Digital Commons Network^™

Enhancing Coastal Vulnerability Assessments And Policy Impacts On Socioeconomic And Environmental Equity In Michigan's Great Lakes Communities, Esther N. Acheampong

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Accelerating shoreline erosion, fluctuating lake levels, and climate-induced hazards are transforming the Great Lakes’ freshwater coasts, exposing the limitations of static and inequitable management frameworks. This dissertation investigates how Michigan’s coastal governance systems produce and manage vulnerability along the Lake Michigan shoreline by integrating geospatial modeling, institutional policy analysis, and environmental justice theory. It argues that both physical processes and institutional designs co-determine patterns of exposure, protection, and equity. The research begins by developing a refined Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) tailored for lacustrine environments, applying it to Muskegon County to assess how shoreline change, armoring, and seasonality influence localized risk. …

Results Of The Second Ice Shelf-Ocean Model Intercomparison Project (Isomip+), Claire K. Yung, Xylar S. Asay-Davis, Alistair Adcroft, Christopher Y. S. Bull, Jan De Rydt, Michael S. Dinniman, Benjamin K. Galton-Fenzi, Daniel Goldberg, David E. Gwyther, Robert Hallberg, Matthew Harrison, Tore Hattermann, David M. Holland, Denise Holland, Paul R. Holland, James R. Jordan, Nicolas C. Jourdain, Kazuya Kusahara, Gustavo Marques, Pierre Mathiot, Adele K. Morrison, Yoshihiro Nakayama, Olga Sergienko, Robin S. Smith, Alon Stern, Ralph Timmermann, Qin Zhou

CCPO Publications

Ocean-driven basal melting of Antarctic ice shelves plays an important role in the mass loss of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Ice shelf cavity-resolving ocean models are a valuable tool for understanding ice shelf-ocean interactions and for simulating projections of ice shelf and ocean states under future climate. Designed to assess the current state of ice shelf–ocean modelling, the second Ice Shelf–Ocean Model Intercomparison Project, ISOMIP+, consists of 12 ocean model configurations submitted with a common, idealised experimental setup. Here, we focus on the experiments Ocean0–2 (Asay-Davis et al., 2016), which are ocean models with idealised, static ice …

A Mandate With Teeth: Biting Back At The Neglect Of New York's Humane Education Law, Mei Brunson

Animal Law Review

New York passed its compulsory humane education law in 1917, which obligates school districts to provide weekly instruction in the “humane treatment and protection of animals” to all elementary school students. Though this mandate is clear, New York school districts routinely ignore it and deprive students of the humane education that they are statutorily entitled to. To make matters worse, the New York Commissioner of Education has abdicated their responsibility to enforce this minimum educational standard. Over the years, the laudable efforts of advocacy groups, educators, and legislators have brought about some instances of district compliance. Nevertheless, widespread district noncompliance …

Participatory Barriers And Single-Member Districts In Planning For Latino Demographics: A Spatial Analysis Of Osceola County, Florida, Amy Garcia Paniagua

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This mixed-methods case study on Osceola County, Florida examines how participatory barriers shape planning outcomes for Latino communities within single member district systems. Demographic transformation has shaped Osceola into one of three Hispanic/Latino majority counties. For Latinos, unique barriers to civic access exist, with the potential for exclusion in planning processes. The research bridges participatory planning theory with theories supporting single-member district electoral representation by evaluating whether district-level governance mitigates inequities where civic engagement is constrained. Methods integrate GIS-based spatial analysis with an institutional review of district-level actions to assess relationships between Hispanic civic accessibility and planning equity. Two composite …

Best Practices For Budgeting In Small Non-Profit Organizations: The Arts Commission Of Danville/Boyle County, Esther Rugerio

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Nonprofit arts organizations face unique financial management challenges due to limited staffing, restricted funding sources, and fluctuating revenue streams. This thesis examines the Arts Commission of Danville/Boyle County located in Danville, KY. It identifies opportunities to strengthen financial oversight, accountability, and long-term sustainability. Using a qualitative research approach and document-based analysis, the study evaluated organizational budgets, governance documents, and nonprofit financial management best practices.

