<p> Due to the high unemployment rate and difficulty for students to transition from education to work, this thesis looks at how Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs provide a supplement to the traditional education systems throughout the world, and can be a solution to students graduating with employable skills so they can find meaningful work. The thesis answers the question:<i> &ldquo;What are the effects of Career and Technical Education?&rdquo;</i> through a qualitative method of an open-ended survey administered to three educational organizations in Northern California. Participants included four teachers, five administrators, and 96 high school students. The results showed that CTE programs have incredible effects on students, from being life-changing to providing necessary career skills and the space to navigate college and career choice. Students, teachers and administrators recommend that CTE programs be adopted nation wide, so students can decide what career to pursue.</p><p>

<p> Healthcare spending in the United States has reached an all-time high in recent years, with an estimated $3.2 trillion spent, without any significant impact on patient outcomes because of this excessive spending. Whether the excess be attributed to over-utilization, fee-for-service payment methodology or medical errors, there is an immediate need to mitigate these issues and greatly reduce healthcare costs. </p><p> Epic Systems Corporation has developed a widely-adopted health management software that provides functionality to accomplish such goals. It applies a fully-integrated methodology to all of its different applications that support different healthcare business and clinical functions. Epic is a leader in the health management software industry. </p><p> ALLTAP Solutions, LLC provides high quality, efficient custom solutions to its clients, by applying healthcare industry expertise and Epic technical knowledge to increase efficiency and reduce costs. The market analysis that is to be presented will provide an overview of the target market, key players, the demand for these services and growth potential.</p><p>

<p> Institutions of higher education have faced many challenges over the last few decades. Though many large institutions have the resources needed to respond to these challenges, small institutions have had to be innovative in the ways in which they are adapting. There are similarities between the external challenges that institutions face today and the challenges they faced in the 1960s and 70s, and it is worth examining whether or not the predictions and suggestions made by scholars in this time period offer insight in regards to the innovation found in small institutions today. This dissertation explored Erich Jantsch's 1969 report in the context of innovation in higher education today. This qualitative, multicase study found that Erich Jantsch's five crucial innovations can be found to some extent in the innovations of four small institutions of higher education.</p><p> Keywords: Erich Jantsch, higher education, disruptive forces, innovation, self-renewal, integrative planning</p><p>

<p> <i>Revenue diversification</i> is a term that becomes more relevant as higher education institutions are confronted with increased regulation, competition, declining enrollments, and strained finances. A challenge that many institutions face is that expenditures are higher than revenues and increase faster than them. The term <i>Revenue diversification </i> seems obvious to higher education administration professionals, although they do not all define it the same way. For that reason, it needs a precise definition so that the industry genuinely can embrace the concept and thereby seek to generate more revenues to drive existing and innovative agendas. Indeed, a common understanding will allow universities to develop strategies to reduce the reliance on traditional tuition and fees. The study examines three not-for-profit institutions with a student population less than 5,000 that already are diversifying their revenue streams. The definition of leadership at each institution is compared with the strategies that have been implemented or proposed in order to understand whether there is alignment. The three cases&mdash;Stevenson University, Franklin &amp; Marshall College, and Oglethorpe University&mdash;respectively have the following story lines: 1) growth is the only possibility; 2) the current situation is one of stasis, and the way forward is unclear; 3) efforts must be undertaken to improve financial viability. In addition to the qualitative research, the study also encompasses an analysis of IPEDS that reflects how each institution is changing its revenues in comparison to a similarly situated group of institutions. The findings reveal that <i>Revenue diversification</i> is on everybody&rsquo;s mind, but the definition of the term is inconclusive. Leadership teams are trying to determine what revenue-diversification strategies will work for the institutions and its stakeholders to be able to offset expense increases. Identifying new revenue sources will entail pursuing non-historical revenue sources, which includes academic programs, services, property, institutional advancement, and more. The higher education environment is concerning to many of its member institutions, and by diversifying revenues, long-term viability can be secured.</p><p>

