Innovative Higher Education最新文献

Guided by Bornstein's (2003) model focused on legitimacy within leadership and Latinx critical theory (LatCrit), we explored barriers Latinx leaders encounter on their path to executive roles at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and how their race and gender shaped their professional trajectories. Our findings show that some Latinx leaders may feel the need to conform to white-coded institutional practices to secure and succeed in their roles and that raced and gendered practices may permeate their work, including their hiring. Additionally, participants encountered intragroup animosity or competitiveness within the Latinx community, impending and/or complicating their professional experiences and growth. Collectively, the findings encourage HSIs to (a) develop professional development opportunities for Latinxs administrators and (b) actively support their ascension to and experience in executive leadership. The findings also provide insight on how higher education institutions, more broadly, need to consider racial and gender dynamics as part of the ongoing call for leadership transformation.

Many models of online student engagement posit a "more is better" relationship between students' course-related actions and their engagement. However, recent research indicates that the timing of engagement is also an important consideration. In addition to the frequency (how often) of engagement, two other constructs of timing were explored in this study: immediacy (how early) and regularity (in what ordered pattern). These indicators of engagement were applied to three learning assessment types used in an online, undergraduate, competency-based, technology skills course. The study employed advanced data collection and learning analytics techniques to collect continuous behavioral data over seven semesters (n = 438). Results revealed that several indicators of engagement predicted academic success, but significance differed by assessment type. "More" is not always better, as some highly engaged students earn lower grades. Successful students tended to engage earlier with lessons regardless of assessment type.

Motivated and effective leadership is necessary for college and university presidents and even more paramount at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), given the significant impact that these institutions have on Black lives and overall equity in the nation. Using Greenleaf's (1970) servant leadership model as a guiding framework, we examine why aspiring leaders want to lead and serve HBCUs. Based on interviews with 26 aspiring Black leaders, our findings revealed that being a graduate of an HBCU, the impact of the HBCU experience, an interest in paying the HBCU experience forward and believing in the HBCU mission are factors that contribute to why aspiring leaders want to become HBCU presidents. Based on our findings, we provide concrete recommendations for future researchers and practitioners.

Common intellectual experiences (CIEs) are one of the lesser-known modalities that have been identified as a high impact practice (HIP) in higher education. This mixed-methods study assesses the outcomes of a short-term CIE, which took the form of a multi-disciplinary, multi-classroom case study focused on Danny Meyer, CEO of Union Square Hospitality group (the titular Top Chief), and his handling of the challenges faced by the hospitality industry under the conditions of the global pandemic. The findings suggest that such CIEs can be effective in fostering integrative thinking both within and across curricula, though the benefits may not accrue equally across all student populations. The study has implications for how universities develop and diversify their HIP portfolios, how faculty implement CIEs in their classrooms, and how students develop their capabilities as wicked problem solvers.

Learning communities for college students have been shown to improve first-year student outcomes and narrow equity gaps, but longer-term data to evaluate whether these benefits persist through multi-year retention and graduation are rare. This is especially important for students in science, technology, engineering and math, who often confront gateway courses and challenging academic cultures in their second and subsequent years. Here, we report on the second, third, and fourth year academic outcomes of three cohorts of a first-year placed-based learning community. Relative to a reference group, participants in the learning community generally showed similar grade acquisition in second- and third-year STEM courses, and initially higher GPAs for learning community participants later diminished to be statistically indistinguishable from the reference group. Nonetheless, units completed after one, two, and three years were slightly higher for learning community participants than for the reference group, and with narrower equity gaps. The learning community also increased and narrowed equity gaps in second- and third-year retention at the institution and in STEM specifically (+6 to +17%). Four-year graduation rates from the institution and in STEM specifically also increased (+8 to +17%), but equity gaps were only narrowed slightly. These results suggest that while benefits of first-year learning communities on grades decline over time, benefits for retention and graduation can persist, though they are insufficient to erase equity gaps. Future work should examine how scaffolding practices in students' second and third years can better sustain and even magnify inclusive success improvements initiated by first year learning communities.

Most postsecondary instructors in the United States require students to use textbooks in their courses; however, the cost of commercial materials has increased, and copyright policies impede sharing, editing, and customizations of materials. The current study aimed to examine faculty motivation to adopt Open Educational Resources (OER) and how OER use relates to effective teaching practices. Survey data from 469 professors, instructors, lecturers, and research scientists were analyzed using structural equation modeling, which found that autonomous motivation (engagement with OER textbooks based on enjoyment, value) was the strongest positive predictor of current and future OER textbook use. However, use of OER textbooks was not related to self-reported teaching success. The results of this study contribute to better understanding faculty perceptions of and motivation for OER textbook use, along with informing OER adoption initiatives at postsecondary institutions.

This paper presents the main findings of a qualitative research project. The aim of the research was to explore undergraduate students' perceived knowledge acquisition and awareness of the Holocaust, after visiting Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland. The qualitative study (focus groups & semi-structured questionnaires) involved three cohorts of students and lecturers from a university in the North West of England. The participants visited the Holocaust-related sites in Poland from 2016 to 2019. Findings indicate that students' who actively engaged in visits to Holocaust related sites developed knowledge and awareness of the Holocaust. For many participants, this knowledge and awareness was facilitated via a reflective process that enabled empathic connection between these historical events and the students. The study also highlighted practical strategies that could be implemented to enhance the experience for future cohorts of undergraduate students visiting holocaust related sites. By adding to the limited literature on Holocaust education with undergraduate students, the study highlighted the importance and directions for future research in this area to inform future pedagogic practice.