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  The Relationship among Social Media Use, Media Literacy and Anxiety

  Anthony A. Dalpiaz

  Anxiety is on the rise in the world today. The American College Health Association (2018) surveyed 31,463 college students and found that 60.9% of the respondents had experienced overwhelming anxiety at some point within the last 12 months. This study examined the relationship between media literacy and anxiety levels in first-year college students who are high social media users

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  The Relationship Between Catholic Men and How They View and Practice Masculinity

  Caleb Negron

  Men are entering college spaces with the assumption that they have to model their behavior in a specific way. Their gender identity is attached to a set of masculine norms and expectations that influences their interpersonal relationship as well as how they perceive themselves. Recognizing that masculinity is a nuanced phenomenon and intersects with many dimensions of identity, this qualitative study is focused on the role of the Catholic faith and its influence on masculine behavior. Current studies addressed other dimensions of masculinity, but religion specifically Catholicism was limited. This study’s purpose is to unveil male narratives from the Catholic community. Nine Catholic men were interviewed to share their narratives and perspectives on masculinity and how they navigated the gender expectations as well as their own faith in the context of a Catholic institution. They described their perspective on what masculinity means on the societal level, what masculinity personally looks like to them in their faith, and how the university context influences their understanding of masculine norms. The themes discovered from the men’s narrative were a deep understanding of self, reflection, prior experience practicing vulnerability, and a belief in loving others as Christ did. These men desired and were prepared for more in-depth conversations. Vulnerability was the norm in their community but found that men outside of their immediate group struggled to do so. Given the context of a Catholic institution, understanding that these men of faith have the capacity to engage in complex topics and look to engage other men in the conversations can prove useful in addressing masculinity. Utilizing other male peers to address the issue through both the lens of faith and beyond can create multiple safe spaces across campus.

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  The Social Emotional Learning Language Arts (SELLA) Curriculum: A Qualitative Evaluation of Implementation

  Taylor L. Wohlgamuth

  Social-emotional learning (SEL) is the process by which students incorporate skills, attitudes, and behaviors to deal effectively with life’s daily obstacles (CASEL, 2019). Social and emotional skills are predictors of school success; thus, schools are increasingly looking for ways to develop students’ social-emotional skills. SEL programs can have a long-term impact behaviorally and academically. Most SEL programs are implemented in after-school programs or added on to schools’ pre-existing daily curricula. SEL is often integrated into a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) and specifically provided to those students who demonstrate a need for it (Eklund, Kilpatrick, Kilgus, & Eckert, 2018). To date, few studies have investigated SEL programs that are delivered within the academic curriculum; programs that demonstrate alignment between SEL standards and academic learning standards remain largely unexplored. Using a qualitative inquiry design, the implementation of a social-emotional learning English/Language Arts program known as SELLA was examined from the perspective of participating teachers for its feasibility, acceptability, and alignment with the state’s learning standards for ELA. Themes fell into two categories related to teachers’ perceptions of the program experience, including: 1) areas of strength and 2) areas of suggested improvement. Additionally, three themes emerged specifically regarding alignment of the program with the state’s learning standards in writing: 1) teachers needed to independently add content to meet writing standards; 2) teachers see improvements in their students writing after the SELLA program; however, they cannot deduce if that is a direct result of the SELLA program; and 3) students who do not normally participate in the general curriculum are now participating in the SELLA curriculum. The findings are presented along with implications for future research.

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  The XX Factor: Attributes of Female Leaders

  Laura Cotten Howell

  A higher percentage of women than men in the United States earn degrees from higher education institutions. Women are among the highest performers in organizations, and, in academia, earn the majority of research awards. However, women are disproportionately underrepresented in positions of leadership at all levels of higher education institutions. If this gender-based divergence of promotion is to be addressed, it is important to first understand the women who are the outliers: those who have achieved higher education leadership positions. The purpose of this literature review is to discover the characteristics and skills women in leadership positions attribute to their success. The literature suggests a high proportion of women leaders not only thrive in cultures which value collaborative teams and democratic decision-making processes, women also help to establish these cultures on campus. Women in leadership positions consider building relationships as key in creating successful change. Women also attribute their credibility and trust with the success of their leadership role. In fact, many women argued without credibility and trust, they would be unable to successfully perform their roles. The “Pipeline Theory” suggests as more educated women enter the professional workplace, more women will naturally earn top leadership positions. This, however, has not been the case. By understanding why there is a lack of women in top leadership positions of higher education I seek to examine gender inequalities and unconscious bias surrounding women leaders and preventing them from obtaining top leadership positions.

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  Traumatic Experiences among Community College Students

  Taylor Roberts

  The impacts of trauma have far-reaching consequences for students’ abilities to learn. While the K-12 educational world is starting to work to counteract the negative effects of trauma, the higher education world is not responding at the same pace. While some research has been done to examine college students’ exposure to potentially traumatic events (PTEs), this research has primarily been conducted on four-year university students, leaving community college students, a group often more likely to come from disadvantaged backgrounds, out of the conversation. This mixed methods study uses anonymous survey data to examine the effects of PTEs on students at one local community college in order to understand how background factors (e.g. age, race, gender, socioeconomic status, etc.) correlate to likelihood of exposure to PTEs.

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  Treatment of Stalking Cases in the Criminal Justice System

  Carissa M. Mitchell

  This is meant to understand the shared experiences of victims of stalking while going through the legal process. The results are intended to be shared with mayors, judges, and attorneys to inform ethical and compassionate treatment of victims of stalking.

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  Why Participating in a Professional Conference Should be Required

  Jordyn Mitchell

  Sport Management is a growing degree choice for up and coming professionals. In this industry, you gain experiences and are open to new opportunities by establishing a network of professionals to get you to the sport/business industry. It is not just, about what you know. It can come down to whom you know. The why, the how, insights in to the next steps will be discussed and the advantages of attending a professional conference. What is the benefit can do for you.