Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Pluralism In Regional Health Planning: An Analysis Of Public Engagement In Ontario’S Local Health Integration Networks, Paul Sandor

MPA Major Research Papers

This study identifies and explains variation in the choices of public engagement methods across Ontario’s Local Health Integration Networks, in order to inform the policy space these organizations operate in with respect to enabling citizen participation in regional health planning decisions. The websites of all 14 Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) were searched for three key documents that detail their past and future public engagement method choices. Drawing from the literature, a multi-metric qualitative scoring framework was designed to explore patterns of variation in public engagement method choices across each region. The findings demonstrate that there is minimal variation in …

The Applicability Of British Columbia's Regional Districts As A Model Of Regional Governance For Newfoundland And Labrador, Jennifer Crowe

MPA Major Research Papers

Adequate service delivery, equitable representation, and efficient financing have been at the forefront of local government issues in Newfoundland and Labrador since before confederation. Regional governance is a means to achieve more efficient service provision, better representation of rural interests, and a stronger financing model. This paper asks to what extent can the British Columbia Regional District model be applied to the Newfoundland and Labrador context. The paper first provides the reader with an understanding of the regional governance issues currently faced within Newfoundland and Labrador before delving into an analysis of the origins, history, and evolution of the Regional …

Waterright: An Examination Of Drinking Water, Tax Policy, And Water Affordability In Southwestern Ontario, Robert Sharon

MPA Major Research Papers

There is an extensive regulatory framework embodying the operational supply of drinking water in Ontario, including the need for all municipalities to provide a self-sustaining financial plan for their system. This has resulted in the price of water in Ontario significantly outpacing the Consumer Price Index and general property taxation rates. This cost increase is impacting Ontario residents, causing poorer residents to pay a larger percentage of their disposable income on water required for basic human needs.While provincial regulation is thorough from a quality assurance approach, it is silent on the matter of ensuring residential water affordability. Municipalities can improve …

The Rural Effect On School Closures And The Limitations Within The Provincial Policy Framework, Shannon Geraghty

MPA Major Research Papers

As costs rise, the Ministry of Education and school boards have cut costs by closing schools. The social fabric and economic growth of rural areas are negatively affected by school closures. On the basis of an examination of recent school closure processes in the Upper Canada District School Board in eastern Ontario, this paper recommends explicit incorporation of economic impacts in closure studies, reform to the distribution of provincial education funding, and greater public engagement.

Does The Province Have Enough Financial And Statistical Data Available To Execute A Needs-Based Grant Allocation To Target Municipal Infrastructure Investment Instead Of Utilizing An Application Process To Allocate Funds?, Brenda Garrett

MPA Major Research Papers

Municipalities across the Province are grappling with infrastructure deficits. Small, northern, and rural municipality’s tax assessment base limits its ability to garner sufficient revenue to support operations as well as renew and replace infrastructure. Federal and Provincial governments must step in and assist. As a result, the province introduced the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF) as a permanent program to fund critical infrastructure projects for core assets—roads, bridges, water and wastewater. This paper analyzes provincially mandated municipal Financial Information Returns (FIRs) in conjunction with OCIF statistics to assess whether the Province can efficiently and effectively re-distribute revenue using existing financial …

Measuring The Fiscal Impact Of At-Large Versus Ward-Based Political Representation In Ontario Municipalities, Alysha Faria

MPA Major Research Papers

This research report analyzes whether Ontario municipalities with ward-based electoral systems spend more per capita than those with at-large elections. American literature suggests that ward-based municipalities spend more because of log-rolling and politicians' greater responsiveness to neighbourhood electorates. The analysis considerd per-capita expenditures for all Ontario municipalities in the year 2011. Operating and capital expenditures were analyzed separately, as were lower-tier, single-tier, and upper-tier municipalities. Contrary to expectations, ward municipalities spend less per capita than at-large ones on average, however the difference between the two groups was not found to be statistically significant when controlling for municipality type, municipal population …

Factors Influencing Health Outcomes Across The Least, Average And Healthiest States In America, Somayeh Hooshmand

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

Although there is a growing literature that uses national and international data to investigate health outcomes and their link to the determinants of health, empirical studies on whether or not there is a causal relationship between health outcomes and the determinants of health, to our knowledge, has not been generally done previously. To fill this gap, the main focus of this dissertation is to empirically analyze the relationship existing between health determinants and health outcomes among the least healthy state (Mississippi), the middle ranked state (Virginia) and the healthiest state (Hawaii) as measured by American Health Ranking (AHR). This study …

