Department of Educational Leadership and Research Methodology

Teacher turnover is a problem in all types of schools at all levels and is especially troubling in low-performing, high minority, urban schools. School principals have the challenge of building relationships with teachers in order to improve teacher retention while also balancing the many tasks and responsibilities they have throughout the day. Principals of low-performing, urban schools have difficulty retaining teachers and are challenged with hiring qualified teachers as many teacher candidates turn down opportunities to work in their schools. Teachers willing to work in low-performing schools are often lower quality, for example they have temporary teaching certificates or are teaching out of their content area (Baugh, 2021; Darling-Hammond & Post, 2000; Peske & Haycock, 2006). This staffing challenge, combined with vacant positions, has a negative impact on student achievement (Ronfeldt et al., 2013).
This study explores the impact of school leadership on teacher retention in an urban school district specifically focusing on high minority, low-performing, underserved schools. This qualitative multi-site case study explored ways that principals in four low-performing, urban schools in Miami-Dade County established and sustained relationships with novice and experienced teachers as they managed their day-to-day activities. The research was guided by the research question: How do school principals develop and sustain trusting relationships with teachers at low-performing schools and how do these relationships impact teacher retention? Data was collected through principal interviews, focus groups with novice and experienced teachers, and document reviews. Case data was analyzed individually and through a cross-case analysis.

In this qualitative grounded theory study, I interviewed participants from and analyzed documents associated with three community/state colleges in Florida. Additionally, I have included the perspective of key informants from the state and/or the Florida College System. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory study was to develop a substantive theory to explain the process by which senior administrative leaders engaged in fiscal decision-making due to shifting funding sources during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although prior decision-making theories exist, such as rational choice theory and garbage can theory, these theories do not address how fiscal decisions are made in higher education institutions during times of extended crisis exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. This research study found that during the COVID-19 pandemic leaders sought to establish resilience as part of their fiscal decision-making process to ensure their ability to lead and maintain viable institutions of higher education. Moreover, through the fiscal decision-making process, the leaders in this study did not permit themselves or their institutions to accept the status quo, rather they extended themselves and their organizations to stretch beyond prior capabilities to respond to ever changing needs of students as well as external stakeholders brought about from the COVID-19 pandemic. The collective experiences of these leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the resilient stretching theory of community college fiscal decision-making, which will be further expounded upon throughout this research study.

Demographics of the United States’ school system continue to change and diversify. Meeting the needs of diverse learners is critical to the success of all children. Building and sustaining equitable learning environments has proven to be a challenging task for school leaders. Barriers that hinder equity continue to plague schools and are rooted in systems of organizational injustice. Research suggests that leaders who are able to utilize socially just and culturally responsive leadership practices build and sustain equitable learning environments. School leaders have a large impact on the equity driven practices that exist within the organization; however, research indicates that they may not be prepared to lead such practices. Therefore, supporting the path of aspiring leaders through coaching, since they will eventually lead the charge, has great potential to be critical in the success of equity in our schools, and was the focus of this study.
The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and describe the coaching relationship between the principal and aspiring leader in order to understand how this relationship furthers the development of the aspiring leader into a school leader devoted to building and sustaining equitable learning environments.

Assessment is frequently cited within the student affairs literature as a way of continuously improving programs, services, and events (Henning & Roberts, 2016; Upcraft & Schuh, 1996). However, the data collected through assessment is infrequently used to improve student affairs offerings due to practitioners’ fear, practitioner’s lack of training, a lack of leadership within the division or university, or an emphasis on assessment as a method of reporting results rather than improving offerings, such as programs, services, initiatives, or events (Cox et al., 2017; Fuller & Lane, 2017). In the limited published studies about how student affairs professionals use assessment data, many professionals admit they do not have a plan to use their assessment data and only a small number have a plan to use their assessment data to make changes (Beshara-Blauth, 2018; Cox et al., 2017; McCaul, 2015; Parnell et al., 2018; Ridgeway, 2014). The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how student affairs directors who have been identified as exemplars use their assessment data to make changes. The research questions for the study were: 1) How do student affair directors use assessment data in their role to make changes? 2) How do student affairs directors learn to use their data to make changes? And, 3) What influences student affairs directors to use their data to make changes?

This phenomenological study sought to understand the lived experiences of graduate students engaged in STEM-related Academic Service-Learning (AS-L). For the purposes of this study, Academic Service-Learning is a form of experiential learning whereby students complete a service project as a component of a specific course. This study looked at these student AS-L project experiences at the graduate level as a component of STEM-based courses. While the impact of Academic Service-Learning on the undergraduate experience is well documented, there is no research to date on the graduate experience, much less on graduate students in STEM fields. By understanding the lived experiences of graduate students in STEM-based Academic Service-Learning, this study attempts to fill that gap.
The research questions that guided my study were: (1) What types of project-based experiences are graduate students performing in their Academic-Service-Learning designated courses? (2) What are the lived experiences of graduate students who are conducting AS-L projects in the community as a component of a STEM-based AS-L course as perceived by students, faculty, and community partners. (3) What are the lived experiences of the community partners who are hosting the students for their AS-L projects.

