Are there differences in leadership styles among occupational therapy clinic administrators and program directors in professional and technical education programs? This study investigated transformational and transactional leadership behaviors and effectiveness as measured by the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) Form 5x-Short behaviors and demographic characteristics of leaders and their organizations using a questionnaire designed by the researcher. MLQ Leader Forms were received from 50 clinic administrators randomly selected from the membership list of the Administration and Management Special Interest Section (AMSIS) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), 56 professional program directors, and 41 technical program directors from accredited occupational therapy education programs in the United States, for a total of 147 leader respondents. Rater forms were received from 2 to 5 occupational therapy staff or faculty per leader and average scores calculated. More than 86% of leader respondents were female and white. Major findings indicate that administrative positions indifferent institutional contexts relate to leadership behaviors and effectiveness. Technical education program directors and clinic administrators scored higher on transformational behaviors and effectiveness than professional education program directors. Consistent with other research on leadership, the self-ratings of leaders were higher than ratings of subordinates. The data indicated statistically significant positive correlations between …

This study was concerned with the enrollment patterns in required general education courses by technicaloccupational students in an urban community college. The purposes of this study were to (1) examine the general education course enrollment patterns of technical occupational students in specific programs; (2) determine if completion of an English course yields a higher GPA; (3) profile the characteristics of the students who do and do not enroll in general education courses; (4) determine if students enrolled in certain technical-occupational programs are more likely to enroll in general education than students enrolled in similar programs; and (5) determine if completion of general education courses has a positive effect on overall GPA of students.

The general purpose of the study was to compile current descriptive information for recent graduates from career school sector institutions that reveals the significant factors which contributed to their program completion. The research project focused upon career school program completers. The scope of the study was directed to recent program completers at two career schools in Texas which offer a cross-section of programs designed to provide students specific skills for immediate employment. Based upon an extensive review of literature and the input of a focus group of experienced career school administrators and faculty members, seven variables were determined to be worthy of a focused study of their possible contributions to career school program completion. The variables were ability to accept responsibility for completion, academic preparedness, family or friends support system, self-esteem, life skills preparedness, sense of being goal-oriented, and sense of connectedness to the school. It was determined that each of the seven variables existed prominently in the majority of these recent graduates. The researcher concludes that there is a tremendous need for continued study that is focused on career school sector students. The paper offers the suggestion of a specific retention program that can be employed by career school …

This study investigated the following with regard to technical-occupational students in a multi-campus urban community college: The enrollment patterns in required general education courses at specific intervals of course work; the relation between successful completion of certain required general education courses (English and mathematics) and academic success as measured by grade point average; and the profiles or basic characteristics (age, GPA, sex, and high school graduation status) of (a) the student who had completed a specified amount of general education course work and (b) the graduate who had attained a higher grade point average in technical course work than in general education course work. The data was obtained from the academic records of 328 current student, selected by established criteria, and 284 graduates of six technical-occupational programs. The six programs were chosen by pairs to represent white-collar, technical-skilled, and blue-collar oriented occupations. Data on enrollment patterns were analyzed according to percentage in frequency distributions. Differences in mean grade point averages for completers and non-completers of English and mathematics were analyzed using the t-test. Significant variance among the groups representing types of occupations was analyzed using the chi-square test for independence. The Pearson Product Moment test was used to investigate correlations …

Reorganization efforts within colleges and universities are increasingly considered as institutions look for ways to streamline operations for financial cost savings or competitive advantage. The purpose of this study was to assess a particular change effort in a university library which took place between August, 1996 and July, 1997. A team was formed to manage the change effort, and an outside consultant was hired to facilitate the process and guide the team. Stufflebeam's evaluation model was used as a conceptual framework to evaluate the entire process which included a particular change management model brought in by the consultant. The entire change effort was described by the author as a participating member of the team and assessed by gathering feedback from team members, library staff members affected by the effort, and members of the library administration.

