Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Hmong Parents' Perspectives On The Effectiveness Of Hmong Language And Culture Programs, Lia Vang

Doctorate in Education

In this dissertation, I examined Hmong parents' perspectives on the effectiveness of Hmong language and culture (HLC) programs in helping their children maintain the Hmong language and cultural practices. It was guided by three research questions that sought to uncover Hmong parents' experiences with heritage language shifts (HLS), their perceptions of their children's experiences, their perceived effectiveness of Hmong language and culture programs, and the roles they believe home and school play in the language and culture maintenance process. Drawing from a phenomenological research approach, narratives from semi-structured interviews with nine Hmong parents from two Hmong charter schools brought forward …

The Murder Of George Floyd: A Case Study Examining How The Policing Of Black Men And Grassroots Activism Influence The Will Of Black Women To Lead, Ella Gates-Mahmoud

Doctorate in Education

This study's objective investigates the viewpoints held by Black women in two urban areas of Minnesota about the social upheaval that followed the murder of George Floyd in 2020 for using a counterfeit $20 bill. In the last decade, police killings of innocent Black people in the United States have received more attention, and Floyd's death is only one example of this phenomenon. In the U.S., the likelihood of a police officer taking the life of a Black man is higher than that of a White man. Between 2013-2019 there have been 1,641 fatal shootings of defenseless Black men by …

Alleviating Oral Communication Anxieties In College French Classes: The Impact Of Professor-Student Connections, Claude Cassagne

Doctorate in Education

Oral communication anxiety (OCA) is a challenge for many college students studying a foreign language. This phenomenon has yielded many studies explaining OCA exists, relating it to personality traits and concluding educators play a large role in either reducing or aggravating such anxieties. However, research is lacking in the role professor-student rapport and connections play in affecting OCA. Thus, the purpose of this qualitative study was to seek student perception on (through their worldviews), and recommendations for, professor teaching practices as it relates to anxiety and rapport-building. The participants are and were students of French in an undergraduate private liberal …

Sound To Symbol: Teaching Music Literacy, Katherine Herzberg

Graduate Teacher Education

Music educators aim to teach music literacy, which is the ability to read music; however, resources for differentiating specifically in the field of music are difficult to find. This paper analyzed available research on creating meaningful ways to represent sound aside from traditional music notation and using this notation to differentiate instruction. Graphic notation, as opposed to standard notation, is therefore analyzed as a potential tool for differentiation both in terms of its benefits when created by teachers or textbook companies as well as when students create their individual graphic notation. Other issues addressed include a focus on aural preparation, …

Whitenoise, Micah Jenae Beukelman

CUP Undergraduate Research

whitenoise is a creative memoir that explores themes of abuse, mental illness, self-harm, and recovery. Through a selection of poetry and prose, the author documents her life from early childhood to adulthood, dissecting and spreading apart relationships and recurring dreams to find the bones that connect. This memoir illuminates the aftermath of abuse and trauma and the never-ending recovery process. The author utilizes poetry and prose alike to unearth buried memories in order to continue the path to healing.

Bridging The Gap: Self-Efficacy And The Desire To Continue In Music Education, Janet Levine

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This study sought to explore the problem of student retention in music, specifically between eighth and ninth grade. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there is a relationship between eighth-grade band students’ self-efficacy beliefs and their desire to participate in band. Bandura’s (1977) four sources of self-efficacy (mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, verbal/ social persuasions, and students’ physiological state) were the theoretical framework that guided this study. The participants in this study consisted of 68 eighth grade band students who had at least one year of band experience. This quantitative study used the Music Performance Self-Efficacy Scale, specially …

Literacy-Based Elementary Music Instruction And English Language Literacy Acquisition, Stefan Wolf

