Over the last 100 years, more than 3 million small farming operations have been replaced by large factory farms in America. This shift toward food production by conglomerations has led to severe environmental issues, food security hazards, and economic hardship in farming communities nationwide. This study investigated the extent to which a written business plan could help small farming operations meet their sales objectives and ultimately continue to operate; this study also examined the perceptions of farm owners regarding the ability of a business plan to affect sales objectives. The sample consisted of 71 Maine Farms for Future (FFF) recipients and 71 randomly selected New England farmers as identified by the Maine Department of Agriculture. The study used a mixed methods approach. Quantitative data were analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U test to determine the extent to which creating a business plan corresponds with the ability to meet sales objectives. Qualitative data were analyzed using inductive and open coding techniques to determine the extent to which farmers perceive business planning as having value. Quantitative data analysis showed the differences between the groups to be statistically significant and that a written business plan corresponded with farmers meeting sales objectives. The qualitative analysis showed that the majority of both groups identified business plans as having value due to its ability to affect sales objectives. These findings confirm resource-based theory as a valid predictor of why farmers write a business plan. This study may positively impact social change by providing small farming operations a way to increase sustainability and reduce the food security risks that are commonly caused by large factory farming practices.

Small businesses fail at high rates; 51% fail to succeed in business beyond the first 5 years. The purpose of this exploratory case study was to explore the strategies that salon business owners used to succeed in business. The sample comprised of 2 salon business owners in Savannah, Georgia who have been in business more than 5 years. The conceptual framework was based on the general systems theory. Data were collected from conducting semistructured interviews with each business owner, a review of company business plans, direct observation of participants during client interaction in the salon, as well as member-checking interview responses. The data were methodologically triangulated to strengthen the credibility and trustworthiness of the study results. Four main themes were identified: (a) education and training, (b) customer service strategies, (c) determination and dedication, and (d) professionalism. The findings from this study may contribute to social change by giving business owners the necessary skills and strategies needed to sustain and develop a successful business and increase profit. The data from this study may contribute to the prosperity of small business owners, their employees, communities, and the local economy.

In 2014, 547 new breweries opened in the United States and more than 2 million barrels of beer were produced by American homebrewers. Craft brewery owners face challenges in increasing profit because of intense competition from existing breweries, new ventures, and homebrewers. The purpose of the study was to explore the strategies that craft brewery owners used to increase profits by collaboratively working with internal and external stakeholders, such as employees, distributors, customers, suppliers, lending groups, and community organizations. The conceptual framework of this multiple-case study was the stakeholder theory. The basic tenet of the stakeholder theory is that a business owner can maximize the firm's financial performance if the business owner proactively meets the needs of the relevant stakeholders. Face-to-face interviews were conducted on a purposeful sample of 5 craft brewery owners who met the study criteria of operating a profitable brewery in southern Maine for a minimum of 5 years. Transcripts, direct observations, and industry documents were organized to create common themes for coding in accordance with Yin's method of data analysis. Through methodological triangulation, the following 4 themes emerged: employee satisfaction and retention, nontraditional marketing, commitment to quality, and development of local relationships. Within these themes, craft brewery owners can apply a number of strategies to increase profits through stakeholder collaboration. The implications for social change include partnering of breweries with local establishments, which can foster increased sales for both businesses and provide better jobs for the local community.

Research conducted over multiple decades explores student attrition from higher education institutions. The majority of this research relates to traditional, on-campus student populations. However, colleges and universities are serving more nontraditional students than before by increasing distance education course offerings. Although enrollments are increasing, few studies examine retention of nontraditional learners in a distance education setting. Even fewer suggest institutional action based on student satisfaction of nontraditional, distance learners. This study examined student satisfaction and education-related priorities of Utah State University (USU) undergraduate students at regional campus locations throughout the state of Utah. Perceived programming needs were determined based on the discrepancy between student-reported satisfaction and importance rankings of education-related items. The highest discrepancies between priorities and satisfaction of undergraduate students at USU regional campus locations were: use of student activity fees, adequate availability of financial aid, tuition being a worthwhile investment, registering for classes with few conflicts, scheduling of courses to complete program, timeliness of financial aid announcements, academic advisor’s knowledge of major requirements, instruction within major, variety of course offerings, and classes being scheduled at convenient times.

Student understanding and use of tobacco was studied under t he following specific areas: specific knowledge as it relates to smoking and health; student opinions and attitudes toward smoking; smoking experience; and the influence of certain factors on smoking status. About 700 students were sampled with the use of a questionnaire. The number of students was divided about equally among four schools and between boys and girls at each grade level, grades seven through twelve. It was found t hat boys were better informed than girls about tobacco as it relates to health. Also, the senior high school students were better informed than the junior high school students. The majority (91 percent) of all students surveyed were of the opinion that the pleasure derived from smoking was not worth the price a person has to pay in terms of health and expense. Few students like having their parents smoke, and most are violently opposed to having them smoke. There were nine percent of the students who smoked regularly (at least once a week) with another eight percent smoking once in a while. This ranged from three percent in the seventh grade to fifteen percent in the twelfth grade. The factors having the most influence upon student smoking status were religion, friends, and health implications.

This study considered a scale of social functioning as one measure toward understanding the problem of attrition at a selected Junior college. It was concerned with the use of the Heinler Scale of Social Functioning (SSF) as an aid to the counseling function. The purpose of the study was to use this scale to neasure life satisfactions and frustrations of a stratified sampling of students who left the junior college before the end of their first quarter and students who per- sisted and registered for the second quarter. The scale has had little former use within an educational setting and it was examined as a tool to provide individualized academic counseling.

Purpose: The financial implications of Serrano vs. Priest have caused a great amount of concern in California among the superintendents of the school districts at all levels of organization. The purpose of this study was to determine how superintendents throughout the state felt about the finance plans suggested in the Jefferson decision in terms of each plan's impact on their school district.

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The student affairs profession places considerable emphasis on the values of diversity, inclusiveness, and social justice as part of its mission to foster the holistic development of college students. Many vocal conservative critics point to these values as evidence of the liberal worldview that they claim dominates the higher education landscape. This critical, phenomenological study was designed around the premise that higher education, and, specifically, student affairs, is characterized by a liberal ideology that privileges those in the profession who identify as liberal. The study explored the perceptions and experiences of 12 self-identified conservative student affairs professionals in order to better understand the nature and impact of the hegemony that operates within the field. The findings then served as the basis for a deconstruction of the lived ideology of the profession. The premise of the study was affirmed by the experiences of many of the participants. Intent aside, majority status alone appears to confer certain privileges on liberals, allowing them to speak or act in ways that leave some conservatives feeling devalued and marginalized. The study identifies specific manifestations of liberal privilege, as well as a variety of strategies used by participants to respond and/or cope. The study findings reveal that participants differed considerably in how, and to what degree, they experienced student affairs as a hegemonic culture. Possible reasons for this are discussed, along with recommendations and avenues for further inquiry.