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The primary aims of this study are two-fold: (a) to understand what role the racial identity of African American graduate students plays in how they perceive the multicultural competence of their faculty mentor; (b) to understand how both the racial identity of African American graduate students and their perception of their faculty mentors’ multicultural competence play in their overall satisfaction in the mentoring relationship. African American participants who are in cross-racial faculty mentoring relationships—will be recruited from programs in rehabilitation counseling, counseling psychology, clinical psychology, and counselor education. The instruments for the study will include the Cross Racial Identity Scale (CRIS), the Alliant Intercultural Competence Scale (ACIS), and the Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS). It is hoped that this study will begin to address current gaps in the literature concerning what constitutes a culturally competent mentor and satisfaction from the protégé’s perspective.

Doctoral program attrition has consistently remained an issue in higher education with approximately fifty to sixty percent of doctoral students leaving their degree programs without earning the degree. Of particular concern is the disparity between Black graduate students’ attrition rates and their peers. Less than half of Black doctoral students earn their degree within ten years. To address this challenge, the study considers the variables that affect Black doctoral students’ programmatic experiences. Mentors have often been cited as primary agent of doctoral program achievement. As key conductors of the socialization process, they have the ability to affect students’ experiences within their doctoral program. Due to the gap in doctoral degree attainment for Black students, this study sought to understand what influence Black doctoral students perceived mentoring and race to have on their graduate program experience. This collective case study was conducted with 15 current and recently graduated Black doctoral students. Semi-structured interviews were employed to gain an understanding of their doctoral program life. Using socialization theory and Critical Race Theory (CRT) to understand students’ expectations of mentoring and the perceived effect mentoring had on their doctoral program experience. Many participants automatically viewed their research advisor as a mentor. Critical Race Theory was also utilized to explore how racialized experiences played a common role in their mentoring and program experiences. Findings of the study point to close connections that Black students hope to have with mentors in their doctoral program. Black students are looking for mentors to provide detailed guidance through the doctoral program and beyond. The ideal is to build trusting relationships that grow beyond the professional. This includes mentors who will take the time to know them as a whole person beyond their life as a student. Students placed significant value of their mentors for helping to develop their skills as researchers and providing connections to build their professional network. Additionally, the findings illustrate that race is a part of the doctoral program experience at all times. Mentors who can create an environment to listen and understand that experience can often help Black students remain resilient in completing their degree. With regard to racialized experiences, often faculty were the key antagonists in these moments. Students cited experiences with microaggressions, being given less opportunities than White peers and feeling personally violated. Key recommendations based on findings include, developing CRT informed training for graduate faculty as they are key drivers in creating the academic environment Black doctoral students experience, reexamination of how we discuss research advisors. / Policy, Organizational and Leadership Studies

Thesis advisor: Heather T. Rowan-Kenyon / Studies of college students’ development indicate the collegiate experience can have a negative impact on undergraduate women’s self-esteem (Zuckerman et al., 2016). Research also suggests mentorship programs that provide marginalized groups, such as undergraduate women, with faculty or administrative adult mentors have the potential to improve outcomes for the marginalized group (Crisp et al., 2017). However, it is important to consider the mentors may struggle against the same systemic marginalization they are working to help their undergraduate mentees successfully navigate. The Brazilian philosopher, Paulo Freire, built the concept of “critical consciousness” to explain how those who are oppressed come to understand the systemic nature of their oppression and subsequently seek to change the factors that lead to it (Freire, 1970). This grounded theory study sought to understand if mentors develop a critical consciousness of their own oppression through their involvement in a mentorship program designed to combat the institutionalized oppression that undergraduate women face. Nineteen interviews and two focus groups of mentors who served in the program were conducted. The following research questions guided this study: (a) How do mentors perceive that their involvement in the Summit program has impacted their awareness and understanding of institutionalized sexism and its effects? (b) How do mentors perceive that their involvement in the Summit program has impacted their motivation or ability to effect change related to institutionalized sexism? (c) In what ways have mentors enacted change on behalf of themselves or other women at the institution that they perceive to be connected to their involvement in Summit? The theory constructed from the data suggests a varying effect of the impact of serving as a mentor in the mentorship program on participants’ development of Critical Consciousness. Participants’ progression through the components of Critical Consciousness was complex when they considered their own experiences as women at the institution. Data indicates the community of the mentorship program played a fundamental role in participants’ development of Critical Consciousness of institutional sexism at the institution. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

This thesis develops a strategic leadership plan for lay transitions in the church. While most changeovers occur within a healthy process, this project addresses those occasions when there are systemic problems such as unhealthy power dynamics and parish tension. In this thesis I develop a four-step mentorship program with an accompanying handbook, a conflict management paradigm with effective strategies for four levels of conflict, and four liturgies that celebrate and validate healthy transitions and future work. These rituals are: Reconciliation following parish conflict and the terms for leaders. The plan is incorporated into a three-step structure adapted from the Centre for Creative Leadership. The durability of the model is examined with a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis.

