The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Jacox Elementary School Improvement program to determine the extent to which the program was effective in achieving its goals. The study sought to answer the major research question: Is the Jacox Elementary School Improvement program successful in achieving its stated goals? and to answer three subquestions: 1) Did the students improve academically?, 2) Was the self-concept of students improved?, and, 3) Was the school climate as perceived by students and teachers positively changed? Instruments were selected to measure the areas examined. Three instruments were used to assess Student academic achievement: 1) the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, 2) the communication skills and mathematics portions of the criterion-referenced tests, and 3) the reading comprehension portion of the Virginia State Literacy Predictor Tests as well as the final report card grades for communications skills and mathematics. The Piers-Harris Children’s Self-Concept Scale was used to assess the self-concept of students. The Student Survey for Jacox Elementary’s Climate Correlate was used to assess the school climate as perceived by students. The National Association of Secondary School Principals Teacher School Climate Survey was used to assess the school climate as perceived by teachers. Teacher interviews were conducted to gather qualitative data. The findings showed that: - When certain assessment measures were used, students in some grade levels improved academically. - There were no significant differences between the pretest and posttest means of the Piers-Harris Children’s Self-Concept Scale. - Both students and teachers reported an improvement in the climate of the school. - Student and teacher attendance improved over the previous year. The preponderance of evidence indicated that the Jacox Elementary School Improvement program did not meet its stated goals. The fact that the program was assessed for one academic year provided one explanation for the research findings. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the current school board policies within the Commonwealth of Virginia to determine if they were consistent with the federal judicial system's interpretation of the Establishment Clause. Twenty-four federal district, circuit and Supreme Court cases were analyzed to determine the court's interpretation of the Establishment Clause as it relates to the public schools. Twenty-one criteria were developed from this analysis and the criteria were used to evaluate the school board policies of Virginia school divisions. The criteria were separated into five categories to provide greater clarity and organization. The five categories include general, prayer, Bible reading, release time programs and equal access. Approximately 91 percent of the schools in the Commonwealth responded to this study. Approximately 55 percent of the schools returned policies which governed at least one Establishment Clause issue. Approximately 36 percent of the schools responding to this study declared that they had no policies relating to any issues as defined by this study. The data from this study demonstrated that the majority of school board policies throughout the Commonwealth are not consistent with the judicial system's interpretation of the Establishment Clause. The policies which were returned and evaluated satisfied only 35 percent of the criteria within the general category; 12.83 percent of the criteria within the prayer category; 24.34 percent within the Bible reading category; 16.58 percent within the release time category; and 21.05 percent within the equal access category. Overall the policies which were analyzed satisfied only 22.74 percent of the entire set of criteria. The most successful school division satisfied only 52 percent of the criteria and over 61 percent of the policies failed to satisfy more than 27 percent of the criteria. / Ed. D.

Prior to 1954, blacks in Fairfax County who wanted to receive an education beyond the seventh grade were bussed by the county to Manassas Regional High School in Prince William County or independently attended Dunbar High School, Phelps Vocational Center, Cardoza High School or Armstrong High School in Washington, D.C. The purpose of this dissertation was to describe, record and analyze the events and actions that led to the establishment, operation, desegregation and eventual demise of Luther P. Jackson High School, the first and on1y high school for blacks in Fairfax County, Virginia. This study provides useful information to the Fairfax County School System. The population for the study consisted of representatives from community and civil rights leaders, school administrators, students, teachers and secretaries who were involved with Luther P. Jackson at various stages of its existence. / Ed. D.

This study was conducted to obtain information from a rural population regarding what makes a good elementary school. A random telephone sample of 100 participants was selected with a total of 83 participants responding to the telephone interview. The interview requested participants to respond to an open-ended question as to the qualities necessary for a good elementary school grades K-7. The interview also was designed to gain information regarding demographic variables of participants in an effort to identify patterns of responses. In addition, a comparison of participants' responses to the research of Ron Edmonds was conducted. Participants identified qualities related to teachers, principals, curriculum, and environmental conditions -as properties of a good elementary school. An overwhelming number of participants indicated teachers who demonstrated care, concern, understanding, patience, and who provided learning experiences that promote success as necessary to a good school. A comparison of participants' responses to the research of Edmonds revealed little consistency between the perceptions of lay people in and the findings of researchers regarding qualities of a good elementary school. Finally, participant demographic variables were examined as they related to the characteristics of teachers, principals, curriculum, and environmental conditions. None of the demographic variables were found to be significantly related to the qualities of a good elementary school. / Ed. D.

The Art Department at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University is based in the leased space of the Armory and in the basement of Owens Hall. The Art Department also holds classes in as many as four other buildings on campus. My proposal is to consolidate the Art Department’s activities into one formal building. I call this building The Visual Arts Plant. The Visual Arts Plant contains the rooms, equipment, machinery, tools, instruments, and fixtures necessary to facilitate and promote a visual arts education. This thesis is a documentation of my ideas for The Visual Arts Plants. / Master of Architecture

The location for the project is in the downtown area of Staunton, Virginia, a small town in the Shenandoah Valley. The site is a parking lot with a wall of nineteenth century warehouse buildings on one side that suggest the completion of a public square. The means by which l tried to find a resolution to this architectural suggestion involve a historical search for connection as well as a vision for the future. The circumstantial demands of place and occasion allow the project to materialize between the archetype and the ideal. / Master of Architecture