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A Phenomenological Study Examining the Perceived Value of Co-Curricular Education within the Community College Completion Agenda

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2016, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, Higher Education (Education).
The purpose of this study was to examine what impact the community college Completion Agenda has had on co-curricular education, which was defined as any learning that takes place outside of the classroom. The Completion Agenda followed in the wake of the Great Recession and became a national agenda around 2010-2011. The Completion Agenda's primary goal has been to get more students to complete a degree or certificate with workforce value. Considering the Completion Agenda's widespread reach, this study began with the assumption that community college student affairs has been altered by the Completion Agenda in some way. Student affairs and co-curricular education, in particular, already occupied a tenuous place within community college due to the population it serves. This study used a neoliberal framework to better understand howthe politics of higher education impact practice. By using a phenomenological methodology, this study described common experiences of community college student affairs educators at the onset of the Completion Agenda and what circumstances brought those experience about. Through in-depth, semi-structured interviews and document analysis, I was able to analyze how external forces have impacted co-curricular education, as well as how co-curriculareducators' professional values aligned with institutional and cultural expectations. Major themes included: (1) participants being on message for their institution and the Completion Agenda as a whole, (2) acute attention paid to the work of academic affairs as it relates to student affairs, (3) the growing lack of distinction between student affairs and student success, and (4) the fact that co-curricular education and student development occupies a minor place in each Campus Completion Plan. Conclusions from this research were: student affairs educators have accepted the Completion Agenda as a reality and have conformed to it; the Completion Agenda has affected the work of student affairs educators, and they have responded accordingly; and in the current context there is an even greater need for data informed decision-making and administrative support.
Laura Harrison (Advisor)
Peter Mather (Committee Member)
David Horton (Committee Member)
Gordon Brooks (Committee Member)
306 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gill, P. W. (2016). A Phenomenological Study Examining the Perceived Value of Co-Curricular Education within the Community College Completion Agenda [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1478191982553926

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gill, Patrick. A Phenomenological Study Examining the Perceived Value of Co-Curricular Education within the Community College Completion Agenda. 2016. Ohio University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1478191982553926.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gill, Patrick. "A Phenomenological Study Examining the Perceived Value of Co-Curricular Education within the Community College Completion Agenda." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1478191982553926

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)