While enrolling in a college for a degree is still considered to be more of the expectation than the rule in households across the United States it is facing public criticism regarding its overall cost versus long-term benefits. This has prompted researchers to reevaluate practices in higher education to determine ways in which post-secondary…

Institutional researchers use skills from their diverse backgrounds to collect, analyze and report data about their institutions to stakeholders representing various interests and levels of data literacy. However, there is little research into how these professionals process data and none into what aspects are important to institutional…

This dissertation responds to two aspects of the homesickness literature: its characterization as a mental health concern, and its lack of empirical attention in the United States. The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical understanding of homesickness oriented to an affirming and sociocultural lens, and to do so in the context of…

Our institutional approaches to problems in the changing global landscape of internationalized higher education are being challenged, and many scholars call for new approaches for understanding and addressing the complex problems we face (e.g., la paperson, 2017; Lee, 2021; Patel, 2016; Stein, 2019, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic has sped up the…

Adjunct faculty comprise a large percentage of part-time faculty for many colleges and universities today. Adjunct faculty are hired because they are experts in their content areas; however, this does not guarantee that they are skilled in effective classroom management. These instructors can become bewildered and frustrated because they lack the…

Higher education has entered an era of globalization where the movement of minds is fashioning out a new university. This study defines and describes globalization and its impact on higher education. It presents the uses and methodologies of rankings and global measurements which are increasing in scope and breadth as the university system aims to…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to analyze Miguel A. Nevárez's educational leadership style by focusing on his notable contributions to The University of Texas Pan American. The researcher defined leadership style as actions by the leader. After examining Nevárez's background to place his motivations and actions in proper context, this…

This research investigates how data on multidisciplinary collaborative experiences can be used to solve a novel problem: recommending research profiles of potential collaborators to academic researchers seeking to engage in multidisciplinary research collaboration. As the current domain theories of multidisciplinary collaboration are insufficient…

The purpose of this study was to understand the methodologies authors in higher education journals used to obtain knowledge in their fields. This study looked at five peer reviewed journals of higher education and analyzed the methods of research employed by the authors to help them answer their respective research questions. The methods of…

Understanding the implications of the significant expansion in higher education over the latter half of the 20th century remains one of the central questions of research in stratification and inequality. Attaining a college degree is associated with numerous advantages ranging from higher earnings to improved health and wellbeing. As higher…

This dissertation aims to provide a better understanding of the technology licensing practices of academic research institutions. The study identifies time durations in licensing and incorporates these into a model to evaluate licensing performance. Performance is measured by the efficiency of an institution's technology licensing process and…

Combining institutional data and measures with predictive analyses is a viable means by which to determine where and how to allocate all too limited institutional resources and programming. There are not many among us who would argue against the richness of data and depth of understanding of a phenomenon that are gained through focus groups and…

The 1960s and '70s marked the most historic transformational period of Black college student enrollments and sociopolitical presence at predominantly White institutions in the United States. Research on Black student solidarity and social movements typically refers back to this era, with very little attention given to the ways that today's Black…

This study considers how advising ePortfolios are uniquely situated to address a current challenge in the application of educational technologies: using the right tool for the right job for the right reason at the right time. The particular problem identified for investigation lies at the intersection of two central issues: first, in the age of…

The study identified the association between student interaction patterns and academic performance in online graduate courses delivered by the Department of Agricultural Education and Studies at Iowa State University. In addition, the study investigated which online course tools were perceived by students to be most useful in learning. The study…