This study examined associations between authentic leadership behaviors enacted by faculty in the classroom and academic outcomes among first-time college students at a private, religiously affiliated university. Using a convergent mixed-methods design, data were collected from 113 first-time students and 11 faculty members using the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, along with academic outcomes including midterm and final course grades, first-term grade point average, and persistence to the subsequent semester. Quantitative analyses included correlation, regression, and exploratory classification and regression tree analyses, while open-ended student responses provided contextual insight into classroom engagement and motivation. Results indicated modest but consistent associations between faculty self-ratings of authentic leadership and academic outcomes. Student-rated leadership measures were less strongly associated with outcomes, and qualitative responses suggested student motivation was shaped primarily by factors beyond instructional leadership. Findings highlight authentic leadership as a useful framework for examining classroom-level faculty behaviors in first-year student success research contexts.
AstinA. W. (1999). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Development, 40(5), 518–529.
2.
AvolioB. J.GardnerW. L. (2005). Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 16(3), 315–338. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2005.03.001
3.
BalwantP. T. (2016). Transformational instructor‐leadership in higher education teaching: A meta‐analytic review and research agenda. Journal of Leadership Studies, 9(4), 20–42. https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21423
4.
BamfordM.WongC. A.LaschingerH. K. S. (2013). The influence of authentic leadership and areas of worklife on work engagement of registered nurses. Journal of Nursing Management, 21(3), 529–540. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2834.2012.01399.x
5.
Batista-FoguetJ. M.EsteveM.van WitteloostuijnA. (2021). Measuring leadership: An assessment of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. PloS ONE, 16(7), e0254329. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254329
6.
BaumS. (2014). Higher education earnings premium: Value, variation, and trends. Urban Institute.
7.
BegleyP. T. (2006). Self-knowledge, capacity and sensitivity: Prerequisites to authentic leadership by school principals. Journal of Educational Administration, 44(6), 570–589. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578230610704792
8.
BolkanS.GoodboyA. K. (2009). Transformational leadership in the classroom: Fostering student learning, student participation, and teacher credibility. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 36(4), 296–306.
9.
Chasteen MillerL.MillsR. (2019). ‘If they don’t care, I don’t care’: Millennial and generation Z students and the impact of faculty caring. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 19(4). https://doi.org/10.14434/josotl.v19i4.24167
10.
CreswellJ. W.CreswellJ. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5th ed.). Sage.
11.
CrippenC. (2012). Enhancing authentic leadership–followership: Strengthening school relationships. Management in Education, 26(4), 192–198. https://doi.org/10.1177/089202061243908
12.
DennisonC. R. (2019). The crime-reducing benefits of a college degree: Evidence from anationally representative U.S. sample. Criminal Justice Studies, 32(4), 297–316. https://doi.org/10.1080/1478601X.2019.1627533
13.
GardnerW. L.CogliserC. C.DavisK. M.DickensM. P. (2011). Authentic leadership: A review of the literature and research agenda. The Leadership Quarterly, 22(6), 1120–1145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2011.09.007
14.
HanC.-w.FarruggiaS. P.MossT. P. (2017). Effects of academic mindsets on college students’ achievement and retention. Journal of College Student Development, 58(8), 1119–1134. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2017.0089
Harrison BergJ.ZoellickB. (2019). Teacher leadership: Toward a new conceptual framework. Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 4(1), 2–14. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPCC-06-2018-0017
17.
HausmannL. R. M.SchofieldJ. W.WoodsR. L. (2007). Sense of belonging as a predictor of intentions to persist among African American and White first-year college students. Research in Higher Education, 48(7), 803–839. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-007-9052-9
18.
HoffmanN. (2005). Add and subtract: Dual enrollment as a state strategy to increase postsecondary success for underrepresented students. Jobs for the Future.
19.
HorowitzJ. M. (2018). Relative education and the advantage of a college degree. American Sociological Review, 83(4), 771–801. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122418785371
LoesC. N.AnB. P.TrolianT. L. (2024). Quality of student–faculty interactions, persistence, and the mediating role of student satisfaction. Journal of Postsecondary Student Success, 3(4), 20–46. https://doi.org/10.33009/fsop_jpss134793
22.
MalloyE.KavussanuM. (2021). A comparison of authentic and transformational leadership in sport. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 51(7), 636–646.https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12769
National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Digest of education statistics. U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov
25.
NorthouseP. G. (2022). Leadership: Theory and practice (9th ed.). Sage.
26.
PounderJ. S. (2014). Quality teaching through transformational classroom leadership. Quality Assurance in Education, 22(3), 273–285. https://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-12-2013-0048
27.
RegoA.SousaF.MarquesC.CunhaM. P. (2012). Authentic leadership promoting employees’ psychological capital and creativity. Journal of Business Research, 65(3), 429–437. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.10.003
28.
SnijdersI.WijniaL.DekkerH. J. J.RikersR. M.LoyensS. M. (2021). What is in a student-faculty relationship? A template analysis of students’ positive and negative critical incidents with faculty and staff in higher education. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 37, 1115–1139. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-021-00549-x
29.
StrayhornT. L. (2018). College students’ sense of belonging: A key to educational success for all students (2nd ed.). Routledge.
30.
TintoV. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition (2nd ed.). University of Chicago Press.
31.
TrolianT. L.JachE. A. (2025). Student–faculty interactions and academic outcomes: Differences by college major. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 62(3), 227–241. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2025.2484801
32.
TrolianT. L.JachE. A.HansonJ. M.PascarellaE. T. (2016). Influencing academic motivation: The effects of student–faculty interaction. Journal of College Student Development, 57(7), 810–826. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2016.0080
33.
TrolianT. L.ParkerE. T. (2020). Shaping college students’ civic attitudes through faculty teaching practices and student-faculty interactions. Journal of College and Character, 21(2), 86–103. https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2020.1741393
34.
University Professional and Continuing Education Association. (2021). The UPCEA/StraighterLine study on college student persistence. https://upcea.edu
35.
WalumbwaF. O.AvolioB. J.GardnerW. L.WernsingT. S.PetersonS. J. (2008). Authentic leadership: Development and validation of a theory-based measure. Journal of Management, 34(1), 89–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206307308913
36.
WilburT. G.RoscignoV. J. (2016). First-generation disadvantage and college enrollment/completion. Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World, 2, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1177/2378023116664351
37.
York-BarrJ.DukeK. (2004). What do we know about teacher leadership? Findings from two decades of scholarship. Review of Educational Research, 74(3), 255–316. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543074003255
