This project aims to help teachers learn how to connect with their students of different cultural backgrounds. It is written to help teachers understand how cultural differences can have an unseen effect on student learning and immediacy. In turn, these effects can lead to a lack of motivation and lower levels of success in college obtainment. This project will also have a handbook to help teachers learn about their students’ backgrounds and understand how culture plays a role in the learning process. The handbook will review understanding the demographics of the school, cultural mismatch, cultural communication, and instructional communication. These topics are geared to help teachers gain an understanding of the challenges their students face. When teachers are engaging in the handbook sections and working to overcome educational obstacles, their students may have greater academic success.

Public speaking has been found to be one of the greatest fears people face in their lifetime. Students, in particular, may feel extremely nervous about public speaking or the anticipated event of speaking to an audience. The purpose of this research study is twofold: (1) investigate the contemplative practice of mindfulness meditation, and (2) to understand the experiences of students who practice mindfulness meditation while enrolled (or previously enrolled) in a Public Speaking course at a community college. Data was collected using a Transcendental Phenomenology methodological approach. Moreover, methods used included open-ended, semi-structured interviews as well as descriptive field notes. Qualitative data was transcribed, coded and categorized into salient thematic findings. The findings of this study detail students’ perceptions about the use of mindfulness meditation. This study informs Public Speaking practitioners about how to proactively manage anxiety and uncertainty by employing contemplative practices to increase successful communication outcomes.

This document has been written to serve two distinct but related purposes. First, it is an attempt to describe a set of educational experiences which will be developed by a consortium of county-wide agencies to meet the existing as well as the emerging needs of learners in Rockland County, New York. To this end, a theoretical operational construct is explicated and the implementation strategies and tactics which are felt to insure a high degree of success for the program relative to realities extant in Rockland County are outlined. Second, an extended rationale reflecting the status of the American society, the value systems operating within that society, the history and current condition of the United States educational institution, and a preview of what the future needs of the United States may be, have been addressed and documented so that the system of alternative education suggested by the design of the consortium can be seen in its widest context. Without detailing the particular design outlined within the dissertation it should be noted that educational policy of the future must place the role of education within the broad context of societal goals. This demands a structure which encourages a unified approach that utilizes the expertise and the commitment of all people living in the society. To this end, a process has been established to aid a community design and implement a system of education which will be responsive to their ideals and their desires. The first step is to have the neighborhood, the city, the county, or whatever group is being involved in the project, to fully analyze their problems. They must then develop a set of approaches, priorities and goals that constitute their responses to local conditions. Finally, the concerned citizens must create an administrative structure that will pull together the various elements in the society to attack problems in their full breadth. Naturally, cooperation among all the society's institutions is needed to solve basic problems. The schools must learn to work not only with other elements of local government, but also with the larger community in order to enhance their key role.

Students who enter community colleges in need of developmental education are often at high risk of failure due to identities or perceptions of self, that do not conform to college expectations that can be problematized by age, gender, and ethnicity. Additionally, students' efficacy for using technology may affect completion rates which was examined at Midwest Community College (MCC) through observing a program shifting from teacher-directed course designs with greater teacher-student interaction to technology-directed course designs with greater technology-student interactions. The theoretical foundation of this study was Tinto's theory of student retention based on the belief that student success is facilitated by internalizing a student identity. The research questions were focused on a comparison of student course completion rates between teacher-directed mathematics courses (teacher DMC) and technology-directed mathematics courses (technology DMC). Using logistic regression in a quantitative quasi-experimental design, course completion rates were regressed on course design type, age, gender, and ethnicity for 2,900 students at MCC after a shift from teacher DMC to technology DMC. Key findings showed that technology DMC had a statistically significant effect on completion rates at the .01 significance level. When combined with technology, age had a statistically significant effect on completion rates (.001), but not ethnicity or gender. The results suggest that technology DMC have the potential to improve student retention in developmental education programs and elicit positive social change. This change may positively impact college graduation rates, as it provides support for developmental education programs that can help students complete college.

First-year community college students are often from underrepresented groups who are unaccustomed to voicing their needs or to being recognized for having more and varied needs than other groups. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain an understanding of the factors that may engender or prevent success through listening to what first-year community college students have to say. Research questions addressed what students identified as challenges and successes during their first year and how first person accounts can contribute to the information college personnel need to understand. Human development theories and models of student persistence informed this study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 12 18 to 24 year-old first-year community college students from a midatlantic state in the United States. Data were analyzed for themes related to challenges of time management, academic expectations, and balancing the demands of school, life, and work. Students who were interviewed remained attached to their families, worked full or part time, may have had less than optimal learning skills for college material, and did not ask for help regarding academic or financial matters. This study contributes to positive social change by adding qualitative findings to the understanding of the multiple and complicated challenges that traditionally-aged community college students face in persisting in postsecondary education. Using this information, college personnel can design programs to introduce incoming students to services that will promote success.

