Digital Commons Network^™

Reconnecting A Disconnected City : Through Placemaking Strategies, Gabriel Arroyo

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

My thesis is motivated by a growing interest in our urbanized landscapes and their effect on social behavior. Developing a term that refers to a places lack of engagement with the people it serves, aids in capturing the necessity of a project like this today. The modern era of today’s cities have unconciously enabled this term “Placelessness”, this lack of a defined sense of place, be a recurring problem due to urban sprawl, economic imbalances, and technologies negative influence on social patterns. Our public assets are losing distinctive characteristics such as its Identity, Belonging, and Coherence; thus, amplifying the notion …

Proposing A Second Life - (Adaptive Reuse) For Underutilized Condemned Masonry Buildings In Cuba, Fernando Asamoa

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

From 2000 to 2013 nearly 3,856 partial or total buildings collapsed in Havana, Cuba with a 206,000-home deficit thus adding to its severe housing shortage, reported by officials. Officials have also estimate 28,000 people live in buildings that could collapse at any moment and yet some residents refuse to leave structures that authorities have declared unsafe. Locals have described the deaths witnessed from structures collapsing however Cuban officials do not release figures on those killed or injured in building collapses in attempt to minimize the severity of the situation. This thesis aims to investigate an adaptive reuse strategy needed for …

Tensegrity - Is It A Bridge? Buiding? Skin?, Freddy Portugal

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Tensegrity is an amazing concept in which it can look asthetically pleasing as well of having the structural strength to create long and short spans. It is a concept that hasnt been around too many years and its something not many people know about. Im hoping to educate you on this thesis and show how great it is to explore a new structure.

2022- The Twenty-Sixth Annual Symposium Of Student Scholars

Symposium of Student Scholars Program Books

The full program book from the Twenty-sixth Annual Symposium of Student Scholars, held on April 19, 2022. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.

Embassy Site Analysis Of Chennai And Kolkata, India, Grayson Nardone, Rebecca Boyd

Symposium of Student Scholars

Grayson Nardone and Rebecca Boyd

Spring 2022 Symposium Abstract

This study is to analyze new site locations for United States embassies in the cities of Chennai and Kolkata (Calcutta), India for the United States Department of State. By using GIS software and open-source data, we will determine proximity of point-of-interest (POI) locations to determine ideal site locations. Determination of site location will involve analysis of vulnerability of natural hazards, socio-economic areas, locational strengths, locational weaknesses, opportunities, and threats towards ideal parcels and sites. After compiling primary source data and secondary, open-source data, we will conduct spatial analysis to calculate site …

Analysis Of Vertebrae Pathologies Of Grave A650 Chryssi Island, Crete, Greece, Abbey E. Bartmess, Susan Kirkpatrick Smith

Symposium of Student Scholars

This study of multiple, co-mingled adult individuals located in grave A650 on Chryssi Island, Crete, Greece, examines the prevalence of several pathologies of the vertebrae. This grave was built into a collapsed Late Minoan period house (1400-1100 B.C.E.). Grave A650, which likely dates to the 5th – 7th century C.E., shows evidence of being used over a long period of time and may have served as an ossuary. The pathologies of approximately 30 recovered vertebrae, both complete and incomplete, show signs of degenerative joint disease, spondylolisthesis, and body expansion. Researching this data aims to accomplish a comprehensive understanding of what …

Who Were Mississippian Period Artists And What Was In Their Toolkit?, Riley James

Symposium of Student Scholars

The Mississippian Period lasted from approximately 1000 to 1550 CE and occurred in the regions of the North American Southeast and Midwest. Society followed a strong system of hierarchy with major settlements with mounds and palisades exerting political control over smaller towns and villages. In Georgia, the most notable Mississippian period site and settlement is Etowah, which belonged to the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (SECC). The SECC was an exchange network of culture and spirituality that dominated most of the Mississippian period and is largely defined by its iconography and artifact trends. It is the general consensus that most Mississippian period …

An Exploration Of Asian Population Geography And Demographics In Gwinnett County, Georgia, Taylor Cole

Symposium of Student Scholars

This storymap presentation is partnered with Dr. McDaniel’s GEOG 3345 course. The storymap will consist of numerous maps that have been created by me using the ArcGIS Online program. Georgia is a state with a growing population in recent decades. Population growth is a result of both domestic and international migration from many points of origin. Indeed, the Atlanta metro area is one of the fastest growing metro regions in country in terms of numeric growth. This project uses ArcGIS Online to explore the population geography and demographics of the Asian population in Gwinnett County, Georgia, within the Atlanta metropolitan …

