The College of Education

Announces the Final Examination of

Trevor Thompson

for the degree of

Doctor of Education

March 30, 2016 at 3:30 pm

123 Ball Hall, University of Memphis

Memphis, TN

Biographical Sketch

Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, Xavier University of Louisiana

Masters of Arts, History, University of Mississippi

Advisory Committee

Dr. Reginald Green, Professor, Department of Leadership, Committee chair

Dr. Ronnie Davis, Assistant Professor, Department of Leadership

Dr. Charisse Gulosino, Assistant Professor, Department of Leadership

Dr. Ruth Williams, Associate Professor, School of Health Studies

Major Field of Study

Leadership and Policy Studies

Period of Preparation: 2007 – 2016

Comprehensive Examination Passed: February 2012

A STUDY OF PARENT INVOLVEMENT REGARDING CHILDREN LIVING WITH SICKLE CELL DISEASE AND THEIR PARENTS PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR CHILDREN’S 504/INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PLAN

ABSTRACT

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) affects approximately 30,000 students in the United States and due to stroke, silent cerebral infarction, and cognitive impairment, these students suffer academically. This study examined parents’ perceptions of how their children fared in the education system. Nine parents of children with SCD were interviewed and the following themes emerged: the Star Coordinator from the hospital was key to their child’s academic success, seven of nine children had cognitive issues, All nine parents said their child was allowed to go to rest room, keep water/snacks in class, all nine were advocates for their child and all nine parents said education was the key to success. All nine parents indicated that their children fall behind academically when they are absent from school because of having a sickle cell crisis. The three primary sources of evidence for this study were semi-structured interviews, image elicitation, and document analysis; these were analyzed through the development of individual responses for each participant, which resulted in a cross-case analysis narrative depicting the study’s findings.