In the best of times, emergency managers of athletic event venues struggle with the responsibilities of venue security. The possibility of terrorist threats exacerbates the situation, especially when security threats can involve a critical mass of spectators at an event. Emergency managers at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletic venues were the focus of this study. The overarching research question examined whether the minimum core competencies and qualifications for NCAA emergency managers were perceived by the same managers as being sufficient and in alignment with the work that is expected of the position. Research questions were designed to study what practices emergency managers in the field deemed as the most important minimum work qualifications necessary to competently perform their duties. A quantitative survey instrument was administered to 120 Division I-A football stadium emergency managers. A 42 percent response rate was obtained. Data were collected and analyzed using a 3-round Delphi technique. Data were solicited by an online survey for the first 2 rounds, and either online or by mail for the final round. A total of 50 core competencies were identified with a high rate of agreement (96 percent) among participants. Findings indicate that command level emergency management related experience is vitally important with developing the most competent stadium emergency manager, while advanced educational training opportunities available through the Department of Homeland Security and National Center for Sports Security ranked low. Positive social change implications stemming from this study include a greater understanding of skills required to secure sporting venues, thereby potentially increasing the level of safety to spectators and reducing the possibility of terroristic threat.

The decades following the Civil War saw a tremendous growth in the number of colleges and universities, both public and private, due in large part to funds provided by federal legislation under the Morrill Act of 1862 and a surge in philanthropy on the part of wealthy industrialists. In the early colleges and universities, administrations were typically run by the president alone. With increased enrollment and the demand for expanded services, one man could no longer handle all the administrative functions, and thus was born the administrative professional in higher education. Due to the increased demand for record-keeping, one of the earliest of these positions was the registrar. The object of this dissertation is to study the early evolution of administrators in higher education, with emphasis on the role of registrar, and then focus on how that position evolved at the University of Kentucky. Did the role progress at the University of Kentucky in the same manner as other colleges and universities? Did it develop into an actual profession? The primary focus of the study in relation to the University of Kentucky is on the historical period beginning with the time leading up to the first official registrar (1910) through the end of his tenure as registrar (1937). Data for the study came from books about organization theory and higher education administration, institutional histories, and biographies; proceedings of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars; materials from the University Archives’ Special Collections, such as catalogues, annual reports, Board of Trustee minutes, Report of the Investigating Committee of 1917, and personal recollections of Ezra Gillis, the first officially recognized registrar. The dissertation consists of an overview of organization theory in relation to higher education, a historical perspective of early administrators, the rise of the registrar and the attempts toward professionalization of the role, and the origin and evolution of the earliest registrars at the University of Kentucky.

No description available.

<p> Following the passage of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill in 2008, U.S. military service members and veterans have been enrolling at institutions of higher education at rapidly increasing rates (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2014). As a result, campus administrators and mental health professionals are seeking new and better ways to support this growing population (Coll &amp; Weiss, 2015). The few existing studies on the mental health of military-affiliated students suggest they feel isolated on campus (DiRamio, Ackerman, &amp; Mitchell, 2008) and are more likely than civilian peers to experience depression, posttraumatic stress (PTS), and suicidal ideation (Barry, Whiteman, McDermid Wadsworth, &amp; Hitt, 2012; Rudd, Goulding, &amp; Bryan, 2011). The current study explored the role of two different types of on-campus peer social support&mdash;military and civilian&mdash;in mediating the relationship between adult attachment orientation and posttraumatic stress, as well as its correlate, hazardous alcohol use. Data was collected via Web-based, self-report survey from 221 military and veteran students across the United States. Latent variable path analyses indicated that civilian peer social support mediated the relationship between attachment anxiety and PTS, but only partially, underscoring the enduring role of adult attachment orientation in the response to trauma. Psychometric issues limited the testing of models that included military peer social support. Results are discussed in the context of potential on-campus counseling interventions and resources.</p>

