Digital Commons Network^™

Diffusion Of Policy Innovations: State Adoption Of Value-Added Models In K-12 Education, Kirsten England

Doctoral Dissertations

Schools chase test scores as a means of validating educational practices. Having imposed high-stakes testing, public schools were still not generating the student test scores under policies such as No Child Left Behind, the Department of Education thought would ensue. To hold accountability on the part of the classroom teacher, Race to the Top, and with it, merit pay was imposed by most states within the United States.

Using policy innovation and diffusion frameworks, this research looks at how over time states have come to adopt value-added policies for teacher evaluations. The research takes into consideration the sociopolitical systems that …

Analyzing Appropriate Policy Factors To Stimulate Zero Emission Vehicle (Zev) Population Growth In California To Achieve The State’S Overall Climate And Environmental Goals, Toks A. Omishakin

Doctoral Dissertations

The objective of this dissertation research is to assess critical policy factors that will need to be adjusted to stimulate significant increases in the adoption of Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) in California to support the state's aggressive climate and environmental goals. Currently, California in comparison to the other 49 states has the United States' worst Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) coming from its transportation sector. Also, within the state, transportation is ahead of all other economic sectors, including agriculture, electricity generation, and even industrial pollution in creating poor air quality. California in recent years has set aggressive targets to both decreases GHG’s …

Justice Involvement During Covid-19 And The Possibility Of Transitional Justice, Rachel A. Ponder

Doctoral Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced numerous unprecedented political, social, and economic challenges that resulted in unprecedented responses by policy makers. As result, existing inequalities and injustices rooted in a dense history of structural and institutional violence were uncovered and exacerbated. As of June 2021, at least 398,627 people in prison tested positive for COVID-19 and at least 2,715 had died (The Marshall Project 2021). In the United States, the inmate population is disproportionately made up of poor, people of color. This is a pattern that is rooted in the country’s long history of racism and white supremacy. This cycle continues as …

The Policy Feedback Loop: Exploring English Learner (El) Policy, Policy Implementation, And The Relationship Between Policy, Research, And Practice, Nathan D. Koerber

Doctoral Dissertations

This study will explore the EL policy implementation process and offer evaluative feedback by systematically reviewing the history of US federal educational language policy and its impact on schools and classrooms, as well as the role research, has played in the development of EL policy. Additionally, this study will explore how current language policy implementation impacts programming and practices in both the UK and the US through two separate case studies, as a means of providing evaluative feedback on the policies.

The purpose of this study is to elucidate the complicated history of EL policy and its impact, as well …

Framing The Crisis In The Merrimack Valley: The Opioid Epidemic, White Despair And Authoritarian Populism On The New England Borderlands, Gyuri Kepes

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines how discourses and ideologies about the opioid crisis were framed, produced and constructed in the geographic specificity of the Merrimack Valley in the period leading up to the 2016 presidential election. Applying the theoretical and methodological frameworks offered by the cultural studies tradition, this dissertation project attempts to map out the complex interplay between the news media, law enforcement, policymakers, and citizens in producing, circulating, amplifying, framing and sustaining public anxiety about the opioid crisis in the Merrimack Valley and beyond. Employing a mix of qualitative and quantitative forms of inquiry, including interpretation of data collected through …

Exploring The Feasibility Of Bioenergy Crop Production With A Multi-Analytical Approach: A Case Study From Kentucky, Sandhya Nepal

Doctoral Dissertations

Bioenergy crops can provide a reliable and adequate supply of biomass feedstocks to support the bioenergy industry. However, commercial scale production of bioenergy crops has not been established to meet the increasing energy demand for the bioenergy industry. Thus, there is a need to explore the full potential of bioenergy crop production to support energy generation. This dissertation examined the feasibility of bioenergy crop production in the southern United States with a case study from Kentucky. For the feasibility of bioenergy crop production, I (1) analyzed trade-offs among the major components of bioenergy crop production, (2) assessed landowners’ willingness to …

The Purpose And Value Of Agricultural Experiment Stations Today: A Perception Study Of The Directors Of State Agricultural Experiment Stations, Lori Wright

Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigates the dynamic relationship of the purpose and value of state agricultural experiment stations today as perceived by a sample of the directors of state agricultural experiment station in the United States funded by the Hatch Act of 1887. State agricultural experiment stations are a fundamental component of the land-grant university system; they are the original model and the first centers for applied research at most flagship state land-grant research universities in the United States (Kerr, 1987; Knoblauch, 1962). The purpose of state agricultural experiment stations has evolved since their inception as new agricultural issues have arisen, new …

The History Of Massachusetts Transfer And Articulation Policies In Contexts Of Evolving Higher Education System Structure, Coordination, And Policy Actors, Daniel De La Torre, Jr.

