EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2006, Education : Urban Educational Leadership

The purpose of this study is to gain insight in order to better understand the reasons contributing to the underrepresentation of African American male educators as perceived by African American male educators via their personal narratives. This qualitative study examines the perspectives of African American male educators' perceptions toward the underrepresentation of African American male K-12 public school educators. Semi-structured, one-on-one interviews with eight African American male educators who are currently or were formerly K-12 public school educators were conducted to capture their voice and allow them to share their understandings and experiences regarding the representation of African American males throughout the field of K-12 public education. This study identified three major themes as a result of the interviews with the participants: 1) Reasons contributing to the lack of African American male educators 2) Perspectives that describe the potential benefits of an increased representation of African American male educators and 3) Effective methods to increase the representation of African American male educators. Findings from the study suggests that having African American male educators would help debunk the stereotypes associated with African American males in both public education and society, that African American males are choosing careers other then education, that African American males are having trouble graduating from high school, and that teacher recruitment does not focus on African American educators. Findings from the study also indicate that the increased representation of competent, caring, and committed African American male educators will have a tremendously positive impact not only the academic success of students, but also positively impact their perceptions of themselves and how they are perceived within society. Implications from the findings of the study are presented as strategies that may increase the representation of Afric (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2007, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

There is an expanding body of literature on the retention of students in higher education through programmatic efforts, but there is limited research on African-American students' perceptions of the impact of retention programs and services at predominantly White institutions. Programs and services are created by administrators, faculty and staff on college and university campuses for the purpose of increasing the retention of African-American students and a diverse student body, but many are based on the professionals' perceptions of students' needs. Rarely are programs and services created through dialogue from the student population that will be served or by what I call “listening to the voices” of the students. The premise of this qualitative study is to ascertain if African-American students find retention programs and services beneficial to their persistence on their respective campuses. This study explores the experiences of African-American junior and senior, traditional-aged, full-time, undergraduate students with a grade point average of 3.0 or below exclusively at four predominantly White institutions in Pennsylvania. The experiences of African-American students are different from other groups, including White males, white females and other minority groups. The use of focus groups permits dialogue that enables a researcher to be able to hear first-hand from African-American students giving voice to their personal feelings of the impact of retention programs and services at predominantly White institutions.

Master of Science, Miami University, 2004, Family and Child Studies

The purpose of this study was to determine the academic, monetary and familial,values of single African American mothers in poverty. Four focus groups explored the values and attitudes of low-income single mothers. The key findings from this research indicated that these low-income, African American, single mothers' value systems were similar to that of mainstream America, however, there were very specific obstacles to overcome in order to accurately implement those values. A discussion of the findings are presented including important implications for what are revealed about low-income,African American, single, mothers' values and attitudes. Limitations of the study are discussed, and implications for additional research are addressed.

BA, Kent State University, 2012, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of History

Music is a global phenomenon. It exists in every culture on the planet in a myriad of forms. But music is more than just a human hobby. It is a cultural magnifying glass. It is through music that the stories of a people; their history and philosophies, are displayed. It is through this performance that a culture can be understood. Without a peoples' stories, their past is incomplete and often misunderstood. The American Blues: Men, Myths, and Motifs explores Southern African-American life after Reconstruction predominantly through primary sources that are often overlooked, such as W. C. Handy and John Lomax, along with the Blues musicians themselves. The South, from the lumber mills of Eastern Texas to the cotton fields of Mississippi, a new American culture had emerged; a nascent world on display. Their music was dominated by Rhythm and Blues, a style with origins in both Africa and Europe. It is from the Blues that the frugally documented African-American South can be understood. This thesis uses the lyrics, biographies, and interviews of some of the greatest storytellers, and African-American oral historians called griots like Blind Lemon Jefferson, Huddie "Lead Belly" Ledbetter, and Robert Johnson, in an attempt to understand the culture of the people and places these musicians sang and spoke about. The American Blues delves into the lives of musicians, the histories of their enslaved kin, and the music that both showcased their past, as well as their mythologies and philosophies. Through this research of folklore, lyrics, and histories the early American South can truly be seen.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2021, Antioch New England: Marriage and Family Therapy

The current study uses a strengths-based framework to identify the process of marriage satisfaction among 1 same-sex African American married couple and 5 heterosexual African American married couples. Six themes emerged through qualitative analysis demonstrating that marriage satisfaction is a co-constructed experience created between couples through a series of interactions cultivating healthy conditions that strengthen relationship functioning and promote well-being. Based on the results the experience of marriage satisfaction is formed by the organizing concepts of connection, intentionality, purpose, sentiments of peace, authentic communication, and well-being. Results are discussed in association with existing research, as well as, Self-Determination, and Relationship Motivation Theories.