The findings revealed several areas for improvement, including reliance on line-item budgeting, recurring use of carry-forward funds, limited board financial oversight, fiscal sponsorship complexities, and a lack of formal financial policies. Recommendations include adopting a program-informed …

Gender As The Moral Framework Of War: Religious Discourse In Wartime Russia, Olga Vlasova Dr., Ulviyya Khalilova

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article explores how wartime religious discourse constructs the moral framework of war through gender rhetoric. Based on the critical discourse analysis of wartime public statements by Russian Orthodox and Muslim religious leaders (2022-2026), the study shows how gender can be used as a framework through which violence becomes meaningful and tolerable. It highlights that the discourse of masculinity provides precisely those moral categories (duty, sacrifice, and protection) which depict participation in war as a moral obligation. At the same time, femininity is primarily associated with the reproduction of social order through care, support, and motherhood, while remaining outside the …

Stakeholder Perceptions Of West Virginia’S Artificial Food Dye Ban In K–12 School Meals: Initial Year Of 2025-2026, Leah Michelle Rogers

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

OBJECTIVES: Artificial food dyes (AFD+) are an increasing policy concern in the U.S., particularly in children’s foods. West Virginia’s House Bill 2354, the first statewide AFD+ ban implemented in K-12 schools, restricts seven AFD+ in state-funded meals. Little is known about how AFD+ bans are perceived or implemented. This study examined how the ban functioned within school food systems and the barriers and facilitators experienced by school stakeholders within the initial year of implementation during the 2025-2026 school year.

METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational mixed-methods study was conducted among implementers, enforcers, and receivers of the policy. A survey tool …

Male Disposability, Law, And Feminism, Edward Cantu

Faculty Works

This article explores scientific evidence that societies care more about the welfare and safety of females than that of males, and that this dynamic of "male disposability" is deeply entrenched in culture, and thus in law. The recognition and integration of male disposability theory would mean an evolutionary leap in modern theorizing about gender and the law, but it is ignored. Why? Feminist theory dominates current academic gender discourse. Far from appreciating the explanatory power of male disposability theory, feminist theorists are often invested in theorizing gendered problems in ways that mischannel compassion away from men and toward women. The …

Nuclear Deterrence And Nuclear Modernization: A Strategic Analysis Of Global Nuclear Threats And U.S. Policy, Abraham Morland

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The nuclear imperative comes from the idea that all three legs of the Triad must be retained to ensure a viable deterrent posture, provide flexibility in a response, and give decision makers options to create uncertainty in an adversary’s decision calculus. The nuclear imperative is the need to fund suggested shortfalls in the nuclear enterprise and modernize the U.S. Triad, not just one or two legs, but all three, due to the ever-increasing nuclear risk. To understand the current state in which the United States finds itself and the need for the nuclear modernization program, this thesis will review nuclear …

The Hollow Parent: A Philosophical Capabilities-Based Care Ethics Critique Of The U.S. Foster Care System, Lindsey E. Scanlan

Honors Program Theses

This thesis argues that the U.S. foster care system systematically undermines transition-age youth by failing to secure the capabilities required for genuine independence and a life of basic human dignity, particularly through aging-out policies that terminate support before these capabilities are fully developed. Using Martha Nussbaum’s capabilities approach as a normative foundation, it integrates classical American pragmatism (Jane Addams, John Dewey) and Maurice Hamington's contemporary care ethics to construct a context-sensitive framework for evaluating and reforming foster care. Pragmatism grounds normative assessment in lived experience and institutional context, while care ethics provides a relational account of moral practice structured around …

We-Making Through Technology: Social Cohesion And Virtual Adaptation In Community Arts Organizations For Artists With Idd During Covid-19 Pandemic, Yumi Shirai, Michelle Boulanger Thompson, Tamara Shetron

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

COVID-19 public health restrictions disrupted in-person arts participation, increasing risks of social isolation and reduced community access. Prior research shows that many people engaged in home-based arts and cultural activities during lockdown, supporting emotional regulation, a sense of belonging, and social connection; however, little is known about how these shifts affected community arts organizations that serve artists with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD), a population disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and longstanding inequities. We examined how community-based arts organizations adapted programming for artists with IDD during the COVID-19 pandemic, including barriers and unanticipated outcomes relevant to equitable access and participation …

From County To Commonwealth: A Study Of Kentucky County Election Office Websites And Collaborative Solutions For Strengthened Voter Information Accessibility, Marissa A. Robinson, Marina E. Smart

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In 2022, the League of Women Voters discovered inconsistencies across Kentucky county clerk websites in how they offer voter information and in website accessibility and clarity. County clerk websites serve as an important source of accessible voting procedural information, trusted by constituents. Through an audit of county clerk websites and interviews with county clerks, this project identifies how county election office websites can better provide equitable, accurate, comprehensive, and consistent voting information. Recommendations based on the findings include linking the Kentucky State Board of Elections Voter Information Portal universally, adding website training, and state-established website guidelines.

