In 2013, the U.S. Department of Education published revised guidelines for emergency response planning for colleges and universities in the United States. These guidelines reflect the collective work of numerous government intelligence, law enforcement, and preparedness agencies that have taken into account the past successes and failures of schools in response to natural disasters and man-made disasters such as cyber hacking and targeted violent incidents on campuses. With a collective enrollment of over 20 million students annually and valuable physical resources such as libraries, stadiums, and medical centers at institutions of higher education (IHE), an effort to identify the current safety personnel, practices, and services was conducted. The purpose of this research was to identify areas of IHE compliance with the government guidelines and to identify differences, if any, by school enrollment size and region of the country. A cross-sectional design was used to describe compliance with the government guidelines and examine the differences based on a random sample drawn from all accredited 4- year public colleges and universities (n=708) in the United States. A sample of 17% of all eligible institutions was selected (n=120), and a 70.8% response rate was obtained (n=85). Directors of public safety were interviewed by telephone and reported information regarding their school’s availability of mental health counseling, crime prevention programs, emergency communications plans, emergency operations plans, and personnel training. The major findings of this study revealed that only 64 (75%) schools offered disaster response presentations to new students and staff, while 9 (11%) reported that their written emergency operations plans were not available to their communities, and that only 53 (62.4%) offered presentations regarding cyber-security and safeguarding online information. This study also revealed that 40 (47%) of the respondents either did not have or did not know if their school had an emergency operations plan for dealing with database theft, and 55 (64.7%) either did not have or did not know if there was a plan in place to safeguard the private contact information used in their emergency communications systems. With an estimated 300,000+ college students annually studying abroad, only 44 (51.3%) respondents reported offering travel safety presentations to their communities. Few differences were identified based on enrollment or regional location. The implications are discussed within the context of increasing national trends of gun violence, armed civilians and officers on campuses, cyber hacking, and increased participation by students and researchers traveling abroad.

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The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between special education directors' self-perceived leadership practices, self-perceived stress types, and self-reported demographics. The study included three parts: a demographic profile consisting of six variables; the self-report form of the Leadership Practices Inventory; and the self-report of the Administrative Stress Index. The forms were sent to all 115 special education directors in the state of Indiana and a response rate of 60% was utilized. The first null hypothesis that mean scale scores would not differ across the five leadership practices was not supported. Enable Others to Act and Model the Way scores were significant. The second null hypothesis that participants' scores would not differ across task-oriented and relationship oriented stress types was supported. There were no statistically significant relationships reported between leadership practice and self-reported task or relationship-oriented stress to support the third null hypothesis. The fourth null hypothesis that stress types will not differ when comparing the demographic variables was not supported. Directors with 16 or more years of experience in education and employed by a single planning district indicated more task-oriented stress compared to directors from both joint services and interlocal districts and those with less than 16 years experience in education. The fifth hypothesis that leadership practices would not differ when compared to demographic variables was not supported. Years of experience in education indicated significant results in three leadership practices, Model the Way, Challenge the Process, and Enable Others to Act. This may indicate a shift in leadership practices as experience increases. / Department of Special Education

The study is concerned with the education system of Botswana after independence. This period starts from the 30th September 1966, when Botswana became independent up to the present moment. Since then the education system has undergone many changes. Consequently the focus is on the nature and impact of these changes. The study identifies changes which took place with regard to the Education System of Botswana since independence as far as meeting the minimum requirements of education of developing countries are concerned. The minimum requirements that the education systems of developing countries, must meet are discussed according to the four central components of the education systems, viz. the education system policy, education system administration, structure for teaching and support services. After introducing the problem statement and background in the introductory chapter, the minimum requirements of education systems in developing countries are discussed in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 then deals with a historical perspective on the education system of Botswana before independence, concentrating on the different historical periods associated with educational development up to independence day. The study then discusses the determinants of the education system of Botswana after independence in Chapter 4, focussing on the particular factors influencing the Botswana education system. Finally, Chapter 5 evaluates the level to which the education system policy and education system administration of the education system of Botswana meet the minimum requirements of the education systems of developing countries, while Chapter 6 evaluates the level to which the structure for teaching and support services meet the minimum requirements of the education systems of developing countries. In general, the evaluation indicates that the education system of Botswana has undergone many positive changes and that the Botswana education system compares favourably with the minimum requirements expected of the education systems of developing countries. / Skripsie (MEd (Vergelykende Opvoedkunde))--PU vir CHO, 1997

