Date of Award

2026

Degree Name

Leadership Studies

College

College of Education and Professional Development

Type of Degree

Ed.D.

Document Type

Dissertation

First Advisor

Dr. Tisha Duncan

Second Advisor

Dr. Eugenia Lambert

Third Advisor

Dr. Susan Gamble

Abstract

West Virginia University Extension (WVUE) county faculty members faced organizational change as the institution carried out its “academic transformation” (West Virginia University Office of the Provost, 2025). The unit faced a 20% reduction in county faculty from 2014-26, and a merger with the Davis College of Agriculture and Center for Civic Engagement in 2024 consolidated state-level administrative and support positions. Furthermore, county offices are reliant on local funds to provide local support positions and an operating budget, which is not consistent throughout the state (W. Va. Code § 19-8-1, 1990). An increase in job responsibilities with fewer resources and support available may place a population already prone to high rates of burnout at an increased risk of job dissatisfaction, jeopardizing Extension’s ability to meet its mission (Ensle, 2005; Feldhues & Tanner, 2017; Hwang, 2023; Russell & Liggans, 2020). This descriptive correlational study provided a job satisfaction profile of county-based WVUE faculty members using the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) Short-Form (University of Minnesota Department of Psychology, 2022) and found participants (n = 51) were more intrinsically than extrinsically satisfied. Analysis found no significant relationship between satisfaction levels and the amount of funding, or the number of faculty or staff assigned to counties. Statistically significant relationships were found when comparing mean differences among demographic groups: participants who were untenured had higher general and extrinsic satisfaction than those who were tenured; participants that served in their position for five years or fewer had higher general, intrinsic, and extrinsic satisfaction than those who had served six or more years; participants with a single county assignment had higher extrinsic satisfaction than those who split counties; and participants in the 18-34 age range had higher general satisfaction than the 35-44 and 45-54 ranges and higher extrinsic satisfaction than the 35-44 range.

Subject(s)

Education.

Education, Higher.

Educational leadership.

University extension.

Community education.

College teachers.

Job satisfaction.

College teachers -- Attitudes.

Employee retention.

College teachers -- West Virginia.

West Virginia University.

West Virginia.

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