Obesity Policy Stringency Over Time: A Four State Policy Design, Luisa M. Lucero

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

Over the past several decades obesity rates in the United States have increased exponentially, reaching epidemic proportions and placing heavy financial and health-related burdens on states. States could reduce their obesity-related spending by billions of dollars, however, if they reduced their obesity prevalence by five percent by 2030, which would reduce medical costs, loss of productivity, and loss of life. Despite the incentive to improve obesity rates, not all states are taking advantage of obesity-related policy as a means to combat obesity. Using a multiple case study design and policy design as the theoretical foundation, this study explores whether or …

Narrative In Police Communication: The Art Of Influence And Communication For The Modern Police Organization, Chelsea Fray

Theses and Dissertations

Violence in the City of Rockford, Illinois and surrounding cities has made the Rockford Police Department’s communication vitally important for shaping the future of the community. The primary objective of this project was to gain a greater understanding of how the local police department utilizes one particular communication channel: social media. While some research examining law enforcement’s use of social media exists, this study is unique as it specifically applies Fisher’s (1984) narrative paradigm and key concepts related to public relations functions including relationship building. The analysis revealed that the department does utilize some narrative concepts, but could certainly reevaluate …

Health Budget Tracking At Local Levels: A Training Manual For Uganda’S Youth Leaders And Advocates, Rehema Z. Namukose Ms.

Capstone Collection

Uganda’s decentralization policy was introduced in 1997 under the Local Government Act to transfer power from central government to local government levels. The main purpose was to promote participation of all citizens in decision making processes to enhance responsibility and accountable monitoring of services delivered to citizens at all levels. The policy “aimed to achieve efficiency and effectiveness” in services delivered and managed at lower levels (Kebba & Ntanda, 2005). But how were citizens at local levels going to participate in accountability processes? How would they monitor the quality of services delivered under this policy framework? In what ways were …

Preferences For Employment In The Government Workforce, Michael Christopher Moltz

Doctoral Dissertations

Why do people choose to work for government vs. private business? Addressing this question is necessary to address emerging concerns among public management scholars and practitioners alike about attracting, selecting, and retaining the most qualified people for government employment. The extant literature related to this topic is mostly concerned with attitudes of those who are already employed by government. Less attention is given to those who want to work for government (regardless of current employment circumstances). Furthermore, the literature, with few exceptions, only considers this topic within the context of single-nation studies. Relatively few studies examine the topic in a …

Umass Memorial Healthcare Information System Job Ladder, Matthew Simoncini, Vamsi Kavuru, Antariksh Nanda, Tahaseen Mahaboob Basha, Vikram Patil

School of Professional Studies

The capstone project report emphasizes the importance of a job ladder and the need of an hour to implement it at UMASS Memorial health care. The scope of this project is to create a well-established job ladder at UMASS with pre-defined standards on job levels related to Information Technology department that would facilitate in hiring, developing and promoting employees at various stages.

Human Services Management (Hsm) Certificate Program Expansion To Western Massachusetts Feasibility Study, Paul Campbell, Patrick Deschenes, Maria Pacheco, Bradley Paul, Elizabeth Vittum, Jing Zhang

School of Professional Studies

One of the most popular cost-savings programs that the Providers’ Council currently offers its members is a Certificate in Nonprofit Human Service Management (HSM) provided in partnership with Clark University and Suffolk University. As human services providers are struggling to hire and retain qualified staff, the need to provide professional development opportunities to help grow and expand a skilled health and human services workforce is a critical issue facing nonprofit organizations and communities in Massachusetts. This feasibility study examines the viability of Providers’ Council and Clark University expanding its HSM Certificate Program to organizations and staff located in western Massachusetts. …

An Examination Of The Emergency Water Supply Of Healthcare Facilities In Southeast Louisiana, Charles Canan

Theses and Dissertations from 2017

Water is a crucial commodity, especially in the aftermath of disaster events. Healthcare facilities, such as hospitals, require a water supply for both every day and emergency processes. As required by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), healthcare facilities must stock a sufficient amount of water for medical services following disaster events. The purpose of this research is to explore the capabilities of healthcare facilities regarding the water supply for emergency purposes. The study investigated the usage and preparedness trends of water supply in two hospitals in Southeast Louisiana. The hospitals selected for research allowed for …

Volunteer Management In Faith-Based Organizations, Cheryl Regina Coleman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) rely heavily on volunteers to carry out their mission, making volunteer labor fundamental to an organization’s business operations and outcomes. A review of the literature revealed a significant gap in managing volunteers effectively in a nonprofit, faith- based setting. The standard business management practices typically employed when managing volunteers lack effectiveness in nonprofit FBO environments. Employing for-profit management practices to managing volunteer labor in nonprofit settings is especially challenging given the uniqueness of nonprofit organizations that rely on volunteer over paid labor. Challenges include the organization’s values, mission, identity, social goals, outcomes, and ideological characteristics. The purpose …

