The purpose of this quantitative research study was to investigate the factors that motivated individuals to make financial contributions to community colleges and to create a profile of the community college donor. The Philanthropic Motivation Survey of Community College Donors was administered to donors at three Florida community colleges who had donated at least $1000 in one or more gifts between January 2006 and December 2010. From the 226 responses, a brief profile of the community college donor emerged. The donor is likely a married white male aged 57 with children. He is employed, but not by the college. He lives within the college's district and has contributed to other higher education institutions even though he did not receive financial aid as a student. This donor has earned a bachelor's degree but is not a first generation college student. The data from the factor analysis categorized the motivations into six different groupings than they were in originally for university donors. The categories were Social and Reward; Respect for Institution; Appreciation for College; Relationship with College; Altruism; and Create a Legacy. Respect for Institution and Altruism were rated as the most important motivation categories. Once the categories were established and ranked according to importance, a one-way univariate analysis of variance, independent samples t-test, and multiple regression analyses were performed to answer which of the foundation and donor demographics had an impact on the motivations and whether differences were apparent among the three institutions. Statistically significant impact of donor demographics was evident in all six motivation categories. However, not all demographics--age, gender, job status, and earned associate degree or certificate--influenced the motivations. The three community colleges' donors differed significantly in two motivations--Relational and Legacy; all other motivation categories displayed no significant differences in motivation. The findings can assist community college resource development officers to profile and serve their current and future donors by aligning donor demographics with specific motivations. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / June 13, 2012. / community college, donor motivation, resource development / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert A. Schwartz, Professor Directing Dissertation; Ralph Brower, University Representative; Tamara Bertrand-Jones, Committee Member; David Tandberg, Committee Member.

This study explores the significantly growing number of Korean secondary students' study abroad experiences in the U.S. This study examines how these students deal with potential cultural conflicts as they move between Korea and the U.S. and how their parents cope with these changes in order to help their children to learn English and get an education abroad. They consider the U.S. education a beneficial tool used to gain cultural capital. In order to gain their cultural capital they come to the U.S. as elementary and secondary students. These families see this action as a way to gain educational and cultural benefits. The central argument about these students has been focused on the benefits from the study abroad experiences in the U.S. Uniquely this study investigates how these students pay psychological and cultural costs for gaining cultural and educational benefits from studying and living in very different cultural environments in the U.S. Therefore, this study seeks to understand how cultural conflicts influence the negotiation process of these students' cultural identities while they transition across different cultural boundaries among home, school, and community in the U.S. To support the main arguments of the students' cultural identity crafting among different cultural boundaries in the U.S., Wenger's concept of identity in community of practices, Phinney's concept of bicultural identity, and Bourdieu's cultural capital theory will be used as tools for understanding the Korean secondary study abroad students underlying experiences in the U.S. This study takes an ethnographic approach to a qualitative methodology in addressing the importance of negotiating cultural identity and understanding cultural capital from the perspectives and experiences of the participants. The data was collected from field notes, the transcripts from interviews and club meetings, video recordings (the Korean Club Meeting), audio recording (in-depth individual interviews and the Korean Club Meeting), and research diaries. This study was conducted by recruiting two Girugi families and five Chogi-Youhacksangs and their guardians in Springville, a medium size city in a South East area of U.S. These participants agree with the idea that an American education brings more benefits than a Korean education. There were, however, somewhat different perspectives of the benefits of the education in the U.S. among the parents and the students. Their parents asserted that American education would be an advantageous tool used to gain cultural capital. The students also admitted that their educational experiences in the U.S. will provide a better position for them compared to their friends in Korea, whether they go back to Korea or not. The Girugi students and Chogi-Youhacksangs lived within very different cultural boundaries among home, school, and community. Their cultural boundaries are not only constructed by physical locations but also by relationships. While the students live within two different cultural boundaries, they try to manage their life accordingly in order to integrate the different cultural boundaries. Interestingly, the students seemed to keep practicing Korean cultural habits in the U.S., and the Korean cultural habits strongly influence their cultural identity negotiation. Moreover, huge cultural differences between their home/school and school/community sometimes hindered the students' smooth transition between two different cultures. / A Dissertation submitted to the the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2011. / October 18, 2011. / Biculturalism, Cultural Capital, Cultural Identity, Immigrant Youth' Identity Construction, Korean-Americans, Study Abroad Students / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey Ayala Milligan, Professor Directing Dissertation; Stephen McDowell, University Representative; Peter Easton, Committee Member; Stacey Rutledge, Committee Member.

