Digital Commons Network^™

Making The Case For Career Academies In Shaping Pre-Collegiate Students For Stem Career Pathways, Felix Quayson

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

Career academies are increasingly important in preparing pre-collegiate high school students for STEM pathways by connecting academic learning, technical skill development, career identity, and postsecondary readiness. STEM-focused career academies function as structured bridges between secondary education, higher education, and the labor market. Through small learning communities, interdisciplinary curricula, employer partnerships, work-based learning, and early exposure to college and career expectations, career academies help students understand STEM not only as school subjects but as possible futures. Research suggests that career academies can improve student engagement, support school persistence, and strengthen labor market outcomes when implemented with fidelity. The article concludes that …

A Vision For S.P.A.M. — Smart Planning For Accessibility In Micro-Communities, Alexis Myra Castillo Tamayo

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

The selection of a capstone topic is therefore deliberate. It requires engaging with issues that are not only architecturally relevant, but personally meaningful and socially significant. In this project, that focus returns to my hometown of Lāhainā, Maui—a place deeply rooted in history, culture, and community. In recent years, and especially following the events of 2023, the need to reconsider how design can support resilience, safety, and connection has become increasingly urgent. These conditions reveal that rebuilding is not solely about replacing what was lost, but about rethinking systems that shape everyday life. This capstone is grounded in that premise. …

Tracing The Mirage: Designing For The Unseen Community, Yasmine Bannoura

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

Tracing the Mirage: Designing for the Unseen Community explores how the temporary urbanism of Burning Man can inform more human-centered, experiential, and community-driven approaches to architecture and urban design in Las Vegas. Through research, interviews, surveys, and speculative gateway designs, the project reimagines arrival, identity, and connection within the desert landscape.

Volunteer Experiences In Outdoor Recreation: Navigating Uncertainty And Belonging, Morgan R. Purdy

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Volunteers play a central role in the operation of outdoor recreation areas, yet their positions often lack formal training, clear authority, and consistent structural guidance. While organizational socialization research has focused primarily on paid employees, less is known about how volunteers in outdoor contexts navigate uncertainty and develop identity through communication. Guided by organizational socialization theory and volunteer communication scholarship, this qualitative study examines two research questions: How do outdoor recreation volunteers manage uncertainty during socialization? And how does volunteering shape their sense of identity and belonging? Drawing on 13 semi-structured interviews and prolonged ethnographic fieldwork within a public land …

After The Final Whistle: Designing The Future Of Stadiums, Alan Zabdyel Garcia

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

After the Final Whistle: Designing the Future of Stadiums explores how the lifespan of aging and abandoned stadiums can be extended through adaptive reuse and community-centered design. As billions of dollars continue to be invested into sports infrastructure, many stadiums face obsolescence after only a few decades, often leaving behind urban voids and environmental waste. This design capstone develops a framework for evaluating stadium transformation through multiple lenses including adaptability, economics, urban planning, history, environmental impact, politics, sporting needs, and community engagement. Using case studies such as Sam Boyd Stadium and Cashman Field in Las Vegas, the research explores how …

From Exhibition To Engagement: The Development Of A Community Engagement Ecosystem At The Marjorie Barrick Museum Of Art, Zida Wang

Community Engagement Expo Research Posters

This poster examines how the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas has developed a community engagement ecosystem through exhibitions, public programming, partnerships, and educational initiatives. Using the Living Here exhibition as a case study, the project demonstrates how university museums can function as community-centered spaces that foster dialogue, belonging, and civic participation. The poster highlights collaborative partnerships, oral history initiatives, student learning opportunities, K–12 engagement programs, and the future expansion of Living Here as a national traveling exhibition. The model positions community engagement as an ongoing process that extends beyond individual exhibitions and supports …

Housewerk: How Drag Performers Engage In Emotional Labor While Navigating Community Care, Steph O. Landeros

