Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Doctor of Education , University of Dayton, 2023, Educational Administration

This mixed methods study focused on why mathematical outcomes for African American and Latinx students are substantially lower than any subgroup at an Ohio elementary school. A critical participatory action research design and phenomenological approach was used to uncover what teachers and administrators deemed effective in improving math instruction and quantifiable data that explored proficiency and growth of African American and Latinx students compared to their White peers. Results indicate that opportunity gaps and the absence of positive relationship between African American students and teachers negatively impact their mathematical performance. The proposed action plan calls for: ongoing professional learning on community cultural wealth, the adoption of CRP framework, weekly professional learning communities, after-school program, and alternate times and spaces for PTO meetings.

Committee: James Olive (Committee Chair); Clarissa Peterson (Committee Member); Meredith Wronowski (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; Curriculum Development; Education; Educational Leadership; Elementary Education; Mathematics Education; Minority and Ethnic Groups

Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, 2021, College of Education and Human Services

As the call for reducing school suspensions and academic achievement improvement moves across the country, schools are responsible for implementing discipline restructure and academic growth programs. In various research studies, positive student and school behavior outcomes have been associated with Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) since its implementation in schools in the late 1990s. However, additional research in understanding the impact of PBIS practices on reported school suspension, school climate perceptions, and student academic achievement (i.e., standardized test scores) would be useful. This study could potentially contribute to the literature and fill a gap not yet explored on the relationship between PBIS implementation and discipline practices impacting African American students, school climate perceptions, and student achievement. School officials can utilize this study's findings to determine their dedication and commitment to PBIS as a behavior intervention within school systems. Utilizing data collected from a large urban school district in Ohio, this study will examine the association between PBIS implementation, the suspension rate of all students, individual student achievement, and school climate perceptions while emphasizing PBIS' impact on African American students. The research data in this study will focus on grade levels elementary through high school. The data will be analyzed using linear regressions. Limitations of this study will be discussed.

Committee: Frederick Hampton (Advisor); Frederick Hampton (Committee Chair); Mittie Jones (Committee Member); Mark Freeman (Committee Member); Dakota King-White (Committee Member); Adam Voight (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Leadership

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2020, Educational Theory and Social Foundations

The purpose of this oral history is to document the lived experience of the learning environment of African American students and culturally specific practices of African American teachers who taught in the legally segregated Louisvlle Central High School. Historically, segregated African American schools have been depicted as inferior educational institutions. By offering a counter-narrative of educational success within a segment of the African American community in the Jim Crow South the central thesis of this oral history is a counter-narrative to the suppositions of cultural deficit as the primary theory explaining the achievement gap between the majority population and minorites. By exploring the lived experience of the characteristics of the school culture and environment and the characteristics of those responsible for teaching, this oral history adds to the body of literature which shows that the achievement gap cannot be adequately explained by reference to cultural deficit. Moreover, the counter-narrative points toward significant issues pertaining to education and justice. As a legal, constitutional matter by legally denying free and equal access to public institutions and the public sphere de jure segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and was thereby unconstitutional. In striking down legal segregation Brown established an equal civil right to equal access and thus formal equality of opportunity. As an educational matter (as opposed to a strictly constitutional one), however, the findings of this oral history, that the educational environment of Louisville Central High School was not culturally and educationally deprived, suggests that the quality and effectiveness of education is a matter that is independent of the strictly legal matter of the right to formal equality of opportunity as equal access. While being of the greatest significance for a democratic and just society, the civil right to free and equal acces (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Dale Snauwaert (Committee Chair); Edward Janak (Committee Member); Vicki Dagostino (Committee Member); Fuad Al-Daraweesh (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; American History; Education History; Educational Sociology; Teacher Education

Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2012, Psychology

African American females are confronted with several risk factors as they progress through adolescence including barriers to their academic success (Crosnoe & Elder, 2004). Thirty-three adolescent girls from an impoverished neighborhood volunteered to participate in a study to assess the effectiveness of a culture-gender specific intervention. Participants were randomly assigned into either the intervention (a brief version of Sisters of Nia originally created by Belgrave et al., 2004, which was modified for this pilot study to emphasize the importance of education), or the comparison group that focused on health. Results from the 21 girls who completed the study revealed that the intervention group evidenced a decrease on the academic risk factor, school disengagement, while academic protective factors did not change for both groups. Also, racial identity (public regard) increased for the comparison group, though these results were likely confounded due to baseline differences. The findings are considered preliminary due to the small sample size, and future studies are recommended with larger samples that aim to replicate these findings.

Committee: Anna L. Ghee Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Cathy McDaniels-Wilson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Lisa Mills Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; Social Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, 2020, College of Education and Human Services

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine how the racial makeup of school districts and buildings affect the reading and language achievement of Black students. It examined the gaps between Black and White students on both the Ohio American Institutes for Research (AIR) English/Language Arts (ELA) Assessment and the state approved Northwest Education Association (NWEA) Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Reading Assessment. Utilizing secondary data collected from the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) report card and a large urban school district, the study found that, statewide, there was a statistically significant difference in the percentage of students who were rated as proficient or above in reading. On average, across grade levels, the percentage of Black students rated as proficient in reading was 24.14 percentage points lower than their White peers (t=5.70, p=.0005). When controlling for mean years of teacher experience, performance index scores, district typology, and student poverty, the percentage of teachers in a district who identified as Black was not a statistically significant predictor of Black proficiency percentage (B = 0.28, SE = .13, p = .14). However, the percentage of Black teachers was a statistically significant predictor of district reading achievement scores (p =.043). The findings underscore the need for more diverse approaches to the teaching of reading and writing for Black students.

Committee: Katherine Clonan-Roy (Committee Chair); Laura Northrop (Committee Member); Monica Gordon-Pershey (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Education; Education Policy; Language Arts; Literacy; Secondary Education

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), University of Findlay, 2019, Education

The achievement gap between African American students and their White peers in language arts has prompted researchers to identify teachers' perceptions of the language of African American Vernacular English-speaking students as a contributing factor. The persistence of the achievement gap has created a social justice issue that is addressed with the transformative mixed methods paradigm by including the historically disenfranchised, their historical truths, and the issues of power that impact their current conditions. This study uses data from a Language Attitude survey on a 4-point Likert scale administered to ten teachers of African American Vernacular English-speaking students in grades K-5 and 14 African American Vernacular English-speaking students in grades 4-5 to examine how language bias impacts student achievement and motivation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and coded to identify prominent themes. The study found participants have negative perceptions of African American Vernacular English and prefer Standard English in all communication. These findings suggest that students and teachers can benefit from culturally responsive teaching.

Committee: Christine Denecker (Committee Chair); Allison Baer (Committee Member); Erin Laverick (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Black History; Education; Education History; Educational Tests and Measurements; Language Arts; Literacy; Multicultural Education; Multilingual Education; Teacher Education; Teaching

Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, 2018, College of Education and Human Services

This qualitative, ethnographic study explores various tensions and struggles around gender and racial stereotypes that three urban teenage African American girls encounter as they try to develop a sense of oneself as an individual and in relation to the world. The purpose of this study was to explore Black high school girls' experiences in a predominately urban public school in the Midwest. This study is guided by the following research question: In what way do gender and racial bias contribute to the self-perception of African American adolescent girls? Interrogating the multiple standpoints that inform African American female identity and how these multiple perspectives are moderated not only by gender, race, and socioeconomic status, but also by ability and classroom context and their role in influencing academic achievement this study is guided by three sub-questions: 1. How do African American girls' perceptions of themselves and the classroom practices in which they engage inform their in-school identities? 2. How do African American girls' perceptions of themselves and the classroom practices in which they engage inform their out-of- school identities? 3. What are the tools and strategies Black girls use to resist intersecting oppressions in order to persist in these environments? The research design included autoethnographic vignettes, individual interviews (audio), autobiographies and field notes. I conducted four individual interviews with each of the participants in the study. The findings showed that Black girls in predominately urban educational settings are heavily marginalized and both structurally and individually experience various forms of oppression related to race, gender and class inequity. Girls in those settings employ various tactics related to relationships, parental support, social activities, and Black identity as a way to resist oppressions as well as survive in these spaces. Girls display a diverse set of experiences in s (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Brian Harper Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Frederick Hampton Ed.D. (Committee Co-Chair); Catherine Hansman Ed.D. (Committee Member); Adrienne Gosselin Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; Black Studies; Education; Educational Sociology; Gender Studies; Womens Studies