Master of Arts (MA), Wright State University, 2021, History

On May 23, 1866, two African American children in Christian County, Kentucky, were taken from their parents and apprenticed to a white planter, Elijah Simmons. The two children, Fannie, age eight, and Robert, age four, were expected to serve Simmons for the next thirteen and fourteen years respectively. Fannie was disabled. Denoted in her apprenticeship paper as “deaf and dumb,” the Simmonses did not have to provide for her the way they would a non-disabled child, meaning that they did not have to pay her or provide her with anything upon her release from servitude. Although her story seems in some ways unique, Fannie's case is actually noteworthy because she was so typical. Thousands of children were placed in apprenticeships that served to enslave them. This thesis explores the often-forgotten subject of Reconstruction and Black labor in a border state. Fannie serves as a reminder that the work of freedom was far from over after the Civil War, and for many freedpeople was just beginning.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2020, History

This dissertation explores Chinese interpretations of the African American Freedom Struggle between 1920 and 1989. A small but growing body of literature has analyzed revolutionary China's position as a source of inspiration for Black radicals during the Cold War. Building on this literature, this study seeks to uncover the Chinese perspective on Sino-African American engagement. It argues that between 1949 and 1976, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and ordinary Chinese citizens imagined a version of the African American Freedom Struggle that stressed revolutionary violence to reinforce the central tenets of China's own Communist Revolution and to serve as proof of the PRC's global leadership. African Americans did not shape this ideology; however, they did contribute to it. Following the conclusion of the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), Chinese scholars and CCP members then distanced themselves from interpretations of the African American Freedom Struggle that had promoted revolutionary violence in favor of interpretations that better fit China's renewed emphasis on globalism and economic development. This project utilizes published English and Chinese-language sources as well as unpublished archival sources from the People's Republic of China and the United States.

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)

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2018, Leadership Studies

This phenomenological study examines African American female student perceptions of the factors in a youth leadership program that contributed to their academic success, personal growth, and future aspirations. Literature continues to reflect that African American females lag behind their white peers academically and are less likely to be successful in secondary school. Current research speaks to programs that address the achievement of African American females, but often lacks the voices of the students most impacted. I conducted extensive interviews with twelve African American females, currently enrolled in college, who had previously completed the I'm A STAR Leadership Development Program. From the analysis of the in-depth qualitative interviews, five major themes emerged from which four subthemes were generated. The emergent themes include (a) Leadership transformation, (b) Leadership is service to humankind, (c) My voice can change the world, (d) Growing through empowerment, and (e) Significance of Shared Language and Symbols. The subthemes include (a) Vocabulary development, (b) Insight into college, (c) Speak life into students (they believe what you say about who they are and what they can become). The study findings offer educators knowledge of the participants lived experiences to gain a deeper understanding of the female students needs for academic success within leadership development programs and educational institutions. It is imperative that educators and policymakers be aware of the factors in youth leadership programs that aid in academic success. The work of the IASLDP demonstrated that the factors of this program play a pivotal role in the lives of African American female students. These factors are essential to the lives of the African American female students served and to stakeholders who champion their success.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2017, Leadership and Change

