The number of international students on U.S. campuses has increased more than 84 percent over the past decade (IIE, 2016). Although it has been well-established that interaction and friendship with local students is a key element for international student adjustment to a foreign university, few studies have grappled with how these intercultural…

This dissertation identifies the reasons why institutions of higher education pursue Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for new construction of campus housing. The research was guided by three questions: 1. Why did the institution choose to pursue LEED certification for campus housing? 2. What considerations should…

This qualitative study was performed at a liberal arts university in the southeast United States. Thirty-nine undergraduate minority first-generation students were interviewed to acquire knowledge of their satisfaction levels with four student services: tutoring, campus housing, financial aid, and career planning. The purpose of this study was to…

Gender neutral housing is an innovative new policy being developed in colleges around the country. One reason to create these policies is an attempt to meet the unique needs and challenges of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students. As the number of gender neutral housing policies in the United States continues to rise, research has been…

Intentionally temporary housing environments, like student housing, where residents know they will settle for a short period may lack the social and physical factors that inspire a sense of home and community. Yet, these environments compete with traditional housing options to retain residents and therefore, universities want to create housing…

This dissertation is a qualitative study of the benefits of a student-initiated apartment theme-housing program at a small private university in the southern United States. This study used in-depth interviews to determine what benefits existed from participation in the theme-housing program, and to determine if the program was beneficial to…

This study examined the gendered nature of the student affairs profession by investigating how three student affairs professional associations, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), ACPA: College Student Educators International, and the Association of College and University Housing Officers International (ACUHO-I)…