The qualitative data was collected from doctoral students on a weekly basis. Students were asked to complete a behavior log which consisted of 10 questions and inquired about their help-seeking and studying behaviors.

This study explores queer-spectrum and trans-spectrum students’ voices on establishing a sense of belonging in the classroom. This study contributes to a growing body of research on the experience of queer-spectrum and trans-spectrum students in higher education institutions. Using long-form interviews with 25 students and alumni of a public research university in North Carolina, we find that the incorporation of small gestures by faculty has an outsized impact on fostering a sense of belonging among queer-spectrum and trans-spectrum students. Specifically, small gestures such as the use of preferred pronouns went a long way in making students feel welcomed in the classroom. More broadly, queer-spectrum and trans-spectrum students who identified with their gender assigned at birth also used the use of pronouns by professors as a cue. By virtue of professors taking the time to revise their email signatures, revise their syllabi to include language regarding anti-discrimination and scholarship by a diverse set of scholars, and make a welcoming statement aimed at establishing a safe space for queer-spectrum and trans-spectrum students, signaled to students that they were an ally.

Through surveys and focus group conversations, we studied students' experiences with instruction in writing-intensive (WI) courses at our urban R1 university and their awareness of and attitudes about linguistic and rhetorical diversity. Specifically, we explore discrepancies between students' experiences with languaging, language judgment, and our university’s diversity and our goals as teacher-scholars who seek a university context more ready for writing instruction that embraces linguistic diversity. Echoing Baker-Bell’s (2020) discussion of students’ “linguistic double-consciousness,” our analysis demonstrates the misalignment between the valuing of linguistic diversity emphasized in contemporary scholarship and the perspectives on languaging held by our direct instructional audience: the students at our university. Importantly, while most survey participants agreed that “bringing linguistic diversity into the classroom enhances their writing,” most focus group participants generally implied a much different experience, describing writing “formally” or “in Standard American English,” for classes, with no suggestion that their writing was positively affected by linguistic diversity. This study points us to strategies that will help us get on the same conversational page with students about linguistic diversity.

Educator stress, burn-out and fatigue greatly affect faculty success and retention. The purpose of this research was to increase understanding of the lived experiences of educators and identify tangible strategies to help them thrive in higher education. Using an online open-ended cross-sectional survey and content analysis, this study explored qualitative data regarding nursing faculty experiences of stress, changes in pedagogy, and peer-to-peer faculty advice. Findings from 113 participants highlight recommendations from and for educators including pedagogical approaches as well as insights on compassion, compassion-fatigue, and self-compassion. Educator experiences are shared with the hope that faculty will use peer guidance to reflect on their own activities, make enhancements, and enact change.

A high percentage of students enter college with prior trauma, and trauma-informed practices are increasingly recognized as valuable in higher education. We examined if the tone of a syllabus would interact with levels of trauma or stress to impact participants’ perceptions of the instructor, willingness to seek help, and self-efficacy. We tested a 2 (tone: warm vs. cold) X 2 (trauma: low vs. high) experimental design and a 2 (tone: warm vs. cold) X 2 (stress: low vs. high) experimental design. College students read a syllabus, varying in tone, and then indicated their willingness to communicate with the instructor, as well as perceptions of their classroom self-efficacy and instructor attributes. Results revealed that in the high trauma condition, students attributed the most positive attributes to the warm-syllabus instructor and the most negative attributes to the cold-syllabus instructor. Student trauma did not interact with syllabus tone to predict perceived self-efficacy or willingness to communicate. Student stress did not interact with syllabus tone to predict instructor attributes or perceived self-efficacy; however, in the warm condition, high stress students revealed the greatest willingness to communicate with the instructor. The use of a warm syllabus as a tool to create a supportive learning environment benefits all college students, but particularly those experiencing high levels of stress or trauma.

College students have a variety of temptations that can keep them from making the most of their learning in and out of the classroom. Moreover, students’ habits and behaviors related to mobile device use can hinder their learning and can stymie faculty’s effective teaching practices. To explore these issues, we conducted a phenomenological study to examine first-year college students’ responses to questions about mobile devices to determine how faculty can improve classroom engagement. Findings included that students recognize the distraction that mobile devices have on their learning yet need more self-management skills to ensure that technology does not disrupt the focus required to learn. Students also revealed that they did not see the use of mobile devices in the classroom by other students as impeding their ability to learn. The implications of these results point to an opportunity to develop instructional strategies that can help students develop better self-regulation that could positively impact learning.

Positional leaders, such as administrators, are often thought of as the “leaders” in higher education. However, accepting exceptional educators as relational leaders is vital as changes in higher education demand institutions provide value and quality to their stakeholders. Morrill Professors, an example of exceptional educators at our land-grant Midwestern university, model the elements of relational leadership. They are purposeful and empowering while engaging students in the learning process. They are inclusive and ethical in their approach so as to live up to the land grant mission to serve the people of the state. Finally, they are process-oriented, encouraging iterative learning so they can build on their strengths and take ownership of their thinking and contributions to community. While each Morrill Professor accomplished this distinction by perfecting a different aspect/niche in the classroom, their success in developing relationships with their students was paramount throughout this process. The Morrill Professors reflected the knowing-being-doing triad in that knowledge of their students, their discipline, the land-grant mission, their values of the importance of teaching, and their actions to create excellent learning environments contributed to their (and their students’) successes.

International and intercultural educational partnerships facilitate exporting a curriculum or course from a home university situated in a developed country (North) to a host university situated in a low-income country (South). Decolonization of health pedagogy principles were applied throughout a synchronous virtual cross-border intercultural course by videoconference (SVCIV) was carried out. The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility and to identify facilitators and barriers to conducting a SVCIV involving students in Quebec and in Haiti. Five Quebec students and five Haitian students, all volunteers, took part in a 3-weeks course using problem-based learning (PBL) methods. A thematic analysis of data drawn from a 120-minute recorded focus group discussion held one week after the SVCIV reveals the feasibility issues regarding implementing an international cross-cultural North-South educational collaborative project. In order to successfully replicate such a project, the criteria deemed important relate to: 1) the attributes of the students and teachers involved; 2) pedagogical preparation activities; and 3) the use of multiple communication strategies. In addition to the acquisition of course content not readily available in Haiti, the social interactions inherent in the PBL method supported the acquisition of competencies such as collaboration, communication, and change agent advocacy promoted by the Canadian association of occupational therapy and contribute greatly to strengthening the students’ professional identity.