Digital Commons Network^™

Trophic Interactions And Niche Partitioning Within A Post-White-Nose Syndrome Temperate Bat Community, Macy Kailing

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The decline of cave-dwelling bats since the introduction of white-nose syndrome (WNS) to North America changed the way communities interact. Disease-mediated competition at the community level can influence the ability of imperiled species to recover because of competitive exclusion. In western Kentucky, tri-colored bats, Perimyotis subflavus, which are susceptible to WNS severely declined following WNS occurrence. During that same period, evening bats, Nycticeius humeralis, which are not susceptible to WNS increased markedly. To investigate the influence of WNS on community structure, the diets of sympatric tri-colored and evening bats were assessed. Guano was collected from evening (n=37) and …

Case Study Of Skills Developed During Employment At Kentucky Ffa Summer Camp As A Young Adult, Kelly W. Rexroat

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to provide a qualitative case study analysis of the soft skill development of summer camp staff members at the Kentucky FFA Leadership Training Center and to look at whether or not the leadership development focus of the camp program had an increased impact on the development of the staff members’ leadership skills. For years, FFA summer camp programs have been developing the leadership qualities of FFA members and preparing them to take on leadership roles for the upcoming year. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with former Kentucky FFA summer camp staff members from 2008 to …

Instructional Leadership Of Principals And Its Relationship With The Academic Achievement Of High-Poverty Students, James Gray

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative research study focused on teachers’ perceptions of the relationship between the instructional leadership skills of their principals and the academic achievement of students in high-poverty schools in the Northwest Tennessee CORE region. All 14 of the participating schools were above the 50 percent threshold to be considered a high-poverty school. According to the overall effectiveness rating levels for TCAP performance on the 2014-2015 Tennessee Department of Education Report Card, four schools were rated as below average performance, three schools were rated as average performance, and six schools were rated as above average performance. The teachers surveyed (N …

Flower Meanings: Are They Relevant Today?, Dakota R. Moore

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study sought to describe contemporary views of ten selected flower specimens regarding the feelings they evoke in thirty participants divided evenly across three generations: Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennial. Little research exists in the scholarly body of knowledge regarding definitions of flowers; however, industry publications have captured some traditionally held definitions of some flowers. This phenomenological study utilized participants in the three generations of interest by showing each participant photos of ten selected cut flower specimens and asking them five questions about the emotions evoked by each flower, how they would feel if they received each flower, …

Adolescent Perceptions Of Behavioral Functioning: Measuring Perceptions Of One's Own Behavior, Aaron Hale

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

As bullying type behaviors have increased in recent years, many school districts have responded by implementing rigid zero-tolerance policies that punish students with no regard toward situational or social contexts. These policies have been shown to have many negative social, psychological, and academic consequences. Numerous social and developmental factors involved in bullying-type situations make it necessary to gather information on both the frequency and the social contexts in which they occur: exhibiting these behaviors toward close friends versus exhibiting these behaviors toward individuals who are not close friends. Of particular interest is if students exhibit bullying-type behaviors more often in …

Addressing Reading Fluency Of Students With Intellectual Disabilities Using A Multiple Probe Design, Sarah N. Merimee

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Despite making up less than one percent of the student population, students with significant intellectual disabilities have the same rights to receive the best education possible as their typical peers. There is currently a paucity of research regarding effective reading instruction within a comprehensive approach, particularly in the area of reading fluency. The purpose of this study was to investigate if there was a functional relation between repeated reading and choral reading and the words correct per minute of six high school students with significantintellectual disabilities. Additionally, the extent to which fluency impacts reading comprehension was also examined. Five of …

A Study Of Kentucky School District Websites: They’Re Colorful And Informative….But Are They Ada Compliant?, John A. Huss, Shannon Eastep

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

An often-overlooked component of a school district website is the necessity for that website to be accessible to those with disabilities, while following the guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 508 of the Workforce Rehabilitation Act. This study investigated the accessibility of school district websites in Kentucky by selecting a random sample of 50 school districts and analyzing their home pages using WAVE (Web Accessibility Versatile Evaluator), which reports accessibility violations by annotating a copy of the page that was evaluated and presenting embedded icons and indicators to disclose breaches with ADA. Out of 50 districts, …

The Efficacy Of Teacher Made Special Education Referrals In Appalachian And Non-Appalachian Schools Of Kentucky, John T. Elliott

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

This quantitative study utilized a causal-comparative research design to determine the difference in efficacy between teacher made special education referrals in Appalachian and non-Appalachian schools of Kentucky. Data were provided from the 2014-2015 academic year. A total of 109 Kentucky schools provided data for the study. This study will help educators better understand multi-disciplinary referrals for special education as they relate to referral efficacy as based upon student qualification rates. This quantitative study determined the difference between special education qualification rates for teacher made referrals in Appalachian and non-Appalachian schools in the state of Kentucky.

