Digital Commons Network^™

Good Love Is Black: Stories On Black Queer Living In The American South, Danielle Buckingham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Black Queer and Trans folks conjure love in their lives, by any means necessary, even in the face of terror. This is what has been at the root of their survival against the anti-Blackness and heterosexism that permeates the nation. Good Love Is Black, highlights their journeys navigating multiple marginalized identities, particularly in the American South. For this project, I spoke with folks who are natives of or currently residing in Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, Texas, and Kentucky. This written thesis accompanies a narrative podcast that explores the ways in which their Black, Queer, and Southern Identity informs how they …

"How It Was Made", Bethany Fitts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This is a meta-autoethnography describing the researcher’s unfocused, rhizomatic research process throughout the COVID19 pandemic. Themes explored are the COVID19 pandemic, family, death, climate change, queer love, represenation, academia, genre, and religion. The study shows how multiple scales of grief arise during the research process. I locate this method within postcolonial theory of autoethnography that seeks to diversify structures within the academic genre.

Examining The Effect Of The Florida Talented Twenty Program On Black Acceptance Rates At Flagship Institutions In Alabama, Juwan D. Robinson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Americans are more college-educated today than at any point in history. Black Americans have experienced persistent inequities in higher education, especially in southern states. Alabama’s history of inequity, segregation, and lack of signature initiative to generate college access maintain and sustain gaps in higher education for Black Alabamians. Black students are especially underrepresented at the two flagship institutions in the state of Alabama. In a complex legal and political context, race-conscious efforts are often challenging to advance. This positions race-neutral efforts such as percentage plans as more viable in states such as Alabama. This study examines the application of the …

Investigations Of Molecular Complexes For Catalytic Water Oxidation And Carbon Dioxide Reduction, Sha Tamanna Sahil

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Modern society and technological advancements rely on a reliable and continuous supply of energy. The sun has always been the ultimate source of energy and mediated by mother nature; however, the continued reliance and use of fossil fuel resources (i.e. coal, oil, and natural gas) is causing increasingly negative environmental effects. For instance, the emission of tons of greenhouse gases from fossil fuel combustion is a leading cause of global warming, rising sea levels, and human health issues. Indeed, the concentration of CO2, a product of combustion, recently exceeded 415 ppm, rising from a pre-industrial level of less than 300 …

Opioid Tapering And Mental Health Crisis In Older Adults, Shishir Maharjan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background: Opioid tapering and discontinuation have been increasing in recent years with the implementation of national prescribing guidelines. The study aimed to examine the relationship between opioid tapering and mental health crisis events in older Medicare beneficiaries.

Methods: A nested case-control study was conducted using the 2012-2018 5% national Medicare claims data. Older adults with chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) who were receiving long-term opioid therapy (LTOT) were included in the study Cases were defined as individuals experiencing mental health crisis events; controls were identified using incidence density sampling. The opioid tapering velocity was measured in the 120-day hazard period that …

Immune-Related Adverse Events Of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Incidence, Risk Factors, Clinical Outcomes, And Economic Burden In Older Adults With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Yiran Rong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To fill the gap in existing literature related to immune-related adverse events (irAEs) induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), this dissertation focused on: 1) assessing the incidence, spectrum and risk factors for the development of irAEs; 2) assessing the clinical impact of irAE occurrence on survival and treatment discontinuation; 3) analyzing and estimating the incremental economic burden of irAEs among an older population in the United States (US). A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the SEER-Medicare 2020 linkage database in order to evaluate the three study objectives. The dissertation included 8,175 patients diagnosed …

Chemical Imaging Of Latent Fingerprints Using Ftir Microspectroscopy, Reba E.A. Chamblee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Analysis of latent fingerprints, the pattern left behind on surfaces from the friction ridges of a human finger, has been a lead investigative tool in identifying suspects for over a century. Pores from the skin ridges produce natural secretions containing various endogenous compounds that can be transferred onto surfaces that the finger touches. The chemical composition of fingerprint residues can thus contain both natural secretions as well as environmental contaminants collected from surfaces or materials the person has touched. With this, incriminating evidence such as traces of explosives or illicit drugs can be characterized from latent fingerprints, giving strong evidence …

U.S. Gaap Financial Statements Best Practices In Presentation And Disclosure, 76th Edition, 2022; Accounting Trends & Techniques, American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants (Aicpa)

Accounting Trends and Techniques

No abstract provided.