Diplomacy Lab - Chennai Embassy, Ashlee Powell

Symposium of Student Scholars

Established in 2013 by the US State Department, the Diplomacy Lab is a joint initiative of a public-private partnership between the department and colleges and universities across the country. Their mission is to engage in cooperative research to understand today's foreign policy challenges. This OBO (Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations) project aims to find the best location for a future US embassy site in Chennai, India. Several factors for these potential areas will be considered, such as distance to fellow foreign missions (both friendly and foe), nearby parks/attractions, and surrounding neighborhoods. Land usage, parcel sizes, and weather hazards will also …

U.S. Embassy In Bengaluru, India, Ella Hilliard

Symposium of Student Scholars

Ensuring U.S. citizens are safe while traveling to other countries is a top priority. This project helps students explore the United States' relationship with other countries and is meant to serve as a guide to find the best location for a new U.S. embassy located in Bengaluru (Bangalore), India. For this purpose, a map was created on the city of Bengaluru and incorporates data on many different factors. GIS tools are used to analyze factors such as government buildings, inclement weather, and dangerous weapons to find a new embassy that will also provide accessibility to its civilians by not being …

Us Embassy Site Selection In Vienna, Austria, Chandler T. Dixon

Symposium of Student Scholars

My project proposition is to find a suitable location for a new US embassy in Vienna, Austria. Maintaining a proper embassy in foreign cities is vital in order to protect any US citizens that may be living abroad. In order to find the most suitable location, there are a number of different demands that must be met. Maintaining distance from larger venues, hazardous areas, and other embassies that are not allies with the US has to be taken into account, along with other undesirable locations. However, the embassy will be located close to ally embassies also stationed in the city, …

Using Arcgis Pro For A U.S. Embassy Site Suitability Study: Douala, Cameroon, Derek Romanek

Symposium of Student Scholars

Using ArcGIS Pro for a U.S. Embassy site suitability study: Douala, Cameroon

Derek Romanek (Uli Ingram), Department of Geography and Anthropology, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 30144

The Bureau of Overseas Building Operations wants to know the ideal location for a U.S. Embassy in the Douala, Cameroon. The suitability for the U.S. Embassy location will be determined from feature layer data acquired from ArcGIS Online. The ideal location will be accessed through vacant parcels and industrial sites, points of interest, vulnerabilities to natural hazards, social and economic issues, and a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis. Through ArcGIS Pro, I …

Possible Location For Us Embassy In Copenhagen, Denmark, Danny Jang

Symposium of Student Scholars

The purpose of this research is for students to experience using GIS in a professional setting for a public organization. Copenhagen, Denmark hosts numerous embassies for other countries including the USA which was established nearly a century ago! After going through a couple of public opinions left by the locals (Google review), it would be nice if another location was established to assist both USA and Denmark’s bureaucratic needs. The population has surged compared to the numbers from when the building was established, which also changed the geospatial environment that was established when the building was opened. This research will …

Social Vulnerability, Diabetes, And Obesity In Georgia, Danny Jang

Symposium of Student Scholars

This project examines factors of health geography and population geography by examining the spatial correlation between diabetes and obesity prevalence among the population of Georgia. Diabetes and obesity are closely linked together, however, they are still far apart in various aspects which can be from personal to environmental impacts like geographical locations. This research attempts to investigate diabetes and obesity prevalence by examining the SVI of given counties of a state. This project uses data from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Opendata (which can be found on ESRI). Future studies can examine these health factors …

Historical And Contemporary Population Trends In New York, Thomas Gillespie

Symposium of Student Scholars

This project explores historical and contemporary population geography trends within the state of New York. New York state contains the largest city and metro area within the United States, New York City, which has served as a major immigration destination for much of its history. Today, it is still considered a major-continuous immigrant gateway metro area. Due to the city being a popular choice for immigration, it has allowed the population of New York to grow and encompass many different cultures and nationalities. This project examines these trends in further detail, by looking at various aspects on why this might …

