Digital Commons Network^™

Author Bios

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Turtle Island (North America) Indigenous Higher Education Institutions And Environmental Sustainability Education

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Decolonization And Transformation Of Higher Education For Sustainability: Integrating Indigenous Knowledge Into Policy, Teaching, Research, And Practice

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

The Lead, August 2021, Lindenwood University

The Lead

The Lead is an electronic newsletter produced by the Lindenwood College of Education & Human Services.

First-Year Seminar And Its Impact On Retention At A Small Liberal Arts College In South Carolina, Michael A. Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

First-Year Seminar (FYS) courses have been the foundational building blocks for academic and nonacademic success for first-year college freshman since the late 1970s. With the focus on improving retention and persistence, FYS courses have been viewed as the resource that connects freshmen to the faculty, staff, student, and campus environment. Therefore, it is vital to see the impact that it has had on students and how it can further develop persistence through graduation. The researcher conducted this basic qualitative study to look for emerging themes of sophomore experience in the FYS courses and how that impacted their persistence and retention …

Super Solar, William Wilton

Honors Program: Expanded Learning Clubs

No abstract provided.

Freedom Of Speech At Ursinus College, Benjamin Henwood

Business and Economics Summer Fellows

Freedom of speech is a hot topic issue on many college campuses across the United States. My research project’s goal is to find out how our community at Ursinus College feels about freedom of speech. My project is going to explore how well Ursinus holds itself to its standards of free and open inquiry and how the students on campus feel about free and open inquiry. In order to understand how the community feels about free speech on our campus, we borrowed a survey from the Foundation of Individual Rights in Education and distributed it to roughly half of the …

The Action Is Listening: Undergraduate Women Of Color & Sense Of Belonging At Usd, Mayzong Lee

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

At the intersection of gender and race, women of color (WOC) often lack holistic support in navigating their undergraduate experience at the University of San Diego (USD). My purpose in this action research was to understand how Women of Color define, experience, and navigate their sense of academic, social, and cultural belonging at USD beyond the data. Consisting of three cycles, this research asked participants to define each sense of belonging followed by an individual interview to share how they have experienced their own definition of belonging at USD. The last cycle of this research was an opportunity for participants …

Fostering Acceptance And Visibility Within Latinx Student Organizations For Lgbtq+ Latinx-Identifying Students, Crystal Ibarra

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

The purpose of my research is to increase the visibility of intersecting identities of LGBTQ+ Latinx students within Latinx student organizations at the University of San Diego. This visibility would signify acceptance within the organizations and student’s self-acceptance and personal development. My research questions are: How can I increase awareness of the intersecting Latinx and LGBTQ+ identities within Latinx student organizations? How can I better support student leaders to create safe and brave spaces for Latinx LGBTQ+-identifying students?

The outcome of the research was that the culture of Latinx student organizations shifted to acknowledge the lived experiences of intersecting LGBTQ+ …

Afterschool Sustainability Club, Ethan Halman Gonzalez

Honors Program: Expanded Learning Clubs

In-depth lesson plans used at Riley Elementary to educate students about the environment around them and how to preserve it.

The Benefits Of Advancing The Next Generation Science Standards In The Elementary Grades, Matthew Millslagle

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Throughout the twentieth century and into the new millennium, the public and private sectors within the United States have attempted to buttress its economic, defense and educational achievement postures by implementing several educational initiatives and curricular changes. Around 2010 the National Resource Council began to initiate the latest science curriculum titled The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). A redesign in curricular approach, focused on student-centered inquiry and its foundations in cross-cutting concepts, science and engineering practices and disciplinary core ideas. This curriculum is in the process of adoption and adaptation by the states. Additional initiatives in the form of modifying …

How Does Teaching In Outdoor Classrooms Impact Secondary Student Learning Of Environmental Science Concepts?, Robert Cole

