Fednold Thelisdort, MS, an adjunct professor for the School of Social Work, spoke at two international conferences this summer. With the guidance of his dissertation chair, Amber Dumford, PhD, and his mentor, Guitele Rahill, PhD, LCSW, Thelisdort presented his research related to higher education in Scotland and France.
At the Maison de la Chimie in Paris, France, he presented, “First-Generation College Students: An Oppression-Based Framework of Affirmative Action Policy in the United States (US) Higher Education System." Thelisdort compared affirmative action policies in the US to affirmation action policies in other countries to show why there is a need for the US higher education system to reflect on the diversity rationale/discrimination-based framework and underscore an oppression-based framework with an emphasis on students socioeconomic status and first-generation college student status.
This conference was sponsored by the International Academic Forum and was themed, “Educational Policy, Leadership, Management & Administration.”
Thelisdort also attended the 17th conference on Higher Education Reform at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. He presented, “Predictive Learning Analytics- A Contemporary Students Retention Framework in the US Higher Education System,” and proposed predictive learning analytics as a potentially sustainable solution to the problem of college student retention issue in Florida public universities through data-informed decision-making.
Thelisdort is also a PhD candidate in USF's Curriculum and Instruction program with a concentration in Higher Education Administration.