Online education is the fastest growing form of course delivery of higher education in the United States. It has revolutionized how students and instructors interact in the educational process. Yet students in online courses continue to experience higher attrition rates than their counterparts in traditional face-to-face classes despite the advantages offered by the technology. This study examined the impact that institutional policies and practices at community colleges in the state of Texas have had on student persistence in online courses. It also examined how institutions collect and use data in addressing students' attrition. The findings were used to identify the most effective institutional practices to share with community college systems in Texas in an effort to improve student persistence in online courses across the state. The population for the study consisted of the 50 public two-year community college and the technical college systems in the state of Texas. The study used a mixed method. A theoretical model of institutional impact on online persistence was drawn from the literature review. This model's five categories were then used to construct a survey to collect data on institutional practices and measure the effectiveness in addressing student persistence. Four college systems were identified using …

The problem with which the four-phase descriptive study was concerned is the extent of application of strategic planning by senior colleges and universities in Texas. The purpose was to analyze and describe the status of the planning based on the perceptions of the respondents and a specific set of characteristics validated by twenty experts.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship of participation and involvement in an undergraduate student success program to academic success and persistence among students in three programs sponsored by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB): the G-Force Collegiate Work-Study Mentorship Program, the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) for Higher Education (AHE) program, and the THECB work-study program. The sample was identified using data from the THECB during the 2009-2013 academic years. Compared to THECB work-study students, significantly more AHE and G-Force students persisted toward graduation while engaged in the program (p < .001). ANOVA indicated that AHE students had a higher average GPA compared to G-Force and THECB work-study students, controlled for gender, race/ethnicity, pre-program GPA, and length of time in the position. Regression analyses found no statistically significant relationship between program associations and persistence towards graduation or GPA. Results suggest that although participation in a peer leadership programs such as AHE and G-Force encourage greater academic achievement and persistence, there is no direct relation to the achievement of these outcome variables. Implications of the study suggest the need for a deeper analysis into elements of peer leadership programs that contribute to student success, an …

The problem of this study involved identifying and ranking perceptions of the attributes of exemplary teaching of adjunct faculty of the Dallas County Community College District. Data was collected by a 75 item opinionnaire and a demographic data sheet which was sent to a population of 3,000 employees of the Dallas County Community College District and 100 exemplary faculty from 39 of the 50 United States. The five chapters were titled Introduction, Review of Literature, Methods, Presentation and Analysis of Findings, and Summary, Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations. Revealed through the findings of Chapter 4 was the order of attributes as a Grand grand rank found through the combining of the grand rank order of the Dallas County Community Colleges' employees and the rank order of the nationally recognized exemplary faculty. Findings disclosed that a rank ordering of items represented by Kendall's W at .9654 with a chi-square of 142.8815 at the .001 level of significance. These findings led to the rejection of three null hypotheses and the following related conclusions: (1) perceptions of importance of teaching attributes, can be rank ordered, (2) while a high level of significant values of W may be interpreted as meaning that the observers and …

The problem of this study was a comparison of female administrators' self-perceived leadership styles to those of their superordinates' perceptions in five major junior/community college districts in Texas. The population included 59 female administrators submitting biographical information with 53 of the 59 submitting information on their leadership styles. The leadership data were paired with 53 superordinates for comparison of the perceptions of each group. In conclusion both groups agreed on the leadership style exhibited most often by female administrators as being high relationship-low task. Even though the female administrators exhibited this dominant style, the majority of the women and their superiors agreed they could span the other styles in an effective manner.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of using word processing and proofreading software in freshman composition at a community college. This study used pretest and posttest measures to determine if significant differences in the improvement of composition skills occurred between students in a composition class that did not use microcomputers and students in a composition class that did use microcomputers. Objective tests and writing samples were used as measurements. The population for the study consisted of students enrolled in freshman composition classes at a two year community college. Students self-selected enrollment in each class. Three hundred students who completed the pretest and posttest measures and completed the course were included in the study. There was no significant difference found in the improvement of writing skills between the two groups as measured by the objective test or the writing samples. There was a significant difference found in the withdrawal rate of students from the classes. The computer class had a significantly higher withdrawal rate than the non-computer class.

This study sought to determine the ways in which Texas public school districts differ in their calculation of Grade Point Average/Rank in Class (GPA/RIC), how district size affects weighting practices, and the effect of non-uniform calculation of GPA/RIC on admissions to college. Descriptive and non-parametric analysis techniques were used.

This study sought to determine if different factors had influenced females and males to select engineering/science-related studies at the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS). The data were collected in the fall semester in 1997 at TAMS located on the University of North Texas campus from a survey of factors reported in the literature that had influenced students to enroll in engineering/science-related curriculum.

This study examined international education programs in Texas 4-year colleges and universities to determine how they compare to models found in the literature. A second purpose of the study was to compare Texas 4-year colleges and universities with out-of state benchmark institutions with a history of international education programs for over a decade. Areas examined in the study were: (a) administration of international education; (b) instructional activities of international education; (c) international student support services; and (d) outreach both in the community and abroad.

The problem with which this study is concerned is to analyze the impact of the local cooperative teacher education centers on teacher education programs at institutions of higher education in Texas. A survey instrument was designed around seven research questions; after the instrument was evaluated by a panel of experts, it was sent to 142 individuals who are involved with the Texas teacher centers, 111 of whom responded.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible events in the external environment between 1987 and 1997 that may affect the future of North Texas State University. Two groups of experts participated in the study, a group of individuals from outside North Texas State University and a group of experts from the university.

