Digital Commons Network^™

Ucc General Education Proposal 9-15-26, Angela Brock

General Education Committee

No abstract provided.

Genai And The Self Represented Litigant, Kristen Clarke Kellems, Kristen Clarke Kellems, Kristen Clarke Kellems

Faculty Publications

Generative AI is making it easier for self-represented litigants to produce polished legal documents, but easier filing does not necessarily lead to better outcomes. This presentation examines how AI may expand access to courts while increasing weak filings, early dismissals, and burdens on the legal system.

The session reviews attorneys’ duties of technological competence, confidentiality, supervision, and citation verification. It also distinguishes general-purpose AI from legal research tools. Using a Utah third-party custody and guardianship problem, the presentation compares several tools based on statutory accuracy, legal comprehension, treatment of case law, and completeness. The results show that identifying controlling cases …

From Tal-Corset To Tuomeiyi: Inter-Asian Referencing Of Feminist Resistance Against Hegemonic Beauty Standards, Eva Liu

Student Research and Creative Activity Expo

How inter-Asian referencing of feminist knowledge shapes everyday feminist resistance against hegemonic beauty standards in contemporary China.

Using Social Vulnerability And Coastal Flooding Risk To Inform Preparedness Interventions In Hillsborough County, Bessan Abuaish

OneUSF Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium

Traditional disaster planning strategies often rely on broad countywide approaches that fail to address neighborhood level needs. Identifying communities with overlapping social vulnerability and physical risks can inform more equitable preparedness interventions. To identify neighborhoods with overlapping social vulnerability and coastal flooding risk in Hillsborough County and inform targeted preparedness interventions for vulnerable populations based on physical and socioeconomic risks, Geographic Information Systems mapping was used to overlay 16 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Social Vulnerability Index indicators with coastal flooding risks to isolate 36 high priority census tracts. Socioeconomic factors, age, limited English proficiency, vehicle access, and housing …

The Impact Of Ramadan Fasting On Chronic Disease Management, Abdulwahab Eddib, Aakez Adrak Marjan, Faris Jabbar, Nuzat Indawala

OneUSF Undergraduate Research Conference

Every year, 2.06 billion Muslims perform Ramadan fasting, a religious practice involving abstinence from food and drink from dawn to sunset for 30 days. This religious practice changes diet, hydration, sleep, and medication timing, raising clinical concerns for the safety of individuals with chronic diseases who choose to fast. Research reports mixed effects on disease control and treatment safety, emphasizing the need for an overarching analysis of its impact on chronic disease management. This literature review is aimed to examine research on Ramadan and intermittent fasting on chronic disease management and to analyze its effects on disease control, clinical outcomes, …

Comparative Evaluation Of Surgical And Non-Procedural Intervention On Fibroid Burden In Women Aged 30-50, Skylar Skupienski, Hiba Boumahdi, Vienna Nguyen, Brianna Casasu, Maimouna Dembele, Ryan Singh

OneUSF Undergraduate Research Conference

Uterine fibroids are benign tumors arising from the uterine wall that commonly affect women aged 30–50. While surgical options such as hysterectomy and myomectomy remain the most prevalent treatments, emerging non-procedural approaches including dietary and lifestyle strategies show promise as alternatives. However, the comparative effectiveness of surgical versus non-procedural interventions on fibroid size and symptom burden remains unclear.

To compare the effectiveness of surgical, hormonal, and non-procedural interventions, including dietary and lifestyle strategies, on fibroid size reduction and symptom burden in women aged 30–50. A literature review was conducted using PubMed with search terms including “Uterine Fibroid Management,” “Dietary Interventions,” …

Differential Effects Of Testosterone And Estrogen On Inflammation And Disease Severity In Asthma And Copd, Samyslandine B. Eugene, Prisha Gupta, Srimayi Yeedara, Abdulwahab Eddib, Tanya Joseph, Tanmayee Maddineni

OneUSF Undergraduate Research Conference

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by airway hyperresponsiveness, and airflow obstruction, while Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive respiratory condition characterized by irreversible airflow limitation. Although previous research has examined hormonal influence, the specific effects of sex hormones in asthma and COPD remain unclear. This study aims to evaluate how testosterone and estrogen influence inflammation, disease severity and exacerbation frequency in adults with asthma and COPD. A comprehensive literature review using PubMed with keywords (asthma OR COPD) AND (sex hormones OR estrogen OR testosterone) AND (inflammation OR disease severity OR exacerbations) yielded 145 articles. After screening …

Cardiometabolic Diseases And Immune-Responsive Metabolic Enzymes: Roles Of Lipoxygenases (5, 12, 15), Cyclooxygenases (1, 2), And Cytochrome P450, Shayla Pham