The dissertation is a deep study of an iconic 20th century female, African American leader whose acclaim developed not only from her remarkable first generation post-Reconstruction Era beginnings, but also from her mid-century visibility among Negroes and some Whites as a principal spokesperson for her people. Mary Jane McLeod Bethune arose from the Nadir- the darkest period for Negroes after the Civil War and three subsequent US Constitutional Amendments. She led thousands of Negro women, despite social adversity, to organize around their own aspirations for improved social and material lives among America's diverse citizens., i.e. “the melting pot.” The subject of no fewer than thirty-two dissertation studies, numerable biographies, innumerable awards, and namesake educational institutions, Bethune ascended to public leadership roles. Her renown of the first five decades of the 20th century is reconstructed to be less enigmatic for people of African descent, and more visible for other mainstream Americans. Remarkably, she employed a uniquely crafted philosophy of interactional destiny for the world's “races” anchored in her brand of Christian evangelism. Bethune's uniquely early feminist worldview and strategies for inter-racial cooperation, different than the worldviews of some of her contemporaries, achieved much social capital and opened doors of opportunity for herself and countless others through a brief federal government position, and organized women's work before 1955. Since much of her meta-narrative was riddled with hagiography and myth, this study has fettered out some myths and eradicated some of the hagiography. The study combines primary sources, secondary sources, photo-ethnography, and hermeneutics to illuminate another pathway for future leadership students and organization developers to appropriate aspects of Bethune's 20th century leadership performance as their own. Unintended to merely applaud Dr. Bethune's leadership performance, this stud (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2017, Foundations of Education

African American college enrollment rates continue to increase, while graduation rates do not. This state of affairs lends itself to a wealth disparity between African Americans and other racial groups. As such, this research investigated if university demographics and classification of institutional type can predict African American student success, operationally defined by graduation rates and ROI (20 years). Multiple statistical models, analyzing government and proprietary normative data found one key variable emerged. An African American student increases their odds of both graduating and receiving the highest ROI, by attending a university with the highest overall university graduation rate, regardless of the percentage of African American Students in attendance, cost, public or private, or enrollment size. A SUCCESS Model ties together all statistical findings, anecdotal discoveries and larger implications of this research. Findings generalize beyond the African American student.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2016, Music

This dissertation aims to explore and describe, in ethnographic terms, some of the principal formal and non-formal environments in which jazz music is learned today. By elucidating the broad aesthetic, stylistic, and social landscapes of present-day jazz pedagogy, it seeks to encourage the revitalization and reorientation of jazz education, and of the cultural spaces in which it takes place. Although formal learning environments have increasingly supported the activities of the jazz community, I argue that this development has also entailed a number of problems, notably a renewal of racial tensions spurred on by 1) the under-representation of non-white students and faculty, especially black Americans; 2) the widespread adoption of 'color-blind' methodologies in formal music-learning environments, which serve to perpetuate ambivalence or apathy in the addressing of racial problems; 3) a failure adequately to address cultural studies related to the black heritage of jazz music; and 4) the perpetuation of a narrow vision of jazz music that privileges certain jazz styles, neglects others, and fails to acknowledge the representative intersections between jazz and related forms of black music. The study seeks to answer two main questions: What is the nature of the twenty-first-century learning environment? Moreover, how do cultural and racial dynamics affect the ways in which jazz is taught and understood in formal and non-formal settings? My proposition is that teaching jazz as a part of a broad spectrum of black musical styles and cultural traditions, which I shall call the black musical continuum, provides solutions for the dearth of cultural competency and narrow vision of jazz found in many learning environments. Through a continuum theory, I seek to provide a framework for viewing, teaching, learning, and performing jazz that situates it within the larger socio-cultural context of black American music. I argue that such a reorientation toward African-American cu (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2014, African-American and African Studies

This thesis examines the complex sociocultural dynamics that surround the concept of jazz theory from two broad perspectives: formalized or academic jazz theory, which emerged as a result of the formal institutionalization of jazz in the academy, and organic or intrinsic jazz theory, which first arose from African American music-making practices. This dichotomy does not suggest that the majority of jazz community members exist at the extremes of either of these two poles. Contrarily, most musicians tend to occupy the grey area somewhere in between. The aim of this study was to shed light on the complex and elusive intersection between formalized and organic approaches to jazz theory. Through an analysis of informal, formal, and virtual (internet-based) jazz music-learning environments, the results offer a thick description of the way in which notions of "jazz theory" affected the social lives of musicians, fostered racialized jazz identities, defined community boundaries, and influenced music-making practices. The paper includes a variety of case studies, such as Miles Davis' experience studying music at Julliard, an analysis of the first methodological theory books published for jazz students and educators, online forums where jazz students discuss music theory, and ethnographic data related to modern day jazz theory that I collected from nonacademic and academic jazz learning environments. Two theory-related books examined included George Russell's Lydian Chromatic Concept and David Baker's Jazz Pedagogy: A Comprehensive Method of Jazz Education for Teacher and Student. In both, the cultural contexts in which the works were created and how many students and educators misinterpreted or omitted elements that reflect the tabooed subject of race were considered. The study also relied on original ethnographic content collected during a field study at a Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshop, a racially charged debate between two Aebersold camp attendees, a meeting wi (open full item for complete abstract)

