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2022-August-01-Etsu's Carter Railroad Museum Sponsoring Fall Excursion, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Book your seat now for a fall railroad excursion.  

On Oct. 8, the George L. Carter Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and East Tennessee State University’s George L. Carter Railroad Museum will sponsor a trip that features stops in the Great Smoky Mountains and western North Carolina.  

The trip will include the opportunity to shop, visit the Smoky Mountain Trains Museum and dine in Bryson City, North Carolina.  

“The route is a relaxing ride through quiet countryside on your way to small town life in western North Carolina on the Tuckasegee River Excursion,” organizers …

2022-August-01-Arborist Travis Watson - Bucwire, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

He plants shrubs and flowers, ensuring the vegetation gets the appropriate amount of water and sunlight. He cultivates newly planted trees, pruning and assessing the health of the saplings. He helps craft plans for a range of extreme weather events, including droughts and floods. 

East Tennessee State University’s Travis Watson is the campus arborist. He’s also a graduate student working toward a certificate in geospatial analysis.    

“Community projects are huge for me, and I get a lot of personal enjoyment from that,” said Watson, who recently graduated with a master’s degree in biology. “My graduate training at ETSU gave me …

Overview Of Transition Care Clinics And Patient No-Shows, Manul Awasthi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Introduction

Transition care clinics (TCCs) have proven to be effective in meeting the time-sensitive needs of patients in the post-discharge period and ensuring smooth transitions of patients from hospital to home. These clinics have led to lower readmissions, lower emergency department visits, cost savings, and lower rates of other adverse events following discharge. However, TCCs, including the East Tennessee State University Family Medicine (ETSU-FM) TCC have been facing high rates of patient no-shows.

Aim

The aim of this dissertation is to identify the different components and outcomes of TCC based on the literature. We further aim to analyze the TCC …

2022-August-01-Etsu Theatre And Dance Presents 2022 - 2023 Season, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – Four shows will headline the 2022-2023 season for East Tennessee State University’s Department of Theatre and Dance.

“Our previous season marked our first year in the Martin Center’s new Bert C. Bach Theatre, and it was truly an epic season,” said Karen Brewster, professor/chair of Theatre and Dance. “All of our shows were performed to sold-out audiences, and we were able to transform this black box space to become a stretch of the Colorado River, followed by a family living room, to various locations across the mountains of North Carolina. That is the beauty of having …

2022-August-01-Calling Etsu Choirs Alumni, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – East Tennessee State University has issued a call to alumni of the ETSU Choirs to gather for a special reunion concert. 

The event, which will help kick off Homecoming week at ETSU, happens at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15, in the ETSU Martin Center for the Arts. 

Greyscale will be honored at concert

“We are inviting all eras of the ETSU Choirs to come together for what will be a truly special evening,” said Dr. Alan Stevens, director of choral activities and chair of the Department of Music.  

ETSU is home to many award-winning …

2022-August-01-New Etsu Faculty - Part 1 - Bucwire, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

Leendert Craig

Lecturer

Department of Engineering, Engineering Technology, Surveying, and Interior Architecture
College of Business and Technology

What are you looking forward to the most about being an ETSU faculty member?

I am looking forward to learning all I can from my fellow faculty members and working with the students. I think it is fun to watch them grow as they learn.

Where were you most recently working?

Last year I was working as an adjunct at ETSU.

What are your favorite hobbies?

My favorite hobby is learning. I love taking things apart to learn their secrets and finding ways …

2022-August-01-Etsu One Of America's Best-In-State Employers, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – East Tennessee State University has been recognized by Forbes in its 2022 listing of America’s Best-in-State Employers.

The listing on Forbes.com was compiled by Forbes and Statista based on data from an independent survey taken by approximately 70,000 U.S. employees working for businesses with at least 500 employees across 25 industry sectors. Direct recommendations from employees, as well as indirect recommendations from workers in industry, were collected in the compilation of rankings. The survey considered every aspect of employees’ experience, including working conditions, salary, growth potential and diversity.

ETSU, which is one of the largest employers in …

2022-August-01-Treating Gambling Disorders - Bucwire, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

East Tennessee State University is home to the second clinic in the state to treat individuals whose lives have been significantly harmed by gambling, thanks to a $1.2 million grant by the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (MHSAS).

This grant was recently awarded to The Institute for Gambling Education and Research (TIGER) at the University of Memphis (UM) to expand gambling research and treatment services for all Tennesseans. “In the next five years, our partnership with MHSAS will make Tennessee a leader in managing gambling harms experienced by the people living in our communities,” Ginley said. …

2022-August-01-Etsu To Expand Services For Hivaids Care, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – A new grant will allow East Tennessee State University to expand clinical services to provide support for individuals with HIV in the region.