Molecular Design Of Transition Metal Complexes For Photocatalytic Co2 Reduction And Redox Mediation In Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells, Anthony Devdass

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The search for cost-efficient alternate energy sources has been a significant goal of the scientific community. Around 83% of global primary energy consumption currently comes from fossil fuels and this over dependency on fossil fuels has been a major contributor for increased carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere. The safe path is to use carbon-neutral energy sources such as solar, wind, hydroelectric, and geothermal energy or to use these renewable energy sources to drive chemical reactions to convert CO2 to energy rich fuels or fuel precursors. Such a strategy involves storage of energy in the form of chemical bonds …

Resilience Capacity Of School Meal Programs In Southeastern U.S. School Districts During The Covid-19 Pandemic: Findings From Mississippi, Louisiana, And West Virginia, Kritika Gupta

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mississippi (MS), Louisiana (LA), and West Virginia (WV) have some of the nation’s highest rates of poverty and health disparities, reflected in high rates of food insecurity. Many of the school districts in these states have greater than 40% of students qualifying for free meals and, under community eligibility, can provide meals free to all children. School meals play an important role in addressing food insecurity in the U.S. and those were severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The ability of social systems (schools) to continue operations during adverse circumstances (pandemic) to ensure the sustained outcome of interest (food security) …

An Exploration Of Interdisciplinary Graduate Education And Training: Currently Available Information, Perspectives, And Beliefs, David D. Allen Iii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background and Objectives

Interdisciplinary research has come into the limelight over the last 30 years. Current literature identifies interdisciplinary research as having the potential to assist in solving complex contemporary problems or issues through the inclusion of multiple disciplinary perspectives to account for the systematic intricacies therein. This project served as an exploration of interdisciplinary graduate education, graduate interdisciplinary research training, and the practice of interdisciplinary research, using three primary objectives. We first sought to identify and present current information around interdisciplinary graduate education and research training. Second, study personnel aimed to explore opinions and beliefs on interdisciplinary education and …

Beginning Teachers' Perceptions Of New Teacher Mentoring In A Suburban Mississippi School District, Kelly Anne Ladner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

New teacher attrition rates are continuously increasing, thus resulting in large numbers of teacher turnover from year to year. With the ever-growing teacher shortage, replacing new teachers has become even more challenging. If the trend continues, school leaders in the K-12 system will continuously be faced with hiring and training new teachers each year.

The current recruitment model compels teachers to “fake until they make it,” thus resulting in low teacher morale and job satisfaction. Most new teachers experience low morale, classroom management challenges, feelings of isolation, and lack of support from coworkers and administration, which leads to continuously increasing …

Exploratory Studies On The Feasibility Of Developing Microneedles Using Hot Melt Extrusion Coupled With Fused Deposition Modeling 3-D Printing, Nikeeta Palande

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Transdermal drug delivery enables efficient local and systematic drug delivery while offering advantages such as non-invasiveness, patient compliance, and avoidance of first pass metabolism compared to parenteral administration. Due to strong and the multi-layered structure of the skin creates complex barriers which makes the delivery of therapeutic agents across the skin becomes challenging. Microneedles have been shown to deliver drugs through the transdermal route by penetrating the skin’s protective barrier, stratum corneum (SC) and creating a pathway for drug permeation to the dermal tissue. Traditionally, microneedles were fabricated using various types of materials and process such as casting, injection moulding, …

Covid-19 And Headache-Related Disability, Lauren Thaxter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Migraine is a common nervous system disorder that is a leading cause of disability worldwide, and approximately half of individuals with migraine report their migraine attacks cause substantial impairment in activities. A bidirectional relationship exists between migraine and psychological symptoms, and comorbid psychological symptoms compound migraine-related disability. Due to COVID-19 pandemic response procedures, many university students experienced institutional closures and corresponding increases in depression, stress, and anxiety, with the most prominent worries being about one's own health and the health of loved ones. The present study aimed to explore the relationship between COVID-19 status (pre-COVID vs. during COVID) and headache-related …

A Comparison Of Student Academic Policies Across University Of Mississippi Medical Center (Ummc), Farrah Banks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project is a three-part Dissertation in Practice (DiP) that provides a comparison of academic student policies at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC). For the purpose of this study, the term “student academic policies” relates to rules and procedures for grievances, student dismissals, sanctions, and suspensions. At UMMC, potential violations on the part of students can occur based on failure to maintain required academic standards or lapses in professional conduct. An important goal of the manuscript is to reflect on ways to help ensure consistency and fairness in academic student policies based on a comparison of academic standards …

Measuring Impact Of New Teacher Mentoring Programs Through Teacher Sense Of Efficacy Scale, Ezzard Beane

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The education gap between economically advantaged and economically disadvantaged students in the United States is accountable for most of the education gap in the United States and other technologically advanced countries. Unfortunately, the students who require the most academic support and quality instruction often receive instruction from the least qualified. The gap in effective instruction for the economically disadvantaged is related to the quality of instruction which is often facilitated by the least effective and least qualified teachers. The quality of teachers is directly related to the high teacher attrition rates of teachers serving economically disadvantaged students. Maximizing strategies to …