As community colleges continue to define their mission statement, expand their services, and operate in the new global economy, this study explains the multiple dimensions of impact of the nation’s first community college leadership development program, The Community College Leadership Program (CCLP) at The University of Texas at Austin. Over the last 40 years, the program has consistently employed a targeted method of student recruitment, used a cohort learning model, incorporated an internship experience as part of a self-directed pedagogy, and imparted a system of core competencies derived from Mintzberg’s (1973) The Nature of Managerial Work. This study examines factors of the CCLP experience that contribute to successful careers in the community college and also identifies potential applications for utilizing similar tactics in leadership development programs. A qualitative research approach, incorporating mixed-methodologies, is used in this study. The first part of this investigation includes interviews with distinguished graduates, researchers, and other notable persons involved in the community college field, as well as Dr. John E. Roueche, program director. Additional analysis depicts social networking graphs of the positions and geographical placement of distinguished graduates in order to frame the national impact of this program on community colleges at large. Findings include those themes of community college leadership development which may prove useful in guiding the direction of other such programming and curriculum. Additional emphasis is placed on the future of the community college, the advancement of minority candidates to positions of leadership, and key attributes of successful community college leadership. / text

Kintzer’s (1972) The President’s Wife: A Handbook for Wives of New Community College Presidents was the first publication that provided insight into the world of the community college president’s spouse. Written for female spouses, when community colleges were growing at a rate of one new college a week, this timely and relevant “how to guide” outlined in detail the do’s and don’ts to being a successful community college presidential spouse. Forty years later, women have transitioned from the spousal role to leading the college. Today women represent nearly 30% of all community college presidents. Research regarding the female president and her pathway to the presidency continues to emerge, but little attention has been focused on the president’s husband and his role as a presidential spouse. Understanding and investigating the role of the male spouse is significant as more women continue their pathway to the presidency, and there is anecdotal evidence that the spouse of a community college president can be influential, albeit the college does not employ the spouse. ix This qualitative study examined the role of the female community college president’s spouse. Utilizing Vaughan (1987) and Smith’s (2001) studies regarding the role of the community college spouse as a framework, this study posed the following research questions: 1. How do male spouses describe their roles? 2. How do female community college presidents describe their spouse’s roles? 3. How do members of the boards of trustees describe the roles of male spouses? Fifteen participants, including five female college presidents, five male spouses, and five trustees were interviewed for this study. Participants reside throughout the Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest regions of the United States, representing rural and suburban community colleges at both single and multi-campus institutions. Findings suggest the male spouse plays an important role in his wife’s pathway presidency and supporting her throughout the entire presidency. The male spouse also has a public life role and a private life role. Ultimately, the role of the male spouse is to support his wife so she can be a successful community college leader. / text

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of participating in an existing study skills course, developed for use with a general college population, on the study strategies and attitudes of college students with learning disabilities. This study further investigated whether there would be differential effectiveness for segregated and mainstreamed sections of the course. The sample consisted of 42 students with learning disabilities attending a southeastern university. Students were randomly assigned to either a segregated or mainstreamed section of the study skills course. In addition, a control group consisted of students with learning disabilities who received no study skills instruction. All subjects completed the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) before and after the study skills course. The subjects in the segregated group showed significant improvement on six of the 10 scales of the LASSI: Time Management, Concentration, Information Processing, Selecting Main Ideas, Study Aids, and Self Testing. Subjects in the mainstreamed section showed significant improvement on five scales: Anxiety, Selecting Main Ideas, Study Aids, Self Testing, and Test Strategies. The subjects in the control group did not significantly improve on any of the scales. This study showed that college students with learning disabilities improved their study strategies and attitudes by participating in a study skills course designed for a general student population. Further, these students benefitted whether by taking the course only with other students with learning disabilities, or by taking the course in a mixed group of students with or without learning disabilities. These results have important practical implications in that it appears that colleges can use existing study skills courses without having to develop special courses and schedules of course offerings targeted specifically for students with learning disabilities.

This dissertation had two purposes: first, to analyze how required sequenced college preparatory courses in mathematics, reading, and writing affect students' academic success and, second, to add to a theoretical model for predicting student retention at a community college. Grade point average, number of degree credits earned, and reenrollment rate were measured as determinants of academic success. The treatment group had a significantly higher grade point average than the control group. There was no significant difference in the number of degree credits earned or re-enrollment rate for the groups. A series of logistic regressions used the independent variables E-ASSET scores in math, reading, and writing; number of college prep areas required; credits earned; grade point average; students' status; academic restrictions/required course sequencing; sex; race; and socio-economic status to determine the predictor variables for retention. The academic variable that showed the greatest potential as a predictor for retention was grade point average. Overall, receiving financial aid was the greatest predictor for reenrollment. For a financial aid recipient the odds of reenrollment were 2.70 times more likely than if no financial aid was received.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between student and faculty ethnicity and possible effects upon student ratings of faculty performance in an urban community college setting characterized by extensive ethnic diversity. Problem: Though many variables on student ratings of instruction have been studied in the past, studies of the effects of student and faculty ethnicities on student ratings at the post secondary level have not been conducted. As increased numbers of minority students embark on post secondary studies, the question arises as to whether these students perceive instructors and their efforts in the classroom differently than traditional students. Methodology: A survey-type instrument, the Student Feedback Questionnaire, was developed at Miami-Dade Community College and administered to students enrolled in randomly selected English composition courses (N=948 students, 72 instructors). Factor analysis was conducted on the instrument and the relationship of these factors with student and faculty ethnicity was examined by means of multivariate analysis of variance. Instructors were separated into higher and lower rated groups according to a total score obtained from the instrument. Differences on student ratings for these two groups according to student and instructor ethnicity were examined. Findings: The following factors were obtained: Factor 1: Focus on the Individual Factor 2: Competence in Classroom Factor 3: Approach to Material Factor 4: Grading Policy Factor 5: Listening to Students Factor 6: Clarity in Course Objectives Factor 7: Fairness of Exams Factor 8: Active Learning Hispanic faculty were rated less favorably by white non-Hispanic students for Factor 2, Factor 3, and Factor 5. For Factor 5, Hispanic students rated white non-Hispanic faculty lower than black students. For higher rated instructors there were no significant differences in ratings according to student ethnicity. For lower rated instructors, students of the same ethnicity as their instructor did not give significantly different ratings than other students. Student gender was significant for both higher and lower rated instructors, with males giving significantly worse scores.