Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority Commons^™

Sharing Englishes & Social Media, Catalina F. Florescu, Chloe Richards

Student and Faculty Research Days

This year-long grant-funded project examined the intersection of culture and class with use of the English Language, and explored the concept of multiple Englishes rather than one, monolithic, "correct" version of the language.

The Dmz Responds, Seo-Young J. Chu

Publications and Research

Seo-Young Chu’s “The DMZ Responds” appeared in Telos 184 (Fall 2018), a special issue on Korea edited by Haerin Shin.

Systems Of Expression: Counter-Discourse In Online Intersex Communities, Jasmine Shirey

CMC Senior Theses

Individuals who do not fit neatly into the expected genetic and phenotypic XX/XY binary have been misrepresented, ignored, operated on without consent, denied legal rights, and gaslighted by multiple spheres of dominant society including, but not limited to: medicine, popular culture, and the justice system. Using Michael Foucault’s conception of 'counter-discourse' in conversation with the work of Gayatri Spivak, I ask how online intersex communities (OICs) have participated in counter-discourse by examining forums, blogs, comments, organization websites, memoirs and social media pages.

Major examples of phenomena OICs respond to, engage with, and critique include: surgery on intersex infants; the introduction …

'Behold The Dreamers' Raises Issues Of Class, Immigration, And Color, Elizabeth Toohey

Publications and Research

Behold the Dreamers follows the path of a Cameroonian family whose members, like many newcomers to America, harbor dreams of success unavailable to them back home. Undocumented immigration, the widening gulf between rich and poor, and the thinly veiled racism of an avowedly “post-racial” culture converge as major themes in this new generation of immigrants’ painful encounter with the American Dream. Yet Mbue’s novel is also a distinctly New York story, capturing the particular experiences of the city.

An Ivory Tower On The Outskirts Of Town: The Othered Intellectual In Joyce And Ellison, Will Simonson

Honors Theses

In this thesis, I examine a pairing of protagonists and texts, Stephen Dedalus of James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916) and the unnamed protagonist-narrator of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man (1953), to explore the ways in which these protagonists are Othered as a result of their unconventional intellectualism, and how that Othering impacts their progress towards self-actualization. Making use of writings by Jacques Lacan, Pierre Bourdieu, Edward Said, Hélène Cixous, Louis Althusser, and Richard Rorty, among others, I engage with theories of language, intellect, intellectualism, and the role of the intellectual, especially when he/she is …

Disarming “Nature” As A Weapon: A Queer Ecosemiotic Reimagining Of Futurity And Environmental Ethics Through Memoir, Sam Lauer

Master’s Theses

In this thesis, I posit that the need for an active, conscious, and radical queering of ecocriticism as a literary and cultural theory has arisen in light of the postmodern problematization of “nature” and the “natural,” along with the queerness of society, culture, and science. The way we understand “nature” (in life and in texts), whether of physical environments, inherent selfhood, or normalcy, begs to be appropriately informed by discourses and realities of queerness in order for both social and environmental healing to take place. I have analyzed three works of queer creative nonfiction—memoirs—to illuminate the ways in which the …

“Jailed On The Charge Of Sodomy”: A Same-Sex, Interracial Marriage In 1888, Adam Yeich

Nineteenth-Century Ohio Literature

Adam Yeich explains and presents an Ohio newspaper report of a same-sex, interracial marriage in 1888 in Arkansas. This article includes the full text of the newspaper report, an introduction explaining its significance, and a bibliography.

Douglass’ Reply To A. C. C. Thompson’S ‘Letter From Frederick Douglass,’ As Reprinted In The Anti-Slavery Bugle: A Critical Edition Of Both Letters, With A Summary Of Maryland’S Fugitive Slave Laws, Kayla Hardy-Butler

Nineteenth-Century Ohio Literature

Kayla Hardy-Butler presents a famous letter by Frederick Douglass, as it was published in Ohio, with the letter that prompted it. This edition also includes a summary of Maryland slave statutes from the time to better explain the day-to-day experience of slavery debated in this correspondence.

The Inevitability Of Decay: Disability In Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man And The Sea, Dominic Robin

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To many, Ernest Hemingway embodies a certain image of "masculinity," one centered around ability and physical performance. Such a narrative ignores the truly complicated and dynamic shape his understanding of the body took. Through an analysis of Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, I examine the form this ideology took in his later life, focusing particularly on Hemingway's evolved understanding of the body. Through this research, a more nuanced picture of Hemingway emerges, one that recognizes the complicated and dynamic nature his view of the "able" body took.

Pecan Grove Review Volume 19, St. Mary's University

Pecan Grove Review

Creative writings by students, faculty, and staff of the St. Mary's University community.