In this qualitative study, learning and engaging in leadership among Latino men college students enrolled at institutions of higher education were examined. The purpose of this narrative study was to explore the stories of how Latino men college students become leaders. Furthermore, this study aimed to understand how Latino men college students engaged in leadership and how they transferred their leadership knowledge between institutions of higher education and their home communities. A narrative design was used to study the stories and experiences (Clandinin, 2006; Connelly & Clandinin, 1990) of eight Latino men college students. Oral histories such as storytelling are a generational avenue within the Latin* community (Bordas, 2001; Delgado, 2002: Marrun, 2020; Rodriguez, 2011). Two semi-structured interviews were used to gather the data from the participants and data was analyzed using two cycles of coding. Lozano’s (2015) Latina/o Leadership Journey was used as the theoretical framework for this study to answer the three research questions focused on how Latino men college students became leaders, engaged in leadership, and transferred their leadership knowledge within their communities.
There are three findings to this study that are focused on how Latino men college students become leaders, Latino men’s leadership engagement, and transferring leadership knowledge in different communities. The three findings had two to three themes that support the findings. Each of the findings address and answer the three research questions. Recommendations for policy, practice, and future research are also addressed to support the lived experiences of Latino men college students in their process to become leaders.

This qualitative study furthers understanding of psychological contract violation experiences as examined through the lens of administrative middle managers in higher education settings. Psychological contract is defined as unstated expectations in the employment relationship which, when violated, results in negative outcomes for employers and employees. In higher education, middle managers are professional staff with titles such as director, associate director, or assistant director across academic and student affairs units. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the meaning of violation experiences for administrative middle managers in higher education settings. This study advanced understanding of post-violation outcomes on participants’ work and future career intentions. This study found that participants’ psychological contract violation experiences had a wounding effect, including negative emotional impacts, feelings of isolation, increased vulnerability, and feelings of responsibility for the violation experience. In addition, participants made sense of their violation experience by focusing on their passion for serving students, the importance of work to their identity, and the responsibility they felt as leaders. Study participants remained in their work settings despite the violation experience and negative impacts. This study resulted in implications for practice for three entities: higher education institutions, administrative middle managers, and professional associations.

The purpose of this multi-site study is to gain an understanding of what practices principals are employing that are impacting the effectiveness of the instructional coaches, as measured by student achievement on end of year state assessments. This study looked at three Tier 3 schools in Miami Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) that showed significant improvement in student achievement as measured by the statewide assessments. Tier 3 schools are schools in MDCPS that have been identified by the Florida Department of Education as consistently underperforming. This dissertation sought to understand what practices were implemented by the principals in these schools that the instructional coaches considered supportive of their instructional coaching.
The study participants consisted of 3 principals, 3 assistant principals, 3 coaches, and 3 teachers, for a total of 12 participants. The assistant principals were interviewed because they are tasked with supervising various content areas and as such work directly with the coaches. The teachers were interviewed because the role of coaches is to work directly with the teachers, therefore the teachers have insight into their effectives. The participants were asked to reflect on their experience either as an instructional coach or working with the instructional coach. They participated in a 30-to-45-minute interview. Additionally, the school improvement plans, and coaching logs were analyzed.

Dental school is a four-year, rigorous educational endeavor packed with difficulties and challenges predental students have not experienced during their undergraduate studies. In addition, dental schools demand developing new coping and learning skills to meet the requirements of a student-centered, fast-paced curriculum. In response to these challenges, it is essential to understand and embrace self-directed learning (SDL) skills and attitudes required for predental students to thrive and succeed during their dental journey (Premkumar et al., 2014). Furthermore, SDL is essential in assisting dental students in filtering the information they need to fulfill their learning needs (Siddiqui et al., 2021).
This quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study used an online survey designed by QualtricsXM to evaluate self-directed learning readiness (SDLR) level among predental students at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and whether their SDLR level would differ based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, college/major, and year of study. A convenience sample of 155 FAU predental students completed Fisher et al.’s (2001) 40-item Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale for Nursing Education (SDLRSNE) and seven demographic questions. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted to analyze and answer the six research questions and corresponding hypotheses.
The results showed a positive attitude of FAU predental students toward SDL as total SDLR scores ranged from 119 to 179, with a mean of 151.33. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference in SDLR level among participants based on age, race, and year of study. Contrastingly, there was no statistically significant difference in SDLR level among participants based on sex, ethnicity, and academic major. The college variable was not investigated as all participants were enrolled in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science.

For decades, educational leadership researchers have focused on school leadership behaviors, competencies, and skills that impact student outcomes measured by the students’ performance on standardized tests. This practice has narrowed the focus for how the field approaches teaching and learning and the evaluation models that measure school, teacher, leader, and student academic performance. To examine leadership and teaching and learning that support the development of the whole child and not just their performance on exams, this quantitative study set out to examine: Is there a relationship between a school leadership teams’ prioritization of SEL, their instructional management practice, and the teachers’ use of SEL pedagogy in the classroom?
To examine the research question, a set of five sub-research questions were developed to organize and guide this work. Interest to participate in this study was gained by aligning the research to the district’s strategic plan. The sample included 107 teacher participants drawn from five participant public elementary schools in a large diverse urban school district. Data applied in the analysis were collected through the application of three instruments. Two of the instruments were developed and pilot tested as part of this research.
The results of this research indicate that despite the ample evidence that shows instructional management having a positive impact on student learning, its effect on the pedagogies examined that support the development of social and emotional competence was limited. The greatest contribution of this study was the development of a valid and reliable tool to evaluate ten social and emotional learning teacher/pedagogical practices.