Higher education is facing national calls for increased graduation and retention rates (Good, Halpin, & Halpin, 2000; Obama, 2009). In an effort to answer these calls, administrators are using peer mentoring programs to provide social, personal, and academic support to first-year students (Crisp & Cruz, 2009; Jacobi, 1991). This study drew on the disciplines of business, medicine, and higher education to demonstrate the prevalence of mentoring (Crisp & Cruz, 2009; Buddeberg-Fischer & Herta, 2006; Scandura, 1992). Focusing on the area of higher education, the existing literature supports the positive effects of peer mentoring for mentees, but there is a dearth of information regarding the lived experiences of undergraduate peer mentors. As institutions continue to seek ways to support students from underrepresented populations through the use of peer mentor programs, it is critical for administrators to clearly understand both sides of the mentoring relationship in order to use it as an effective educational tool. Moreover, peer mentor programs also utilize the unique influence peers possess in order to create supportive environments for underrepresented students. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the lived experiences of undergraduate peer mentors who served underrepresented students at a predominantly white institution. Utilizing a phenomenological approach, this study adapted the psychosocial and vocational functions of mentoring in relation to the development of the mentor in order to understand how peer mentors experienced their role, interactions with mentees, and feelings of connectedness to the institution (Kram & Isabella, 1985). Additionally, Schlossberg's transition theory, specifically the coping resources of the 4S's (situation, self, support, and strategies) were utilized to understand how peer mentors experienced their transition from mentee to mentor (Goodman, Schlossberg, & Anderson, 2006, Seidman, 2006). / text

This nested multi-site case study uses data from interviews with thirty underrepresented students to explore how these students experience elite universities. Although greater numbers of underrepresented students are enrolling in university than ever before, those from non-traditional backgrounds are largely excluded from elite universities. Elite universities in the United States, England, and Scotland are all striving for increasingly higher levels of excellence, status, and funding to raise and maintain their global positions as university rankings continue to affect student choice and perception of value. The expansion of higher education during the past several decades has fostered discussions pertaining to the social characteristics of the student body, and whether enough is being done to include individuals traditionally excluded from higher education. Simply developing widening participation initiatives, however, does not eliminate inequality in the university system. This thesis considers discussions relating to higher education expansion, development of widening participation policy, costs associated with higher education, and the social characteristics and constructions of the underrepresented student in the three nations. The four key findings resulting from the student interviews are organised into the three themes of economic, social, and cultural capital. The first finding was that the students who lacked accessible economic capital were unable to participate in social events. The inability to participate produced feelings of exclusion. The second key finding was that students who were most debt averse reported the least amount of debt. This debt aversion meant some students worked nearly full-time or strictly managed their income. The third key finding was that students who were able to minimise their social and cultural differences, such as changing their accent, were more likely to report feelings of belonging. The fourth key finding was that, although the widening participation policy agenda focuses predominately on economic disadvantage and access, very little attention is given to elite universities’ habitus, which perpetuate privilege and complicate feelings of belonging. One of the most pronounced areas for further research that has come out of this study is whether the fear of stigmatisation in identifying widening participation students outweighs the potential benefits in acknowledging and creating a community for those students. Ultimately, the hope of this study is that, by understanding the experiences of such students who gain access to an elite university, we can learn from their experiences and how, moving forward, not only help a greater number of underrepresented students to attend these elite universities, but also support those students throughout their university years.

This study investigated the academic self-efficacy and persistence goals of 72 diverse female Engineering majors. Social Cognitive Career Theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994) coupled with Practice Theory (Bourdieu, 1998) and Social Capital Theory (Lin, 1999) served as the theoretical framework. The relationships between social cognitive variables (engineering self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests) as well as the influence of contextual and cultural variables (perceived campus climate, distance from privilege, and access to resources) on female students' intent to persist in Engineering were examined. Hierarchical linear regression revealed that only outcome expectations significantly contributed to the prediction of female students' intent to persist in Engineering. Exploratory analysis revealed that outcome expectations were most influential in predicting Engineering self-efficacy. Including privilege and perception of campus climate into the model significantly predicted self-efficacy above and beyond the original SCCT variables. This study supports the addition of cultural contextual variables in the SCCT choice model and warrants future research with minority female populations. Key words: women in STEM, social cognitive career theory, privilege, persistence, underrepresented students

