The purpose of this study is to examine the programming of religious education in Southern Baptist institutions of higher education, including a comparison of current religious education programs, the articulation between college and seminary religious education programs, and the identification of future trends that these programs may follow. From these findings, the following conclusions were drawn: Religious education is apparently considered important enough to be included in the curriculum of Southern Baptist colleges. The evaluation of the role of the institution in training students for careers in religious education has been a vital factor in changes that have been made in the programs. Programs designed to grant credit for work done prior to seminary enrollment are being favorably, although not unanimously, received. Additional undergraduate religious education programs appear to be likely, should programs granting credit for previous work develop. Exploration into the development of other means for the granting of credit would bring improvement in the cooperative relationships between the colleges and the seminaries. From these conclusions, the following implications were derived: Southern Baptist schools will continue to train persons for church-related vocations. Attitudinal changes must occur, both among the college and the seminary leaders, before major changes will be …

In this study, C. S. Lewis's books, essays, stories, and poems, in addition to biographies and essays written about Lewis, were read in an attempt to understand the relationship between Lewis's spiritual quest and his total health. The spiritual quest is defined as the search for the ultimate truth and meaning of life. For Lewis, who was a Christian, the quest for the Spirit is a journey toward God-Jesus-the Holy Spirit. Health is defined as total experience; the interrelationship of the body, mind, and spirit with all there is, has been, and will be. Health is considered a changing perception, not a fixed state. The dimensions of Lewis's health—physical, psychological, social, and spiritual—are studied. Lewis's physical states, literary works, literary themes, friendships, ethics, marriage, and views on religion are considered as each relates to his determination to know and to love God. For Lewis, anything without God is nothing. God is the creator of all living things and all matter. He is the inventor of all loves and is Love. In Lewis's opinion, one's health is in direct proportion to one's love for God. When man loves God he is healthy, the more he loves Him the healthier, the less …

The purpose of this study was to identify indicators of quality for liberal arts colleges and universities as defined by internal and external constituents, and to compare the results of this study with those of two-year public institutions. The internal constituents included college and university presidents and faculty, and the external constituents consisted of officers of Chambers of Commerce and the Kiwanis International, representing business and industry. A survey instrument of 70 items was sent to the constituents of 148 institutions accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. A total of 592 surveys were sent with an average response rate of 56.93%. The study was limited to Baccalaureate (Liberal Arts) Colleges I and Baccalaureate (Liberal Arts) Colleges II according to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. There were 57 survey items identified as indicators of quality by agreement of all respondent group means. The highest ranked indicator of quality was faculty commitment to teaching. The Analysis of Variance revealed close agreement by constituents on 17 of the quality indicators. There was close agreement also that three of the survey items were not indicators of quality. Fisher's Multiple Comparison test revealed that various constituents rated some survey …

The purpose of this study was to examine differences and relationships in student definition and background characteristics, help seeking behaviors, academic and environmental variables between and among community college students at a single institution who successfully completed and those who did not complete online courses during a single term. An adapted version of Bean and Metzner's conceptual model of nontraditional student attrition provided the theoretical framework for the study. The results of data analysis revealed statistically significant differences between completers and noncompleters on the basis of definition, gender, ethnicity, experience and prior GPA. Statistically significant relationships were found between definition, ethnicity, gender, experience, prior GPA, orientation and completion and noncompletion. No statistically significant interactions were found between definition and experience and help seeking behaviors. No statistically significant differences, relationships or predictor variables were found by degree seeking, preassessment, or technical help seeking. Additional analyses by defining characteristics revealed statistically significant differences between completers and noncompleters on the basis of residency, age and enrollment status. Predictor variables found to be significant were definition, gender, experience, prior GPA and orientation. The odds of completion increased with nontraditional definition, female gender, higher prior GPA, and orientation participation. The odds of completion decreased with …

The literature identifies multiple factors pertinent to learner characteristics and learning experiences that may promote doctoral education outcomes, and yet little quantitative research has examined relationships between those factors deemed important in the effectiveness of doctoral education. This study sought to examine predictive relationships among doctoral students’ learner characteristics, their involvement in mentorship and intellectual community, and doctoral education outcomes. Using Astin’s theory of involvement and the literature on signature pedagogies in doctoral education as conceptual guides, a survey instrument was constructed for the purpose of measuring variables identified as relevant to the effective formation of scholars. Central to the conceptualization of this study was academic involvement as represented by mentorship and intellectual community. The instrument was validated in a two-stage pilot testing process and administered to doctoral candidates at three public Texas higher education institutions. Of the 217 participants, the majority were female, White (Non-Hispanic), US citizens, and were pursuing education doctorates. Data were analyzed using multivariate statistical analyses. Reliability and validity estimates indicated psychometric integrity of the 20 observed variables measured to represent the constructs of mentorship and intellectual community. Results indicated that doctoral students’ learner characteristics were not notably predictive of doctoral students’ degree of involvement in …