Howard G. Hendricks influenced generations of leaders in Christian education during the last half of the 20th century through the practical communication of his unique message and the personal nature of his teaching ministry. This study explored his life through interpretive biography, compared his message with current models of secular and religious education, and evaluated his ministry through case study research. Hendricks has contributed to the field of Christian higher education through the publication of several books and periodical articles, as well as film series, audiotapes, and videotapes. He has presented thousands of messages across America and in over 75 countries worldwide. Hendricks has spent his entire 50-year educational career at Dallas Theological Seminary, teaching in the classroom, mentoring his students, and modeling positive values of Christian leadership. Chapter 1 introduces the study, explains the purpose and significance of the project, and defines key terms. Chapter 2 describes the methodology employed for the study. Chapter 3 provides an interpretive biography of Hendricks, and chapter 4 compares the educational philosophy of Hendricks with secular and Christian models. Chapter 5 examines the ministry of Hendricks in a case study approach. Chapter 6 summarizes the study and offers conclusions and implications for future …

Kenneth H. Cooper is considered to be a noted scholar in the field of wellness and fitness. This study explored his contributions to the preventive medicine and wellness movement in community college physical education programs in the United States. It examined Cooper's influence on the development of preventive medicine and wellness from its inception and growth to its impact on changes and factors affecting curriculum in community college programs. A random sample of436 physical education division directors from the nation's 1,400 community colleges yielded a 62% survey response. For purposes of comparison, the sample was stratified into two regions taken fromeast and west of the Mississippi River. Chi-square analysis at the .01 level of significance found no difference between variables due to geographic region. The findings of this study indicate that Kenneth Cooper's contributions to preventive medicine and wellness in community college physical education curriculum are overshadowed by state and local governing bodies that are the force behind curricular development in the nation's 2-year community colleges. However, as an individual contributor, Cooper ranks highly in influencing the wellness and physical education curriculum primarily in the areas of aerobic exercise, physical fitness, and cardiovascular disease. The extent of Cooper's impact on …

This study examined success rates and end-of-semester grades for three instructional methods used in developmental algebra and college algebra. The methods investigated were traditional lecture, laboratory, and computer mediated learning. The population included the 10,095 students who had enrolled in developmental algebra and college algebra at Richland College in Dallas, Texas, for five semesters. Success was defined as earning a grade of A, B, C, or D in a course.

A national survey was conducted to investigate job satisfaction among women accounting educators at four-year college and universities in the United States. The purpose of the study was to determine if differences existed among women accounting educators at research, doctoral, master's, and baccalaureate institutions in three areas relating to job satisfaction: levels of job satisfaction, individual sources of job satisfaction, and structural sources of job satisfaction. Also, the relationships among these three areas of job satisfaction were examined. A stratified random sample of 755 women accounting educators was selected from the population of 1,519 women. A mailed questionnaire was used to collect data. A total of 495 (66%) questionnaires were returned. Women accounting educators expressed satisfaction with co-workers, supervision, and work. They were neutral regarding satisfaction with pay and dissatisfied with promotion opportunities. A difference was detected between satisfaction with pay and type of institution. Differences were found between individual sources of job satisfaction and type of institution. The differences were attributable to education level and the personality characteristics of conscientiousness and openness. Differences were detected between structural sources of job satisfaction and type of institution. Academic rank, salary, tenure, institutional resources, and job functions accounted for the differences. Significant …

The major purpose of this study was to determine if pre-clinical medical school course examinations reflect critical thinking skills. The entire second year class from a medical school in the southwest made up the population. Student examination results from the first two years as well as scores on the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal were used in this study.

This study examines the association between the attitudes of students toward computers and their knowledge of the ethical uses of computers. The focus for this research was undergraduate students in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences (Department of Computer Science), Business and Education at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas.

This study examined the effect of active learning seminars and a mentoring program on the use of active learning teaching techniques by college faculty. A quasi-experimental study was conducted using convenience samples of faculty from two private Christian supported institutions. Data for the study were collected from surveys and faculty course evaluations. The study lasted one semester. Faculty volunteers from one institution served as the experimental group and faculty volunteers from the second institution were the comparison group. The experimental group attended approximately eight hours of active learning seminars and also participated in a one-semester mentoring program designed to assist faculty in application of active learning techniques. Several individuals conducted the active learning seminars. Dr. Charles Bonwell, a noted authority on active learning, conducted the first three-hour seminar. Seven faculty who had successfully used active learning in their classrooms were selected to conduct the remaining seminars. The faculty-mentoring program was supervised by the researcher and conducted by department chairs. Data were collected from three surveys and faculty course evaluations. The three surveys were the Faculty Active Learning Survey created by the researcher, the Teaching Goals Inventory created by Angelo and Cross, and the college edition of Learner-Centered Practices by Barbara …