The problem of this study was to develop a model for the administration of auxiliary enterprises in Texas higher education as a cooperative effort of administrators and input from other sources. The purposes were to determine which administrators currently have the responsibility for the management of auxiliary services, to evaluate the correlation between the type of administrator and the concern for fiscal and student needs, to identify problems and opportunities for useful administration, and to develop a model integrating the strengths of each administrator and the implementation of new ideas to improve auxiliary enterprise management. A survey instrument consisting of three types of questions was mailed to both Vice Presidents of Fiscal Affairs and Student Affairs at all 26 four-year public institutions in Texas. Part I questions were informational, designed to determine who administers auxiliary services. Part II consisted of 20 questions on a Likert scale to obtain both opinions on the theories of the research, and specialized knowledge of the administrators. Part III was free response to solicit ideas from the administrators for the construction of the model. Paired t-tests were performed to determine knowledge strengths of the administrators. All other information was presented in frequency tables or narrative …

The purpose of this study is to examine historically the presidential administration of John Christopher Stevens at Abilene Christian University from 1969 to 1981. During this time the institution grew in enrollment, faculty, facilities, endowment, and quality of educational opportunity. Limited to selected experiences and accomplishments, this dissertation examines Stevens' personal and administrative characteristics through interviews with him and those who worked with him. Materials were also used from Stevens' Presidential Archives in the Callie Faye Milliken Special Collections of the Herman and Margaret Brown Library at Abilene Christian University.

Previous research suggests that careproviders' attitudes and perceptions significantly influence the type and quality of services received by institutionalized adults with developmental disabilities (IADD). This study explored attitudes careproviders hold concerning training needs of the IADD and their service model orientation. It traced the history of training people with developmental disabilities and provided a brief review of the medical, developmental, and normalization models of service delivery. The conceptual framework upon which this study was based proposed that staff perceptions and orientation concerning service delivery to the IADD can be conceptually related to five factors in a research model. They were identified as: (a) careprovider's characteristics; (b) working environment; (c) previous careprovider experience; (d) developmental disability history within the careprovider's family; and (e) self-reporting of a service delivery orientation. This study examined only a portion of this model (factors a, b, and e). The response sample included 370 professionals and paraprofessionals, aged 17 to 72 years, who were employed at a large residential facility serving individuals with developmental disabilities in Denton, Texas. The respondents were predominantly female (76.5%), Caucasian (72.2%) with slightly less than 75% having more than a high school diploma. The instrument, a self-administered questionnaire, consisted of three parts; …

Community college students transfer to public universities experiencing a pathway filled with complexity and inequity. Transfer students are not able to graduate at the same pace as native students at the university and complete their baccalaureate degrees 18% below the rate of native students. Policymakers have attempted to address the baccalaureate gap. This qualitative study explored the perspectives of Texas policymakers and policy influencers on the efficacy of policies intended to improve transfer outcomes. This study investigated what experience participants have with transfer policy, what their perceptions of the transfer pathway are, and how their voices can refine an understanding of policy development and ways to improve student persistence. Purposeful sampling was used to explore the perspectives of 14 Texas policymakers and those that influence policy. Findings revealed that significant gaps exist between expectations and student realities and that the completion agenda is driving policy decisions. Participants perceived that transfer students have been ignored in the completion metrics, which influence institutional priorities. Moreover, the decentralized system of independent, autonomous institutions is a major contributor to inefficiencies such as excessive student credit hours. Improving the transferability of courses was a priority recommendation of all participants both because it benefits the State’s …

The problem with which this study is concerned is that of the influence of local- and state-level external forces on the actions of the Texas legislature with respect to financing public higher education at senior institutions in Texas during the period from 1965 through 1983 as perceived by high ranking academic administrators. The specially designed survey instrument elicited respondents' perceptions of the degree of influence of specified local— and state-level external forces on institutional funding and the amount and usefulness of contacts made by respondents with such forces in an effort to exert influence for the purpose of increasing state funding for their institutions.

The problem with which this investigation is concerned is that of determining the existing and ideal perceived roles of college financial aid directors in Texas, the preparation of financial aid directors, the scope of their work, status, degree of job satisfaction, and attitudes toward selected financial aid concepts. A self-report questionnaire, which had been validated by a selected panel of financial aid directors, and for which reliability had been established by the test re-test method, provided the necessary data for the research report. Replies were received from more than seventy-five per cent of the financial aid directors in the colleges of Texas. Chapter I, Introduction, includes the subject of the study, purposes, research questions, background and significance, definition of terms, basic assumptions, instruments, and procedures for analysis of data. Chapter II is the review of related research. Chapter III gives procedures for collection and treatment of data. Chapter IV contains the report of the responses to the questionnaire, and Chapter V contains a summary of the findings, the conclusions reached, recommendations, and implications for further study.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the dissertations in Higher Education Administration at the University of North Texas from 1971 to 1991.

The Federation of North Texas Area Universities was mandated by the Coordinating Board of the Texas College and University System on 3 December 1968, and this consortium was given legal empowerment by the Texas State Legislature. The three federated Universities--North Texas State University, Texas Woman's University and East Texas State University--developed a plan of cooperative action to maximize use of available resources, a plan which included sharing facilities and faculty as well as developing joint program offerings. At a time in history when educational institutions were obliged to maximize their resources, minimize their expenditure, and eliminate duplication, the consortium was an innovative approach to higher education as well as an interesting alternative to having degree programs cut and funding diminished.