The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the developing role of the Student Trustee. Utilizing a case study design and document analysis, this descriptive study examined the comments of 143 Student Trustees in Board meetings of the University of Massachusetts (UMass) System, the first in the nation to require Student Trustees, from 1970-–2015. The research questions sought to uncover the origins of the Student Trustee at the UMass System as well as how the role developed over time. The study concluded that Student Trustees provide a unique perspective that offers meaningful contributions to the discourse and decision-making processes of university Boards. The legislation that placed the first Student Trustee on the UMass Board was the result of contentious campus protests fueled by student dissatisfaction with higher education’s response to the Vietnam War, racism, and sexism, among other issues. Governor Francis Sargent proposed and signed that legislation in 1969 as a means to “move protest from confrontation to dialogue.” Student Trustees found success pushing the Board in a more progressive direction – adopting co-ed dormitories, providing greater due process in conduct matters, and asserting that students have primary responsibility over student policies and related matters. Student Trustees also pressed the Board to divest from companies operating in apartheid South Africa, and even to grant students an eight-day reprieve from papers and exams so they could campaign in the 1970 congressional elections. The role of the Student Trustee has expanded since Cynthia Olken took her place as the first Student Trustee in 1970. There are now five Student Trustees representing each of the five campuses in the UMass System. The two with voting power operate as regular board members and have the ability to serve on all committees, while the other three are ex officio non-voting members and can only attend open meetings of the full Board of Trustees. While more than half of the 143 Student Trustees made five or fewer remarks during their time on the board, there were many who spoke out frequently on issues related to finance, governance, and academics. Through their half-century of efforts, Student Trustees have earned a seat at the table and the praise of many university presidents, chancellors, and Board chairs that have used words like helpful, valuable, and significant to describe their contributions. As former UMass President Jack Wilson once exclaimed, “Having student representation on this Board is important.”

The complex dynamics of the phenomenon of trust, defined as a psychological state where one is willing to accept vulnerability based upon the positive expectations of a specific other or others, and the influence trust has on faculty involvement in institutional decision-making were explored in this case study. Faculty involvement is a key element of institutional success, yet many faculty at community colleges are not satisfied with their involvement or choose to remain uninvolved. Although researchers have established a substantial body of research on trust in organizations, a gap remains regarding the role trust plays in community college faculty involvement in key decision-making. The purpose of the current research was to address this gap by exploring the faculty experience of trust within the context of the unique social structure of 1 specific community college. The research question prompted an exploration of 1 specific college’s complex social and organizational structures by examining organizational charts and documents, while semistructured interviews with a purposeful sampling of 20 faculty members allowed for insight into the unique perspectives of community college faculty. Data were analyzed using the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen method looking for emergent themes. It was indicated that trust dynamics play a role in faculty involvement in decision-making. Themes emerged that support 3 types of trust and 5 facets of trust that are part of the faculty experience within the specific case. Results can be used to contribute to positive social change by influencing continuous improvement efforts in higher education, improving institutional effectiveness.

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Many California community colleges face difficult decisions when implementing the State's shared governance mandate on institutional planning and budgeting processes. Using Allison and Zelikow's rational, organizational, and political decision models as the foundation, the purpose of this narrative study was to explore decision processes used by a successful community college district in California to understand its success with the State's mandated institutional planning and budgeting processes. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with 10 individuals representing a board of trustees, 3 administrations, 3 academic senates, and a faculty association. Data were inductively coded and then subjected to Ollerenshaw and Creswell's narrative analysis procedure. All 10 narratives were assigned decision process scores based on Allison and Zelikow's framework and 6 specific planning and budgeting decision events. Findings indicate that elements from all 3 decision models were routinely used to create synergism of actions leading to a collaborative and strong unity of effort. In addition, favored decision-making processes may have overcome rational choice impediments in the budgeting area. The positive social change implication includes a recommendation to the academic leaders of all 72 California community college districts that they capitalize on the synergistic interactions of decision processes required for successful institutional planning and budgeting. In addition, leaders should use favored decision models sparingly to fulfill California's legislative mandate for a quality and college-educated workforce. The ultimate unity of effort for academic leaders is to correct the shortfall of a million college graduates needed by 2025 for California's workforce.

