Digital Commons Network^™

Artificial Intelligence In Stem Education: A Transdisciplinary Framework For Engagement And Innovation, Cristo Leon Ph.D., James Lipuma Ph.D., Xavier Oviedo Torres

STEM for Success Resources

This peer-reviewed article, Artificial Intelligence in STEM Education: A Transdisciplinary Framework for Engagement and Innovation by Cristo León, James Lipuma, and Xavier Oviedo-Torres, published in Frontiers in Education, examines how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming STEM education through a transdisciplinary lens. Based on a systematic review of 41 scholarly studies (2020–2025), it analyzes AI integration in STEM classrooms, focusing on learner agency, adaptive assessment, and ethical challenges such as algorithmic transparency, equity, and inclusion. Guided by a Transdisciplinary Communication (TDC) framework and grounded in PRISMA protocols, the study applies tools like Nvivo, Excel, and VOSviewer for thematic coding and …

Educational And Legal Implications Of Determining The Age Of Marriage In Light Of Sharia And Law, Samira Zaiim

Al Jinan الجنان

There is no doubt that research to determine the age of marriage and the eligibility of suitors is one of the most important issues in our society, especially in recent times which have seen a significant increase in underage marriage, in order to face any exploitation that these underage girls could suffer from, whether at the hands of their parents or by others, because this has harmful effects on all levels: health, psychological, social, etc.

The latest amendment made by the Supreme Islamic Sharia Council in Lebanon on the age of marriage raised awareness among Lebanese society to take precautionary …

2025-07-08 Minutes, Morehead State University. Staff Congress.

Staff Congress Records

Staff Congress meeting minutes from July 8, 2025.

The Storm They Didn’T See Coming, Qamar Bazar

Publications and Research

The Storm They Didn’t See Coming is a personal story about what it feels like to chase success and still feel like it’s not enough. I discuss the pressure I put on myself, how difficult it is to slow down, and the fear of falling behind. It’s about trying to be proud of where I am while still wanting more, and learning that it’s okay to not have everything figured out. This piece is for anyone who's ever felt like they had to keep proving themselves just to feel worthy.

Transmission: Works Of Sarah Rose Weaver And Collaborations (2022–2024), Sarah Rose Weaver

Journal of Network Music and Arts

The Transmission Series took place between 2022 and 2024, primarily in a virtual network music setting. The series consists of my compositions and collaborations for solo, chamber, and large ensemble performance, building on my works and essays since 1998 that engage in-person, hybrid, and virtual spaces. This essay details the artistic and technological strategies employed in the Transmission Series, including audio, video, and score excerpts. The technologies discussed include networked audio and video, along with streaming and recording methods. The works featured in the discussion are “Transcendence Transmission” (2022) for large ensemble, “Sub Way” (2022) for chamber ensemble, “Here Mirror” …

Remaking Life: The Culture Of Chinese Transcontinental Railroad Workers, Caroline Jordan

The Purdue Historian

This paper examines the methods by which Chinese immigrants involved with the construction of the first transcontinental railroad maintained cultural ties to their native China, as well as the changes they made to adapt to their new surroundings. The United States’ first transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, primarily at the hands of Chinese immigrants. Despite their massive contribution, no primary documents from Chinese workers themselves are known to exist. Their role in the railroad’s construction was largely forgotten until relatively recently. Chinese workers faced hostile living and working conditions during their life on the railroad. This paper covers multiple …

Tumult, Terror, And Tripping: The Roles Of Psychedelics And Radical Politics In The Counterculture, Daniel J. Melbert

The Purdue Historian

From the immense political upheaval of the Civil Rights Movement and anti-war protests to the advent of the hippie counterculture and its psychedelic aesthetic, the 1960s is commonly conceptualized as a significantly transformative period in American history, socially, culturally, and politically. While this is certainly an accurate observation, the political and cultural shifts that occurred within this period are typically approached as separate, if not disparate, segments within the development of the period. The counterculture is often approached solely within the confines of its art, aesthetics, bohemian lifestyle, and perhaps most ubiquitously, the use of psychedelic drugs. As a result, …

