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ERIC Number: EJ1107471
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Faculty Attitudes and Behaviors towards Student Veterans
Gonzalez, Carlene A.; Elliott, Marta
Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, v29 n1 p35-46 Spr 2016
According to the U.S. Department of Education (2013), approximately 11% of undergraduate students reported having a disability in the 2007-2008 academic year. Of these students, veterans reported having disabilities more than their non-veteran counterparts (5% vs. 3%). This study investigates faculty members' attitudes and behaviors toward student veterans pursuing postsecondary education. Over half a million U.S. troops have returned from the wars in the Middle East and opted to use their GI-bill benefits to enroll in college. Many of these students face common post-war experiences such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI). Previous research has shown that mental health issues led student veterans to perceive faculty as judging them unfairly, but little is known about what faculty actually think of student veterans. Using survey data collected from 160 instructors at a community college and four-year university, we estimate structural equation models to explain the associations among faculty members' prior contact with the military, their attitudes toward student veterans and willingness to help them, and their treatment of military-related issues in the classroom. The results reveal that faculty who have greater contact with the military in their own lives discuss the military more often in class and are more willing to help student veterans because they know more of them. Policy recommendations in line with Universal Design (UD) are offered for training faculty who do not have contact with the military and need to be aware of special issues related to student veterans in their classrooms, such as helping students who are dealing with visible and invisible injuries related to their military service.
Association on Higher Education and Disability. 107 Commerce Center Drive Suite 204, Huntersville, NC 28078. Tel: 704-947-7779; Fax: 704-948-7779; e-mail: ahead@ahead.org; Web site: http://www.ahead.org/publications/jped
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Two Year Colleges
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A