The Site
Site selection. In selecting a site, the researcher sought to select a typical small
college, defined using the classifications of the Carnegie Foundation for the
Advancement of Teaching. The site selected was an independent, private, co-educational,
four-year college located in the southeastern United States. It is classified as S4/HR:
Small four-year, highly residential, meaning “fall enrollment data show FTE enrollment
of 1,000–2,999 degree-seeking students at these bachelor’s degree granting institutions.
At least half of degree-seeking undergraduates live on campus and at least 80 percent
attend full time” (Carnegie Foundation, n.d.). The selection of this site was due to its
representativeness of the type of institution that the researcher wanted to study and
because, based on publicly available information, specifically the college’s web site, it
espoused a commitment to the ideas of collaborative learning. This institution is
identified in this study by a pseudonym assigned by the researcher: McFeely College.