Despite the disproportionate and controversial concern regarding the disparate impact of school disciplinary policies on minority youth, there is little known regarding the perspectives of minority secondary school administrators and their use of school discipline and violence prevention strategies. Especially concerning is a trend that shows…

This dissertation examines the impacts of a last-dollar promise program on high school-to-college enrollments at a very large community college (VLCC) district in Texas. The research intends to add to the current literature on the growing popularity of promise programs at two-year community colleges. Specifically, this quantitative study examines…

The purpose of this study is to determine if and to what extent disparities in the referral of student subpopulations for discretionary discipline exist and if changes in disparity correlate with changes in campus academic achievement. In this study, 31 million observations of discipline data generated by reason code 21, violations of the student…

Teacher education students are more likely to be White than general bachelor's degree-seeking students across the nation (King, 2019), even as K-12 student populations are becoming more racially diverse (USDOE, 2022; DRIVE Taskforce, 2021). Colleges of education are contributing to the reproduction of a predominantly White teacher workforce. In…

This dissertation investigated the academic performance of immigrant high school students in urban settings, focusing specifically on mathematics. Drawing on Bandura's self-efficacy theory and Zea and colleagues' acculturation framework, the study explored the complex interplay between sources of self-efficacy, acculturation dimensions, and other…

As the world of social media consumes the lives of adolescents, many high school students are spending more time engaging in social media platforms than their academics. People connect with one another in the physical world and the virtual world simultaneously in the current cyber era. As students continue to use spend more time using social…

Students at public schools across the United States are far from homogeneous; in fact, some studies suggest that a fifth of all students identify somewhere on the LGBTQ+ spectrum. Yet while diversity reports include data on race and socioeconomic status, sexual- and gender-minority youth on high school campuses often remain invisible or…

There is a great disparity in college-going rates between students from the highest and lowest socio economic quantiles in the United States. This quantitative study looks at messages students receive about college as a way to explore reasons why students choose to attend or not to attend college. [The dissertation citations contained here are…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a behavioral based intervention program on minority student behavior. The Breakfast Club was an intervention created with the goal of improving the negative behavior of minority adolescent students. The participants in this study were minority, high school students who displayed frequent…

The typical mathematical experience often prioritizes achievement with little regard for the emotional disposition of the student. Despite this relentless focus, overall performance in mathematics has shown little improvement. Additionally, the surge in demand for professionals with mathematical skills highlights a concerning disparity in…

Previous research related to Youth Adult Partnership, Empowerment and Empowering Environments, and Liberatory School Design all highlight the importance of relationships in ensuring that young people experience school environments as empowering. Currently, there is a lot of interest and energy around redesigning schools to be Learner-Centered, in…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand SWSD administrators' perceptions of the practices and identification criteria that exacerbated this underrepresentation, guided by a culturally responsive school leadership framework. For this basic qualitative design, eight SWSD administrators with direct knowledge of the GATE programs…

What happens to our students when they do not complete their studies and drop out of school? Perhaps this question is probably not something that we reflect on as educators. This study seeks to amplify three students' voices and explore their unique experiences and the challenges they faced after they did not complete their high school studies.…

Science classrooms often marginalize students of color, particularly Black and Brown boys, by devaluing their perspectives and supporting narratives that reinforce long-lasting deficit mindsets that sustain practices that keep Black and Brown boys in the margins. Using a Critical Participatory Action Research methodology, this qualitative research…

This convergent parallel mixed method study was designed to identify obstacles that prevent historically underrepresented racial and ethnic student groups from taking online classes at Phi Beta County Community College and to determine what aid students perceive as necessary to remove these obstacles. This study included three Calloway Charter…