This dissertation retells the history of women's studies from a global perspective, challenging traditional U.S. and Eurocentric narratives about this emerging interdisciplinary field. Beginning with questions about why women's, gender, and sexuality studies has incited backlash across a range of cultural and geographic locations, this study draws…

Across American higher education interest in interdisciplinary education has exploded, and perhaps nowhere more so than in undergraduate general education. While students are the ultimate recipients of interdisciplinary curricula and vital stakeholders in the quality-monitoring process, the perspectives and experiences of students have been…

The interaction of proximate research universities is a multifaceted and increasingly relevant phenomenon in today's higher education landscape. The three essays herein add to science policy and innovation literature by exploring the challenges, opportunities, and expectations that arise when multiple universities operate in a region. The first…

The education of bioinformatics, as an interdisciplinary science, can be negatively impacted by (1) incoming students attempting to negotiate complex concepts while lacking the educational scaffolding of the field's constituent disciplines while (2) taking breadth-first course requirements from (3) educators who may be lacking formal pedagogical…

The purpose for this study was to examine the perceptions of students' preparation and development of cultural competence during university coursework in the field of dietetics. A secondary aim of the study was to examine if cultural competency training is provided in the university curriculum for prospective nutrition professionals in their role…

The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid survey instrument that would prove useful in identifying faculty with the capacity and inclination to succeed in team-taught, hands-on, transdisciplinary course programming. Using an exploratory, mixed-methods design, the qualitative component consisted of semi-structured interviews of…

Although institutions of higher education are responding to global changes in the 21st century by internationalizing (or globalizing) their campuses and programs, recent literature indicates little is known about faculty awareness of their roles and responsibilities for the process of internationalizing their curriculum (IoC). This dissertation…

Scope and method of study: The study is national in scope, exploratory, and utilized a combination of qualitative and quantitative social science methods. Findings and conclusions: Interdisciplinary environmental (IE) programs in higher education in the United States are both diverse and dynamic in their curriculum designs. Though these…

One innovative, higher-education response to globalization and changing fiscal realities is the curricular joint venture (CJV), a formal collaboration between academic institutions that leverages missions through new joint degrees and research not previously offered by collaborating institutions (Eckel, 2003). In 1997, a pioneering biomedical…

The purpose of this study was to create knowledge about peace economics content of Midwest undergraduate peace studies programs, barriers that constrain economic content expansion, and strategies to overcome these barriers. A 40 question survey of directors and 4 director interviews were used to gather data to test hypotheses on the curriculum…

Mechatronic systems that couple mechanical and electrical systems with the help of computer control are forcing a paradigm shift in the design, manufacture, and implementation of mechanical devices. The inherently interdisciplinary nature of these systems generates exciting new opportunities for developing a hands-on, inventive, and…