<p> This qualitative study explored the experiences of African American collegiate women during a service learning program to the non-traditional study abroad location of Indonesia. The Integrated Model of College Choice, Human Capital Theory, and Experiential Learning Theory formulated the conceptual model and theoretical framework undergirding this research endeavor. The literature review comprised a discussion of non-traditional study abroad locations, study abroad trends of underrepresented groups, navigation of the study abroad decision process, and service learning as a study abroad option. Four research questions explored participants&rsquo; descriptions of the experience, social and cultural challenges encountered, changes and learning outcomes achieved, and recommendations for improvement. The findings from individual interviews, a focus group, and a document review yielded four emergent themes, including the development of transnational competence, personal growth and transformation, service learning programmatic considerations, and diversity perspectives. </p><p> Conclusions of this study indicated that transnational competence was developed by interacting and communicating through a language barrier and gaining exposure to different social and cultural norms, living conditions, religious beliefs, and educational system. Adaptability, flexibility, empathy, respect, and appreciation were achieved learning outcomes and contributed to the development of a global skill set helping students navigate cross-cultural dynamics. </p><p> Students&rsquo; articulation of preparedness, a broadened worldview, and the desire for future international endeavors demonstrated that a short-term service learning study abroad opportunity yielded transnational competence. Students&rsquo; experiences of diversity abroad highlighted the relative absence of African American collegiate women from the study abroad landscape in a non-traditional location. The higher education apparatus has a role in reversing the trend of low African American college student participation in study abroad by addressing programmatic considerations, including the provision of more information, improved program planning, and the availability of financing. Creating an institutional culture in which international education is a strategic priority, expectation, and norm can develop students&rsquo; transnational competence and positions African American students more competitively for academic and professional success in a globalized world.</p>

<p> As the gap between the haves and have-nots widens, the call for reform in higher education in the United States intensifies. Policy actors, philanthropists, and academics from across the political spectrum work on various policy solutions, creating a policy environment that is complex and often contentious. Incrementalists claim that major policy reform is unlikely since unknown variables and inexplicable events can stall or dismantle policy initiatives. In such environments, policy entrepreneurs&mdash;those individuals who advocate for policy innovation, work for change, and help shape policy solutions from within and without government&mdash;try to break through the barriers of incremental politics. As important as this role is to the influencing and structuring of higher educational policy, it has not yet been explored. This study fills this gap in the extant literature by cataloging the characteristics and skills that enable higher education policy entrepreneurs at the state and national levels to persevere and accomplish sustainable and innovative higher education reforms over time.</p><p> The study employed a descriptive, revelatory, single-case study research design (Yin, 1994) interpreted from the postpositivist paradigm (Creswell, 2007). The major source of data, drawn from 23 interviews with policy entrepreneurs from across the United States, was triangulated with document reviews and a multi-level coding strategy. Then the data were framed by the research questions and juxtaposed against nine propositions extracted from the extant literature to derive the study findings.</p><p> The policy entrepreneurs in this study are creative political leaders with a passion for improving educational opportunity. They are adaptable, pragmatic on details of policy shaping, and use the means available to them to influence. Policy entrepreneurs don&rsquo;t work in isolation; rather, they are network dependent. They value collaboration and seek to develop relationships and create opportunities to advocate for policy innovations that benefit students before institutions or organizations, taking calculated risks with interminable patience, and making sacrifices for their cause. They have learned to listen, compromise, reach across the aisle, strategize, and recognize windows of opportunity. They work hard to build credibility and trust. Workplace mentorships and peer relationships are a major source of their learning and development.</p>