Xyy: Why? Science For The People And The Xyy Controversy, Fern Rice

The Purdue Historian

The mid-20th century saw a boom of scientific discoveries in genetics as people sought to understand the American political landscape through genomes. The desire to understand criminality through genetics rose as counterculture surged. The genetic defect known as “XYY syndrome” became connected to criminality through biased medical studies and sensationalized criminal cases worldwide. When the National Institute of Mental Health began to fund studies attempting to prove a link between XYY syndrome and criminality, organizations concerned with scientific justice took notice. The leftist organization Science for the People campaigned against an XYY study in Boston, deeming it unethical and biologically …

Intergenerational Design Challenges: Participants’ Perspectives On Moving From Ideas To Implementation, Tina M. K. Newsham, Matthew J. Peterson, Alicia M. Sellon, Logan Elkins, Abrielle Leblanc, Tess Ryan, Andrew Zeldin

Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

Many social innovation efforts are aimed at meeting social challenges presented by the aging of the population, yet older adults are often excluded from such efforts. The purpose of this case study was to examine an approach used in a midsized university in southeast North Carolina to create intergenerational opportunities for students, local community organizations, and older adult residents of the surrounding area to collaboratively develop suggestions for addressing challenges facing the older adult population.

Ada News - 07/07/2025, American Dental Association, Publishing Division

ADA News

Established in 1970 as the official newspaper of the American Dental Association, the ADA News serves practicing dentists and others allied to the dental profession in the U.S. and internationally. It is the No. 1 source of news and information about the many benefits and services the ADA delivers to members daily as well as timely information on scientific, social, political and economic developments affecting dentistry and health care.

Theorizing Graphic Embodiments: A Feminist Perspective, Lisa Detora, Jeannie Ludlow

All Faculty Scholarship

In response to the increasing politicization and polarization of discourses around gender, sexuality, and the body, feminist theorists like Judith Butler call for feminism to strive toward flexibility and responsivity. This essay lays out some of the theoretical considerations that inform studies of graphic embodiment—or studies of embodiment in graphic narratives—both generally and within feminist studies, then examines several graphic texts by Tillie Walden and Élodie Durand that exemplify feminist theories of embodiment, with particular attention to the creative co-construction of embodied narratives.

Exploring Relationships Between Racial Bias, State Empathy, And Perceived Recovery Time Following A Medical Hardship, Kabe Aberle, Lydia Gengler, Madelyn Kavalieros, Brookelyn Mayfield, Kevin M. Summers, Sarah Huff

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

This experiment investigated whether racial biases exist in laypeople's perceptions of recovery time following a common, medically-related hardship and whether these biases can be explained by differential empathy across race. White participants (n=133) read a vignette describing either a White or Black target who experienced a minor car accident. They then rated the amount of time they felt was reasonable for the target to take off from work and normal activities and how much time it would take to recover physically and mentally. Participants also completed measures of state empathy toward the target and their sleep quality. Results …

Dr. Alison Krӧgel Faculty Spotlight, Rachel Jaeger

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

An interview with Dr. Alison Krӧgel of the University of Denver's Department of Spanish Language, Literary & Cultural Studies.