Doctor of Education, Miami University, 2018, Educational Leadership

In many parts of a mid-western state, the student population appears to becoming more diverse, while the majority of the teaching population appears to continue to be White. There also appears to be discrepancies in many of the achievement results between Whites and African Americans. Other apparent discrepancies between those two groups are gifted identification, discipline, and special education identification. The objective of my research will be to describe how teachers learn about their own white privilege and how that recognition contributes to their use of culturally relevant pedagogy. The use of this framework may be one way in which to close these gaps. With an assumption that the majority of the teaching population is White, teachers' recognition of their white privilege may be needed in order to employ these practices. Examining the use of culturally responsive pedagogy, and more specifically: how it has come to be used by White teachers, given the role white privilege might play, may be a way in which the gaps in achievement could be closed and equity in the classroom might be achieved. Teachers were identified as using those practices through a survey in which they agreed or disagreed with statements about students and the use of culturally responsive practices. Those identified were asked to be interviewed to explore, understand, and describe how they have recognized their white privilege and how that has influenced their pedagogy. This research may potentially help increase African American student motivation, interest, and achievement in that it would describe how teachers come to use these practices. It may also, potentially, offer guidance to White teachers on their journey to using these practices by learning about the various paths others have taken that enabled them to learn from others.

Committee: Thomas Poetter (Committee Chair) Subjects: Education; Educational Leadership

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, EDU Policy and Leadership

This qualitative study used social capital theory as the interpretive lens to examine the achievement attitudes, gifted identification, racial identity development, beliefs, and behaviors of gifted, African American male high school students in select high schools at a large, urban school district in the Midwest. The primary objectives of the study were to: (a) understand the school experiences of gifted, African American male students in today's urban public schools; (b) expand the theoretical and scientific knowledge on the social, cultural, and racial implications on the achievement of gifted, African American male high school students; (c) pinpoint the factors that most positively and negatively shape the academic success of gifted, African American students who attend urban schools; and (d) contribute to current research to advance teachers, administrators, and school counselors understanding of gifted, African American students who attend urban schools. Semi-structured, individual interviews were conducted to collect data. Additionally, students' high school transcripts and gifted and talented assessment data were used as other major data sources. The sample comprised sixteen gifted, African American male students, from grades 10th to 12th. Educational opportunity structures, academic achievement, academic isolation and loneliness, academic expectations, and support of significant individuals versus non-support of significant individuals were five major themes that emerged from the study. Cultural competency of the teacher emerged as a subtheme from the study. Recommendations for school personnel, parents, and students are discussed.

Committee: James Moore III (Advisor); Ralph Gardner III (Committee Member); Antoinette Miranda (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Education Policy

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2017, College of Education

This dissertation addresses approaches to closing the achievement gap for urban public high schools. High school graduation rates have been increasing, both nationally and in Ohio; however, this is not the case for all students. The problem addressed in this research is that graduation rates of African-American and Hispanic students in Ohio were not increasing at the same rate as those of White students within the past decade. The literature review indicated that poverty was not always a predictor of lack of academic success. Through qualitative case study methodologies, this research explored how three urban public schools in Ohio made significant gains in improving the graduation rate of African-American and Hispanic students. Eighteen individuals were interviewed during the course of this study and their testimonies show that instructional strategies, academic interventions and building strong relationships with students were important in closing the achievement gap. The findings of this research include specific strategies and approaches that led to increased graduation rates. Additionally, this study provided participants, including African-American and Hispanic students, their parents, community leaders, and educators, an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns, and make valuable recommendations on how to continue to improve the education of underperforming African-American and Hispanic students in Ohio. The personal experiences of the participants in this study may help other public school district educators in the nation serving similar ethnic groups, gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities to closing the achievement gap.

