As the United States struggles to be globally competitive with the number of students completing a college degree higher education leaders continue seeking answers to improving student retention and graduation rates. Decades of research has been conducted on investigating factors that impact student retention and graduation with the majority of that research being centered on student attributes and students’ precollege characteristics. Research has been limited on institutional characteristics and their associations with student retention and graduation rates. Therefore the purpose of this study was to examine the extent that specific institutional characteristics predict first-year, full-time, fall-to-fall retention rates and 6-year graduation rates. The sample for this study consisted of 4-year institutions in the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) region that have been granted Level III accreditation status and also report data annually to the Integrated Postsecondary Data System (IPEDS). All data used for this research were publicly available archival data available from IPEDS. Sixteen research questions were investigated about institutional student variables, environment variables, resource variables, financial variables, and interaction variables. Multiple linear regressions were conducted for all research questions, representing the statistical method of analysis. The findings showed that the most useful predictors for retention rates were students scoring at or above the 75th percentile ACT scores, physical library collections, expenditures for academic support, and tuition and required fees. When investigating to what extent institutional characteristics predict 6-year graduation rates the findings showed that 75th percentile ACT scores, physical library collections, expenditures for instruction, the percentage of full-time faculty, and cost were the most useful predictors. Findings also showed that student-faculty ratios and the percentage of full-time faculty were not significant predictors for student retention. Some institutional predictor variables may be significant predictors for both retention rates and graduation rates, while other predictor variables may be significant predictors for only one of the criterion variables.

Amid declining state funding, do public universities seek alternative revenue streams to keep tuition and fees down? Is such diversification only a public university phenomenon? If both private and public schools are seeking new sources of revenue, then state appropriations may not be the impetus. Instead, institutional characteristics may have a greater influence. In addition, would those higher education institutions (HEIs) with a greater propensity to generate alternative revenue have a greater rate of survival? I examine HEIs by sector using the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from fiscal years 2003–2004 through 2016–2017 and provide future researchers with guidance on its use. Controlling for different states’ policies, politics, and fiscal health, I find that institutional characteristics influence certain HEIs to seek alternative revenue streams and that these characteristics often strengthen the relationship between state appropriations and alternative revenue sources. Furthermore, the findings suggest that generating alternative revenue, as I define it, may play a role in the survival of HEIs. / Business Administration/Accounting

