@article{worsham_whatley_crain_deal_skinner_2023, title={Assessing the Role of Spatial Inequality in Transfer Student Success}, ISSN={["1940-2325"]}, DOI={10.1177/00915521231201207}, abstractNote={ Objective: Vertical community college transfer has become an essential pathway for many students who hope to attain bachelor’s degrees. Prior literature indicates that institutional supports, like transfer articulation agreements and transfer advising, have a positive influence on transfer success. Yet, spatial inequality theory indicates that these resources may be distributed unevenly over geographic context. The purpose of this paper is to understand the relationship between spatial context and transfer student success. Methods: Using data from the University of North Carolina System, we estimate a series of regression models, to determine the relationship between county-level measures of rurality, economic distress, and access to broadband internet and the number of credits transferred from the community college to the 4-year institution, excess credits at graduation, and number of major changes at 4-year colleges. Results: The results of our analyses indicate that that the spatial context in which colleges are situated has a relationship to transfer student success. In particular, students transferring from counties that are more rural and economically distressed and have less access to broadband internet may experience worse transfer outcomes. Conclusions: The results of our study indicate that spatial inequality is complex and can be defined in many ways, which has implications for those who use geographic boundaries to identify areas for inquiry or intervention. Additionally, this study highlights the importance of considering variation in resources across spatial context when addressing educational inequality. Further study is necessary to understand the mechanisms driving our results, as well as other ways to measure spatial inequality. }, journal={COMMUNITY COLLEGE REVIEW}, author={Worsham, Rachel E. and Whatley, Melissa and Crain, Andrew and Deal, Sarah and Skinner, Benjamin T.}, year={2023}, month={Nov} }
 @article{whatley_foster_paul_2023, title={We Before Me: Developing a Self-Referent Measure of Cultural Humility for Postsecondary Students}, ISSN={["1552-7808"]}, DOI={10.1177/10283153231173224}, abstractNote={ The purpose of this study was to develop a measurement instrument that scholars and practitioners in international education can use as a means of exploring whether and how individuals who come into contact with international education programs develop a greater sense of cultural humility. Specifically, the study described here outlines the four steps used to develop a nine-item Cultural Humility Self-Assessment Scale (CHS-A): item generation, content validity, item reduction, and scale reliability and validity. These efforts resulted in a valid and reliable instrument that individuals who work in international education can use to evaluate and improve programs and initiatives. }, journal={JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION}, author={Whatley, Melissa and Foster, Dominique and Paul, Stephen}, year={2023}, month={May} }
 @article{whatley_2021, title={Community College Study Abroad: An Event History Analysis}, volume={49}, ISSN={["1940-2325"]}, DOI={10.1177/0091552120982021}, abstractNote={Objective: The purpose of this study is twofold. First, this study explores individual student characteristics, specifically those related to demographics, financial need, academic characteristics, and social and cultural capitals, related to study abroad participation among community college students. Second, this study identifies when over the course of their studies community college students are most likely to participate in study abroad. Method: Data consist of student records provided by a large community college located in the U.S. Southeast. An event history model was used to estimate the relationship between both time-variant and time-invariant student-level indicators and study abroad participation. Smoothed hazard estimates were extracted from this model to explore the likelihood of study abroad participation over time. Results: Findings indicate that race/ethnicity, gender, state-residency status, age, need-based aid eligibility, field of study, and enrollment status (full- or part-time) significantly predicted study abroad participation. These results at times stand in contrast with findings from the literature on study abroad participation among students in the 4-year sector. Smoothed hazard estimates indicated that community college students were more likely to study abroad the longer they were enrolled at the community college. Contributions: These results speak to ways in which community college students access capital resources to promote participation in study abroad and highlight unique aspects of community college study abroad programming. Results also provide a foundation for recommendations for practice that would serve to open access to education abroad at community colleges.}, number={2}, journal={COMMUNITY COLLEGE REVIEW}, author={Whatley, Melissa}, year={2021}, month={Apr}, pages={107–130} }
