Thesis (Ph.D.(Public Affairs))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Duke University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (D. Min.)--Nazarene Theological Seminary, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Nazarene Theological Seminary, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Nazarene Theological Seminary, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125).

<p> White administrators of nonprofit organizations are tasked with the challenge of making the right decisions when their nonprofit seeks to work in predominantly Black and Brown neighborhoods. They utilize their personal worldviews and instincts to carry out the mission of their organization. The problem is that White administrators use their own cultural beliefs as their guide, which typically is counterintuitive to the cultural beliefs of Black and Brown people in the neighborhoods they wish to serve. This disparity raises issues, barriers, and sometimes conflict between both groups, which further divides efforts of collaboration. This study investigates the assumptions, disparities, and paradoxes that exist and arise between administrators in a Whiteled nonprofit organization and residents in Communities of Color as they negotiate issues of trust, decision-making, and transformative practices through the context of a nonprofit agency&rsquo;s mission and the neighborhood. By using portraiture, the assumptions, disparities, and paradoxes were examined utilizing the factors whereby groups engaged in relationship-building efforts. Employing one-to-one interviews, focus groups, observations, and documents allowed the researcher to answer the research questions through the portraits. These questions were centered on the understanding of the roles that White administrators and Black and Brown residents carry out in collaborative process efforts. Based on their understanding of these roles, the research sought to find a collaborative process that works. The findings revealed through the data that the Black and Brown residents and White-led administrators in nonprofits can achieve true collaborative practices through a more democratic approach. By understanding Black and Brown residents&rsquo; Community Cultural Wealth, both groups can engage in this democratic approach which benefits the mission of the nonprofit and empowers the Black and Brown residents.</p><p>

<p> This study&rsquo;s purpose is to explore grit attributes California urban school superintendents demonstrated. The literature review revealed 5 grit attributes: courage, conscientiousness, endurance toward long-term goals, optimism and resilience, and excellence over perfection. There is scant scholarly research connecting urban school superintendents to the 5 grit attributes and understanding grit&rsquo;s 5 attributes school district leaders reflected is valuable to the industry and the profession. </p><p> This research implemented a qualitative methodology. Following an extensive review of the literature, a panel of experts developed and reviewed research questions to establish validity. The data collected were gathered from publicly available and accessible published texts regarding superintendents from 7 California urban school districts. Corresponding text from the data sources were reviewed and compared with the grit attributes in the theoretical framework in order to code for themes. The themes were reviewed for alignment to the 5 attributes of grit theory that formed this study&rsquo;s conceptual framework. Limitations included that there was no interaction with superintendents in this study as only publicly available information served as data, and urban school districts in only 1 state were represented in this study. </p><p> Findings based on publicly accessed information revealed 15 practices of demonstrating grit in 5 categories: 2 practices demonstrating the attribute of courage; 3 practices demonstrating the attribute of conscientiousness; 5 practices demonstrating the attribute of endurance toward long-term goals; 3 practices demonstrating the attribute of optimism and resilience; and 2 practices demonstrating the attribute of excellence over perfection. In addition to correlating practices with the 5 attributes of grit theory, more than 70 authors supported the 4 theoretical components. </p><p> The results of the study provide information that can assist leaders, persons providing professional development, and policymakers in education. The data in this study support the relationship of the grit attributes as school superintendents in California urban settings demonstrated. This research adds to the literature regarding the disciplines of educational leadership, organizational leadership, and positive psychology in organizations, including topics related to persistence and resiliency studies. Additionally, the results of this study add to the existing body of literature specifically related to grit theories.</p><p>

<p> Single mothers are commonly characterized as low-income welfare recipients. In 2010, close to 30% of single mother households were below the poverty line (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010a) conversely leaving 70% of single mothers above the poverty line. Being a married working mother is challenging and comes with the need of several supports. With the growing divorce rate and the introduction of women choosing to become single mothers, the numbers of single working mothers are growing rapidly. In order to be a successful single mother certain factors need to be accounted for. This study focused on single mothers who are in high profile professional positions and looked at what supports it took; both internally and externally, to sustain their situations. Some highly regarded, prestigious positions that fell into this category include, but are not limited to, school administrators, writers/authors, successful entrepreneurs, attorneys, doctors, professors, upper level managers/supervisors, and executive directors. Also, this study looked at character traits of the identified mothers to see if there was an inner predisposition that positions them to be able to thrive in difficult situations. The findings suggest that in order for single mothers to succeed they need to establish a strong support network, have a flexible career and demonstrate strong leadership skills ranging from a Lazier Fair approach to a transformative one with a strong mentoring influence and affinity.</p><p> The results from this study indicate that this population identified as resilient, passionate, and focused about their professional and personal lives. These single mothers are motivated by a high level of passion for both their work, and parenting their children, including providing a comfortable lifestyle and rich involvement in their children&rsquo;s lives. Their use of support varied and formed a naturally occurring continuum spanning from &ldquo;no support&rdquo;, to &ldquo;support is essential&rdquo;. This population reported their relational style either increased or decreased in their willingness to seek out and accept assistance from others. In leadership style, this group of single mother professionals scored extremely high in having tendencies towards Transformational leadership and surprisingly, even higher in having tendencies towards Laissez-faire leadership.</p>

<p> Given the significant projected percentages of retirements of community college senior officers, forecasted workforce shortages, and the difficulty of attracting employees to rural community colleges, a qualitative study was undertaken to understand the learning experiences of seven senior officers in developing the competencies to lead at a rural community college. Through the interviews, the senior officers redirected the conversations to describe how they develop the next generation of rural community college leaders. Findings included the descriptive concepts of (a) rural legacies, (b) developing pragmatic competence, and (c) reciprocal development. A grounded theory model provided guidance on preparing the next generation of leaders at rural community colleges.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study is to provide managers in both educational institutions and student organizations with empirically-based recommendations for how to best manage student organization workforces to achieve engagement and retention. The research questions ask (a) how educational institutions and student organizations strategically manage advisor talent to attract, engage, and retain advisors in their roles and (b) what talent management strategies can be applied to sustain a competent, satisfied, and engaged student organization advisor workforce. Through a systematic review methodology with an evidence-based management perspective to configure the best available evidence for synthesis, this dissertation incorporates organizational citizenship theory, the functional theory of volunteerism, and strategic talent management theory to reach the conclusions. Study findings confirm that student organization advisor service is linked to all elements of the functional theory of volunteerism but is primarily motivated by the values function first and then the career functions. Furthermore, student organization advisor service is a form of organizational citizenship behavior, and the values function of volunteerism is the antecedent to service as an advisor. Finally, it was determined that strategic talent management practices can be applied to student organization advisors, but such practices are not being implemented by key stakeholders. A theoretical model of advisor involvement and suggestions for implementation are presented to address this gap in practice. As a result of these findings, a model for practice that incorporates key strategic talent management practices to address fundamental advisor needs has been developed with an evidence-based blueprint for implementation.</p><p>