While the relationship between academic variables and admission into medical school has been well documented, the relationship between socioeconomic background and admission has not been extensively examined. In 2001, the Texas Legislature passed HB 1641, which allowed for the use of socioeconomic variables in the admission of graduate and professional school students. Additionally, the Grutter v. Bollinger decision in 2003 removed a prohibition on the use of race or ethnicity in the admission of students in the state of Texas. The study examined the role medical school admissions selectivity as it relates to the socioeconomic background during a race neutral admissions cycle in 2005 and a race sensitive admissions cycle in 2006. The results of data analysis found that in a race neutral admissions cycle socioeconomic background was a significant factor in the admission of applicants to medical school. However, it was not a significant factor for applicants from underrepresented minority groups. The analysis also found that socioeconomic background was a significant factor in the admission of applicants to medical school in a race sensitive admissions cycle as well. Finally, the study found that variances in selectivity led to differences in the socioeconomic makeup of entering students across different medical …

Seeking to identify and further understand the variables considered when ranking specialty programs in colleges of education, this research study surveyed all deans, and associate deans responsible for graduate education, at United States institutions that offer the terminal degree in at least one of the ten education specialty areas. The study utilized a three-dimension model of brand equity from the marketing literature, which included the elaboration likelihood model of persuasion. Descriptive statistics determined that research by the faculty of the specialty program is the variable most widely considered by deans and associate deans when determining reputation. In order to determine what predicts a person's motivation to correctly rank programs, a principal components analysis was utilized as a data reduction technique, with parallel analysis determining component retention. The model identified five components which explained 66.224% of total variance. A multiple regression analysis determined that characteristics of a specialty program was the only statistically significant predictor component of motivation to correctly rank programs (β = .317, p = .008, rs2 = .865); however, a large squared structure coefficient was observed on perceived quality (rs2 = .623). Using descriptive discriminant analyses, the study found there is little evidence that marketing efforts have differing …

Under the George W. Bush U.S. presidential administration, the federal government pushed for greater accountability among institutions of higher education for educational outcomes. Graduation rate is a key performance indicator of institutional accountability. Previous researchers of student attrition focused primarily on the effects of student level factors on student persistence/withdrawal behavior. Recently, researchers put more focus on the effects of institutional characteristics on graduation rates, but most of these studies were exploratory and based on multiple regression models. No institutional model has existed to synthesize their results within a theoretical framework. Such an institutional model is needed to explain the process of student persistence at the institutional level. The purpose of this study was to develop a model of institutional performance in graduation rate for four-year, public and private not-for-profit, Title IV institutions in the United States. This study validated the institutional model based on the IPEDS dataset using the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique. Further group comparison analyses are conducted by fitting the same SEM model to several subgroup datasets based on grouping variables such as control, geographical region and state. Benchmarking analyses were conducted to demonstrate how administrators and policy-makers can use the institutional model to compare the …

The purpose of this study was to provide a historical overview of the development of the College of the Bahamas, and to examine the development of the College of the Bahamas in light of the College of the Bahamas Act of 1974 and the subsequent Act of 1995. The research was qualitative in nature using historical analysis. The primary means of investigation were analyses of both primary and secondary documents and interviews with key individuals who were important to the development of the College of the Bahamas since the 1960s. The methods of triangulation of data and findings were complemented by member checks to affirm the basic findings of the study. The study was limited in scope to the College of the Bahamas to the exclusion of other tertiary institutions within the country. The College of the Bahamas has advanced greatly and has largely fulfilled the directives and goals of the Act of 1974 and is currently engaged in efforts to meet the goals of the Act of 1995.