School choice has been regarded as an important strategy to improve the educational system in the U.S. for several decades. This topic has received strong attention from scholars and an increasing body of research has investigated the effects of school choice on the public education system. However, little attention has been paid to the determinants of the level of school choice and no consensus has been reached about the effects of school choice on traditional schools. Using longitudinal datasets from Florida, in this study I explore which district and community factors may be associated with the level of school choice in the district. Also, this study examines the effects of school choice programs on student achievement in traditional public schools. Several empirical approaches are involved in addressing two research questions. First, I utilize Negative Binomial Regression (NBR) and Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression to check how predictors are related to dependent variables across districts or schools. Then, as the main empirical strategy, fixed effects regression models are employed to investigate the relationship between predictors and dependent variables. Fixed effects model produces more precise estimation than the regression model by controlling for unobservable variables. Overall, regression results suggest that the educational needs of districts, such as district achievement level and the characteristics of the student body, are significantly associated with the level of school choice programs. In addition, districts' organizational and political aspects are important predictors for the level of school choice, although the degree of influence on the level of school choice depends on the types of school choice programs. This study, however, does not provide consistent evidence of a relationship between the level of school choice and student achievement in traditional schools. Although there are some cases that suggest school choice affect the performance of traditional schools, most results in my final model (a school fixed effects model) find no significant effects of school choice. These findings indicate that districts respond to educational needs of students by using school choice programs under the restrictions of organizational and political circumstances. However, in contrast to the expectation of school choice advocates, the effects of school choice programs on performance of the traditional schools are limited. This study contributes to the body of knowledge regarding the factors associated with the level of school choice within districts and the effects of school choice on traditional schools. Further study is needed on the effects of school choice on student achievement by using diverse measures of student achievement such as graduate rates and achievement gaps among racial groups. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / June 13, 2012. / charter schools, open enrollement, school choice / Includes bibliographical references. / Patrice Iatarola, Professor Directing Dissertation; Betsy Becker, University Representative; Judith Irvin, Committee Member; Stacey Rutledge, Committee Member.

The purpose of this qualitative study was twofold. First, using a qualitative, single case study design, I explored the roles and responsibilities of a middle school reading coach to understand how the coach distributed her time to support content area teachers in improving literacy instruction within their content areas. In addition to understanding her role, I examined contextual factors at the middle school level that may have shaped her work and how she spent her time. Secondly, in this study I sought to examine the instructional leadership role of the principal to understand how the principal supported or impeded the success of the coach. One reading coach situated in an urban middle school located in Florida was purposefully selected to participate in this study. Formal and informal interviews were conducted with the reading coach to understand how she viewed her role and what conditions she believed enabled or impeded her success in fulfilling her role in supporting classroom teachers. Approximately 134 hours of direct observations of the coach's work were documented along with detailed analysis of her coaching log, all which was reviewed to understand how she distributed her time. Using semi- structured protocols, interviews, and a survey with the principal were conducted as well as a focus group discussion with the eight reading teachers to learn from their perspectives the role of the reading coach and how she supported them in incorporating reading and literacy strategies in their content areas. Implications from this study can be used in assisting district and school leaders in better understanding the roles and work of secondary reading coaches as well as the instructional leadership support needed for their success. Findings from this study can also be used to help district and school leaders develop policies, procedures, and adequate training necessary for successful implementation of literacy coaching within their schools in order to ensure coaches are performing the most important tasks--providing training and instructional support for teachers. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. / Spring Semester, 2012. / March 12, 2012. / adolescent literacy, principal support, reading coach / Includes bibliographical references. / Judith Irvin, Professor Directing Dissertation; Pamela Carroll, University Representative; Stacey Rutledge, Committee Member; Tamara Bertrand-Jones, Committee Member; Linda Schrader, Committee Member.