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation examines drag performance as a form of service labor shaped by emotional labor, community care, and identity-based inequality. Drawing on interviews with drag performers shows how drag labor blends artistic skill, emotional regulation, interpersonal care, and entrepreneurial labor. While these demands mirror service sector roles in other industries, drag remains underrecognized and undervalued, particularly for performers who do not conform to white, cisgender norms. The study introduces Housewerk—an adaptation of Marlon Bailey’s concept of housework (Bailey, 2013)—to describe the mix of paid and unpaid labor drag performers engage in. Housewerk captures how performers must balance self-preservation (branding, income, …

Mass Shootings And Trauma-Informed Pedagogy, Kelly Stith

English Faculty Research

I am sitting in the University of Nevada Las Vegas Special Collections archive room in the Lied Library. I came here before to donate a zine of a previously published essay, “Still Echoes,” and photographs to a project they are coordinating in remembrance of the December 6, 2023, mass shooting. The Special Collections team was gracious enough to allow me to investigate other artifacts, including several handwritten condolence cards left at campus memorials. Being here is harrowing and reminds me that these are not just mere notes but reflections of people’s grief and the reckoning with a tragedy that rocked …

Suburban Sustainability Lessons From History And Environment, Innovations For Tomorrow, Joan Barlongo

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

This study explores the re-imagining of outdoor spaces in suburban homes within the context of Las Vegas, utilizing vernacular architecture principles and climate-responsive sustainable solutions to enhance residents’ quality of life. Las Vegas, situated in a desert climate, presents unique challenges in terms of sustainable living and outdoor comfort due to extreme temperatures and limited water resources.

By incorporating vernacular architectural elements and adopting climate-responsive strategies, this study aims to propose innovative approaches to outdoor space design that promote environmental sustainability, cultural identity, and improved well-being for suburban residents. Through an analysis of vernacular architecture, climate data, and sustainable design …

Addressing Challenges Faced By Public Organizations: The Central Role Of Agility At The Federal Level During The Covid-19 Crisis, Shuktika Chatterjee

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation investigates the role of organizational agility in public organizations (such as the United States Federal Agencies) and demonstrates how agility works in public institutions. This study explores how organizational agility within public institutions can lead to successes and prevent failures stemming from underutilized agility, identifies the societal demographics impacted by these outcomes, and offers recommendations for effectively implementing agility to enhance efficiency and societal progress. Agility in sum, is adaptability and proactiveness. If developed and practiced by public organizations, this process can avert prominent institutional failings that impede the dispersal of services and resources that would promote social …

Examining The Social Equity Pillar Of Sustainability: The Effects Of Public Participation And State Actions On Local Social Services Initiatives, Jennifer Mary Crownhart

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Sustainability policies are vital in promoting social equity in municipalities across the United States. When examining economic development, environment protection, and social equity, the three pillars of sustainability, the third pillar of social equity is shown in research to be largely ignored. Using understanding drawn from co-production theory and the multilevel governance perspective, this study proposed to advance the literature on urban sustainability by examining the effects of public participation and state grants of local authority on municipal social equity. Affordable housing, transportation, and childcare programs are essential in promoting livability and social equity within urban communities. National survey data …

Birth Justice Philly: Equitable Community Engagement In Action, Simone N. Snead, Imani Davis, Samantha Shuster, Elizabeth Guman, Cynthia Estremera Gauthier, Aasta D. Mehta

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

This article describes how a multi-sector coalition focusing on carrying out recommendations of the Philadelphia Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC) engages community participation through the development of equitable strategies that culminate in the implementation of actionable methods to improve perinatal outcomes.

The U.S. maternal mortality crisis continues to impact countless families and communities. Despite having some of the finest academic medical centers in the nation and a functioning county-level maternal mortality review committee, the maternal mortality rate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is far above the national average. Vital statistics show that Philadelphia’s rate of pregnancy-related deaths from 2012 to 2018 was …

Monetized Competitive Peer-To-Peer Skill-Based Game Play–An Introduction, Becky Harris, Bill Coley, Peter Gan, Anh-Vu Nguyen

International Gaming Institute Faculty Research

The COVID pandemic has changed the world in ways, both large and small, forever. One unexpected way the world changed was when live sports suddenly went dark and esports began experiencing attention from betting audiences that were suddenly starving for content.¹ Esports also received a second glance from gaming regulators. And, though not exactly suddenly (even though it felt like it), approvals for wagering on esports were granted in a variety of jurisdictions, most notably Colorado and Nevada.²

