The persistent Black and White achievement gap contradicts one of the United States' core values: equal opportunity for all. In response to the problem, schools seek to increase Black students' achievement through programs like Advanced Placement (AP). Although schools have tried to provide an equitable educational experience, the disparity in…

Teacher shortages have been a longstanding issue in U.S. classrooms, largely due to low enrollment in teacher preparation programs. This has led many states to turn to alternative teacher certification programs to fill staffing needs. One such program in Georgia is the Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy (GaTAPP). This study…

Teacher shortages have been a longstanding issue in U.S. classrooms, largely due to low enrollment in teacher preparation programs. This has led many states to turn to alternative teacher certification programs to fill staffing needs. One such program in Georgia is the Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy (GaTAPP). This study…

Teacher shortages have been a longstanding issue in U.S. classrooms, largely due to low enrollment in teacher preparation programs. This has led many states to turn to alternative teacher certification programs to fill staffing needs. One such program in Georgia is the Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy (GaTAPP). This study…

This study examined how Teachers, Multiple Classroom Leaders and Instructional Facilitators make sense of their instructional practices that support the early literacy practices of African American boys. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a combination of six Multiple Classroom Leaders, Teachers and Instructional Facilitators in the…

The focus of this exploratory study was to examine the experiences of students with disabilities and their families being serviced through public schools in the state of Georgia and to better understand parent perceptions of special education services pre-pandemic, during, and as schools emerge from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study…

The U.S. Department of Education, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, underscores every child's right to integrate, receive support, and fully participate in school life. The problem is that significant disparities exist in reading growth scores between students with disabilities taught in special-education resource settings and…

In a rural Georgia school district, the multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework has been formally implemented and facilitated by system-level coordinators for a 4-year period. As the 2021-2022 school year started, the district began the process of transitioning the leadership of the MTSS process to individual school-level teams and…

Rural student diversity in North Georgia is increasing, while the cultural identity of rural teachers remains stagnant (Showalter et al., 2019; US Census Bureau, 2022). Teachers can become culturally responsive by building cultural awareness, creating learning partnerships, affirming and valuing cultural identity, and strengthening the home-school…

The problem that was addressed in this study was a rural school district in southeastern Georgia was identified by the Georgia Department of Education as overidentifying African American students as having an intellectual disability (ID). The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of special education eligibility team members…

This dissertation explores teacher preparedness to engage with a diverse Westo, Georgia, student population effectively. The study emphasizes the pivotal role played by teacher training and ongoing professional development in shaping this preparedness. Employing a quantitative research approach, the investigation evaluates the preparedness levels…

Policymakers originally created magnets to voluntarily enroll a racially diverse population of students in non-White city neighborhoods by offering unique curricular experiences intended to attract White parents. Successfully desegregated magnets inorganically curated racially mixed schools by appealing to the interests of affluent and/or White…

Black parents of young adults with high incidence disabilities provide salient support to their children during and after postsecondary planning processes in high school. These parents serve a vital role concerning their child with high incidence disabilities' postsecondary planning processes. School counselors are well-positioned as social…

The purpose of this study was to examine the knowledge and inclusion practices of music educators in the Southeastern United States, specifically in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Participants (N = 10,666) included K-12 general music, band, orchestra, and choir teachers. Participants were asked…

The Title I program was established to support students who were enrolled in schools that had high rates of children from low-income households. The program's goal was to provide supplemental services that would assist in raising the academic success of students in Title I schools so that they achieve comparable outcomes to children in Non-Title I…