<p>The purpose of this study is to examine a community college district Grow Your Own (GYO) leadership program in the Western United States, the Multi College Leadership Development Institute (MCLDI). The MCLDI was developed in-house for a multi-campus community college district and offered to interested employees at all position levels with the intent to provide them the opportunity to develop and enhance their leadership skills and abilities. While most leadership development literature has focused on the presidential role or other senior level positions, the aim of MCLDI is to support leadership development in general; not just for senior level positions, but for mid-level management and academic position leadership as well. </p><p> This study gathered the perspectives of all those involved, from the leaders who created the program and their experience in doing so, to the program participants and graduates. Providing the different perspectives allows for other campuses to draw from the benefits and challenges that are shared in creating their own program or for comparison to programs that already exist. </p><p> A qualitative case study approach was utilized to investigate MCLDI and its development, implementation, and the benefits and challenges experienced by the coordinators and participants. Three themes were identified from analyzing across data sources. Building organizational capacity, developing human capital, and program structure emerged throughout the data collected from interviews, observations, and document analysis and were reflected in the findings for each of the research questions. </p>

<p>The American public&rsquo;s interests are well-served by a strong, effective postsecondary education system. And yet the industry&rsquo;s predominant learning and service paradigm, one that credentials learning by measuring student&rsquo;s time on task and that treats all learners largely the same from a pacing and a requirements perspective is inconsistent with the realities, circumstances, and expectations of 21st century students. Competency-based education, with its emphasis on the attainment of mastery through the measurement of learning, not time, and its focus on operational efficiency and effectiveness, has the potential to evolve and shape the postsecondary education industry by introducing simplicity, convenience, accessibility, and affordability where complication and high cost are the status quo. </p><p> The purpose of this qualitative, exploratory study was to understand and describe the competency-based education practices of American higher education institutions within the context of Christensen&rsquo;s theory of disruptive innovation. The practices and programs of eight institutions that offer accredited, competency-based certificate and degree programs were examined. An exploratory, qualitative review of publically available artifacts that describe the competency-based approaches employed by these eight institutions provided the primary data for this study. Prominent industry reports on competency-based education published from September 2014 through January 2016 were examined and are described. The researcher &rsquo;s professional responsibilities and observations while engaged in the design and delivery of competency-based programming also informed this study. </p><p> Specific characteristics, practices, and two distinct methods for the delivery of competency-based education were identified and are described. Consistent mission, tuition, and student demographic realities were found to exist among the examined institutions and are discussed. Variable findings related to program design practices, the nature of assessment, the role of faculty, and provider-specific outcomes emerged and are also presented. The current state of the practice was found to be consistent with Christensen&rsquo;s theory of disruptive innovation. The practice was further found to be workforce aligned but only minimally deployed within the postsecondary education industry. Characteristics of examined programs were found to be non-distinct. Program evaluation criteria and outcomes were determined to be unclear at this time. </p>

<p> The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 ushered in a period of change in higher-education systems across the former Eastern bloc. Reform-minded leaders in the region sought to introduce western models and policies promoted by foreign development aid agendas. Private higher-education institutions emerged. This qualitative multiple case study examines three universities based on the western, private, nonprofit model that were established during the post-Cold War transition period: the American University of Central Asia (Kyrgyz Republic), South East European University (Macedonia), and the American University in Bulgaria. These institutions, founded through a process of negotiation involving the national government, U.S. and European governments, and nongovernmental organizations, offered an alternative to state universities. This negotiation continued as these institutions adapted to their changing sociopolitical contexts. The study explores the interplay of global, national, and local influences at the level of these institutions. The research presented is based on data collected on field visits through interviews with faculty and administrators and focus groups with students, as well as document analysis. Findings from the study shed light on how new institutions strive to establish legitimacy. The financial support for these institutions evolved from an initial heavy dependence on support from foreign aid agencies to greater reliance on tuition and responsiveness to the higher education market. The ability to adapt to shifting circumstances while maintaining a consistent sense of identity, despite turnover of faculty and administrators, proved vital. These universities, to varying degrees, were able to strike a balance between the global and local that allowed them to establish themselves as highly regarded institutions in their respective countries. As interest in transnational education grows, this study offers insights into finding a balance between global and local that results in a sustainable higher education endeavor.</p>