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Learning in context through experiential learning is a widely recognized method of teaching students of all ages new content that allows for better comprehension of new concepts and ideas. In spite of this, many environmental science courses are taught in classrooms without utilizing nature as an additional aid to better student understanding. This capstone project asks the question, how does teaching in outdoor classrooms impact secondary student learning of environmental science concepts a nd includes a review of literature relating to experiential learning and outdoor classrooms. The second part is a curriculum unit that utilizes the framework: “backwards design” (Wiggins …

Long-Term Effects When Educating Elementary Students On Waste Reduction In Minnesota, Madeline Hoensheid

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Recycling is a part of many people's everyday lives but it is often an action that many did not receive formal education regarding. Recycling provides a simple way to reduce waste and reduce dependence on virgin resources. However, this lack of education leads to much confusion about the items that can be recycled. The literature review revealed the many benefits of recycling and education about reducing waste at an elementary age. The literature review informed the educational guide about waste and waste reduction for elementary students. The purpose of the guide is to answer the question, How can curriculum support …

The Non-Traditional Student Enrolled Full-Time In Art School, Sarah Kathryn O'Brien

Masters Theses

The unique needs, experiences, and contributions to the classroom of non-traditional students enrolled in a full-time undergraduate art program have been under-addressed in academic research. In this thesis, the author surveys existing research and reports on a series of surveys and some follow-up interviews conducted with both students and their professors. This thesis aims to identify the unique circumstances of non-traditional students in higher education and particularly in art school. The author identifies specific opportunities for fruitful continued research and application.

University Of Central Florida Undergraduate Catalog, 2021 - 2022, University Of Central Florida

UCF Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Current Stormwater Practices And Future Implementation At Portland State University With The Uncertainty Of Climate Change, Evan Suemori, Alexandra Vargas Quiñones

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

Stormwater runoff is one of the most critical environmental issues in urban areas and is only expected to worsen as climate change persists (EPA, 2016). When precipitation events occur, stormwater travels across impervious surfaces collecting soils and pollutants which can negatively impact water quality in receiving waters. Additionally, stormwater has human health impacts, specifically through flooding and the contamination of drinking water. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it has been determined that climate change will increase the frequency, intensity, and/or number of precipitation events in some regions, including the Pacific Northwest, and decrease in others (IPCC, …

The Lead, June 2021, Lindenwood University

The Lead

The Lead is an electronic newsletter produced by the Lindenwood College of Education & Human Services.

Spirits In The Dark: Black Community Education And The Light It Bears, Sydoni A. Ellwood

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

“Spirits in the Dark” is a digital space dedicated to the efforts of Black community education. It memorializes the commitment and strategies of spirits, light bearers like Mary McLeod Bethune and Huey Newton – people who devoted their lives to the fortification of their communities via education. This project also presents a variety of answers to one specific question: What lessons can school leaders and educators incorporate from community-controlled education programs to make learning spaces affirming and engaging for Black students? In totality, the digital space contributes to conversations in urban education and sociology, specifically the ones being held around …

Biodiversity Monitoring And Volunteer Motivations: A Case Study On The Imagined Communities Of Citizen Scientists In Meinung, Taiwan, Serena May Calcagno

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Asia Pacific’s biodiversity is under threat. One significant step that can improve conservation is gathering data on what species exist in different areas over time, which can provide insight into ecosystem health. This is especially important in biodiversity hotspots, where high levels of endemism and anthropogenic risk overlap. Though it is one of the few places in the Pacific not classified as a biodiversity hotspot, Taiwan has an unusually high saturation in terms of biodiversity data points. Investigating the motives of biodiversity monitoring volunteerism is already a topic of growing scholarly interest, but relatively few studies have focused on …

Mapping Out Our Space In Stories: A High School Curriculum For A Social Justice Tour Of San Francisco, Elena Ramírez Robles

Master's Projects and Capstones

How do youth engage with the spaces around them? In what ways might students connect their personal, lived knowledge to the politics and intricacies of space? The manners in which schools approach outside-of-school learning includes non-critical Place-Based Learning and field trips as optional material; however, doing so breaks the powerful relationship waiting to be explored between Critical Geography and Critical Education. This field project uses Henri Lefebvre’s concepts of The Production of Space and Rhythmanalysis as foundations to argue for the implementation of Critical Geography into high school curricula, and offers a 9-week high school curriculum to create a student-led …