Du Undergraduate Showcase Abstracts: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Kabe Aberle, Nadia Kako, Kateri Mcrae, Brooke Agulnek, Sky Palmon, Yasmine Ramirez, Francisca Aguirre Beltran, Ashley Juarez, Bridget Kim, Tessa Appel, Sterling Kerr, Spencer Ingley, Gabe Meyer, Robin Tinghitella, Dale Broder, Lily Baeza, Chloe Beers, Julia Coakley, Whitney Kelsey, Sydney Gainforth, Gabi Wing, Audrey Martin, Aaliyah Amore Berry, Brooke Watley, Kiruthika Venkatesan, Rachel Bienstock, Annabella Brotherston, Madison Bryant, Mia Burgener, Emma P. Lieb, Rachel A. Johnson, Jennifer L. Hoffman, Kania Campbell, Kiena Campbell, Courtney Cassidy, Sage Krzyzkowski, Maddox Jones, Skylar Abookire, Luke Hawkins, Sunnah Yoon, Andrea Chu, Yan Qin, Nyah Cubbison, Brian Gearity, Daniel Mcintosh, Mariely Cruz, Edward Garrido, Grady Dionne, Nicole Doris, Lyndsie Salvagio, Ann-Charlotte Granholm-Bentley, Anna Dymov, Hannah Eckert, Gabrielle Welsh, Erica Larson, Charlie Ernst, Anna Zhou, Sarah Watamura, Larissa Fedorovich-Klein, Georgie Fields, Kimberly A. Guevara, Aven Mccall, Ben Peltier, Feruz Yahia, Patrick Flores, Jadyn Floyd, Sophia Forcier, J. Von R. Monteza, Peter Sokol-Hessner, Gwendolyn Geiger, Scott Nichols, Camryn Gunter, Kendal Hengst, Charlie Bednarz, Issy Garside, Addison Baker, Rachel Mina, Brooke Hermanson, Amanda Klingler, William Highfill, Sydney Jaques, Kerstin Lewey, Allison Grossery, Daniel Linseman, Ethan Lim, Jagger Livengood, Owen Mantelli, Gabby Pappas, Abby Mcdonald, Madeleine Dierking, Eve Miller, Emma Loeber, Anna Marlow, Michael Kerwin, Ella Mathews, Hillary Hamann, Khadija Mohamed, Vivian Nguyen, Gabri Notov, Ifunayachi Ogbonna-Ukuku, Sunil Kumar, Charles Baysah, Sarah Olson, Don Sullivan, Anna Paradiso, Jay Parrish, Mira Pronobis, Alisha Pravasi, Kerstin Haring, Diego Ramirez, Christopher Reardon, Juliana Ramirez, Casey Doherty, Ella Kestner, Teagan Weindel, Cate Billings, Pablo Torre-Walter, Lucy Rand, Samantha Reynolds, Mark Siemens, Khadeeja Rashid, Laine Satterlee, Piper Heilbronner, Lily Pound, Ben Whitehurst, Anna Respet, Lizzie Lesoing, Sydney Hertel, Aya Saad-Masri, Brooke Ballenger, Max Proske, Hannah Rosenberg, Ellia Nakahara, Sophia Espinoza, Ivan Woolhouse, Simon Ruland, Gorkem Er, Timothy Sweeny, Melaku Saketa, Michela Schenk, Maren Lynch, Madi Hamm, Grace Schroeder, Michelle Rozenman, Rana Seif, Jackson Hall, Marisela Simental, Daniel Paredes, Aaron Mena, Preston Spaan, Evelyn Stovin, David Andrew Swartz, Anh Tran, Daniel Pittman, Luke Farchione, Emily Boyer, Ukari Verner, Lacey Conrad, Jonathan Velotta, James Weiner, Jagger Gossett, Noah Sherry, Sam Proud, Ben Block, Avi Narayana, Zoey Weiss, Alyssa Wilson, Gabrielle Walsh, David Zonana, Keely Wright, Kena Riveria, Lillybelle Deer, Jena Doom, Elysia Davis, Isabelle Yaremenko, Caitlyn Young

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Abstracts from the DU Undergraduate Research Showcase.

Fire In The Hole: Appalachia’S Elemental Narrative In Harlan County, Usa And King Coal, Somak Mukherjee

Critical Humanities

In Elaine McMillion Sheldon’s documentary King Coal (2023) coal is being referred to as a matter that is “not dirty or clean, but elemental.” The acclaimed film centers on the complex histories and cultures of coal in Central Appalachia, based on the perspective of Sheldon, a coal miner’s daughter, and a West Virginia native. The elemental nature of coal is explored in the film by situating coal less as a resource and more as a mythic foundation for the community's cultural history. This article puts King Coal in conversation with Barbara Kopple's seminal Harlan County, USA (1976) which narrates the …

Planetary Thinking: Hellbenders As Emissaries Of Appalachia, Tierra R. Curry

Critical Humanities

Hellbenders are prehistoric salamanders that have thrived in cold rivers since before the continents divided. Once found throughout Appalachian watersheds, due to exploitation and habitat degradation only a few dozen healthy populations survive. Monstrous yet fascinating, hellbenders were often reviled historically, but in recent decades they have gained iconic status and are now celebrated as charismatic indicators for clean rivers. Hellbenders are symbols of the wild because of their ancient history, elusive nature, and contribution to ecosystem resilience. The same forces that drove the decline of these amphibian sentinels have sacrificed public health in Appalachia. Their demise echoes the struggle …