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2001, Education : Counselor Education

Changing population trends and the diversification of the United States population have prompted mental health professionals to reevaluate the efficacy of strategies and approaches used in counseling. The heavy focus of research on Blacks of lower socioeconiomic status raises serious questions about generalizing findings to all African Americans without regard for possible intra-racial differences. This study explored whether upwardly-mobile, African American women's satisfaction of counseling methods, counselor ethnicity, and racial composition of counseling group membership was associated with their level of racial identity. One hundred and twenty three African American women completed a survey using the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire-8 to rate their anticipated satisfaction of a specifically described counseling service. Participants also completed the Black Racial Identity Research Scale Revised. Results revealed that racial identity did not influence satisfaction on any of the variables investigated. There was a significant difference between anticipated satisfaction with a Black counselor and a White counselor. There were no significant differences between anticipated satisfaction of individual counseling and group counseling or between racially heterogeneous and racially homogeneous counseling group memberships. Findings of this study underscore previous research stating that African Americans prefer same-race counselors. The results also suggest that the type of counseling and composition of counseling groups may not be as salient to African American women as counselor-client racial similarity. Implications of this research suggest that the visual and physical presence of African American counselors within mental health and counseling agencies could make professional counseling more attractive, accessible, and credible for African American women. In addition, counselor-client racial matching may also reverse the underutilization of mental health services (open full item for complete abstract)

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Educational Studies

The purpose of this study is to depict the personal narrative of African American women as central to understanding how life experiences, gender, race and culture intersect to impact their educational expectations. To establish context, the broader purpose of this study is to understand the belief system and ideologies African Americans as a cultural group associate with education. Cultural group beliefs are important to address as these beliefs may factor into the motivation, efficacy and human agency of African American women who attain graduate degrees.

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2010, Education : Curriculum and Instruction

This study was an IRB approved qualitative investigation of experiences of the single low-income African American mothers in their maternal protective role. In-depth interviews and a focus group were conducted with 13 single-low income women who met the criteria for participation in the study, in an effort to understand the social context in which African American single low-income mothers live when developing and implementing parenting. Data from these interviews were examined with the intent of discerning patterns and themes that might explain which factors had the greatest impact on family interactions to inform research on the dimensions of family functioning for low-income African American single mothers. The findings of this study indicate that there were clusters of patterns and themes depending upon such factors as education, financial support, community outreach programs, self-actualization, childhood experiences, and making the transition to motherhood. In addition, study findings indicated that financial support and community outreach programs were critical during the initial years of transition into motherhood, and continuing support from family members, particularly maternal grandmothers as well as the fathers of the children influenced these mothers' role in family functioning. The numerous factors disclosed by these study participants as imperative to the understanding of their experiences as mothers included feeling of isolation, poor relationships with the fathers of the children, desperate financial needs, lack of appropriate support by social service agencies, accepting the limitations involved in single parenting, understanding, and possessing a strong commitment to the role of family functioning. These findings were compared with the existing literature on single low-income African American mothers as well as social stress and the family in an effort to establish more firmly a conceptual framework regarding the factors that influence their p (open full item for complete abstract)

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2009, Education : Educational Studies

