Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 161-167).

Doctor of Philosophy / Curriculum and Instruction Programs / Charles R. Oaklief / This study investigated the strengths and weaknesses of the McNair program at the three Kansas Regents institutions. The population included 259 former McNair program participants from Kansas State University (KSU), the University of Kansas (KU), and Wichita State University (WSU) who graduated with baccalaureate degrees between 1996 and 2004. These alumni were asked to complete a two- part survey. Part one collected data on McNair alumni perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of the program on a thirty-three item, five-point Likert scale. Additionally, part one collected data on McNair alumni recommendations regarding the amount of emphasis that should be placed on program services and activities. Next, part two collected selected demographics. This provided useful data to examine how selected demographics relate to program perceptions. One hundred and thirty-seven of the 259 McNair alumni completed the survey. Overall, the results of the data suggested that they perceived the services and activities to be more of a strength than a weakness. Also, the recorded comments by the alumni indicated that their experiences as McNair scholars were positive. McNair scholar alumni recommended providing more assistance with how to interview prospective faculty mentors, obtain financial assistance, and stay abreast of resources that would increase the number of McNair scholars enrolling in graduate school and completing a graduate degree. Further study is recommended to survey McNair alumni who have completed doctoral degrees regarding the need for services that would help strengthen areas that were perceived to be weaker than others. These areas include “Enrollment in a Graduate School Program Leading to a Doctorate Degree” and “Selecting and Working With a Faculty Mentor”. Additionally, further study is recommended to investigate how alumni differ in their perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of the McNair Program by major field of study.

The attainment of ethnic minority students in their host countries has been occupying a significant part of the international literature for many years. However, results suggest that no generalisations can be made on whether an ethnic minority group underachieves in a particular country and the reasons behind their attainment levels, unless that specific group has been investigated in the country in question. Cyprus joined the EU in 2004 and since then the demographic composition in the island changed dramatically; a change reflected in schools. The literature on ethnic minority group attainment in secondary schools in Cyprus is virtually non-existent and, as such, in this PhD programme the aim was to examine the attainment of ethnic minorities compared to native students and the reasons behind the observed patterns. In order to answer the research questions a series of studies were carried out. Initially, two quantitative studies were conducted. These studies used trimester grades as a proxy of attainment and Rasch analysis to turn these ordinal student grades into a linear scale. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression analyses were then run to check for trends and significant associations. Two qualitative studies then followed. Firstly, a focus group study was conducted utilising the help of six young female teachers, all teaching classics to create a homogeneous group. Then followed an interview study utilising semi-structured interviews on sixteen teachers. For both studies a thematic analysis was undertaken on the transcribed discussions. Another quantitative study then followed which employed an enhanced methodology to the first two studies and richer data. The final study was a mixed methods study and concentrated on school absences. Results demonstrate the reality in lower secondary schools in Cyprus for the first time. The minority group Georgians, the first time that this group is met in the literature, and a combination of other smaller groups put together in a group called ‘Others’, are shown to achieve significantly lower than natives. Ethnic background, gender, generation status, absences, the socio-economic status of the family and the character of the local educational system were shown to be related to student attainment. The widely held belief that ethnic minority students do even worse in those subjects that are more language-dependent is disproven; rather it is the content of the subject that is felt to be more influential on attainment. Also, the recently emerging consensus that unexcused absences are more strongly associated with attainment than excused absences is not upheld in this study; a more detailed classification of unexcused absences might be responsible for this. Finally, it is interesting to note the differential influence of different absence variables on different school subjects. Findings highlight the need for change and improvement in the educational practice in Cyprus and add to both the local and international literature. The specific factors identified can form the basis on which to base suggestions for improvements and further research.

