Digital Commons Network^™

From Arrival To Opportunity: A Policy Analysis For Supporting Newly Arrived English Learners In California, Valeria Gabrielli, Stephanie Mendoza Hernandez

School of Public Policy Capstones

Newly arrived immigrant students, commonly referred to as “newcomers,” represent a notable portion of the English Learner (EL) population in California’s K–12 public schools. As of Fall 2023, the California Department of Education reported that newcomers comprised 3.27% of total student enrollment. Although enrollment is projected to decline in the near term, the potential for future increases highlights the need for sustainable, evidence-based support systems. This study examines how California K–12 public schools with large EL populations provide academic and trauma-informed support services to newcomer students, with a particular focus on early intervention in grades K–5. Using the Bardach policy …

“Always Having To Dampen And Dilute My Essence In Order To Fit”: Intersectional Experiences Of Queer Scholars Of Color In Stem And Stem Education, Nuria Jaumot-Pascual, Lisette Torres-Gerald, Maria Ong

The Qualitative Report

This article examines the intersectional experiences of queer scholars of color in STEM and STEM education. Using arts-informed research methods, we conducted and analyzed five interviews and a focus group transcript that focused on the support and hurdles that five participants encountered and the strategies they utilized to navigate their work in STEM and STEM education. We identified that, against the backdrop of prevailing heteronormativity and normative whiteness in STEM, participants compartmentalized their STEM and social identities, felt compelled to negotiate the risks of coming out, and assumed the double burden and invisible work of students who were queer and/or …

Enhancing Academic And Religious Values Through Literacy: An Ethnographic Qualitative Study In A Hindu Student Community, Ni Komang Sutriyanti, I Wayan Widiana, Ni Luh Ika Windayani, I Gede Wahyu Suwela Antara

The Qualitative Report

This study explores the influence of Indonesia's school literacy initiative program, also known as the school literacy movement (SLM), on academic achievement and religious character formation among Hindu students at Bali Mandara State High School. The SLM’s effects within Bali’s predominantly Hindu community provide a perspective on how literacy initiatives intersect with cultural and religious education in a largely Muslim country. The objective of the study was to assess the transformative impact of the SLM on both educational outcomes and character development, specifically examining its alignment with Hindu teachings. A qualitative approach was employed, with data collected through semi-structured interviews …

Arts-Based Pedagogy Of Qualitative Analysis At The Graduate Level: Dwelling In The Aesthetic, Jennifer Lapum, Leinic Chung-Lee

The Qualitative Report

For those who are new to qualitative research, it can be easy to become caught up in the procedural steps and lose sight of the interpretive nature of qualitative analysis. As educators, we need to be mindful about how to teach procedural steps but also engage learners in the interpretive process of qualitative analysis. In fact, we would suggest that a rigorous approach to qualitative analysis involves applying methods in ways that create space for interpretive thinking. Theoretical insights and rich understandings of the data are derived from interpretive and creative analytical thinking often grounded in aesthetics in which we …

The Munster Statement On The Principles Of Research Ethics And Research Integrity, Seán Lacey, Tom Farrelly, Vasiliki Petousi, Aristotle Popescu, Ziad Mahayni, Áine De Róiste, Andrea S. Pitasi, Susana Irene Díaz, Niina Ervaala, Oskar Macgregor

Dissemination

In response to the growing need for consistent research ethics (RE) and research integrity (RI) practices, the INGENIUM European University has developed The Munster Statement on the Principles of Research Ethics and Research Integrity. This forward-looking commitment, led by the MARIE - Multidisciplinary Approach to Research Integrity and Ethics - project, involved a multi-jurisdictional team from ten European countries.