Somali National University, Sharmarke Abdulla, Nikala Pieroni, Jenna Caskie, Sergii Odnodvorets, Tanyue Gong, Lahari Dasari

School of Professional Studies

The executive summary presents an overview of the principal conclusions and recommendations for Somali National University Faculty of Education (FoEd) regarding the following concerns: Difficulty with recruiting high quality prospects to the FoEd; Ineffective and counterintuitive use of social media as a tool to improve brand equity, as well as as a tool to attract and communicate with prospective and current students; Unbalanced gender ratio of current student body; Absence of student services and student supports; Low student retention rate; Limited resources for academic advising; This document is the result of a Clark University School of Professional Studies Capstone Project.

A Learning Framework For The Ywca Central Massachusetts, Dayna Ankermann, Manjushree Burdekar, Priyanka Joshi, Ying Song, Yumeng Chen, Xing Xie

School of Professional Studies

After meeting with the Director of Wellness and Health Equity at the YWCA Central Massachusetts (which will be referred to as the YWCA from here on out), we learned that as a non-profit gym and health center, it is heavily underfunded. The main focus of the project was to determine how to upkeep the facility while bringing in new customers with limited resources and budget. Due to the needs of the YWCA, our group focused on six aspects: revenue stream, donor retention, increasing membership, customer experience, social media marketing, and membership fee structure. After completing extensive research, we were able …

Governing The Urban Water Commons : Essays On Collaborative Policy Networks In A Polycentric Ecology Of Urban Water Policy Games., Emmanuel Frimpong Boamah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Governing social-ecological systems, such as the urban water commons, is a multi-scale and multi-sector (polycentric) human-environment process. This dissertation interrogates this process by situating itself within the Ecology of Games Framework by Norton Long (and updated by Mark Lubell) and the literature on polycentric governance by the Bloomington School of Political Economy. The dissertation’s three essays 1) offer both theoretical and methodological means to enact polycentric public economies within the ecology of games framework, and 2) explicate the conditions under which interoganizational collaboration is fostered within a polycentric ecology of policy games in governing the Middle Rio Grande urban watershed. …

Collective Impact: Working Together For Robust Community Emergency Preparedness, Cheryl H. Galloway

Master's Projects

This study identifies a shortfall of solid emergency preparedness between organizations and individuals in Gilroy, providing a gap analysis in disaster mitigation on the civilian side. This information is important for emergency managers and public safety officials to understand as they strive to develop plans and solutions to increase participation, effectiveness, planning, training and implementation at the Gilroy Unified School District and in the community at large. Using an evaluation of current efforts for review by the school board, city council, Chamber of Commerce and non-profits in the public safety sector, more expansive outreach through collaboration is the common goal. …

Under The Care Of The City Of Fremont: Employees Embrace A Healthier Lifestyle Through Worksite Wellness, Kelly Wright

Master's Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine: (1) if the City of Fremont has effectively implemented wellness activities that promote health and wellness for employees; and (2) what strategies can the City of Fremont use to encourage and increase employee participation in workplace sponsored health and wellness program activities.

Information Sharing, Transparency, And E-Governance Among County Government Offices In Southeastern Michigan, Lawrence Bosek

All NMU Master's Theses

The Internet has given rise to the availability of information at our fingertips. While the public, particularly consumers, are more commonly described as being the leading users and beneficiaries of electronic information services, businesses and governments are also players in the arena for sharing official information. Information can be easily stored on Internet websites for the public, businesses, and other governmental offices to search and peruse when needed. This study examined the ease of locating county governmental information, such as contact information for public officials and financial reports, and surveyed elected county officials for purposes of identifying how information is …

Ending Transitional Homelessness In San Jose, California: A Process Evaluation Of The City Of San Jose’S Plan To Convert A Hotel/Motel Into A Single Room Occupancy Living Unit For The Transitionally Homeless, Alyssa Garcia

Master's Projects

The City of San Jose has been working on the Hotel/Motel Supportive Housing Program and Underutilized City-Owned Property project since 2012. The City acquired the Plaza Hotel in downtown San Jose from the Successor Agency to the Redevelopment Authority and leased the property to Abode. Abode converted the rooms into SRO units for the transitionally homeless and occupancy is expected in July of 2017. The program is estimated to operate for five years before it is torn down. The project is unique, as the city has never had a hotel/motel conversion program tailored towards transitionally homeless adults.