Student retention rates and graduation rates currently play a major role in measuring the success of institutions of higher education. To contribute to the likelihood of this success many institutions offer programs designed to increase the academic performance of their students especially those classified as incoming freshmen. Others are more focused and target those who are from underrepresented populations. Nonetheless not many programs have been designed to aid those students in the subsequent years that follow freshman year. The purpose of this research project was to determine if there are significant differences in the success of those students who participate in a multi-year program as opposed to those who participate in a program specifically designed for incoming freshmen. Additionally these 2 groups were compared with students who did not participate in either program. The participants in this study were classified within 3 groups: Quest for Success, Student Support Services, and nonprogram participants. Archival data were used to examine grade point averages, retention rates, and graduation rates. A random sample of 125 students from each of the 3 groups (375 total) was examined for the purposes of comparing mean grade point averages. For the purposes of comparing retention rates and graduation rates, however, the population was examined due to the manner in which data were provided. Additionally the use of the population provided more precise retention rates and graduation rates in this study. Findings of the study are congruent with the literature in terms of the role that outreach programs play in the success of underrepresented students. These results revealed that students in the multi-year program, Student Support Services, had significantly higher grade point averages, retention rates, and graduation rates when compared to Quest for Success (a 1-year incoming freshman program). Student Support Services also had significantly higher grade point averages and retention rates than nonprogram participants from underrepresented student populations. Furthermore there were no significant differences found in comparisons between Quest for Success and nonprogram participants.

ABSTRACT EXPLORING COLLEGE READINESS: SELF-PERCEPTIONS OF EARLY COLLEGE STUDENTS by Kim R. Ramsey-White Research shows that too many students are graduating from high school ill-prepared to be successful in the postsecondary environment. This study examined the high school experiences of dual-enrollment students who participated in an Early College High School, and how the students perceived their high school experiences in preparing them for college. Additionally the study sought to understand the role that social capital played in the students’ preparation for college. In-depth interviews with 13 African American students, some of whom were first-generation college attendees, were used to illuminate the student voice in an effort to learn how early college practices and strategies were beneficial and/or detrimental to their preparation for college. Data from the study were analyzed using a college readiness framework developed by David Conley (2007) which focuses on four dimensions of college readiness: (1) Key cognitive strategies, (2) academic content, (3) academic skills and behavior, and (4) contextual skills and awareness. Findings from the study indicate that the students’ Early College High School experiences increased their confidence as college students (key cognitive strategies), taught them the benefits of time management and working in study groups (academic skills and behavior), and provided meaningful relationships and social networks that allowed them to navigate the college application and financial aid processes (contextual skills and awareness). The students also expressed concern that there was very limited alignment between the high school academic courses and expectations and those in the postsecondary institutions they attended. The results of the study contribute to the scholarship on the Early College model.

<div> <div> <div> <p>Outreach initiatives are typically framed as informal learning environments that provide an opportunity to increase the participants’ interest in science. Research on chemistry outreach has primarily focused on designing and implementing demonstrations for outreach. Recent studies indicate student organizations are at the forefront of chemistry outreach, describing their outreach practices and facilitators’ conceptual understanding of demonstrations. Although leadership has been linked to success of groups and organizations, the leadership structure of student organizations is an understudied aspect of chemistry outreach. Here, we conceptualize student organizations participating in chemistry outreach as a community of practice (CoP) with the goal of expanding the chemistry education community’s knowledge of this CoP. Specifically, we aim to characterize leadership styles within the student organization in the context of an outreach event; and, to explore how factors related to diversity and inclusion play a role in boundary processes of the student organization as a CoP. Using a case study approach, we collected multiple sources of data, including the organization’s outreach practices, an assessment of leadership style, observations, and semi-structured interviews. Results indicate leaders of the student organization, particularly those in charge of planning outreach events, displayed behaviors associated with the transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles more frequently than behaviors associated with the transformational leadership style. This study also suggested students’ prior experiences related to gender, race/ethnicity, education and other outreach events play a role in their reasons for doing chemistry outreach, how they contribute to planning of events and how they interact with the audience of outreach events. As a long-term outcome for this study, the results can be used by national organizations to inform the development of new workshops for leadership training, with the purpose of teaching practices to leaders that can bring success to their chapter or local group. </p> </div> </div> </div>