OneUSF Undergraduate Research Conference

Cardiometabolic diseases (CMD) encompass interrelated disorders involving cardiovascular dysfunction and metabolic dysregulation. Lipoxygenase (5-, 12/15-LOX), cyclooxygenase (COX-1/2), and cytochrome P450 (CYP450) enzymes regulate fatty acid metabolism and inflammatory signaling, significantly contributing to CMD pathogenesis. This review synthesizes recent evidence on LOX, COX, and CYP450 pathway crosstalk and evaluates their therapeutic and biomarker relevance in clinical cardiometabolic disease. A comprehensive PubMed literature search identified studies examining LOX, COX, and CYP450 enzymes inflammatory and metabolic pathways linked to CMD. Inclusion criteria were limited to human and animal studies published from 2010 to 2025, focusing on cardiac function, enzyme activity, or clinical outcome. …

Don't Self-Opt Out Of Career Opportunities: Proceed With Confidence, Valerie Mendoza

Faculty Publications

While reflecting on your career in the past, have you ever stepped back from an opportunity that you wanted because you doubted yourself? In the workplace, confidence often gets mistaken for competence, and that means talented employees can be overlooked simply because they hesitate. The truth is that confidence isn’t something you’re born with. It’s a skill you can build. This session will get you started on building that skill.

We’ll explore practical strategies to strengthen your confidence starting today. We’ll also break down the key differences between how confident individuals act compared to those who aren’t, so you can …

Navigating Oer Support Without Drowning In Ai, Lydia Burrage-Goodwin, Christine Moynihan

Joseph P. Healey Library Publications

This was a presentation at the June 2026 Boston Library Consortium at Connecticut College.

UMB Healey Librarians Lydia Burrage-Goodwin and Christine Moynihan talk about what experiences they have had with faculty using OER and AI, which led them to develop ethics guidelines to support librarians who work with faculty authors. Attendees learned about creating AI use statements for OERs, using AI transparency logos, and applying open licenses to fully AI generated content as well as OER adaptations.

Educational Content Creation For Non-Textbook Learning Resources, Dorina Tila

Open Educational Resources

These are materials that will be supporting faculty teaching and students enrolled in ECO 1200: Macroeconomics. Some items are also helpful in other economics, finance, and business classes. The set includes:

• Customized Summaries of Modules,
• Up-to-date Case Examples and Assignments
• Economic Experiments and Game Designs and Instructions,
• Instructions that Ethically and Effective Use Generative AI

Dnp Repository: Using Technology To Help Nurse Leaders Make A Global Impact, Cynthia Plonien, Cathy Brown, Vanessa Garrett

Nursing Faculty Publications & Presentations

DNP Repository: Using Technology to Help Nurse Leaders Make a Global Impact

Background

Prior to the repository implementation, UTA DNP scholarly projects were not tracked by the university. Publications estimates suggest 5–10 projects annually, based on Google Scholar.

Purpose

The purpose of this quality improvement project is to enhance scholarly dissemination and engagement by leveraging the UTA DNP Scholarly Project Repository, aligning with AACN Essentials, AONL Competencies, and CCNE Standards to support evidence-based practice and leadership development.

PICO Question

In DNP programs (P), how does implementing an open-access scholarly repository (I) compared to traditional limited publication practices (C) affect scholarly …

Policing Course, Adrian Bordoni

Open Educational Resources

Policng course divided in 8 modules: includes readings, videos, interactive assignments, discussion boards Final ppaer and presentation to support topics

Adapting Research Through Cross-Campus Collaboration - No Need To Reinvent The (Cheese) Wheel, Emily Roberts, Lori Townsend, Alyssa Russo

Posters and Presentations

This lightning talk centers on cross-campus partnerships as a catalyst for research translation and innovation. A health sciences librarian collaborated with members of a general academic library research team at the University of New Mexico to adapt an existing qualitative study on students’ online information evaluation for a nursing context. Rather than starting from scratch, the new team intentionally translated methods, instruments, and approaches to fit a new population and disciplinary setting. This session highlights the collaborative process itself: how partners negotiated context-specific changes, documented adaptation decisions, and preserved methodological rigor while meeting new needs. Although the study’s findings are …

The Effects Of Cinnamaldehyde On Tetrahymena Thermophila, Sydney Kurland

Publications and Research

In addition to their common use as spices in cooking and baking, cinnamon plants, Cinnamomum zeylanicum and Cinnamomum cassia for example, have long been used in herbal remedies worldwide. Cinnamon contains many vital oils and active compounds including cinnamaldehyde (CMD). Numerous studies looking at potential therapeutic effects of cinnamon have demonstrated its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties (1, 2, 3).   Therefore, it is important to continue studying the efficacy, benefits, and mechanisms of action of cinnamon and CMD to have a complete understanding of its full potential. Tetrahymena thermophila is a ciliated protozoan commonly used as a model organism to …

A Qualitative Analysis Of Bilingual Children's Subjective Feelings When Language Brokering, Laritza Leyva, Emely B. Bayas, Jordan S. Perry

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

This study investigates how bilingual child language brokers (CLBs) subjectively feel when language brokering (i.e., translating for family members who are not proficient in a language) and the factors that contribute to their feelings. CLBs (ages 9-12) were interviewed about their brokering experiences, and overall themes were identified using thematic analysis. While the majority of CLBs reported feeling positively when translating, some mentioned feeling “normal,” negative, and/or bewildered. CLBs further explained that their feelings were influenced by their belief that translating is helpful, their vocabulary knowledge, and family values related to language learning and bilingualism, among other reasons.