As microblogging tools like Twitter and now Yammer become more prevalent, and as students from the Millennial generation continue to increase their enrollment in online courses, instructors and instructional designers need more information about how the technology their students have become accustomed to, affects the online learning experience. This research examined the degree and patterns of cognitive, teaching and social presence established by medical students, as a community of inquiry, using a social network tool for course-related interaction. A computer mediated discourse analysis of interactions as they relate to Shea et al. (2010) assessment of Community of Inquiry framework provided empirical evidence of differences between and among two groups of students as they interact in Summer Clinical Practicum. The analysis revealed a significant difference in learner-learner interactions and social presence between those who primarily used a learning management system and those who used the microblogging tool, Yammer. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. / Summer Semester, 2012. / April 2, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert A. Schwartz, Professor Directing Dissertation; Vanessa P. Dennen, University Representative; Judith L. Irvin, Committee Member; Mary T. Johnson, Committee Member.

This dissertation presents an historical overview of the systematic educational limitations that have been faced by African-American's in the United States and then considers issues facing contemporary educational leaders in the context of current educational policy and institutional inequality. A portrait of the Black male in the United States, the developmental process that is often experienced by young adolescent Black males, and the cultural collision with traditional Anglo-American approaches to instructional leadership is then discussed as a foundation for this mixed-method study. The purpose of this research was to analyze the academic achievement and level of engagement of adolescent Black males participating in single-gender and co-educational reading classes utilizing culturally relevant pedagogy. The findings of this study reveled that while student engagement for both groups on average remained about the same, student achievement for the single-gender reading class showed statistically significant gains in comparison to the co-educational reading class. The research also revealed that three specific themes were found to be instrumental as it relates to factors that impacted student engagement: (1) Cultural Understanding; (2) Community and Family Structure; and (3) Psychosocial Needs. Based upon these findings, the dissertation concludes with a series of recommendations for school sites, district administrators, and future researchers in hopes of facilitating changes to our educational processes and approaches. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2012. / March 26, 2012. / Black Male, Critical Race Theory, Culturally Relevant Pedagogy / Includes bibliographical references. / Judith Irvin, Professor Directing Dissertation; Earl Klay, University Representative; Patrice Iatarola, Committee Member; Sande Milton, Committee Member; Rhonda Blackwell-Flanagan, Committee Member.

For more than 50 years, federal courts have intervened in both the correctional and educational fields on such issues as prison conditions, due process, school integration, and free and appropriate rights to education. However, researchers have debated the effectiveness of courts to produce institutional reform in corrections and education. Further, few studies have been conducted that identify the specific conditions necessary to produce institutional reform. This dissertation is a policy and historical study of court intervention and successful institutional reform. Specifically, the dissertation is concerned with juvenile justice education reform, court intervention, and policy implementation. The education of incarcerated youth has historically been a neglected area, both in terms of its perceived value as a social service or rehabilitative factor and because it has largely been ignored by the scientific community. And unlike other special populations, juvenile justice youth have few advocates, having largely been viewed as a disposable population. This dissertation describes a class-action lawsuit referred to as Bobby M. v Florida and the court's efforts to intervene and reform the field of juvenile justice education. To that extent, this study aims to describe the conditions and major activities that led to successful policy implementation and institutional reform throughout Florida's juvenile justice education system. The study treats court intervention as a triggering event or catalyst in institutional reform, but also considers other post-litigation factors such as legislative response, accountability mechanisms, and the sustainability of the reform movement when determining the conditions and factors that led to successful and significant institutional reform. The paper concludes with theoretical and policy implications, contributing to court intervention and policy implementation literature by describing the conditions, impediments, and outcomes of successful institutional reform through court intervention. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / June 5, 2012. / Bobby M, Court Intervention, Institutional Reform, Juvenile Justice Education / Includes bibliographical references. / Sande Milton, Professor Directing Dissertation; Thomas Blomberg, University Representative; Patrice Iatarola, Committee Member; William Bales, Committee Member.

Previous research studies explain how the presidential selection process at community colleges works and identify competencies that community college trustees look for in community college presidential candidates. However, few scholars have empirically tested specific features of community colleges that may impact which individuals are chosen to fill presidential vacancies. The purpose of this study was to examine whether certain departing president and community college trustee board characteristics influence the type of president that is selected at a community college. The samples for this quantitative study were North Carolina's 58 community colleges, and 740 trustees who have served or who are serving at those colleges. Cross tabulations and one-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis, and regression analyses revealed that departing presidents and board chairs significantly influence presidential selection at community colleges. These analyses also determined that female presidential candidates are not more likely to be selected at community colleges that have female board chairs and departing presidents, but individuals who are non-Whites and/or internal candidates are more likely to be hired at institutions with a non-White board chair, female departing president, and/or non-White departing president. The study also found that females, non-Whites, and internal candidates have a greater chance of being hired as presidents at smaller community colleges. The study's findings have implications for aspiring community college presidents, community college leadership degree program faculty, individuals who train trustees participating in presidential selection processes, and state-level officials who appoint community college trustees. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / May 10, 2012. / college presidency, community college administration, community college presidents, community college trustees, presidential selection / Includes bibliographical references. / Shouping Hu, Professor Directing Dissertation; Steven Pfeiffer, University Representative; Tamara Bertrand Jones, Committee Member; Robert A. Schwartz, Committee Member.

