<p> This dissertation describes the factors influencing teacher efficacy among teachers currently or recently working in a juvenile detention center education program in southeastern Pennsylvania. The single-case study examined the barriers and facilitators to high teacher efficacy in that school setting, since these factors were previously unknown. The research population for the study consisted of all teachers who are working or who have worked within the past five years at the juvenile detention center education program (n = 9). Research was conducted using the Teachers&rsquo; Sense of Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran &amp; Hoy, 2001), a questionnaire, and in-person interviews. The following were found to be barriers to high teacher efficacy at the juvenile detention center: student misbehavior, classroom distractions, student groupings of mixed ability levels, limited assessment options, negative student attitudes, and limited background information about students. The following were found to be facilitators of high teacher efficacy at the juvenile detention center: positive learning climate, presence of detention officers, classroom rules and expectations, differentiated instruction, relevant lessons, educational activities, and rapport with students.</p><p>

<p> ABSTRACT Given the federal thrust for educational reform and the growth of school choice options, parents are faced with increasing opportunities for educational placement options for their children including the recent composition of full-time online K-12 schools. Understanding parents&rsquo; perceived benefits, which inform their decision-making when choosing from a multitude of educational placement or school choice options, provides the educational community with information to better increase parent satisfaction. The potential increase in parent satisfaction has the ability to simultaneously increase student achievement. </p><p> The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine which perceived benefits parents held when choosing a full-time online educational placement for their child. This research study examined Middle Tennessee parents&rsquo; perceived benefits of full-time online education that led them to select this educational delivery model for their child. Additionally, this study utilized an online survey and interviews to obtain quantitative data and qualitative data in the form of descriptions of the participants&rsquo; shared experience with the phenomenon. Qualitative data were recorded and transcribed verbatim for each participant before the data was coded. This enabled data organization into significant statements for the development of essential structures of the parents&rsquo; experiences. Analytical and descriptive statistics were conducted prior to a synthesis of the quantitative and qualitative data, which rendered a comprehensive representation of the summary of both data sets. </p><p> Trends from the survey data were compared to five identified themes generated from examining significant statements in the qualitative data. The findings of the study indicated parents&rsquo; perceived benefits of full-time online education center on academic quality, a safe educational environment, and an individualized learning pace for their child. The findings of this research provide support for exploring parents in the role of &ldquo;consumers&rdquo; which will enlighten an educational community that now functions in the role of &ldquo;supplier.&rdquo;</p><p>

<p> This study assessed the impact of sense of belonging and social capital as predictors of academic achievement among foster youths in an urban high school. Prior work on social capital by Dr. Ricardo Stanton-Salazar was extended by applying his concepts of institutional agents to foster youths. This study was motivated by four research questions: 1. What resources are available for foster youths in the high school, and how are these accessed? 2. How does a sense of belonging relate and/or contribute to academic attainment? 3. How do social capital networks relate or contribute to academic attainment? 4. How does a course of study or program serve to define the experiences of students in foster care and influence their academic success? </p><p> How social capital networks relate or contribute to academic attainment is a fundamental question in foster youths&rsquo; academic achievement. This researcher argues that a new generation of research in this area should address the extent of foster youths&rsquo; academic achievement and outcomes. Previous research and current literature on students in foster care has focused on the negative aspects of academic achievement and has come from a deficit perspective. However, this study advances the understanding of social capital among foster youths in high school. </p><p> Findings must be considered preliminary due to the small sample size of 14 high school foster youths who participated in the study. The preliminary findings showed the correlation between social capital and academic attainment among foster youths in high school as well as how school districts can eliminate barriers and have open access to all classes and programs that benefit all students, especially those students who have been historically underrepresented. The research has implications for practitioners and policymakers in addressing the needs and concerns of students in foster care in educational settings. Recommendations included holding school districts and schools accountable for fully implementing the Local Control Funding Formula and Local Control Accountability Plan requirements by having measurable academic outcomes for students in foster care.</p>

