Digital Commons Network^™

College For All And The Postsecondary Experiences Of Rural First-Generation College Students: Patterns Of Alignment With A Predominant Master Narrative, Andrew D. Coppens, Sarah Jusseaume, Jayson O. Seaman, Cindy L. Hartman, Erin H. Sharp

Faculty Publications

The aim of this study was to understand the experiences of rural, first-generation college (RFGC) students in relation to dominant culturally normative expectations about postsecondary educational and workforce trajectories. The study adopted patterns of engagement with a master narrative as both a conceptual framework and unit of analysis, examining both biography and cultural ecologies as well as highlighting agency in the lives and choices of study participants. Evidence is drawn from 4 in-depth narrative interviews with each of 14 RFGC students, conducted both at school and students’ homes, from rural and small-town communities. Results show that a master narrative of …

Hope As A Verb: Reflections On The Human And Planetary Health Sidore Symposium, Wania Ahmed

Sustainability Institute Blog

No abstract provided.

Olli Fall 2025 Catalog, Toniann Leavitt

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

No abstract provided.

Unh Healthcare Vitals: Health Insurance Premiums Are Skyrocking For 2026-- Why?, Lucy Hodder

Law Faculty Scholarship

Health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs in New Hampshire are projected to rise sharply in 2026 due to expiring federal subsidies, escalating prescription drug prices, hospital consolidation, workforce shortages, and policy changes. Without intervention, affordability will worsen for individuals and employers, with significant impacts on coverage and access. The report outlines policy recommendations to help mitigate these challenges for Granite Staters.

Office Of Research, Economic Engagement And Outreach Update, October 1, 2025, Office Of Research, Economic Engagement And Outreach

Office of Research, Economic Engagement and Outreach

No abstract provided.

Covering The Care: Hospital Consolidations Lead To Higher Healthcare Costs, Kimberly Persson, Deborah Fournier

All Materials

No abstract provided.

2025 Ccfan Accomplishments, Mikayla Cerney

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.

Legal Guide For New Hampshire Agricultural Producers, Updated 2025, Seth Wilner

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.

Granite Staters Worried About Political Violence, Mass Shootings; Trump Approval Continues To Slide 9/30/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Three-quarters of New Hampshire residents say they are worried about political violence, while two-thirds are concerned about mass shootings. A majority in the Granite State oppose President Trump's deployment of the National Guard to American cities and few would feel safer if soldiers were deployed to cities in New Hampshire. Approval of Trump's handling of foreign policy, the economy, and his overall job have declined since August, and approval of his handling of the economy is at its lowest point in either of Trump's terms. Just over one-third of state residents approve of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. …

Trump Approval Low In Rhode Island; Many Fear Mass Shootings And Political Violence 9/30/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

President Trump’s approval rating remains low as Rhode Islanders disapprove of his use of the National Guard in American cities and have increased fears of political violence. A majority also disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy and disapprove of his actions directed at the Federal Reserve. Less than one-third of Rhode Islanders approve of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s handling of his job.

Approval Of Trump Remains Low In Connecticut Amid Worries Over Political Violence, Mass Shootings 9/30/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Approval of President Donald Trump's job performance remains low in Connecticut, although nearly all Republicans approve. More than two-thirds of Connecticut residents are very or somewhat worried about political violence and mass shootings harming them or their family, while a majority are also worried about a foreign terrorist attack. A majority feel the federal government is not justified in sending the National Guard to American cities, and a plurality would feel less safe if the National Guard or other soldiers were deployed to cities in Connecticut. One-third of state residents approve of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy …

Bay Staters Reject National Guard In Cities, Would Feel Less Safe If Guard Sent To Massachusetts 9/30/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Massachusetts residents think sending the National Guard to American cities is not justified, and more than half would feel less safe if the Guard or other soldiers were deployed to cities in Massachusetts. More than two-thirds of state residents are worried about being victimized by political violence or mass shootings. Six in ten disapprove of President Trump's job performance and two-thirds disapprove of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s handling of his job.

University Of New Hampshire 2025-2026 Faculty Senate Xxx - September 29, 2025 Minutes Summary, Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Agendas & Minutes

No abstract provided.

