As concern grows about the level of college completion in the U.S., higher education leaders are seeking ways to help more students attain their educational objectives. This study sought to aid that effort by determining if a theoretical framework of sense of community developed by McMillan and Chavis (1986) influences students' decisions to…

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to describe factors that nontraditional nursing students reported as helpful in their success in the nursing program. Two men and eight women took part in structured one-time interviews. Structured interviews were conducted with the participants in settings that were chosen by the…

Retention and graduation are major challenges in South African higher education institutions. These phenomena are especially troubling among Black and Colored (BC) students at both historically advantaged and historically disadvantaged institutions. The retention and graduation rates of these groups are disturbingly low compared to those of White…

Students, who are at risk of academic failure, are reading and achieving below their grade level yet the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act requires that all students perform on or above grade level. Results from the 2003 National Assessment of Education Program (NAEP) showed that 37% of fourth graders across the United States are reading below grade…

Disability laws such as the American with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 mandate equal access to academic programs, activities, and services for students with disabilities. Therefore, disability laws require that institutions of higher education offer students with learning disabilities (LD)…

The purpose of this research is to analyze characteristics and motivators among alumni of the Community Involvement Program (CIP) for donating to the University of the Pacific. The research questions were: (1) what are the characteristics and motivators of CIP alumni for donating to the University of the Pacific? (2) do the characteristics and…

The education of under-prepared college students is a topic that interested and motivated this researcher to conduct a study on learning communities and measuring change in writing apprehension and locus of control of developmental students at a community college. Higher education is generally viewed as a place for the intellectually elite.…

The aim of the study was to understand how students' college choice decisions were associated with their subsequent satisfaction levels. This study utilized Hossler and Gallagher's college choice model and studies of college satisfaction. Data from 893 first-time enrolled freshman college students from three different college campuses in an urban…

The purpose of this study was to examine Alabama community college presidents' perceptions regarding distance education. Further, this study was intended to determine the adequacy of the training opportunities and support for faculty that teach distance education courses and what services are available for distance education students. This study…

The academic and social integration of first-generation college students into institutions of higher education continues to be a topic of concern for university administrators, faculty, and staff. Students enter college with different background traits and experiences as well as have different college experiences that can either permit or prohibit…

Purpose: The study identified effective validating practices used in transfer centers with EOP&S students at three Southern California community colleges. Methodology: The study used a self-report survey design. The researcher adapted an existing instrument with a panel of experts from EOP&S and transfer center staff at each college.…

This investigation looks at the relationship between a STEM learning community's co-curricular activities and students' perceived sense of community (SOC) to determine which activities most influence SOC and, in turn, retention. This investigation shows that SOC can be impacted by a multitude of factors found within the college environment. The…

The purpose of this study was to examine what barriers to successful completion single mothers encountered in postsecondary education; and what support structures facilitated their success. Using qualitative research methods that included interviews, observations, and document analysis, this study discovered that single mothers needed both…

Peer tutoring at the postsecondary level has been studied extensively, particularly over the last twenty years. Peer tutoring programs are common across institutional type and size in the United States (Boylan, Bonham, Bliss, & Saxon, 1995; Maxwell, 2001) given students' preferences for tutors who share age and status similarity (Cohen, 1986;…

College completion remains one of the most compelling and vexing policy issues in higher education today. Although access to higher education has increased substantially over the past three decades, student success in college as measured by degree completion has not improved significantly. There is a great disparity in the percentage of low-income…