As leadership theory continues to develop and change, so do the attempts to enhance experiences for women in higher education. Women face many obstacles, which include lack of role models in student and institutional leaders (Astin & Leland, 1991). Traditionally, institutions offer no specific leadership programs or curricula and pay minimal attention to the leadership development of their students (Cress, Astin, Zimmerman-Oster, & Burkhardt, 2001). This study was a case study with an in-depth analysis of the establishment of a women's leadership education and training program at Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia. Six students, four administrators, and one intern were interviewed to illustrate the process of the planning of the program, its implementation and current operations, and the complexities involved. Document analysis and observations were utilized as well. The study was focused on the impact of the program on the students and administrators involved in the development of the program during this period. The researcher also described how the Batten Leadership Institute has evolved over the past five years with a focus on how it came into being, what it was like, then and now, and changes that have occurred. The findings are organized by three phases: 1) conceptualization, 2) implementation, and 3) refinement and expansion. The phases are based on a chronological framework and resulting categories and themes emerged. Results indicate the participants' described their leadership skills improved because of their participation and experience in the BLI. The Communication Skills Group and its interpersonal component as well the presence of positive female role-models created the most personal transformation for the student participants. The students' previous ideas and definitions of leadership became more comprehensive. As a result of their personal transformation, their perceptions of the BLI changed from initial uncertainty and hesitation to admiration and support. The program expanded significantly over the first five years. Programmatic challenges have been addressed and many positive changes have occurred. Hollins administrators embraced the BLI and fully supported future expansions within Hollins University and in the Roanoke community. / Ph. D.

Men and masculine qualities stereotypically define leadership. Role Congruity Theory explains that women leaders may experience a double discrimination. First, because leadership roles are stereotypically male, a woman may not have the necessary qualities. Second, because leadership qualities are stereotypically masculine, when women do exhibit agentic qualities, they are perceived negatively and not feminine (Eagly and Karau, 2002). Further, adopting a masculine style is perceived as an inauthentic leadership style. However, an androgynous style can blend feminine expectations with corporate needs, creating advantage and perceptions of authenticity (Tzinerr and Barsheshet-Picke, 2014). The leadership development training described in this thesis was held for female volunteer counselors of Girls Rock! Roanoke, an empowerment camp for young girls. The appreciative pedagogy included individual reflections, group discussions, and working through simulations. The evaluation of the training sought to identify: if discussion of leadership increased awareness of feminine and masculine leadership; if discussion of personal leadership experiences increased empowerment to self-identify as leaders; and what impact the experience had on participants' ability to improve and employ leadership. After participants completed the training, awareness of feminine and androgynous leadership increased; whereas, it is unclear if awareness of masculine leadership increased. Challenging participants to reflect on their leadership increased their self-identification as leaders, while those who already identified did so in androgynous terms. The training impacted participants' knowledge of themselves as leaders, how they planned to use leadership in camp and in real life, but it is unclear to what degree it impacted their ability to improve and employ leadership beyond the training. / Master of Science in Life Sciences

Leadership development programs provide many positive outcomes for college students (Cress, Astin, Zimmerman-Oster, & Burkhardt, 2001; Striffolino & Saunders, 1989; Zimmerman-Oster & Burkardt, 1999). Leadership programs aid students in their academic achievement (Striffolino & Saunders, 1989), and leadership skills (Zimmerman-Oster & Burkardt, 1999). A specific type of leadership development programs are first-year leadership programs, or FYLPs. With similar goals as general leadership programs, FYLPs are created with the special needs and interests of first-year students in mind (Peraza, 2004). These programs encourage higher retention rates (Striffolino & Saunders, 1989), leadership skills such as teamwork and self-awareness (Outcalt, 2001), and ethical leadership (Peraza, 2004). As important as FYLPs are to the development of first-year students, though, there has not been sufficient enough research on their effectiveness in achieving their purpose. The purpose of this study was to assess the short and long-term effects of a particular FYLP on its participants as measured by the Student Leadership Outcomes Inventory (SLOI) (Vann, 2004). Participants included both FYLP and non-FYLP students at a midsized Midwestern institution. Results showed little difference in the improvement of leadership skills between FYLP and non-FYLP participants, and little change between each class of FYLP. Results did show that students who participated in the FYLP their freshman year went on to engage in more leadership activities than students who did not complete the FYLP. / Master of Arts

In leadership development, an established literature and a fertile praxis fall short of clarifying how individuals may develop the many and varied capabilities that contribute to leadership processes. Literature promoting personal growth tends to reduce personal development to cognitive development or rely on broadly defined and under-evidenced notions. The adult development literature offers to this research a conceptualization of personal development as systemic qualitative change in individual sensemaking. As sensemaking develops, it progresses toward greater integration (of interdependent cognitive, emotive, purposive, and conative dimensions), sophistication, and self-determination. The research aimed to examine how changes in the sensemaking of individuals may result in developmental outcomes relevant for personal and leadership development. This inquiry moves from a perspective idealist ontology and a social constructivist epistemology, selects philosophical hermeneutics as a research paradigm, and embraces exploratory qualitative longitudinal research. Purposive sampling guided the selection of research context, a leadership program focused on personal growth. Transcripts from 32 semi-structured constructivist-phenomenological interviews, collected from nine participants across fourteen months, were analyzed through constructivist grounded theory. Development was assessed ipsatively according to a literature-based framework. Contributions, in terms of substantive theory, are not generalizable beyond research context and sample. This research advances the differentiation of developmental context, process and outcomes. Context is found to transcend holding environment—to be ideally conducive to a specific type of change in virtue of a distinctive emerging quality. While vector processes facilitate development, core processes (individual sensemaking) are development. In terms of outcomes, the research supports an association between personal development and development of leadership capabilities, but questions whether self-awareness or personality adjustments per se constitute authentic personal or leadership development. This research exposes a pattern of seeking affirmation, associated with disproportionate identity salience of external image, which is potentially capable of hindering personal development by triggering maladaptive rather than adaptive self-reflection.