<p> Changes to society, the economy, and technology in the 21^st century have transformed the world of work as employees are expecting greater flexibility (Bond, Thompson, Galinsky, &amp; Prottas, 2002; Matos &amp; Galinsky, 2014; McNall, Masuda, &amp; Nicklin, 2010). Among all forms of flexibility, gaining in popularity is the concept known as teleworking (Nilles, 1998). Teleworking is on the rise (Matos &amp; Galinsky, 2014; Lister, 2010; Telework trendlines, 2007; Telework trendlines, 2009) however adequate literature is lacking on the teleworker experience. This case study was designed to understand and explore the lived experiences of exempt employees who telework and to determine if these employees experience fit, as outlined by the theoretical framework, <i>Concept of Fit</i> (Belanger &amp; Collins, 1998). </p><p> The 11 participants in the sample included exempt employees who had a telework agreement on file with the Department of Human Resources at public, research university located in the state of Maryland. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and data analysis revealed that exempt employees did experience fit at outlined by the theoretical framework. While all participants had unique experiences with teleworking, there were similar themes among the entire participant group. Participants agreed that they would like to telework more. During their telework day, they are more focused and disciplined, leading to increased productivity. They understand, however, the need for face-to-face communication and collaboration in the workplace. They plan specific tasks to complete while working from home and believe that they work with supportive supervisors and employees. It was recommended that additional research on the theoretical framework, as amended, be conducted to further support the framework. Additionally, it was recommended that research on supervisory support, the influence of gender on teleworking, and telework day in respect to experience, be explored. </p>

<p>ABSTRACT An Ethnographic Investigation on How Chief Nursing Officers Use Transformational Leadership to Lead and Support New Nurse Graduates by Susan Pailet Purpose: The purpose of this ethnographic study was to examine how chief nursing officers (CNOs) use transformational leadership to lead and support new nurse graduates based on the Transformational Leadership Skills Inventory (TLSi) tool developed by Larick and White (2012). Methodology: The sample for this qualitative ethnographic study included 13 CNOs in 4 counties in California (Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside) working for hospitals and other healthcare settings. The data sources for this study included observations, interviews, and artifact reviews. Data were analyzed using a thematic analysis. Findings: 8 major findings emerged: (a) CNOs participate in rounds and take time to listen to new nurses, (b) CNOs create a culture of caring and compassion with new nurses, (c) CNOs use storytelling to create sustainable change, (d) CNOs meet with new nurses regularly, (e) CNOs recognize generational differences, (f) CNOs hire new nurses with critical thinking and soft skills, (g) CNOs support evidence-based decision making, and (h) CNOs encourage teamwork and collaboration through shared governance. Conclusions: Based on the findings, it can be concluded that new nurses thrive when CNOs communicate with them by rounding and listening to them; new nurses understand their responsibility to patient outcomes when CNOs create a culture of caring; new nurses are retained when CNOs adapt rapidly to change; new nurses thrive when they feel like they are able to share their opinions, thoughts, and experiences with their CNOs; CNOs are working to engage older generations with the new millennial generation of nurses; patient satisfaction increases when CNOs focus on ensuring new nurses have good customer service and critical thinking skills; new nurses make fewer medical errors when CNOs support evidence-based decision making; and new nurses thrive when CNOs encourage teamwork and collaboration through shared governance. Recommendations: Further research is recommended in other geographical areas, with other types of nursing facilities, on factors that influence new nurses to leave the profession within 2 years of graduating nursing school, using new nurses as the population to understand their perspective, on nurses who have at least 5 years of experience, and to further correlate patient satisfaction surveys to employee satisfaction surveys.

This study examined, from a qualitative approach, the impact of vision, personal philosophies and ideologies on the institutional administration of selected HBCU presidents. The study was based on the premise that a president's vision directly influenced their ability to lead their institution as it related to the following areas: institutional administration, academic affairs, student affairs, personnel administration and financial management. The researcher found that vision had a direct and profound impact on the actions of the selected HBCU presidents and further found that each of the five areas of emphasis was guided by the presidents vision. The conclusions drawn from the findings suggest that the vision of an HBCU president must be formally and informally disseminated not only to faculty, staff and students of the institution, but also to the public at large in order to realize the vision and goals set by both the president and administrators of HBCUs.