Esta pesquisa objetiva investigar a relação entre as características institucionais dos países de origem das empresas, que adotam IFRS, e a evidenciação das provisões e passivos contingentes ambientais. Com base na Teoria Institucional, espera-se que as características institucionais dos países exerçam pressões sobre as práticas de evidenciação, indo de encontro aos objetivos do IASB de comparabilidade em nível global. A pesquisa tem como amostra 614 observações de 123 companhias do Brasil, Canadá, Reino Unido, França, Alemanha, Austrália e China, de setores que exploram o meio ambiente com mais intensidade. O período de análise compreende os anos de 2011 a 2015. Para a coleta de dados relativos à evidenciação de provisões ambientais e passivos contingentes ambientais (variáveis dependentes), utilizou-se a técnica análise de conteúdo nas notas explicativas das Demonstrações Financeiras anuais, com o intuito de gerar índices de disclosure, com a comparação do que é divulgado pelas companhias e as disposições sobre evidenciação da norma IAS 37. As outras informações (variáveis independentes) foram também coletadas nas Demonstrações Financeiras das companhias e nos indicadores emitidos pelo World Economic Forum, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators e pelo estudo de Hofstede (1980). Para identificar a relação entre a variável dependente e as variáveis independentes, empregou-se regressões com dados em painel com modelos estimados por meio da técnica de efeitos aleatórios. Posteriormente, avaliou-se a comparabilidade de maneira específica para cada uma das informações, por meio de Índices de Uniformidade, objetivando encontrar as principais dissimilaridades nas práticas de reporte. Os resultados obtidos com as regressões com dados em painel mostraram que o disclosure de provisões ambientais está relacionado com as variáveis de interesse dos sistemas político, financeiro e cultural do país de origem das empresas. No entanto, em relação a passivos contingentes ambientais, apenas a variável de interesse do sistema financeiro apresentou relação estatisticamente significativa com a variável dependente. As evidências de isomorfismo coercitivo e mimético encontradas permitem inferir que a evidenciação de passivos ambientais está relacionada com fatores múltiplos e conflitantes com o escopo de comparabilidade do IASB, o que prejudica este objetivo e sinaliza a não comparabilidade. Os achados da avaliação dos Índices de Uniformidade mostraram que há baixa comparabilidade em várias informações evidenciadas, tanto na dimensão within-country, quanto na dimensão between-countries e sugerem que a institucionalização das práticas de reporte encontra-se no estágio de objetificação. A principal conclusão deste trabalho é a de que, apesar de existirem pressões normativas para a existência da comparabilidade, há pressões institucionais conflitantes de outros atores sociais, de caráter coercitivo e mimético, fazendo com que as empresas, em busca de legitimidade, conduzam suas práticas de reporte estrategicamente, indo de encontro aos objetivos do IASB. / The aim of this research was to investigate the relationship between institutional characteristics of companies\' countries of origin that adopt IFRS and the disclosure of environmental provisions and contingent liabilities. Based on the Institutional Theory, it was expected that the institutional characteristics of countries would exert pressures on disclosure practices, meeting the IASB\'s objectives of comparability at the global level. The study sampled 614 observations from 123 companies from Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia and China, from sectors that exploit the environment with greater intensity. The period of analysis comprises the years 2011 to 2015. For data collection related to the disclosure of environmental provisions and environmental contingent liabilities (dependent variables), the content analysis was used in the notes of the Annual Financial Statements aiming at generating disclosure indices by comparing what is disclosed by companies and the disclosure provisions of IAS 37. The other information (independent variables) was also collected in the companies\' Financial Statements and in the indicators issued by the World Economic Forum, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators and the study by Hofstede (1980). To identify the relationship between the dependent variable and the independent variables, regressions with panel data were used, with models estimated using the random-effect technique. Subsequently, the comparability was evaluated in a specific way for each of the information through Uniformity Indices aiming at finding the main dissimilarities in the reporting practices. The results obtained with panel-data regressions showed the disclosure of environmental provisions related to the variables of interest of political, financial and cultural systems of the country of origin of the companies. However, regarding the environmental contingent liabilities, only the variable of interest of financial system showed statistically significant relation with the dependent variable. The evidence of coercive and mimetic isomorphism found allows us to infer that the disclosure of environmental liabilities is related to multiple factors and conflicting with the IASB\'s comparability objective, compromising it and signaling non-comparability. The findings of the evaluation of Uniformity Indices showed low comparability in several disclosed information, both in the within-country dimension and in the between-countries dimension, and suggest that the institutionalization of reporting practices is at the objectification stage. The main conclusion of this study is that, although there are normative pressures for the existence of comparability, there are conflicting institutional pressures of other social actors, of a coercive and mimetic character, making companies, in search of legitimacy, conduct their reporting practices strategically, contrary to the objectives of the IASB.

