At Minnesota State University, Mankato, every graduate student completes a capstone for their program. Most programs include a thesis/dissertation or alternative plan paper (APP) option, but many programs provide other capstone opportunities.
This is a collection of Dissertations submitted by graduate students from various programs.
A dissertation is an extensive original research paper resulting in a significant contribution to new knowledge.
Theses/Dissertations from 2022
Investigating the Effectiveness of the Positive Reinforcement Components of Tootling, Kennedi J. Alstead
Perceptions of Faculty and Administration on the Value of Service-Learning in the Tenure and Promotion Process at a Public Midwestern University, Odbayar Batsaikhan
Pathways Towards an Engineering Baccalaureate Degree - Critical Incidents and Factors Leading Students to Choose Community College: A Phenomenological Study, Joan Zitur Carter
Effects of Daily Spaced Versus Massed Practice on Spelling Word Retention Among Struggling Spellers, Melissa Engel
Death Anxiety: A Quantitative Exploration of Professional Counselors Experiences, Kaitlyn Judith Kaus
Cover-Copy-Compare as a Math Fact Fluency Intervention for Students in an Alternative Special Education Program, RaeLynn J. Lamminen
Recognizing Capital: A Study of Cultural Wealth, Grit, and Student Success, Jessica Lauritsen
Exploring the Effects of Creativity and Student Success on Community College STEM Students Taking Fine Arts Courses, Jimmy LeDuc
What Rural Middle School Students Who Have Been Bullied Can Teach Us About Bullying: A Phenomenological Study, Sarah Lendt
Family Involvement in Charter Elementary Schools: A Case Study Using the Family Involvement Questionnaire-Elementary Version (FIQ-E), Dorothy M. Lipski
Increasing Above and Beyond Behavior Through Social Emotional Learning, Lars Olson
Fundamental Factors for Success: Engineering Faculty and Industry Partners, Molly F. Schaefer
Virtues and Values: A Transcendental Phenomenological Examination of Professional Coach Trainers' Use of Virtue Ethics as a Tool in Their Practice, Julianne Schwietz
Theses/Dissertations from 2021
The Impact of Professional Perspectives on Team Participation and Satisfaction on Intent to Implement Interventions Determined by Multidisciplinary Teams, Julieanna Bowen
Supporting Resilience in Reserve Component Spouses During Deployment: The Impact of Family Life Cycle Phase and Deployment History on Social Support Needs, Jennifer L. Ceminsky
Academic Writing Challenges Experienced by International Students in a Midwest U.S. University: A Phenomenological Inquiry, Padam B. Chauhan
Understanding How Experienced World History Teachers in Minnesota Choose Course Content: A Mixed Methods Study, Kathleen Ferrero
Faculty and Dean Attitudes Toward Institutional Civic Responsibility, Mutual Trust, and Civic Mindedness at Two Year Colleges, David W. Kobilka
Novice Professional School Counselor Development: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Supports and Resources, Lynn M. O'Brien
The Impact of Cultural Competency on the School Improvement Process: A Phenomenological Study, Michelle deKam Palmieri
“Positive” Student Behavior: Investigating Educator Perceptions of Student Behavior in Terms of Willingness to Reward and Magnitude of Reward, Kelsey Stangler
Predicting Mental Health Counseling Professionals’ Willingness to Discuss Sexuality Issues with Clients, Becca L. Thompson
Examining Differences in Rural, Micropolitan, and Metropolitan School Psychologists Roles and Delivery of Mental Health Services, Ashley A. Williamson
Theses/Dissertations from 2020
Alignment or Detachment: College Educators’ Perceptions of Experiential Learning Pedagogy, Wayne D. Finseth
An Examination of Nature Relatedness, Nature Exposure, and Quality of Work-Life Among Student Affairs Professionals, Breanne Hiivala
Students' Preparation for College Through Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) Programs and Dual Enrollment, Brian P. Jones