A subset of the larger esports environment, peer-to-peer (P2P) skill-based play is hardly a new concept. You can find it …

Application Of Lanthanides In Wastewater Treatment And Water Reuse, George William Kajjumba

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Much of the world’s population feed on grains (wheat, rice, and corn). Corn is as sensitive as it is productive. This thirsty, fast-growing plant goes into thermal shock in drought. In 2014, California lost over $2.2 billion in crop production due to drought. The Horn of Africa (in 2011) and Sahel (in 2012) faced humanitarian disasters due to food and water scarcity. The higher frequency of climate change and the erratic nature of rain, combined with underlying economic and social vulnerabilities, has meant that food and water scarcity is here to stay. To improve food and water scarcity, water reclamation …

Recruitment And Advocacy For Clinician Involvement In Pro Bono Physical Therapy Service-Learning Program, Gilberto Carrillo, Gavin Brady, Felicia Doblado, Alyssa Woo Hatch

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background and Purpose: Service-learning allows Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students to develop important professional skills and addresses community-based needs. When integrated into physical therapy education, it can be a powerful tool for increasing students' altruism and social responsibility. Many clinicians desire to participate in pro bono physical therapy (PT) services. Therefore, the responsibility of promoting and advertising these programs falls upon the student. This paper describes various methods for recruiting clinician involvement to improve the sustainability of a student led pro bono clinic, as well as how the students advocated for pro bono services in the state of Nevada …

Developing Strategic Partnerships To Impact Population Health: A Professional Development Module, Andra S. Scano

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Massive organizational changes occurring in our health care delivery system have provided opportunities for nurse leaders who think in terms of population health, to develop new skills needed to impact the populations they serve. Aspects of these changes include a focus on the delivery of primary and community-based care and the development of partnerships, alliances, and other linkages across settings to build integrated systems (Williams, 2020, p. 17). Turner (2020) asserts that population-focused nurse leaders are charged with creating a new future for healthier communities which often involves strategic partnership development. However, strategic partnership development is a complex task that …

Generational Impacts Of 1930s Housing Discrimination And The Imperative Need For The Healthy Start Initiative To Address Structural Racism, Brittney Butler, Michael Outrich, Jessica Roach, Arthur James

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

For nearly three decades, Healthy Start Initiative(HSI) has served communities with high rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes--with the goal to lower them by 50%. Despite a large focus on social determinants of health, HSI has narrowly addressed racism. The effects of legal housing discrimination continue to be felt and have profound implications for pregnancy. To understand the historical context of racism in these communities, we geospatially evaluated the relationship between HSI service areas and Home-Owners Loan Corporation(HOLC) graded maps. Using data from John Snow Inc, National Healthy Start Association, and Mapping Inequality we found that 73 of 100 communities served …

How Can Care Settings For People With Intellectual Disabilities Embed Health Promotion?, Kristel Vlot-Van Anrooij, Monique C. J. Kiks-Leensen, Anneke Van Der Cruijsen, Henk Jansen, Koos Van Der Velden, Geraline Leusink, Thessa I. M. Hilgenkamp, Jenneken Naaldenberg

Physical Therapy Faculty Research

Background:People with intellectual disabilities (ID) depend on their environment to live healthily. Asset‐based health promotion enhances a settings’ health‐promoting capacity starting with identifying protective or promotive factors that sustain health. Method: This inclusive mixed‐methods study used group sessions to generate and rank ideas on assets supporting healthy nutrition and physical activity in Dutch intellectual disability care settings. Participants included people with moderate intellectual disabilities and family and care professionals of people with severe/profound intellectual disabilities. Results: Fifty‐one participants identified 185 assets in group sessions. They include the following: (i) the social network and ways “people” can support, (ii) assets in/around …

Using The Technology Acceptance Model To Analyze K–12 Students’ Behavioral Intention To Use Augmented Reality In Learning, Lei Ping, Yan Liu