The Inequalities Surrounding Atlanta, Brandon Benham

Symposium of Student Scholars

Brandon Benham

The Inequalities surrounding Atlanta

Atlanta is reported to have one of the highest rates of inequality in America. I decided that this was going to be the main topic for my research paper. When people think about inequality, they usually think that it relates to one’s race. In Atlanta, there is not only a lot of racial inequality, but there is a big amount of income inequality as well. Income inequality is basically the income being unevenly distributed through a population of a city or a country. There are reports in Atlanta that show that there are high …

House Of Rock: An Analysis Of A Lithic Assemblage From A Middle Mississippian House, Devlin Mcelrone

Symposium of Student Scholars

The Mississippian Period is well-known for its paramount chiefdoms, intricate ceramic/lithic/metal artistry, and large earthen works. Premier sites such the Etowah Indian Mounds in north Georgia and Cahokia in western Illinois are often the primary focus and interest within the period. However, there is a lack of attention by archaeologists on the life and culture of sites in the periphery of these large centers. Located three miles from Etowah is a site known as Cummings where a Middle Mississippian (AD 1260-1300, Wilbanks Phase) house has been uncovered. This house had burned down with all of its contents still laying on …

Dating The Seals Of Harappa: A Radiocarbon Approach, Grace Abernathy

Symposium of Student Scholars

For many years, Indus seals have puzzled archaeologists with their detailed motifs and undeciphered script. There is no pattern to the relationship between motifs and inscriptions, as each motif has been found scattered across the greater Indus region. In looking at the context of the seals and radiocarbon dating of charcoal, bone, and shell in a singular site, there may be a definitive pattern between certain motifs and the time periods they were used. This study uses contextual analysis to identify chronological patterns of seals discovered at the site of Harappa. Should any patterns arise, this research study could be …

Geography Of Covid-19 Waves In Georgia, Walker Tompkins

Symposium of Student Scholars

Geography of COVID-19 Waves in Georgia

Over the past 2 years everyone on the globe’s lives have been changed drastically after the COVID-19 virus spread across the world. This united and divided us more than any other event in most of our lifetimes. The pandemic everyone and now that there are two years of data, it is important to examine impacts at various geographic scales. As such, focusing on the state of Georgia, this project explores how the different variants, public policy, and vaccination of our population has changed the trajectory of the virus and how many deaths it has …

Analyzing Perspectives On Archaeological Curation: A Case Study From The Civil War Site Of Pickett’S Mill, Isabella Rosinko

Symposium of Student Scholars

Foundationally archaeology is defined as the scientific study of material remains, uncovered through survey and excavation. Meaning the field is dependent upon the accumulation of things: ceramics, stone tools, natural material, historic artifacts, etc. One way in which site assemblages are dealt with is through the process of curation, the storage and care of assemblages for extended periods. This is a varying process, across nations, states, and institutions. In the context of the United States, the National Preservation Act (1966), Reservoir Salvage Act (1960), and Archaeological Resource Protection Act (1979) provide standards for the long-term storage and management of archaeological …

Best Locations For A Future U.S. Embassy In Stockholm, Sweden, Aj Sherrell

Symposium of Student Scholars

The purpose of this study is to find the best possible location for a future U.S. embassy in Stockholm, Sweden. I have gathered data about current embassy locations, demographics about place locations or points of interest that the U.S. embassy needs to be close to or a specified distance from, information about lot zoning, and demographics about the city itself such as roads, railways, and bodies of water. I will use a spatial analysis and model builder through the software, ArcGIS Pro by Esri. These analyses will allow me to determine good locations for the future U.S. embassy based on …

Alignment Of Leadership To Constructs Of Governance In Independent Schools, Damian Kavanagh

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership Dissertations

This qualitative phenomenographic study articulates the different perceptions of independent school heads of school and executive board leaders in their understanding of key constructs of independent school governance, especially as the understanding may change during a crisis. The five constructs of independent school governance are the separation of governance and management activities, maintaining the confidentiality and trust of the board room, the relationship between the board and the head of school, maintaining a strategic mindset, and general board operations. The review of the literature examines the dynamics of leadership through historical crises of an economic nature, endogenous crises, world health …

Librarians As Mentors: A Student-Centered Approach To Graduate Training, Scott Libson, Chella Vaidyanathan, Erica Bruchko

Transforming Libraries for Graduate Students

A review of library science journals reveals a dearth of literature on the topic of professional mentorship services offered by academic librarians for graduate students in the humanities and social sciences. The literature that does exist tends to focus on library and information science or other professionally-oriented programs. Mentorship is crucial for the professional success of all categories of graduate students; yet, by focusing on one of these groups, we fail to recognize the shared challenges and unique needs of students across the spectrum of graduate education.