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze computer literacy and general attitudes toward computers of students at Thai public unversities. The comparative study of computer literacy levels and attitudes toward computers among Thai students with various demographic classification was performed followed by the study of relationships between the two variables among the samples. A fifty-eight-item questionnaire was adapted from the computer literacy questionnaire developed by the researchers at the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium. The items were designed to assess knowledge and attitudes relative to computers. The questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 492 students who took at least one computer course from thirteen public universities in Thailand. Statistical tests used to analyze the data included t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson product moment correlations. Based on the research findings, the following conclusions were drawn: (1) Thai university students exhibited a moderate computer literacy level. (2) While a higher proportion of female students enrolled in computer classes, male and female students reported similar computer literacy levels. (3) Graduate students had higher computer literacy levels than did other students from different educational levels. (4) Academic majors and academic performance (GPAs) were also factors affecting computer literacy …

The purpose of this research was to determine what preferences exist for full- and part-time community college faculty for institutional communication and if institutional communication predicts faculty perception of an academic integrity culture. The sample is nationally representative, consisting of institutional representation from five of the six accreditation regions nationally, a relativity equal distribution of three Carnegie Classifications (higher career & technical, high transfer, and mixed transfer/career & technical) and three Census Bureau defined population areas (urbanized area, urban cluster, and rural area). The survey, completed by 328 faculty from eight community colleges, was a modified version of three widely used instruments: the International Center for Academic Integrity Academic Integrity Faculty Survey, the International Communication Association Audit, and the Organizational Communication Development Audit Questionnaire. Chi-square, independent samples t-test, and hierarchical regression analysis were each used to explore the relationship between the perception of communication, channels of communication, and perceived culture of academic integrity. The results suggest that face-to-face and electronic communication channels are both preferred channels of communication among full- and part-time faculty and that the communication through these two channels is predictive and interactional. In collaboration with a positive perception of communication, both worked to predict a perceived culture …

The problem of this study was an analysis of the differences between associate degree and baccalaureate degree nursing school graduates in relation to the functions they were currently performing, their perceptions of the adequacy of their educational preparation for these functions, and their apparent readiness for these nursing functions as reported by employers of nurses. A questionnaire was devised and mailed to a random sample of employers of nurses and to recent graduates of two associate degree and two baccalaureate degree nursing programs in Texas. Graduates were asked to report on the extent of their performance of each of eighty nursing activities as well as their perception of their preparation for each activity. Employers were requested to report the readiness of recent graduates to perform each nursing activity, The eighty activities were categorized into the following five functions: (1) physical care and technical skills, (2) interpersonal relationships, (3) leadership, (4) decision making, and (5) community health care.

The problem of this study was the status of higher education in Haiti. The purposes were to analyze the organization, administration, and contributions of higher education to national development from 1958 to 1988 and to provide background information from foreign literature which might assist in the improvement Haiti's system of higher education. In an effort to locate information necessary to achieve these purposes, a computer search was conducted. A survey of available literature in French, Creole, and English and personal and telephone interviews were also conducted. The results of this study reveal that, in the past three decades, higher education in Haiti has merely functioned as a symbol of social prestige. Haiti's system of higher education exhibits no apparent direction, purpose, of long-term goals. With more than 90 percent of its professors part-time and ill-prepared, its curriculum unrelated to the needs of Haitian society, and its student body in revolt for the past three years, higher education in Haiti is urgently in need of radical reform. Any contribution made to national development by the system of higher education is weak at best. The small but oppressive elite group that dominates the economic and political realms in Haiti has proved to …

This study sought to determine whether there was a difference in subject matter knowledge as measured by a pretest and posttest, a difference in final course grade as a numeric score, and a difference in attitudes toward computers between students in a competency-based ("hands-on") computer applications course taught in an electronically-expanded classroom compared to students taught in a traditional classroom setting. In addition, students taught in the electronically-expanded classroom completed a questionnaire assessing attitudes toward the presentation method. Another purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of applying distance education techniques to teach what was, in essence, an on-campus course. The vehicle for this investigation was an electronically-expanded classroom. The electronically-expanded classroom utilized distance education technology (video, audio, and computer networking) to connect two classrooms in the one building. Students in these two classrooms were the treatment group. Students taking the course in a traditional setting functioned as the comparison group. A total of 109 participants completed the study. Results of the study revealed no significant difference in scores on the subject matter posttest, the final course grade as a numeric score, and attitudes towards computers posttest between students taught the course in an electronically-expanded classroom and students …