2017-12-08, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

Professional Practices (Art 399), Madison Henderson

Professional Practices (ART 399)

I’ve always had a passion for art and design as well as assisting those with mental and physical disabilities. When I was searching for a career in the arts and I discovered Art Therapy I knew I had found my calling. Art has always assisted me through my life experiences. I want to be able to help those with mental and physical disabilities do the same.

The major inspiration for my work is being able to assist individuals with mental and physical disabilities and seeing their everyday struggles and how they overcome them, that your typical individual would take for …

Inside Research: Q&A With Katalin Tari, Rachel L. Wood

Steeplechase: An ORCA Student Journal

No abstract provided.

Disaster And Recovery: The Effects Of Post-Disaster Aid On Economic Development, Joshua M. Drouin

Steeplechase: An ORCA Student Journal

The effects of aid on economic development is topic typically studied from the perspective of corruption and allocative efficiency. We examine aid to less developed nations from a different viewpoint; assuming aid reaches the intended recipients, does it actually benefit them? We utilize Indonesia and the 2004 earthquake and tsunami as a natural experiment to observe the influx of aid, and compare the regions development before and after the disaster. By establishing a baseline before the disaster, and utilizing a new start point after the destruction, we can gauge the reconstruction efforts and observe whether aid is beneficial or harmful. …

"Ever True And Loyal:" Mary Todd Lincoln As A Kentuckian, Andrew Landreth

Scholars Week

This paper considers Mary Todd Lincoln from the perspective of her relationship with her home state of Kentucky. Utilizing her own writings and those of her contemporaries, as well as secondary studies, this paper argues that Mary Todd Lincoln's life and relationships embodied many of the same contradictions of her home state and that important aspects of her public and private life were influenced by her upbringing in antebellum Kentucky. Particular emphasis is placed on her views of slavery and on her relationship with the Todd family during the Civil War.

Phthalate And Non-Phthalate Plasticizers In Indoor Dust From Childcare Facilities, Salons, And Homes Across The Usa, Bikram Subedi, Kenneth Sullivan, Birendra Dhungana

Faculty & Staff Research and Creative Activity

The quality of indoor environment has received considerable attention owing to the declining outdoor human activities and the associated public health issues. The prolonged exposure of children in childcare facilities or the occupational exposure of adults to indoor environmental triggers can be a culprit of the pathophysiology of several commonly observed idiopathic syndromes. In this study, concentrations of potentially toxic plasticizers (phthalates as well as non-phthalates) were investigated in 28 dust samples collected from three different indoor environments across the USA. The mean concentrations of non-phthalate plasticizers [acetyl tri-n-butyl citrate (ATBC), di-(2-ethylhexyl) adipate (DEHA), and di-isobutyl adipate (DIBA)] …

Working With Latinos In Rural Communities: “Nuts And Bolts”, Wilma Cordova, Aparecida De Fátima Cordeiro Dutra

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Latinos currently compromise 16% of the entire U.S. population and 9.3% live in rural areas ((U.S. Census, 2010). These current percentages indicate that most social workers will work with this population at least once during their careers. Therefore, it is important that social workers develop skills and knowledge to work effectively with Latinos. Working with Latinos in our current sociopolitical climate poses many challenges for social workers working in rural areas. However, if social workers adhere to the guidelines and standards initially established by the profession and implement best practices many of their efforts will be successful. This chapter aims …

Maneuverability Experiences Faced By Individuals Who Use Wheelchairs In Rural Settings: A Qualitative Analysis, Kaycee Lynn Bills

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

People who have never been in a wheelchair do not understand how difficult simple tasks such as going to work, school, or completely daily living tasks can be. Many studies have discussed the experiences of those who use wheelchairs for mobility. This study qualitatively examines the daily experiences those who use wheelchairs face, despite the advances in policies to accommodate for people who have disabilities. The purpose of this study was to address this social problem by interviewing those who use wheelchairs in order to identify the day-to-day challenges that these individuals face. The sample derived from young adults living …

Book Review: Bushwhackers: Guerrilla Warfare, Manhood, And The Household In Civil War Missouri

Jackson Purchase Historical Society Journal Archive

Book Review

Bushwhackers: Guerrilla Warfare, Manhood, and the Household in Civil War Missouri

Melony Schemberger

Book Review: The Rivers Ran Backward: The Civil War And The Remaking Of The American Middle Border

Jackson Purchase Historical Society Journal Archive

Book Review

The Rivers Ran Backward: The Civil War and the Remaking of the American Middle Border

Carl C. Creason

2017-06-09, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

2017-04-21, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

Autistic Traits And Executive Functioning, Meagan Smith

Scholars Week

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a term used to encompass all of the varying degrees of the developmental disorder known as Autism. Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder struggle with areas of executive functioning such as cognitive flexibility, planning, visual/visuo-spatial working memory, and verbal fluency compared to typically-developing individuals. This research project seeks to measure the amount of Autistic-like traits/tendencies of individuals who are not diagnosed with Autism Spectrum disorder and compare their level of Autistic tendencies to their ability to perform various cognitive tasks. Participants will first take the Autism Quotient--a questionnaire determining their level of autistic-like traits. Following this, participants …