Academic librarians can play a critical role in helping all graduate students chart …

Communicative Online Language Teaching In Disruptive Times: A Redesign Of The Introductory Spanish Curriculum, Victoria Russell, Peter Swanson

Dimensions

In this article, the authors describe the redesign of a first-semester Spanish course at the United States Air Force Academy due to the COVID-19 crisis and the subsequent transition from traditional, face-to-face instruction to fully online language teaching during the fall of 2020. More than 200 learners were enrolled across 11 course sections that were taught by eight different instructors who were required to use the same syllabus, learning platforms, lesson plans, and assessments under the supervision of a course director. The developers integrated a series of pedagogical interventions—such as online integrated performance assessments, lessons and content that were infused …

Soil Chemistry And Clay Mineralogy Of An Alluvial Chronosequence From The North Carolina Sandhills Of The Upper Coastal Plain, Usa, Bradley E. Suther, David S. Leigh, Larry T. West

Faculty Articles

Temporal changes in soil development were assessed on fluvial terraces of the Little River in the upper Coastal Plain of North Carolina. We examined five profiles from each of six surfaces spanning about 100,000 years. Soil-age relationships were evaluated with inter-surface clay mineral comparisons and regression of chemical properties versus previously reported optically-stimulated luminescence ages using the most developed subsoil horizon per profile. Bases to alumina (Bases/Al2 O3 ) ratios have negative correlations with age, whereas dithionite-Fe (FeD ) concentrations are positively correlated with time and differentiate floodplain (BP) from terrace (≥10 ± 2 ka) soils and T4 pedons (75 …

The Pandemic At Home: Learning From Community-Engaged Covid-19 Documentation Efforts In The Southeastern Us, Colin Post, Kassidy Hof-Mahoney

Provenance, Journal of the Society of Georgia Archivists

Cultural heritage institutions of all kinds around the world responded to the Covid-19 pandemic by launching community-engaged collecting efforts that solicited the submission of documents capturing the daily experience of an historically significant phenomenon. While the pandemic is global in scale, these collecting efforts document the impact of Covid-19 at local or regional levels. This article reports on research to better understand how cultural heritage institutions in the Southeastern United States have developed community-engaged collecting projects. Analyzing data collected from the public websites of 30 institutions, as well as semi-structured interviews with 10 cultural heritage professionals active in the Covid-19 …

The Impact Of A Gencyber Camp On In-Service Teachers’ Tpack, Kevin M. Thomas, Jessica Ivy, Kristin Cook, Robert R. Kelley

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a GenCyber camp curriculum on teachers’ technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge (TPACK). The camp was designed to engage participants in developing the knowledge and skills to incorporate GenCyber Cybersecurity First Principles and GenCyber Cybersecurity Concepts (GenCyber, 2019) into their curriculums. Participants (37 middle and high school teachers from a variety of disciplines) attended one of two weeklong camps held at a Midwestern liberal arts university. Using the TPACK Self-Reflection and TPACK Self-Assessment Surveys, pre- and post-camp data were collected from participants. Findings indicate that participants demonstrated an increase in …

2021 - The Second Annual Fall Symposium Of Student Scholars

Symposium of Student Scholars Program Books

The full program book from the Fall 2021 Symposium of Student Scholars, held on November 18, 2021. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.

Ur-086 - Food Desert: Hungry For Answers, Lawren Cumberbatch

C-Day Computing Showcase

No abstract provided.

“Why Would Anyone Leave?”: Development, Overindebtedness, And Migration In Guatemala, Lauren Heidbrink, Giovanni Batz, Celeste Sánchez

Maya America: Journal of Essays, Commentary, and Analysis

Over the past two decades, policymakers have expressed considerable optimism about the capacity of international development to curb transnational migration, yet there is a dearth of research examining how and under what conditions development interventions impact migration decisions. Enlisting a case study approach in the Maya-K’iche’ community of Almolonga, this article examines divergent meanings and practices of “development” and its impact on the migratory aspirations and outcomes of Indigenous families in Guatemala. Government authorities and international development experts exalt Almolonga as a prosperous example of a globalized, agrarian-based economy. Key to its ‘success’ is the growing microcredit industry which advertises …