<p> This qualitative, phenomenological study examined the lived experiences of 25 National Guard members and reservists representing the United States Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps returning to civilian careers following a post-9/11 deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan. The research question asked: What are the lived experiences of post-9/11National Guard and Reserve military veterans as they transition back to the civilian workplace? The literature review revealed numerous studies focused on active duty military personnel transitioning out of the military and seeking civilian employment, but few studies were found regarding National Guard members and reservists serving in a post-9/11 deployment for over 90 days and returning to their civilian jobs &mdash; citizen soldiers. The transition experiences of these members are the focus in this study. Interview questions were designed based on Schlossberg&rsquo;s 4-S model and Bridges&rsquo;s transition theory. Six themes emerged from the analysis of this data offering insights on the experiences of these citizen-soldiers: (1) Getting to the core of what matters most and what is valued, (2) adjusting to the civilian workplace, (3) united in education: insider perspectives on Department of Defense workshops, (4) to have, or not to have, transition support, (5) wrestling with a new normal, and (6) transferring military skills to the civilian workplace: hiring our heroes. Recommendations for future research are to examine the curriculum and design of Department of Defense transition workshops, continuing and adult education for recruiting and retaining military veterans in the civilian workplace, and adult leadership programs for military-connected college students.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to describe and explain Veteran students&rsquo; perspectives on academic success as they enter or reenter the university setting. Recent research applied to Veteran students has primarily focused on social integration factors and to a lesser extent on Veteran students&rsquo; academic integration and student success. For this qualitative study, which was grounded in social constructivism, the primary method of data collection was the recording, transcription, and analysis of oral interviews with 11 Veteran students. The findings were aligned to the theoretical framework for this study which was adapted from Tinto&rsquo;s Conditions for Student Success (2012). The results contribute to the current body of scholarly literature that highlights attributes that Veteran students possess that may contribute to persistence including leadership skills, maturity, and acquired skills related to global and cultural awareness, and motivation. Other findings include the effectiveness of having specific programming efforts for Veteran students including Vet-to-Vet tutoring and mentoring. As for research implications for practice, colleges and universities should not presume Veteran students do extensive research prior to choosing where to apply nor are they necessarily familiar with services offered to Veteran students. They prefer face-to-face program delivery and may need assistance with meeting University requirements such as providing immunization records, establishing in-state residency, and providing sufficient documentation for receiving adequate services to be academically successful. Further research is needed with regard to a primary concern of Veteran students that they will run out of benefits eligibility prior to graduation. Results also reaffirm that colleges and universities need to continue to develop and improve conditions that are known to promote student success for Veteran students. </p><p>

<p> This quantitative study focused on educators entering the classroom as teachers both pre- NCLB and post-NCLB enactment. The specific problems explored in this study was the motivational levels and job satisfaction factors of pre-No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and post-No Child Left Behind (NCLB) public school educators; how motivation and job satisfaction influenced educators&rsquo; decisions to remain active in the classroom within an instructional capacity. The participants in this study were public school teachers employed by a mid-sized school district. The research instrument used as part of this study was Mertler&rsquo;s (1985) Teacher Motivation and Job Satisfaction Survey (TMJS); one of the few motivational/job satisfaction surveys specifically developed for application within the education profession. SurveyMonkey supported the survey, data collection, and statistical analysis. The application of a chi-square, one-way ANOVA, Pearson Correlation, Stepwise Multiple Regression, frequency distribution tables, and descriptive statistics allowed for the identification of a relationship, if one existed, between pre- NCLB and post-NCLB educators motivation factors and job satisfaction levels and teachers choosing to remain actively engaged in teaching within the classroom. The research revealed, while there was no significant differences between pre-NCLB and post-NCLB educators&rsquo; motivational levels, job satisfaction factors between the two groups were statically significant different.</p><p>

