Rural, economically disadvantaged students in Southern Appalachia experienced numerous situations that could negatively affect them socially, emotionally, behaviorally, and academically. Educators who routinely worked with rural, economically disadvantaged students should understand the difficulties these students experienced, as well as employ…

The US lack of nurses to meet healthcare demands is a national crisis (American Nurses Association [ANA], 2021). Attrition rates in nursing programs compound the nursing shortage. Community colleges are where a number of nursing students attend to complete an Associate Degree of Nursing (ADN) program. Community college leaders and educators have a…

The purpose of this qualitative study focused on the experiences of first-generation students attending a technical college in rural West Tennessee. The results of this study may identify barriers faced by students from these special populations and may also provide insight into the support systems that motivate these students to persevere.…

The purpose of this article is to examine a 'grow your own' model of leadership preparation and placement of educational administrators in the state of Tennessee. The growing need for school and district administrators in the rural counties of Tennessee mirrors a nationwide issue, and state policymakers and practitioners must respond appropriately…

The Pell Grant is the foundational need-based student aid program in the United States, providing students of lower socio-economic status a pathway to afford college costs and educational expenses. Currently, over one-third of all U.S. undergraduate students receive Pell. This paper examines federal Pell assistance and institutional costs for…

This study compared persistence rates and academic performance between community college students in traditional classes prior to a college-wide tablet initiative, and community college students using tablets at the same community college following a college-wide tablet initiative. The business problem addressed in this research is the low levels…

Recent media reporting and research suggest that regional comprehensive universities (RCUs) and other postsecondary institutions may play an integral role in the welfare of rural regions, yet empirical research on the regional service of rural postsecondary institutions is limited. The purpose of this study was to examine how a single RCU serves…

This article describes how out-of-work miners are engaged in the Empowering Education Initiative, a unique alliance between Country Music Television (CMT) and community colleges in Appalachia. The initiative, which includes a website and a series of country music concerts, is changing the conversation in the Appalachian region, giving hope to…

Researchers at NIET [National Institute for Excellence in Teaching] and elsewhere have studied the effectiveness of TAP™: The System for Teacher and Student Advancement in raising student achievement, improving the quality of instruction, and increasing the ability of high-need schools to recruit, retain and support effective teachers. This…

The purpose of this study was to analyze school and district characteristics for 2005-2006 through 2007-2008 to determine which factors impacted science achievement for the graduating class of 2008-2009 in Tennessee. School size, socioeconomic status, per pupil instructional expenditures and rurality/urbanicity were predictor variables.…

Due to the complex challenges facing schools of nursing, a research study was implemented to introduce nurse faculty at one small rural northeastern Tennessee school of nursing to the NLN "Core Competencies for Nurse Educators". Utilizing Kalb's Nurse Faculty Self-Evaluation Tool as a pre- and post-intervention test, 30 nurse faculty…

With over two thirds of high school graduates going on to pursue postsecondary options after high school and over one fourth at 4-year institutions and nearly half at 2-year schools never reaching their sophomore year, it is evident that the transition from high school to college is a broken one for many students. There has been a nationwide call…

The mission of the Appalachian Rural Systemic Initiative (ARSI) was to build a long-term capacity that would improve the educational structures of the rural communities it served. The major strategy ARSI used to create improvement communities across Appalachia was to identify, embrace and educate individual teachers, who became ARSI Teacher…