The Munster Statement outlines core interconnected principles of RE (Beneficence, Justice, Non-maleficence, Research Merit) and RI (Accountability, Honesty, Reliability, Respect), in a unified and accessible format. Developed through a collaborative, structured, multilingual, and dialogic process, it synthesises local, national, and …

Creating Community: Encouraging Presence At Work, Laura Zeurmens

Staff Work

"No matter how small the opportunity starts, the work begun here can lead to a foundation for a healthy and hopeful working career."

Posting about helping to develop students into working professionals about ­­­­­­­­from In All Things, an online hub that offers insight into maintaining and faithful and orthodox Reformed Christian worldview while fearlessly engaging in every aspect of contemporary life – until all is made new.

Creating Community

The Living Archive: Photography, Social Media, And The New Frontier Of Activism, Lundyn C. Herring

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis seeks to analyze the discursive field and technology of photography and its multi-faceted role in the oppression of colonized people under Western imperialism. Among the main collection highlights of many established state-run archival institutions are photographic records consisting of surveillance images, mugshots, and other visual media as representations of the political hegemony that is exerted over governed peoples. From the mid-19th century to 2026, much has shifted in the realm of photography with the introduction of smartphones, accessible technology, and social media platforms during the beginning of the twenty-first century. As states and powerholders apply the technology of …

Qualitative Analysis Of Emotion Schemes Theory Of Compassion Satisfaction In Emotion - Focused Therapy, Bronislava Šoková, Lenka Janík Blašková, Katarína Greškovičová, Júlia Halamová

The Qualitative Report

There is little to no research focused on the qualitative understanding of compassion satisfaction among helping professionals, despite the demanding nature of the profession. Our aim was to examine how helping professionals experience compassion satisfaction through the lens of emotion scheme theory applied in emotion-focused therapy. Eight helping professionals were randomly selected from the pool of 29 participants representing a convenience sample, with the age range from 20 to 44 years. Data were collected via online in-depth interviews with open-ended questions concerning emotion scheme of their intense experience of compassion satisfaction. To analyze the data, phenomenology and consensual qualitative analysis …

“We're Human. We Are Just Human”: Experiences Of Trans And Two-Spirit Individuals In The Midwest, Gwen Avery Donner

Honors Thesis

In the United States today, gender can be a hot button topic, seemingly controversial and assigned as political, and within conservative regions the topic of gender becomes more taboo. Unfortunately, this view can lead to the stigmatization and discrimination of individuals who fall outside of the socially constructed gender binary. In order to explore how living in the conservative landscape of the Midwest impacts individuals who reside outside of the gender binary, 11 semi-structured, qualitative interviews with Trans and/or Two-Spirit individuals were conducted in which they were asked about their lived experiences. The findings of the interviews revolved around two …

Identity Restoration Theory: Reclaiming Cultural Identity As A Pathway To Reintegration, Sigifredo Castell Britton

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

This article introduces Identity Restoration Theory (IRT), a new theoretical framework that explains what formerly incarcerated individuals need to reconnect with disrupted cultural identities as a pathway to reintegration. Grounded in qualitative fieldwork with Raizal ex-offenders and community leaders on San Andrés Island, Colombia, IRT is designed to conceptualize reintegration, not as institutional resettlement, but as a culturally rooted process of re-embedding identity within community and place. The framework delineates five interdependent constructs—cultural memory, place reconnection, narrative repair, communal belonging, and agency activation—that emerged inductively from participant narratives. Anchored in the postcolonial context of an Afro-Caribbean island society, IRT provides …

Domains That Influence Underrepresented Community Wellbeing And Engagement: A Literature Review, Nicole Sung, Mei Lin Chen-Lim, Phd, Rn, Ccrc, Aunja Richards, Bis, Florence Ling, Phd

Student Papers, Posters & Projects

Introduction

Inner-city neighborhoods, such as those in Philadelphia, vary in demographics, resources, access, safety, and overall health. Local non-profits that serve these communities require more understanding of the areas they serve to efficiently align resources and meet the local community needs. Community partnerships, including youth in the community, are key informants as they share lived experiences, navigate neighborhood conditions, and identify barriers and priorities.