Committee: Harold E. Wilson PhD (Committee Chair); James Olive PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Judy Alston PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Educational Leadership; Hispanic Americans; Multicultural Education; Secondary Education

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2014, Educational Leadership

Research findings are riddled with extensive data on the “at risk” characteristics of students suspended from school, particularly since the implementation of zero tolerance policies. Absent from the literature are specific findings on repeatedly suspended students' longitudinal academic and non-academic profiles. Using an airline metaphor (i.e., Disciplinary Airlines) to present the findings of retrospective analyses conducted on multiple years of archived achievement test scores and discipline data, this study seeks to create such profiles of frequent flyers (“at risk” African American male repeatedly suspended students). Research results pinpoint the onset (number of miles) needed to become frequent flyers and the academic and behavioral impact of becoming frequent flyers, as well as show the relationship between academic difficulties (i.e. low performance on high-stakes reading tests) and disciplinary actions (i.e., suspensions and office referrals). While accumulating disciplinary miles, findings also reveal the three common infractions stamped on frequent flyers' boarding passes. Along with quanitative data, qualitative data captured in interview notes from super flyers (frequent flyers in the schoolhouse-to-jailhouse pipeline) were analyzed to provide counternarratives that reframe insubordination (the number one reason for office referrals) as a type of resistance. Super flyers' depictions of their insubordinate behaviors to perceived acts of disrespect may suggest a potential starting point of resistant behaviors. Implications from analyses that predict reading test scores, the probability of further infractions, the accumulated impact of suspensions, and the student voice on resistance provide tremendous opportunities for educators to address zero tolerance and its disparate impact. Reframing zero tolerance in a manner that captures the academic and non-academic profiles and voices of frequent flyers on Disciplinary Airlines, as well as others on the brink (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Sally Lloyd Dr/PhD (Committee Chair) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2014, Higher Education

The purpose of this study was (a) to provide an analysis of the levels of college self-efficacy and of the campus environmental perceptions of African American males at rural, urban, and suburban two- year community colleges in the state of Ohio and (b) to determine whether there was a statistically significant relationship between college self-efficacy, campus environmental perceptions, and academic achievement at these types of community colleges (rural, urban, and suburban) in Ohio. Further, the study examined whether academic achievement could be predicted from academic self-efficacy and campus environmental perceptions at community colleges in the state of Ohio. Descriptive statistics and a chi-squared analysis were employed in this study to determine that respondents were representative of the entire population or sample. A correlational analysis revealed a statistically significant positive correlation between college self-efficacy and campus environment. This correlation suggests that students who perceive a more positive environment tend to have higher college self-efficacy. A statistically significant positive correlation also was found between college environment and two specific dimensions of college efficacy: course efficacy and social efficacy. Multiple regression analysis revealed that college self-efficacy is a significant predictor of expected GPA among African American males in two- year community colleges, but college environment was not a statistically significant predictor. Results of the regression analysis also indicated that course self-efficacy and social self-efficacy (the two components of college self-efficacy) were statistically significant predictors of expected GPA, but college environment was not. Results of the regression analysis revealed that college self-efficacy was a statistically significant predictor of past-term GPA, but college environment was not. Neither course self-efficacy nor college environment predicted past-te (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Snejana Slantcheva-Durst (Committee Chair); Tyrone Bledsoe (Committee Member); Sunday Griffith (Committee Member); Revathy Kumar (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; African Studies; Black History; Community College Education; Community Colleges; Higher Education; Higher Education Administration; Minority and Ethnic Groups

Master of Arts (MA), Wright State University, 2007, Classroom Teacher

A purposive literature review was used in this study to develop a knowledge base on motivational factors impacting enrollment of African-American students in postsecondary vocational education program specifically in the STEP II program. This study examined books, articles, reports, and data from student interviews to understand what motivational factors influence decisions. It was found that low enrollment of African- American students in post-secondary vocational education is not only dependent on motivational factors emanating from the students themselves, but also stem from the institutions that offer training programs.