Doctoral Dissertations

Community colleges carry out dual missions providing occupational and collegiate preparation in local communities across the United States. These institutions prepare students for advanced study via transfer policies that lead to enrollment in baccalaureate institutions. State higher education systems use transfer and articulation policies to strengthen academic pathways between two-year and four-year institutions. These policies rely on established governance to facilitate student transfer between sectors. The transfer and articulation literature stresses the importance of statewide policy guidelines, yet little has been written about the process of transfer policy development involving state higher education governance and policy groups and actors. The …

"There's No Way A College Can Close": Student Experiences In A For-Profit Institution Closure, Jennifer M. Logsdon

Doctoral Dissertations

Higher education in the United States has always been considered a pathway for individuals to achieve professional, personal, and socio-economic success. For-profit colleges claim that the for-profit sector provides a service to a demographic of the population neglected by traditional institutions. Since the enactment of neoliberal policy increasing the for-profit sectors participation in federally funded programs, there have been concerns raised regarding the impact of this sector on the lives of the students it serves. Additionally, as for-profit institutions struggle to adhere to federal guidelines, a number of institutions have closed their doors, making it necessary for students to find …

Philanthropic Influence On Public Education: A Study Of High-Leverage Venture Philanthropy Through Educational Investments Of Local Education Foundations In Tennessee, Joshua Adam Lowe

Doctoral Dissertations

More than $500 billion of funding went to public education in 2005 to support educational programming and instruction. At the same time, some of the most prominent, nationally-organized private foundations have sought to influence education by using high-leverage venture philanthropy grants. However, little research has been done to assess whether more local foundations have been following the lead of these national foundations with regards to increasing investments through high-leverage venture philanthropy to education. Being closer to local educational policy makers, the local foundations have great potential influence on local education.The purpose of this study is to analyze the philanthropic investments …

Coupling Life Cycle Assessment And Socioeconomic Scenarios For Climate Change Adaptation Of The Energy-Water Nexus, Syeda Mariya Absar

Doctoral Dissertations

The interdependency of water and energy resources is known as energy-water-nexus (EWN). Water is necessary for energy production and energy is integral to water acquisition and distribution. The carbon emissions associated with both water and energy sectors drive climate change. Climate change in return poses increasing stress on the energy water nexus and makes tradeoffs between resources necessary and increasingly challenging, given the constraints and uncertainty around resources. This dissertation focuses on the tradeoffs between greenhouse gas mitigation and water conservation in the energy-water-nexus and how adaptation policy can influence these tradeoffs.To quantitatively understand these tradeoffs especially under future development …

The Cultural Construction Of Diverse Other(S): A Discourse Analysis Of Institutional Policy, Rachel E. Friedensen

Doctoral Dissertations

Institutions of higher education are tasked with grappling with their long histories of exclusion and inequality. As more members of historically marginalized groups gain access to higher education, colleges and universities strive to create more equitable environments within their walls and to produce equity-minded democratic citizens. These institutions turn to policy to help them achieve these ends. These policies often emphasize diversity—a multivalent concept that often simply means difference, but also serves as a stand-in for the policy performances produced by institutions as they attempt create equitable and just campuses. Diversity’s multivocality inspires the main question that this study answers: …

A Model For Sustaining New Technology Based On Government Incentives, Girish Upreti

Doctoral Dissertations

The diffusion of new technology that provides environmental benefits may require government incentives for a duration of time, especially when the technology is expensive. The Center of Systems Research and Education (CASRE) model is developed that analyzes the impact of incentives in sustaining new technologies to allow their social acceptance. The CASRE model includes both demand and supply variables associated with incentive policy to sustain new technology. The key to market dissemination and sustainability is the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) levels provided by the government. The level of ITC is based on the current cost to the customer and the …

Modeling The Economic And Environmental Performance Of Offshore Wind Energy, Alexana Cranmer

Doctoral Dissertations

Offshore wind is a growing source of energy globally. Like any energy technology, it has impacts on the environment. In the case of renewable energy, we need a way to consider the environmental benefits as well as the environmental costs. This dissertation develops a set of models to examine the economic and environmental costs and benefits and the trade-offs between them. We ask how much offshore wind energy should be sited, and where should that offshore wind energy be located? The first model estimates the economic impact of wake interactions between wind farms. Wind farm sites are chosen through a …

Managing The Agricultural Biotechnology Revolution: Responses To Transgenic Seeds In Developing Countries, Alper Yagci