<p> The purpose of this case study was to explore the quality enhancement plan (QEP) process and its influence on student learning of critical thinking and the institutional environment from the perspective of key stakeholders at two community colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (the Commission). Key stakeholders were defined as faculty, staff, and administrators who had direct and continuous involvement with the development and/or implementation of the QEP. This was accomplished through document reviews and analysis of interviews. The study was guided by intertwined quality assurance systems&mdash;accountability, accreditation, and assessment, and six of Deming&rsquo;s (1986) total quality management principles. These principles are: (1) customer, (2) training and development, (3) teamwork, (4) measurement, (5) improvement, and (6) leadership (Bosner, 1992; Deming, 1986; Marchese, 1991; Sallis, 2002).</p><p> The study suggests that as a result of accountability from multiple entities, quality in higher education and how the definition of quality includes student learning assessment, continues to be important to the Commission. The QEP process was developed to assist institutions with educational quality and improving effectiveness. Based on the study findings, the QEP process can have a positive influence on student learning of critical thinking and result in constructive and effective changes for an institution. The study also reveals the current QEP process could benefit from incorporating the strategy of identifying both internal and external direct measures of student learning within the QEP assessment plan and the Commission including a <i>use assessment results</i> section as a requirement for the QEP Impact Report.</p><p> The study confirms the importance of accountability, accreditation, and assessment, but the six TQM principles are not as significant as anticipated. Instead of all six principles surfacing as themes at the two public community colleges, teamwork was the only common theme. However, there was evidence of all six TQM principles at each college. Recommendations for the Commission, institutions of higher education, and recommendations for future research are presented.</p>

<p> The Relationship between Deans' Transformational Leadership Skills and Student Graduation Rates in Vocational Colleges by Sumer Avila The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to investigate the relationship between San Joaquin Valley College deans&rsquo; transformational leadership skills and student graduation rates, as measured by the Transformational Leadership Skills Inventory (TLSi). Additionally, this study sought to determine why specific transformational leadership skills, if any, impacted student graduation rates based on the personal experiences of the deans. Transformational leadership skills were measured using the Transformational Leadership Skills Inventory (TLSi), a 360-degree survey that gathers data from up to five stakeholder groups. The TLSi measures 10 elements of leadership: Character/Integrity, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity and Sustained Innovation, Diversity, Personal/Interpersonal Skills, Political Intelligence, Problem-solving/Decision-making, Team-building, and Visionary Leadership. The TLSi results and student graduation rate data were used to address the first 11 research questions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to address research question #12. The quantitative components of this study were measured with a convenience sample, and snowball sampling was used for the qualitative component. The findings indicated that three of the transformational leadership skills (Character and Integrity, Personal and Interpersonal Skills, and Team Building) have a mild positive relationship with student graduation rates; but there is no relationship between the remaining seven transformational leadership skills (Collaboration, Communication, Creativity and Sustained Innovation, Diversity, Political Intelligence, Problem Solving and Decision Making, and Visionary Leadership ) and student graduation rates. In addition, this study found that there was little difference between the deans and their employees&rsquo; ratings of the deans&rsquo; transformational leadership skills. Qualitative findings indicated Personal and Interpersonal skills of Deans foster relationships with faculty and students positively impacting student graduation rates. Based upon the findings and conclusions from the study, recommendations were made regarding the utilization of college leader training programs.</p>

<p> Within the field of undergraduate program assessment, anecdotal evidence abounds about negative faculty attitudes. Regardless of the common wisdom, there is little research that corroborates these reports. If reports are correct that faculty resistance is wide spread, it is still not clear if that resistance is toward accreditation, professional development, institutional requirements, other calls for accountability, or assessment. In fact, faculty members can be seen as spending much of their careers assessing: Faculty members routinely assess their students, a textbook they are using, whether the curriculum has adequately prepared students for the next class or their careers, and more. Faculty attitudes toward program assessment remain unclear and largely uninvestigated.</p><p> The focus of this study is based on 18 interviews of faculty members in three programs of study at a large, research-intensive, land grant institution. The approach is socially constructivist in nature; the theoretical lens is that faculty members have constructed concepts of assessment and that their constructions inform their participation. The study provides information about faculty attitudes toward assessment with a nuanced understanding toward the factors that influence their attitudes. The study reveals that faculty members view student learning outcome assessment as a call for accountability, a reaction that supports their fear that the information they provide will be used to cut positions and programs of study. When assessment is initiated within the program, however, faculty willingly participate to gain the information that assessment provides to improve their curriculum and their teaching. Additionally, how faculty construct their understanding of assessment is related to the epistemological foundations of their disciplines.</p><p> The study adds to the body of literature on faculty attitudes toward assessment. Next steps include incorporating faculty perspective and participation into the assessment process. Additional research will reveal the support needed for faculty to engage in assessment and for institutions to support that engagement. </p>

