This qualitative single descriptive case study addressed the perspectives of how minority women perceived higher education institutions support or lack of support in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The problem was that there is a disproportionately small number of minority women being prepared to fill STEM jobs.…

Historical studies on higher education often utilize traditional historical methods. This practice has produced a body of literature, both historical and contemporary, which has a particular focus on (a) the histories and mythologies of institutions, (b) the individuals who function within the system at the administrative or student levels, and…

Normative discourses about higher education institutions may perpetuate stereotypes about institutions. Few studies explore student perceptions of universities and how transformative pedagogical interventions in university classrooms may address institutional stereotypes. Using Plumwood's notion of dualism, this qualitative study analyses…

This issue of "Assessment Update" presents the following articles: (1) Asking the Right Questions: Reflective Preparation for a Program Review (Corinne Renguette, Charles Feldhaus, and Elizabeth Wager; (2) The Neuroscience of Learning and Development: What Does That Mean for Assessment and Evaluation? (Marilee Bresciani Ludvik); (3)…

The college graduation rates for African-Americans, as compared to other ethnic cohorts, remains at a continuous low level. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2014), 1,602,480 baccalaureate degrees were conferred nationwide to college students during 2009-2010. The purpose of this phenomenological research study is to…

Despite the popular belief that affirmative action gives Black and Latino students an unfair advantage, these students are still underrepresented at the nation's selective colleges and at two- and four-year public colleges and universities in the vast majority of states. The truth is, it isn't enough to just believe that racial inequality is a…

This supplement to our 2012 report (see ED562057) on historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) retention and graduation rates narrows that report's focus to UNCF's member institutions, and shows that these private HBCUs retain and graduate students at rates competitive with other postsecondary institutions. These schools perform…

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329), as amended, authorizes a broad array of federal student aid programs that assist students and their families with financing the cost of a postsecondary education, as well as programs that provide federal support to postsecondary institutions of higher education (IHEs). Programs authorized by the…

This chapter describes how data analysis and data-driven decision making were critical for designing, developing, and assessing a new academic program. The authors--one, the program's founder; the other, an alumna--begin by highlighting some of the elements in the program's incubation and, subsequently, describe some of the components for data…

Equipping future professionals and educators with critical global multicultural competences and skills to work with people from diverse backgrounds is a challenge for both predominantly White institutions (PWIs) and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The major objective of this article is to introduce an adaptable model with an…

Although minority-serving institutions (MSIs) educate nearly one fifth of the nation's college students, there is to date little research on MSI's return on investment (ROI). To address this, the University of Pennsylvania and Educational Testing Service commissioned four papers focusing on the ROI for MSIs, which were presented originally in…

In this online ethnography, I studied marching band identity by examining marching band enthusiasts' and music educators' responses on music teacher professional forums, Twitter, blogs, and other online media, to sports commentator Jim Rome's tweets describing marching band members as "dorks." Using a framework of alterity--or the…

Higher education programs are continuously expanding globally and now, students who are enrolled in online courses can reside anywhere in the world. Due to this phenomenon, institutions are forced to adapt to serve their remote students. "Cultivating Diverse Online Classrooms Through Effective Instructional Design" provides emerging…

This marks the ninth hearing that the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee has convened in advance of the Higher Education Act reauthorization. The purpose of this hearing is to discuss the unique challenges facing minority serving institutions (MSIs) and to learn about programs and support to help facilitate student success.…

Colleges and universities have become increasingly costly, and, except for a handful of highly selective, elite institutions, unresponsive to twenty-first-century needs. But for the past few years, technology-fueled innovation has begun to transform higher education, introducing new ways to disseminate knowledge and better ways to learn--all at…