Digital Commons Network^™

Abu Muhammad Al-Adnani’S May 21, 2016 Speech: More Evidence For Extreme Marginalization, Implosion, And The Islamic State Organization’S Certain Future As A Hunted Underground Ultra-Takfiri Terrorist Criminal Entity, Paul Kamolnick

Paul Kamolnick

Excerpt: On May 21, 2016 a 31-minute audio file by Islamic State Organization (ISO) chief spokesman Abu Muhammad al-Adnani (real name: Taha Sobhi Falaha) was uploaded by the ISO’s Al Furqan Media outlet onto the internet.

Investigation Of Crashes And Identifying The Best Practices For Setting Up Speed Zones In Towns Along Rural Highways In Nevada, Krishna Shrestha

Joseph Shrestha

To determine the factors associated with crashes To determine the factors that affect a speed limit To identify the best practices used by other state DOTs when setting upspeed zones in towns along their rural highways To provide recommendations for preparing speed-zone guideline in townsalong the rural highways in Nevada

Limits On State Regulation Of Religious Organizations: Where We Are And Where We Are Going, Lloyd Hitashi Mayer

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer

The breadth of activities and organizational forms among religious organizations rivals that of nonprofits generally, and religious organizations are vulnerable to the same types of problems that justify state regulation and oversight of nonprofits. Such problems include excessive compensation, improper benefits for board members and other insiders, misleading or fraudulent fundraising, employment discrimination, unsafe working conditions, consumer fraud, improper debt collection, and many others. Religious organizations are different, however, in that under federal and state law they enjoy unique protections from state regulation. This paper describes how such federal and state protections limit state regulation of religious organizations under current …

Book Review: Encyclopedia Of Peace Education, Monisha Bajaj, Hakim Mohandas Amani Williams

Monisha Bajaj

Peace education itself is a contested term; its conceptions, and thus its manifestations, are quite varied. This is why this succinct volume proves to be so timely; it aims to "provide greater nuance to debates around peace education" (p. 2). Despite its daunting title, this volume is not presented as an authoritative stranglehold, but rather, as a way of historicizing the field of peace education, highlighting major conceptual threads and identifying the exciting prospects for the future of the field. [excerpt]

Physical Screening And Testing: From Purpose To Research To Application, Rob Orr

Rob Marc Orr

Session Objectives:

•Discuss the purposes of different physical assessments

•Designing measures useful for assessing tactical personnel

•Applying assessments in the field

The Impact Of Body Armor On Physical Performance Of Law Enforcement Personnel: A Systematic Review, Colin Tomes, Rob Marc Orr, Rodney Pope

Rob Marc Orr

BACKGROUND: The law enforcement officer profession requires performance of arduous occupational tasks while carrying an external load, consisting of, at minimum, a chest rig, a communication system, weaponry, handcuffs, personal protective equipment and a torch. The aim of this systematic review of the literature was to identify and critically appraise the methodological quality of published studies that have investigated the impacts of body armour on task performance and to synthesize and report key findings from these studies to inform law enforcement organizations. METHODS: Several literature databases (Medline, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, EMBAS) were searched using key search words and terms to identify …

Musculoskeletal Fitness As A Predictor Of Injury During Police Academy Training: A Retrospective Cohort Study, Rob Orr, Matthew Stewart, Rodney P. Pope, Michael Stierli, Ben Hinton

Rob Marc Orr

Introduction:

• Tactical training institutions (like those for military, law enforcement and firefighting) often implement intensive training regimes to adequately prepare their candidates (Bullock et al. 2010)

• Recruit training physical fitness assessment items are performed to determine baseline fitness of each recruit

• Previous research has investigated fitness measures as a positive injury predictor among tactical recruits during basic training (Bedno et al., 2013; Knapik et al., 2001; O’connor et al., 2011; Rosendal, et al., 2003)

• However protocols generally include aerobic fitness as part of the process with predominantly military recruit populations (Lisman, et al. 2013: Knapik et …

A Physical Fitness Profile Of State Highway Patrol Officers By Gender And Age, James Jay Dawes, Rob Orr, Richard Flores, Robert G. Lockie, Charles Kornhauser, Ryan Holmes

Rob Marc Orr

Background: Law enforcement officers perform physically demanding tasks that generally remain constant as they age. However, there is limited population-specific research on age, gender and normative fitness values for law enforcement officers as opposed to those of the general population. The purpose of this study was to profile the current level of fitness for highway patrol officers based on age and gender and provide percentile ranking charts unique to this population. Methods: Retrospective data for six-hundred and thirty-one state troopers (♂ = 597; mean age = 39.52 ± 8.09 yrs; mean height = 180.72 ± 7.06 cm; mean weight = …

A Detailed Analysis Of Serious Personal Injuries Suffered By Full Time And Part Time Soldiers, Rodney P. Pope, Adam Norman, Ben Schram, Rob M. Orr

Rob Marc Orr

No abstract provided.

