Finding Grace: An Exploration of the Impact of Personal and Professional Experience on Leadership Educators in Making Sense of Social Change

dc.contributor.advisorOwen, Julie E
dc.contributor.authorAichele, Anne
dc.creatorAichele, Anne
dc.date.accessioned2022-08-03T20:18:26Z
dc.date.available2022-08-03T20:18:26Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.description.abstractOver the past 30 years, one of the most prevalent models in student leadership education has been the Social Change Model of Leadership Development (SCM), which views leadership as a collaborative, purpose-, and values-driven process working towards positive social change (Higher Education Research Institute, 1996). As issues of social inequity and injustice have become more prevalent in the United States, SCM’s relevance and applicability have been called into question, while the need for intentional, meaningful leadership education has never been more important. Student leadership educators in higher education are responsible for constructing environments where students can acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to create tangible, significant social impact. However, there is a dearth of existing literature examining how these educators understand and define the concept of social change, which ultimately affects how they influence student learning and development. The purpose of this qualitative, heuristic phenomenology is to better understand how the personal and professional experiences of student leadership educators affect college student development, especially surrounding their perceptions of social change. Data were gathered from 11 student leadership educators through journal entries and semi-structured interviews and the analysis utilized a heuristic design, based on the stages of inquiry proposed by Moustakas (1990, 2001). The findings suggest that participants prefer the term social justice, as it more a closely aligns with their understanding of the concept as both a process and outcome that happens at multiple levels to problematize and disrupt inequitable and unjust systems. Leadership is an integral force in driving this change, and leadership education is imperative in helping students be better prepared to engage in the social change process with authenticity and integrity, in order to bring about positive, meaningful, sustainable change. The findings also suggest a number of experiences shape the way participants came to this understanding, along with how they conceptualize their role as leadership educators and their influence on the social change process. Implications for application to the field of leadership education are presented, as are recommendations for future areas of necessary research.
dc.format.extent281 pages
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1920/12920
dc.language.isoen
dc.rightsCopyright 2021 Anne Aichele
dc.subjectHigher education
dc.subjectEducation policy
dc.subjectHeuristic Inquiry
dc.subjectHigher education
dc.subjectLeadership Educator Professional Identity
dc.subjectQualitative Research
dc.subjectSocial Change
dc.subjectStudent Leadership Educator
dc.titleFinding Grace: An Exploration of the Impact of Personal and Professional Experience on Leadership Educators in Making Sense of Social Change
dc.typeDissertation
thesis.degree.disciplineEducation
thesis.degree.grantorGeorge Mason University
thesis.degree.levelPh.D.
thesis.degree.namePh.D. in Education

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