A process evaluation …

Addressing The Ab 109 Population In Santa Cruz County: The Santa Cruz County Recidivism Study Of Post-Realignment Offenders (2011–2016), Shea Johnson

Master's Projects

The goal of this paper and the included “Santa Cruz County Recidivism Study of Post-Realignment Offenders (2011–2016)” is to provide a meaningful presentation of recidivism rates for Santa Cruz County and, in doing so, help Santa Cruz County agencies to better design recidivism reduction programs, highlight the problems every county faces in trying to conduct recidivism reduction studies, and provide a roadmap for what is and is not possible for policymakers who are increasingly demanding more refined data sets and streamlined data for budgeting.

A Comparative Study Of Local Municipalities’ Implementation And Compliance Of Construction Site Controls, As Required By The California Water Quality Control Board, San Francisco Bay Region, Municipal Regional Stormwater National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (Npdes) Permit, Maria Begiebing

Master's Projects

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has programs designed to protect the navigable waters of the United States from urban runoff pollution. One source of polluted runoff regulated by EPA is from construction sites. In support of this effort, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a regional National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit called the Municipal Regional Permit (MRP). The goal of the MRP is to provide consistent regulation of stormwater contaminants across multiple jurisdictions (CRWQCB, 2015).

This research project evaluated the construction inspection programs of fourteen cities located in California’s San Francisco Bay Area to determine …

The Kentucky Constitutional Conventions And The Federalism Of The Founding Fathers, Ashley Kay Taulbee

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Public Administration by Ashley Kay Taulbee on April 19, 2017.

Graffiti Abatement Program In The City Of East Palo Alto, Oscar Ortiz

Master's Projects

This research project will be of interest for community residents, local government, and non-profit organizations in the City of East Palo Alto. The three main objectives for this project are:

1. Strengthen or establish a relationship between community residents and officials in the City of East Palo Alto.
2. Provide data for local government officials that will help abate graffiti throughout the city.
3. Offer recommendations to improve neighborhood safety, sense of security, and appearance in East Palo Alto

The research question for this report is: How can community participation help abate graffiti in the City of East Palo Alto?

Social Media And Stakeholders' Relationship In Nonprofit Organizations, Wanzhu Shi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social media tools, as the advanced technology, have penetrated into nonprofit management field prevalently. Nonprofit organizations adopt social media tools, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest for attracting potential supporters, raising advocacy, and running fundraising campaigns. Social media tools break the limitation of time and space through the Internet. They change the way of how people communicate and interact with each other. The philanthropy industry hopes that social media tools could bring them the new opportunities to engage with their stakeholders, such as donors, volunteers, and customers. However, since this technology is still developing, the studies of using social …

Perceived Threats To Food Security And Possible Responses Following An Agro-Terrorist Attack, Lamesha Lashal Craft

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks exposed vulnerabilities to U.S. homeland security and defense, leading U.S. officials to analyze threats to domestic and international interests. Terrorist attacks against food and water supplies (agro-terrorism), were deemed a national security threat because of the assessed fear, economic instability, and social instability that could occur following a food shortage. Research indicated a comprehensive response plan does not exist across the federal, state, and local levels of government to mitigate the public's possible responses to a perceived threat to food security and food shortages following an agro-terrorist attack. This ethnographic case study analyzed the …

Delivery Of Usaid Aid To Afghanistan, 2001-2017, Abdullah Fayez Bataineh

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

DELIVERY OF USAID AID IN AFGHANISTAN, 2001-2017

by

ABDULLAH BATAINEH

May 2018

Advisor: Dr. Nadejda Marinova

Major: Department of Political Science

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Afghanistan is currently foreign aid dependent. The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has allocated over 100 billion US dollars since 2001 for the development and modernization of Afghanistan. The United States has invested over 700 billion US dollars overall. There is a breakdown or a problem in USAID funding for Afghanistan, whereas not all the money allocated was utilized for intended purposes. Today Afghanistan remains a LDC, a least developed country, with extensive …

Sustained Education Access For Homeless Youth: Case Study Of U.S. Transitional Living Programs, Heather Hall

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Without interventions to address homelessness among youth, the risk of homelessness for future generations is great. As a result, the federal government has invested in funding Transitional Living Programs (TLPs), though it is not clear whether these programs have achieved the intended outcomes of helping youth transition from homelessness to being able to sustain employment and avoid poverty through access to educational and workforce programs. Using the broad conceptualization of democratic governance as the foundation, the purpose of this case study was to assess whether access to educational programs through TLPs benefitted homeless youth in terms of program success. Data …