Graduate Teacher Education

It is often touted by music educators and proponents of music education in the public school system that music helps improve math and reading achievement and test scores. While this justification has undoubtedly saved some music programs, the purpose of this study is not to establish the usefulness of music education in improving other skills but rather to find parallels and overlaps between music literacy and English language acquisition and the pedagogy used to teach both and to determine what implications these relationships have for music literacy pedagogy for all. The author tentatively postulates that music literacy instruction has some …

Unapologetically Woman, Dominique Donald

CUP Undergraduate Research

I have been fascinated by the art of evolution within human nature. How people choose to grow as human and why they want to develop the way they do. Within Humanities I have studied the psychologist, the artist, the historian, the scientist, the theologian and have seen the evolution of humanness; it is the very transformation of the soul, the enlightened heart glowing with mutuality. The freedom of choice and liberty of life.

Understanding The Purges, Timothy George Grishkevich

CUP Undergraduate Research

How could Stalin reasonably justify within himself killing millions of people in a nation that he simultaneously wished to glorify? This is the basic question that will be explored in this thesis. What was Stalin’s reasoning, motivation, and purpose for sending so many to the Gulags? There has to be a better answer than “because he was bloodthirsty killer”. This was the basic motivation for the decision to explore this topic. How can a man that forcefully took the Soviet Union from a nation of poverty and peasants to nation that would be considered a world superpower for decades to …

The Golden Rush To The Golden State: An Analysis Of The Development Of California, 1845-1960, Garrett Broberg

CUP Undergraduate Research

With a population of 40 million and a gross domestic product of nearly 2.5 trillion dollars the state of California on its own accounts for one of the top 10 largest economies in the world as well as one of the most diverse populations. But California’s emergence on the world stage did not occur overnight. In January of 1848, a local carpenter named James Marshall found a nugget of gold in the south fork of the American River when constructing a lumber mill for John Sutter. As a result of the construction project, Marshall’s discovery would be referred to as …

I Told God My Plans . . . A Research Memoir On Shame Associated With Academic Failure, Liana Elspeth Parks

CUP Undergraduate Research

This thesis looks at the role of shame in academic failure in order to shed light on a mostly ignored topic. The author brings a new angle to shame research by considering past literature on shame and fear of failure (FoF) alongside their own experience of failure in Nursing school. Society believes that shame is a negative experience but researchers find that shame can help in growth and maturity if the person experiencing it is willing to talk about it (Brown, 2012). Combined with FoF, shame leads to a self-perpetuating spiral of failure and shame (McGregor and Elliot, 2005). The …

A Cynical Enterprise: Us-Iraq Relations, Oil, And The Struggle For The Persian Gulf, Alexander Alamovich Navruzov

CUP Undergraduate Research

For the better part of the Twentieth century, the Middle East, and more specifically the Persian Gulf, have been areas of key importance to the United States. As the United States became increasingly reliant on Middle Eastern oil, it became more attuned to events in the Persian Gulf, seeking to create a regional order conducive to US interests. First and foremost among those interests were cheap and easily accessible oil, and a security situation which would not impede the flow of oil to the West. In order to create this situation, the US has sought to exert its influence on …

Appreciating Every Generation: An Exploration Of Intergenerational Ministry And Its Effect On Faith Formation, Megan Zika

CUP Undergraduate Research

Imagine you are a child once again. You are sitting in a pew at church, and you hear the pastor say to the congregation, “Let us pray,” but you don’t know what to do. You look around and make eye contact with a little old lady across the aisle; she smiles, motions for you to fold your hands, close your eyes, and bow your head. You do as she indicates and participate in the congregational prayer in the best way you can. In this manner, we all learn from those who come before us.

