An Investigation Into the Factors Leading to the Closure of 40 Private Four-Year Colleges between 1965 and 2005 (open access)

An Investigation Into the Factors Leading to the Closure of 40 Private Four-Year Colleges between 1965 and 2005

This study searches for a set of common indicators that contributed to the ultimate closure of 40 colleges and universities between 1965 and 2005. From research on related literature, a set of 31 contributing factors was identified by published experts and observers in higher education. That set of indicators was then used as a list of 31 questions answered by data found in newspaper articles, professional journals, published research work, published institutional records, data taken from the Department of Education, data taken from IPEDS, data published in historical recounts of the colleges of interest, etc. The data was accumulated in the form of yes/no responses to the 31 questions. Although the study involved only 40 colleges and universities this population represents the majority of institutions that pass the restrictions of limitations and delimitations described in the full document. The complete data set was processed using SPSS which produced ANOVA tables and level of statistical significance for each indicator question. The results indicate that out of the 31 original indicator questions there were two groups of statistically significant indicators. The larger group of indicators having statistical significance at the .05 level encompassed the smaller group having statistical significance at the .001 …
Date: December 2009
Creator: Province, Terry Paul
System: The UNT Digital Library
College Student Adaptability and Greek Membership: A Single Institution Case Study (open access)

College Student Adaptability and Greek Membership: A Single Institution Case Study

Since the birth of the United States in 1776, Greek-letter societies have been an integral part of American higher education. Research on the impact of Greek membership varies at best, and often is in conflict from study to study. This study surveyed students affiliated with Greek-letter organizations at the University of North Texas. The research examined the college adaptability of Greek students by gender in five areas: Overall adjustment, academic adjustment, personal-emotional adjustment, social adjustment, and attachment to the institution. The study, conducted in the spring of 2006 at the University of North Texas had 80 respondents. The Student Adaptability to College Questionnaire (SACQ) consisted of 67 items on a 9-point scale. The SACQ is designed to assess how well students adapt to the demands of the college experience. Raw scores and percentile rankings were determined by t-test calculations. Test scores were expressed through t-scores in relation to the standardized sample. Data show no statistical significance in any of the five areas studied: Overall adjustment, academic adjustment, personal-emotional adjustment, social adjustment, or attachment to the institution. Female participants scored higher on all scales than male participants, indicating a slightly higher level of adjustment, though not enough to be significant. Both …
Date: May 2007
Creator: Ayres, Amy R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
College and University Executive Leadership: The Impact of Demography on the Propensity for Strategic Change (open access)

College and University Executive Leadership: The Impact of Demography on the Propensity for Strategic Change

This study explores the relationship between diversity within executive decision-making teams at institutions of higher education and their propensity for strategic change. Previous research in the areas of strategic change, group decision making, and higher education was drawn from in this study. Statistically significant relationships were discovered the demographic background of executive decision-making teams at public colleges and universities, as measured by both the pursuit of new degree and certificate program offerings and multiple measures of student retention. The results also indicated the presence of an insufficiently diverse pool of potential executives for colleges and universities to draw from.
Date: December 2003
Creator: Fincher, Mark
System: The UNT Digital Library
Computer-Mediated Communication Impact on the Academic and Social Integration of Community College Students. (open access)

Computer-Mediated Communication Impact on the Academic and Social Integration of Community College Students.

Although research findings to date have documented that computer-mediated communication (CMC) gets students involved, a substantial gap remained in determining the impact of CMC on academic and social integration of community college students. Because computer technology, specifically CMC, has proliferated within teaching and learning in higher education and because of the importance of academic and social integration, this study was significant in documenting through quantitative data analysis the impact that CMC had on the academic and social integration of community college students. The following research question was addressed: Does computer-mediated communication have an impact on the academic and social integration of community college students as measured by the CCSEQ? The study hypothesized that data analysis will show that there will be no difference in the integrations reported by the control and experimental groups. The overall approach was to conduct a pretest-posttest control-group experimental study using CMC as the experimental treatment. The Community College Student Experiences Questionnaire (CCSEQ) was given to collect data that were used to measure the academic and social integration of the control and experimental groups. After an in-depth analysis of data using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and ANCOVA, the finding of this study was that there is …
Date: August 2003
Creator: Dollar, David Lynn
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Impact of Financial Aid on Persistence: Application of the Financial Nexus Model (open access)

The Impact of Financial Aid on Persistence: Application of the Financial Nexus Model