The Role And Impact Of The Environment In Shaping The Decisions Of Parents And Alternative Educators In Early Education, Mia Hopkinson

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to research parents’ and alternative educators’ perspectives on the role of the educational environment in early education and how this impacts their pedagogical beliefs. The qualitative study explored the following research questions: What do traditional school parents and outdoor alternative parents seek in their child’s early education environment? What shapes parents' decisions on their child’s educational and learning experiences? How do alternative educational leaders and educators understand the role of the alternative environment? How does this impact how they think about education? Interviews were conducted with two traditional parents, two alternative parents and four …

Commencement 2021, 10:30 Am Ceremony (Program And Video), Illinois Wesleyan University

Commencement Ceremonies

No abstract provided.

Commencement 2020, Ceremony In 2021 (Program And Video), Illinois Wesleyan University

Commencement Ceremonies

No abstract provided.

Commencement 2021, 3:00 Pm Ceremony (Program And Video), Illinois Wesleyan University

Commencement Ceremonies

No abstract provided.

Program Evaluation Of Restorative Practices At One Elementary School, Nicholas X. Samuels

Dissertations

The rationale for this study was to evaluate the use of restorative practices at One Elementary School. During this evaluation process, I sought to discover the pros and cons of the Restorative Practices program being implemented at this school. Additionally, I sought out responses to my secondary/sub-questions to discover ways that the program’s effectiveness could be enhanced. Furthermore, my desire was to discern the effects that the program’s implementation had on the school's African American/At-Risk population. The data embedded within this study reflects the results of the Restorative Practices program implementation. My findings support the efficacy of Restorative Practices at …

The Effect Of Agkistrodon Contortrix And Crotalus Horridus Venom Toxicity On Strike Locations With Live Prey., Chase Giese

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This paper aims to uncover if there is a significant difference in the strike location of snake species that have different values of LD50% venom. It is thought that most snakes strike their prey in the anterior (head) area in order for their venom to work quicker in killing them. Venom toxicity is measured by its LD50% value, which is the amount of venom, in mg/kg, to kill 50% of a test population. The Copperhead has an LD50% value of 10.9 mg/kg, and the Timber Rattlesnake has an LD50% value of 1.64 mg/kg. The hypothesis was that if venom toxicity …

Evaluating Urban Parks Accessibility And Equity: A Case Study Of Hartford, Ct And New Haven, Ct, Natalie Roach, Mara Tu

Honors Scholar Theses

Public parks provide cities with environmental benefits, positive health effects, recreational opportunities, community building, educational spaces, and public amenities. However, certain populations have been systematically denied their fair share of these benefits because of unjust practices in the creation and maintenance of urban parks. With a lens of environmental justice, the goal of this research was to assess park quality and accessibility of two Connecticut cities, Hartford and New Haven, by gathering publicly available information as well as using GIS tools.

The Trust for Public Land (TPL) has an existing ParkScore rating system that evaluates the quality of a city’s …

Learning From Home…Less Students: A Study On What We Can Do To Reach Homeless Youth During Covid-19, Marcy Twogood

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The focus of this Capstone project is on reaching homeless youth during this time of distance learning. Student homelessness is an issue because it is harder for teachers to reach them than a student with stable living conditions. According to the scholarly literature, schools are struggling to reach homeless students during the pandemic due to their lack of an address, wifi, and/or in-person interactions with their teachers. An argument is made that if schools identify students’ challenges, they can provide adequate resources. Upon interviewing the assistant principal, school counselor, who has access to students and their emotional needs, and a …

Poem, Editorial Board

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)

"Napë" By Ernesto Casiquiare

Spanish and English Versions

Table Of Contents, Editorial Board

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)

No abstract provided.