Wanted: students interested in deciphering the remains of a graduate student’s incinerated dissertation.
La Tefy Schoen, a 1984 LSU alumni, has a strong interest in elementary education. Working as an educational consultant for the state government, Schoen returned to LSU a few years later intending to help schools run and operate effectively.
Seven years and $10,000 later, Schoen’s dissertation was nearly finished.
Considered for “student paper of the year” by the American Sociological Association, Schoen was ready to graduate in May 2004 and employ her ideas in Louisiana’s educational system.
Then, her house burned down.
A grease fire in the kitchen drove Schoen and her four children from their house Jan. 6, devastating it beyond repair. The fire in Schoen’s kitchen spread to the microwave and quickly destroyed the rest of the house.
When Schoen returned to the house to survey the damage, she found the smoky, wet ruins of her dissertation.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Schoen said. “I’ve invested so much time and money into this dissertation, and I’m right at the very end.”
Schoen’s dissertation was soaked with wet ash and water from the water sprinklers, but some of the pages are still readable.
Schoen is reluctant to continue her research, since her family has endured such financial and emotional stress.
“I have a moral dilemma,” said Schoen. “Why should I spend more money on my dissertation when all my children’s Christmas presents and clothes were lost in the fire?”
Although Schoen has reservations about continuing her research, she believes the graduate degree will put her in a better position to help children in need.
Schoen hired high school students to help her collect the soiled data, but she would like to hire knowledgeable helpers who can analyze and separate the data. The University has granted Schoen a time extension. She now has until December, instead of the May deadline, to complete her dissertation for review.
Even with the benefit of extra time, Schoen remains optimistic that she will graduate in May. She believes hiring proficient students skilled in evaluating and categorizing data could be the answer to her lost cause.
“LSU students majoring in statistics could analyze and organize what remains of my data,” Schoen said. “Then I wouldn’t have to start at square one.”
For her dissertation, Schoen chose schools in Baton Rouge and paired them together using characteristics such as size of school, school grading policies and geographical location.
“I interviewed teachers, students and principals to determine why schools with similar characteristics did not perform on the same level,” Schoen said. “I am addressing these issues in my dissertation.”
With her graduate degree, Schoen hopes to be in a better position to help students work through obstacles holding them back in school.
A computer service business successfully extracted Schoen’s data files from the computer’s hard drive, but Statistical Analysis Software packages which process the data, along with all of the other program installation CDs, were destroyed by the fire.
A maintenance company attempted to dry, remove soot and deodorize the physical copies of the data that appeared recoverable.
Four chapters of Schoen’s dissertation already have been approved by the University, but a significant amount of the interviews, charts and other statistical data are either lost or badly damaged.
“I was hoping to publish a book, but now the data is incomplete,” Schoen said. “I may be able to accomplish my dream with help from students.”
Even if some data is salvaged, Schoen may have to conduct more research if parts of the dissertation lack sufficient references.