Intern interior designer leadership skills, expected by practitioners in Canada, were explored in this thesis to identify implications for interior designer education. Employment of a 16 question quantitative, online survey, examined National Council of Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) certified practitioners beliefs about intern leadership skills. A majority of the 116 participants agreed a leader skill set, that includes authentic and design leadership skills, is valuable for interns to have in practice. Six authentic leadership skills: self-improvement, self-monitoring, goal-commitment, openness, positivity, and composure alongside four design leadership skills: adaptability, professional, building-relationships and collaborative rank as the top ten skills. Respondent practitioners also hold post-secondary interior design educators, interior designers, and interns most accountable for leadership education. Recommendations for interior designer education include increasing authentic leadership development opportunities and practitioner involvement. Further, unification of leadership perceptions and consistent leadership language, along the full interior designer education path, is encouraged for programmatic success. / October 2016

In leadership development, an established literature and a fertile praxis fall short of clarifying how individuals may develop the many and varied capabilities that contribute to leadership processes. Literature promoting personal growth tends to reduce personal development to cognitive development or rely on broadly defined and under-evidenced notions. The adult development literature offers to this research a conceptualization of personal development as systemic qualitative change in individual sensemaking. As sensemaking develops, it progresses toward greater integration (of interdependent cognitive, emotive, purposive, and conative dimensions), sophistication, and self-determination. The research aimed to examine how changes in the sensemaking of individuals may result in developmental outcomes relevant for personal and leadership development. This inquiry moves from a perspective idealist ontology and a social constructivist epistemology, selects philosophical hermeneutics as a research paradigm, and embraces exploratory qualitative longitudinal research. Purposive sampling guided the selection of research context, a leadership program focused on personal growth. Transcripts from 32 semi-structured constructivist-phenomenological interviews, collected from nine participants across fourteen months, were analyzed through constructivist grounded theory. Development was assessed ipsatively according to a literature-based framework. Contributions, in terms of substantive theory, are not generalizable beyond research context and sample. This research advances the differentiation of developmental context, process and outcomes. Context is found to transcend holding environment—to be ideally conducive to a specific type of change in virtue of a distinctive emerging quality. While vector processes facilitate development, core processes (individual sensemaking) are development. In terms of outcomes, the research supports an association between personal development and development of leadership capabilities, but questions whether self-awareness or personality adjustments per se constitute authentic personal or leadership development. This research exposes a pattern of seeking affirmation, associated with disproportionate identity salience of external image, which is potentially capable of hindering personal development by triggering maladaptive rather than adaptive self-reflection.

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Master of Science / Counseling and Student Development / Christy D. Craft / Throughout my undergraduate and graduate work at Kansas State University, I have been fascinated with students’ faith development. Sharon Parks’ Theory of Faith Development for the College Years (Parks, 2000) outlines four stages of faith during the four to five years of college. As students enter into college, most start with a faith that is bound by authority and is dependent on others to function in a socially acceptable way. Healthy development continues until students enter a mature adult faith—one in which they have gained interdependence between their personal faith and the faith of others. They are open to those who are different and welcome diversity. With this in mind, how a campus ministry approaches a student may be vastly different depending on their stage of development. My report focuses on comparing and contrasting Sharon Parks’ Theory of Faith Development (Parks, 2000) and Susan Komives Stages of Leadership Identity Development (Komives, Owen, Longerbeam, Mainella & Osteen, 2005) in order to better understand the ability at which students can lead depending on their faith development. I concentrated on college age students who attend a non-denominational Christian campus ministry group. After completing my review of the similarities and differences of the two theories, I engaged in conversations with those involved in the ministries about each theory and how they are applicable to their faith leadership position within their organization. Having been heavily involved in a campus ministry, both as a participant and an observer, I have gained great knowledge about the ministries and how students get involved. Adding my classroom experience learning about faith development and leadership development, I feel that researching and presenting information about leadership and faith development to campus leaders would be beneficial. Educating campus leaders about student leadership development and faith development will better help equip them to reach students at the students’ level.

This companion dissertation reports the findings of applied case study research on four community college organizational units that consistently meet or exceed standard performance measures. In addition, prior ample evidence confirms that performance extended significantly beyond what might be explained by available tangible resources alone. The case study contexts are common in higher education in general: a) an external partnership, (b) an ad hoc team, (c) a traditional, cross-divisional service unit, and (d) a grant-funded student service unit. Emerging positive organizational theory and research shows promise for revealing performance-influencing phenomena and behaviors that are not adequately represented in standard measures. Therefore, this collaborative case study research was designed to explore positive influences on the success of the four community college units. This companion dissertation consists of three manuscripts. Chapter 2, a technical report, contains the collaboratively-written synthesis of findings from the four individual case studies. Key findings across the units suggest the influence on performance of: (a) a people-first culture, (b) authentic, trusting, inclusive leadership, and (c) resource richness beyond constrained tangible resources. In Chapter 3, the researcher presents the key findings of the individual case study that looks at the success of an ad hoc committee formed to guide their institution through the accreditation process. The findings of this study emphasize the important role that leadership plays in the team’s success. In Chapter 4, the researcher shares lessons learned throughout the research process and by walking through her leadership journey from reluctant to authentic leader.