DOI
https://doi.org/10.25772/ZMCK-MD94
Defense Date
2021
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Public Policy & Administration
First Advisor
Susan T Gooden
Second Advisor
Richard Huff
Third Advisor
Nancy Stutts
Fourth Advisor
Alex Wagaman
Abstract
Significant racial and gender differences in school performance have been a great concern in the past decades, and especially the significant differences in education performance between both Black youth and other racial groups and between Black males and Black females. Nonprofit youth programs are increasingly considered a promising intervention that can effectively improve Black youth development and education outcomes. While there is a growing body of literature evaluating the outcomes of nonprofit youth programs, little is known about gender differences in the outcomes, and specifically whether these nonprofit programs are equally effective for both Black males and females. This study fills this gap by selecting three African American-led nonprofit programs as cases to examine gender disparities in the outcomes of these programs, using implicit biases and the expectancy theory of motivation as the theoretical framework. The findings show that nonprofit youth programs did help reduce gender differences between Black females and Black males in education outcomes. Black males who participated in one of the three nonprofit programs showed less statistically significant differences from Black females in many education outcome areas, including motivation, self-regulation, resiliency, and self-esteem. However, there were still significant gender differences in the program outcomes. Black females reported higher satisfaction with the nonprofit programs and had better long-term connections with them compared to Black males. This study provides important implications for public administration and policy.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
12-13-2021