The United States (US) economy experienced the Great Recession from December 2007 through June 2009. During this time, significant job loss and housing instability occurred, creating stress and strain on families. As a support, housing counseling agencies were funded to provide foreclosure counseling and prevention services to support families…

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes are in great demand by immigrant adults in the Boston area. The problem investigated in this study was the limited funding to implement ESOL programs in Boston, which has resulted in waiting lists for many contracted community-based programs. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study…

This study applies the construct of institutional agents and the associated theories of social capital and social networking to understand the influence of institutional agents on Latino undocumented community college students who qualify for tuition equity in California under AB 540. The purpose of this study was to identify the issues these…

Using the central information technology unit (CITU) on the North Dakota State University (NDSU) campus, this project triangulated two independent studies in an effort to converge data findings. The studies were conducted in an effort to determine whether CITU's budget constraints were known to its stakeholders and how the extended use of the…

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of first-generation college students and learn why they believed they persisted to graduation. First-generation students are students whose parents did not attend college. Research literature on the topic reflects a the concern for first-generation students and their decreased likelihood of…

This qualitative research study looked at 13 students who because of their backgrounds and/or family environments were considered to be high risk of educational failure, but against the odds completed a 4-year degree with honors. Analysis of the open-ended interview protocol produced 5 emergent themes: (a) self-described individual attributes that…

Current researchers indicate that the superintendency continues to be male dominated and aspirants are often unaware of the strategies necessary to achieve the position. The purpose of this researcher is to identify the challenges female administrators face in their quest for the superintendency and to explore, through a qualitative…

This qualitative research study focuses on retention of first-year learners by exploring three variables: academic support, social support, and coping strategies. The research method is grounded theory founded by Glaser, B. and Strauss, A. (1967). The philosophical assumptions of the study are Constructivist and Advocacy/Participatory knowledge…

Using narrative inquiry, this qualitative study sought to examine the community college experiences of 12 South Sudanese refugees resettled in Massachusetts. Through interviews, I gathered participants' narratives around three focal areas: the impact of culturally responsive practices on their learning experiences, the challenges and obstacles…

Previous literature on retention of student helicopter pilots shows a gap in research of civilian schools and qualitative studies. To address this gap in the literature and to help helicopter flight schools better understand the incidents of attrition from flight training, this qualitative study investigated student and school-based factors…

Developmental education is a primary tool of access to higher education, particularly at the community college level, for students who are not academically prepared. There is a high need for remediation of community college students, yet a low remedial course completion rate. While there is broad awareness of the problem of remediation and its…

The purpose of the study was to explore the lived experiences of African American urban high school students that dropped out of school in an urban Alabama city and their teachers that taught the students between 2004 and 2008. In addition, the purpose of this study focused on the dropout phenomenon by interviewing students and their former…

Recent research on education and Latina/o immigrants has indicated an escalating crisis, but few studies have focused on why so few immigrant students participate in higher education, or why many leave college before receiving degrees. Past research has been largely quantitative or theoretical, and offered little qualitative insight into the…

The United States economic recession is now in its third year and continues to have a serious impact on the American higher education system, including Illinois' public community colleges. Illinois community colleges are seeing increases in enrollments while at the same time seeing significant decreases in state funding. The purpose of this…

Retention and graduation are major challenges in South African higher education institutions. These phenomena are especially troubling among Black and Colored (BC) students at both historically advantaged and historically disadvantaged institutions. The retention and graduation rates of these groups are disturbingly low compared to those of White…