This study sought to identify components of the institutional transformation of Southwest Texas Junior College from its participation in the Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) The RCCI was centered on increasing access to educational opportunities and regional economic development in four historically poor regions of the United States. It was felt that this two-pronged approach to increase access and economic development would ameliorate poverty and provide opportunity. The pilot colleges were chosen from Appalachia, Delta South, Northern Plains (Tribal colleges), and the Southwest. Southwest Texas Junior College in the southwest border region of Texas and Mexico was chosen in 1994 as one of nine pilot college participants in the Ford Foundation project. Documentation of the college's characteristics were conducted during the 1994 and 1995 preliminary visits by Stephen G. Katsinas at the request of the Ford Foundation to find suitable rural community colleges in historically distressed areas of the United States to be invited to participate in RCCI. Follow-up site visits were conducted by Christopher Thomas in 2002, 2004, and 2005. Data was collected during all site visits by open-ended questionnaires, interviews, content analysis of documents, and observation. Extended site visits and living in the college's residence halls increased the …

Learning styles and readiness for self-directed learning were identified for 125 adult employees enrolled in self-paced training courses. The success of the self-paced instruction was measured by confidence to perform learned skills on the job. Confidence scores were compared across learning style types and self-directed learning readiness. It was concluded that self-paced training programs can be effective for a variety of learning style preferences. Additionally, adult employees who are highly self-directed will experience greater success in self-paced instruction than those less self-directed. The implication for businesses and academic institutions seeking to employ technology based, self-instructional programs is that a return on investment can be maximized by an examination of the target audience. Training programs which are self-paced may not generate the desired success which will translate into effective job performance for those adults who are not ready for self-directed learning.

Transformational leaders have tendencies that include: 1) projecting confidence and optimism about goals and followers' ability, 2) providing a clear vision, 3) encouraging creativity through empowerment and rewarding experimentation, 4) setting high expectations and creating a supportive environment, and 5) establishing personal relationships with followers. Transactional leadership as a process in which leaders and followers decide on goals and how to achieve them through a mutual exchange. The leader provides followers with resources, rewards, and punishment in order to achieve motivation, productivity, and effective task accomplishment. Laissez-faire leadership is the process of letting followers work without direction or guidance from the leader. The laissez-faire leader avoids providing direction and support, shows a lack of active involvement in follower activity, and abdicates responsibilities by maintaining a line of separation between the leader and the followers. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the assumption that a combination of transformational and transactional leadership factors is more predictive of greater followers' job satisfaction, motivation toward extra effort, and perceived presidential effectiveness than either leadership style alone. The study investigated perceptions of the degree to which transformational leadership, transactional leadership, and laissez-faire leadership were practiced by presidents of member colleges and universities …

The problem with which this study is concerned is that of determining the possible differential effects of the alternative training patterns of handcrafted textile design students in universities and polytechnics in Nigeria on the scores in courses for their final-year training as well as the type of first employment that students secure after graduation.

This research synthesizes data and presents it using mapping software to help to identify potential site locations for community-centered higher education alternatives and more traditional junior-level colleges in Uganda. What factors can be used to quantify one site over another for the location of such an institution and if these factors can be isolated; why should they be used by local authorities? the variables are secured from the Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ), Afrobarometer, census data, as well as technology reports and surveys. These variables are reduced, grouped and mapped to help determine the best location for a junior-level college. the use of local expert opinion on geopolitical, economic, and educational situations can be interfaced with the database data to identify potential sites for junior-level colleges with the potential to reduce the failure rate of such post-secondary school ventures. These data are analyzed in the context of reported higher education policies and outcomes from the national ministries, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), quality assurances agencies in the region, the World Bank, and national datasets. the final product is a model and tool that can be used by local experts to better select …

The problem with which this study is concerned is the identification of selected factors, prior to a student's admission into the nursing sequence, that may be related to the student's success in completing a baccalaureate nursing education. The purposes of the study were (1) to determine if there is a relationship between the reading ability of baccalaureate nursing students and their grades in their initial nursing course, (2) to determine if there are statistically significant differences in reading abilities among traditional groups and identified nontraditional nursing student subgroups (men, older students, blacks Hispanics, and others) of the population, and (3) to determine if prior educational experience (junior college, senior college, or a previous baccalaureate degree) is related to students' grades in the initial clinical course.

This study paralleled Smallman's (1993) analysis of college athletes at an NCAA Division I school, which found significant differences between athletes and nonathletes in readiness to make career decisions. The present study measured career decision-making skills using The Career Development Inventory. In addition, the present study examined the salience of roles (i.e., student, worker, citizen, family member, and leasurite) as measured by The Salience Inventory.

