The role of religion in the social fabric of the United States is changing, and pastors face significant threats to their longevity in the profession. Similarly, the field of clinical pastoral education is changing, moving beyond its Protestant Christian roots. Pastoral identity, or the self-understanding and expression of the pastoral role is an…

This dissertation describes a Contextualized Appreciative Instructional Design process for equipping Ethiopian churches' intercultural workers to advance God's mission more effectively--"missio" Dei in Ethiopia and beyond. The CAID model can contextually equip intercultural workers to deal with the many challenges of the mission field…

Counselor educators need to effectively address intersecting identities within counselor education programs, including religion and spirituality (RS). Polls have shown that the majority of United States citizens ascribe to religious or spiritual beliefs (Gallup, 2017; Pew Research Center, 2014) and counseling research has expanded to address these…

With the decline of religious men and women working in religious order-sponsored Catholic secondary schools, the relationship between religious orders and their secondary schools had to transition from ownership of their schools to agreements of sponsorship. Although the president and principal in religious order-sponsored secondary schools have…

Nonnative English speakers are often judged based on their accent, but accent is perceived as well as produced. Race, gender, and religion interact to create complex and nuanced figures of personhood (Agha, 2005) impacting teachers' perceptions of students. Teachers' individual differences, including language proficiency, exposure to language, and…

Mormon college students may leave or delay their studies to serve missions for their church, typically for 18 to 24 months. This dissertation studies the impact of serving a mission on the spiritual development and psychological wellbeing of these students. Using a two-factor ANOVA fixed-effects, nonexperimental design, five measurement scales on…

This project aims to change corrupt mindsets in my community. Working on this project has enhanced my ability to lead my community by example, to employ a pragmatic approach, to demonstrate my teaching skills, and to assert my commitment to pedagogy. This project introduces correct Islamic teachings that can deal with religiously infused violence.…

Accessing and assessing the controlling beliefs of teachers about the role of faith in curriculum decisions is an essential first step in efforts to address the gap between the faith integration mission of Christian schools and actual practices (Boerema, 2011). Without intervention, teachers' beliefs about teaching--shaped by early classroom…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the impressions of second grade children in evangelical Protestant Christian schools, how they perceived God, what they understood about their faith instruction, and what contributed to or detracted from their faith development. A secondary area of inquiry was with parents about their awareness…

The purpose of this study was to examine whether or not a change in religiosity would occur in undergraduate students at a West Coast Christian university as a result of their participation in an online Christian worldview course. Twenty-six undergraduate students participated in this pretest posttest quasi-experimental study which employed the…

The purpose of this study is to confirm the belief that differences in the institutional culture of United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI)-endorsed Bible colleges correlate with changes in the level of identification with the UPCI experienced by students who complete a program of study at these institutions. Because adherents of the UPCI…

The purpose of this study is to investigate and chart the qualitatively different ways Christian faith-based women make meaning of and understand the learning intervention of The Enlighten Foundation's Learning Program. Research supports the use of an interactive, experienced-based learning program as conducive to developmental change for women.…

The purpose of this study was to determine some of the causes of the religious and spiritual changes that Orthodox Jewish youth seem to be experiencing as a result of their post high school year of study in Israel. Specific family factors that might influence the future religious and spiritual choices these students make were analyzed. In…

Leaders at faith-based institutions struggle to provide equitable attention to academics, religious heritage, and the secular mission of the institution; as a result, leaders find themselves mitigating conflict that arises from this imbalance (Brackney, 2004; Ecklund, Park, & Veliz, 2008; Witek, 2009). The purposes of this study were: (a) to…

This research and the ensuing report of the results were completed to fulfill an obligation and to further the educational and spiritual growth of the researcher. The strong beliefs of the researcher dictated the topic of research. The intention was to introduce the unknowing to spiritual healing as an integrative medical practice, to convince the…