Student discipline has been issue for higher education administrators in the founding of college campuses. Today’s student conduct administrator is faced with complex issues that require an understanding of the legal requirements of due process while supporting the education mission of the institution. However, little research has addressed student conduct administrators as professionals and no research has explored their decision-making process. This qualitative study examined eight student conduct administrators and how they make decisions in their positions through the concepts of justice and care. These individuals were employed at large public research institutions at mid-level, working full time in student conduct. In-depth interviews were utilized to collect data that were categorized and evaluated through the lenses of justice, based on the framework of Kohlberg, and care, based on the framework of Gilligan. The findings indicated that student conduct administrators used both justice and care in their decision making. Justice was seen primarily through the findings phase of the student conduct process, when a student conduct administrator must determine whether the student code of conduct has been violated. Care was seen primarily through the sanctioning phase, when a student conduct administrator must decide what outcome should occur if the student has violated the code of conduct. The findings suggest that gender had no impact on the use of justice and care, as all participants used both concepts.

It can be argued that perceptions of the quality of the nation's universities are fundamental to Australia's economy. At a time when universities are competing more and more in a global marketplace, reputation is a key factor in attracting students, and therefore funding. When reputations are called into question, the sustainability of institutions becomes uncertain. Scandals surrounding academic dishonesty in Australia have not been uncommon in recent years. In response, universities have demonstrated an increasing awareness of the problem and a move toward updating or instigating policies to deal with it. However, the evidence base for such policy development is scant. Outside the USA, there have been few studies of academic dishonesty and virtually no large-scale, multi-campus research. The present research was designed to provide such an evidence base. Three studies were conducted to explore the extent and nature of dishonest academic behaviour, together with an investigation of factors which might precipitate students' engagement in these activities. In addition to variables which had previously been shown to be related to cheating, it was theorised that factors identified by General Strain Theory as being related to delinquency and general deviance, may also be associated with student cheating. A large-scale multi-campus survey was conducted (N= 9543; 11 universities). Findings were analysed to assess the extent of cheating amongst students and identify factors which contribute to these behaviours. Two qualitative studies followed which were designed to tap the experiences of, and understandings about, academic dishonesty of both staff and students. Overall the research established that levels of dishonest academic behaviours by the students in this study, while still worryingly high, are somewhat lower than those reported in the international literature. A number of risk factors for student engagement in dishonest behaviour were identified. Chief amongst these were the experience of stressful life events and the presence of dishonest peers. To a lesser, but still significant extent, were factors related to student age, year of enrolment, and field of study. Implications for addressing the problem at the level of policy development and strategic response are discussed.

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 was established to improve student achievement among all public school students. To accomplish this goal, this federal mandate requires each state to establish the seven set priorities under NCLB. In addition, each state is required to establish and report their accomplishments and failures annually. One priority listed under NCLB required that all public schools establish a safe learning environment for students, school staff, and parents (U.S. Government, 2001). Some researchers have identified a high frequency of student discipline incidents, resulting in high suspension and expulsion rates, as a negative constuct that hinders teachers from establishing a nurturing learning environment. As a result, students are unable to develop the skills they need to successfully pass their state-wide assessment test (Howard et. al., 1987; Hernandez & Seem, 2004). Therefore, this study was designed to determined if there is a relationship between incidents of student discipline and student achievement across public school districts in Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. For the purpose of this study, a hierarchical clustering analysis was used to create five clusters of school divisions (N=1,108) within the four states according to similiarities. To accomplish this task, a data matrix was created, which contains data of the total number of incidents for disorderly conduct, weapon violations, substance abuse, and violence; the number of students receiving free and reduced lunch; and the number of students by race/ethnicity for each school district within the four states. The findings indicate that there is a relationship between incidents of student discipline and student achievement among the four states. / Ph. D.

