Digital Commons Network^™

Parental Involvement In Youth Sports, Kristin Leigh Greene

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this paper is to understanding the motivating factors pertaining to the involvement of youth in sport and how parents can assist in providing their children optimal sport experiences. The paper will begin by providing a background of youth sport involvement, and include the benefits and drawbacks of youth sport participation. To ensure that young athletes are positively motivated toward sport participation, it is important to understand their reasons for participation, as well as how others, such as parents, impact their motivation toward sport. This paper will address a number of motivational theories. Deci and Ryan's cognitive evaluation …

Department Of Family Services: Adoption Program Evaluation, Bonnie Abramson, Kristy Amasaki, Michael N. Johnson, James Padgett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Persons contemplating adoption in Clark County face many legal boundaries and lengthy delays. Since adoption is a creature of Clark County, the answers usually can be found in state statutes, agency regulations, and court opinions. Federal statutory and constitutional laws also play a huge part in such areas as adoption subsidies, adoption of children with special needs, and training of all adoption workers.

While the overall adoption program is similar in all states, the fine points frequently differ. This research outlines the legal foundation of adoption, describing the adoption legal process, and the workings of the Department of Family Services …

Evidence Of An Active Enso And Pdq During The Mid-Holocene From A Costa Rican Speleothem, April D. Azouz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Although the El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the most important source of inter-annual climate variability in the tropics, its Holocene history is poorly understood, particularly in Central America. A high resolution (-3.8 years/sample) paleoclimate record of Central American rainfall variability has been reconstructed from a U /Th-dated stalagmite (7890 to 6490 yrs B.P.) from Costa Rica to constrain the onset and variability of ENSO throughout the Holocene, and to determine its role in generating regional climate anomalies. I suggest drier conditions, forced by El Nino, are represented by higher 5180 values, and are correlative with higher 513C values, indicating that …

Clark County Outreach Assistance To The Chronically Homeless, Sandy Von Wolffradt, Kirk Medina, Tony Vibabul

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The COACH program was created through a Social Security Administration (SSA) grant provided to assist eligible chronically homeless individuals apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits. On April 1, 2004, the SSA released $6.6 million in "HOPE" awards to 34 organizations, including Clark County Social Services (CCSS) who received $450,000 over three years. Later in 2004, they released additional funding to include seven more organizations in the program. In total, the SSA has committed nearly $18 million to the program over three years. The purpose of the assistance is to improve the quality of life …

Clark County Parks And Recreation, Daniel Davis, Josh Martinez, Steven Schyman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As our primary assignment in PUA 791 (Topics in Administration), the following report has been prepared. It includes an examination of the current policies governing the programs offered by the Clark County Parks and Recreation Department as well as a comparison (benchmark) of two similar metropolitan areas. The following analysis was completed during the months of February thru July, 2006. It consisted of a series of interviews with Recreation Department managers from various agencies as well as information gathered from Management of Park and Recreation Text, 2005 and CAPRA (Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies).

Policy Analysis Of The Victim Offender Restitution Program, Veronica Damon, Marie Bostick, Lamont Mcgary

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Both the criminal justice and the juvenile justice systems have experienced increased strain due to criminal acts committed by juveniles. Many experts suggest that one way to ease the burden of the courts can be found in the theory of restorative justice. Most often the juvenile justice system is most concerned with the risk and needs of youthful offenders without significant consideration for the victims. A key component in the restorative justice theory is victim offender mediation which seeks to reduce the impact of crime on victims and the community. Clark County, Nevada has one such program, the Victim Offender …

Petrogenesis Of Pleistocene Basalts In The Norris-Mammoth Corridor, Yellowstone National Park, Kristeen Marie Bennett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The basalts of the Norris-Mammoth corridor within the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field have an outcrop erupted volume of ~94 km³. Basalt in the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field is minor in volume compared to 3,700 km³ of felsic lavas, domes, and pyroclastic rocks. The tholeiitic eruptive products formed small Hawaiian-style shield volcanoes. A newly identified volcanic vent, called the Panther Creek vent, within the Swan Lake Flat basalt stratigraphic unit, was primarily Strombolian in its eruption style. This vent is the first recognized cinder cone in Yellowstone National Park.