Committee: Colleen Dr. Finegan (Advisor) Subjects:

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Urban Educational Leadership

The challenge of ensuring educational equity, closing the achievement gap between African American students and White students attending public schools has gone on for half a century. As we enter the twenty-first century, neither educational reforms enacted by the public school system nor legislative actions, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, with its accountability mandate have produced solutions that will insure that African American children are equally educationally prepared to pursue a post-secondary education or to enter the workforce with marketable skills that would allow them to compete for jobs which offer competitive salaries more than a step above minimum wage. In fact the gap is widening (Ladson-Billings, 2006; Lee and Orfield, 2005). It has been suggested that public schools must change how they improve student learning outcomes and consider developing outside relationships (Elmore, 1996). There has been growing agreement on the importance of community involvement in schools (Epstein and Sheldon, 2005; Noguera, 2003; Sanders 2003). Researchers are continually examining what affect community involvement may have on the academic outcomes of children attending schools in urban communities. However, examining perceptions and beliefs of residents in predominantly African American communities and what variables may influence individuals in those communities to commit to working collectively for the educational success of children in their neighborhood required investigation. Using one-on-one in-depth interviews, field observations and documentation, this qualitative study examined long-term and short-term residents, and community organizational representatives' views from one community on perceived collective efficacy. This study utilized the conceptual framework of Bandura, (1982) and Sampson et al., (1997) Collective Efficacy construct. The findings suggest that using a qualitative approach provides data for studying perceived collective effic (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Lionel Brown EdD (Committee Chair); Vanessa Allen-Brown PhD (Committee Member); Roger Collins PhD (Committee Member); Scott Dewitt PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Education Policy

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Curriculum and Instruction

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore African American female students' beliefs, and self-perceptions about their mathematics experiences. This study used mathematics autobiographies, focus group interviews and individual student interviews to generate data that was analyzed for emerging themes and patterns as to how the students see themselves as learners of mathematics. This data answered the following research questions: (a) What are African American students' perceptions of themselves in high school mathematics, and (b) How do these perceptions of themselves as mathematics learners contribute to their experiences, success or failure, in Algebra I? The following themes: (a) parental support; (b) beliefs about the importance of mathematics; (c) beliefs about mathematical ability and effort; (c) personal goals and motivation; and, (d) perceptions of mathematics experiences and teachers, informed the findings for this research. The findings support the nature of qualitative, feminist research, which looks at the whole person through each person's narrative. I discovered that these five themes are intertwined and inseparable, and that the themes supported the research questions collectively, rather than independently. This research also supports the intersectionality of self-perceptions, beliefs, goals, motivation and self-efficacy and their impact on mathematics achievement. The findings of this study concluded that the girls' various beliefs about mathematics, goals and motivation, parental involvement, and self-perceptions result in varying levels of academic resilience that may explain mathematics success or failure, which impacts mathematics participation.