ABSTRACT This case study explored the leadership processes and procedures one principal and her administrative team used to implement planned educational change at North Valley Middle School, a pseudonym given to a predominately African American populated middle school located in north-western Florida. Through the use of qualitative methods a purposeful sample of one school was selected and interviewed extensively. The study revealed themes that emerged from analysis of interview transcripts. These transcripts were used to explain, illustrate, and describe one principal's leadership path, processes and decision-making to implement educational change. In this study, I sought to develop and test a theoretical model for assisting educational leaders to devise a logical and systematic approach to reform schools. Specifically, I investigated a process and illustrated a leadership procedure that one principal used to implement planned educational change in a predominately African American populated middle school as suggested from a literature review. Those components were identified within five areas in the literature: (a) the Florida School Grading System, (b) leadership, (c) turnaround schools, (d) closing the achievement gap, and (e) planned educational change. / 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 2015. / July 13, 2015. / Educational Leadership, Failing Middle School, Leadership, Leadership Process / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey Milligan, Professor Directing Dissertation; Patrick Mason, University Representative; Carolyn Herrington, Committee Member; Robert A. Schwartz, Committee Member.

This qualitative case study investigated the perspectives of higher education leaders and business executive on the funding gap between liberal arts programs and STEM education in a public research level 2 institution in Florida. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and explain participants’ perspectives and finding ways to narrow the funding gap. Historically, Congress has been open in its allocation of funds to higher education research and, recently, allotted 97% to STEM and Science related disciplines and 3% to non-science fields. At the state level, funding to these two programmatic areas showed a comparable pattern to that of the U.S. Congress with 93% of funds allocated to Engineering and Science, and 7% to non-science disciplines and fields. There were four central research questions to help understand participants’ perspectives of the values of these fields. This study included seven participants who met the following criteria: deans, associate deans, provosts, with at least 10 years of work experience in the position; dean, associate deans, or provosts who retired within the last five years; and a business executive, director or a Chief Operation Officer, with working relations to the university and with similar work experiences. Data were collected primarily from semi-structured interviews, which lasted for 45 minutes per session. Additionally, documents were collected from interview sites. Data were codded and analyzed in two cycles. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (PhD)--Florida Atlantic University, 2021. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

abstract: The purpose of this mixed-methods action research study was to discover the hindrances and apply new innovative ideas to the problematic stages of student acclimatization and acculturation to an American education and Taiwanese host culture. The goal was to improve academic success during the initial first year, improve the acclimatization process, and stimulate the acculturation process. The study applied a mixed-methods approach. Four new foreign students participated in a 12-week innovation. This innovation consisted of establishing a protocol for school staff, creating and implementing a student-led Welcoming Committee, training at the beginning of the school year, establishing guidelines and expectations for participating Welcoming Committee members, assigning peer mentors to new students, and providing opportunities for socializing and meeting people. The participants took pre and post cultural self-efficacy tests. In addition, qualitative data was collected from the interviews of the four participants. The new foreign students showed an increase in cultural self-efficacy from the beginning of the innovation to the conclusion of it. Findings of this study found that students used past experiences in creating initial perceptions, these perceptions changed after interactions with the Welcoming Committee, ample assistance was given to the new foreign students throughout the innovation, and Welcoming Committee members were relied on to make initial contact with others due to initial difficulties in this area. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Leadership and Policy Studies 2019

abstract: In this dissertation I design, implement and conduct a mixed methods action research project to develop intercultural competence in domestic university staff members. My research took place at my place of employment, a research one university in the American southwest. As the director of an international student service center, I had direct observations of the interactions between domestic staff members and our international students with lower English proficiency. With the observations came the realization that this communication could be both more effective and more efficient. To address this problem, I developed three workshops to provide participants with the skills to have more productive communication with their students. I used a mixed methods approach to investigate how this innovation influenced the three constructs associated with intercultural competence: cultural awareness, cultural empathy and language modification. Quantitative data consisted of both pre- and post-intervention surveys. Results relating to all three constructs showed significant gain between the pre-intervention and post-intervention surveys. Analysis of the qualitative data engendered four assertions. 1. As staff members learned more about a student’s culture, they become more cognizant of the communication strategies they used and become confident they could reduce conflict, ill-communication and miscommunication between students and staff member. 2. Staff members were not aware of the complexities of the English language. 3. Only after understanding the difficulties non-native English speakers face do the staff members truly understand the student experience and become willing to make sincere efforts to communicate more effectively. 4. It is incumbent on the staff member to everything possible to facilitate a successful interaction with the student. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Leadership and Policy Studies 2020