Given the critical role of mentoring in the success of African American males in college, it is essential to gain a deeper understanding of how mentoring programs can best support African American male students and what elements contribute to their success (Henry, 2021). Recognizing that mentoring significantly influences the retention, academic…

This qualitative study examined the lived experiences of Latinx student parents in postsecondary institutions at universities in Colorado and Texas. Using narrative inquiry, this study is anchored in Yosso's (2005) community cultural wealth framework and centers the voices of participants. This research is informed by the scholarship on student…

Summer Youth Programs continue to grow as a way to provide alternative educational spaces for Youth of Color who are often framed in deficit ways and that position them as being "at-risk" or in need of assistance (Weiner, 2006; Brown, 2016). To address these perceived deficits, after school and summer programs have been created and…

Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia, is accessed by over 1.5 billion users each month, yet remains stigmatized in the academic world. Many faculty demonstrate reluctance in allowing students to use Wikipedia as part of their research and writing projects due to the open access nature of the site and have all but banned its use in their…

In 2018, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) introduced a competitive grant program designed to assist Local Education Agencies (LEA) in attaining Math Innovation Zone (MIZ) designation through a four-year process which ensures program fidelity. The primary objective of this initiative is to enhance math proficiency levels for PreK - 8th grade…

Jeffrey Duncan-Andrade (2009) wrote that if failure to provide quality education continues, it will not be because we lack the know-how to effectively educate all children, it is because we lack the resolve to do it. As a steadfast leader of teaching and collaborating with children, Duncan-Andrade mentors hope in students and teachers alike. This…

The goal of the College of Arts & Sciences Community-aid (CASC-aid) project, a National Science Foundation grant funded study (2016-2021), is to develop, implement, and evaluate a program that fosters a community of academic success for Hispanic STEM students. This Hispanic Serving Institute continues to provide a variety of supports to…

"Excelencia in Education" brings to a national audience evidence-based practices situated at higher education institutions and community-based organizations across the country that are intentionally serving Latino students. The 2023 "Examples of Excelencia: What Works for Latino Students in Higher Education" selection committee…

Colleges and universities frequently find that students cite financial pressures as a significant obstacle in their progress toward college completion. This can particularly be a challenge for first-time-in-college (FTIC) students, students from traditionally underserved populations, and students of color. To help address this issue, many…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to use an Appreciative Inquiry (AI) approach to discover generative instructional and assessment practices of teachers in the language arts classroom at a 5th and 6th grade low socioeconomic public school campus in Texas that earned five distinctions or three consecutive years. The study sought to design a…

Objective: To describe the use of Photovoice as a pedagogical tool to promote experiential learning and critical dialogue among participants on an undergraduate community health course. Design: A descriptive study of the use of the pedagogical tool Photovoice, based on three foundational education theories. Results: Based on teachers' reflective…

The college education gap between Latinas/os and whites has grown to 29 percentage points (Kolodner, 2017). I am a product of this gap. As a high school principal, I believe the solution to this problem lies within the creative minds of school principals/leaders. When a resource was not available to address the college readiness gap at my campus,…

The authors report on a yearlong investigation into similar schools that performed well and less well in the same district. They found that the higher-performing schools engaged in an intentional set of systemic practices that encourage Personalization for Academic and Social Learning (PASL) in one district and integrated structures of academic…

The National Center on Scaling Up Effective Schools (NCSU) spent the 2011-12 school year conducting intensive case studies of four Forth Worth, Texas high schools to understand what differentiates higher and lower performing schools. It was found that high schools can address gaps in student achievement by developing policies and practices that…

The Financial Empowerment for Student Success (FESS) Initiative was a two-year initiative focused on increasing student success through the provision of financial services. Achieving the Dream, Inc. and MDC, Inc. joined together, with funding from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, to support three Achieving the Dream Leader Colleges to…