D. Ed. (Educational Management) / The cornerstone of this research is to understand the role of the Private Higher Education (PHE) sector in South Africa, including the challenges and problems encountered by the Private Higher Education Institutions (PHEIs) in competing in the public HE sector that is legally accountable to and funded by government. The country’s HE sector is deeply fragmented owing to the past racial divisions and inequalities, and the research thus intends to contribute to the debate on implementing a unified and inclusive model for HE. The model will include Private HE as one of the major stakeholders, offering much-needed programmes and requisite skills. The research focuses on how PHEIs perceive the policies and regulations that govern them, in terms of governance, management and funding, based on their quest to operate on the same level and standards with public HE institutions. There are many existing problems, tensions and contestations in the HE sector. The research method is quantitative, designed to elicit the views of PHE institutions, private providers, authorities and regulatory bodies. A structured questionnaire consisting of 50 items was sent to 500 private HE management staff, lecturers, trainers and owners, with a return rate of 61, 2%. After two successive factor analytic procedures the responses to the 50 items were reduced to two factors or dimensions, namely responsive governance (27 Items with α = 0.75) and policy intervention (14 Items with α = 0.63). On reflection, the items were renamed as aspects facilitating management (FB2.1) and aspects impeding management (FB2.2), and were used as parameters for the quantitative research paradigm. The responses from participants were coded and analysed, and themes or factors emerged from the first-order analysis of the data. The results of the data analysis revealed that holistic management models are developed by engaging all the stakeholders through the process of merging collegiality and managerialism, by adapting to change and transformation in higher education. There was a striking similarity between the literature review and the structured questionnaire in that the integrated management model is composed of the various emerging themes, such as systemic tensions, aspects of restrictive governance, government funding, regulatory constraints, franchising concerns about outsourcing and equity issues. The recommendations in this research are based on the six identified themes on the findings from the literature review as well as the findings from the structured questionnaire.

The focus of this inquiry is on the forces that influence and underpin persistence to college degree completion as revealed through the experiences of sixteen African American male graduates of four year traditionally white colleges and universities. This descriptive, exploratory inquiry utilized a multi-method, in-depth, qualitative approach. Because the persistence perspective invites difficult methodological choices, this inquiry met this challenge with a perspective that mirrors persistence itself. An effort was made to gain a new perspective concerning degree completion from the narratives of the experiences of African American male college graduates. The inquiry looked to their life experiences in order to identify shared factors which influenced their success. Therefore, the choices made by this study were guided by the question: what are the basic, but essential requirements for African American male students to persist in completing a four-year college degree program on traditionally white campuses? The data revealed the complexity of the persistence perspective with special emphasis on factors that influenced successful degree completion. Early positive experiences in the family and the community, positive self-identity, self reliance, early recognition of discouragement and harm, techniques for managing potential harm and discouragement, and building a support network were identified as factors that influenced persistence in college degree completion. Recommendations for further research and practice are offered to contribute to understanding the persistence perspective, and fertile areas for improving the persistence rates of African American males attending traditionally white colleges and universities.

Mid-level management is often overlooked in studies of higher education administration. African-American women mid-level administrators are studied even less. This research study focuses on the experiences of African-American women administrators (Program Directors and Deans) in higher education institutions, the obstacles they face in pursuit of upward mobility, the support networks they use and strategies they implement. The research study methodology consisted of a mixed-methods approach for the gathering of data. The first method, qualitative, was implemented through conducting in-depth interviews with a small sample (7) of African-American women administrators from varying types of higher education institutions in the northeast region. The second method, quantitative, consisted of administering a survey questionnaire to a larger sample (101) of African-American mid-level women administrators in higher education institutions in the northeast region. From this, a total of 93 usable surveys were returned. From the qualitative and quantitative research data the researcher identified eight common themes. These themes are: institutional climate and culture; barriers faced, supports used; coping and advancement strategies; skills needed; racism and sexism; how African-American women are perceived; and mentoring. Each theme is supported with quotes from the qualitative data and number and frequencies of responses provided from the quantitative data. These themes serve as a framework for discussing the policy and practice implications of the data for institutions of higher education. Implications for the African-American female administrator are addressed also. Lastly, recommendations for future research are provided.

