Within secondary education, there has been an increase in online enrollment of students who are at risk of dropping out of high school and being economically disadvantaged. This qualitative study analyzed ten participants' interviews based on what motivates them in the educational setting. Within the findings, themes of engagement in the…

Literature concerning student engagement and its impacts on educational attainment for Black students at community colleges is vast. The experiences of Black students at community colleges are unique, and they vary based on gender given a long history of educational discrimination and exclusion faced by Black communities. Much of the existing…

Sense of belonging is an important psychological and social factor for college students. Students who report a strong sense of belonging to an institution are more likely to return the next year (Hausmann et al., 2007), stay in school (Fine, 1991), graduate (Morrow & Ackermann, 2012), learn (Kernahan et al., 2014), thrive (Strayhorn, 2019),…

Most research on Student Affairs practices is centered around student engagement and support; however, this qualitative study focuses on the Student Affairs professionals who support college students. Specifically, this dissertation focuses on the intersectionality of race and religion and how these Student Affairs professionals are able to engage…

Children are sensitive to their own and others' epistemic states and use these to guide their learning and communication. Here, we systematically examined children's use of epistemic states to make diagnostic social inferences. Specifically, we investigated children's group membership inferences based on what others do and do not know and what…

This mixed methods study describes the development and initial validation of the Culture of Belonging (CoB) Barometer. The instrument measures how university students experience belonging in their interactions with faculty, staff, administrators, and other students. Instrument development methods included focus groups, a pilot survey, and…

For decades, evaluators have noted that it is difficult for stakeholders to accept negative evaluation results (Carter, 1971; Taut & Brauns, 2003). There is a need for additional research on evaluation to better understand when and why stakeholders reject negative or critical evaluation findings. Drawing on social identity theory (SIT), the…

Minorities working at predominantly white institutions (PWI's) of higher education face many challenges both professionally and personally. One critical challenge for minorities is feeling a sense of belonging (SoB) in their organization. Workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion have become crucial for many organizations as they look for ways to…

The National Conference is the National Dance Education Organization's (NDEO) flagship program, bringing together longtime and new members, seasoned professionals and college students, and dance educators from every sector and a wide range of dance genres. NDEO's National Conference is unique among other dance education summits and professional…

In response to unwaveringly high attrition from STEM pathways, STEM Intervention Programs (SIPs) support STEM students in effort to increase retention. Using mixed methods (survey and focus groups), we studied students at one university who were either supported or unsupported by SIPs to understand how students may differ in experiences believed…

Multiple national calls centered on critical thinking and social justice have been made to improve and reform higher education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses to increase the representation of students from marginalized groups in the STEM workforce and equip all students for success. To help answer this call,…

Collegiate men are overrepresented in student conduct systems across the higher education landscape as they are more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors when compared with their female counterparts (Laker & Davis, 2011). There is a strong correlation between these high-risk behaviors and the ideology of toxic masculinity (Wagner, 2015).…

Little attention has been given to the experiences of refugee families parenting a child living with disabilities as they resettle in a new country. Using narrative inquiry, we inquired into the experiences of two Syrian refugee families' identity-making and agency in their efforts to secure services and programs for their children in Canada. We…

When considering developmental psychology three concepts stand out; (1) resilience: the resistance to stress, (2) coping: the strategies used to reduce stress, and (3) sense of belonging: the connectedness towards peers. Although all three concepts are important for a child's development, the academic literature lacks research on the…

Adolescents newly diagnosed with cancer must navigate medical, psychosocial, and educational issues when confronting and coping with this life-threatening illness. Frequent hospitalizations, intense therapy, and continual medical appointments disrupt attendance at school, social, and community events. Decreased school participation and attendance…