The purpose of this study was to examine the financial nexus between college choice and persistence for full-time, first-time, first-year freshman college students. The theoretical framework of this study was the financial nexus construct developed by St. John, Paulsen, and Starkey (1996) and Paulsen and St. John (1997). This is the first study to apply the financial nexus construct to full-time, first-time, first-year freshman population; the first to examine baccalaureate/comprehensive and doctoral/research institutions in both public and private sectors separately. The results of this study found that (1) overall, it is slightly evident that there is a financial nexus between college choice and persistence among full-time, first-time, first-year freshman students; (2) the nexus between college choice and persistence may be different by the Carnegie Classification, and (3) the pattern of the direct effects of financial variables (i.e., tuition and financial aid) on persistence was different from the previous results. Unlike in the previous studies, tuition increases appeared to have a positive effect on the enrollment of full-time, first-time, first-year freshman students attending institutions of all Carnegie Classifications. The result suggests that price may reveal a "quality effect" and that higher tuition institution may signal higher quality. In both public and …
Date: August 2003
Creator: Hwang, Dae-Yeop
System: The UNT Digital Library
Community College Students' Perceptions of and Satisfaction with Factors Affecting Retention in a Major Urban Community College in the Southwestern United States (open access)

Community College Students' Perceptions of and Satisfaction with Factors Affecting Retention in a Major Urban Community College in the Southwestern United States

The purposes of this study were (a) to analyze whether any significant differences exist in students' satisfaction among the 11 composite scales/satisfaction measures of the SSI (retention programs); (b) to determine whether significant differences exist in satisfaction among students of the institution based on their demographic characteristics of gender, age, ethnicity, class load, and employment; and (c) to record findings, draw conclusions, and make recommendations from the study. The research was conducted using a questionnaire, The Student Satisfaction Inventory (SSI), developed by Juillreat and Schreiner in 1994. The instrument measures, among other matters, students' perceptions and satisfaction. The population of the study comprised all students at the institution during the 1996-1997 school year. A total of 312 students was sampled, with 182 (58%) returns received. Statistical treatments used to analyze the collected data included frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviation, multiple analysis of variances (MANOVA), one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey's Post Hoc t-test for multiple comparison.
Date: May 1998
Creator: Nzeakor, Ambrose Ugochukwu
System: The UNT Digital Library
Hebrew Wisdom as the Sitz im Leben for Higher Education in Ancient Israel (open access)

Hebrew Wisdom as the Sitz im Leben for Higher Education in Ancient Israel

This research grows out of an interest in what scholars commonly call the wisdom tradition of the ancient near east. This tradition or movement involved groups of thinkers and writers, known collectively as scribes, who were concerned in a philosophical way with the problems of living, and with principles of living well. Such communities are known to have flourished in Egypt, the various kingdoms of Mesopotamia, and western Asia, from at least the middle of the third millennium B.C. These scribal communities are also known to have sponsored schools, intended primarily for training in statecraft and the professions, but also for training in the scribal profession per se. The documentary and historical record indicates that such schools provided education from the most rudimentary level of literacy and writing to the most advanced levels of scribal scholarship. These advanced levels of training were functionally equivalent to what is nowadays known as higher education; and the ideals, the philosophy, which guided this enterprise found expression in a corpus of literature bearing the name "wisdom." The problem for this dissertation is whether or not there was in ancient Israel, specifically in the Solomonic era (10th century, B.C.), such an advanced scribal school associated …
Date: May 1997
Creator: Wells, C. Richard (Calvin Richard), 1949-
System: The UNT Digital Library
Books in Religious Adult Education Valued by Professional Religious Adult Educators (open access)

Books in Religious Adult Education Valued by Professional Religious Adult Educators

This research focused on discovering the most valued books in adult religious education through a survey of professors of adult religious education and in bibliographies of recent dissertations in adult religious education. Three groups of adult religious educators participated in the survey: the religious adult educators who are members of the adult sections of the Association of Professors and Researchers of Religious Education and North American Professors of Christian Education, and professors of adult religious education in Southern Baptist theological seminaries. In addition the author surveyed the adult religious education dissertation bibliographies for the period 1980-1995 to discover the most frequently cited adult religious education books. The author developed a listing of 312 adult religious education books published in English. Then a jury of three experts in the field choose seventy-seven books which they valued. From this list the three groups of professors choose books according to three criteria: textbooks they used in adult religious education courses, books they recommended as additional reading, and books they valued in the field.
Date: August 1996
Creator: Walter, Woodrow James
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Examination of the Relationship Between Published Book Reviews and the Circulation of Books at an Academic Library (open access)

An Examination of the Relationship Between Published Book Reviews and the Circulation of Books at an Academic Library

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if book reviews are useful and significant indicators of potential circulation. Major book reviewing sources were studied to determine if some were more useful than others in selecting books which circulate.
Date: December 1993
Creator: Thornton, Glenda A. (Glenda Ann)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Patronage Behavior of Elderly Consumers in the Purchase of Pharmaceuticals with Teaching and Learning Implications for American Higher Education (open access)