Same Words, Different Impressions: How Accent Upstages Words In Communication, Alexandria Farris

Scholars Week

The current study investigated how different non-native accents of English are perceived. A person's accent can be used to take the place of the individual's race or any other marker used to make judgements (Shuck, 2006). Participants listened to a recording of one out of five non-American female speakers of English from Mexico, Russia, Germany, India, or China, or a female native speaker of American English; the participants heard either a formal or informal text and then evaluated the speaker on factors of competence, caring/goodwill, and trustworthiness. Demographic data on age, gender, languages spoken, extent travelled, and time lived in …

Project Lead The Way 2017 Program Booklet, Project Lead The Way/Posters-At-The-Capitol

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Project Lead The Way 2017 Program Booklet

Contents:

Schedule of Activities

Map

Participant Listing

Student Abstracts

Posters-At-The-Capitol 2017 Program Booklet, Posters-At-The-Capitol

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Posters-at-the-Capitol 2017 Program Booklet

Contents:

Welcoming Remarks

Posters-at-the-Capitol Organizing Committee

Welcome Letter from Mr. Robert King

Schedule of Activities

Mezzanine Map

Participant Listings

Eastern Kentucky University

Kentucky State University

Kentucky Community & Technical College System

Morehead State University

Murray State University

Northern Kentucky University

University of Louisville

University of Kentucky

Western Kentucky University

Programs of Distinction

Student Abstracts

Framing The Talk: Scholarship As Conversation In The Health Sciences, Candace K. Vance

Faculty & Staff Research and Creative Activity

Scholarship as Conversation, one of the threshold concepts in ACRL’s Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, is and always will be an important concept for students to understand. The idea behind this frame has traditionally been introduced to students across the disciplines in the context of citing sources correctly, giving scholarly attribution, and avoiding plagiarism. These tenets are repeated in English class lectures, library orientations, as well as many other classes requiring research and writing. The Scholarship as Conversation frame continues to reflect these tenets in the knowledge practices; however, the frame has much broader implications that are crucial …

Growing Old In America, Where Do We Go From Here?, Holly Trevino

Integrated Studies

We at times find ourselves with an elderly grandparent, parent, sibling, partner or friend and we not sure what the next step is for them concerning their healthcare of everyday living and how to obtain it. This paper will help you explore the different options of care from home care to skilled nursing facilities and everything in-between. It will also give you information to help relieve stress worry if the decision you have made is the best fit for your loved one.

Correctional Recreation: An Overview, Michael Ryan Alexander

Integrated Studies

This paper will examine different aspects related to correctional recreation with the intent of establishing that it is a valuable tool and should be continually implemented in prisons. A multitude of sources and studies were researched and used to provide the information. The history of recreation in correctional settings is presented as well as the types of recreation that have been made available in institutions across the country. The benefits and goals of correctional recreation are then examined. These benefits include physical and psychological gains, increasing institutional safety, as well as reducing recidivism. The role recreation plays in institutions is …

Healthcare Facilities Management, Harold Lucas

Integrated Studies

Abstract

Healthcare is an ever changing industry and signs show that this will most likely be the case for many years to come. In order to have healthcare, companies must have facilities in which to provide said care. This paper will focus on those facilities and what it takes to keep them operating at an optimum state. Facilities management is a quite broad topic when looking at any industry but when it comes to the facilities required to provide patient care the spectrum is mind boggling.

Healthcare facilities must have people to maintain them. These people are required to be …

The Effect Of The Affordable Care Act On The Financial Stability Of The Healthcare System, Andrew Emrick

Integrated Studies

This paper explores published articles that report on results from research conducted about the successes of the Affordable Care Act and its relationship to the financial health of the healthcare industry. While efforts of the ACA to move healthcare towards financial stability have broad sweeping implications across the healthcare industry it is not clear whether the efforts were enough to stem the rising costs of healthcare in the United States. Ellis and Orszag (2007), theorized that the changes under the ACA to further educate patients on treatments would lead to a reduction in healthcare expenditures. Regulatory changes to the insurance …

Workplace Violence In Healthcare, William A. Burden

Integrated Studies

Workplace violence occurs in every industry and field; however it is most prevalent in the healthcare environment. Healthcare workers face many obstacles in regards to violence. They are tasked with dealing with difficult patients, who are often at their lowest point. Healthcare staff must be able to identify escalating behaviors and know the proper interventions, to prevent or lessen the impact of potential violence behaviors.

The first step in this process is learning what to look for and how it impacts the working and home lives of the healthcare workers. Violence in healthcare is broad; it can be attributed to …