Design And Identification Of Organic Molecules As Agonists Of The Gabab Receptor And As Difluoro-C-Glycosylated Derivatives Of Flavonoids Using Molecular Modeling, Reem Alkhodier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of molecular modeling in pharmaceutical research is continuously growing. This growth is a result of the increasing number of experimental structures, the development of sophisticated modeling methods, and the improvement in computer performance by using GPUs and cloud computing. Nowadays, molecular modeling is routinely used in drug discovery to investigate biological processes and molecular properties. Herein, we use molecular modeling to investigate the behaviors of compounds with unique scaffolds.

Baclofen is the only marketed GABAB receptor agonist that is used for spasticity disorders, and it has shown promise as an anti-abuse agent. However, it has disadvantages that raise …

Implementing Positive Behavior Interventions And Supports At Johnson Elementary School: An Applied Research Study, Authur Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Establishing positive relationships in a school is essential to how the administrators, teachers, students, and staff shape the culture and climate in the learning environment. The purpose of the applied research project was to implement a school wide PBIS program at Johnson Elementary School. Providing the staff with PBIS initial and ongoing professional development was a vital component of the research project. Additionally, utilizing a PBIS Team was pivotal in the project's sustainability. Based on the two-year pre- and post-PBIS implementation data, student discipline decreased significantly with the onset and continuation of PBIS during the 1st year of implementation; however, …

Cellular Mechanisms Of Igf-1 Neuroprotection After Ischemic Stroke, Cellas A. Hayes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Strokes are a leading cause of mortality and disability worldwide; thus, there is a dire need for new, effective pharmacotherapeutics that can be administered to reduce the burden of disease post-insult. Clinical findings have shown that insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels and post-stroke functional outcomes exhibit a positive relationship. Importantly, the administration of exogenous IGF-1 in rodent models of ischemic stroke attenuates neurological damage and functional deficits following stroke. Ongoing stroke damage after the initial insult is primarily induced by increased extracellular glutamate causing substantial neuronal death, increased neuro-inflammation, and leading to greater tissue loss. Evidence from our laboratory has …

Physiological Corticosterone Attenautes Gp120-Mediated Microglial Activation And Is Associated With Reduced Anxiety-Like Behavior In Gp120-Expressing Mice, Emaya Marie Moss

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) persists as a global pandemic. Despite the benefits of combinatorial antiretroviral therapies (cART), virotoxic HIV proteins are still detectable within the central nervous system and approximately half of all cART-treated patients contend with neurological impairments. The mechanisms underlying these effects are not known, but likely involve actions of virotoxic HIV proteins including glycoprotein 120 (gp120). Glycoprotein 120 is neurotoxic, in part due to its capacity to activate microglia. Corticosterone, an endogenous anti-inflammatory, has been found to attenuate neuronal death caused by gp120-induced microglial cytokine production in vitro. But, the concentration-dependent effects of corticosterone to influence microglial …

Linguistic Expressions Of Pidgin In Nigerian Stand-Up Comedy, Jimoh Junior Braimoh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a study of the comics’ lexical choices and how they achieve their goals with words. The comics’ choice of words is far from being incidental, superficial, or supplementary. Performers’ choices of words show how their ideas are embodied in language. That is to say, the effect of how a comedian uses words and humor strategies is vital for understanding the contextual meaning of jokes and how they appeal to logic and reason. The objectives are to identify and categorize lexical choices and interpret their denotative, connotative, and affective meanings. Based on the Incongruity Theory (Attardo, 1994) Data …

Extra-Legal Factors In Juvenile Court Outcomes: What Is The Role Of Youth’S Race/Ethnicity And Family Structure In Disposition Decisions?, Vitoria De Francisco Lopes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Due to the unique nature of the juvenile justice system, its focus on rehabilitation and the population it serves, juvenile court judges serve as the sole decision maker and are given substantial power of discretion. Prior literature has indicated extra-legal factors to influence court outcomes, and scholars have argued that the use of discretion has led to a significant variability in the way youth are treated by juvenile court officials and may contribute to the issue of minority overrepresentation in the juvenile justice system. Yet, family structure has not been examined in depth, especially as it relates to race/ethnicity. The …

