Managing disruptive behaviors in schools is a high-ranking concern in communities across the country (Rose & Gallup, 2006). Unfortunately, the practice of instituting tougher and more severe consequences for increased discipline problems has not resulted in a decrease of disruptive behavior (Lewis & Garrison-Harrell, 1999; Safran &…

I develop and structurally estimate an equilibrium model of the college market. Students, who are heterogeneous in both abilities and preferences, make college application decisions, subject to uncertainty and application costs. Colleges observe only noisy measures of student ability and set up tuition and admissions policies to compete for more…

Internationally, higher education has expanded greatly since the closing decades of the twentieth century. China was no exception. This study is intended to examine the status quo of issues relating to equity and access to higher education in the context of educational expansion and differentiation in China. Two research questions are addressed in…

This qualitative study sought to uncover the contextual factors of the schooling process that affect the enrollment of gifted Spanish speaking English Learners (ELs) in Advanced Placement (AP) courses. In addition, this study investigated the perceptions of gifted Spanish speaking ELs toward AP courses and how these perceptions might affect their…

Concurrent enrollment--defined as high school students enrolling in college coursework--is increasingly being used as strategy to improve the college readiness levels of underrepresented students and to reduce disparities in college-going rates. States have developed policy and analyzed data to evaluate the practice of concurrent enrollment. This…

As the body of research on the experiences of African American males in higher education continues to grow, additional research is needed on the impact of two-year college attendance on African American male students (Flowers, 2006). Since the two-year college system is the "primary portal" to higher education for a number of African…

This qualitative study examined the lived experience of eight individuals attending a four-year college who were all part of a campus support program for former foster youth. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand and explore the lived experiences of these unique college students that have gone through the foster care system.…

This study (a) examined career decision-making self-efficacy (CDMSE) differences across gender, age, military grade, level of education, previous career assessments, previous career counseling, and currently attending college, and (b) examined the effect of career assessments with follow-up counseling on CDMSE among active-duty Coast Guard…

Ample evidence suggests that attending college is positively associated with an increased level of civic engagement. However, few studies develop and test a conceptual model that investigates which elements of the collegiate experience affect the development of civic engagement. Therefore, this study focused on the development and testing of a…

Many universities grapple with Latino student retention issues. Latinos are the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, yet they also are the group that has the least amount of formal education. The literature suggests that parental support helps Latinos succeed academically in elementary, middle, and high schools. However,…

This research explored the perceived factors that influenced the decisions of single and married mothers to enroll or not enroll in post-secondary education. The study then investigated the relationship between educational level and income for single mothers in Utah. From a survey of 1197 Utah mothers, this study concluded that mothers enroll in…

The pathway to a postsecondary education is challenging for many students, including students from the growing Latino population in the United States. This research project focused on Latino and Caucasian students' academic and non-academic characteristics as predictors of educational outcomes, high school and beyond. The introduction to the…

Contracting out public schools to private institutions is an instrument for reforming public education as it may facilitate academic innovation and improve student academic performance through higher school accountability and autonomy. The degree of autonomy that different providers have may vary substantially depending on the contractual and…

This study investigates how Latino students and parents obtain information about college opportunities through the development of a Latino student and parent orientation program at the Urban Community College, while examining the espoused leadership theories of the researcher through the implementation of a second order change within an…

In correspondence to an overall decline in the Japanese population, the number of young students in Japan has been dramatically decreasing to the extent that the Japanese government has predicted a situation in which as of 2009 admissions places in Japanese universities will be equal to the number of applicants. Currently, approximately fifty…