Transformational Teaching in a Culturally Passive Environment in Higher Education: A Phenomenological Study of STEM Professors, Julie M. Kjeer
Applying Peer Tutoring to Spelling at the Elementary Level, Ashlee Lundberg
Effects of Synchronous Group Work on Learning and Community in Online Mathematics at Community Colleges, Carrie L. Naughton
Predicting Academic Outcomes of Reinstated Technical College Students Following an Academic Suspension, Erica E. Stene Winkler
Effects of Aromatherapy on Academic Success, Perceived Stress, and Coping Skills of Graduate Students, Lakisha S. Witter
Managing Students as Volunteers: Community Organizations’ Perspectives of Service-Learning Placements, Bradley Wolfe
Theses/Dissertations from 2019
Cyberbullying Prevention and Intervention: Perspectives of School Psychologists and School Counselors, Rachel E. Burlet
Engagement and STEM Degree Completion: An Analysis of the Relationship Between Time-To-Completion and Engagement and Pre-College Variables, Karina (Harstad) Clennon
Death: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Counseling Journals, 1986–2016, Aaron Suomala Folkerds
Perceived Barriers of Homeschooled Students Moving into Higher Education: Case Stories and Qualitative Perspectives, Lizbeth Kliewer
Evaluating the Effects of Tootling When Implemented in Special Education Classrooms Providing Behavior Supports, Jannine E. Ray
Racial Microaggressions and Alienation Among Hmong American College Students, Bruce Yang
Theses/Dissertations from 2018
My Truth, My Telling: Experiences of Black Women Principals in a Poetry-themed Workshop on Race and Gender, Antonia Felix
Improving Mathematical Skill: The Perceptions of Rural Minnesota Mathematics Educators, Michael Haskins
The Experience of Microaggressions within Cross-Racial Videoconferencing Supervision: A Case Study, Jamie Hedin
Effective Characteristics of Rural English Learner Programs, Sarah Huseby
A Study of the Soft Skills that Contribute to the Success of Newly Graduated Business Students in the Workplace, Promeet Jaswant Singh
What Happens Now? Coaching and Leading Following a Student-Athlete Death - A Phenomenological Study, Peter McGahey
African-Centered Pedagogy: Exploring Black Male Identity and Achievement through an African-Centered Lens, Kenneth Turner Jr.
Theses/Dissertations from 2017
Adolescents' Experiences Returning to School after a Mental Health Hospitalization, Pamela Iverson
Perceptions of Students With and Without Limited Formal Schooling, Sarah Schmidt de Carranza
Investigating the Effects of Performance Feedback and Choice as a Writing Fluency Intervention, Samantha Jean Steinman
Instructional Design: How Secondary Teachers Promote Student Comprehension of Informational Text, Patti Strukel
Women’s Choice in College STEM Majors: Impact of Ability Tilt on Women Students’ Educational Choice, Audie Jane Willis
Theses/Dissertations from 2016
Missing Voices: Journeys of Pre-Service Teacher Candidates and Graduates of Color in a Predominantly White Teacher Education Program, Robbie R. Burnett
IT Centralization and the Innovation Value Chain in Higher Education: A Study for Promoting Key Innovations Through Innovation Management and Organizational Design, Edmund Udaya Clark
Cognitive Complexity, Mindfulness, and Reflection in Mental Health Professionals, Dharshini Goonetilleke
Spirituality in Higher Education: A Narrative Analysis of Its Use for Decision-Making, Jeffrey Francis Judge
The Relationship between College Students' Use of Facebook and their Feelings of Alienation from their Institution, Oleksandr Komarenko
A Phenomenological Study of Professional and Practical Changes Experienced by Teachers Involved with Action Research in a Learning Community Master’s Program, Jay Dean Meiners
Performing, Sensing, Being: Queer Identity in Everyday Life, Justin J. Rudnick
Self-Directed Learning in PBL, Ron Ulseth