The Political Economy Of Pfas Treatment And Water Regionalization In Harrison County, Kentucky, Jackson S. Patru, Rajan Sampat

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The discovery of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the water supply of Harrison County, Kentucky has prompted an urgent reevaluation of local treatment infrastructure. This situation has exposed a complex political economy between the City of Cynthiana, which owns and operates the municipal water plant, and the Harrison County Water Association (HCWA), which represents the majority of the ratepayers supplied by the plant. Using a qualitative research design grounded in inductive thematic analysis, semi-structured interviews were conducted with leadership from both Cynthiana and HCWA, as well as operators at the treatment plant, to evaluate two proposed solutions: a $14 …

Comparing Economic Development And Blight Remediation Tax Increment Financing: Design, Governance, And Measurable Outcomes, Leigh Compton

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is a widely used local government tool for redevelopment and economic growth, yet its expanding application has raised questions regarding its design, governance, and measurable outcomes. This study compares two primary uses of TIF: blight remediation and economic development. While remediation-focused TIF is intended to address identifiable market failures in distressed areas, economic development TIF is typically used to attract or accelerate private investment in more competitive environments.

Using a structured comparative analysis of selected Kentucky TIF districts, this research evaluates how differences in statutory justification, financing mechanisms, governance structures, and performance measures align with each …

Shrines On Asphalt Shoulders: Documenting Roadside Memorials In Western U.S. Roadscapes, Isabella R. Sullivan

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis analyses the practice of documenting and uploading roadside memorials in the Western United States as a socially transformative process facilitated between two distinct kinds of noticing. Drawing on (auto)ethnographies of roadside memorial sites in Colorado and California, interviews with photographers and cartographers working primarily in the American Southwest, and Google Street View media, this research examines how recognition of the social negotiations involving memory and mortality that are already present in the physical shrines evolves when documenters capture and transpose them online. First, these documenters have developed the “eyes to see” roadside memorials for various significant reasons in …

Fear, Memory, And Deterrence: Reassessing Nuclear Peace In The 21st Century, Nathan H. Schroeder

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research investigates the paradox of nuclear peace theory: the idea that nuclear weapons, despite their destructive capacity, have contributed to a more stable global order. By tracing the historical development of nuclear arsenals and the strategic logic of deterrence, the project examines whether the post-1945 decline in large-scale wars between superpowers and wartime deaths can be attributed to the threat of mutual annihilation. It also explores the psychological and cultural consequences of this deterrence-based peace, including the normalization of fear and its potential link to desensitization toward violence in younger generations. From Cold War-era school drills to modern apocalyptic …

The Road To The Anglo-Irish Agreement, Ted Smyth

New England Journal of Public Policy

No abstract provided.

A 'Healing Process'? The 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement, Paul Arthur

New England Journal of Public Policy

No abstract provided.

The Anglo-Irish Agreement: Competing Objectives, Contested Outcomes And Disputed Legacy, Eamonn O'Kane

New England Journal of Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Padraig O'Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Reaching The Anglo-Irish Agreement 2: An Interview With Michael Lillis, Graham Spencer

New England Journal of Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Locked In: The High Price Of Overcrowding And The Strain Of America's Growing Prison System, Kaitlyn N. Timmerman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Over the past several decades, the number of people incarcerated in the United States has increased substantially, placing a significant strain on correctional systems. This project examines long-term trends in incarceration to better understand how population growth may relate to concerns about overcrowding. Specifically, it asks: How has the total incarcerated population in the United States changed from 1925 to 2022? Which type of correctional system (state prisons, federal prisons, or local jails) has experienced the most growth? And to what extent can changes in incarceration counts and facility distribution be used as indicators of overcrowding?

Using historical data and …

The Influence Of Familial Substance Use Disorder On Perceptions And Attitudes Towards Substance Use Disorders And Participant Substance Use Behavior Among Emerging Adults, Elijah M. Lefeld, Jennifer Stanley

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research project explores how the lived experience of having an immediate family member with a substance use disorder (SUD) influences a person’s perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors related to substance use. Rather than focusing on the individual diagnosed with SUD, the study examines the reciprocal impact on family members within the social subsystem. Using a quasi-experimental design, the project will compare participant responses using with and without a familial connection to SUD. Data will be collected through Qualtrics surveys distributed via SONA. These measures will record demographic information, personal substance use habits, attitudes toward addiction, perception of substance use disorders, …

Motivational Factors Influencing Military Service: A Structural Equation Model Of Rotc Students And Service Members’ Motivation-Confidence To Serve, Brian J. Vansingel

