ArtSteps is an immersive virtual exhibit tool that is attractive and versatile; the user can present objects, artefacts, and art, whether it is work they have created or found in public resources. This paper presents an exploratory study on digital teacher empowerment using ArtSteps to promote innovative pedagogical methodologies involving Virtual…

Trans* (transgender, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, and gender non-binary) students face unique challenges and have historically been an underserved population within higher education (Nicolazzo, 2017). The purpose of this inquiry was to understand the campus climate that exists for trans* students and their specific needs, challenges, and…

This study examined undergraduate college students' sense of belonging during the COVID-19 pandemic and how student services staff addressed belonging during this time. The social cognitive theory served as the theoretical model. Three research questions guided this inquiry: What is undergraduate college students' current sense of belonging right…

The objective of this qualitative study was to explore if the cultural immersion process to which American Universities subject their international students leads to their long-term adoption of American values and opinions. Grounded upon the concept of smart power, Nye argued that the attractiveness of shared values can contribute to the…

In this dissertation I trace my changing practices as a teacher and a learner. I look closely at three questions that have been centrally important to my development as a high school English teacher, and I consider what it might mean for English classes to induct newcomers into the conversations, identities, and dispositions at the heart of…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of community college students in recovery, including their experience with a Collegiate Recovery Program (CRP). Collegiate recovery programs have been on college campuses in the United States for decades, with the first CRP dating back to 1977 at Brown University…

This study aimed to identify the relationship between school climate, special education teacher job satisfaction, and intent to stay. The study participants included special education teachers from two middle Tennessee public school districts who serve students K-12. The study demonstrates the relationship between school climate and special…

This Dissertation in Practice highlights a problem of practice within the field of Higher Education regarding the work place experiences of Black staff and administrators at Predominantly White Institutions. The dissertation seeks to understand more about the experiences of Black professional staff and administrators at Predominantly White…

Over the past 20 years, a growing body of work examines why women are underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields and careers. However, research is lacking on work focused on how young girls form an identity in the disciplines of technology and engineering or the "T&E" of STEM. The purpose of…

A growing body of research connects principal leadership to student achievement, but the effects of principal learning in conjunction with leading have not been richly explored. This dissertation provides a different perspective on principal leadership by looking at principals' approaches to their own learning while surviving and sometimes…

This study presents the findings of a systematic review of empirical research on the use of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), and extended reality (XR) to present social skill instruction to school-age students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Forty-one articles met the inclusion criteria. Studies targeted…

The purpose of this study was to gain a clearer understanding of the relation between parental relationship qualities and overall emerging adulthood (EA) marijuana use processes. The present study drew from an ethnically and socioeconomially diverse sample of EAs (ages 19-22) and their parents (n = 470) from the Pacific Northwest region. This…

The Office of Support and Accountability conducted an unannounced special circumstance review of Logan County Schools, commencing September 15, 2022, to investigate official complaints regarding board governance and central office leadership submitted to the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE), in addition to documentation submitted to…

In order to provide students with demand-driven skills that will set them up for career success, the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) and state businesses collaborated to create the Simulated Workplace--powerful learning environments that transform the traditional classroom into student led companies that replicate real-world work…

The emergence of active learning classrooms (ALCs) on university campuses introduces a need for university teachers to have knowledge of the pedagogical use of physical space. We consider expanding two well-known frameworks for teacher knowledge. Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) describes teacher knowledge about teaching discipline-specific…