Liberal Arts Institution Research Articles

Integrated Sociology Program Assessment: Inclusion of a Senior Portfolio Graduation Requirement

This article presents information about the planning, implementation, and findings of an assessment-based student portfolio designed by the faculty of a sociology program at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, a midsized public regional liberal arts institution. First, we briefly present the rationale for implementing a portfolio system and the thought process by which our particular portfolio assessment tool was created. Then, we explain our findings using the portfolio assessment system and how these findings were used to modify and strengthen the program as well as serve as a basis for long-term planning for the program.

Leading by Leaning In and Leaning Out

Women in business are often confronted by work environments which influence career/leadership choices and family decisions, as noted in the recent New York Times article, "More Than Their Mothers, Young Women Plan Career Pauses" (Miller, 2015). Those in the millennial generation, born between the years 1981-1997, are learning by example from previous generations what career options they would like to pursue and not pursue. Although individuals in this generation may think differently than their predecessors, they may also fail to understand and take action on career, leadership, and family opportunities available to them. This research focuses on developing leadership skills and career awareness amongst students at a small liberal arts institution after business faculty noted a higher percentage of students intending to pursue careers as homemakers versus businesspeople. The program, focused on getting the conversation started at the college level to prepare students for the business world, was based upon the research presented in the book Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg (2013) as well as the resources provided on the leanin.org website. The program exposed students, university faculty, and staff to female leaders at various stages in their careers through interactive, discussion-based sessions. Program developers also conducted empirical quantitative research on the student participants to identify changes in attitudes and behaviors as a result of participating in the program and found significant changes in student's ability to network and level of self-efficacy — issues addressed within the sessions. Significant differences were also noted between those choosing to participate in the program and a control group of non-participants. In addition, what initially began as a programming initiative to gain awareness around leaning in, or taking a more active leadership role, has since evolved to become a student-led effort that involves leaning out, such as working with others as mentors through collaboration with outside organizations. Keywords: leadership development, gender, women in business, mentoring.

Conversation as a model to build the relationship among libraries, digital humanities, and campus leadership

ABSTRACTBy committing to two conversation-based concepts, David Lankes's Mission for New Librarians and the “Scholarship as Conversation” Information Literacy Frame, Bethel University's Library has established a leadership role in advocating and implementing digital humanities at a midsized liberal arts institution. Aligning the services and strategy of the Bethel University Digital Library (BUDL), Bethel's institutional repository, with the lessons learned and relationships built through these conversations with administration, faculty, and staff has resulted in successful outcomes for the communication and implementation of innovative digital library and digital humanities initiatives.

The Diversity Challenge for Higher Education in Canada: The Prospects and Challenges of Increased Access and Student Success

With the shifting demographics of societies such as the United States and Canada, access to higher education presents a variety of challenges to ensure that universities are able to meet the challenges associated with increased student diversity on campus. The current paper reviews first the literature on the linkages between social inequality and education, before turning to an examination of Canadian data with respect to access issues and the possible barriers to increasing diversity among postsecondary institutions. The evidence reveals that first-generation students and those whose parents did not attend university, Aboriginal peoples, and students with disabilities (among others) continue to be underrepresented in postsecondary education. At the same time, the paper argues that while institutions of higher learning can facilitate improved access, they must commit to developing support services and a more welcoming and inclusive environment in order to ensure student retention and success among an increasingly diverse student population. The paper concludes with a discussion of “best practices” from the perspective of a predominantly undergraduate, liberal arts institution in southern Ontario.

Promoting Undergraduate Research in Economics

This paper provides a snapshot of undergraduate research at top 30 liberal arts institutions and top 30 national universities (based on U.S. News and World Report rankings, 2017). This description provides a broader perspective than exists in the literature as we identify departmental motivations for providing undergraduate research opportunities despite the lack of mandates. We also document the extent to which a variety of forms of undergraduate research occur (programmatically and by student numbers). Also included are descriptions of innovative approaches to promoting undergraduate research in light of constraints and methods for creating a culture conducive to undergraduate research.