Dr. Jonathan Moorman, co-director of the ETSU Center of Excellence in Inflammation, Infectious Diseases and Immunity and vice chair for Research and Scholarship in the Department of Internal Medicine, has received a notice of award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

The Ryan White HIV Center of Excellence (COE) has received Ryan White Part B funding from the Tennessee Department of Health for more than …

Prevalence And Predictors Of Polypharmacy In Adolescents Who Have Engaged In Sexually Abusive Behaviors, Rebecca Gilley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Polypharmacy, or the concurrent use of multiple medications, is associated with detrimental outcomes for patients and has gathered increasing attention within the scientific clinical literature. Pediatric populations warrant special consideration for the practice of polypharmacy, as medication effects are more pronounced in youth and adverse effects may have a lasting impact on development. This dissertation study examined psychotropic prescribing practices in a sample of adolescents who have engaged in sexually abusive behaviors, a subset of justice-involved youth who are at risk for polypharmacy. General prescribing trends were examined, and a principle components analysis involving variables associated with risk of polypharmacy …

College Students’ Perceptions Of Sense Of Community, Satisfaction, And Cognitive Learning In Online Classes, Laura Lynn Higgs Kappel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this non-experimental, comparative quantitative study was to determine if there were significant differences between the perceptions of undergraduate and graduate students about the importance and presence of sense of community in online classes at two southern public universities using survey data. The study also aimed to determine if there were significant relationships between students’ perceptions of the presence of sense of community and students’ satisfaction with the course and between students’ perception of the presence of sense of community and students’ perceptions of increases in cognitive learning. The study also addressed factors of undergraduate classification, gender, and …

Look, But Don’T Touch: Impact Of Covid-19 On The Nicu Caregiver, Rebecca C. Otwell-Dove

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Admission of an infant into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is an experience that has been associated with a variety of both positive and negative health outcomes for parent and child. While both the setting name and the admitted population alludes to a sole focus on the affected infant, what often remains underrecognized is the impact on the ones who care for the newborn long before and longer after their NICU stay. Given the recency and unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, very little research has examined the impact of COVID-19-specific stress on the experience of parents of infants …

Phenomenological Study Of Positive Coteaching Dyads Perceptions Of Their Coteaching Relationship, Ashley Weber

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand how coteaching dyads perceive their coteaching relationships including how they implemented coteaching and how their school leaders supported them. Participants in this study were located in one county school system in East Tennessee. Data was collected through an online survey distributed to 40 teachers, of whom 28 responded. Then data was collected through in person one-on-one interviews. Coteachers who participated in the interview process all rated themselves high on the Coteaching Rating Scale. The overarching research question was What makes coteaching relationships effective? Three research questions were analyzed. From the data, …

The Front Lines Of Student Success: A Phenomenography Exploring The Background And Knowledge Of Primary Role Academic Advisors In Higher Education, Alicia N. Abney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenographic study was to understand the experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives of new, primary role academic advisors at four-year public institutions in the United States. Research on advising has provided insight into advising best practices and the student perceptions of academic advising; however, there is little research illustrating current primary role academic advisors and their experience, or perhaps lack thereof.

To receive highly coveted federal and state funding, higher education institutions must show growth in student success. Academic advisors are on the front lines of student success because they are tasked with the responsibility of retaining …

Evaluating Bat Roost Abundance: A Comparison Of Drone-Acquired Thermal Imagery And Acoustic Estimates With Visual Observations, Karah Jaffe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Roosts provide an opportunity to census philopatric populations of bats. Comparing the efficacy of traditional methods with novel methods can provide guidance on the use of new technologies in the field. This project aims to compare the count efficacy of external emergence methodologies, i.e., drone-acquired thermal imagery, acoustic estimates, and visual counts. Surveys were conducted ten nights at two emergence sites and synchronized to compare counts. Acoustic estimates could not be established as there was a weak prediction of the linear relationship between root-mean-square pressure and emergence count; therefore, this method was removed from the comparative analysis. A linear mixed-effects …

Adaptation Of Instructional Strategies And Practices During A Pandemic, Lacy E. York Hughes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the stories of identified, effective middle school teachers as they experienced changes in instructional strategies and practices as a result of an identified crisis, COVID-19. Although there has been little documentation in the literature specifically regarding adapting instructional strategies and practices as a result of crises, crisis management, change theory, mindset theory, adaptation, and teacher effectiveness characteristics became the framework through which to interpret the data.