Bay Staters Believe Healey Deserves Re-Election, Oppose Immigration Crackdown In Boston 9/29/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Just over half of Massachusetts residents approve of the job Governor Maura Healey has done and say that she deserves to be re-elected. Many Republican primary voters are largely undecided about the candidate they want to face Healey. In the race for U.S. Senate from Massachusetts, less than half of Bay Staters believe incumbent Ed Markey deserves to be re-elected. Most Massachusetts residents feel safe in Boston, support Boston's immigration policies, and oppose the increased deployment of federal personnel to enforce immigration policies in the city. Majorities support a limit on annual rent increases and Massachusetts officials coordinating with other …

Most Connecticut Dems Want Lamont To Run Again; Residents Oppose State Stake In Wnba's Sun 9/29/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Just over half of adults in Connecticut approve of Governor Ned Lamont's job performance and are divided on whether he deserves to be re-elected. Less than half of state Democrats want potential Democratic candidates William Tong, Susan Bysiewicz, or Sean Scanlon to run for governor. On state issues, a majority oppose a proposal by Lamont to use state pension funds to purchase part of the WNBA's Connecticut Sun as part of a plan to keep the team in the state. Six in ten Connecticut residents support Connecticut working with other northeastern states on vaccine requirements.

Approval Of Mckee Remains Low In Ri, Few Likely Democratic Primary Voters Back Him Against Foulkes 9/29/2025, Unh Survey Center

All UNH Survey Center Polls

Seven in ten Rhode Islanders disapprove of Governor Dan McKee's job performance, including six in ten Democrats. Many cite his handling of infrastructure or transportation or his leadership as the reason for their disapproval. Looking ahead to 2026, only one in six believe McKee deserves re-election. Prospective voters in the Democratic primary prefer former CVS executive Helena Foulkes, though half remain undecided. In the 2026 race for the U.S. Senate, half of Rhode Islanders think incumbent Jack Reed deserves re-election and Reed is popular among likely primary voters. On state issues, majorities support Rhode Island working with other Northeast states …

Hillsborough County Advisory Council September 2025 Meeting Minutes, Extension

Advisory Council

No abstract provided.

University Of New Hampshire 2025-2026 Faculty Senate Xxx - September 15, 2025 Minutes Summary, Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Agendas & Minutes

No abstract provided.

Nicotine Pouches On Campus: A Hidden Threat To Health & Sustainability, Nancy Bushinsky

Sustainability Institute Blog

No abstract provided.

Factors Contributing To The Demographic Cliff: More U.S. Women Of Childbearing Age, But Fewer Have Given Birth, Kenneth M. Johnson

Carsey Publications

In this brief, author Kenneth Johnson reports that in 2024 there were 5.7 million more childless women of prime child-bearing age than would have been expected given fertility patterns prior to the Great Recession, up from 2.1 million in 2016 and 4.7 million in 2022. There are 4 million more women aged 20–39 than in 2006, but 7 million fewer have given birth. The shift in fertility patterns has resulted in 11.8 million fewer babies in the past 17 years.

Fertility rate declines were greatest among women under 30, where childless rates increased the most. Childless rates increased modestly among …

“Lead”Ing Industrial Science: Studying Occupational Lead Poisoning In The Early 20th Century, Rebekah E. Dreyer-Rowe

Master's Theses and Capstones

Lead was essential to the creation and coalescence of industrial hygiene as a discipline in the United States from its early days in the 1910s through the 1930s when the first professional associations of industrial hygiene were formed. In the early years, Alice Hamilton was central to the burgeoning field, and her seminal study on lead poisoning in Illinois industries thrust both her and her methods into the spotlight. Industrial hygienists of her generation followed her methods and came away with similar conclusions: that occupational diseases were rampant in the US, even if few people were studying them. In the …

From Structure To Specificity: Biophysical Characterization Of Functional Interfaces In Protein Systems, Logan M. Brown

Doctoral Dissertations

Proteins are nature’s dynamic molecular machines, operating across a spectrum from highly ordered scaffolds to intrinsically disordered systems, and executing functions that depend on both precise structures and conformational flexibility. Yet, the mechanistic rules linking sequence, structure, and activity particularly in disordered proteins and specialized functional adaptations remain incompletely understood. This dissertation addresses that gap by integrating structural biology, biophysics, and protein engineering to dissect molecular recognition, stability, and function across three diverse yet thematically connected protein systems. Building on this understanding of protein structure and function, the following four projects apply these concepts to address diverse biological questions, ranging …

Evaluating The Effects Of Agricultural Management Practices On Beneficial Arthropod Communities, Isaac Newton Ativor

Doctoral Dissertations

Arthropods provide essential ecosystem services to our agricultural landscapes. These ecosystem services include biological control of pest organisms, including weed seeds, and plant pollination. Concerningly, however, there has been a global decline in insect populations over the last decade, a major cause of which is agricultural intensification. Previous research has demonstrated that agricultural management practices can strongly influence the species composition and abundance of arthropod communities, and therefore presumably the ecosystem services or disservices these organisms provide; however, our understanding of these interactions remains limited. I conducted three studies to investigate whether agricultural practices common in annual row crop (tillage …

