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Framed within a context of social justice, this ethnographic study queried seven Mexican American students who pursued teacher certification at a historically Black university (HBCU) in Central Texas. By examining the Mexican American students' perceptions, this study opens conversations to challenge the limited information known about Latino/as attending HBCUs and the programs that prepare preservice teachers of Color. Mexican American students and the HBCU both exist at a crossroads, an intersection of border spaces of race, class, ethnicity, gender, and ability. While border crossers defines the uniqueness of these Mexican American teacher candidates who live in contradictory realities, borderlands defines the HBCU as a site of resistance in the margins of higher education. A Black-White binary, therefore, not only is flawed but also obscures struggles common among Latinos, African Americans, and Others for an equitable education. Through interviews and small group sessions, the teacher candidates shared a high regard for educational achievement, work ethics, and teaching. From the coded data, their stories were analyzed through the lens of critical race theory, borderlands consciousness, and critical pedagogy. Although commonalities exist, each analytical perspective brought to the forefront variant aspects of race, class, gender, and abilities. Linked to these analytical frameworks was the notion of three selves: enduring, situated, and endangered, which helped to illuminate the nature of change and transformation. In tandem with the analyses were member and colleagues checks that helped to provide deeper interrogation and clarity. Findings reveal how race and class shape the teacher candidates' identities as well as the character of the university. Although the Mexican American preservice teachers bring rich cultural legacies and cross-cultural perspectives, their needs and interests are under-addressed by the institution. Yet for them, it was class disparities more than racial injustices that perpetuated problems inside and outside the HBCU. Nonetheless, these teacher candidates believe the validating experiences and cultural network, which they acquired at this HBCU, will support their teaching effectiveness in public schools. The strengths and findings of this study are therefore crucial to rethinking policies and practices as related to teacher education programs and HBCUs, and their impact on communities of Color. / text

Numerous studies have been conducted to determine predictors of perceptions and attitudes toward police. Less effort has been spent on determining university and college students' perceptions of campus police departments. The purpose of this thesis was to fill this gap in the literature with an added emphasis on exploring potential differences in perceptions between students involved in Greek Life organizations and students not involved in Greek Life organizations. Prior literature found that Greek Life students engage in risk-taking behaviors at higher rates than their counterparts, so it was hypothesized that Greek Life students would have higher levels of distrust in the campus police due to their increased engagement in risk-taking behaviors. The survey questionnaire measuring trust and procedural justice/legitimacy perceptions of campus police was distributed through convenience sampling to university students. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and multivariate analyses were utilized to analyze the data. The results showed that students overall had positive perceptions of campus police, that Greek Life students had more negative perceptions of the campus police than non-Greek Life students, and that students with prior interactions with the campus police were more likely to perceive the police to be less procedurally just/legitimate. Race/ethnicity was not found to be a predictor in perceptions of trust or procedural justice/legitimacy of the campus police. Limitations, policy implications, and suggestions for future research concerning student perceptions of campus police were also discussed.

As a society, we seek to have our young people, including the gifted, be healthy and happy, and go to good schools with good teachers. Framed by Sayler's theoretical model of giftedness and thriving, this study examined psychological constructs (i.e. general self-efficacy, theories of intelligence, hope, gratitude, religiosity, disposition, and resiliency) to determine their mediating effect on personal well-being and academic success in gifted college students. The 213 subjects for this study included gifted college students from two distinct programs at the University of North Texas. One hundred twenty-two participants were students from the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS). TAMS is an early-college entrance program allowing gifted students to enter college after their sophomore year of high school. Ninety-one participants attended the UNT Honors College. Honors College students are gifted students who enter college after high school graduation. Latent transition, latent class, general linear model repeated measures, and regression analyses were used in the examination of the data. Results of the study revealed that positive disposition and hope-agency were significantly related to the development of personal well-being for gifted students during their first year of college. The ability to identify pathways to goals and the self-theory of intelligence as a fixed trait were significantly related to academic success during the first year at college. Knowledge of psychological constructs that are facilitative of the positive personal well-being and academic achievement helps parents, teachers, administrators, and counselors prepare gifted students for success in college.