In response to insufficient participation and female underrepresentation in physics education, this article uses questionnaire data from Norwegian physics students in upper secondary ("N" = 585) and first-year tertiary ("N" = 278) education to characterize the "physics choosers." An expectancy-value perspective is…

In this article, the author presents a three-part analysis of the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, her own doctoral experience in a chemistry program, and similar experiences of other underrepresented minority (URM) graduate students found in the literature as examples of the social and cultural structures URMs experience…

Affirmative action is perceived as a corrective policy intended to promote social equity (Crosby, Iyer, & Sincharoen, 2006; Curry & West, 1996; Kaplin & Lee, 2007; Oppenheimer, 1996). Indeed, affirmative action as a policy has been used to address minority underrepresentation (Ball, 2000), remedying the effects of past/current…

In April 2013, the "New England Journal of Higher Education" ("NEJHE") launched its "New Directions for Higher Education" series to examine emerging issues, trends, and ideas that have an impact on higher education policies, programs and practices. In this installment of the series, DiSalvio speaks with American…

This article explores the process and impact of women organizing for educational justice in Northern California by documenting the efforts of a committed group of mothers who sought to address the disproportionate underachievement of Latino and African American students within their city's high school. Using a combined methodology of ethnography…

This quantitative study sought to investigate how Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) and other high school college preparatory achievements contributed to the college success of underrepresented students enrolled in community colleges and 4-year universities. Eighty-five AVID graduates from 12 Texas high schools attending 5…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyze data gathered in 1998 and 2011 from representative samples of women secondary school principals in Texas to identify differences in personal, professional, leadership, and school characteristics. Design/methodology/approach: Two proportionate, random samples were drawn of women secondary principals…

Minority disproportionality in school discipline outcomes continues to trouble practitioners and scholars. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of sociodemographic characteristics and indicators of school policy enactment (e.g., retention rates, special education identification) on students' risk of suspension. The sample…

In this study we investigated whether African American students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) differ from African American students at predominantly White institutions (PWIs) in academic motivation and judgment, and whether type of academic institution (HBCU, PWI) moderates relationships between these differences and…

Increasing the percentage of adults with a college credential is paramount to sustaining our economic competitiveness. One strategy that has potential to help achieve the goal of increased postsecondary degree production is dual enrollment, which allows high school students to enroll in college-level courses for credit that can be applied…

The underrepresentation of racial minorities and women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is a national concern. Goal theory provides a useful framework from which to understand issues of underrepresentation. We followed a large sample of high-achieving African American and Latino undergraduates in STEM…

The scant literature on persistence of African American males in science typically takes a deficits-based approach to encapsulate the myriad reasons this population is so often underrepresented. Scientist Identity, Mentoring, and Campus Climate have, individually, been found to be related to the persistence of African American students. However,…

The current study examined the role of AP® Exam participation and performance on four-year college graduation in four years. Because students who take AP Exams can earn college credit while still in high school, it was expected that AP students would have higher four-year graduation rates. Moreover, it was expected that AP students who earned…

Non-traditional nursing students, including Vietnamese Americans often face challenges that differ from those of their white counterparts. These challenges have significant impact on academic success and contribute to underrepresentation of minorities in nursing. This study explored the lived experience of 12 Vietnamese American undergraduate…

In the fall of 2008, the authors contacted a representative sample of over 3,600 high schools in the U.S., both public and private, to determine whether or not physics was taught there. The authors received responses from over 99% of the schools. For the schools which indicated they were offering physics, they obtained contact information for the…