<p> This quasi-experimental quantitative research study examined factors affecting students' decisions to drop out from developmental mathematics courses at a community college in California. Three major variables were utilized in this study: the independent variables of academic challenge, degree of dissatisfaction, and personal reasons; the covariates of age, ethnicity, gender, GPA, and marital status; and a dependent variable in the form of the dropout decision. The study sought to determine if the independent variables, along with the covariates, had predictive significance on student decisions to drop out from developmental mathematics courses at a community college in California. Data for this research was obtained by using a specially designed questionnaire of the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) Questionnaire for Non-returning Students (Bower &amp; Meyers, 1979). The data was collected during the Fall 2013, Summer 2013, and Spring 2013. semesters. A total of 560 students were surveyed from both the Lancaster and Palmdale campuses of Antelope Valley College. Out of this number, 338 were female and 221 were male.</p><p> The PAWS Statistics 18.0 statistical package was used for this study. The chi-square test, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) test were also utilized for bivariate analysis of the data. The logistic regression analysis method was the major multivariate analysis method utilized for the study. Results from the logistic regression analysis indicated that there was a statistically significant relationship between students' academic challenge and dropout decision (<i>X</i>² ( 5, 560) = 26.824, p = .003). The variable in the equation indicated that <i>inadequate study time </i> had a significant overall effect (Wald = 6.101, df = 1, p = .014); and the Exp (B) column indicated that the less time a student used for study the greater the chance the student would drop out from developmental mathematics; <i> course not challenging</i> also had a significant overall effect (Wald = 9.046, df= 1, p = .0003).</p><p> The results of the Omnibus Tests (<i>X</i>² (13, 560) = 29.454, and p = .006) also revealed a statistically significant relationship between dropout decision and students' <i>personal reasons </i>. These results showed that <i>personal reasons</i> was a significant predictor of dropout decision. Furthermore, examination of the Homers and Lemeshow Test (p = .099) supported the finding that the full model with <i>personal reasons</i> was a good fit and that personal reasons was a significant predictor of dropout decision. From the variable in the equation in, <i>study too time consuming</i> had a significant overall effect (Wald = 4.408, df = 1, p = .036).</p><p> No statistical relationship was found between students' degree of dissatisfaction and students' dropout decision, or between student characteristics such as age, ethnicity, gender, GPA, and marital status, and students' dropout decision. </p><p> The analysis, interpretation, and discussion of these results contributed to existing literature on students' dropout decision. The results of this research study also suggest the need for more research to be conducted on the subject of dropout decision from mathematics courses in community colleges. The study also revealed specific categories within the <i>academic challenge and personal reasons</i> scales that contributed most to the dropout models.</p>

<p> Foster youth face significant challenges as they navigate higher education; estimated rates of those who obtain Bachelor Degrees vary from 1 to 11% (Casey Family Services, 1999; Emerson, 2006; Pecora et al., 2003). Grounded in identity, attachment, development, and student success theories and rooted in relational cultural therapy, this proposed program applies components to help counter and shrink the achievement gap of foster youth. Utilizing case management, a mentoring program, and across-system collaboration and communication, educational outcomes for foster youth can be improved, avenues for positive and consistent interpersonal adult connections can be provided, and access to existing services across campus, local, and county systems for foster youth attending a community colleges can be improved. The challenges facing foster youth, associated theories and proposed intervention components are examined and supported by the literature. Intervention strengths, limitations, and implications are also explored.</p>

