This study explored institutional expenditure allocations to functional areas to determine whether or not any statistically significant relationships exist between expenditure allocations and graduation rates. As Ryan (2004) has noted, such research may be useful in enhancing existing student success theories. This study focused primarily on the factors that institutions control, such as expenditure allocations, as opposed to those they do not control, like student and institutional characteristics. This study used 22 regression equations to analyze public, four-year colleges and universities by size, Carnegie Classification, and classification as Minority-Serving institutions (based on whether or not the institution was designated as a Historically Black College or University, a Hispanic-Serving Institution, or a Predominantly White Institution) to determine whether or not these factors provided additional insight for a predictive model. This study also examined relationships between expenditures and four- and six-year graduation rates. Exploring these relationships is particularly important because there is growing concern about the amount of time students take to complete an undergraduate degree. Like previous research on the topic, this study found significant relationships between institutional expenditures and student success. However, there was no single expenditure variable that was a significant predictor of graduation rate in every model and none of the significant expenditure variables had positive impacts on the graduation rate dependent variables. Research Expenditures was the expenditure variable most commonly found to have a negative and significant relationship with graduation rate, followed by Scholarships and Fellowships Expenditures. This study also found that when the overall and stratified models with different dependent variables are compared, the same independent variables hold their significance or lack of significance. These findings indicate that although the six-year graduation rate models are stronger than the four-year models (with the exception of Bachelors institutions), as evidenced by R2s that increased 3-8%, the significance of the control and expenditure variables stays the same. As such, one cannot reasonably conclude that institutions could manipulate expenditure allocations to decrease students' time-to-degree. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / April 12, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert A. Schwartz, Professor Directing Dissertation; Diana Rice, University Representative; Kathy Guthrie, Committee Member; Sande Milton, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_183061 |
| Contributors | Peerenboom, Jill (authoraut), Schwartz, Robert A. (professor directing dissertation), Rice, Diana (university representative), Guthrie, Kathy (committee member), Milton, Sande (committee member), Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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