Digital Commons Network^™

Interaction Between Climatic, Environmental, And Demographic Factors On Cholera Outbreaks In Kenya, James D. Stoltzfus, Jane Y. Carter, Muge Akpinar-Elci, Martin Matu, Victoria Kimotho, Mark J. Giganti, Daniel Langat, Omur C. Elsi

Community & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background:

Cholera remains an important public health concern in developing countries including Kenya where 11,769 cases and 274 deaths were reported in 2009 according to the World Health Organization (WHO). This ecological study investigates the impact of various climatic, environmental, and demographic variables on the spatial distribution of cholera cases in Kenya.

Methods:

District-level data was gathered from Kenya’s Division of Disease Surveillance and Response, the Meteorological Department, and the National Bureau of Statistics. The data included the entire population of Kenya from 1999 to 2009.

Results:

Multivariate analyses showed that districts had an increased risk of cholera outbreaks when …

The Access Gap: Poverty And Characteristics Of School Library Media Centers, Shana Pribesh, Karen Gavigan, Gail Dickinson

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Stephen Krashen believes that schools can counter the effects of poverty in at least one area: access to books. However, little research has been done to determine whether students living in poverty have access to school library services comparable to those attending schools with low concentrations of students living in poverty. We examined the school library access gap namely, the differences in school library characteristics (staffing, books added to collection, schedule, and number of days closed) in schools with various concentrations of students living in poverty. Alarmingly, we found that the students in most need—those attending schools with the highest …

Open And Accessible: The Relationship Between Closures And Circulation In School Library Media Centers, Gail Dickinson, Karen Gavigan, Shana Pribesh

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

A hallmark of school library media best practice is for the library media center to be open and accessible to patron use before, during, and after the school day and throughout the entire school year. Anecdotal evidence and informal discussion among school library media specialists indicate that library media facilities are sometimes used for activities unrelated to the mission of the school library media program in the school. These activities may close the library media center to regular patron use for all or part of the school day. This study surveyed school library media specialists in two states and examined …

Social Disorganization Theory: Examining The Mediating Effects Of Social Ties And Disorder On Crime, Matasha L. Harris

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Using study data collected for a larger research project entitled Project on Policing Neighborhoods in Indianapolis, Indiana, 1996, the relationship between social ties and disorder on neighborhood structural characteristics and crime rates was tested. Using two Structural Equation Models the mediating effects of social ties and disorder on neighborhood structural characteristics and crime received partial support from the analysis of Indianapolis data.

The results revealed that poverty and family disruption exerts a positive impact on crime rates. The results also revealed that neighborhoods with high levels of racial heterogeneity have a negative effect on social ties. As well, the study …