 @article{worsham_desantis_whatley_johnson_jaeger_2021, title={Early Effects of North Carolina's Comprehensive Articulation Agreement on Credit Accumulation Among Community College Transfer Students}, volume={62}, ISSN={["1573-188X"]}, DOI={10.1007/s11162-021-09626-y}, number={7}, journal={RESEARCH IN HIGHER EDUCATION}, author={Worsham, Rachel and DeSantis, Andrea L. and Whatley, Melissa and Johnson, Katie R. and Jaeger, Audrey J.}, year={2021}, month={Nov}, pages={942–975} }
 @article{whatley_stich_2021, title={From Exclusive to Inclusive: A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Study Abroad Participation and Practices}, volume={92}, ISSN={["1538-4640"]}, DOI={10.1080/00221546.2020.1768778}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to explore how postsecondary institutions with high and low study abroad participation rates communicate with students about study abroad opportunities. We were especially interested in identifying institutional policies and practices that focused on inequalities in access to study abroad. We addressed this purpose using a mixed-methods research design. We first conducted a quantitative regression analysis to identify two groups of institutions with especially high or low study abroad participation rates. We then applied a comparative qualitative content analysis to these institutions’ study abroad websites. Results suggested ways in which institutional policies and practices either perpetuate exclusion or promote access among diverse student populations.}, number={1}, journal={JOURNAL OF HIGHER EDUCATION}, author={Whatley, Melissa and Stich, Amy E.}, year={2021}, month={Jan}, pages={140–167} }
 @article{worsham_whatley_loss_2021, title={Opportunity for All? The Differential Impacts of North Carolina's Revised Comprehensive Articulation Agreement by Race/Ethnicity}, volume={29}, ISSN={["1068-2341"]}, DOI={10.14507/epaa.29.5385}, abstractNote={Transfer articulation agreements are employed by institutions of higher education and state legislatures alike to improve transfer efficiency between two-year and four-year institutions. These agreements often aim both to increase transfer rates and baccalaureate degree completion and to decrease time to degree. Studies exploring the efficacy of articulation agreements find that, despite being successful at decreasing the number of excess credits students earned at graduation and at increasing baccalaureate degree completion, these policies often increase time to degree. While there is considerable research on articulation agreements, few studies have examined the differential impact of these policies on students of Color who, prior literature has shown, experience barriers to realizing their baccalaureate degree aspirations. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the impact of North Carolina’s statewide articulation agreement varied by a student’s racial/ethnic identity when examining two-year post-transfer baccalaureate degree completion, time-to-degree completion, and excess credit accumulation.}, journal={EDUCATION POLICY ANALYSIS ARCHIVES}, author={Worsham, Rachel E. and Whatley, Melissa and Loss, Jonathan E.}, year={2021}, pages={1–44} }
 @article{whatley_landon_tarrant_rubin_2021, title={Program Design and the Development of Students' Global Perspectives in Faculty-Led Short-Term Study Abroad}, volume={25}, ISSN={["1552-7808"]}, DOI={10.1177/1028315320906156}, abstractNote={This study explores connections between design features of faculty-led short-term study abroad programs and resulting changes in students’ global perspectives. Over 2,000 students provided data for this study, completing the Global Perspective Inventory (GPI) before and after studying abroad. Results indicated that program features such as participation in an internship and opportunities for reflection are positively associated with global perspective development while abroad, whereas features such as number of students traveling together and coursework in English are negatively associated with such development. Given the increasing numbers of students who participate in faculty-led short-term abroad programs, research that provides evidence-based recommendations concerning program design is essential to enhancing global perspectives through study abroad.}, number={3}, journal={JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION}, author={Whatley, Melissa and Landon, Adam C. and Tarrant, Michael A. and Rubin, Donald}, year={2021}, month={Jul}, pages={301–318} }
 @article{whatley_stich_2021, title={Pushing the Integration Envelope: A Network Analysis of Study Abroad Website Content}, ISSN={["1558-6901"]}, DOI={10.1177/15586898211015450}, abstractNote={ This article demonstrates how network analysis of qualitative content can be used to build on traditional research approaches to confirm and expand prior findings and to point to fruitful directions for future research. Drawing on mixed methods research on policies and practices that improve access to study abroad at U.S. higher education institutions, we demonstrate how network analysis, namely, quadratic assignment procedure and community detection, of qualitative content codes can enhance the explanatory power and generalizability of previous research. Our use of network analysis contributes an empirical example that validates, challenges, and deepens conversations surrounding network analysis in mixed methods research, all while pushing the envelope on how and when qualitative and quantitative data can and should be integrated. }, journal={JOURNAL OF MIXED METHODS RESEARCH}, author={Whatley, Melissa and Stich, Amy E.}, year={2021}, month={May} }