Digital Commons Network^™

A Channel Ranking And Selection Scheme Based On Channel Occupancy And Snr For Cognitive Radio Systems, Adnan Quadri

Theses and Dissertations

Wireless networks and information traffic have grown exponentially over the last decade. Consequently, an increase in demand for radio spectrum frequency bandwidth has resulted. Recent studies have shown that with the current fixed spectrum allocation (FSA), radio frequency band utilization ranges from 15% to 85%. Therefore, there are spectrum holes that are not utilized all the time by the licensed users, and, thus the radio spectrum is inefficiently exploited. To solve the problem of scarcity and inefficient utilization of the spectrum resources, dynamic spectrum access has been proposed as a solution to enable sharing and using available frequency channels. With …

Exploring The Experiences Of African American Nurses: An Emancipatory Inquiry, Laurie Pierce

Theses and Dissertations

This inquiry provided a critical and in-depth analysis of African American nurses’ situations within the context of the work environment. Through this examination, multiple oppressions were illuminated. Participants identified both personal experiences of oppression and oppression related to administrative and interdisciplinary hierarchies. Additionally, the participants provided their insights on the concept of empowerment. Definitions of empowerment included being a voice for self and others and empowering others is empowering to self. Thus, the concept of relational empowerment was explicated. Furthermore, the participants envisioned an ideal environment where administration is supportive of nurses, nurses have time to care for the patients, …

Evaluation Of Movements And Habitat Use Of Suburban Striped Skunks (Mephitis Mephitis) In The Northern Great Plains To Inform Rabies Management, Anna Schneider

Theses and Dissertations

Few studies have investigated the ecology of urban striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis) despite their role as a primary rabies vector species paired with an ability to thrive in these landscapes. Our aim was to obtain baseline ecological information with an emphasis on spatial ecology of urban striped skunks in the Northern Great Plains region that is missing in the literature. This information, such as home range, nightly movements, habitat selection, and denning behavior is important for informing rabies management decisions such as the placement of oral rabies vaccine (ORV) baits. We used radio telemetry equipment to track 22 (4M, 18 …

The Relationship Between Perceived Competence Levels Of Student Affairs Professionals And Their Job Satisfaction, Alexander Pokornowski

Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between perceived competence levels of student affairs professionals and their level of job satisfaction is the central question in this study. The study explores this question through utilizing a non-experimental survey design. Participants in the study include student affairs professionals from participating institutions. The study utilizes an instrument combining the Job Satisfaction Survey developed by Spector (1985) and an adjusted version of National Survey of Student Affairs Professionals developed by Sriram (2014). The study examines the relationship between perceived assessment, evaluation, and research; leadership; and organizational and human resources competence and overall job satisfaction. The study found a …

Online Resources And The Transgender Community, Mason Maxwell Wehse

Theses and Dissertations

Transgender individuals are characterized by identifying as a gender other than the gender they were assigned at birth based on their biological sex (Meerwijk & Sevelius, 2017). Transgender identities can include being born female but identifying as male and vice versa. Identities can also include people who are non-binary meaning that they identify as a gender other than male or female, such as identifying as no gender (i.e., agender). Being transgender can be seen as controversial and there is a lot of misinformation and little formal research conducted on this topic. Because of this, transgender people often face discrimination and …

Educational Technology Integration Among Community College Instructors, Oybek Turayev

Theses and Dissertations

Over the last two decades, educational technology (ET) integration has become an increasingly important aspect of higher education, particularly with the growth of online, distance and hybrid courses and degree programs. Furthermore, accrediting agencies such as the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) are paying close attention to online and hybrid courses and degree programs, making effective use of ET even more important to colleges and universities. Even in traditional, on-campus classrooms, some instructors are not using ET effectively to augment teaching and learning.