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

Augmented reality (AR) has gained popularity in K-12 education in the past decades; researchers and educators generally agree that AR is a useful pedagogical tool in teaching because it is grounded on efficient teaching and learning models such as constructivist learning, situated learning, and inquiry-based learning. Research on AR in the K-12 context tends to focus on its impact on learning processes and outcomes. However, it is essential to understand K-12 students’ behavioral intentions of use for AR—their perceptions of usefulness, ease of use, and enjoyment—so that teachers can better design and integrate AR-based learning into their courses. Guided by …

Mining The Borderlands: Industry, Capital, And The Emergence Of Engineers In The Southwest Territories, 1855-1910. Grossman, Sarah E.M. University Of Nevada Press, 2018, James Altman

Executive Vice President & Provost Faculty Research

In Mining the Borderlands: Industry, Capital, and the Emergence of Engineers in the Southwest Territories, 1855‐1910, distinguished scholar Sarah E.M. Grossman examines the early history of commercial mining along the US‐Mexico border. She brings to the task her extensive knowledge of the region, and a forensic detective's thirst for the truth. Her mission is to understand precisely how much, and in what specific ways, various commercial mining ventures in the desert Southwest contributed not only to the economic development of the region, but also to improvements in mining techniques, engineering methods, equipment, efficiency, working conditions, mining education, and most importantly, …

Adea-Adee Shaping The Future Of Dental Education Iii: Engaging With Global Networking To Enable Global Oral Health, Upen S. Patel, Lior Shapira, Jennifer E. Gallagher, Joan Davis, Lily T. Garcia, Richard W. Valachovic

Dental Medicine Faculty Research

Global networking has been identified as an important method of enhancing health care education and services in the field of dentistry.1 The ability to share expertise, resources, knowledge, and experience to benefit all is highly desired among students, educators, health care professionals, and communities globally. Both our student and patient populations are dynamic societies that are becoming increasingly complex and facing growing needs and expectations, which is a constant challenge for educators and health care professionals to satisfy.2 The key question, stemming from the Global Networking (GN) workshop of the 2017 ADEE‐ADEA Shaping the Future of Dental Education II meeting, …

Aer-075, Yasmin Soliman

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

Anticipating the potential future changes of airport design and expansion along with city planning for the purpose of bringing the two entities in closer alignment with one another is the main purpose of this book.

By conducting a timeline analysis of five different US cities and their airports, conclusions were drawn from tracking the relationship between the growth patterns of both. This allowed for a discovery of methods to increase connectivity with one another. These conclusions were followed by an overview of the jet industry and its possible future impacts on the way airports are designed, considering future adaptations of …

Urban Farming In Inner-City Multi-Storey Car-Parking Structures: Adaptive Reuse Potential, Monika Szopińska-Mularz, Steffen Lehmann

Architecture Faculty Research

The future direction of transport and new global concepts of low-carbon mobility are likely to increase the number of obsolete inner-city multi-storey car-parking structures. The adaptive reuse of these garages is challenged through the continuity of urban change and the need for new mixed-use typologies. The development of technologically advanced farming in these structures could become an innovative strategy that as an interim solution justifies renovation versus demolition and new construction. The paper presents findings from the first stage of the multiple-site case study research on car-parking structures strategically selected in 3 UK cities (Portsmouth, Bristol and Brighton). In order …

Promoting Community And Population Health In Public Health And Medicine: A Stepwise Guide To Initiating And Conducting Community-Engaged Research, Scott D. Rhodes, Amanda E. Tanner, Lilli Mann-Jackson, Jorge Alonzo, Florence Siman, Eunyoung Y. Song, Jonathan Bell, Megan B. Irby, Aaron T. Vissman, Robert E. Aronson

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Various methods, approaches, and strategies designed to understand and reduce health disparities, increase health equity, and promote community and population health have emerged within public health and medicine. One such approach is community-engaged research. While the literature describing the theory, principles, and rationale underlying community engagement is broad, few models or frameworks exist to guide its implementation. We abstracted, analyzed, and interpreted data from existing project documentation including proposal documents, project-specific logic models, research team and partnership meeting notes, and other materials from 24 funded community-engaged research projects conducted over the past 17 years. We developed a 15-step process designed …

