A theoretical perspective was used to suggest the Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC) program and a welcoming campus environment for student veterans are connected. The process, person, context, time/timing (PPCT) model of human ecology theory was used to explore the theoretical perspective through a student veteran lens. The researcher developed a questionnaire and incorporated survey research in a concurrent transformative mixed methods design to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from student veterans at a typical SOC program institution. The site selected for this study was a public land grant research institution where there was a sizable population of student veterans and where SOC program provisions were predetermined to meet or exceed SOC program standards of service to student veterans. Evidence drawn from the separate analysis of quantitative data and qualitative data was integrated, analyzed for convergence, and then compared for consistency with a theoretical perspective. This study offered a convergence of evidence to suggest there is a lack of SOC program awareness among student veterans. However, the study also offered evidence to suggest student veterans relate SOC program provisions to a welcoming campus environment even if they don't recognize the provisions to be part of institutional efforts to operationalize SOC program principles and criteria. Finally, findings suggest student veterans relate three institutional conditions to a welcoming campus environment: having staff members who are both supportive of veterans and conscious of veterans' issues in higher education; having SOC program related information available for student veterans; and, having counselors, advisors, faculty, and administrators who are sensitive to veteran perspectives of veterans' issues in higher education.

Gone are the days when the term diversity may have been used to solely signify the color of one's skin or gender. This volume examines how diverse and marginalized populations are situated within American community colleges amd pushes the boundaries of our understanding of these terms. The editors and contributing authors examine various student groups as well as give voice to the marginalization felt by a group of faculty. Topics include: Examining the concept of student marginalization through a framework based on Dewey's 1916 work, Democracy and Education Experiences of Adult English as Second Language learners Seeing the community college environment through the eyes of student athletes Current research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community college students and the need for more Student Veterans Underprepared college students and community College faculty in correctional institutions. The volume concludes with key resources for anyone who works with or researches marginalized populations. The resources include sources for further reading, existing organizations serving various marginalized groups, and some possible funding opportunities. This is the 155th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series New Directions for Community Colleges. Essential to the professional libraries of presidents, vice presidents, deans, and other leaders in today's open-door institutions, New Directions for Community Colleges provides expert guidance in meeting the challenges of their distinctive and expanding educational mission.

This unique reference integrates knowledge culled from fifteen years of U.S. deployments to create an action plan for supporting military and veteran families during future conflicts. Its innovative ideas stretch beyond designated governmental agencies (e.g., Department of Defense, VA) to include participation from, and possible collaborations with, the business/corporate, academic, advocacy, and philanthropic sectors. Contributors identify ongoing and emerging issues affecting military and veteran families and recommend specific strategies toward expanding and enhancing current programs and policy. This proactive agenda also outlines new directions for mobilizing the research community, featuring strategies for addressing institutional challenges and improving access to critical data. Included in the coverage: Lessons learned inside the Pentagon. Merging reintegration streams for veterans and military families. The unique role of professional associations in assisting military families: a case study. Philanthropy for military and veteran families: challenges past, recommendations for tomorrow. Rules of engagement: media coverage of military families during war. Designing and implementing strategic research studies to support military families. A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families is of immediate usefulness to leaders, professionals, and future professionals in interdisciplinary academic, governmental, advocacy, and philanthropic areas of focus interested in the theoretical, practical, and real-life concerns and needs of military-affiliated families.

Student Engagement in Higher Education fills a longstanding void in the higher education and student affairs literature. In the fully revised and updated edition of this important volume, the editors and chapter contributors explore how diverse populations of students experience college differently and encounter group-specific barriers to success. Informed by relevant theories, each chapter focuses on engaging a different student population, including: low-income students, students of color, international students, students with disabilities, LGBT students, religious minority students, student-athletes, homeless students, transfer students, commuter and part-time students, adult learners, student veterans, and graduate students. The forward-thinking, practical strategies offered throughout the book are based on research and the collected professional wisdom of experienced educators and scholars at two-year and four-year institutions of higher education. Current and future faculty, administrators, and student affairs staff will undoubtedly find this book complete with fresh ideas to reverse troubling engagement trends among various college student populations.