“Here’S To The Long Haul: Dark Green Religion And Planetary Thinking In Appalachian Environmental Movements”, Joseph Witt

Critical Humanities

Environmental humanities scholars have worked to develop alternative frameworks for understanding and relating to Earth’s systems in the hope of reforming the exploitative and extractive practices and attitudes characteristic of the Anthropocene. For example, Dipesh Chakrabarty argued that addressing climate change necessitated appreciating the entanglements between global (human) and planetary (Earth systems) scales. While Chakrabarty noted that ancient and Indigenous cultures may have retained approaches necessary for this work, he was skeptical of the ability of modern secular intellectual traditions focused on global justice perspectives to ultimately facilitate a planetary non-anthropocentric ethic. However, by only briefly engaging with themes of …

Planetary [] Appalachia: Editor’S Introduction, Scott C. Mcdaniel

Critical Humanities

Editor's Introduction to Volume 4 Issue 1

Latine Students’ Stem Identity Development: Reflecting On Implicit Biases, Imposter Syndrome, Self-Efficacy, And Support Systems, Alyssa G. Cavazos, Valerie Leija, Javier Cavazos Vela

Writing and Language Studies Faculty Publications

This study used an equity ethic framework and a STEM identity model to contextualize and understand Latine students’ perceptions of STEM identity development. The purpose of this study was to investigate how Latine undergraduate students who engaged in STEM coursework perceived their learning experiences and stories of resilience through an equity ethic framework. Data were collected through interviews with 19 Latine college students attending a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Findings revealed the following themes related to Latine students’ STEM identity development and lived experiences in STEM coursework: implicit biases, imposter syndrome, self-efficacy, and support system and resources. Findings highlight the need for …

Craig L. Robinson

African American Funeral Programs

Craig_L_Robinson.pdf - Funeral program for Craig Robinson

Neural Associations Between Fingerspelling, Print, And Signs: An Erp Priming Study With Deaf Readers, Brittany Lee, Sofia E. Ortega, Priscilla M. Martinez, Katherine J. Midgley, Phillip J. Holcomb, Karen Emmorey

Communication Sciences and Disorders Faculty Articles and Research

Fingerspelling is a leading predictor of reading ability for deaf people who use a signed language, but few neuroimaging studies have examined how it supports reading. We used event-related potentials to investigate how fingerspelled words prime printed words. Twenty-four skilled deaf adult readers completed a Go/No-Go task while viewing printed English word targets following related and unrelated primes in one of three conditions: printed English words, American Sign Language (ASL) signs, and fingerspelled words. N400 priming effects were strong across all three conditions. Early N400 effects were similar for printed word primes and fingerspelled word primes, suggesting shared orthographic representations. …

An Interview With Anthony Viola, Anthony Viola, John Van Kirk

Critical Humanities

Anthony Viola interviewed by John Van Kirk

The Human Catalyst And Extractivist Fiction: A Close Reading Of Siddhartha Sarma’S Year Of The Weeds And Pundalik N Naik’S The Upheaval, Elwin Susan John Dr

Critical Humanities

Literary narratives have been abetting the various global faces of climate crisis, ever since the disciplines of humanities and social sciences have become vocal about the Anthropocene. The discussions have been mostly centered around the discourses of capitalism, imperialism, rights and subalterity. By reading some of these foundational grips on ecological crisis, the present essay analyses literary narratives on mining and extraction in India from the standpoint of a human catalyst; which is defined as an entity that can cause a chain reaction, that may or may not result in the annihilation of the initial catalyst. The essay will begin …

The Extraction Unconscious: Solar-Powered Utopias In Catching The Sun (2015) And In The Name Of Lithium (2021), Isidora Cortés-Monroy

Critical Humanities

By comparing the depictions of future energy regimes in the two ecodocumentaries, Catching the Sun (2015) and In the Name of Lithium (2021), this article explores representations of post-carbon futures from the US and Argentina. Read closely alongside Frederic Jameson’s notions of utopias, the article delineates the extent to which a solar powered future challenges and reiterates current neocolonial extractivist structures. Basing myself on Patricia Yaeger’s concept of an “energy unconscious,” I argue that these solar utopias maintain an “extraction unconscious” that continues to produce sacrifice zones where primary commodities needed for the energy transition can be found. By analysing …

Towards An Indigenous Climate Epistemology: Bringing The Newa Literary Tradition Of The Swasthani Vrata Katha In Conversation With The Festival Tradition Of The Macchindra Nath Jatra, Shangrila Joshi Dr.