Steel Monsters: Soviet Tank Development During The Second World War, Jeremy Paugh

CUP Undergraduate Research

This thesis aims to explore the far-reaching effects of armored warfare and tank development on the outcome of the Eastern Front of the Second World War, where Nazi Germany and the United Soviet Socialist Republics fought an existential war that would decide the destiny of Eastern Europe. As such, this thesis provides background information on the Nazi ideology that opened this theater of the Second World War before delving into German tank development, examining several vehicles that had a significant impact on armored development in general as well as within the theater when these vehicles raged across the steppes of …

Jim Jones: A Popular Figure Amongst Many, Deiner A. Tindall

CUP Undergraduate Research

Don’t drink the Kool-Aid! Ever heard this term? Where it’s a term that is based off the worst mass suicide ever to happen in the history of the world. Jim Jones a popular preacher in the 1950s to 1970s who taught about social justice. He was breaking ground in race relations, when it was still shady during that time period and he also introduced the idea of a “Utopian Society”.

Struggling with economic, physical and emotional circumstances in his early life, made him realize what his mission was for later in life. It was through these circumstances that led him …

City Of Roses: Sexual Exploitation In Portland, Oregon, Olivia Meyer

CUP Undergraduate Research

In 2009, the U.S. Department of Justice funded a report on child trafficking that revealed that Portland, Oregon is one of the national hubs for child sex trafficking. The goals of this thesis are to investigate the web of characteristics of larger Portland metropolitan area that have contributed to the high prevalence of sexual exploitation of women and children. This research is aimed to close the gap in our understanding of the extent and nature of Portland’s local sex trafficking trade. An exploration of Portland’s location and culture, especially its placement on the I-5 corridor, libertine sex culture, and the …

The Rise Of Mass Incarceration And The Private Prison Industry: 1970s-Present, Timothy Munoz

CUP Undergraduate Research

Over the past thirty years the prison population in the United States has rapidly increased to the point that the U.S. now has the largest prison population in the world. How did this happen? Through research, this thesis will argue that mass incarceration is a direct result of the war on drugs and tough on crime policies dating back to the 1970’s. These policies largely targeted the urban poor and minorities. With a rapid increase in the prison population during 1980’s, state governments began to look to the private sector for a more cost-effective alternative. Private prison companies started with …

I, Stephen, Stephen Kurtz Newhall

CUP Undergraduate Research

I, Stephen is a memoir of the author’s time at basic training for the United States Navy. The primary theme explored through this piece is death as a metaphor for change, with smaller themes of relationships, perception versus reality, freedom versus security, and courage. The journey begins with the author’s first experience with near-death as an infant, then moving into his time in basic training which depicts the struggles with daily routines, interactions with officers, and physical ailments, ultimately leading to the author’s departure and eventual attendance at Concordia University – Portland. Through the creative process of this memoir and …

A Phenomenological Study Of Elementary Students In Dance Classes, Karen C. Kuebler

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Dance is a language with a variety of structures communicating unique messages using the elements of dance and the products are lived experiences. Using the phenomenological theories of Husserl, the connections to dance of Sheets-Johnstone, and the cognitive studies of Piaget, the purpose of this study was to examine the reflective process as a participant, performer, and audience member within the elementary school dance class. The opinions and ideas of elementary students are not represented within current research and administrators do not consider the students’ voices when developing dance education programming. This phenomenological study describes the assimilation of the elements …

Effects Of Musical Theater Education On The Self-Esteem Of Middle School Students, Kimberly Kokx

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Musical theater combines two educational components; music and theater. These arts classes have demonstrated positive influences on student academic achievement and student self-esteem. Musical theater, however, has not been fully examined as a pathway to enhance student self-esteem. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of musical theater education on middle school student self-esteem. Using a qualitative case study, 11 students from a private Christian school in suburban Minnesota participated in a musical theater production to measure the effects of musical theater education on their self-esteem. Likert surveys, interviews, observations, records, and artifacts were collected to determine …