Mapping The Alignment Of Programmatic Mission, Functions And Outcomes With The Attainment Of Health Equity: An Overview Of The Approach And Initial Outcomes Through The Lens Of The Usda’S Cyfar Scp Program, Onyemaechi Nweke, Kara Ryan, Mpp, Bonita Williams, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Eliminating health disparities is a priority across national agenda and initiatives such as the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities (NPA), the National Prevention Strategy, and Healthy People 2020. To advance this priority under the NPA, the Federal Interagency Health Equity Team (FIHET), which is an NPA federal cross-sector and collaborative platform, initiated a voluntary pilot “health equity mapping” exercise in 2014. This exercise served as a strategy to clarify the strategic alignment between participant federal partner program missions, goals, and activities, and the goal to end health disparities and promote health equity. The mapping process included an …

The Changing Geography Of Poverty & Opportunity In Nevada, Elizabeth Kneebone

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

Today, suburbs are home to the largest and fastest growing poor population in the country. Regions like Las Vegas have been at the forefront of that trend since 2000. Elizabeth Kneebone, co-author of the book Confronting Suburban Poverty in America, will discuss the rapid growth of poverty and concentrated disadvantage in the suburbs; how these trends intersect with the changing location of affordable housing, services, transit, and jobs; and what the changing geography of poverty means for policymakers and practitioners in Nevada working to promote economic opportunity throughout the state.

Hawai‘I’S Caring Communities Initiative: Mobilizing Rural And Ethnic Minority Communities For Youth Suicide Prevention, Jane J. Chung-Do, Deborah A. Goebert, Kris Bifulco, Tasha Tydingco, Antonia Alvarez, Davis Rehuher, Jeanelle Sugimoto-Matsuda, Bridget Arume, Pohai Wilcox

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Youth suicide is a serious, yet preventable, public health concern for ethnic minorities and rural communities. This paper describes the youth leadership model utilized by Hawai‘i’s Caring Communities Initiative (HCCI) and provides reflections on the important factors for success in implementing a youth and community advocacy project for youth suicide prevention. HCCI partnered with six youth and community organizations who serve ethnic minority and rural communities across the State of Hawai‘i to train youth leaders and community members in suicide prevention, in order to develop community awareness activities that are grounded in each community’s strengths and needs. The work of …

Community Based Participatory Research: The Application And Lessons Learned From A Study With Lgb College Students, Caitlin M. Stover

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals are members of a vulnerable group where health disparities have been identified. To gain a better understanding of the LGB college student healthcare experience and its contribution to the healthcare disparities found in LGB population, a community based participatory research (CBPR) approach was used to fill the gap. This paper will outline the CBPR process with an emphasis on how the principle investigator applied the tenets of CBPR when working with a local LGB college community. Several lessons learned from the research process are also shared in this paper.

Assessment Of The Perceived Role And Function Of A Community Advisory Board In A Nih Center Of Excellence: Lessons Learned, Margaret L. Walsh, Desiree Rivers, Maria Pinzon, Nina Entrekin, Emily M. Hite, Julie A. Baldwin

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: The Community Advisory Board (CAB) was a vital component of the Center for Equal Health. The center addressed health disparities through community-based research and educational outreach initiatives. Objectives: To evaluate the perceived relationship of the CAB and Center, explore members’ perceptions of the CAB’s role, and elicit feedback on how to enhance the relationship between the Center and the CAB. Methods: Ten in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed with a focus on predetermined codes. Results: Main themes focused on perception of CAB roles and need for utilization of board members; overall center challenges; …

Recognizing The Influence Of Social Determinants On Hiv Risk Behaviors And The Need For Structural Interventions To Prevent Hiv In Women, Arlene Edwards

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The design and implementation of structural interventions may provide for simultaneous and longitudinal responses to prevention needs in multiple contexts as defined by social determinants, thus varied opportunities exist to respond to the HIV prevention needs of women. According to the CDC, in 2010, the rate of new HIV infections among black women was 20 times that of white women, and the rate among Hispanic/Latino women was 4 times the rate of white women. Additionally, 86% of HIV infections in women were attributed to heterosexual contact and 14% to injection drug use (CDC, 2012). These numbers are reflected outside the …