This teaching innovation develops social media and strategic marketing skills through student promotion of community organizations and businesses--our local economic engine--following community or business interruptions (e.g., natural disasters, pandemic, seasonal closures). Our communities are periodically impacted by necessary shutdowns for…

This mixed methodological study examines the relationship between participation in a residential commons system and sense of belonging in the context of an elite, highly residential liberal arts institution. Students of color, students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, and students who do not participate in Greek letter organizations reported…

Virtual learning communities can be formed through social media platforms, enabling the implementation of various learning activities. One of the essential components of virtual learning communities created on social media is the knowledge-sharing behaviors (KSB) of students. Studies show that some students actively participate in the…

As university-based community engagement programs expand through curricular and cocurricular initiatives, it is important to understand and assess their impact in advancing a key mission of higher education--to nurture and develop engaged citizens with a well-honed sense of civic identity. A literature review revealed a gap in the…

The purpose of this phenomenological case study was to explore the perceived effectiveness of a restructured developmental education program at one campus of a large, multi-campus community college in North Texas. The restructuring process was guided by the mandates of Texas House Bill 2223 passed in 2017. One of the components of the bill allowed…

This dissertation is in two parts: Part 1 of the study focuses on investigating the feasibility of delivering turn-on rhodamine-based fluorophores through Glucose transporters (GLUTs) for biomedical applications, both "in vitro" and in vivo. Fluorescent GLUT targeting probes are essential for analyzing transport activity, monitoring…

Students' social belonging in general chemistry has recently been shown to predict course performance, and their course-level social belonging has been shown to differ across demographics, such as gender. This course-level social belonging consists of two components: (1) sense-of-belonging, referring to a student's feeling of social connectedness…

Indigenous language revitalization (ILR), or the act of reversing the language shift from English back to Native languages, is an essential task. Since their inception, tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) have worked to support and often lead language communities in this task. Since its beginning, Sitting Bull College (SBC), located on the…

In the wake of Hurricane Maria and in response to the negligent inefficiency of the local and federal governments, community groups and collectives, grassroots organizations, and activists of multiple causes began organizing under the principles of mutual aid and solidarity in Puerto Rico. One of these is the Colectivo Casco Urbano de Cayey…

Classroom community in higher education benefits students' learning because it can soothe students' anxiety about isolation. However, only a small number of studies investigated the key factors behind the cohesion of a classroom community. It is a vital issue because previous studies have pointed out that cohesion is crucial for the survival of a…

This article focuses on group work principles to emphasize the importance of collaboration and community as an effective pedagogical approach to teaching in online higher education. Online communities can serve as support groups by bringing together people going through the shared experience of higher education and providing the opportunity for…

The purpose of this study was to develop a substantive theory using a grounded theory approach to describe the development of advocacy and allyship among college students with marginalized identities. Findings support that participation in advocacy and allyship is a continuously evolving and messy process of becoming aware, educating self,…

This study aimed to observe measurement invariance between community college students and university students in response to the Community of Inquiry (CoI) Survey instrument. Most studies of the CoI survey instruments have recorded and validated the instruments considering undergraduate or graduate students. This study sought to validate and prove…

This study explores the indicators of university-community engagement and their implications to evaluation. Through an examination of 47 studies, we validate that university-community engagement can unfold in many ways and impact many stakeholders, and that, evaluation focusing only on university perspectives might leave out the community…

Background/Context: Low-income, racially minoritized, and first-generation college students (at-promise students) attending predominantly White, middle class institutions often face inequitable access to enriching educational opportunities, discrimination, and marginalization, creating barriers to their success. Institutions are increasingly…