Innovative learning environments are increasingly built and implemented in schools, but are not necessarily being used according to designers' intentions. The goal of this study was to examine teacher perceptions of the innovative learning spaces they were charged with using and to determine if they were being used effectively and as designed. The…

Today, schools' climates impact every student across the globe (Thapa et al., 2013). "A positive school climate is critically related to school success" (National Center for Safe and Supportive Learning, 2021, para. 2). School climate consists of the many aspects of an educational atmosphere including the physical environment,…

This dissertation examines the relationship between teacher retention and student perceptions of school climate in an urban school district, both in individual school years and across multiple school years. This secondary analysis uses a school-level measure of teacher retention from New York City (NYC) public schools and measures of school…

The experience of teachers who cope with the potential of violence in their workplaces was the topic of this dissertation. The research question was the following: What is the process of coping with the increased potential of violence in the school/work setting for teachers? This question was posed to examine how teachers process and cope with the…

Crime and the fear of crime are severe problems on college campuses. The perception of campus safety has changed, especially after several large-scale attacks have killed and injured numerous students, such as the Virginia Tech and Grambling University shootings. Improving the current perception of a safe campus is crucial for colleges. The…

This study aimed to examine LGBTQ+ students' perspectives on school safety using their own experiences and voices because most research relies on survey data that limits LGBTQ+ student voices. This qualitative study conducted a focus group interview with eight participants to better understand their perspectives on school safety. Through the…

We live in a culture where school systems are accused of being negligent or at fault for any undesired outcome. This can leave school districts and their employees anxious about potential consequences, regardless if the negligent claim is warranted or not. Therefore, there is a need for all educators to understand their responsibilities to provide…

Trans community college students are facing increasingly hostile campus environments across the United States in the form of Transphobic language, gendered administrative forms and processes, and inaccessible restrooms (Lange et al., 2021; Rankin, 2003). Using an Appreciative Inquiry (AI) framework, the goal in this qualitative study was to engage…

This study examines the school climates of previous K-12th-grade students who previously attended Little County School District (LCSD) and their perceptions of bullying and being bullied in those climates. In addition, this study will examine the previous students' parents, their perceptions of bullying in the school climate, and their…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of student diversity and inclusion training on the overall climate of a school. The study was a quasi-experimental quantitative study that compared school climate prior to and after the implementation of student diversity and inclusion trainings. During this study, two types of diversity and…

The United States of America has a unique problem of school shootings. The victims of school shootings are robbed of their futures at the very institutions attempting to prepare them for college, career, and citizenship. These shootings have inspired massive, costly security upgrades in American schools. This target hardening is one way to prevent…

A school safety team collaborates with stakeholders to promote and maintain a physically and psychologically safe school environment. Together they must identify safety deficits and prioritize initiatives and practices. This phenomenological qualitative case study examined how a school safety team makes decisions and determines safety outcomes.…

LGBTGEQIAP+ people experience mental health distress at higher rates than cisgender heterosexual people, which can be connected to added layers of stress due to patterns of negative treatment on the basis of their identities (Meyer, 2003). LGBTGEQIAP+ community college students are at especially high risk for experiencing challenges,…

Rape culture has roots in our gendered history of the United States which manifests itself on college campuses as well. Attending college has been found to be the riskiest time for women in terms of sexual assault, as up to 1 in 4 women may experience some type of sexual assault or attempt during their collegiate years. This study explored how one…

This study was designed to discover teacher perceptions of safety while in classrooms teaching face-to-face students in a Southeast Texas suburban school district. This project-based dissertation-in-practice interviewed 10 middle school teachers. The data from the interviews and the literature review aided the researcher to design a training to…