Doctoral Dissertations

There has been heated debate over transgenic or genetically modified (GM) crops in agriculture. Advocates and critics argue over possible economic, environmental, public health implications of this technology. This study examines varying policy approaches to regulating GM crop cultivation in four developing countries where the technology has large potential application. Why have some countries banned GM crop cultivation in their territory while others encouraged it? In countries where GM crops were allowed, why have varying systems of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection been constructed? To investigate these questions I comparatively examine the policy experience (1995-2015) of Argentina, Brazil, Turkey relying …

Transformative Learning Facilitated Dialogue: As A Tool For Social Change An Autoethnography, Leslie A. Saulsberry

Doctoral Dissertations

It is my goal, through this autoethnography, to take you through a reflective journey and present to you my personal theory of how facilitated dialogue in the context of transformative learning, critical reflection, systems thinking, shared vision, and holarchy can create a paradigm shift in our personal consciousness, decisions, behaviors, practice, and social policies—social change. My objective is to show how each theory is like a stepping-stone in the path towards social change. The purpose of this living work is to offer an alternative way of creating a healthy and whole society by exploring how facilitated dialogue can lead to …

Smoking-Related Fires And The Impact Of The Fire Standard Compliant Legislation In The States, Christopher Adam Shults

Doctoral Dissertations

Smoking material fires are the leading cause of residential fire deaths and the third leading cause of residential fire injuries. Cigarettes are the primary source of ignition in smoking material fires. Several policies and regulations have attempted to mitigate the risks associated with smoking cigarettes. This study specifically examines the impact of the states’ fire standard compliant legislation as it relates to smokingrelated residential civilian fire deaths, civilian fire injuries, and fire incidents. To test the impact of the states’ FSC policy, panel data for all 50 states from 2005 through 2012 are analyzed using a feasible generalized least squares …

A Critical Examination Of Policy And Practice In The Transition Experience For Students With Math Learning Disabilities In Mumbai, India, Melinda S. Eichhorn

Doctoral Dissertations

Although some research has examined the experiences of students with learning disabilities in Indian secondary schools (see Karande, Sholarpurwala, & Kulkarni, 2011; Karande, Mahajan, & Kulkarni, 2009), the role of policy in students’ transition into post-secondary education has been largely unexamined. This study is a preliminary effort at providing an investigation of special education policy in Mumbai and the impact on students’ transition to post-secondary education, especially in regards to mathematics. This study extends the current knowledge of students with learning disabilities in Mumbai by 1) taking an in-depth look at students with math learning disabilities specifically, 2) focusing on …

Interpreting, Stephanie Jo Kent

Doctoral Dissertations

What do community interpreting for the Deaf in western societies, conference interpreting for the European Parliament, and language brokering in international management have in common? Academic research and professional training have historically emphasized the linguistic and cognitive challenges of interpreting, neglecting or ignoring the social aspects that structure communication. All forms of interpreting are inherently social; they involve relationships among at least three people and two languages. The contexts explored here, American Sign Language/English interpreting and spoken language interpreting within the European Parliament, show that simultaneous interpreting involves attitudes, norms and values about intercultural communication that overemphasize information and discount …

Computer Integration In Palestinian Secondary Schools: Theory And Practice, Kefah A. Barham

Doctoral Dissertations

The overarching exploratory question that guides this study is: “How can Palestinian secondary schools move forward and integrate computer technology effectively into education?” For the purpose of this study, computer technology integration is defined as the use of computing devices such as desktop computers, laptops, software applications and the Internet, and peripheral devices, such as printers, scanners, digital cameras, and overhead projectors for instructional purposes in Palestinian secondary schools in the cities of Ramallah & Al Bireh and Qalqilia & Azoon. The purpose of this study is to identify ways to help teachers working at the Palestinian Ministry of Education …

Implementing Health And Safety Policy Changes At The High School Level From A Leadership Perspective, Kelly D. Pagnotta

Doctoral Dissertations

Context: Every year high school athletes die or are injured while participating in sports. Several policies can be implemented by high school athletic associations (HSAA) to reduce the incidence of sudden death in sport. While these policies may not prevent incidences, they certainly reduce the risk associated with sport. There are consensus statements and recommendations made by professional organizations such as the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA), however nothing is mandated, allowing each state the freedom to create, implement and adapt policies, as they deem necessary. An example of a recommended policy is heat acclimatization for the reduction in …

Indigenous Women, The State, And Policy Change: Evidence From Bolivia, 1994-2012, Melissa Camille Buice

Doctoral Dissertations

In Bolivia, indigenous women have contributed to President Morales’ and MAS (Movement Toward Socialism) electoral victories and are exercising an emerging influence on the government’s decisions on policy. This contrasts with their experiences with failed policy efforts prior to the early 2000s, which presents an interesting puzzle for social movement theories. These theories argue that the language of repertoires and framing processes, resources of social movements, along with structural opportunities are important causes of social movement success. Research on social movement outcomes is needed to understand indigenous women’s changing relationship with society and the government. As indigenous women’s influence on …

A Transdisciplinary Analysis Of Sweetened Carbonated Soft-Drink Consumption And Related Policy Options, Charles R. Rhodes Ph.D.