Tracing Writer/Reader Identity In, And In Response To, Queer Latinx Autohistoria-Teorìa, Corrina Wells

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This project examines how diverse representation changes the discourse around queer latinx identities. This project extends theories of representation that show how a text changes the imaginary of the reader through a two-part methodology. First, through explicating Spit & Passion and A Cup of Water Under My Bed, this project examines how these texts construct a readers’ imaginary. Then, through a corresponding qualitative assessment on readers’ responses to the texts, this project identifies the extent to which the texts change the beliefs and understandings of a small group of students. Articulating an ecology of identity using the texts under examination, …

Identifying Problems And Solutions In Changing State Legislation Regarding Licensed Clinical Social Workers Providing Private Independent Mental Health Services, Dianna Cooper-Bolinskey

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

State regulated social work practice began in the 1960s; by the mid-1990s, all of the states within the United States regulated the profession through licensure. The purpose of licensure was ostensibly to protect the public and the profession; however, legislation defining social work practice varied vastly from state to state. The variation existed not only between states, but also within licensure categories with regard to the scope of practice of the social work profession. Licensed clinical social workers in some states could practice relatively independently, as they had the ability to diagnose, provide psychotherapy, and bill Medicaid, Medicare, and third …

An Exploratory Study Of The Five-Factor Personality Traits Model As Predictors Among Women In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics Fields At Indiana State University, Sowmya Challa

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify any trends in personality traits of students at a mid-western university along with the influence of gender, choice of STEM or non-STEM academic major, and level of education on personality traits. The chosen mid-western university is Indiana State University (ISU) located in Terre Haute, Indiana. This study investigated the personality traits of student’s through administering Goldberg’s (1999) International Personality Item Pool of the Big Five Broad Domains of Personality. The personality profiles of students at ISU who have taken the questionnare are summarized. The personality profiles of female students were analyzed further …

Elementary School Inclusion For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Attitudes Of General Education Teachers, Sarah Wareham

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The emphasis on teaching all students in the general education setting requires school personnel to reimagine the delivery of service for students with disabilities, including those with autism spectrum disorder (autism). This delivery of service relies heavily on the general education teacher’s ability to meet the varying learning needs of his or her students. This study explored if the general education teacher’s attitude toward students with autism in his or her classroom is related to participation of students with autism in the general education classroom as well as collaboration between the general education and special education teacher. These variables and …

The Effects Of Secondary School Accountability Grades On College And University Transfer, Jill Robinson Kramer

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Workforce projections indicate that a majority of jobs to be created in the U.S. economy will require some form of postsecondary education (Cappelli, 2015; Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010). At the same time, colleges and universities are being held accountable for completion and graduation of their students (The Commission, 2014) and secondary schools are being graded under changing accountability systems (Center for Education Policy, 2008; Dee & Jacobs, 2011, Figlio & Ladd, 2008). This study looked at the longer-term implications of high school accountability grades, A–F, and the impact on student transfer, associate’s degree completion, and time to associate’s degree …

Operationalizing Humility: A Model Of Situational Humility For Christian College Student Leaders, Scott T. Barrett

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research study explored how college student leaders operationalize humility in their actions and what leads individuals to act with situational humility. There is a rise in narcissistic tendencies in college students (Twenge, Konrath, Campbell, & Bushman, 2008a, 2008b) and a decline in overall character traits (Burns, 2012; Hunter, 2000; Liddell & Cooper, 2012). Opposite the vice of narcissism sits the virtue of humility (Emmons, 2000; Exline & Geyer, 2004; Peterson & Seligman, 2004; Tangney, 2000). Using a grounded theory approach, the researcher looked to discover the process of humility development. Twenty six in depth interviews were conducted at three …

Adult Learning And The Effect Of Education And Gender Interaction On Type 2 Diabetics, Abdi H. Nur

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods research study was to investigate whether the relationships between education and medication and healthy exercise adherence were the same among female and male Type 2 diabetic adult learners. The purpose included also exploring whether registered nurses would alter their approach to diabetic adult learners’ education on medication and healthy exercise adherence considering patients’ gender and education levels. The study also investigated the correlation between diabetes duration and medication and healthy exercise adherence. The research investigation employed mixed methods sequential explanatory design using qualitative data to help explain the quantitative findings. The quantitative study was …

An Investigation Of Principal Leadership Behaviors And Implementation Of Adult Learning Strategies On The Professional Learning Environment Of A K-12 School, Christina Larson

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the influence of principal leadership behaviors and potential of utilizing adult learning strategies on the development of a school’s professional learning environment (PLE). The intention was also to determine if principals considered themselves prepared to develop and sustain such an environment. Research shows that principals and teachers perceive professional development needs and results differently. To obtain perspective from both groups, two separate surveys were administered. The results from this dissertation came from 262 principals and 433 teachers employed in K-12 public schools in Indiana. With the survey completed by principals, the …

I Am Commanded To Love You: The Journey Of Three Women College Presidents, Carey Monroe

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This was a phenomenological study of the lived experiences of women who serve as college presidents. Three women, who serve as current college presidents, participated in this study. The first was a president at a two-year community college in the upper Midwest for twelve years and served as president in another Midwestern community college for nine years prior. The second woman was a first-time president who had served for three years at a Catholic four-year college established to provide nurses for a health system. The third was a first-time president who served at a Research I institution in the upper …

Trends In Naep Scores Among 17-Year-Old Students In The Era Of Accountability, Katherine Kyler

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Education has undergone a sweeping renovation throughout the last several decades as part of the school accountability movement aimed to increase student success. High school graduation rates are the highest they have been in decades. School accountability measures continue to be implemented and modified with a goal of increasing student success and closing the achievement gap (Maleyko & Gawlik, 2011). Accountability measures are in place that require data analysis and reporting of information such as graduation rates and standardized test scores (No Child Left Behind Act [NCLB], 2008). While it is important to hold schools accountable, many of the currently …