Search Constraints

Start Over
Filtering by: Subject Higher education Remove constraint Subject: Higher education

Search Results

  • The Color of Education: A Quantitative Examination of Racial Awareness, Multicultural Competency, and Professional Practices of Undergraduate Faculty and the Effects on Student Success

    Description:
    Despite the fact that the student demography in institutes of higher education is growing more and more diverse, the faculty who teach in colleges and universities remains largely White at 77% (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017). As the student population grows more diverse, it is imperative that faculty have the tools and resources necessary to meet the educational needs of the students. A first step to meet the educational needs of this diverse student population is for faculty to become more racially aware and multiculturally competent (Bonilla-Silva, 2014; Diggles, 2014; Harper & Hurtado, 2007). This study provides empirical data related to faculty’s racial identity awareness, multicultural competency, and academic practices. The data were examined to ascertain what impact, if any, these factors had on student achievement and faculty-student relationships. Additionally, this study analyzed sociodemographic factors, academic characteristics, and professional practices to determine if there were correlations which contribute to student success and improved faculty-student relationships. Results from this research study (N = 224) found a correlation between faculty with higher racial identity awareness profiles or more elevated multicultural competency scores, and improved student achievement and stronger faculty-student relationships. Specific academic characteristics, and professional and pedagogical practices, may increase racial identity awareness and multicultural competency and lead to greater success among students as well as stronger relationships between faculty and students. These results are similar to the research of many scholars in examining the relationships between racial awareness, multicultural competency, and the relationship between faculty and students (Bourke, 2016; Carter, Helms, & Juby, 2004; Charbenau, 2015; Chickering & Reiser, 1993; Cole, 2007; Harper & Davis, 2016; Hurtado, Alvarado, & Guillermo-Wann, 2015; Kuh, 2004; Lane, 2010). Literature from racial awareness and multicultural competency is used to interpret findings, discuss limitations, and make recommendations for future studies.
    Keyword:
    Educational sociology , Multicultural Education, Educational Leadership, Racial Awareness, Multicultural, Undergraduate , and Student Success
    Subject:
    Higher education
    Creator:
    Cippoletti, Nicole D.
    Owner:
    skushner@saintpeters.edu
    Publisher:
    Saint Peter's University
    Date Uploaded:
    12/22/2021
    Date Modified:
    02/02/2024
    Date Created:
    2018
    Rights Statement:
    In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
    Resource Type:
    Dissertation

  • Culture and the Community: Examining the Educational Experiences of West Indian-American First-Generation College Students

    Description:
    This research investigated the impact that ancestry had on the educational experiences of West Indian-American, first-generation college students. First-generation (immigrants) and second-generation (children of immigrants) from the West Indies (English and French-speaking) were recruited through chain-sampling techniques. The primary goal was to explore how ancestry (culture and heritage) affected academic achievement and to examine the motivational factors that influenced the educational attainment of this population. This research also explored self-identity and how participants formed a sense of belonging during their college years. The study employed a phenomenological research approach and focused on the participants lived experiences growing up in a West Indian household through their time as a college student and after. A demographic questionnaire and individual interviews were the instruments of data collection. The findings revealed that (a) cultural practices, beliefs, and values influenced by Caribbean ancestry considerably shaped the academic achievement of West Indian-American first-generation college students, (b) influential and motivating factors tied to ancestry significantly influenced the academic success of West Indian-American first-generation college students, and (c) culture and heritage played a significant role in shaping individual identity and sense of belonging of West Indian-American first-generation college students.
    Subject:
    African American studies, Educational sociology, Caribbean studies, and Higher education
    Creator:
    Watts-Conville, Sharon A.
    Owner:
    skushner@saintpeters.edu
    Publisher:
    Saint Peter's University
    Date Uploaded:
    12/22/2021
    Date Created:
    2020
    Rights Statement:
    In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
    Resource Type:
    Dissertation

  • Breaking the Cycle of Poverty: A Qualitative Analysis of Higher Education Success among Women on Welfare

    Description:
    The purpose of this study is to give a voice to economically disadvantaged women on welfare pursuing a degree in higher education. Attention is focused on the motivational and institutional factors they encounter while struggling to integrate academically and socially into the college campus community. The theoretical framework of the study was based on Vincent Tinto’s Theory of Persistence, which emphasizes the importance of a strong inclusive educational and social campus community, and the role it plays in student retention. The study considers the impact of the 1996 Welfare Reform Act and the feminization of poverty in the United States. The impact the new welfare reform act had on education acquisition for women on welfare as well as the challenges these women faced was also examined. In addition, the academic and non-academic support programs that have enabled women on welfare to overcome the obstacles and barriers to education and achievement of academic success in higher education was further explored. The research design was a narrative study approach, which included the participants sharing their own story which included their background, family upbringing, educational experiences from elementary school to high school and ultimately college. In-depth interviews were used to develop a thorough description for the narratives. The participants were women on welfare who currently attended or had graduated from colleges and universities located in Hudson County, New Jersey. Through an analysis of the results a better understanding of how motivational and institutional factors affect a student’s persistence was identified. The themes that emerged during analysis of the interview transcripts were considered within Tinto’s 1973 model of attrition and persistence. Tinto’s model includes the following components: pre-entry attributes (prior schooling and family background); goals/commitment (student aspirations and institutional goals); institutional experiences (academics, faculty interaction, co-curricular involvement, and peer group interaction); integration (academic and social); and outcome (departure decision— graduate, transfer, dropout). Findings indicate that colleges and universities can increase retention and support persistence by identifying students’ individual institutional needs, and by implementing and improving upon programs that aid academic and social integration.
    Keyword:
    Poverty, Higher education, Women, Welfare, Vincent Tinto’s Theory of Persistence, and Academic and social integration
    Subject:
    Higher education
    Creator:
    Ahern, Susan L.
    Owner:
    skushner@saintpeters.edu
    Publisher:
    Saint Peter's University
    Date Uploaded:
    12/22/2021
    Date Modified:
    11/16/2023
    Date Created:
    2018
    Rights Statement:
    In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
    Resource Type:
    Dissertation