Reentry, Justice Involvement, And Evolving Perspectives: Moving Toward Rehabilitation?, Casey Cavanaugh

Doctoral Dissertations

As prison populations climb, it is inevitable that the vast majority of incarcerated individuals will eventually return to the community. As they return, they face numerous barriers resulting from their incarceration. While it is important to identify barriers to reentry, it is also important to identify facilitators of reentry, which include forces that may mitigate reentry challenges. A tool is needed to measure this comprehensive list of barriers and facilitators, and in doing so, one may identify improvements and successes that stretch beyond merely that of recidivism. “Successful” reentry is typically measured through low recidivism rates, which recent government reports …

Investigations Into Prior Knowledge And Self-Efficacy As Predictors Of Exam Performance In General Chemistry, And Student Interactions With Chemistry Textbooks, Gordon Hunter

Doctoral Dissertations

The first chapter addresses the validity and reliability of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) as a tool for chemistry education research. The study shows that the original MSLQ did not meet modern standards of reliability and presents a modified version that better captures self-efficacy in chemistry-specific contexts. The revised instrument shows improved model fit, reinforcing the importance of refining assessment tools for chemistry education research.The effects of prior knowledge and self-efficacy on student performance in a first-semester general chemistry course are investigated in the second chapter. Self-efficacy, defined as a learner's belief in their capability to successfully accomplish …

Planning Responses To Drinking Water System Emergencies, Jingyan Huang

Doctoral Dissertations

Despite extensive efforts to ensure clean and safe drinking water, drinking water contamination emergencies remain a persistent challenge in the United States. These events can result in widespread public health impacts, economic losses, and long-term environmental damage, particularly when triggered by hazardous chemical releases. Effective management of such crises requires a dual focus on both technical preparedness and human decision-making. This dissertation addresses these challenges through a two-part investigation that bridges pre-incident planning and post-incident response. It is guided by two core research objectives: (1) to evaluate commonly applied emergency countermeasures from both resilience and sustainability perspectives; and (2) to …

Counting Kelp: Development And Assessment Of Modelling Approaches To Improve Understanding Of Kelp Bed Abundance And Resilience In The Gulf Of Maine, Constance N. Tyler

Doctoral Dissertations

Kelp habitats in the Gulf of Maine are threatened by rising ocean temperatures and marine invasions. The replacement of kelps with red turf macroalgae fundamentally alters these habitats and disrupts the ecosystem services they provide. Thorough assessment and monitoring of kelp habitats is needed for proper conservation of these habitats, but most long-term monitoring is performed using traditional survey methods that are restricted in the amount of space they can cover. Habitat modelling approaches are required to expand our knowledge of Gulf of Maine kelp habitats, and to better understand the interactions between kelp and red turf habitats across the …

Bio-Acoustical Statistical Signal Processing For Detection, Classification, And Population Estimation In Wildlife Monitoring, Yue Liang

Doctoral Dissertations

Sound is a primary way for many animal species to communicate, forage, navigate, and assess their environment. As a result, passive acoustic monitoring (PAM), the recording and analysis of animal vocalizations, has become a valuable, non-invasive alternative to visual surveys. However, the massive volume of acoustic data generated annually, often reaching hundreds of terabytes, presents a significant challenge for efficient analysis. Since manual inspection of every frame in such data is infeasible, it is essential to develop automated detection and classification tools.

This thesis investigates and develops several statistical signal processing and machine learning techniques to address this challenge. The …

Technologies To Support Remote Work For Collaborative Groups, Alberta Ansah

Doctoral Dissertations

The nature of work continues to evolve, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. While a substantial number of employees have returned to traditional, in-person work environments, many continue to engage in remote or hybrid work arrangements. Online meetings are a significant aspect of remote work, and while there has been a significant increase in this area, there are still aspects of these meetings that are not fully understood. Existing research in this area has primarily focused on the development of tools to facilitate meeting execution and content management. In contrast, relatively few studies have explored the social dynamics …

Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea Virginica, Genomics In A Well-Mixed Estuarine System: Examining Population Structure, Viability, And Response To Stressors, Alyssa Strickland

Doctoral Dissertations

Eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica, are foundational estuarine species that contribute to a variety of ecosystem services including water filtration, nutrient cycling, habitat creation, and shoreline protection. However, populations have declined due to disease, overharvesting, habitat loss, and climate change, especially in northern systems such as New Hampshire’s Great Bay Estuary (GBE), located in the Gulf of Maine, one of the world’s fastest warming waters. This dissertation uses genomic and transcriptomic approaches to understand the drivers of population structure, decline, and resilience in GBE oyster populations, aiming to aid restoration and aquaculture. Chapter 1 used low-coverage whole-genome sequencing to understand population …