All basaltic units within the Norris-Mammoth corridor, and the …

Odonates At The Clark County Wetlands Nature Preserve: A Look At Habitat And Relative Abundance, Erin Jolley

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to identify the various species, relative abundance and habitat of dragonfly and damselfly larvae at the Clark County Wetlands Park Nature Preserve (WPNP). An accurate assessment of these insects can be useful in interpreting potential indications of environmental problems at the Wetlands. From this data, necessary improvements can be made to the dragonfly habitat as well as the habitat of other surrounding organisms. Habitat identification is considered especially important because it is "structured by instream and surrounding topographical features, and is a major determinant of aquatic community potential" (Southwood, 1977). For purposes of this …

The Contribution Of Environmental Variables On Small Mammal Species Richness And Relative Abundance In Eastern Nevada, Stephanie Harris

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to determine how four environmental variables: elevation, latitude, soil type, and vegetation impact the relative abundance of Peromyscus maniculatus and the species richness of small mammal populations in Eastern Nevada. In order to complete this study, a survey of small mammals was completed in the following 8 Eastern Nevada valleys: Delamar, Dry Lake, Dry Lake- Muleshoe,Cave, Lake, Snake, Spring, White River. In each valley, transects of Sherman live traps will be set up for 3 consecutive nights (O'Farrell et al 1977). Data on elevation, latitude, soil type, and vegetation were taken at each trap …

Anaerobic Digester Use In Dairy Farms In The United States, Shaun Elsasser

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Anaerobic digestion is a highly efficient process, trapping the methane gas from cow manure and processing it into energy. The steep initial capital costs make anaerobic digesters short-term liabilities, but the long-term benefits far outweigh the long-term costs. An anaerobic digester unit will begin to show a profit after approximately five years of operation. During the lifetime of the unit, estimated at 15 years, the digester will have produced about $ 1,000,000 in profits for the dairy farm, while also providing invaluable benefits to society as a whole.

The Fate And Transport Of Nitrogen (N) And The Effect Of Emergent Plants On Natural Treatment Of N-Species At Las Vegas Wash, Nevada, Tanju Kiriscioglu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of emergent plant communities at Las Vegas Wash (the System) using a system dynamics modeling approach. Understanding the dynamics of nitrogen (N —major polluting nutrient in the Wash) that enters the System is important because it occasionally causes algal blooms, choking Lake Mead through excessive eutrophication. Emergent plant communities are an integral part of wetland ecosystems and they play a crucial role in natural treatment of nutrients. This study is intended to test this hypothesis.

The study makes use of Wash data from reliable sources (Las Vegas Valley Water District, …

Population Trends Of Wintering Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) At The Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada, Deanna Morrell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to look at population trends of wintering bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada from 1991 to 2006. Bald eagles were counted on January 5, 2006 along the entire shoreline of Lake Mead and Lake Mohave. This study focused on two questions: (1) how has the population changed over time? (2) How has the proportion of juvenile eagles to adult eagles changed over time? Question one was supported with the number of bald eagles significantly increasing (r=0.76, p=0.002). Question two was supported as the proportion of juveniles to adults …

Hotel Restaurant Concept Selection Considerations: Which Factors To Take Into Account?, Michiel A. Bakker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Hotels fulfill a variety of roles in our society. For many travelers and vacationers, a hotel is a home away from home. A wide range of social and meeting activities are held in a hotel such as weddings, meetings, tradeshows, conventions and family reunions. Hotels provide employment for many and support the local community through the collection of taxes such as sales, payroll and hotel. Various facilities and services can be offered or housed in a hotel such as guestrooms, meeting rooms, spa and fitness facilities, restaurants, bars, casinos, parking facilities and business centers. Depending on the location and function …

Attendee Attentiveness: Perceptions Of The Impact Of Menu Selection, Elisa A. Hobbs

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Most professional meeting planners are meticulous in planning everything about a meeting. Unfortunately, selecting the correct choices of food is often overlooked. If planners are informed of the role food plays on attendees’ attention, energy and attitudes, they may come to realize that they are contributing not only to the well being of their attendees, but also to the impact of the meeting itself (Boisclair, 1997). As a meeting planner, it is important to serve attendees meals that produce high energy and attentiveness in order to ensure that attendees are alert and maintain the highest level of performance throughout the …

Teleconference Training Within Commercial Customer Service At Us Bank, Christy Snyder