This qualitative study was a means to identify what motivated Black students to serve in the supplemental instruction (SI) leader role, the challenges they experienced, and what they learned while serving in the peer educator role within the context of an historically Black college or university (HBCU). Research targeting the experiences of SI leaders is limited, and there had yet to be a study completed on the experiences of SI leaders of color in any institution type. This research was an assessment of the perceptions of peer educators, providing a benchmark for further exploration on the impact SI can have at other HBCUs as well as how Black students are trained and supported in academic peer educator roles. Twelve SI leaders at Xavier University of Louisiana participated in interviews during the fall 2019 semester. The desire to help others and the position’s connection to their individual professional goals emerged as the primary themes when participants described what motivated them to serve in the SI leader capacity. Participants discussed the struggles of setting expectations and boundaries while serving in the SI role, as well as the positions of peer, friend, classmate, and leader when working with students in their SI sessions. Last, participants credited the SI leader position for helping them to develop and enhance the following skills: networking and relationship-building, communication, organization, emotional intelligence, critical and creative thinking, and leadership and teamwork skills. This study showed the what and how about SI peer educators are developing and enhancing themselves to graduate and professional schools and potential employers. More importantly, this study adds to the literature regarding students of color as the facilitators of the Supplemental Instruction program as most studies targeting the experiences of peer educators have been taken place at predominantly White institutions or samples. The results of this dissertation about SI leaders’ experiences at HBCUs can inform how training could better meet the needs of students of color as recipients and facilitators of peer educator programs. By presenting what peer leaders and SI programs at HBCUs are doing well, the findings can provide insight for peer education programs not accustomed to serving or hiring first-generation students and students of color effectively. This research contributes to addressing the gap in the literature regarding students of color serving in the peer educator role as well as showing the value of mentoring through academic peer education programs.

Career centers in higher education must create environments that serve the needs of students and alumni. Alumni not only are a served population, but also are beneficial to student career development, and serve dual purposes as clients and volunteers. One program frequently offered by career centers that engages alumni volunteers is an alumni mock interview program. While the alumni volunteers act as interviewers to share their insights and professional experience, they too are clients, so their learning must be considered. Existing mock interview program research primarily examines the student learning experience. This study addressed the research problem of the unknown learning experience of alumni mock interviewers. The purpose was to explore with a group of alumni volunteers their perceptions of their learning experience as interviewers within a mock interview program. To achieve this purpose, the researcher employed a qualitative, single-case study approach drawing upon the experiences of alumni mock interviewers within a particular setting. Data was collected from 43 participants providing questionnaire ratings and 25 subset participants completing critical incident written responses and interviews. Four major study findings emerged: (1) All described what they learned, with a majority learning the importance of creating a comfortable environment, delivering feedback, offering the program for students’ preparation, and understanding current students’ experiences; (2) All found aspects that contributed to their learning, with a majority describing having sample interview questions and staying in touch with students as helpful; (3) All found aspects that inhibited their learning, with a majority describing the lack of connection with fellow alumni mock interviewers and lack of industry knowledge of specific fields as hindering; (4) All described program design recommendations to foster alumni learning, with a majority recommending matching students with alumni based on industry and background, providing an opportunity to hear about alumni experiences, and offering advanced training to students. The principal recommendations of the study have implications for higher education career service professionals on how to design mock interview programs to engage alumni in lifelong learning by considering the sources of knowledge within the program and utilizing adult learning theory and learning from experience frameworks as guides.

Learning Agility (LA) is catapulting our understanding of the relationship between the measurement of LA and leadership success, a critical component for succeeding in a volatile, uncertain, complex (VUCA) environment. While the business sector has benefited from the research and practice around LA, this exploratory study takes an initial look at the applicability of LA to higher education leadership through in-depth interviews with eleven college presidents, coupled with the results of the Burke Learning Assessment Inventory (BLAI). Administered to the presidents and their senior teams, the BLAI was created by W. Warner Burke to measure nine dimensions that demonstrate specific behaviors related to LA. Overall, both the interviews with the presidents and BLAI scores evidenced strong LA views and behaviors. A close examination of the senior team roles and the need for LA revealed strengths and alignment with key dimensions of the BLAI, while noticeable gaps surfaced between the presidents’ views and BLAI self-ratings, illuminating opportunities for growth and further research. A strong relationship was revealed between presidents’ BLAI scores and those she deemed higher performers across the critical dimensions, providing a snapshot of the LA behaviors of successful higher education leaders. All presidents acknowledged a relationship between LA and higher education leadership success, with 64% stating that there was a strong relationship, and the remaining 36% stating that there was a relationship, but to varying degrees, identifying some of the key dimensions as less applicable to higher education.