Changes in nursing students' perceptions of research and evidence-based practice after completing a research course

BackgroundNurses need a sound education in research and evidence-based practice (EBP) to provide patients with optimal care, but current teaching methods could be more effective. ObjectivesTo evaluate the changes in nursing students 1) perceptions of research and EBP, 2) confidence in research and EBP, and 3) interest in research participation after completing a course in research and EBP. DesignA pre-post assessment design was utilized to compare changes in students. SettingsThis project was conducted at a small, private liberal arts institution with Bachelor of Science (BSN) students. ParticipantsTwo cohorts of third-year BSN students (Year 1 N=55, Year 2 N=54) who were taking a required, semester-long Nursing Research and EBP course. MethodsStudents' perceptions of and confidence in research and EBP were assessed pre- and post-semester using the Confidence in Research and EBP survey, which contained 7 demographic items, 9 Research Perceptions items, and 19 Confidence in Research items (5-point Likert scale; 1=Not at all confident, 5=Extremely confident). Two years of data were collected and analyzed in SPSS v.24.0. Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests and Mann-Whitney-U tests were utilized to examine the data. ResultsStudents had significant improvements in perceptions of and confidence in research and EBP (p<0.05). They were more likely to agree to plan to use EBP in the future (p=0.007), yet there were no significant improvements on students' plans to perform research or plans to participate in research in the future. ConclusionsA Research and EBP course is an effective way to improve student perceptions of and confidence in research and EBP, increasing the likelihood of applying these skills to future nursing practice.

Groups That Work: Student Achievement in Group Research Projects and Effects on Individual Learning

Group research projects frequently are used to teach undergraduate research methods. This study uses multivariate analyses to examine the characteristics of higher-achieving groups (those that earn higher grades on group research projects) and to estimate the effects of participating in higher-achieving groups on subsequent individual learning (grade on final paper). The sample includes 257 students who completed a sociology research methods course at a small liberal arts institution between 2004 and 2015. Group achievement (grade on group research project) is predicted by group size, gender composition of the group, and group’s average grade on midterm exams. Group achievement on the research project contributes to subsequent individual learning (grade on final paper) even after controlling for individual characteristics (student’s gender, race, and average grade on midterm exams) and group characteristics. The findings support claims that group research projects are an effective pedagogy for undergraduate sociology research methods courses and point to some guidelines for instructors’ composition of groups for research projects.

The PULSE Vision & Change Rubrics, Version 1.0: A Valid and Equitable Tool to Measure Transformation of Life Sciences Departments at All Institution Types.

The PULSE Vision & Change Rubrics, version 1.0, assess life sciences departments' progress toward implementation of the principles of the Vision and Change report. This paper reports on the development of the rubrics, their validation, and their reliability in measuring departmental change aligned with the Vision and Change recommendations. The rubrics assess 66 different criteria across five areas: Curriculum Alignment, Assessment, Faculty Practice/Faculty Support, Infrastructure, and Climate for Change. The results from this work demonstrate the rubrics can be used to evaluate departmental transformation equitably across institution types and represent baseline data about the adoption of the Vision and Change recommendations by life sciences programs across the United States. While all institution types have made progress, liberal arts institutions are farther along in implementing these recommendations. Generally, institutions earned the highest scores on the Curriculum Alignment rubric and the lowest scores on the Assessment rubric. The results of this study clearly indicate that the Vision & Change Rubrics, version 1.0, are valid and equitable and can track long-term progress of the transformation of life sciences departments. In addition, four of the five rubrics have broad applicability and can be used to evaluate departmental transformation by other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines.

The Academic Experiences Survey (AES): Measuring Perceptions of Academic Climate in Liberal Arts Institutions

The Academic Experiences Survey (AES) consists of five scales: Comfortable in College (feeling at ease, at one’s educational institution), Skills (feeling mastery of writing, critical thinking, reading, and other academic skills), Interdisciplinary Understanding (seeing connections among different disciplines), Liberal Arts Integration (understanding what and how different disciplines contribute to a liberal education), and Future Academic Plans (making course, major, sophomore housing, and first-year summer choices with an eye toward future goals). We present data on different scales’ prediction of retention in college, and enrollment in STEM courses, and longitudinal changes over the course of students’ first year in college.

Formulating a Pharmacy Collection without a Prescription

ABSTRACTLibrarians without a background in the health sciences were tasked with building a collection to support a new pharmacy school at a traditionally liberal arts institution. Despite little subject expertise, the team assessed current holdings, conducted a review of recommended resources, and collaborated with faculty to prioritize acquisitions to support the developing program as funds became available. The hire of a health sciences librarian provided new opportunities for assessment and for continued collecting. Altogether, this process allowed for the creation of recommended best practices that can be adopted by any librarian procuring resources to support new health science programs.