Transformational Leadership In Higher Education, Dr. Jewel Hale, Jr., Kristi Apostel

Tapestry: Journal of Research in Education

A crisis can highlight the critical need for resilient leadership within higher educational settings. Educational leaders encounter extraordinary difficulties, ranging from different learning options to prioritizing the well-being of both staff and students, necessitating flexible and innovative methods. By exploring how school leaders apply transformational techniques in actual educational environments, this article addresses the impact of the four I’s of transformational leadership, idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration, on building educator resiliency, sustaining school effectiveness, and promoting student achievement in higher education.

Silent Detonations: Redirecting Focus, Preserving Identity, And Leading Under The Weight Of Microaggressions, Ray Lavan

Tapestry: Journal of Research in Education

African American educational leaders consistently navigate racial microaggressions that challenge their focus, identity, and well-being. This study explores how these leaders deploy attention to manage the emotional weight of microaggressions in K-12 public school settings. Using Gross’s emotion regulation theory and Sue’s taxonomy of racial microaggressions, this qualitative phenomenological study examines how attentional deployment serves as both a shield and constraint. Data from the African American leaders reveal that silence, background processing, selective focus, and redirection to professional goals are common strategies to sustain composure. These strategies protect leaders in the moment but create emotional strain, identity conflict, and cumulative …

Fierce Leadership-Perspectives Of Black Women Educational Leaders: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study, Janice Taylor, Dianne Reed

Tapestry: Journal of Research in Education

The authors of this transcendental phenomenological study aimed to describe the lived experiences of Black women based on their perceptions, values, and beliefs about the complexities of leadership and the kind of leadership required to succeed in their respective roles, as educational leaders. This study was framed by the adaptive leadership theory. Adaptive leadership recognizes the need for leaders to stay flexible and resilient in fast-paced environments (Nelson & Squires, 2017). The three Black women leaders in this study were fierce adaptive leaders. The information acquired from this study is significant and highlights how Black women educational leaders developed the …

Being-Their-Ship: A Presence-Based Model Of Human-Centered Leadership, Ricky J. Martinez

Tapestry: Journal of Research in Education

Being-Their-Ship describes a presence-based approach to leadership grounded in lived experience rather than positional status. Developed over years of service in rural education, the framework highlights leadership as a relational practice grounded in steadiness, quiet support, and a willingness to take responsibility for others. Drawing from autoethnography and narrative inquiry, the framework articulates four interconnected dimensions: Caring-Ship, Loving-Ship, Load-Ship, and Being-There-Ship, that define leadership not through authority but through consistent action and cultural trust. Each dimension reflects how leadership emerges when individuals become a stabilizing presence, absorb burdens that others would otherwise carry, and remain committed to a community through …

Research Literacy And Research Production Skills As Core Competencies In Leaders, Kk O'Byrne

Tapestry: Journal of Research in Education

No abstract provided.

Protecting Older Adults In Hospice Care: Digital Risks And Vulnerabilities, Monalisa Gonzalez

Staying Safe, Smart, and Well Online: Empowering Older Adults in the Digital Age

No abstract provided.

Storytelling, Henry D. Juarez

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Heternormativity, Erandi Hernández Aguilar

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Sin Título, Daisy Camacho

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Journal Entry #1, Erandi Hernández Aguilar

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Pain Into Anger!, Davion Holman

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Amá Always Said. Apá Only Knew., Venus Elizalde

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

A Letter To My Juror, Michael Anthony Mariscal

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Memories Are Like Clues: A Message To My Juror, Michael Anthony Mariscal

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Mi Deseo, William Hopeau

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Living Vicariously Through The Fading Childhood Memories Of Home, Gina Muñoz

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

More Than A Brown Girl, Mia Rose Rios

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Mamadas, Erandi Hernández Aguilar

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Namesake, Adrian Garcia

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.