It should be noted that about a year after this researcher began work on this dissertation, he became seriously ill, greatly interfering with his ability to function. In 2019 he was diagnosed with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, a terminal lung disease. As his physical condition continued to worsen, work on the dissertation came to practically a…

The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to investigate the approaches utilized by high school administrators and staff to equip Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) high school students for the transition into college within the northeastern state. The final dissertation looked at the strategies, processes, training, challenges,…

Numerous authors have called for school counselors to be leaders in school-community collaborative partnerships, yet current research pertaining to school counselors' involvement with such efforts is lacking. This survey was conducted to ascertain school counselors' perceptions of their role and training relative to school-community partnerships…

With the rise of new federal initiatives, school districts are responsible for supporting students' academic and social-emotional needs through implementing system-level services. School administrators are under pressure to integrate these initiatives into schools, and school psychologists have been identified to support this work. School…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how rural schools and communities responded to the COVID-19 pandemic through compassionate care. Design/methodology/approach: This paper provides "compassion narratives" (Frost et al., 2006, p. 851) from five educators (i.e. the authors) working and/or living in rural communities. Each…

The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of middle school principals or Social Emotional Learning (SEL) program designees on the implementation practices of SEL programs at their school sites. Adolescents in grades sixth through eighth experience diverse changes that are physical, social, and emotional in nature given their…

The number of students struggling with chronic absenteeism, while on the rise prior to COVID-19, appears to have increased dramatically since the onset of the pandemic. This dissertation explores the challenges faced in a suburban middle school in Western New York throughout and following the COVID-19 shutdown. Data from the district's student…

This preregistered study examined how a collaborative school culture and schools' collective efficacy are related to educational professionals' attitudes, personal self-efficacy, and classroom practices concerning education for high-ability students based on survey data from 875 educational professionals (teachers, counselors, and school leaders).…

This article examines whether and to what extent school climate and previous experience of attempted suicide or suicide of someone close, affect the strategies adopted by Israeli school staff members in coping with a student's suicide. Participants included 84 homeroom teachers, principals, counselors, and psychologists who work at schools where a…

In 2018 there were incidents of mass school shootings recurring monthly during the school year. Newspaper articles have reported since Columbine, many of the school shooters had been bullied during their school years; hence, the phrase "bullied turned bully" New Ways to Stop Bullying (2019), suggests bullying occurs most frequently from…

The New York State Education Department (2016, 2018) recently passed sweeping reforms impacting school counseling practice, preparation, and credentialing. School districts are now required to have a comprehensive school counseling program (CSCP) for all students in grades K-12. A statewide survey collected perception data from school counselors,…

The Leader in Me is a school transformation process that focuses on teaching and embedding Stephen Covey's (2004) seven habits into the school day. The seven habits are a framework and process for transforming school culture but are not taught as a scripted curriculum (Covey et al., 2014). This mixed-methods study was designed to analyze the…

This qualitative study investigates the impact of the traditional multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) on Black and Brown students in high schools in the Northeastern United States. The MTSS framework, designed to monitor academic and social-emotional progress, has faced criticism for perpetuating disparities among historically marginalized…

In this study, we sought to understand the contexts, experiences, and needs among a sample of U.S. secondary education stakeholders to inform both a theoretical framework and policy contexts underpinning college and career readiness (CCR). Results confirmed a theoretically constructed framework of academic and non-academic CCR skills, with…

This professional practice dissertation examined how social-emotional learning may be leveraged for high school dropout prevention. High school assistant principals' and school counselors' survey results were analyzed to answer this study's questions for analysis and develop the social-emotional learning-based recommendations for practice. Three…