This mixed methods sequential explanatory study aimed to understand the emotional impacts of working mothers in higher education during COVID-19 lockdowns and through the first year of COVID-19. The researcher conducted quantitative research in the form of a survey, which included a depression, anxiety, and stress screener. Participants who…

The Imposter Phenomenon (IP) has been studied since the 1930s but gained renewed interest with a spotlight on diversity, equity, and inclusion. The 2013 book, Lean In, by former Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg, brought the topic of IP into the spotlight focusing on women in the workplace who struggle with feeling like an Imposter. Although…

How Latina administrators construct their leadership philosophies in the K-12 public education system and what makes them unique in a traditionally male-dominated context was explored in this qualitative study. Using a narrative inquiry approach, seven Mexican American women working as school principals in California's Central Valley were…

In this qualitative case study, strategies used in elementary school classrooms to promote hopefulness were examined. The strategies investigated were goal setting, agency, and pathways through six detailed interviews with high-qualified elementary teachers from diverse school systems located in Ohio. Teachers were chosen based on recommendations…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how hospital administrators and managers describe their understanding and practice of leadership during a prolonged public health crisis in the Southwestern United States. This study included 12 semi-structured interviews and two focus groups of four participants. In addition, this…

The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to investigate how first-year college students describe their experiences with stress and coping. This study sought to understand what coping mechanisms first-year college students use when they experience stress. Prior to this dissertation, it was not known how first-year college students describe…

College student retention is an important concept in higher education. For individuals, college retention translates to earning a degree, and for institutions, it translates to maintaining revenue. Many factors put college students at risk for withdrawing from college, including being a student from Appalachia, being considered a first-generation…

Sit-in protests are occurring more frequently on college campuses and yet are viewed with greater disdain by university administration than more conventional protest actions. This grounded theory research study aims to explain the decision-making process of student activists who participate in a sit-in of a university space. Additionally, the…

Most Americans will experience a form of trauma before adulthood, resulting in hindered learning and emotional regulation. The purpose of this quantitative, correlational-predictive study was to examine if and to what extent the two facets of Emotional Regulation, Cognitive Reappraisal and Expressive Suppression, considered collectively, and…

This qualitative study explored how supervisors in student affairs describe their supervisory learning journey. Supervision is an important facet of the student affairs profession, yet there is an apparent lack of intentional supervisory training and development for these professionals. This study endeavored to understand how supervisors in…

This qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of first-at-institution female community college presidents in the United States, focusing on the social influences they encountered. Despite community colleges serving a large number of female, underrepresented, and low-socioeconomic students, leadership roles are…

The aim of this research was to create spaces for kindergarten writers by collaborating with kindergarten teachers through action research cycles. The inquiry's problem of practice is situated in the understanding that writing instruction within kindergarten classrooms is being sidelined due to a drive to teach in ways aligned to a sub-skills…

Although there is a large body of research on the effects of unstructured group therapy among college students, there is inconclusive research on how implementing tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) as a structured activity affects group cohesion for therapy groups made up of college students. Participants were adult, full-time university students…

The purpose of this study was to understand how fine art teachers viewed the quality of their programs within public school settings. The purpose was to also learn how funding can potentially affect the quality of a fine arts program from the stories of public high school fine arts educators. Goodson's theory of educational change was used to…

This qualitative study used Glaser and Strauss' (1967) grounded theory design and explored leader and teacher perspectives of driving and restraining forces when implementing Finnish strategies for joyful leading, teaching, and learning. The study examined teacher perceptions of autonomy as well as differences between Ohio school district…