The benefits of physical activity (PA) for children are well-researched and extend into the realms of physical health, mental health and executive function (EF). Nonetheless, most U.S. children fail to meet the recommended target of daily PA. Although elementary schools can provide an ideal setting for PA, school-based PA time has been reduced in favor of increased sedentary instructional time. This contradicts research that supports the role of PA in enhancing students’ EF and academic achievement. Moreover, low-income and minority populations have inequitable access to school-based PA opportunities. For these reasons, researchers and public health officials have proposed integrating additional opportunities for PA during the school day, including classroom-based active breaks. This dissertation aims to study existing U.S. classroom-based active break programs, examine the feasibility of implementing a classroom-based active break program and analyze the impact of an integrated program on both PA and EF, all among underserved, minority populations. This dissertation includes four chapters in total. The second chapter is a systematic review that evaluated the impact of school-based PA interventions on children’s PA, with a focus on diverse populations. The third chapter describes a pilot study that assessed the feasibility of implementing a classroom PA program (HYPE) in a diverse urban setting. Teacher and student acceptability of HYPE were evaluated, as well as HYPE’s impact on student PA. HYPE was feasible and well-received, although time and space were challenges. Children’s median step count/day increased. The waitlist-control study presented in Chapter IV examined whether a multifaceted program (“POWER”) that incorporates both PA and EF would impact fifth graders positively. We also investigated whether POWER could assist teachers with classroom behavioral management. Overall, the positive changes in the intervention group and their favorable reception of POWER demonstrate the ability of POWER to improve children’s socioemotional, mental and physical health. Altogether, these studies highlight the potential for school-based PA interventions to improve the holistic wellbeing of children, particularly low-income, minority youth. Interventions that incorporate a teacher-led, multimodal approach to improving children’s PA and EF synergistically may be well-received by administrators, teachers and students and help children adopt healthy, lifelong habits.

This study examined teachers' perceptions and attitudes of Title I students at an urban elementary school in which over 90% of the student population receives free or reduced-priced lunch. Using participant observation and in-depth interviews, this research analyzed three avenues for Title I students to acquire cultural and social capital at school: material and non-material resources, language acquisition, and the building of positive teacher-student relationships. In order to analyze these avenues, this study explored the following questions: How do teachers talk about and perceive Title I students? Do their attitudes and the images constructed from these perceptions impact students' ability to build positive teacher-student relationships? Do these perceptions and attitudes impact students' opportunities to build social and cultural capital? Do the resources afforded to students aide the acquisition of cultural capital? What expectations do teachers have for students' language usage and do these expectations hinder the acquisition of cultural capital? These questions guided my data collection process and analysis on how social and cultural capital operates within a Title I school. This study found that students attending Sherwood did not have access to quality material resources such as books and computers. However, they did have exposure to non-material resources such as nutritional programs that provided students' avenues to acquire cultural capital through dominant cultural experiences. Students' acquisition of Standard English was another avenue for students to acquire cultural capital. Teachers at Sherwood held different expectations for African American students and Spanish speaking students. African American students were constantly corrected when they did not speak Standard English by white teachers. In contrast, Spanish-speaking students were not corrected because teachers did not view their language as a disruption to the class. My findings suggest that African American students did not know why Standard English was important. Thus, it is likely that they did not learn how to activate this form of capital to their social benefit. In contrast, the cultural codes Spanish-speaking students were perceived as of higher value and incorporated in the school. Last, this study found teachers' perceptions of Title I students did not always hinder their ability to form positive teacher-student relationships, but may have helped these relationships to form because of teachers' perceptions of students' home life. Throughout this study, I explored the strategies and obstacles faced by Title I teachers and students as well as how these affect the acquisition of cultural and social capital.