Socialization To Research And Sponsored Programs Administration Through Transformative Learning: A Qualitative Exploration Of Faculty Perceptions At The University Of Mississippi, Melissa Hodge-Penn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined faculty socialization at the University of Mississippi regarding research and sponsored program administration through the lens of transformative learning. Participants were 10 tenure track faculty who had been employed at the University of Mississippi no less than one year, no more than seven years, and who had submitted a proposal to or been awarded by an external sponsor to support their research. This study uses a phenomenological design of inquiry where the researcher describes the lived experiences of individuals regarding a phenomenon as defined by the participants through semi-structured interviews. Findings suggested that sponsored research faculty perceived …

Motivation Of Individual Directors: A Consolidated Perspective, Yankun Jia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation studies the motivation of individual directors on the corporate board and the impact of the motivation of individual directors. Building on previous work, I synthesize self-determination theory, identity theory, and social identity theory to build a comprehensive framework to understand the motivation of individual directors. By analyzing the satisfaction or frustration of basic psychological needs, the engagement of social roles, and the self-categorization and social identification process, this dissertation delivers a preliminary probe into the micro-foundations of the motivation of individual directors in the corporate governance literature.

Blood Tide: A Novel, Teagan Kessler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This is a work of fiction about a detective who moves to Louisiana to outrun a tragic incident in his past. In Louisiana, he catches a case involving the sheriff’s daughter, who has gone missing. Later found dead, the woman’s life comes to light through the detective’s investigation, all while he battles his PTSD.

First-Year Students' Perceptions Of Innate Intelligence, Ability, And Interest Across Four Stem Domains: A Comparative Structural Equation Model, Savannah Lea Kelly

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Higher education institutions play a pivotal role in preparing students to acquire the skills necessary to enter the STEM workforce and serve as critical partners in the STEM educational-occupational pipeline. It is imperative that postsecondary institutions encourage equal opportunities for admittance into STEM domains. However, research has consistently demonstrated that gender and racial disparities continue to exist in STEM fields at the postsecondary level, particularly when viewed through the lens of disaggregated disciplinary data. One way to address inequitable attainment across STEM is to evaluate whether students prematurely preclude themselves from STEM participation due to a misalignment between students’ self-perceptions …

Α-Tocopherol Succinate Nano Structured Lipid Carriers For The Ocular Delivery Of The Anticancer Agents And Statistical Modeling Of Release Study Profiles By Linear Mixed Models, Sushrut Marathe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Retinoblastoma (RB) is a rare type of cancer that develops quickly from immature retinal cells. Enucleation, external beam radiotherapy, episcleral plaque radiotherapy, and cryotherapy have been the treatment options for the RB.

Paclitaxel (PTX) is an effective antineoplastic medication with a wide range of applications in the treatment of malignant tumors., systemic toxicity, quick elimination, and resistance limit its clinical use. Due to its limited solubility, PTX formulations have proven difficult to develop, necessitating the use of Cremophor® EL and organic solvents. Furthermore, the blood-retinal barrier prevents PTX from penetrating into the ocular tissues. The goal of this work was …

Meaning In Life And Psychological Distress: Examining Veterans And Psychological Adaptation To Civilian Life, Victoria Mccutcheon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Veterans’ transition from the military to civilian life can be conceptualized as a cultural transition (i.e., acculturation). This transition means leaving the familiarity and consistency of military life and attempting to integrate one’s values, skills, expectations, and identity as a service member into the dominant civilian culture. The present study seeks to examine the psychological adaptation component of acculturation (i.e., the individual’s feelings and perceptions of being in the new culture) in a veteran sample, as it relates to meaning in life. The existing body of veteran literature has demonstrated that meaning and purpose (a distinct component of meaning) are …

Inevitable Mortality And The Incessant Momentum Of Medicalized Death, Clifford Mckay

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Atul Gawande, MD, affirms the inevitability of human mortality and the end of life in natural death. He decries current medical delivery’s incessant momentum toward medicalized death and recommends a meaningful conversation between doctor and patient to chart a course of care that supports what is important to the patient. But the tradition of a doctor’s dominance and a patient’s submissiveness disrupts the conversation. New definitions of both doctor and patient, and the intent to respect a patient’s autonomy, will facilitate decision-making and support patients’ values at the end of life, diminishing the momentum of medicalized death.

The Effects Of Advocate Disclosure On Perceptions Of A Female Child Who Stutters, Peyton Mcknight

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research indicates that people who stutter are frequently attributed with negative stereotypes by listeners as a result of their speech. Previous research has examined the use of self-disclosure in offering the stuttering community a means of acknowledging and sharing the presence of their stuttering with a conversation partner. Subsequently, stuttering self-disclosure has been shown to reduce negative listener perceptions. Select advocate disclosures have also been found to yield beneficial results for a male child who stutters, but the effects of advocate disclosure on perceptions of a female who stutters has remained unexplored. This study expands upon previous research and examines …