The main purpose of this research study was to examine a holistic view of educational technology integration into …

Regional Airline Study: The Impact Of Operational Volume On Performance At Capacity Constrained Airports, Brady Bjerke

Theses and Dissertations

New regulation requires mainline carriers to report regional airline on-time performance. Regional airlines have a high operational volume at capacity constrained airports. Studies have indicated that if volume at a capacity constrained airport increases, then flight delays are likely to grow. Regional airline operational data in JFK and LGA is analyzed to determine the relationship between volume and on-time performance over a two-year period. Through reviewing statistical test results, recommendations are made in effort to predict a regional airline’s optimal volume while maintaining adequate on-time performance. Operational volume is characterized by three independent variables: block hours, aircraft utilization, and the …

Glacial Lake Reflectance As A Proxy For Changing Glacial Conditions And Impacts On Streamflow, Lance Diangelis

Theses and Dissertations

Climate change continues to manifest itself through increased temperatures across the Western United States. Subsequently glaciers in the Wind River Range of Wyoming have been in decline since the end of the Little Ice Age and continue to lose mass during the annual ablation season. Understanding these changes is of paramount importance for water resource managers. This study uses data from Landsat 5, 7 and 8 over a 33-year period from 1984-2017 to determine the long-term change in water color for lakes in the range related to glacial flour discharge. Water color can be used to indicate changes in the …

A Mixed Method Study Of The Impact Of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, And Dual Enrollment Courses On College Transition And Success, Kazimir Bartley Gazdzik

Theses and Dissertations

In an educational environment that has limited resources, and greater pressures for increased academic standards, what is the best option to help prepare high school students for college academics? This research study: A Mixed Method Study of the Impact of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and Dual Enrollment Courses on College Transition and Success attempted to investigate the impact of advanced courses on college transition.

The results of this research showed no statistical difference in academic success or transition to college between students who had taken advanced classes and those who had not. There were also no statistical differences between students …

Origin And Preservation Of Organic-Rich Zones And Kukersite Beds Of The Red River Formation (Upper Ordovician), Williston Basin, North Dakota, Spencer Wheeling

Theses and Dissertations

The Red River Formation is North Dakota’s third most productive hydrocarbon unit. The unit has been interpreted to be self-sourced, but the locations of the source beds has not been thoroughly investigated within the North Dakota portion of the Williston Basin. Using the most current available data, this study investigated the source beds of the Red River Formation. This present study agrees with past studies that there are two source bed types; the first type being a higher organic-rich, thin kukersite bed and the second being a less organic-rich, thicker organic zone. Both types of source beds commonly occur as …

A Tapestry Of Educational Technology Women Leaders In Higher Education: A Qualitative Study, Jane Braaten Overmoe

Theses and Dissertations

A qualitative study was used to understand the experiences of 12 women, leaders in Education Technology in higher education. Through interviews, women leaders described their environment as well as personal and behavioral aspects of their work. Findings revealed four threads of descriptive concepts including relationships, leadership, persistence, and advice. Relationships were from workplaces and professional networks. Leadership was defined by vision and teamwork. Persistence was addressed as either values-based or relationship-based. The fourth thread in the findings, advice, was divided into three sub-threads: education, family (both personal and work), and managing emotions. A qualitative approach was used to highlight interview …

International Freshmen Student Satisfaction With Campus Environments At U. S. Institutions Through The Lens Of The National Survey Of Student Engagement (Nsse), Ludmi Herath

Theses and Dissertations

International students’ enrollment has continuously increased over the past decade. According to the Open Doors Annual Report, published and distributed by Institute for International Education (IIE, 2016), more than one million international students studied in the United States from 2015-2016; according to the same report, international students generated more than $36 billion to the United Stated (U.S.) economy making international students the fourth largest import sector to the U.S. economy. As U.S. institutions more aggressively recruit and retain international students, it is critical to learn how to serve this growing population—to learn of their needs and offer corresponding tools, programs …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Novel Bioplastics By Innovative 3d Printing Approaches, Kathryn Marie Hall