Savages, Randilee Sequeira Larson

CUP Undergraduate Research

Savages is a memoir chronicling my near-immediate expulsion from the Army upon arriving to Basic Training. The story begins with my discharge, made on the grounds that I was “psychologically unstable” and therefore couldn’t be trusted as a soldier. The diagnosis was based primarily on a sexual assault I went through several months before shipping. When I was given my in-processing packet on the first day, one of the questions asked “Have you ever been raped or sexually assaulted?” By opting for honesty and marking yes, I sealed my fate and lost my job in a single pen stoke. For …

Extinction Breeds Innovation: A History Of The Oregon Zoo, Anna Doty

CUP Undergraduate Research

This thesis is a study of the history of the Oregon Zoo, hereafter, Zoo, from the early 1800s to today. It places a particular emphasis on questions related to animal welfare and historical trends in human/animal relationships. Two research questions emerged in the study. First, how did this zoo go from a collection of living oddities to a standard to which other facilities are compared? And secondly, while the Zoo is exemplary, what challenges still linger regarding animal welfare? This thesis attempts to address these questions. It does so by exploring the general history of human/animal relationships. Then it delves …

Spirited Away, Ashley Aczon

CUP Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.

Endurance Running In The United States: A History Of The 20th And Early 21st Century, Luke Francis Ponnet

CUP Undergraduate Research

Endurance running is a unique niche of American culture, with its own components and history. It has significantly increased in participation over the last half century, which is what sparked my curiosity and interest. I investigate the history of endurance running through three chapters. In order for the reader to get acquainted with the sport and running community, I first focus on the history of three races. The first is the Boston Marathon due to its importance of being the first endurance running contest of the last century that continues to capture the minds and hearts of endurance runners. The …

Culturally Relevant Career Development Programs For Native American Youth, Annie N. Crippen

MA IDS Thesis Projects

Native American society today is plagued by a host of social and economic disparities, largely the result of historical trauma experienced by generations of the Native American population stemming from the European colonization of the Americas. This paper seeks to identify some of the key elements needed to create culturally relevant solutions to career development challenges facing Native youth by understanding the historical legacy of Native American people in the U.S. and how this history has shaped contemporary Native American society. After identifying historical lessons and contemporary challenges, potential culturally relevant solutions to the systemic cycle of poverty, unemployment, and …

Models Of Faith: The Role Of Faith-Based Organizations In International Development, Mara Hochberg-Miller

MA IDS Thesis Projects

Faith-based organizations make up a large percentage of organizations doing development work both domestically and internationally. Faith-based development organizations (FBDOs) can be successful because they have spiritual drive to work for the social good, and large religious organizations to support them. However, not all FBDOs practice good development, and in the past many of them have undertaken development projects that proved to be damaging and detrimental to the host communities. The purpose of this research is to explore how different FBDOs conceptualize and operationalize their faith while doing development work abroad. Through exploring different models of faith-based development and analyzing …

Traffickacts.Org: Turning Advocacy To Action To Combat Human Trafficking Through The Public, Sarah Gardner

MA IDS Thesis Projects

This paper discusses in depth one of the most controversial topics today in the field of development and social justice: human trafficking. Examining it from an activist perspective, this paper defines human trafficking, reviews the history of slavery as it relates to human trafficking, and examines current and emerging trends in combating this human rights violation. Various best practices are explored in the realm of anti-trafficking campaigns and programs. A primary focus of this paper is providing a model for combating trafficking through the engagement of the general public. Therefore social media advocacy is also defined and analyzed in the …

Man’S Participation With God: Origen Of Alexandria’S Exposition Of The “Image And Likeness Of God”, Ben Nickodemus

CUP Undergraduate Research

The nature of Christianity is found within Christ’s resurrection. In order to portray the depth and mystery of this resurrection, Eastern and Western Christianity has focused and focuses still on differing events. The Western Church emphasizes the enormous importance of the crucifixion of Christ in line with the central theme of “justification.” The Eastern Church tends to lift up “participation with God” as a central theme in the theology and life of the Christian. In the Eastern Church the key to understanding how man participates with God is found in the church’s developed anthropology. Of the statements that define the …