Doctoral Dissertations

In Essay One, I estimate how demographic characteristics associate with habitual purchase of sweetened carbonated soft drinks (sCSDs), as different demographic groups respond to marketing variables controlled by the sCSD industry. My method and assumptions cleave neither to conventional economic analysis nor to medical and nutrition literature interested in sugar and soft-drink consumption. No assumption in my estimation process violates arguments in later essays. Results identify household purchase behaviors for relatively fine demographic groupings, are not linear in income or education level, and further vary by gender of the head of household and by type of sCSD industry …

The Relationship Between Breastfeeding And Postpartum Depressive Symptoms In Women From Ecuador, Mexico And Puerto Rico, Jan Weingrad Smith

Doctoral Dissertations

The Relationship Between Breastfeeding and Postpartum Depressive Symptoms in Women

from Ecuador, Mexico, and Puerto Rico

Jan Weingrad Smith, PhD

University of Connecticut, 2012

This study used a secondary data analysis to describe the relationship between breastfeeding and the development of postpartum depressive symptoms in a low-income cohort of women from Ecuador, Mexico, and Puerto Rico in the United States. It also explored the risk of developing postpartum depressive symptoms in low-income women from these communities regardless of their decision to breastfeed. Data were collected between 2006 and 2012 at a Federally Qualified Community Health Center Prenatal Center in New …

Peer Mediation In Massachusetts Public Middle & High Schools: Perceptions Of Educators, Eve I. Noss

Doctoral Dissertations

While many studies related to school violence and its prevention have focused on the perceptions of elementary students and counselors, there is a dearth of research studies that focus on the perceptions of administrators and teachers. This study examines Massachusetts public middle and high school principals, assistant principals, and teachers (n=135), from 30 schools, perceptions of their peer mediation program's impact on student conflicts. Comparisons between administrators and between levels of schools were conducted to provide a finer grain for the analysis.

Methodology: The method of data collection is a mixed, hybrid methodology of 41 quantitative (closed-end) and quasi-quantitative (open-ended) …

Grading And Reporting Purposes And Practices In Catholic Secondary Schools And Grades' Efficacy In Accurately Communicating Student Learning, Peter Imperial

Doctoral Dissertations

Few aspects of school are as controversial as the practice of grading, for grades affect students' educational opportunities. The purpose of this study was to identify the practices Catholic high-school teachers employed in determining students' grades. The study investigated the extent to which academic achievement comprised the grades teachers reported, and the extent to which teachers' practices are consistent with their expressed purposes for grading. The study also explored the extent to which Catholic teachers' grading practices are consistent with their schools' purpose for grading. Using random sampling, 486 Catholic secondary school teachers and 50 administrators from 33 high schools …

The Effects Of Female Cabinet Ministers On Female-Friendly Social Policy, Amy Atchison

Doctoral Dissertations

A growing literature indicates that the representation of women in legislatures is positively associated with the passage of female-friendly social policy. However, there is little corresponding research concerning the effect of women in cabinet on female-friendly social policy. Yet, almost all advanced industrial democracies are parliamentary democracies, where policies typically originate within the cabinet and governments typically enjoy substantial control over the legislative process. Thus, to the extent that women promote female-friendly policy, women in cabinet positions should be ideally placed to do so, and indeed, possibly be more influential than women in legislatures. The purpose of this study is …

Educator Perceptions Of Policies That May Impact Black Male High School Persistence, L Antonio Henley

Doctoral Dissertations

This study purposed to identify educators' perceptions about the academic state of Black males, explore the influence of policies on Black males' high school persistence, and examine differences in educator perceptions with regards to the impact of education policies on African American males. Findings indicate that educators believe that Black males are doing poorly academically and educators are concerned about the academic progress of Black males. Also, educators do not to believe that the majority of policies identified in this research have any significant impact on the high school persistence of Black males. Further, there are significant differences in educators' …

Teaching, Activism, And The Purposes Of Education: Toward An Integrated Vision Of Teachers' Work, Carina E. Self

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to consider the political dimensions of teachers' work through a conceptual comparison to the work of social activists. The author developed a four-part analysis of the work of activists through a reading of the social movement literature and compared that analysis to the work of teachers according to four contemporary approaches to teachers' work (neo-conservative, caring, contemporary liberal, and critical theory). The result was an integrated vision of teachers' work that brings together teachers' daily practices and their educational commitments around four dimensions of teachers work: social critique, identity formation/negotiation, affiliation, and institutional change. …