Blending Cultures of Pedagogy

Liberal arts schools and university programs are flourishing in India. Over the past decade economic growth and the ability to pay for education have spurred the creation of private and public liberal arts schools. As internationalization of higher education and cross-border movements of students become increasingly more common, a new generation of students is now familiar with global education and corresponding western pedagogies. Along with the increase in study abroad programs is the rise in demand for quality liberal arts institutions at home. This study of O.P. Jindal Global University, founded in 2007, and the Jindal School of Liberal Arts and Humanities (jslh) examines the contradictions and challenges inherent in supplanting long-held traditional teaching methods and classroom culture with the western concept of liberal education. The jslh faculty consists of Indian and foreign instructors while all students are Indian. Applying qualitative research methods of direct observation, interviews with faculty and students and surveys, the author examines changes in the traditional classroom power dynamics and the acceptance and resistance to new pedagogies. One strategy for addressing challenges, such as the faculty’s resistance to change was through in-depth discussion among faculty of the merits and limitations of traditional education and experiential learning. Foreign faculty benefitted from co-teaching with Indian faculty as all parties made a conscious effort to recognize cultural differences in student-teacher relations.

Igniting Sparks: Engaging Undergraduate Students in Adventures with Insects

Small liberal arts colleges play an important role in educating undergraduates, some of whom will go on to graduate school, but all of whom will be voting citizens and decision-makers in society. The mission of most, if not all, small liberal arts institutions is to, in some manner, give students a comprehensive education, providing both breadth and depth; my own institution, Le Moyne College, articulates a mission statement that states, in part, that the college's “emphasis is on education of the whole person and on the search for meaning and value as integral parts of the intellectual life.” As an entomologist at such an institution, my goal is to instill in students a genuine appreciation for insects and the many critical roles they play. That appreciation may lead them to a career in entomology, be an avenue for learning how to do biological research, give them a better understanding of how important insects are to human welfare, or simply give them enjoyment throughout their lives. The adventure begins when students in introductory biology courses, including courses for non-majors, are regaled with stories about insects and the amazing …

The Gender Differences in the Change of Dietary Intake and Body Composition Following the First Semester for Undergraduate First Year Students at a Small Liberal Arts University

Currently young adults are at a high risk of becoming overweight or obese (excess body fat), and developing related disorders more than previous generations. The phenomenon known as the “freshmen fifteen” is no myth. Previous research has found that 80% of first year students gain body weight within the first year of college with an average of 5.0 lbs (2.3 kg) for males and 5.5 lbs (2.5 kg) for females and dietary intake may be the culprit. Potentially, dietary influences on body composition changes following an academic semester of college may differ between males and females. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess if gender differences exist in the first semester for first year college students regarding body composition and dietary intake. First year college students (N=21, age 18.3 ± 0.6 years, male n=10, female n=17) from the University of La Verne were asked to report to the laboratory fasting for body composition assessments and a dietary intake analysis pre and post first semester. Body composition (body weight, fat mass, fat free mass, percent body fat, etc.) was measured using a 310 Tanita scale (Tanita, Japan). A record of daily dietary intake for a total of 3 days, 2 days during the week and 1 day during the weekend was assessed using Dietary Analysis Plus software (Cengage, USA). An independent t‐test was used to assess the differences between pre and post measures for body composition and dietary intake using SPSS v.21 and a P‐value of &lt; 0.05 was used to determine significance. A significant difference in the change of fat mass (males 5.2 ± 5.3 kg, vs females −0.3 ± 4.6 kg, p&lt;0.05) and dietary poly‐unsaturated fat intake (males −3.1 ± 5.3 kg, vs females 1.9 ± 3.5 kg, p&lt;0.05) was found following the first semester of first year students between genders. Trends in the change of percent body fat (males 4.0 ± 5.0 kg, vs females −1.4 ± 7.5 kg, p&lt;0.07), dietary saturated fat intake (males 9.4 ± 17.4 kg, vs females −3.6 ± 10.0 kg, p&lt;0.09) and dietary omega‐6 intake (males −2.7 ± 4.7 kg, vs females 1.3 ± 3.0 kg, p&lt;0.06) was also established. In conclusion, gender has an impact on body composition changes across the first semester in first year college students at a small private liberal arts institution. Programs emphasizing gender specific approaches to managing body composition in the first semester for first year college students may be needed on college campuses.

Inside the College Gates: How Class and Culture Matter in Higher Education

Stuber’s Inside the College Gate examines how social class shapes student involvement in extracurricular activities during college, and in turn how student involvement shapes social class identity. The author’s findings from a qualitative study of upper-middle-class and working-class students at a private liberal arts institution and a state flagship university provide administrators and student affairs practitioners with valuable insights on how best to reach out to working-class students. This review summarizes and contextualizes Stuber’s findings.