Propasafe-Hybrid: A Text-Based Hybrid Propaganda Detection Tool (Ila 2026 Presentation), Thomas Kimmeth, Avijit Roy, Vivek Sharma

Publications and Research

This presentation introduces Propasafe-Hybrid, a hybrid system for sentence-level propaganda detection that combines offline transformer-based classification with selective large language model (LLM) explainability. The system employs a two-stage pipeline in which a local BERT-based classifier evaluates all input text and filters non-propagandistic content, while only high-confidence candidates are forwarded to an LLM for rhetorical technique labeling and explanation. This design enables cost-aware, privacy-conscious, and scalable analysis by reducing unnecessary reliance on external models.

Propasafe-Hybrid identifies propagandistic techniques such as loaded language, obfuscation, and appeal to fear, and generates concise natural language rationales that make these techniques interpretable to users. By …

The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying Up Alma, Kristen Fredericksen

Publications and Research

Is your Alma environment a cluttered attic of outdated records, lingering purchase orders, and expired user accounts? At CUNY, large-scale cleanup is essential for improving discovery, ensuring reliable reporting, and keeping daily workflows running smoothly across multiple Institution Zones and a shared Network Zone. This session shares the central office's practical approaches to identifying and cleaning up bibliographic, holdings, and item records; purchase order lines; electronic portfolios; patron requests; calendars; and user accounts. Drawing on real cleanup projects, we'll explain how we used Alma's advanced searches, jobs, normalization rules, Analytics reports, APIs, and external tools like Excel and MarcEdit to …

Assessment Of Lake Water Quality Parameters Using Uav Hyperspectral Imaging, Hasanul Banna, Taufiqa Tajnin

Publications and Research

Monitoring water quality in lakes is critical for assessing ecosystem health, managing drinking water resources, and detecting harmful algal blooms. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)–based hyperspectral imaging provides a promising approach for high-resolution observation of water quality parameters. In this undergraduate research project, hyperspectral imagery collected over sample lakes within the Delaware River Watershed was processed using BaySpec’s CubeStitcher software to assess its capability to detect variations in chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentrations. This work was conducted as part of a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF)-funded project in collaboration with Princeton Hydro and NYC College of New York. Hyperspectral image cubes were …

Juanita Stout Ray: Life On The Frontier, A 20th Century Latter-Day Saint Woman's Life, Karen Glenn, John Murphy, Elspeth Rayback-Maxwell, Hallie Davidson

Faculty Publications

This exhibit explores the life of Juanita Stout Ray (1891-1954), a Latter-day Saint woman whose journals, letters, photographs, and family records provide a rare and intimate view of women's experiences in the early twentieth-century American West. Born in southern Utah and raised in a polygamous family, Ray spent part of her childhood in the Mormon colonies of northern Mexico before her family fled during the Mexican Revolution. Her life was shaped by many of the defining events of her era, including revolution, pandemic, economic hardship, world war, migration, and profound personal loss.

The exhibit traces Ray's experiences as a teacher, …

Hemispheric Processing Of Words And Unfamiliar Symbol Strings, Karoline Curlo

Celebrating Scholarship and Creativity Day (2018-)

This study investigates the role of each cerebral hemisphere in processing word forms to better understand how the brain decodes letter strings. Participants completed a same-different judgment task for four-character word and symbol (Orkhon) pairs presented unilaterally. On different trials, a single character was substituted at the first, second, third, or fourth position in the string. Results showed a sameness advantage in the left hemisphere (LH) and a difference advantage in the right hemisphere (RH) - effects only observed with word stimuli. Performance was best when the substituted character occurred at the beginning or end of words and symbols, rather …

It's Not Nde Without U And X: Preparing For Change With Inclusive Research, Sanjeet Mann, Heather L. Cribbs

Library Faculty Publications & Presentations

The upcoming Next Discovery Experience (NDE) introduces major changes to how users search, interpret information, and navigate Primo. Preparing for NDE is an opportunity to center the diverse students and faculty who rely on discovery systems every day, ensuring that their lived experiences, accessibility needs, and research practices guide interface design, configuration, and communication. This session presents a consortial approach to NDE readiness that positions students and community members as partners in the development process. We describe strategies for creating ethical and rigorous UX research workflows that include IRB approval, purposeful recruitment, accessible study design, and clear documentation on the …