Critical Humanities

This paper brings into conversation two Newa cultural traditions to articulate notions of climate adaptation, resilience, and mitigation, to illustrate how ways of knowing, ways of being, and ways of governing are inherently linked. These articulations offer a framework for developing what the author calls an Indigenous Climate Epistemology. The two cultural traditions reviewed include: a 17^th century Newa literary tradition that advocates for keeping oil in the ground, and that instructs ordinary people to engage in ritual acts seemingly designed to develop personal and community resilience; and a 1700 year old annual community festival designed to avert catastrophes …

On The Edge Of The Abyss: Cultural Responses To Extractivism In The Andes, Jack Martinez Arias

Critical Humanities

This work examines the contemporary cultural productions of Cerro de Pasco, a city in constant destruction due to an ever-expanding open pit mine that has grown to over a mile wide since the 1950s. Drawing on Latin American environmental humanities and discursive analysis, I conduct a close reading of poems, stories, performances, and audiovisual works by local artists responding to this largely overlooked apocalyptic scenario. By analyzing narrative strategies such as repetition and irony, I identify recurring themes and establish common concerns related to extractivism, urban extinction, illness, and death. This study seeks to understand how these cultural productions envision …

Imposter Syndrome And Degree Completion Among Marginalized Graduate Students, Ryan A. Finner

2025 Symposium

Imposter Syndrome is a mindset that troubles many graduate students across various countries, degree programs, ethnicities, sexualities and genders. The term Imposter Syndrome refers to the feeling of being a fraud, despite achieving success and the persistent fear of being exposed as unqualified or undeserving. While this phenomenon affects many, it can appear much worse in marginalized populations, this is due to the lack of resources, support and representation of minorities in professional and higher education environments. This research focuses on marginalized graduate students and aims to figure out what key factors are leading to incomplete or delayed degree completion. …

Wrapped In The American Flag: Liberal Activism And Queer Political Organizing Post-1940s, Sam Markley

IdeaFest

By analyzing the United States Lavender Scare and immigration policy of the 1950s, this paper attempts to shed light on how the distinction between “American” and “Un-American” remains at the center of Queer rights advocacy. The heightened fear over the survival of the nation, along with the view of Queer immigrants as threats to the nation, was used to tighten immigration restrictions. This restriction, however, is complicated by existing prejudices against racial minorities and women. Queer rights groups began to rise to prominence during this time and mobilize against claims that they were anti-American or subversive deviants, working through the …

Community Engagement In Music Therapy: Reflections From The Field, Jess Rushing, Denise M. Cumberland

Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

This paper reflects on a music therapy community engagement project that incorporates clinical training, service learning, and community music therapy. Two faculty members and a practicum student in a Midwestern university engaged community members connected to Parkinson’s disease to create a music-based program. We offer a conceptual framework that connects approaches situated within community music therapy (CoMT) qualities and community-based participatory research (CBPR) principles. We share project processes, findings, and recommendations, emphasizing all as equal stakeholders.

Positively Impacting Traffic Safety Culture For Indigenous Youth: A Heritage-Focused Approach, Jacob Steven Pehrson, Ahmed Abdel-Rahim, Logan Prescott

Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

This paper presents the development of heritage-focused outreach materials with the objectives of positively impacting traffic safety culture for Indigenous youth to reduce the number and severity of traffic crashes impacting these communities. The approach presented in this paper includes involving local community leaders in traffic safety education and incorporating culturally based material in outreach education. This could empower Tribal communities to preserve their cultural identities while acquiring the expertise needed to promote traffic safety.