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Amid declining college enrollment across the United States, academic institutions with United States Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) programs must consider underrecruited populations, such as military-bound young adults, in their recruiting strategies. To support this effort, this study examined the motivational factors associated with individuals’ decisions to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces. This study utilized a quantitative, correlational research design with a survey comprising multiple sections: sociodemographic variables, items across six motivational factors for military service, and a Motivation-Confidence to Serve scale. The study used data from a convenience sample of 709 respondents, including college military science students …

Private Money, Public Risk: Why Florida’S Sb 178 Undermines Equity, Ethics, And Accountability In K–12 Athletics, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper critically evaluates Florida Senate Bill 178, which would require the Florida High School Athletic Association to adopt bylaws allowing coaches to use personal funds to support student athletes, once reported and presumed not to be an impermissible benefit. While the bill is framed to help students who lack essential items, it introduces serious structural risks that outweigh its intended benefits. By relying on private contributions within a public educational system, SB 178 threatens equity, transparency, and ethical governance.

The bill encourages uneven financial assistance that varies based on a coach’s personal means and the socioeconomic conditions of individual …

C.A.S. Full Assessment Report: State Of Florida Government Portal, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

The purpose of this assessment is to evaluate the cognitive overhead, transparency, and attentional integrity of

official State of Florida digital interfaces using the Cognitive Attentional Standards (C.A.S.) platform.

While the Florida Digital Bill of Rights (FDBR) establishes strict regulatory guardrails for consumer data

transparency, tracking opt-outs, and attentional safeguards, the State of Florida explicitly exempts its own

government agencies, public universities, and non-profit entities from complying with these rules.

This assessment serves to investigate the tension between legislative intent and government execution. By

analyzing public sector websites through the C.A.S. platform, this project will establish a “state-enforced vs.

state-executed” …

The Attention Safeguard Models: Governing Digital Harm Without Restricting Lawful Speech, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

Digital platforms increasingly govern contemporary social, civic, and psychological life through systems optimized for attention capture, amplification, and monetization. While lawful expression remains protected under the First Amendment, the infrastructural mechanisms that determine how speech circulates have produced a range of attention‑based harms, including cyberbullying, engagement farming, compulsive doom scrolling, emotional dysregulation, and civic polarization. This research paper introduces the Attentional Safeguards Model (ASM), coined and formalized by Delante Clark, as a novel governance framework that mitigates such harms by regulating systems of amplification rather than restricting expression itself. Building on attention economy theory, technological mediation, constitutional free‑speech doctrine, …

Massachusetts Community Mediation Center (Cmc) Grant Program: Fiscal Year 2025 Evaluation Report, Madhawa Palihapitiya, Karina Zeferino

Massachusetts Office of Public Collaboration Publications

The CMC Grant Program remains a vital statewide investment in equitable access to justice and community well-being in Massachusetts. In FY2025, the Commonwealth allocated $3,100,202 to the Program, with $2,376,002 awarded directly to 12 community mediation Centers for operational support, technical assistance, and participation in statewide initiatives. These funds continued to serve as the financial foundation of the community mediation system, accounting for half of Centers’ collective revenue and enabling them to leverage an additional $2,435,797 from private, municipal, state, and federal partners—demonstrating strong public return on state appropriations. Despite a funding reduction in FY2025, the Program generated …

Eroding Protections: The Decline Of Miranda Rights And Its Impact On Due Process In Contemporary America, Autumn G. Pelfrey

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis examines whether the protections established in Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966), remain robust within contemporary criminal justice practice or have been weakened through doctrinal and practical developments. Miranda warnings were originally designed to mitigate the risk that coercive custodial interrogation would produce compelled or unreliable self-incrimination. Since 1966, however, both judicial interpretation and evolving law-enforcement practices have created a growing gap between Miranda’s formal legal promise and its practical operation in real-world interrogations.

The study evaluates the erosion of Miranda’s protective force through three primary mechanisms. First, doctrinal developments have narrowed Miranda’s scope by redefining …

The Psychological Effect Of Maternal Separation From A Child During Incarceration: A Survey And Critique Of Risk Needs Assessments, Samantha Yearwood

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study examines whether frequently used correctional assessment instruments adequately capture the psychological impacts of maternal-child separation among incarcerated women. This research was conducted in response to growing criticisms that traditional risk and needs assessments fail to account for gender-specific experiences, specifically those related to caregiving roles and pregnancy. Using a qualitative analysis content analysis to assess four widely used instruments, the Women’s Risk and Needs Assessment (WRNA), Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS), Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18), and Level of Service Inventory–Revised (LSI-R), the thesis  examines the inclusion of pregnancy-related variables, caregiving responsibilities, and separation-related psychological factors. …