The Mississippi State University leaderSTATE STEM program provides a variety of experiences for Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) high school cadets across three states: Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana, the majority from underrepresented demographic populations. LeaderSTATE STEM offers 5-day residential summer camps (N=6) for over 300 students annually. The camps utilize a variety of geosciences STEM activities to increase students' awareness of science and opportunities in geoscience careers. To evaluate the effectiveness of student attitudes towards science, the Test of Science Related Attitudes (TOSRA) instrument was used to ascertain changes in attitudes about science and society. Paired pre-post TOSRA survey results from 2014-2017 camp cycles (N= 1141 students) were analyzed for race, gender, and school correlations. Chi square analysis revealed only a scattered statistical improvement throughout the data (p = 0.05). More research is needed to determine whether the 5-day experience is too limited to result in high school students' attitudinal changes towards science, or whether the TOSRA instrument provides an appropriate assessment for the leaderSTATE STEM camps. A secondary assessment instrument was employed pre- and post-camp to ascertain the abilities of the students in their interpretation of graphically displayed data. That instrument assessed changes in the students' abilities in understanding basic data terminology and interpretation of data shown on graphs. Assessment was performed with a pre-camp - post-camp survey and analysis of change determined with a paired t-test with Cohen's d to determine effect size. A significant p value below 0.05 was determined for only one of six camps in 2016, and for three of six camps in 2017. In both years, Cohen's d effect size was small for two of six camps annually, and medium for all other camps. A follow-on weather data project was developed for, and implemented with, the students in the JROTC programs in the seven schools in the Jackson, Mississippi school district. That month-long project was an extension of topics introduced in the leaderSTATE summer camp program. Two schools performed well in both years of the project, two schools performed in the mid-range, and three schools underperformed in both years of the project.

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For the last 25 years, research on the effects of community colleges on baccalaureate degree attainment has concluded that community colleges drastically reduce the likelihood of attaining a bachelor's degree compared to the effects of four-year institutions on this likelihood. The thesis of this dissertation is that community colleges have been misjudged as institutions that tend to perpetuate social and economic stratification; what previous studies on the topic have found is based on systematic differences in the student populations. Community college students are consistently more at risk of failing academically than four-year students. Then, the positive impact that four-year colleges have on their students compared to the impact of two-year colleges is to a great extent due to the fact that four-year students tend to have more resources and means to handle college requirements than two-year students. The main challenges to analyze two- and four-year sector effects relies on identifying community college students who resemble four-year college students and then compare their outcomes. This dissertation expands on previous research that has only looked at the effect of community colleges on students' educational outcomes by including labor market outcomes. The analyses conducted in this study primarily relied on propensity score matching (PSM) and the Heckman two-stage estimation procedures to reduce bias in the analysis by accounting for non-random selection into the treatment. In addition, the analytic samples were disaggregated by gender and ethnicity. To estimate the effects of interest, a nationally representative sample that is longitudinal and panel in nature was used: The National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88).Results revealed that neither the two- nor the four-year sectors were able to help students with very low probabilities of graduation from a four-year college. A new financial aid approach that bridges merit-based and aid-based perspectives is proposed. Community colleges, by welcoming a greater proportion of first-time, full-time undergraduate students, many of whom are underrepresented in higher education, and by helping their students to perform similarly than four-year college students in the outcomes analyzed, are conceptualized as engines for mobility helping surpass economic and social stratification of opportunities in American society.

Precollege programs, such as Talent Search (TS), are widely used to increase college readiness skills, particularly among underrepresented students in higher education. The college examined in this study had implemented the TS program, but little empirical evidence existed about the efficacy of the program. The purpose of this ex-post facto quantitative study was to evaluate the effect that the local TS program has had on college readiness and success as measured by incoming freshmen placement exam scores and students' first-year grade point average (FYGPA). The theoretical framework for the study was Conley's 4 dimensions of college readiness designed to help students succeed beyond high school. The research questions explored the differences in the 2010, 2011, and 2012 Computer Adaptive Placement Assessment and Support System (COMPASS) reading and writing placement scores and FYGPA for TS program participants and non-TS participants. The balanced sample included all 120 local college students who had finished their freshman year. Independent sample t tests were conducted and no significant differences were found in FYGPA or COMPASS reading and writing scores based on program participation. To provide guidance to the local site administrators, the extant literature on precollege interventions and holistic approaches provided best practice recommendations for a white paper that included additional services not currently offered by the local TS program. Positive social change is supported through assuring appropriate precollege support that may lead to increased academic success for students, hence increasing the number of college graduates among this group.