The problem of this study is to ascertain the existing relationships between enrollment size and methods of financial management in selected public institutions of higher education. The purposes set forth for this investigation are to conduct a survey of the financial management methods of a major segment of Texas higher education, to analyze the existing relationships of these financial methods with increasing enrollments ranging from 2,537 to 26,531, and to assess the implications thereof for indicators of optimum and maximum enrollments under variable methods of financial management.

This study explored the life and work of the late Grace Murray Hopper, Rear Admiral United States Naval Reserve. The study emphasized Hopper's contributions to computer science and computer science education, including her philosophy of teaching and learning, and her pedagogical legacy for today's teachers and scholars of computer science and computer science education.

The Bill J. Priest Institute for Economic Development is an entity created in the Dallas County Community College District to serve the community in workforce and economic development. The history of the Priest Institute over the last ten years parallels and illustrates the commitment of community colleges nationally to workforce and economic development. The history also reflects similar goals and trends within the state of Texas and, particularly, in the city of Dallas. The Priest Institute is made up of three distinct entities. One entity is the Edmund J. Kahn Job Training Center; another is the Business and Professional Institute, which provides consulting and training services to business clients. The final service area is the complex made up of the regional North Texas Small Business Development Center and its several related local service operations. This study provides an analytical history of each of these components and the process by which they came together in a model facility in Dallas. This study also describes perceptions of persons within the Institute regarding its present mission and purposes and the efficacy of the current organizational structure both internally and within the district operation as an appropriate structure enabling the Institute to meet its …

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 …

Using Tinto's longitudinal model of institutional departure as the theoretical basis for this research, the purpose was to determine what extent selected motivational factors measured by the College Student Inventory (CSI) predict academic success and persistence of at-risk students at the University of North Texas (UNT). The study focused on United States citizens and permanent residents entering UNT as at-risk first-time freshmen admitted via individual approval for the fall 1994 semester. The 409 subjects were enrolled in a developmental course titled Personal and Academic Effectiveness where the CSI was administered during the first 2 weeks of class. Selected predictor variables were tested in relation to the separate criterion variables of grade point average and enrolled status during the 2nd and 4th years of the study. Grade point averages and enrollment data for the 1995-96 and 1997-98 academic years were extracted from the student information management system. The research design employed appropriate multiple regressions, multiple correlations, multiple discriminant analyses, and bivariate correlations. Findings confirmed the ability of five CSI factors to predict grade point average (p < .05) of at-risk students over the time frames used in this study. Nine factors predicting enrolled status were also significant at the .05 level; …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of Prince George's Community College faculty knowledge of the legal issues, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, and recent court decisions, related to the provision of classroom accommodations for students with disabilities at the postsecondary level. The focus of the study was to determine if a difference existed between the knowledge of full-time and part-time faculty. Part-time faculty comprise over 50 % of the instructional staffs at most community colleges and are considered an integral part of their institutions, yet they are offered little opportunity for professional development. The variables of gender, department affiliation, teaching at more than one institution, number of years of teaching experience, number of students taught with a disability, and number of individuals known with a disability also were reviewed. Data were collected through a questionnaire distributed to 158 faculty members at the college. Twenty-nine packets were returned as undeliverable. Of the 129 deliverable packets, 57 were returned for a response rate of 44.2%. Results from the analysis of data indicated that faculty have very limited knowledge of the legal issues concerning students with disabilities. Only 26.9% …

Student-run public relations firms are part of collegiate public relations pedagogy, and this study used a mixed-method approach to analyze such firms on U.S. campuses. A listing of campuses with student-run firms was created as part of this study. Through an online survey questionnaire, advisers from 55 of the 119 student-run firms provided data about firm characteristics and observations about student learning and career development. Multiple correspondence analyses was used to see if the firms grouped into clusters and somewhat aligned with previous research by Lee Bush in 2009. Firms clustered into four groups, with the fourth group representing a mix of the other three. One additional finding was that firm characteristics are more similar than dissimilar even when comparing firms of varying years in operation. Analysis of variance to compare characteristics between different types of firms revealed that one type of firm tended to employ students at a higher average number of hours per week (F = 6.61, eta squared=0.16) and one was more likely to be accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (F = 3.71, eta squared=0.13). Advisers reported mostly positive reflections on observed transformations they see in their student workers and …