Environmental Advocacy: Insights From East Asia, Mary Alice Haddad

Mary Alice Haddad

Is U.S. Public Sector Labor Relations In The Midst Of A Transformation?, Harry C. Katz

Harry C Katz

In this article the author assesses whether a fundamental transformation is underway in public sector (state and local government) labor relations in the United States by revisiting the arguments made by the author and Kochan and McKersie (1986) regarding the transformation of labor relations in the private sector. The author argues that the economic pressures that led to a transformation of private sector labor relations starting in the 1980s have not played a comparable role in recent developments in the public sector because of the political nature of labor relations in that sector. Other insights are drawn from a comparison …

Tackling The Urban Informal Economy: Some Lessons From A Study Of Europe’S Urban Population, Colin C. Williams, Ioana Horodnic

Colin C Williams

Immigration And The Public Policy Survey, Greg Hill, Andy Bourne

Gregory C. Hill

Evidence suggests that public opinion has a significant and measurable impact on legislative, executive, and citizen interaction. The state of Idaho is no exception. In this white paper, we examine a sample of the opinions of Idahoans, as expressed in the Public Policy Survey, on the subject of immigration. In the 18th and 19th Annual Idaho Public Policy Surveys, the survey sample was asked to respond to a number of questions concerning immigration in Idaho. Questions on the survey ranged from economic impacts to the quality of education to indigent medical care. Of the many benefits that the data offers, …

Bringing Together Policymakers, Researchers, And Practitioners To Discuss Job Loss, Kristin F. Butcher, Kevin F. Hallock

Kevin F Hallock

[Excerpt] On November 18–19, 2004, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and the Joyce Foundation cosponsored a conference at the Chicago Fed, “Job Loss: Causes, Consequences, and Policy Responses,” to bring together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to discuss job loss from the perspective of both firms and workers. The first day focused on new research findings, with discussion and comment from participants with backgrounds in policy, practice, and research. The second day featured an address by Michael Moskow, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and panel discussions on layoff procedures from the point of view of firms and …

Ppol-G 746 Geographic Information Systems For Public Policy, Michael P. Johnson Jr.

Michael P. Johnson

Course Syllabus: Ppol-G 630 Research Methods I, Michael P. Johnson Jr.

Michael P. Johnson

Super Roundtable, “From Data To Decisions At Your Nonprofit”: Event Description And Assessment, Michael P. Johnson Jr.

Michael P. Johnson

Preparing Personnel For Safe And Effective Operation In Harsh And Volatile Environments, Rodney Pope, Rob Marc Orr, Matt Brearley, Richard Gorey, Shane Irving

Rodney P Pope

Overview:

• Psychological preparation –Scott Gayton

• Injury risks & impacts –Rod Pope

• Security & protection of teams –Shane Irving

• Hot & humid conditions –Matt Brearley

• Preparing for field operations –Richard Gorey

• Load carriage –Rob Orr

• Wrap-Up & Panel Q & A –Rod Pope

Preparing Personnel For Safe And Effective Operation In Harsh And Volatile Environments, Rodney Pope, Rob Marc Orr, Matt Brearley, Richard Gorey, Shane Irving

Rob Marc Orr

Overview:

• Psychological preparation –Scott Gayton

• Injury risks & impacts –Rod Pope

• Security & protection of teams –Shane Irving

• Hot & humid conditions –Matt Brearley

• Preparing for field operations –Richard Gorey

• Load carriage –Rob Orr

• Wrap-Up & Panel Q & A –Rod Pope

Incidence Rates For Work Health And Safety Incidents And Injuries In Australian Army Reserve Vs Full Time Soldiers, And A Comparison Of Reporting Systems, Rodney Pope, Rob Orr

Rob Marc Orr

Objective:

To determine incidence rates of reported work health and safety (WHS) incidents and injuries in Army Reserve (ARES) and Australian Regular Army (ARA) personnel and assess the relative performance of the WHS incident reporting system, compared to ‘point-of-care’ systems.

Methods:

WHS incident data for a 24-month period were extracted from a military database. Reported WHS incident and injury rates for both populations were calculated and compared. The WHS injury rates were compared with previously published injury incidence rates based on ‘point-of-care’ incident reporting in Army populations to ascertain relative performance of WHS and ‘point-of-care’ systems.

Results:

In both populations …

The Promise Of Spirituality In Mediation: The Significance Of Spiritual-Based And Faith-Based Approaches In Mediation, Debra Jones, Alexia Georgakopoulos

Alexia Georgakopoulos

This article advocates greater exploration and incorporation of spirituality or religion in the mediation process. As religious or spiritual values constitute an element of one’s culture, which inevitably forms a lens through which one interprets the world, the authors suggest a greater acceptance of exploring and acknowledging the power of addressing one’s own religious or spiritual makeup. The authors present an agenda for mediation research and practice for the twenty-first century and consider several examples to encourage model development. In particular, the following discussion presents potentially valuable elements for an alternative approach to mediation which incorporates either religion or spirituality.