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Teacher leaders are people who lead by example and, in this school, most are not afraid to speak up even if it is not politically correct. Teacher leaders are selfless people who are looking out for what is best for all, especially the students. They are risk takers. With the introduction of technology and accountability measures, education appears to have changed more in the first seventeen years of the 21st century then in the entire prior 100 years of our nation. The knowledge and skills required by school administrators has greatly expanded. To that end, it seems most appropriate that schools are lead not only by a principal, but also by the teachers. The collective knowledge of a group of professionals is stronger than the knowledge of one individual person. Teacher leadership appears as a natural concept to utilize in order to achieve successful school reform and to increase the use of technology as an instructional tool. This study focuses on the specific actions of building principals in public secondary schools which will cultivate and nurture the leadership potential in teachers. A qualitative study, this research involved a multi-case study approach and focused on three public secondary schools spanning two Pennsylvania counties. Ninety-four surveys were conducted of professional employees. Of those, three building principals and seven of their teachers were selected to be observed and interviewed. While teacher leadership requires active steps be taken by both teachers and principals, this research centered on what the principal needs to do in order to nurture teachers to be leaders within their schools. A culture of trust and collaboration is essential, as is a shared vision of where the school is headed. / Educational Administration

Translating research into practice takes 10 to 20 years or more. Evidence-based practice (EBP) integration remains at 10% to 20%, despite recommendations requiring EBP-guided decisions. Up to 30% decreases in health care system spending, improved quality outcomes, and increased staff satisfaction result from EBP integration. Nurse leaders, who rate quality and safety as the highest priority but EBP as the lowest, are accountable for EBP enculturation; a desire to support bedside registered nurses in EBP exists, yet this EBP use knowledge gap supersedes this goal. The purpose of this project was to provide an EBP education program introducing the use of evidence to guide nursing practice. The project question addressed whether an education program for staff nurses on introduction to EBP would increase nursing staff perception of the value of EBP and their interest in implementing EBP. Knowles's theory of adult learning and the nursing process guided this project. The 36 participants completed the16-question EBP Beliefs Scale before and after the education program on introduction to EBP. Results from the paired samples t tests showed there was a significant difference in each response on the survey, indicating an increased understanding of the fundamental value of EBP, as well as the participant's individual ability to implement EBP within clinical practice. The limited findings contribute to the existing body of knowledge, while positive social change implications include resolving public health and safety issues, reversing fiscal irresponsibility, and overcoming resistance to change, which is at the heart of implementing and enculturating EBP.

Shared governance, a participative model of governance, implemented by healthcare organizations for more than 30 years has been associated with empowerment, job satisfaction, and retention of registered nurses. Recent studies document a lack of participation in shared governance by registered nurses; the reason for the change is unknown. The nurse managers' role in this change is unknown. The purpose of this non-experimental, cross-sectional survey design study was to test Bass' theory of transformational leadership that examines the relationship between the leadership style of the manager and the enculturation of shared governance in acute care hospitals in the United States. A random sample of 111 nurse managers, who were members of the American Organization of Nurse Executives, were surveyed on leadership style using the Multi-factor Leadership Questionnaire and unit governance, using the Index of Professional Nursing Governance. Data was analyzed using Pearson's Product Moment Correlation and a statistically significant positive relationship was found between transformational leadership style and shared governance. No relationship was found between other leadership styles and shared governance. There was no relationship between the achievement of a shared governance score on the participation subscale of the Index of Professional Nursing Governance and transformational leadership style. The study contributes to social change through the identification of the manager's use of a transformational leadership style to foster the autonomy and empowerment of nurses to cultivate a positive the work environment using a shared governance model, which results in registered nurse retention and decreased organizational turnover costs.