Committee: Helen Meyer PhD (Committee Chair); Maya Israel PhD (Committee Member); Marshalla Harkness PhD (Committee Member); Chester Laine PhD (Committee Member) Subjects:

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2012, EDU Policy and Leadership

This qualitative study was conducted with the purpose of examining the scope of the achievement gap as it relates to African American males, compared to their white and Asian counter parts, and the impact of No Child Left Behind as a policy impacting this performance disparity. The research was employed as an institutional ethnography, such that the emphasis of the work was not on the isolated experiences and outcomes of participants, rather, it considered the collective school and testing accounts of subjects within the broader context of comparing and analyzing the network of associated influences, events and ruling organization practices mitigating their academic performance. The cohort represented in the study sample was comprised of African American males ages 18-26 with varying levels of academic achievement and aspirations – with a research emphasis of ‘capturing the voice' of this population in regard to their school and testing experiences. The students graduated from the same urban public high school but had varying K-12 schooling experiences, including suburban and lottery (selective school) contexts. Some of the salient themes emerging from the analysis of data included (a) Interpretation of Group Identity, (b) Expectation of Acceptable School Performance, (c) School Influence on Student Self-Perception, (d) Knowing How to Study, and (e) Emphasis and Awareness of Testing Format.

Committee: Philip TK Daniel JD, EdD (Advisor); Cynthia Burack PhD (Committee Member); James Moore III / PhD (Committee Member); Scott Sweetland MBA, PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Education; Education History; Education Policy; Educational Leadership

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2010, EDU Physical Activity and Educational Services

African-American students in suburban schools are underperforming. Data reveals that African-American students who attend suburban schools do not perform as well as their Caucasian peers (Alson, 2003; Ferguson, Clark, & Stewart, 2002; Ogbu, 2002). The achievement gap between African-American and Caucasian students appears in not only scores, but also in other academic areas, such as attendance rates, graduation rates, special and gifted education placements, percentages of students in college preparatory or advanced placement classes, numbers of students in extracurricular activities, honor roll nominations, and grade-point-averages (Kober, 2001; Ogbu, 2002). The purpose of this study is to examine the difference in academic emphasis between high performing and low performing African-Americans in predominately white suburban schools by examining the relationship between academic emphasis and the achievement of African-American students. More specifically, examine the relationship between academic emphasis and the achievement of African-American children in predominately white suburban schools by observing the opinions of parents. The study is designed to indicate the importance of School, Family, Children, and Student Peer Academic Emphasis for African-American children in predominately white suburban schools based on parents' perceptions. Participants in this study were black parents of 221 African-American students attending predominately white suburban schools. Parents' opinions were collected during the third quarter of the academic school year 2007- 08 using a self-constructed questionnaire. Results reflected that after controlling for significant demographic variables, School Academic Emphasis was not related to grade point average; however, Family, Children, and Student Peer Academic Emphasis, as well as, characteristics of academic emphasis remained to have significant relationships to student achievement.

Committee: Antoinette Miranda PhD (Advisor); Adrienne Dixson PhD (Committee Member); Kisha Radliff PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Education; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Multicultural Education; Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2007, Educational Policy and Leadership

The issue of the disproportionate number of African American students in the k-12 arena who fall short in their educational pursuits has been heavily discussed by educators who desire to uncover the reason for the disparity. Yet, most research on African American students merely provides a quantitative description of their shortcomings, and fails to provide comprehensive information that addresses causes for attrition and academic deficiency. Moreover, there is minimal literature and research that focuses on resiliency in African American undergraduate college students, and particularly first generation individuals, which is a great cause for concern as retention rates for the group fall far below those of the majority cohort. The purpose of this study was to explore and familiarize researchers and educators with the life experiences of selected first generation African American college students who have successfully completed three or more years of undergraduate studies, in spite of negative and detrimental factors and situations that appeared throughout their lifetime journeys. The study also shines light on how some students make meaning of their life's experiences and recognizes how different events have been of influence on their voyage to and now in, higher education. It is important to note that this study is phenomenological in nature, and thus, posed no theory at its inception, but sought to reveal the lived experiences of the participants, due to the reality that few studies have centered on African American college students and their stories of survival and success, particularly in their higher education endeavors. This study highlights how these students have utilized the protective factors of spirituality, educational institutions, the view of success as obligatory to the family and community, and self-regulation in their onward journey to educational attainment, each of which have enabled them to remain strong and focused even as a number of obstacles (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Tatiana Suspitsyna (Advisor) Subjects: