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The purpose of this research was an analysis of the implementation of the federally mandated undergraduate desegregation criteria. This research looked at the development of policy at the federal level, and the subsequent response by the State of Virginia and Virginia Commonwealth University.;Virginia Commonwealth University was selected for this study for two reasons: (1) Virginia Commonwealth University is located in an urban setting which has the largest black population in the state, and (2) this institution has the largest target (identified by the state) of black enrollment than any other public senior institution in Virginia.;Retention strategies were used to measure the implementation of the federal criteria at the institutional level, and the Institutional Integration Scale was used to measure the minority student's academic and social integration with the institution.;It was hypothesized that: There is no statistically significant relationship between the perceived integration of minority and nonminority full-time freshmen students at Virginia Commonwealth University. In addition, several policy questions were addressed: (1) Do the minority retention programs developed by Virginia Commonwealth University incorporate the successful retention elements identified by the retention literature? (2) Do at least half of the freshmen minority students utilize the retention programs? (3) Do the responses of minority students to the Institutional Integration Scale reflect the minority student's participation in the retention programs developed at VCU? (4) Do the federally mandated undergraduate desegregation criteria set forth a policy that will help institutions develop minority retention strategies while meeting the complexity of student retention? and (5) Do the retention strategies outlined in "The Virginia Plan" provide public senior institutions with examples of successful retention programs or identify variables most likely to affect minority student retention?;In conclusion, there was insufficient evidence from the survey to reject the null hypothesis. The content analysis, however, revealed that the federal undergraduate desegregation criteria lacked elements of successful policy development. In addition, the federal policy lacked direction for the development of retention programs, and a clear understanding of higher education in general.;Policy must be succeeded by better policy built upon the preceding policy, rather than viewed as an end unto itself. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.).

The purpose of this study is to examine the influences certain factors have on the mathematical motivation beliefs of students in a predominantly African American setting. Mathematical motivation beliefs, for the purpose of this study, are defined as the components mathematical self-efficacy and mathematical value, both represented as dependent variables in the study. 4 independent variables were studied as potential influences regarding mathematical motivation beliefs. The variables included parental influences, teacher influences, mathematical anxiety, and the environment/setting. This research was conducted using 2 high schools in a rural area in East Mississippi. The 1st high school was predominantly African American and the 2nd high school was predominantly Caucasian. 4 scales were selected for this research study. The Mathematics Confidence Scale, developed by Dowling (1978), Mathematics Problems Performance Scale (Dowling, 1978), Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scale (Fennema, 1976), and My Class Activities Survey (MCA, Schweinle & Mims, 2009) were all used. Findings revealed that teacher influence predicted the mathematical motivation beliefs of students in a predominantly African American school environment the most. Findings also indicated that math anxiety significantly predicted math value and self-efficacy in both classroom environments. Lastly, findings revealed that mathematical problem solving was significantly predicted by mathematical self-efficacy for students in a predominantly African American environment.

The problem for this investigation was the extent to which instruction in the traditionally black colleges and universities was directed toward higher cognitive skills as perceived by teachers of United States history in these institutions. The purposes of the study were to determine whether teachers (1) in state supported as opposed to private black colleges, (2) in urban-based as opposed to non-urban-based black colleges, (3) at non-denominational as opposed to denominational black colleges, (4) of age forty or older as opposed to teachers under age forty at black colleges,(5) categorized according to gender at black colleges, (6) categorized as United States citizens as opposed to non-citizens at black colleges, and (7) taught at black colleges and those who taught at white colleges differed significantly in their reported efforts to promote higher cognitive development. The following conclusions were drawn: Teachers at black colleges, as well as black teachers and white teachers at black colleges appeared to recognize the need to develop the higher mental powers of theirs students. Emphasis upon higher cognitive development is not likely to vary significantly according to academic degrees attained by the teacher, the geographic area in which the teacher was reared, or the gender of the teacher. Graduates of black colleges who taught at black colleges were apparently more attuned to the need for teaching higher cognitive development than were other teachers at black colleges.

The purpose of this study is to define transculturalism by exploring the Black experience through collectivism/individualism, Black identity and the ability to be transcultural. The study included 83 male and female Black American, college students, graduate students and college graduates. The participants answered a 4-part survey that measured collectivism/individualism, Black identity, the ability to be transcultural and minority hardships. Results revealed that the Pre-encounter, Immersion, Emersion and Internalization phases of Black identity are predictors of minority hardships. There were also significant results for the Internalization phase of Black identity and the ability to be transcultural. In conclusion, Black Americans that are secure with their identity have the ability to become transcultural.

This dissertation examines the motivations behind black male "hoop dreams." Other scholars have argued that young black males in the United States are "pushed by poverty" and "pulled" by predominately white institutions to pursue the game of basketball as a means of escape from the difficulties of the inner city. While these deterministic accounts are illuminative, they strip these ballplayers of agency, attempting to explain the significance of basketball in their lives without considering their lived experiences. The result is that the wider scope of meaning and feeling that drives black males to crossover, spin, and stutter step on asphalt courts, is completely overlooked in the scholarly literature. To address this gap, I conducted an ethnographic study of Boston street basketball from 2010 to 2014. During participant observation and interviews, I learned that black males also go to inner city basketball courts to discover their humanity, to demonstrate to themselves and others that they possess something intangible not subject to the decay of urban life. Especially during times of crisis, these men turn themselves into choreographers of the court, playing this game in order to express grief, find hope, and revel in community. In this dissertation, I explore this deeper quest for human identity in inner city basketball through the lenses of religious studies, philosophy, and the reflexive sociology of Pierre Bourdieu. I argue that, while the practices of street basketball do express considerable symbolic violence, the actual experience of playing the game goes far beyond the simple enactment of stereotypical representations of black males as dumb jocks or uncontrollable animals. Religious studies in particular can speak to this deeper dimension of human agency on the asphalt, at the level of feeling, emotion, and the embodiment of what William James calls a "more." / 2023-11-30T00:00:00Z

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