Theses and Dissertations

This work describes the synthesis and characterization of novel bioplastic composites by using novel additive manufacturing (AM) approaches. As a background, global plastic consumption has become a problem with the accumulation of plastics in landfills and the ocean. Recently, bioplastics have emerged as a viable option to petrochemicals. Currently, there are some issues like biodegradability, property optimization with bioplastics etc. In thesis, novel methods and engineering of composition of bioplastics are being reported. In Chapter II, the addition of lignin to the PLA polymer matrix by using solvent mixing will be reported. During this study, liquid ink mixture was successfully …

Wayward Girls, Amanda Susan Osgood Jonientz

Theses and Dissertations

Wayward Girls represents a culmination of my creative and critical work at the

University of North Dakota. The dissertation includes a critical introduction, a collection of short stories, and a pedagogical article. In my critical introduction, I explain ways in which I manipulate narrative and time, the decisions I make about levels of discourse, my use and experimentation with conventional forms of plot, and my work in the short-story cycle genre. My collection of six short stories includes works about women at crucial turning points in their lives. Set in the Pacific Northwest, the stories range in time period from …

The Achieve Model In Professional Experiences Of Information Technology Workers In Higher Education: A Phenomenological Study, Michelle Fahey Rakoczy

Theses and Dissertations

The information technology field changes at a fast rate and, combined with the fast pace of change in the higher education environment, it is more important than ever that Information Technology professionals be productive and that retention rate increase in this field. This phenomenological study is an exploration of the professional experiences of IT workers in higher education, including the organizational, leadership, and individual level qualities that shape that experience. The ACHIEVE model is utilized for the theoretical framework for this study as it relates to an impact of leadership practices on followers’ performance. The results of this study provide …

Examining Cultural Identification And Alcohol Use Among College Students, Lynn Martell

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has found American Indians (AI) to demonstrate higher levels of alcohol use than Caucasians (CA); however, recent research has found that AI may be drinking at similar or lower rates than CA. Cultural identification (i.e., degree to which an individual associate with, and represents themselves as a member of a specific cultural group) may be a factor contributing to the level of alcohol use among AI. The current study examined cultural identification and alcohol use among University of North Dakota (UND) AI (n=56) and CA (n=88) college students. Results indicated non-significant differences in alcohol use between cultural identification …

Smartphone Dependence: Relation To Text-Message Dependence, Personality, And Loneliness, Alex James Holte

Theses and Dissertations

Given the ubiquity of smartphones, research has examined its impact on human behavior. Through prior studies have examined smartphones through the addiction framework, resulting in controversy of if habitual smartphone use is an addiction disorder, prior works have not examined the framework of how reliant someone is to their smartphone in their daily life. Additionally, prior works have not examined how smartphone dependence is related to texting dependence, state anxiety, trait anxiety, depression, neuroticism, extroversion, and loneliness. The literature has also not examined the method of communication that an individual prefers and how that relates to loneliness. We had 237 …

The Role Of A Principal In Establishing And Maintaining Positive Behavioral Interventions And Supports (Pbis): An Ethnographic Case Study, Angela Wanzek

Theses and Dissertations

An ethnographic case study was used to examine roles of a principal in implementing and maintaining positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) in one North Dakota elementary school. Observations, school documents, and semi-structured interviews were analyzed to identify the role of a principal. Skinner’s reinforcement theory and Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological systems theory served as

theoretical frameworks.

Research indicates a trend in the increase of PBIS in schools across the country. A

need remains to identify the role of elementary principals utilizing PBIS in North Dakota

elementary schools. Certified and classified staff were interviewed to examine their

perspectives on the role of …

Northern Great Plains Blizzards In Past And Future Climates, Alexander Trellinger

Theses and Dissertations

Areas that reside in the high-latitudes such as the northern United States can experience hazardous conditions during the winter months due to snowstorms. When strong winds exist with falling or freshly fallen snow, blizzard conditions are able create significant personal, societal, and economic impacts for the Northern Great Plains. While the climatology for these extreme snowstorms is known, the frequency and intensity of how these events may change in a warming climate is not certain. In order to determine how extreme snowstorms may change in the future climate, climate models can be used but the horizontal and vertical grid spacing …