Esta pesquisa objetiva investigar a relação entre as características institucionais dos países de origem das empresas, que adotam IFRS, e a evidenciação das provisões e passivos contingentes ambientais. Com base na Teoria Institucional, espera-se que as características institucionais dos países exerçam pressões sobre as práticas de evidenciação, indo de encontro aos objetivos do IASB de comparabilidade em nível global. A pesquisa tem como amostra 614 observações de 123 companhias do Brasil, Canadá, Reino Unido, França, Alemanha, Austrália e China, de setores que exploram o meio ambiente com mais intensidade. O período de análise compreende os anos de 2011 a 2015. Para a coleta de dados relativos à evidenciação de provisões ambientais e passivos contingentes ambientais (variáveis dependentes), utilizou-se a técnica análise de conteúdo nas notas explicativas das Demonstrações Financeiras anuais, com o intuito de gerar índices de disclosure, com a comparação do que é divulgado pelas companhias e as disposições sobre evidenciação da norma IAS 37. As outras informações (variáveis independentes) foram também coletadas nas Demonstrações Financeiras das companhias e nos indicadores emitidos pelo World Economic Forum, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators e pelo estudo de Hofstede (1980). Para identificar a relação entre a variável dependente e as variáveis independentes, empregou-se regressões com dados em painel com modelos estimados por meio da técnica de efeitos aleatórios. Posteriormente, avaliou-se a comparabilidade de maneira específica para cada uma das informações, por meio de Índices de Uniformidade, objetivando encontrar as principais dissimilaridades nas práticas de reporte. Os resultados obtidos com as regressões com dados em painel mostraram que o disclosure de provisões ambientais está relacionado com as variáveis de interesse dos sistemas político, financeiro e cultural do país de origem das empresas. No entanto, em relação a passivos contingentes ambientais, apenas a variável de interesse do sistema financeiro apresentou relação estatisticamente significativa com a variável dependente. As evidências de isomorfismo coercitivo e mimético encontradas permitem inferir que a evidenciação de passivos ambientais está relacionada com fatores múltiplos e conflitantes com o escopo de comparabilidade do IASB, o que prejudica este objetivo e sinaliza a não comparabilidade. Os achados da avaliação dos Índices de Uniformidade mostraram que há baixa comparabilidade em várias informações evidenciadas, tanto na dimensão within-country, quanto na dimensão between-countries e sugerem que a institucionalização das práticas de reporte encontra-se no estágio de objetificação. A principal conclusão deste trabalho é a de que, apesar de existirem pressões normativas para a existência da comparabilidade, há pressões institucionais conflitantes de outros atores sociais, de caráter coercitivo e mimético, fazendo com que as empresas, em busca de legitimidade, conduzam suas práticas de reporte estrategicamente, indo de encontro aos objetivos do IASB. / The aim of this research was to investigate the relationship between institutional characteristics of companies\' countries of origin that adopt IFRS and the disclosure of environmental provisions and contingent liabilities. Based on the Institutional Theory, it was expected that the institutional characteristics of countries would exert pressures on disclosure practices, meeting the IASB\'s objectives of comparability at the global level. The study sampled 614 observations from 123 companies from Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia and China, from sectors that exploit the environment with greater intensity. The period of analysis comprises the years 2011 to 2015. For data collection related to the disclosure of environmental provisions and environmental contingent liabilities (dependent variables), the content analysis was used in the notes of the Annual Financial Statements aiming at generating disclosure indices by comparing what is disclosed by companies and the disclosure provisions of IAS 37. The other information (independent variables) was also collected in the companies\' Financial Statements and in the indicators issued by the World Economic Forum, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators and the study by Hofstede (1980). To identify the relationship between the dependent variable and the independent variables, regressions with panel data were used, with models estimated using the random-effect technique. Subsequently, the comparability was evaluated in a specific way for each of the information through Uniformity Indices aiming at finding the main dissimilarities in the reporting practices. The results obtained with panel-data regressions showed the disclosure of environmental provisions related to the variables of interest of political, financial and cultural systems of the country of origin of the companies. However, regarding the environmental contingent liabilities, only the variable of interest of financial system showed statistically significant relation with the dependent variable. The evidence of coercive and mimetic isomorphism found allows us to infer that the disclosure of environmental liabilities is related to multiple factors and conflicting with the IASB\'s comparability objective, compromising it and signaling non-comparability. The findings of the evaluation of Uniformity Indices showed low comparability in several disclosed information, both in the within-country dimension and in the between-countries dimension, and suggest that the institutionalization of reporting practices is at the objectification stage. The main conclusion of this study is that, although there are normative pressures for the existence of comparability, there are conflicting institutional pressures of other social actors, of a coercive and mimetic character, making companies, in search of legitimacy, conduct their reporting practices strategically, contrary to the objectives of the IASB.

This research study was conducted to determine if there was a difference in community college graduation rates based on aggregate faculty hires, aggregate faculty retention and community college size. The study employed a non-experimental quantitative research design with three independent variables (aggregate faculty new hires, aggregate faculty retention and community college size) and one dependent variable (graduation rate). The study utilized a one way ANOVA, independent t test, and factorial ANOVA to analyze differences in graduation rates based on aggregate faculty new hires, aggregate faculty retention, and community college size. Results of the one way ANOVA revealed statistically significant differences in graduation rates based on the level of faculty new hires and community college size. Results of the independent t test failed to show statistically significant differences in graduation based on the level of aggregate faculty retention. Results of the factorial ANOVA revealed statistically significant differences between the interaction of aggregate faculty new hires and community college size as well as aggregate faculty retention and community college size.

No description available.

The problem this study addressed is the relationship between Clery Act crime data and student recruitment at private colleges and universities. For this quantitative study, I used secondary data from the Department of Education and the Delta Cost Project (2013) to conduct ordinary least squares regression analyses to determine the predictive ability of institutional characteristics, specifically the total number of crime incidents reported in compliance with the Clery Act, on the variance in number of applications and applicant yield rate at private four-year institutions in the United States. Findings showed that the total number of reported incidents was a significant positive predictor of the total number of applications. Conversely, findings also showed that the total number of incidents had a significant negative impact on institutional yield rates. An implication of this study is that although crime statistics required by the Clery Act may not serve as variables used in the student application process, they are part of numerous variables used in the student's decision to enroll at a particular school. The findings highlight the importance of prioritizing and investing in safety and security measures designed to reduce rates of crime; especially for private, enrollment-driven institutions of higher education.