This study is a historical analysis of the significant events that led to the creation and evolution of the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS), from 1987 through 1992, and a description of the key individuals contributing to the development of the program. Included is a historical review of early college entrance and acceleration practices in the American educational system. In addition, the development of residential programs for mathematically and scientifically precocious high school-aged youths is offered. On June 23, 1987, the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science was established by the 70th Texas Legislature. Though fourth in a line of special programs created for mathematically and scientifically able high school-aged youths, the TAMS model significantly deviated from its predecessors. Only the accelerative TAMS model would offer a college curriculum taught by college faculty and the opportunity to concurrently complete the last two years of high school and the first two years of college. From the inception of the program in 1987 through 1992, changes would occur. From 1987 through the summer of 1988, the development of the curriculum, student life program, and admissions process took place. From 1988 through 1989 the inaugural class was introduced to the program, …

The problem addressed in this study was to determine if a significant association exists between attributions and academic achievement among students in a program of religious training at a Bible college. The research was designed to ascertain if optimistic attributions are more frequently associated with students in programs of religious education than with students in a public state-supported university environment. No significant correlation was found between optimistic explanatory styles and the academic achievement of Bible college students. A significant positive difference was found to exist between the explanatory styles of students at The Criswell College and students at the University of North Texas. Students in religious courses of study tended toward attributions for negative events that were external, unstable, and specific. The University of North Texas students tended toward attributions for negative events that were internal, stable, and global.

Graduate students in the College of Education at the University of North Texas, Denton rated 57 teacher attributes on their relative importance in effective teaching. The data was analyzed across six demographic variables of department, sex, degree, nationality, teaching experience, and previous graduate school, using mean scores, one-way ANOVA, and t-tests for two independent samples.

This study investigated relationships among hardiness, stress, and coping strategies among mid-level nurse managers in hospitals. Coping strategies were hypothesized to be positively related to stress. In addition, hardiness and its components were hypothesized to be positively related to stress and coping strategies. Demographics were hypothesized to be unrelated to stress, hardiness, and coping strategies. Both hardiness and coping strategies were hypothesized to be predictors of stress. Pearson correlation coefficients, multiple regression, and linear regression were used in data analysis. Stress was associated with specific coping strategies viz., confrontation, selfcontrolling, accepting responsibility, and escape-avoidance. High hardiness, particularly commitment and challenge, was associated with low levels of stress and with problemfocused coping strategies. By contrast, low hardiness was associated with high stress and use of emotion-focused strategies. Significant demographics, when compared to study variables, included age, experience, time with supervisors, number of direct reports, highest degrees obtained, and formal or informal higher education in management. Young nurse managers who were less experienced in nursing and management, and who had fewer direct reports, reported the highest stress levels among nurse managers. High hardiness, particularly commitment, was a strong predictor of low levels of stress; use of escape-avoidance was a significant predictor of …

A qualitative case study was conducted to determine whether major donors to an institution of higher education that existed to prepare ministers and missionaries were perceived by the institution's leaders as motivated by organizational effectiveness, financial efficiency, or evaluations by donor watchdog agencies. The case study was conducted with the Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics. The interview process was utilized to gain information individually from the president, a development consultant, an academic dean, and a former development director. Each participant was asked a series of 19 questions during the interview process. The results indicated that the leaders perceived that organizational effectiveness was a philanthropic motivator for major donors and measured it by the accomplishments of those who were trained at the institution. The results also indicated that the ministry preparation institution's leaders perceived financial efficiency to provide philanthropic motivation to major donors, though to a lesser degree than organizational effectiveness, and measured it by stewardship of funds. The results further indicated that the ministry preparation institution's leaders perceived that donor watchdog agency evaluations, specifically those of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and Guidestar, provided philanthropic motivation for major donors. Additional research recommendations included studying how to report about organizational …

This quantitative study used Astin's I-E-O theory to explore the relationship between a college freshman's high school background and academic self-efficacy. The Beginning College Survey of Student Engagement was used to measure academic self-efficacy across four types of high schools. Student gender and precollege experiences (dual-credit and communication assertiveness) were used as control. A total of 15,400 first-year students were included in this study. An ANOVA was used to examine the differences between groups, and ordinary least-square analysis was used to study the factors that affect academic self-efficacy. Results showed statistically significant difference in academic self-efficacy between public and private religious high school graduates. Specifically, graduates of public high schools had statistically higher academic self-efficacy than graduates of private religious high schools (p < .001). Additionally, females and participants of dual-credit courses also tended to have higher academic self-efficacy. Finally, analysis revealed that a first-year student's communication confidence is highly correlated to their academic self-efficacy. Results confirm in-coming first-year students perceive higher education engagement differently based on traits attributed to their precollege experiences. Results point to criteria colleges may be able to use in identifying freshmen at risk for low academic self-efficacy and, therefore, for problems in retention and degree …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of student-faculty interactions, student-staff interactions, and student-peer interactions of Latino students to their intent to persist toward graduation in community colleges in Texas. Parental educational level (for both mother and father), first generation status, gender, and English as a second language served as additional predictor variables. The existing data used for this investigation were collected by the Center for Community College Student Engagement and included longitudinal data from the years 2012, 2011, and 2010. Data from 12,488 randomly selected Latino students enrolled in Texas community colleges were obtained and used for the study. The research design method was non-experimental using extant data. To assess the relationships between student engagement variables and Latino student intent to persist, correlations and logistic regression were used. Though no relationship was found between intent to persist and student-faculty interactions (r = -.017, p = .066, n= 11,824) or student peer interactions, (r = -.012, p = .208, n = 11,766), a positive relationship was found between intent to persist and student-staff interaction (r = .048, p = .000, n = 10,794) with an extremely small effect size (r2 = .002). Among the variables of parental …