Engaged in teaching, and scholarship too: economics faculty productivity at national liberal arts colleges

This study examines the research productivity of economists affiliated with the top 100 national liberal arts colleges in the USA. Based on our findings, we are able to draw comparisons between research effort today and research patterns presented in earlier literature. According to one research ranking presented here, the top economics departments across liberal arts institutions are Claremont McKenna College, Middlebury College, Williams College, Wellesley College and Trinity College. When an alternative metric is used, Rhodes College, Agnes Scott College and Hope College enter the mix. Lastly, we provide a ranking of the top economists who are affiliated with national liberal arts institutions. These results reveal that a larger proportion of the top economists hold the rank of associate professor than what is shown in previous studies, and that research output at liberal arts institutions is relatively concentrated in one or a few scholars.

The Challenges of Promoting Instructional Improvement: Teaching Behaviors and Teaching Cultures at Liberal Arts Institutions in the Associated Colleges of the South

One goal of faculty development is to improve instructional practice (McKee, Johnson, Ritchie, & Tew, 2013; Ouellett 2010; Sorcinelli, Austin, Eddy, & Beach, 2006). This goal accords with the design of the Associated Colleges of the South Teaching and Learning Workshop, a faculty development workshop begun in 1992 for 16 residential, liberal arts institutions that comprise the ACS consortium. We surveyed ACS faculty members and observed that they are most likely to engage independently rather than collaboratively to improve their instructional practice, despite stated desires for collaborative opportunities for such work. We recommend that faculty development programs and institutions promote ways for faculty members to engage in collective examinations of instructional improvement that are mindful of specific institutional expectations and cultures, and that they invite discussion around the barriers and facilitators to collaborative work.

The Challenges of Promoting Instructional Improvement: Teaching Behaviors and Teaching Cultures at Liberal Arts Institutions in the Associated Colleges of the South

The Challenges of Promoting Instructional Improvement: Teaching Behaviors and Teaching Cultures at Liberal Arts Institutions in the Associated Colleges of the South

Enhancing Computational Science Curriculum at Liberal Arts Institutions: A Case Study in the Context of Cybersecurity

Computational science curriculum developments and enhancements in liberal arts colleges can face unique challenges compared with larger institutions. We present a case study of computational science curriculum development at a medium sized liberal arts university in the context of cybersecurity. Three approaches, namely a cybersecurity minor, content infusion into existing courses, and a public forum are proposed to enrich the current computational science curriculum with cybersecurity contents.

Study Drugs and Academic Integrity: The Role of Beliefs About an Academic Honor Code in the Prediction of Nonmedical Prescription Drug Use for Academic Enhancement

The role of beliefs about academic integrity in college students’ decisions to use nonmedical prescription drugs (NMPDs) in academic settings was examined. In Spring 2012 the authors obtained survey data from 645 participants at a small, undergraduate, private liberal arts institution in the Northeastern United States. A broadcast e-mail message was sent to 1,982 students, and data were collected via an anonymous online survey. Of the participants, 19% reported using medication prescribed for ADHD for academic enhancement: Adderall® was the primary medication used. Academic use of NMPDs was higher among participants who had lower levels of belief that such use violated standards of an academic honor code. Furthermore, NMPD use was higher among students for whom the perception of peer use was higher. There is potential to reduce NMPD use on college campuses through implementation of honor codes and campus-wide campaigns related to academic integrity.

Local Cultures in Institutional Contexts: The Functions of Academic Departments in Liberal Arts Colleges

The academic department remains understudied as a context of faculty work, particularly in institutional settings beyond the research university. In this article, we report findings from a study of faculty experiences within academic departments in liberal arts colleges, through analysis of interviews with 55 faculty members representing a 13-member consortium of liberal arts institutions in the mid-western U.S. Through inductive analysis and deductive coding from existing models, we identified five functions of departments in liberal arts colleges, including: (a) faculty hiring, retention, and promotion; (b) new faculty socialization; (c) informal interactions, mentoring, and network-building; (d) establishing and communicating institutional and departmental policies, practices, and procedures; and (e) the structuring of academic work. Findings suggest that departmental functions in liberal arts colleges are generally the same as those in other institution types, but play out differently and thus have different consequences for academic careers. Across functions, liberal arts colleges seem to be undergoing an evolution, or perhaps revolution, that has implications for academic work in such contexts.