From Sequence To Skill: Building Argumentative Writers Through Structured Inquiry, Elizabeth Huffmaster

Create@State

This research project examines the National Writing Project’s College, Career, and Community Writers’ Program (C3WP) and other resources that assist teachers in developing a multi-lesson argumentative writing instructional sequence. The project curated the entire process of writing an argumentative essay with pre-selected topics and resources for students to explore as small groups in order to contribute to class-wide discussion(s), which connect to the Self-Regulation and Constructivism learning theories. In addition to the outline of an instructional sequence, student resources such as guided note organizers and a peer-review rubric were developed, demonstrating how teachers adapt instructional materials. The significance of this …

Mindfulness-Based Therapy For The Treatment Of Anxiety In Adolescents, Alicia Lemaster

Epsilon Sigma at-Large Research Conference

Abstract

Adolescent anxiety disorders represent a significant and growing public health concern, with increasing prevalence and associated functional impairment. Traditional treatments, including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and pharmacologic interventions, are effective but often limited by barriers such as access, stigma, and adherence. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have emerged as a promising alternative or adjunctive approach to address anxiety symptoms in adolescents. The purpose of this literature review is to evaluate the effectiveness of structured mindfulness-based therapy programs in reducing anxiety symptoms among adolescents compared to usual care. A systematic literature search was conducted using databases including PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycINFO, focusing …

A Systematic Literature Review Examining Suicide Risk Factors In Older Adults, Carolyn Bivens

Epsilon Sigma at-Large Research Conference

Introduction & Background: Suicide in older adults is a increasingly prevalent tragedy worldwide, and rates in North America have uniquely increased over the past two decades. The context of the cultural environment of North America and population-specific factors in the elderly must be explored to protect this vulnerable group.

Purpose Statement Question: In older adults living in North America, what experiences and risk factors influence the development and severity of suicidal thoughts and behaviors?

Literature Review: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) flowchart guided the search of the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature …

Uscis-Grounded Ai: Preventing Hallucinations In Immigration Legal Services, Hephzibah Igwe

ONU Student Research Colloquium

Artificial intelligence chatbots increasingly provide legal information to consumers, but AI "hallucinations" (confidently stated but incorrect responses) pose serious risks in immigration law. Incorrect information about USCIS forms, fees, processing times, or filing procedures can result in visa denials, deportation proceedings, or permanent bars to entry.

This research presents a novel "source-grounded AI" system that eliminates hallucinations in immigration legal information. Rather than relying solely on large language models (LLMs) trained on general internet data, the system uses USCIS.gov as the primary source of truth for all operational data including current forms, fees, processing times, filing addresses, and policy updates. …

Workplace Relationships, Joe Elabd

LEAP Conference Speaker Slides

No abstract provided.

Showpony, George T. Ellington

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

The poetry collection Showpony focuses on the real-life experiences of a twenty and thirty-year-old woman —pseudonymously known as Mrs. G — during the 1970s, who is treated by psychiatrist Dr. Robert J. Stoller at UCLA in a desperate attempt to make her normal. Mrs. G struggles with homicidal and suicidal thoughts, psychosis, as well as her homosexuality and transgender identity. Showpony examines the ways in which psychology has pathologized these experiences and the ramifications for patients, particularly those who have been publicly showcased as examples of their conditions used to train future students. The collection critiques the exploitation of patients …

An Exploration Of Irish-American Identity Through Music And Oral History, Rylee Kay Houser

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

An Exploration of Irish-American Identity through Music and Oral History

The “Irish Jaunting Car” was described by Kevin Shannon of Butte, Montana as a traditional Irish tune played in the Ceili saloons. For Shannon a Ceili simply meant to play music. For musical historians it is more commonly described as a dance or music session of the home or pubs. Common of many Irish traditional tunes, there is an emphasis on placenames:

From Roscommon to Kildare

From Dublin down to Castle Bar

From there to County Clare

From Cork to Limerick and Athlone

Then home by Mullingar

You can view …

How Do Individual And Environmental Covariates Impact The Immune Response Of Deer Mice In Western Montana, Rachel A. Throckmorton

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Sin Nombre Virus (SNV) is an exceptional model system for studying wildlife disease because of how simple it is to capture, take samples, and obtain disease status from the primary host. Immune response is an important factor to consider when testing for SNV because it can affect susceptibility of the host as well as transmission of the virus. We examined individual and environmental conditions that may influence immune response and therefore possibly SNV transmission in wild populations. We investigated whether SNV infection status, reproductive status, sex, and season influenced immune response through examining total white blood cell (WBC) counts and …