Given the increased demographic change of Latinos in our society, the need for understanding who they are, how they live, and more importantly how they lead has never been more urgent. Answers regarding how Latinos lead warrant further empirical research and investigation. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine how a group of elected…

This research examines the relationship of Achievement Motivation Profiles and a student's ability to persist through their chosen curriculum to graduate within an appropriate time. A population of 2010 Academic Year graduates from Newberry College were asked to complete the Achievement Motivation Profile. Comparison between achievement motivation…

The benefits of college education are extensive. In addition to the obvious cognitive advantages, those who obtain a college education experience economic, health, family and neighborhood benefits. These benefits are felt not only within the generation of the individual who completed their degree; but inter-generationally as well. The ability to…

The achievement gap problem is a growing phenomenon in the United States of America. In many schools, minority student populations are failing at alarming rates and are looking at different outcomes than those of their White and Asian counterparts. However, a few schools are breaking through the barriers of poverty, poor school attendance, low…

In this study I sought to understand the complexities of the processes of reciprocity within a theater for social change service-learning project. My sample included three university students, one university faculty member, four high school students, one high school principal, and one high school teacher. As a participant- observer, I conducted an…

This dissertation is a variationist account of two non-standard relative clause (RC) structures in Spanish: resumptive pronouns (RPs) and prepositional-phrase (PP) chopping. Previous typological studies considered RP explanations based on difficulty of processing (Hawkins, 1994), while Spanish-specific quantitative studies proposed a number of…

In recent years all public higher education institutions have increased their reliance on adjunct faculty. Adjuncts provide expertise in key areas, are available at times that meet the needs of the changing student demographic, and cover an increasing number of introductory courses. It has been suggested that adjunct faculty may be more weakly…

The present study contributes to the limited body of research pertaining to secondary teacher efficacy and its relationship to career persistence, gender, ethnicity, contract status, and years of teaching. In addition, this study examines the concepts of student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom management as subscales used to…

Early adolescence can be a difficult experience for many youth. This complex phase of development occurs as children transition to middle school. Within middle school, adolescents are faced with new challenges including ever changing peer groups and different educational and behavioral expectations. These challenges have been recognized as having…

In this research study I explore: (a) beliefs Korean ESL readers have about reading in L1 and L2 prior to the Retrospective Miscue Analysis (RMA) sessions, (b) how their beliefs about reading affect the way they read in L1 and L2 and their evaluation of themselves as readers in L1 and L2 reading, and (c) change of their beliefs about reading and…

This Doctor of Ministry project builds upon the Church's catechetical commission to form adult Christian disciples, capable of revealing the kingdom of God. It is rooted in the Vatican II teaching found in "Lumen gentium," chapter five: all the baptized are called to partake in the Church's mission by virtue of their universal call to holiness.…

Current initiatives to recruit international teachers are on the rise. Although international teachers have always played a part in educating American students, their presence in U.S. schools have increased over the past few years as a result of overseas recruitment programs (Francis, 2005; Hutchinson, 2007). This increase in the recruitment of…

Many scholars have noted the dismal persistence rates of Black male students in community colleges, as well as their poor academic success outcomes. This study sought to further the literature on academic success by exploring student perspectives in one southwestern community college. The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of…

The purpose of this study was to gain a stronger understanding of the characteristics that influence membership levels at dues-based alumni associations serving public universities. Prior studies have demonstrated that alumni association members are more likely to give to their institutions; and their gifts, on average, are larger than those of…

The Chinese higher education reform policies since 1993 have been pursued in a centralized, top-down manner, which some theorists characterize as "centralized decentralization" or governmental "steering at distance." This case-study dissertation has two purposes. First, is to evaluate the implementation or the "situated practices" of national…