In this paper, "social innovation" is used as a catch-all phrase for projects and initiatives by higher education institutions (HEIs) related to community engagement, community-based learning, and service-learning. This paper explores the concept and application of social innovation in higher education, followed by a case study of…

Merging community literacy and archival research pedagogies, this article presents a qualitative study of students' reflections from a course that involves partnering with a community organization to research their archives. The article considers students' reflections about, first, learning archival methods and, second, applying these methods in a…

Many community colleges do not have a formal process in place to offer or support a structured gap year option for students who recently graduated from high school, thereby denying those students an educational option that has been recognized as beneficial to many learners. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore factors that…

Objective: This study is a replication of Russ et al.'s (2002) work, which showed that students' credibility beliefs about and perceived learning from a male university instructor were negatively affected when he identified as gay. Because the primary professional responsibility of community college faculty is teaching, and student evaluations may…

Service-learning (S-L) has gained recognition as a high-impact pedagogical practice, with electronic Service-Learning (eS-L) emerging as a model that blends online and in-person instruction with service experiences. While interest in eS-L is growing, large-scale studies on student outcomes remain limited, particularly research that examines design…

For many years, those who work in the mentoring field have wondered how they can extend the impact of their programs beyond the benefits experienced by young people they serve. There has been an increasing desire within our field to harness the power of mentoring to enable the youth served in a program to not just grow individually, but to…

This study employed qualitative methods to explore how the "UVA in Valencia Summer Program 2019/2021" approached instructional practices (e.g., in-class and out-of-class immersive learning activities, homestays, pre-program services, including use of L2 and culture learning strategies) to identify those features of the program design…

This paper addresses how community building can be implemented in a class for preservice middle level teachers. The preservice teachers connected community building to their success in the course and reported ways they could build community in their future classrooms.

We posit that graduate student recruitment is a form of community engagement where universities invite community members to apply. We conducted a study about the recruitment experience with 29 newly matriculated graduate students of color. Many students reported that welcoming interactions as well as research and courses on diversity or racial…

The study aimed to assess the effects of year in college on students' perceptions of the cooperative learning process. Ninety-six college students completed 5 open-ended questions that asked students about their preferences for cooperative learning activities. Forty-nine first-year students and 47 second-year students participated in the study. A…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to highlight the role an intentional and cohesive research group for doctoral researchers and supervisors can play in surfacing and de-mystifying many of the implicit doctoral literacy practices involved in doctoral study. Design/methodology/approach: This participatory, collaborative project, involving 11…

This action research study investigated the academic integration and persistence of first-generation, second-year Latino students in a community college in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. The study employed a mixed-methods approach to investigate persistence and integration among first-generation Latinos. Using Tinto's theory of persistence, the…

How can students use AI as a tool to assist them in the learning process? More importantly, how are students using AI and how is it impacting their learning? The purpose of this research study was to explore and understand the perceptions of students' experiences with AI tools and how it has impacted their learning experience. As AI continues to…

Intraprofessional education between occupational therapy (OT) and occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students can be a valuable component of the entry-level curriculum. Comparisons of OT vs. OTA students' perceptions are sparse, yet this information may yield important insights about intraprofessional learning needs. This mixed methods study…

This qualitative study explored the challenges and experiences of part-time enrolled Latina students moving through a Hispanic-serving California community College (HSCCC). Grounded in Schlossberg's transition theory, the 4 S system, and Latino critical race theory (LatCrit), the study captures the testimonios of 12 testimonialistas to examine…