<p> Christian college environments remain connected to Biblical doctrine that can create a challenge for student affairs practitioners responsible for supporting all students but then instructed to take &ldquo;corrective&rdquo; (e.g., disciplinary) action against LGBTQ students. This study examined experiences of ten student affairs staff at Christian campuses negotiating institutional context, professional relationships, and personal values when interacting with LGBTQ students. Interview data was organized along three themes: campus culture, tensions, and strategies to manage tension. Participants perceived campus culture as familial, but also as silent, fearful, and confusing on LGBTQ issues. Consequently, they experienced tensions between personal beliefs in serving students versus supporting institutional values about LGBTQ identity and behavior. Participants employed cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal strategies to negotiate these tensions and balance service to their institution with advocacy for LGBTQ students. Recommendations provided relate to staff development, graduate level training, and sustainability of the Christian college approach to human sexuality.</p>

<p> A significant issue facing high schools is preparing students for their transition to college. High school students who are the first in their family to attend college have more difficulties preparing for this transition. Studies have explored the transition experiences of first-generation college-going students participating in partnership programs, showing that not all program components strengthen the transition experience for this population (Domina &amp; Ruzek, 2012; Jordan, 2006; Watt et al., 2008). Since participation in these programs may contribute to a successful transition experience, it is crucial to expand our understanding of how participation helps these students overcome the numerous challenges in the transition process (Barnett et al., 2012; Choy, 2001).</p><p> This qualitative study involving interviews of 20 first-generation students examined how a district-level high school to community college readiness partnership program facilitated a successful transition from high school to community college for first-generation college-going students. The study drew on a conceptual framework involving cultural capital (Bourdieu &amp; Passeron, 1977) beyond the &ldquo;deficit&rdquo; model (Ovink &amp; Veazey, 2011), social capital (Coleman, 1988), and ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1977).</p><p> Participants described both partnership program components and individualized attention through human resource relationships as being pivotal contributors to their positive transition experience. Although participants stated that the partnership program addressed many barriers to support their successful transition to community college, their transition experience remained challenging at times. Participants shared that their parents&rsquo; inexperience with the college process gave them a feeling of &ldquo;being on their own&rdquo; during the transition from high school to community college. As a whole, however, participants stated that they had a successful high school to community college transition because the partnership program gave them the background knowledge they needed. In addition, participants shared that with guidance from the partnership program, they felt more prepared than they would have had they not participated in the partnership program.</p><p> Based on participants&rsquo; transition experiences, this study offers a deeper understanding of the aspects of the partnership program that support a successful transition experience, with implications for existing and future programs, as well as policy.</p>

<p> Senior Academic Leaders&rsquo; Involvement in and Interpretation of the Presidential Transition Process at Private, Selective, Nonprofit Colleges and Universities: Analyzed Through an Organizational Decision-Making Framework This study described, interpreted, and analyzed the way in which senior academic leaders were involved in the presidential transition process at private, selective, nonprofit colleges and universities. This topic was important to study because senior academic leaders&rsquo; interpretations of organizational decision-making provides insight into the way colleges and universities deal with tension between academic values and economic forces. </p><p> The study addressed one research question: What is the role of senior academic leaders (i.e., provost or vice president for academic affairs) in the various phases of the presidential transition process at private, selective, nonprofit colleges and universities? There was one analytical question: How did the senior academic leaders describe the decision-making process during the various phases of the presidential transition process? </p><p> There is a lack of empirical research about presidential transition processes in higher education. This study, therefore, relied heavily on research from other discourses and narratives of practitioners. It connected literature about leadership transitions and the academic presidency in order to examine how the transition process can support a newly appointed president. This study was conducted using a basic interpretive design consistent with a constructivist research paradigm. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with 19 senior academic leaders from 19 different institutions. </p><p> The data were coded and analyzed to identify 10 themes consistent with the literature reviewed. The 19 participants described their experiences in three phases (reflection, selection, and onboarding) of the presidential transition process. Participants reported being involved in the reflection phase of the process by leading and participating in planning processes. They reported serving as advocates for the academic program during the selection phase. The study also found that the role of senior academic leaders during the onboarding phase was to facilitate the development of relationships. The analysis was interpreted through the analytic framework of organizational decision-making. The study produced four findings, which indicated why decision-making processes were and were not present, identified tension between academic and market values during the transition, and showed how the transition process may affect a presidency. Recommendations were provided for practice and further research.</p>