There is an apparent dearth in the leadership literature of African American women when juxtaposed with race, gender and social class. This scarcity appears to be connected with the small percentage of African American women who hold the position of president in institutions of higher education. Additionally, recent reports have noted, that the growth they saw twenty years prior has reached a standstill. This research scoped the range of leadership for African American women presidents, giving them the opportunity to self-define. In addition to self-definition, the study was based on the belief that leadership development happens over a lifetime. Thus, the purpose of this research was to examine what factors contributed to and define the leadership for African American women presidents. Defining and understanding their leadership will lead to greater opportunities in the academy. This study used a qualitative approach that triangulated interviews, biographical questionnaires, and campus observations to gain perspective and insight for the women who participated in this study. The study relied on several frameworks that served as a guide, Black feminist thought, critical race theory, and the Bolman and Deal leadership lens. What the research discovered is that African American women tend to have a different path towards to the presidency than the traditional model. Various events that transpire in an individual's life provided a foundation for their leadership philosophies and ideologies. Furthermore, when given the opportunity to self-define their leadership, they were incongruent with research that indicates women including African American women identify with a transformational leadership model. Lastly, race, gender, and class have had some affect on the African American women who participated in this study. The findings in this study can be used by institutions to develop leadership programs that are tailored to the needs of African American women desiring to ho (open full item for complete abstract)

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2006, Education : Urban Educational Leadership

This study ascertains why there are so few African-American male superintendents; and it determines factors that led those African-Americans males who are in the superintendency to seek positions in the urban superintendency. The population studied was African-American male superintendents in the Mid-Western states. The study was limited by the small number of superintendents in Mid-Western states as well as in the study. The review of the literature has a three-part focus:(a) to examine Critical Race Theory and its implications for the educational attainment of African-Americans in America; (b) to examine Social Reproduction Theory as a mechanism to eliminate African-American males from the superintendency; and (c) to utilize the review of the literature in order to redefine the urban superintendency. The present study is a qualitative study and a phenomenological study supported by grounded research theory. A phenomenological study describes and interprets the self-reported experiences of participants who are selected because they have lived the experiences being investigated and were willing to discuss their experiences.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2007, Theatre

This study identifies and analyzes the factors that controlled the production and determined the success or failure of African American original screenplays and stage plays adapted into films in the United States of America during the last quarter of the twentieth century. Until we understand how economics and race intersect to create the vicious cycle of the perceived failure of African American films, the current system will ensure the continuous devaluing of African Americans and their work in the film industry. This dissertation documents data from 1,716 African American feature films and other films featuring African Americans. This data is analyzed in the context of the investment criteria used by Hollywood executives. The criteria are investigated in the context of cultural politics in order to identify the intersections of economics and race to better explore the crisis that African Americans face in the film industry. Each chapter and section answers specific questions related to the economic and cultural performance of original screenplays and stage plays adapted into film. Each chapter and section answers the following questions: What factors controlled the production of African American films from 1980 to 2000? What roles did African Americans play in the process? How do these factors affect the cultural and economic outcome of the film? This study provides a new approach to analyzing African American films.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2008, Curriculum and Instruction (Education)

This exploratory and descriptive study illuminates the lives of African American female teachers who lived in the upper Ohio River Valley between 1875 and 1915. Existing current research depicts teachers in the South and urban North during this period. This study highlights teachers from northern, small to midsized cities in order to bring them into the historical record and direct attention to their contributions to education. The focus of this historical, intrinsic, embedded, single-case case study was on the social profile, educational opportunities, teaching experiences, and support networks of Pocahontas Simmons Peyton, Susie Simmons (Jones?), Bernadine Peyton Sherman, Mary Peyton Dyson, Anna Stevens Posey, and Elizabeth Jennie Adams Carter. Three additional themes emerged from the data. They involved inconsistent community attitudes, male-defined perspectives, and multigenerational connections and successes.The case for this study was bounded by time, place, race, gender, and occupation. The units of analysis were selected from a pool of 27 names using the maximum-variation purposeful sampling method. The central research question asked how the women operated within the educational systems of the three-state area of western Pennsylvania, northern West Virginia, and southeastern Ohio. The researcher employed multiple methods of data collection in order to triangulate the data and provide rich description of the women within the context of the bounded system. The findings suggest that these women were part of a tradition of exemplary service to education. Although they were unique, these women shared characteristics with teachers in other areas of the country. With one exception, they worked in segregated schools with poor to adequate resources. Each woman had a range of educational options open to her, but not all options were available in each location. The women were skilled at using support networks and their own abilities to navigate within the educational (open full item for complete abstract)