Patronage Behavior of Elderly Consumers in the Purchase of Pharmaceuticals with Teaching and Learning Implications for American Higher Education

This study concerned the impact lifestyles of the elderly have on purchases from different product categories. The main purpose was to determine, evaluate, and analyze the effects of lifestyles on elderly shoppers' choice of retail outlets.
Date: December 1993
Creator: Oates, Barbara R. (Barbara Ruth)
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Assessment of the University of North Texas's Image among the University of North Texas Administration and Board of Regents, Metro-Plex Business Leaders, the Higher Education Coordinating Board, and the Texas House and Senate Sub-Committees (open access)

An Assessment of the University of North Texas's Image among the University of North Texas Administration and Board of Regents, Metro-Plex Business Leaders, the Higher Education Coordinating Board, and the Texas House and Senate Sub-Committees

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the image of the University of North Texas as perceived by the University Administration and Board of Regents, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Baord and selected Legislators, and the Boards of Directors of the Metroplex area Chambers of Commerce. The significance of the study was to contribute knowledge that could be used to construct a more direct and cost effective marketing plan.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Hill, S. Trent (Stanley Trenton)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Association of Self-Directed Learning Readiness, Learning Styles, Self-Paced Instruction, and Confidence to Perform on the Job (open access)

The Association of Self-Directed Learning Readiness, Learning Styles, Self-Paced Instruction, and Confidence to Perform on the Job

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.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Baxter, Lynn Z. (Lynn Zander)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Cultural Identity in Thai Movies and Its Implications for the Study of Films in Thailand (open access)

Cultural Identity in Thai Movies and Its Implications for the Study of Films in Thailand

The primary purpose of this study was to find the content and form of movies which conform to the taste of the majority of Thai audiences and, at the same time, are universal enough to attract international audiences. Because film is an extension of other art forms, this required extensive research into the roots of Thai performing arts.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Dunagin, Kultida Boonyakul
System: The UNT Digital Library
Determination of Author Characteristics and Content of Educational Computing Articles in Community/Junior College Serials Literature, 1977-1991 (open access)

Determination of Author Characteristics and Content of Educational Computing Articles in Community/Junior College Serials Literature, 1977-1991

The study was undertaken: (a) to categorize the contents of educational computing articles using a taxonomy developed by Knezek, Rachlin, and Scannell (1988), (b) to examine the trends in educational computing subject matter addressed in community/junior college journals between 1977 and 1991, and (c) to identify and analyze specific characteristics of contributing authors and their employing institutions which might explain writing and publication biases.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Jenkins-Todd, Derone I. (Derone Ilene)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effect of Age or Previous Post-Secondary Experience on Student Evaluation of Instruction (open access)

The Effect of Age or Previous Post-Secondary Experience on Student Evaluation of Instruction

The increase in the number of nontraditional aged undergraduate students (25 yrs. and older) and students transferring between post-secondary institutions has raised the question of whether effective instruction is viewed the same by these different groups of students. This study addressed this question by analyzing the responses of these different groups to 23 instructional questions on a standard faculty evaluation form.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Klassen, James E. (James Edward)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Gowin's Knowledge Vee: A Heuristic for Adult Religious Education (open access)

Gowin's Knowledge Vee: A Heuristic for Adult Religious Education

The application of Gowin's knowledge vee as a means to design instruction for adult Bible study was investigated in this study. The study was designed to determine whether subjects using this instructional approach differed from subjects using traditional instructional materials regarding their attitudes toward Bible study, attendance, knowledge retention, application of study materials to life, and recruitment of new class members.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Funck, James H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Historical Review of the Development of Federal Universities of Technology in Nigeria (open access)

A Historical Review of the Development of Federal Universities of Technology in Nigeria

The overall purpose of this study was to identify the major factors and events that led to the establishment of the Federal Universities of Technology in Nigeria. The study examined and analyzed the growth and development of the three Nigerian Federal Universities of Technology at Owerri, Akure, and Minna.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Asagba, Joseph Obukowho
System: The UNT Digital Library
International Education Programs at Community Colleges in the State of Texas (open access)

International Education Programs at Community Colleges in the State of Texas

This study examined international education (IE) programs in Texas community colleges to determine how they compare to a general, theoretical model of IE programs discussed in the literature. The study proposed: (a) to describe, through a review of literature, the components of IE; (b) to describe the administration of IE within the Texas community colleges; (c) to identify existing IE instructional activities; (d) to describe the student support services related to IE which are in practice; (e) to describe what community and out of country outreach components are in operation; and (f) to determine how the IE programs in Texas community colleges compare to theoretical components of IE programs as identified in the literature.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Emerson, Mary L. (Mary Latrelle)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Job-Related Stressors as Perceived by the Directors and Full-Time Faculty of Accredited Educational Programs in Medical Record Administration and Medical Record Technology in the United States and Their Strategies for Coping with Them (open access)

Job-Related Stressors as Perceived by the Directors and Full-Time Faculty of Accredited Educational Programs in Medical Record Administration and Medical Record Technology in the United States and Their Strategies for Coping with Them

The purpose of this study was to: (1) identify the sources of job-related stress which create excessive pressures for the directors and faculty of medical record administration and medical record technology programs; (2) identify the strategies that the directors and faculty of medical record administration and medical record technology programs find most helpful in coping with stress; (3) determine the relationship among demographic variables and job-related stressors as perceived by the directors and faculty of medical record administration and medical record technology programs; and (4) determine the difference among the means of five stress factors as perceived by the directors of medical record administration, faculty of medical record administration, directors of medical record technology and faculty of medical record technology programs. Questionnaires were mailed to 403 respondents. The response rate was 81.3%. Within the limitations of this study, the results revealed that "Having insufficient time to keep abreast of current developments in my field"was the highest stressor. The top stress coping strategy was "Social interaction." The relationship between demographic variables and five stress factors of reward and recognition, time constraint, departmental influence, professional identity and student interaction revealed a positive correlation between degree and professional identity factor, and a negative …
Date: August 1993
Creator: Mozie, David Ikechukwu
System: The UNT Digital Library
Perceptions of the Leadership Role of Deans of Students in the Public Universities of Kenya (open access)

Perceptions of the Leadership Role of Deans of Students in the Public Universities of Kenya

This study concerns the leadership behavior of the deans of students in the four public universities of Kenya and their constituent colleges. Both the real and ideal versions of the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire and the demographic questionnaire developed under the auspices of faculty advisors were used to collect data from 10 deans of students, 55 student affairs staff members, and 130 student leaders--who constituted the sample of 195 who responded from the chosen population. Data were analyzed using a series of one-way analyses of variance utilizing the f test of statistical difference. Fisher's least significant difference test, a multiple comparison procedure, was utilized to make all pairwise comparisons which were detected by the ANOVA to differ significantly from one-another among the respective mean ratings of the three groups surveyed. Twelve hypotheses were developed and tested, and the major findings included: There were significant differences among the perceptions of the deans of students, student affairs staff members, and student leaders regarding the real and ideal leadership behavior of the deans of students concerning initiating structure and consideration--the two leadership dimensions surveyed on the questionnaire.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Maronga, Geoffrey Bosire
System: The UNT Digital Library
A comparison of the Avowed Beliefs and Reported Practices of Two Groups of Southern Baptist Pastors Based upon Background in Higher Education (open access)

A comparison of the Avowed Beliefs and Reported Practices of Two Groups of Southern Baptist Pastors Based upon Background in Higher Education

The purpose of this study was to compare the avowed beliefs and reported practices of Southern Baptist pastors based upon their level of attainment in higher education and their choice of theological seminary.
Date: May 1993
Creator: Barrington, Carl (Carl Don)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Content and Focus of Dissertations in the Field of Higher Education Administration in the Department of Higher Education at the University of North Texas from 1971 through 1991 (open access)

Content and Focus of Dissertations in the Field of Higher Education Administration in the Department of Higher Education at the University of North Texas from 1971 through 1991

The purpose of this study was to analyze the dissertations in Higher Education Administration at the University of North Texas from 1971 to 1991.
Date: May 1993
Creator: Sharpe, Aubrey Dean
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Development and Evaluation of the Evangelism-missiology Program at the Criswell College : A Case Study (open access)

The Development and Evaluation of the Evangelism-missiology Program at the Criswell College : A Case Study

vi, 130 leaves
Date: May 1993
Creator: Brown, Elizabeth M. (Elizabeth J. McAnally)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Listening Skills Instruction on Students' Academic Performance (open access)

The Effects of Listening Skills Instruction on Students' Academic Performance

Although it is widely assumed that listening is among the most important learning skills (Wolvin & Coakley, 1988), an examination of the literature indicates that it has been woefully neglected as subject matter in schools. Listening has also been neglected as an area of research. Surveys have been conducted to see if listening is being taught or can effectively be taught, but little evidence exists to suggest that effectively teaching listening improves students' academic performance. This study investigated the relationship between listening skills instruction and academic performance among university students. The purpose was to determine if teaching university students comprehensive listening skills improves their academic performance. It was assumed that listening can be effectively taught. The goal of the study was to compare 75 students who were enrolled in a listening course to a similar group of 75 students not enrolled in a listening course. The students were compared on the basis of grade point improvement the semester after the experimental group had completed the listening course. The t test was chosen because it can be used for testing the significance of the difference between the means of two independent samples. The grade point averages of the two groups were …
Date: May 1993
Creator: Mangrum, C. W. (Clifton William)
System: The UNT Digital Library