Problem: Amongst the highest at-risk student populations are minority students (students of color), first-generation college students, students from low-socioeconomic status, students experiencing financial challenges, and those who enter college academically underprepared. Furthermore, studies have found a significant gap in the educational…

Colleges implement success courses to improve student outcomes. Since expanding its curriculum to include nine success courses, Illinois Eastern Community Colleges (IECC)--a multi-college community college district in rural, southeastern Illinois--has not determined the efficacy of these courses on student success. The purpose of this study was to…

This dissertation evaluated the efficacy and effectiveness of a first-year freshman seminar course designed to improve self-regulated learning skills and bolster academic success. First-year seminars (FYS) are designed to help at-risk students (as indexed by their admissions criteria) gain the learning and motivational skills they need to succeed…

The present study assessed the effects of a specialized first-year foundations course as an intervention for international students' academic and cultural adaptation at a large, Midwestern, public research institution (very high research activity). This was a quasi-experimental, mixed methods study, consisting of two quantitative and two…

A problem facing education today is that learning typically requires rote memorization rather than the use of higher-order thinking skills. Higher-order thinking is needed in a global society to solve real world problems, therefore students should be required to develop and practice higher-order thinking skills. The purpose of this mixed method…