This qualitative study investigated how confidence chats affect how students with disabilities (SWD) position themselves during mathematics discourse and the impact the confidence chats had on a student’s mathematical identity. A critical discourse analysis was conducted over a three-month period using transcripts from classroom observations, student-teacher confidence chats, and teacher interview debriefs. Findings revealed that following the confidence chats, SWD participated in discourse, and students were able to adjust their positioning in relation to others. Over the course of the study, student collaboration increased and their reliance on teacher support decreased. In addition, the findings indicated that confidence chats provided a window into students’ macro-identities which the teacher was not seeing during classroom interactions. Students were positioned in relation to tests and grades and were not seeing the relevance of how mathematics is preparing them for college or career readiness. The implications of this study suggest that students may not know what collaboration looks and sounds like. Taking time to set norms and expectations is a critical element when providing opportunities for discourse in the classroom. Additionally, student strengths need to be affirmed, so students build confidence in their mathematical abilities and connect their mathematics identities to positive experiences and the real-world.

The general purpose of this study was to determine the impact that the match of mentor and mentee had on the success of the mentoring relationship. The leadership style of the mentor and the reporting style of the mentee were determined and effectiveness of the match was determined. This was done in order to determine the impact of the match between mentor and mantee on the quality of the mentoring relationship. The study was conducted within a local government milieu with a sample of 34 mentors and 40 mentees, thus a total of 40 mentoring pairs. These participants were all part of a formal mentorship programme within the organisation. The findings indicated that when leadership and reporting styles of mentoring pairs are complementary it will not have a significant effect on the success of the mentoring relationship. It furthermore suggests that careful consideration should be given in selecting participants before initiating mentorship programmes. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.A. (Industrial Psychology)

The purpose of this study was to identify and examine the role of dispositional characteristics in effective mentoring relationships. A learning and development framework was incorporated to examine the relationships of protégé and mentor characteristics, mentoring provided, and developmental mentoring outcomes. First, relationships between individual characteristics and mentoring provided were examined. Second, relationships between individual characteristics and partner developmental outcomes were examined. Third, mentoring provided was examined as a mediator of individual characteristics and partner developmental outcomes. The final sample consisted of 93 protégé-mentor pairs. Protégés and mentors were asked to complete an online survey measuring learning goal orientation, locus of control, self-efficacy for development, mentoring received/mentoring provided, and multiple assessments of relationship effectiveness. In general, the hypotheses were not supported, but supplemental analyses provided support for the importance of examining individual characteristics. Key findings contribute to the mentoring literature by illustrating the role of learning goal orientation and self-efficacy for development in effective mentoring relationships. Future research should investigate additional underlying mechanisms that further explain the mentorship learning exchange processes.

Beginner principals in South Africa and internationally are finding it increasingly difficult to cope with the demands set to them. Inadequate preparation and support are the causes that many beginner principals cannot meet the challenges. The beginner school principal has to cope with the diversity in schools, socio-economic differences, language and discipline problems as well as departmental issues. Too many learners in a class, over-aged learners still at school and a lack of resources are part of the challenges of the beginner school principal. This study focused on the type of support beginner principals require, their opinions regarding mentorship as supportive tool, and their views on the characteristics and qualities of an effective mentorship programme. As a result of the interviews, beginner school principals admit that an academic qualification is not enough to support them. Furthermore they also claim that the support from the Department of Basic Education is inadequate. An experienced or even a retired principal as mentor will address the demands and challenges in an on-going nature and will be more suited to support them. Therefore the main question will be: How will effective mentorship support beginner school principals? A qualitative research approach within an interpretivistic paradigm was followed during the investigation. By applying purposive sampling, ten principals from different cultural and racial background were identified as participants. Data was collected from principals by means of individual interviews and two observations per principal. The discourse analysis that followed indicated that beginner principals find areas such as management skills, legal issues, human relations, communication and departmental instructions, the most difficult areas to manage. What emerged and came to the fore was a need for a mentor to support them in specific areas. A mentorship programme, that focuses on these areas, with clear guidelines containing theoretical and practical components, was developed as a result of the research. / Thesis (MEd (Education Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

Beginner principals in South Africa and internationally are finding it increasingly difficult to cope with the demands set to them. Inadequate preparation and support are the causes that many beginner principals cannot meet the challenges. The beginner school principal has to cope with the diversity in schools, socio-economic differences, language and discipline problems as well as departmental issues. Too many learners in a class, over-aged learners still at school and a lack of resources are part of the challenges of the beginner school principal. This study focused on the type of support beginner principals require, their opinions regarding mentorship as supportive tool, and their views on the characteristics and qualities of an effective mentorship programme. As a result of the interviews, beginner school principals admit that an academic qualification is not enough to support them. Furthermore they also claim that the support from the Department of Basic Education is inadequate. An experienced or even a retired principal as mentor will address the demands and challenges in an on-going nature and will be more suited to support them. Therefore the main question will be: How will effective mentorship support beginner school principals? A qualitative research approach within an interpretivistic paradigm was followed during the investigation. By applying purposive sampling, ten principals from different cultural and racial background were identified as participants. Data was collected from principals by means of individual interviews and two observations per principal. The discourse analysis that followed indicated that beginner principals find areas such as management skills, legal issues, human relations, communication and departmental instructions, the most difficult areas to manage. What emerged and came to the fore was a need for a mentor to support them in specific areas. A mentorship programme, that focuses on these areas, with clear guidelines containing theoretical and practical components, was developed as a result of the research. / Thesis (MEd (Education Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.