This study explored institutional expenditure allocations to functional areas to determine whether or not any statistically significant relationships exist between expenditure allocations and graduation rates. As Ryan (2004) has noted, such research may be useful in enhancing existing student success theories. This study focused primarily on the factors that institutions control, such as expenditure allocations, as opposed to those they do not control, like student and institutional characteristics. This study used 22 regression equations to analyze public, four-year colleges and universities by size, Carnegie Classification, and classification as Minority-Serving institutions (based on whether or not the institution was designated as a Historically Black College or University, a Hispanic-Serving Institution, or a Predominantly White Institution) to determine whether or not these factors provided additional insight for a predictive model. This study also examined relationships between expenditures and four- and six-year graduation rates. Exploring these relationships is particularly important because there is growing concern about the amount of time students take to complete an undergraduate degree. Like previous research on the topic, this study found significant relationships between institutional expenditures and student success. However, there was no single expenditure variable that was a significant predictor of graduation rate in every model and none of the significant expenditure variables had positive impacts on the graduation rate dependent variables. Research Expenditures was the expenditure variable most commonly found to have a negative and significant relationship with graduation rate, followed by Scholarships and Fellowships Expenditures. This study also found that when the overall and stratified models with different dependent variables are compared, the same independent variables hold their significance or lack of significance. These findings indicate that although the six-year graduation rate models are stronger than the four-year models (with the exception of Bachelors institutions), as evidenced by R2s that increased 3-8%, the significance of the control and expenditure variables stays the same. As such, one cannot reasonably conclude that institutions could manipulate expenditure allocations to decrease students' time-to-degree. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / April 12, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert A. Schwartz, Professor Directing Dissertation; Diana Rice, University Representative; Kathy Guthrie, Committee Member; Sande Milton, Committee Member.

This study determined whether differences existed between the teaching styles of male and female community college instructors who teach online. It was significant because distance education literature highlights a learner-centered teaching style as the appropriate method for teaching online, but limited empirical research exists to support this stance. In order to appropriately answer the research questions posed in this study, I implemented a basic correlational research design. The Principles of Adult Learning Scale (PALS) was used to measure overall teaching style and seven factors related to teaching style (Conti, 1979). Conti developed PALS in order to assess teaching style through positive and negative behaviors. Teaching experience, discipline, level of education, and employment status, which also have the potential to impact whether community college instructors favor a learner-centered style or a teacher-centered style, were considered in this study. The population consisted of all instructors at Florida's 28 community colleges who were teaching in an online distance education environment. MANOVA and ANOVA were used to analyze the data which was collected through a web-based administration of PALS. Effect size was also included. Results depicted a difference in the teaching styles of male and female community college instructors who taught online. Women demonstrated a more learner-centered style than men in terms of their overall teaching style. Differences were also apparent based on the second factor, Personalizing Instruction, in which case, women were more likely than men to implement a more learner-centered teaching style. In terms of the demographic variables, differences in teaching styles were noted based on discipline and whether the instructor taught full or part-time. Those instructors who taught in disciplines considered soft/applied implemented a more learner-centered style. Instructors in the hard/pure disciplines demonstrated a greater use of a teacher-centered style. Contrary to prior research, part-time instructors used a more learner-centered style. A difference in the teaching styles of men and women depicted teaching styles that are below the original norms of PALS, highlighting an online teaching style that is more teacher-centered. Even though women take a more learner-centered approach to teaching than men, the online environment has yet to evolve into a truly learner-centered environment. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2004. / July 21, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references. / Beverly Bower, Professor Directing Dissertation; Robert Branson, Outside Committee Member; Barbara Mann, Committee Member; Robert A. Schwartz, Committee Member.