Data collection strategies included one-on-one, semi-structured interviews with a total of eight participants, two principals and six teachers, who met specific research participation criteria. Analysis of …

Adverse Childhood Experiences And Quality Of Life: A Mediating Role Of Physical Activity And Executive Function, Loni Parrish

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ACEs have been associated with heightened risk for a range of chronic health problems, substance use, and cognition in adulthood (Center for Disease Control (CDC), 2019; Hinojosa et al., 2017). One potential protective factor is physical activity (McEwen, 2016; Wu et al., 2013). Physical activity is associated with sustaining overall health, improving mental health by reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety (Murri et al., 2019; Sharma et al., 2006; Tasci et al., 2019), and maintaining a healthy body weight and BMI (WHO, 2021). Therefore, this study examined whether barriers to physical activity, physical activity levels, and executive outcomes serve as …

The Paleoecology Of High-Elevation Bison In The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem And Implications For Modern Bison Conservation, Darian Bouvier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The national mammal of the United States, the American Bison (Bison bison) was once nearly extinct. Populations have recovered to the degree that thousands roam the Great Plains today. Due to their large numbers and body size, this species has an oversized impact on the ecological communities where it lives and is considered a keystone herbivore in modern North American grasslands. This study explores the detailed, seasonally resolved, paleoecology of seven bison from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem during the Late Holocene through stable isotope analyses and species niche modeling. Isotopic analyses of δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N, …

The Role Of Middle And High School Principals During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Study, Dustin Ford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine middle and high school principal roles prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic to gain a better understanding about how leadership responsibilities adapted or changed. Data collection strategies included one-on-one interviews with nine middle and high school principals in East Tennessee. To qualify for the study participants had to have experience in the principalship prior to the pandemic. The analysis of data was based on the theoretical frameworks of adaptive leadership (Heifetz et al., 2009) and change theory (Fullan, 2020). The results revealed five key themes that were consistent during the …

An Evaluation Of Castor Californicus And Implications For The Evolution And Distribution Of The Genus Castor (Rodentia: Castoridae) In North America, Kelly Lubbers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The genus Castor is represented in Eurasia by Castor fiber, North America by C. canadensis, and has been in North America since the late Miocene. This study aims to assess whether morphology of Miocene-Pliocene C. californicus and extant C. canadensis are distinctly different. Specimens of Castor were compared using geometric morphometrics on cranial material and linear measurements of postcranial material. Species occurrence data were compared with past and future climate data to assess Castor distribution in North America through time. Results show that C. canadensis is highly variable in both cranial and postcranial morphology and C. californicus falls …

Teachers’ Perceptions On The Effects Of Covid-19 On Juniors And Seniors In High School, Martha J. Meredith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the academic, social, and emotional effects of COVID-19 on 11th- and 12th-grade students. There has been little documentation regarding the specific change that the pandemic has had on these students; it is imperative that we look at the effects of COVID-19 on the students who experienced COVID-19 pandemic.

Data collection was completed through individual interviews. Analysis of data occurred in three phases: (a) categorization of data under the four organizational factors, (b) building the explanation in a phenological form, and (c) re-examination of the data. The analysis of the narrative study was …

Student Achievement And Teacher Perceptions Of School Climate In Title 1 And Non-Title 1 Schools, Jennifer E. Pangle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there is a significant relationship between student achievement and teacher perceptions of school climate. An additional purpose of this study was to determine if there is a significant difference in teacher perceptions between Title 1 and non-Title 1 schools. The final purpose of this study was to determine if there is a significant difference in teacher perceptions of school climate among the schools according to overall student achievement. A series of Spearman’s Correlation analyses were used to analyze data to determine if there was a significant relationship between TVAAS composite …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Teachers’ Personal Epistemologies And Their Self-Efficacy About Culturally Responsive Classroom Management, Tahani Ahmed

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Diversity is now an essential matter in US public schools. For the first time in America's history, students of color will constitute a majority of the public school enrollment; on the other hand, most early childhood and elementary teachers remain monolingual, white, middle-class females (Hussar & Bailey, 2019). The demographic mismatch between students and teachers presents a critical concern for teacher preparation programs (Banks et al., 2005; Gay, 2018; Muñiz, 2019). Therefore, this study proposed that understanding the relationship between pre-service teachers' epistemological beliefs and their culturally responsive classroom management self-efficacy illustrated factors that may improve their teaching concept toward …