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Research suggests that effective employee training methods are of key importance in the service industry today. The service industry uses customer service as a means of differentiating its product (Davis, 2005; Farrell, 2005; Feiertag, 2005; Furunes, 2005; Higley, 2004a; Jenkins, 1984; Simons, 2005; Walsh, 2004). “Friendliness and a willingness to serve others are the tools of the hotel trade, and training is the sharpener that refines the tools into hospitality machines” (Higley, 2004b). Training is integral in creating a positive environment for customers. If organizations want to ensure customers have this type of environment, employees must have both service and …

Embracing Uncertainty: The Passing Of A Legendary Casino/Hotel — Tropicana Resort And Casino, Bill Hiers

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Las Vegas is on the cutting-edge of today’s world, showcasing the newest and best of everything that can be offered at premium hotels. In this one isolated location of the United States, there have been dramatic changes to the philosophy of conducting business. In the past ten years Las Vegas has defined to the world that new innovations to hotel projects can be developed to achieve maximum profitability. Casino companies strive to build the next premier, exciting, state of the art, five star hotels. Change in the casino industry is always exciting with the prospect of a better way to …

Multi-Brand Hospitality Operations Branding Strategies, Rikki Tanenbaum

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this professional paper is to identify the optimal brand architecture for MGM MIRAGE’s Project CityCenter through synthesis of a review of branding strategies throughout the hospitality industry and a review of Project CityCenter’s goals. As Project CityCenter represents such a massive undertaking from both a financial and marketing perspective, a review of strategies external to MGM MIRAGE is critical; this paper endeavors to highlight branding strategies for potential adoption at Project CityCenter. The project’s significance is affirmed by Terri Lanni, Chairman and CEO of MGM MIRAGE, “Project CityCenter confirms a cultural and lifestyle revival of city living, …

Hotel Employee Morale During Periods Of Low Occupancy, Nicholas J. Thomas

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

According to the Monterey County Chamber of Commerce, each year an estimated 3 million tourists, who spend nearly $2 billion and create 36,600 jobs, visit the Monterey Peninsula in California (Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, 2000). Unfortunately, this area suffers from hospitality industry-wide low occupancy from late fall until early spring, mainly due to the cooler, rainy weather (Boerner, 2004). During these periods of low occupancy, I believe that there is a challenge in maintaining employee morale. The impetus of this research is my belief that there is a correlation between an increase or decrease in employee morale and the …

Strategic Sourcing For A Competitive Advantage In The Hotel Industry, Debbie J. Pattni

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In order to remain competitive in an intensely competitive business environment, many companies have resorted to cost-cutting, lay-offs, restructuring, and increased productivity measures to manage expenses and to increase profits. Senior executives in organizations have realized that on average, 50% or more of an organization’s operating budget is spent on purchased goods and services. Therefore, the decisions made by purchasing professionals can help to determine the financial viability of the organization (Ball, 2005). Firms can increase the so-called “bottom line” by either increasing revenues or by decreasing costs. Under economic conditions of strong competition and uncertainty, it is often difficult …

Traveling Waves In A Suspension Bridge System, Robert A. Ain

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this thesis, we study the traveling waves in a Lazer-McKenna suspension bridge system which is governed by two coupled nonlinear beam and wave equations. The Lazer-McKenna suspension bridge system describes the vertical deflections in the roadbed and supporting cable of a suspension bridge. Based on some basic analysis on the system, we are able to compute traveling waves numerically by using MAPLE. Multiple large-amplitude traveling waves are obtained. The graphs of various traveling waves are displayed and discussed.

Mercury Concentrations In The Muscles Of The North American Bullfrogs (Rana Catesbeiana), Jarrod Connell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Many studies have be done on mercury in the environment. The studies though have focused on sport fish and migratory waterfowl. North American Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) has been one species neglected from studies. One study has shown that bullfrogs due accumulate significant amounts of mercury (Gerstenberger S., and Pearson R. 2002). Though, no study has been done to find out if hind limbs have more concentrations that front limbs. Also to see if there is a difference between skin-off and skin-on, to find out if skin accumulates mercury. This study found that there was no significant difference between front and …

A Study Of Environmental Justice In Relation To Air Pollution And Income, Christian A. Malveaux

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this paper is come to a conclusion on whether or not air pollution and income levels are connected. There is an ongoing pollution problem in Las Vegas. The question that will be attempted to answer in this is paper is: Is there a difference in the amount of air pollution in affluent parts of the Las Vegas Valley and the less affluent parts of the valley? Information and data regarding air pollution is gathered from the Clark County website and other literature. Information on income levels is gathered from journals and literature pertinent to the subject and …