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Proposed Secondary Analysis of Protective Stewardship in the Multispace: Practical Wisdom and the Work of VA School Certifying Officials

Document Type

Paper

Publication Date

2026

Abstract

Pending Belmont University IRB approval, this proposed qualitative secondary analysis draws upon interview data originally collected for a doctoral dissertation examining the professional role and boundary-spanning experiences of VA School Certifying Officials (SCOs). Guided by theories of practical wisdom, protective stewardship, virtue formation, and boundary spanning, the study will analyze de-identified interview transcripts to explore how SCOs describe navigating the multispace, where federal regulations, institutional policies, technological systems, and student realities intersect. Specifically, the study will examine how participants' accounts reflect the enactment of practical wisdom through protective stewardship and in what ways these experiences may suggest opportunities for professional virtue formation. By exploring the ethical and relational dimensions of administrative work, this research contributes to conversations about character formation in higher education and the development of communities that support student flourishing. Findings will be exploratory and conceptual, offering insights into how professional practice may shape judgment, responsibility, and ethical engagement.

This project was an output for The Belmont Formation Scholars Cohort for Character Research and Writing, which received generous support funding from The Kern Family Foundation.

I gratefully acknowledge peer review feedback on this project, and I am accountable for writing of this product without generative AI and in alignment with the aspirations of Belmont's AI policy and the Psalm 8 AI Taskforce as of this date.

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