The Learning Partnerships Model (LPM) (Baxter Magolda and King, 2004) is a framework for promoting self-authorship. Self-authorship is a holistic development theory that employs three dimensions (epistemological, intrapersonal, interpersonal). The LPM can be tailored to a variety of academic tasks, including course design and curriculum development. The model has also been used in co-curricular settings to design community-standards programs, internship programs, and to improve academic advising. An exhaustive review of the literature on one particular co-curricular setting, the student conduct office, revealed studies about the conduct process and student outcomes achieved through that process but no research on student conduct and self-authorship. I explored how the principles of the LPM are evident in student conduct environments where learning is occurring. The sample consisted of student conduct environments at three institutions where students involved in the conduct process achieve learning outcomes that exceed the learning outcomes achieved by like students at other institutions based on a national quantitative assessment (NASCAP). I spent three days on each campus, observing office operations that included 21 conduct hearings. I interviewed every hearing officer in the three student conduct offices (n=8). I found that the principles of the LPM were evident in these environments. Hearing officers created conditions for learning and development to occur. Specifically hearing officers' engaged in four key behaviors that support the principles of the LPM. They created a connection with the student, sought to understand the conduct incident, provided encouragement, and promoted learning and autonomy. Hearing officers purposefully built a welcoming environment in order to solicit information that would enable them to understand students' lived experiences and developmental capacities. They partnered with students to create expectations for future behavior that encouraged student autonomy and accountability. These actions by hearing officers created conditions intentionally to promote learning and development. The findings provide tangible strategies that can be used in the student conduct process to promote self-authorship. / Ph. D.

abstract: The goal of higher education institutions is to provide access to quality education along with adequate support so students can achieve personal and academic success. At the same time, institutions are increasingly responsible for ensuring a safe and inclusive learning environment. To support this, universities respond to allegations of violations of the student code of conduct through a variety of conduct models. The use of restorative practices, an approach of responding to criminal or judicial violations with an emphasis on repairing relationships and reintegration into the community, has been implemented into existing university student conduct models across the nation with success. Student Rights and Responsibilities (SRR) conduct administrators at Arizona State University expressed feeling unprepared to engage in restorative conversations with students during conduct meetings. As a response, training modules on restorative justice theory and practices were created as a staff development engagement opportunity for SRR conduct administrators. This mixed methods action research study was conducted to investigate the inclusion of restorative dialogue in conduct meetings, factors that influence the incorporation of restorative dialogue into professional practice, and conduct administrator satisfaction with staff development training modules. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected through pre-, post-, and follow-up training survey assessments, one-on-one interviews with conduct administrators, observation of student conduct meetings, and observation of staff development training sessions. Findings suggested that conduct administrators responded positively to staff development training on restorative justice practices. Analysis of quantitative data suggests that conduct administrators increased their self-reported knowledge of training topics, including restorative justice philosophy and practices. Further, conduct administrators, to an extent, incorporated restorative practices into conduct meetings. The most frequently observed practice was the use of restorative questions during conduct meetings. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Leadership and Innovation 2016

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For several decades music educators have proposed that the study of music has a significant impact on student academic achievement, attendance rates, and student conduct. In an era of higher student and teacher accountability, increasing budget cuts, the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and stringent state standards of learning, a number of educators have argued that education in music can boost test scores, attendance, attitudes toward school, reduce discipline referrals, and increase overall academic achievement. The purpose of this study was to quantify general education claims by examining high school academic achievement data, attendance rates, and student conduct of the 2006 graduating class in one Southeast Virginia school division. In addition, this study briefly explores the impact that music education has on the human brain and on academic achievement at the elementary school and secondary school levels. Moreover, influences that integrating music has on academic achievement in general education courses, arts integration programs, and elements of an effective music education program are explored. Specific research studies provide evidence to support key concepts and the need for additional research. The research design includes the independent variables: subject and number of years enrolled in formal music courses or no formal music courses, gender, ethnicity, and enrollment in formal music courses or no formal music courses in high school, grades nine through twelve. The dependent variables include: academic achievement as measured by grade twelve weighted cumulative grade point average (GPA), attendance rate as measured by the number of absences in grade twelve, and student conduct as measured by the number of discipline referrals in grade nine through grade twelve. Four research questions were used to explore academic achievement, attendance rate, and student conduct with regard to music or no music courses taken in grades nine through twelve. Ethnicity and gender were reported using the common dependent variables among participants in three populations " entire study population, music population, and non music population. Conclusions were based upon sophisticated statistical tests including descriptive and inferential statistics, correlations, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and regression statistics. These tests confirmed the four research questions and null hypotheses that music students out perform their non music counterparts in academic achievement, attendance rate, and student conduct. Although the studied school division does not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences, music students had fewer days absent than non music students. / Ph. D.

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