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that only 5% of U.S. workers are employed in fields related to science and engineering, yet they are responsible for more than 50% of our sustained economic expansion (U.S Department of Labor, 2007). Furthermore, minorities makeup 0.0025 % (1/400) of that Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce. Methods are currently underway to understand and address the attrition of minority students in the STEM workforce. The problem of underrepresentation of minorities (URMs) in STEM careers continues to result in a “leaky pipeline” where URMs have cited institutional factors such “chilly campus” climates as barriers to persistence and success (Tinto, 1993 Astin, 1993, Seymour & Hewitt, 1997). Despite the “separate but equal” challenge surrounding the early establishment of US educational institutions, the US remains a model for accessible and affordable education. Social equity concerning URM student outcomes in STEM has become a prominent topic of discussion. Researchers and practitioners seek to understand why the growing disparity exists for minority students as this underserved population represents those that higher education has been least successful in educating (Bensimon, 2007). This daunting assertion of disparate educational attainment by race and ethnicity is alarming. In this study the researcher used archived data and web content analysis to conduct a quantitative study to understand the effect of institutional constructs on the graduation rate of African American students pursing engineering degrees. The research model included hypotheses resulting from independent institutional variables of African American engineering students, institutional size and type, institutional endowment and social equity initiatives. The dependent variable of African American engineering student graduation rates was considered in relation to each independent variable. To answer research questions 1 and 2, descriptive statistics were used to analyze data that provided a comprehensive description of the institutions’ resources and social equity initiatives. Spearman’s Rho with ordinal variables and a small number of cases were computed to analyze the data. This analysis revealed a positive correlation between the numbers of social equity initiatives and engineering graduation rates of African American students at PWI southeast land-grant colleges and universities located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. The outcomes of this study help to expand the literature on underrepresented minority (URM) STEM retention in higher education. Understanding the effects of institutional constructs on the success of African American engineering students allows for the implementation of effective intervention strategies that will help to increase the pipeline of well-prepared African American engineers for the global STEM workforce.

This research presents a qualitative case study of a middle school principal in New York City who made significant strides in creating opportunities for learning at a school that predominantly serves children of color. Through a series of document reviews, interviews, and focus groups, the study analyzes the principal's leadership behaviors and decision-making strategies to achieve this goal. The analysis identifies three critical themes that are crucial for a principal to lead for equity while creating opportunities. The findings suggest that regardless of a school's location or a student's residence, principal leadership and decision-making influence the specific inputs and processes are essential for academic progress. The study has significant implications for principal preparation programs, particularly in terms of developing the necessary dispositions to create opportunities for learning. The insights gained from this research can be valuable for educational leaders who strive to create more equitable learning environments for all students. Keywords: Opportunity to learn, transformational leadership, instructional leadership, advocacy leadership, decision-making, children of color, urban school

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African-American/Black and Hispanic/Latinx racial populations are underrepresented in the healthcare field relative to their overall representation of the United States population. Previous studies have identified programs as one source to combat this issue. In this study, a Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP) is explored to gain early insight into the participants’ experience. The transformative learning theory was used as a lens to uncover elements employed by the students to display signs of developing self-empowerment to overcome challenges. A qualitative, case study approach was used to design the study. Data instruments included several program artifacts: 1) original application package, 2) transcripts, 3) one-on-one coaching session notes, 4) case management plan recommendations, 5) requirements verification form results, and 6) observations from the end of year one session. Additionally, interviews and an end of the year questionnaire were collected specifically for this study. Artifacts were collected from all fifteen students in HCOP. Four of the fifteen students served as study participants and provided interviews in addition to completing the end of year questionnaire. As 60% of the students quit the program at the end of the first year, results indicated that overall the remaining students valued and found the HCOP Ambassador Program to be useful, especially the one-on-one coaching sessions. Participation in HCOP yielded in an increase in overall average GPA, yet a decrease in combined average GPA for critical science and math courses. Time management skills and study skills need improvement. Through the lens of the transformative learning theory, results revealed that students are somewhat self-aware, yet need additional support in changing long-term academic behaviors. The future design and structure of program activities should be modified to increase the likelihood of retaining a greater percentage of students. Recommendations for future HCOP Ambassador Program changes include: 1) increase participant input for suggested program workshops and activities, 2) provide more hands-on experience and career related activities, and 3) develop ways to improve soft skills for participants. Additional recommendations were aimed at the funding agency to encourage HCOP awardees to publish and disseminate best practices in order to determine short-term and long-term impacts of HCOP. Lastly, the principal investigator of an awarded HCOP should provide more specificity in the design of HCOP programs in order to best meet the needs of the target population. Future research is needed to determine the long-term impact of the UB HCOP Ambassador Program on its participants with regard to success in matriculation into graduate health professions degree programs. / Educational Leadership