<p> In September of 2011, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced the approval of the <i>Policy on Transgender Inclusion.</i> The NCAA published a handbook, which detailed the policy, policy interpretation, and best practice resources for implementation. The study examined the relationship of athletic directors' leadership frames to the presence of best practices for implementation of transgender inclusion policies at colleges and universities with NCAA athletics.</p><p> The study employed a correlational research design. The independent variables were the four leadership frames of athletic directors and the outcome measure was the presence of the best practices for implementing transgender inclusion policies. The participants were recruited from active member NCAA schools. In 2013, the NCAA reported that there were 1,066 active member schools; 340 in Division I, 290 in Division II, and 436 in Division III. All athletic directors, who served at active NCAA member schools as of March 2014, were invited to participate in the study, 119 athletic directors responded.</p><p> Results indicated participants were most likely to use leadership behaviors associated with the <i>human resource frame,</i> and least likely to use leadership behaviors associated with the <i>political frame.</i> Post hoc analyses showed that, with the exception of the <i>structural frame</i> vs. <i>human resource frame</i> and the <i> political frame</i> vs. <i>symbolic frame,</i> all pairwise comparisons were statistically significant. Multivariate analysis of variance showed no statistically significant differences among the three NCAA Divisions and between private and public institutions. Examination of the unique and combined contributions of the four leadership frames in explaining the variation in the outcome measure revealed that none was statistically significant.</p><p> While the four frames all provide a greater insight into the general behaviors of athletic directors, they do not necessarily help us to understand the extent to which best practices for implementation of the NCAA <i> Policy on Transgender Inclusion</i> is present in intercollegiate athletic departments. The infancy of the NCAA <i>Policy on Transgender Inclusion </i> may be a factor in the results of this study, however that should not prevent administrators from protecting the rights of student athletes and creating the most inclusive environment for athletic participation possible.</p>

<p> Due to civil rights legislation, advances in technology, disability support services on college campuses, medication therapy and increased public acceptance of disabilities, students with disabilities are one of the largest minority group on college campuses (Pryor, Hurtado, DeAngelo, Palucki, Blake, &amp; Tran 2010). According to the 2016 U.S. National Center for Education Statistics Fact Sheet, &ldquo;11.1% of the college students attending college in the 2011-2012 academic year reported a documented disability.&rdquo; The U.S. Department of Education also indicates that nearly &ldquo;60% of students with disabilities attend two-year schools due to their open enrollment policies&rdquo; (U.S. Department of Education 2002).</p><p> This qualitative study focused on understanding the faculty-student perceptual divide between students with disabilities, faculty and administration in open enrollment environments. The study examined interview data of both full and part time community college faculty, students with differing disabling conditions, and disability support directors at two different community college institutions in New York State. The study found multiple themes in which a faculty-student perceptual divide was observed. The theme that caused the most stress and conflict between faculty and students was accommodations. Other themes included: students with disabilities in as an independent learner, the teaching-learning process, obstacles to learning, and perceptions of disabled students strengths and weaknesses. The findings suggest that the lack of disability awareness can precipitate faculty prejudicial attitudes and biases towards students with disabilities. Similarly, students&rsquo; lack of understanding of college culture, academic standards and resources on campus can cause stress and suboptimal learning experiences. This study offers recommendations to alleviate these problems.</p>

<p> Student athletes and first-generation college students have a unique collegiate experience. A case study approach was used to identify the social and academic experiences of first-generation college student-athletes at a Division III postsecondary institution in Pennsylvania. Interviews, participant observations, and documents were employed in this study to provide a rich description of the experiences of Division III first-generation student-athletes and lead to a deeper understanding of their social and academic experiences. Interview responses from six current Division III first-generation student-athletes were analyzed to identify seven themes in this study. This study&rsquo;s exploration of the challenges and supports of Division III first-generation student-athletes&rsquo; academic and social experience provided valuable insight to understanding their unique collegiate experiences.</p>