Cognitive Preference And Skill Acquisition: The Relationship Between Student Nurse Anesthetists And Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists Thinking Styles, Thomas Diller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Decision-making in healthcare is a complex and, at times, uncertain process. In the United States Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) administer the majority of anesthesia. Nurse Anesthetists must draw on their educational background, clinical experience, and cognitive processes to make sound clinical judgments. To avoid errors understanding the relationship between cognitive preference and skill acquisition is critical. This study was designed to describe the cognitive preferences of Student Nurse Anesthetists (SRNAs) and CRNAs in the United States. The 2 cognitive preferences explored are rational (analytical) and experiential (intuitive) decision-making.

The researcher used a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive correlational design. The researcher …

Individual Characteristics Of Postsecondary Underachievement, Natasha Godkin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Underachievement in postsecondary education has been a growing concern for educators and researchers. Higher education institutions have implemented early alert systems to identify students performing below standards. This early warning system has major limitations that confine it to an identification only approach. The current study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Student Attitude Assessment Survey-R (SAAS-R) in a postsecondary sample. First, a confirmatory factor analysis validated the SAAS-R in a postsecondary sample. Predictive validity was then investigated by identifying students as underachieving or achieving based on responses to the SAAS-R and via a regression-based discrepancy model (ability vs. …

When The Costs Outweigh The Benefits: Examining Variations In Nulliparous, Term, Singleton, Vertex And Elective Cesarean Delivery Rates Across The United States, 2016-2020, Kathleen Tatro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The overutilization of cesarean deliveries is a major public health issue in the United States (U.S.). The rates of cesarean deliveries have increased substantially from the mid 1990s. Low-risk, defined as nulliparous, term, singleton, vertex (NTSV) pregnancies with no medical indication of need, and elective cesarean deliveries have been implicated as drivers of these increases. Elective cesarean deliveries are NTSV cesarean deliveries in which no trial of labor was attempted. There is a lack of clear rationale as to the noted increases in cesarean delivery rates as the evidence shows that these procedures provide no additional health benefits to mothers …

Perceptions Of Tenured Science Faculty Regarding The Provision Of Reasonable Accommodations For Students With Disabilities, Rebecca J. Riggs

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological study used qualitative research methods to explore the perceptions of tenured science faculty regarding the provision of reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. Thirteen tenured science faculty at postsecondary institutions throughout the United States participated in one-on-one interviews. The participants provided their perceptions and experiences regarding the provision of academic accommodations for students with disabilities in a laboratory science. In these interviews key themes emerged, such as the importance of providing reasonable accommodations for successful academic outcomes for students with disabilities, the perception that providing reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities is fair, the concern that providing reasonable …

Reduced Fuel Emissions Through Connected Vehicles And Truck Platooning, Paul D. Brummitt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication enable the sharing, in real time, of vehicular locations and speeds with other vehicles, traffic signals, and traffic control centers. This shared information can help traffic to better traverse intersections, road segments, and congested neighborhoods, thereby reducing travel times, increasing driver safety, generating data for traffic planning, and reducing vehicular pollution. This study, which focuses on vehicular pollution, used an analysis of data from NREL, BTS, and the EPA to determine that the widespread use of V2V-based truck platooning—the convoying of trucks in close proximity to one another so as to reduce air drag …

A Phenomenological Study Of Contributing Factors And Common Trends Related To Teacher Attrition In Western North Carolina, Preston Clarke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A phenomenological approach was used to identify contributing factors and common trends related teacher attrition by conducting interviews with teachers who decided to exit a North Carolina School District located in Western North Carolina. A qualitative approach allowed the researcher to gain valuable insight into the decision-making process of the 15 research participants. Data collection involved conducting one on one telephone interviews with participants by asking a series of open-ended questions that allowed for probing and follow-up questions. Analysis of researcher notes, evaluation of textual data produced by interviews, and observations allowed the qualitative investigator to identify emerging themes and …

Safety And Security On Campus: Student Perceptions And Influence On Enrollment, Kaitlyn Puckett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research examining college choice has traditionally focused on factors relating to demographics of the student and the college/university. Less attention has been directed towards how safety and security of the campus and the surrounding community play a role in college choice. In addition, some studies have examined students’ fear of crime, perception of safety and security, and perception of public safety; however, there is still much to be learned. The current study sought to further the research by (1) assessing how campus safety and security impacts enrollment decisions, (2) assessing how students perceive fear of crime and their personal safety, …