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.

The purpose of this study was to compare the attitudes of faculty at: (1) Division I NCAA and NAIA institutions, (2) Division I and II NAIA institutions on selected issues related to intercollegiate athletics, and (3) Division I NCAA and NAIA institutions toward selected issues related to intercollegiate athletics when demographics variables are considered. The problem was to determine if there were significant differences between the attitudes of the faculties.

This study assessed the quality of graduate professional training in Christian education at Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS) in terms of the perceptions of program alumni. The subjects of the investigation were 780 alumni who graduated from DTS between 1984 and 2000. The Christian Education program was assessed utilizing Daniel Stufflebeam's CIPP model and alumni data collected from a survey instrument. A response rate of 65% (N=504) was achieved. The research procedure employed a non-experimental design methodology for the quantitative component and open-ended questions for the qualitative component. Most results were statistically significant at the .05 alpha level utilizing chi-square goodness-of-fit tests.

The primary focus of this study was to discover the depth of involvement with fundraising by student affairs professionals in Texas. It sought to determine the predominance of chief student affairs officers trained in development and the types of training that they received. Cooperation between student affairs divisions and development offices was also studied and whether there was a correlation between a cooperative relationship and the number of successful fundraising goals. This study includes a review of related literature on student affairs fundraising, a description of the methodology, results of the survey, conclusions, implications, and recommendations that may assist in future decision-making concerning future involvement in fundraising. The surveys were mailed to 149 four-year (public and private) institutions and two-year public institutions in Texas. The senior staff members of both the student affairs office and development office were asked to complete a survey. There was a 60.7% return rate consisting of responses from 72 development offices and 95 student affairs offices for a total of 167 usable responses. The study found that 59% of the student affairs officers had some formal training and/or on the job training. Involvement in fundraising was reported by 62.1% of the chief student affairs officers. …

This study used qualitative research, particularly life history analysis, to determine the personal pathways of success for Latino students who chose to enter a health science center for graduate study and who graduated. By giving voice to individual success stories of Latino students, some of the influences on the life pathways of these graduates were determined. For the purposes of this study, success was defined as graduation from a health science center with either a doctor of philosophy, doctor of public health or doctor of osteopathic medicine degree. Four research subjects agreed to participate in this study from a possible 11 students from the graduating class of 2004-2005 at this health science center. Data were gathered through multiple in-depth interviews of the students themselves over a period of no more than one month for each participant. Data were analyzed using the mind mapping technique and Padilla's unfolding matrix. Findings indicate that each participant traveled a different pathway to achieve educational success although similarities did exist across participants. The influences of family background, cultural background, educational background and personal perceptions and goals did affect the pathways of these four Latino graduates. While three of four participants indicated that family was the …

This is an historical study of an institution of higher education that existed in St. Augustine, Florida from 1942-1949. The name of the institution was The University Foundation, founded by George J. Apel, Jr. This institution had several higher education divisions functioning under its umbrella. These divisions were the St. Augustine Junior College, the Graduate Division, the American Theological Seminary and the University Extension College with evening courses and Home Study courses for vacation study. The information collected for this study was accomplished primarily by the process of studying archives and conducting personal interviews. Since this is a qualitative research study, the collected information was processed through the use of multiple data-collection methods, data sources and analyses which insured the validity of the findings of the study. This process is known as information triangulation. The results of this study provide answers to the circumstances and identities of the key players which led to the formation of The University Foundation. Issues relating to the mission, revenue streams, faculty, curricula, and the ultimate demise of The University Foundation were also addressed in this study. Recommendations are included for higher education administrators, faculty, researchers, fund-raisers, and others whose efforts may be directed toward …