Facilitating Collaboration Among Health Care Professionals, Robin Cooper

Robin Cooper

This paper explores how principles and practices of mediation and facilitation can be applied to facilitate collaboration among health care professionals. Certain techniques of mediation and facilitation are uniquely suited to address issues of values, roles, communication, and teamwork—four core competency domains of interprofessional collaborative practice—within the organizational context in order to transform workplace conflict into constructive collaboration. This paper discusses how one might draw upon those mediation and facilitation skills and techniques in order to address profession-centrism, professional prejudice, and us vs. them thinking, which hinder interprofessional collaboration. Those trained in the theories and practices associated with conflict analysis …

Social Cartography As A Tool For Conflict Analysis And Resolution: The Experience Of The Afro-Colombian Communities Of Robles, Elena P. Bastidas, Carlos A. Gonzales

Elena Bastidas

The field of conflict resolution is in constant evolution. Every day, theories are defined and redefined, and new contributions are made to the field. This continuous process challenges scholars, researchers, and practitioners to develop new conceptual and methodological frameworks for the analysis of conflict. This article highlights the potential of social cartography (participatory mapping) as a tool for the transformation of environmental and social conflicts at the household, community, national, and international levels. The advantages of social cartography as an appraisal, planning, and analytical tool for conflict transformation are illustrated here with a case study of the Afro-Colombian community of …

Restorative Classrooms: Critical Peace Education In A Juvenile Detention Home, Cheryl Duckworth

Cheryl Duckworth

This article describes several of the more successful critical peace education methodologies and perspectives that I was able to bring to my classroom in a juvenile detention home. For example, reflective writing and community analysis of nonviolent peace movements formed the core of my curriculum, as did critical analysis of the social processes of stereotyping and dehumanization. As a result, numerous students grew in their ability to write, express empathy with others, identify bias and articulate critical analysis of their schools, among other political systems. This analysis will contribute to the growing body of work on the practice of critical …

History, Memory And Peace Education, Cheryl Lynn Duckworth

Cheryl Duckworth

One of the most important skills a student of peace studies can gain is the ability to deconstruct dominant, hegemonic and often structurally violent socio-political narratives. After all, these are the narratives which often lead us to war. Yet when compared to other aspects of a typical peace studies curriculum, this key skill, so essential to exercising power and participation in one’s society, is comparatively underemphasized (see Beckerman 2007 or Malott and Porfilio 2011). Henry Giroux calls on educators to facilitate the difficult and often painful task of helping society remember—specifically to remember episodes of cruelty or violence in which …

The Relationship Between Quality Improvement And Health Information Technology Use In Local Health Departments, Kendra Johnson, Kim K. Nguyen, Shimin Zheng, Robin P. Pendley

Shimin Zheng

This research examined if there is a relationship between engagement in quality improvement (QI) and health information technology (HIT) for local health departments (LHDs) controlling for workforce, finance, population, and governance structure. This was a cross-sectional study that analyzed data obtained from the Core questions and Module 1 in the NACCHO 2010 Profile of LHDs. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and logistic regression analyses were conducted. Findings suggest that LHD engagement in QI has a relationship with utilization of HIT including electronic health records, practice management systems, and electronic syndromic surveillance systems. This study provides baseline information about the HIT use …

Differences In Initial Fitness Scores Between Highway Patrol Cadets Who Successfully Complete Or Fail To Complete A 27-Week Training Academy, James Jay Dawes, Rob Orr, Charles Kornhauser, Kym Holmes, Ryan Holmes, Rodney Pope

Rob Marc Orr

Research suggests that law enforcement is primarily a sedentary occupation. However, officers may have to respond rapidly to unpredictable situations and this can dramatically increase their physiological loads. The aim of this study was to investigate the physiological demands placed on Australian state police officers carrying out operational tasks.

A Profile Of Injuries Sustained By Law Enforcement Officers: A Critical Review, Kate Lyons, Cameron Radburn, Robin Orr, Rodney Pope

Rob Marc Orr

Due to the unpredictable, varied and often physical nature of law enforcement duties, police officers are at a high risk of work-related physical injury. The aim of this critical narrative review was to identify and synthesize key findings of studies that have investigated musculoskeletal injuries sustained by law enforcement officers during occupational tasks. A systematic search of four databases using key search terms was conducted to identify potentially relevant studies, which were assessed against key inclusion and exclusion criteria to determine studies to be included in the review. Included studies were critically appraised and the level of evidence determined. Relevant …

I Share, Therefore It's Mine, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

Review Of Years 9 To 12 Tasmania : Final Report, Geoff N. Masters, Kathryn Moyle, Sheldon Rothman, Hilary Hollingsworth, Bill Perrett, Paul R. Weldon, Kate Perkins, Justin Brown, Ali Radloff, Patricia Freeman, Sofi Damianidis

Ali Radloff

The Tasmanian Government is currently implementing significant reforms to improve students’ retention and attainment in Tasmania’s schools. There is a concern in the Tasmanian community however, that their students’ performances are among the lowest in the nation. Reasons nominated for these results include weak literacy and numeracy levels; low attendance rates; high anxiety around transitions between Year 10 and Year 11 by some students, especially among those living outside of the larger cities; students seeking alternative education options; and family, financial, health and carer based issues. It is against this backdrop that the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) was …