The Principalship has received increased attention since the 1983 report, A Nation At Risk: The Imperative For Educational Reform and the 1986 Carnegie report, A Nation Prepared: Teachers For The Twenty-First Century. These reports challenged the Principal to become a strong, effective leader for school reform. The challenge called for the Principal to become a change agent, to affect the culture and climate of a school, to empower others, and to motivate staff and students. Emphasis on leadership suggests the potential of this position. The Principalship has not always been a position of leadership. The evolution of the Principalship is traced from the first system of public education documented in the United States, in Massachusetts, in the mid-seventeenth century to its growth into the twentieth century. During the twentieth century, the Principalship sustained itself through World War I, the Depression, World War II, the radical sixties and seventies, and through the reform minded eighties and nineties. The evolutionary stages, School Master, Head Teacher, Teaching Principal, Building Principal and Supervising Principal set the stage for present curriculum supervision, vision maker, "building based management", and climate and culture caretaker. The Principalship did not develop by any plan, rather it emerged in response to population growth, grading, and administrative requirements. The Principalship's evolution is cited from primary source materials, a survey and interview of Principals, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and leading educators. It is projected that the role of the Principalship in the twenty-first century will be influenced by the commitment of citizenry for public education, preparatory programs offered by universities and principal organizations, potential of the individuals who will become principals, and the reform efforts undertaken toward excellence in public education.

Much of the literature about teachers' lives and careers is problematic. It often fails to involve teachers themselves (Schubert, 1991), specifically women (Miller, 1993; Noddings, 1989). Moreover, it is often written from an administrative, thus frequently white male perspective (Casey, 1992). If documentation about teachers may be race and gender biased, teachers' voices must be included more if we are to interrupt inequities in schools and education research. Women teachers--the majority of whom are now 43 years of age (National Education Digest, 1996)--represent an important population. Their own experience with possible educational and professional inequities and the transitions typical of midlife and midcareer all could add interesting dimensions to their pedagogy and role modeling for adolescent students, particularly girls. This was a qualitative research project based phenomenological interviews (Seidman, 1991) with eighteen participants. In three ninety minute segments, participants were asked to relate how they became teachers, to describe their jobs, and to reflect on the meaning they make of their careers. The diverse women were between thirty-five to forty-eight years old and have taught full time for at least fifteen years in urban and suburban high schools. Interviews were taped, transcribed and analyzed for thematic similarities and differences. Peer debriefing sessions were held at intervals. Major themes from the data included women teachers as care-givers, their growing frustration with administrators over the course of their careers, and a perception that their achievements, experience, and professional opinions are often ignored. Participants expressed feeling powerlessness in often racist, sexist, homophobic work places frequently influenced by "good ol' boy" networks. On the other hand, at midcareer these women have more confidence in their teaching and with themselves than ever before, and at midlife have developed a greater awareness of their own needs. Some have sought professional development and mentoring to stave off the effects of a flat line career and monotony which can typically accompany midcareer. To prevent "burnout" which can affect human service professionals (Maslach, 1981) most are redirecting energy from careers to self-care. The relationship between midlife teachers as models for adolescents in transition was not clearly established.

This paper asks: Are there characteristics of child care directors that are shared among those operating high quality programs? The researcher examines quality child care and the role of directors in the delivery of quality care. Child care directors occupy a pivotal position to influence the quality of child care through their training, their experience and their roles within the center. The literature suggests a link between child care directors and program quality and this study attempts to explore that link. The researcher has conducted a comparative study of the characteristics of 282 child care administrators in accredited and nonaccredited programs within Massachusetts. A profile of directors of quality programs was developed by surveying licensed and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accredited child care centers in Massachusetts (n = 159). The data was then screened through seven quality criteria derived from the literature in order to arrive at a 'filtered' profile of quality administrators. These profiles were matched against the directors of the nonaccredited child care programs (n = 123). A random sample of 31 directors and their centers from both groups (22 accredited, 9 nonaccredited) was examined to establish what level of quality was actually occurring. The Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (Harms & Clifford, 1980) and the Infant Toddler Environment Rating Scale (Harms, Cryer, & Clifford, 1990) was used to score overall center quality, and additionally data were collected while on-site. The study was able to establish that directors of the high quality early care and education programs had statistically distinct characteristics, but failed to predict quality by themselves. Additional comparisons created a revised grouping which was of similar quality to both of the NAEYC accredited groups. Additionally, NAEYC accredited child care centers were operating at a significantly higher quality than the nonaccredited programs in Massachusetts, with 92% of the classrooms (n = 75) operating at a developmentally appropriate level. The study found that 72% of the nonaccredited classrooms (n = 32) were developmentally appropriate. Overall quality was demonstrated at higher than expected levels. While the study was able to make definitive statements about the quality of child care in Massachusetts, it failed to make a conclusion about the directors and quality.