Faculty and Student Perceptions of Effective Online Learning Environments, Kayla L. Westra
Student Perceptions of Academic Advising at Two-Year Colleges, Wayne T. Whitmore
Theses/Dissertations from 2015
Through the Looking Glass: Barriers and Coping Mechanisms Encountered by African American Women Presidents at Predominately White Institutions, Maria Louise Baxter-Nuamah
The Fertility Problem Inventory and Infertility-Related Stress: A Case Study, Staci Leigh Born
Feminist Identities: Career Choices and Experiences of College-Educated Women, Kerry Diekmann
A Validation of the Family Involvement Questionnaire-High School Version, Katlyn Ann Grover
A Phenomenological Investigation of Clinical Intuition among Alcohol and Drug Counselors, Zach Hansen
Linking Reading Assessment Data to Intervention Using the 4-Box Instructional Decision Making Model, Jeremy Husfeldt
Literacy Strategies Successfully Implemented by Secondary Social Studies Teachers, Kelly Killorn
A Phenomenological Study of the Experience of Counseling for Women with Addictions, Jennifer Karin Londgren
A Grounded Theory of Women's Leadership Experiences in Higher Education: Navigating from the Director Level, Laura Ann Maki
Students' Perceptions of Life Skill Development in Project-Based Learning Schools, Kimberly Ann Meyer
Investigating Stability Balls in the Classroom: Effects on Student Behavior and Academic Productivity, Natasha A. Olson
Early Career Principal Development: A qualitative case study of Principals' Perceptions of Participation in the Institute of Engaged Principal Leadership, Teri Marie Preisler
Increasing Paraprofessional Fidelity of Implementation Through Performance Feedback, Dana Nicole Shea
Theses/Dissertations from 2014
Implementing Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports at the Secondary Level, Sheri L. Allen
The Identification of Successes and Barriers in Establishing Professional Learning Communities From Principals' Perspectives, Katie Carol Clarke
Leadership Curricula of Professional Athletic Training Programs, Elizabeth Drake
The Development of a Teacher-Rating Measure of Positive Behavior, Sara Ann Ebsen
Determining Effective/Ineffective: The Barriers Facing Minnesota Teacher Remediation, Matthew John Hillmann
Perspectives of Female Leaders in Athletic Training, Kyle Matthew Momsen
Experiences and Perspectives of Clinical Supervisors in Cross-Cultural Supervision: The Impact of Supervisor Race and Ethnicity, Masahiko Sato
Seclusion and Restraint Policy and Practice: Are We Doing the Right Thing?, Laura L. Strunk
Effects of a Cross-Age Peer Tutoring Intervention on English Language Oral Reading Fluency in a Belizean Grade School, Marcia Ruth Sytsma
Using a State-wide Survey to Determine the Impact of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports on Students' Self-Reported Perceptions, Feelings, and Behaviors, Rachel Youngblom
Theses/Dissertations from 2013
Trait Emotional Intelligence, Perceived Discrimination, and Academic Achievement among African American and Latina/o High School Students: A Study of Academic Resilience, Nicholas Russell Abel
Contextual Pedagogy: A Praxis Engaging Black Male High School Students Toward Eliminating the Achievement Gap, Timothy Alan Berry
Building Self-Directed Teachers: A Case Study of Teachers' Perspectives of the Effects of Cognitive Coaching on Professional Practices, Kevin S. Bjerken
A Systematic Analysis of Paraprofessional Job Expectations: Development of the Paraprofessional Survey of Expectations Tool (P-SET), Angela Maxine Christenson
Prevent-Teach-Reinforce for Function-based Behavior Intervention Planning in Positive Behavior Support, Brett William DeJager
Measuring Success for English Language Learners from a Multi-dimensional Perspective, Randy Haley
Assessing the "Goodness of Fit" Between Scholarly Assertions and Audience Interpretations of Media Images of Black Male Athletes, Emily J. Houghton
