sacrificing the integrity of academic advising (Fowkes & McWhirter, 2007). The purpose of this qualitative case study was to assess…