Promotion Of The Village Model In Rural Areas: An Educational Guide, Caitlin Herdrick, Samantha Kraus

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Background: The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that the adult population will double the population of Americans aged 65 years or older during the next 25 years to 72 million (2013). The increasing age of baby boomers will have a significant impact on healthcare resources and available housing options. This will have a drastic effect on rural dwelling elderly individuals and their access to the healthcare and other resources. Many aging individuals want to remain in their homes, communities, and social circles. Remaining in one's home is more cost effective, compared to skilled nursing and assisted living facilities …

The S.P.I.R.I.T. Program: Spirituality Promotion Interdependence Resiliency Inclusive Therapy, Alycia Heisler, Brianna Safranski

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: Native American children and adolescents are some of the most underserved people in the United States (Warzak, Dogan, & Godfrey, 2011). Common mental health problems this population typically experiences are depression, suicidal thoughts or ideation, traumatic experiences, substance use, and results of historical trauma (Brockie, Dana-Sarco, Wallen, Wilcox, & Campbell, 2015). They have the highest rates of these mental health problems, more than any other ethnic group (Evans-Campbell, Walters, Pearson, & Campbell, 2012). There is a need for preventative programs to be implemented with elementary school-aged Native American children and adolescents (Ohl, Mitchell, Cassidy, & Fox, 2008; Stigler, …

Comparing Prevalence Of Medication-Related Osteonecrosis Of The Jaw (Mronj) Due To Denosumab And Bisphosphonates As A Side Effect Of Osteoporosis Treatment, Kendra Apland

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Papers

As the baby boomer generation continues to age, the diagnosis of osteoporosis and its side effects will continue to increase. Denosumab and bisphosphonates (BPs) are some of the most common medication classes used to treat osteopenia and osteoporosis, but it is believed that both medications have the possible side effect of medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ). The purpose of this paper is to uncover if MRONJ is a side effect of osteoporosis treatment and which medication carries the highest incidence rate. Through a review of several electronic databases and several peer reviewed research articles, a wide range of reported …

Secondary Stroke Prevention And Support: An Occupational Therapy Program, Kaitlyn Bosch, Jamie St. Germain

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Many individuals in the United States experience a recurrent stroke and evidence suggests that strokes, primary and secondary, could be prevented through lifestyle modifications. The objective of the scholarly project was to develop an occupational therapy (OT) led secondary stroke prevention program to address modifiable risk factors for stroke. A literature review was conducted to identify research to support development of this program. Based on the review of literature and through the use of the Model of Human Occupation, The Secondary Stroke Prevention and Support: An Occupational Therapy Program was designed to address competence in the occupational role of managing …

The Perspective Of Counselors On Occupational Therapy At A Residential Camp For Children With Disabilities, Erika Moderow, Hailey Tollefson

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Introduction: By attending summer camps, children with disabilities have the opportunity to retain skills they acquire during the school year in services including occupational therapy (Marr & Dimeo, 2006); however, the perception of occupational therapy services at these camps is limited. Not all children who receive therapy services during the school year are eligible for services in the summer, which means that occupational therapy at summer camps is an opportunity to prevent deterioration of skills in those not otherwise eligible (North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, 2016).

Methodology: A qualitative phenomenological research study was conducted to look at …

The Experience Of Being A Male Occupational Therapy Practitioner At Varying Points In The Career: A Qualitative Study, Zachary Bohn, John Leclerc

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Problem Statement: The experience of being a male in a female-dominated profession has not been well researched or documented through either an inductive or deductive lens in regards to how this social context affects the male occupational therapist’s ability to function in his professional role. Subsequently, there are a dearth of guideposts and evidence that male occupational therapy students and practitioners have to understand the influence of their gender in the profession from a professional development standpoint.

Purpose: The purpose of this research study was to understand the experience of being a male occupational therapist amidst the female-dominated …

Moving Past Homelessness: A Program For Success, Benjamin Becher, Jaime Johnson

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Homelessness is a pervasive problem in the United States, and lack of job searching and work skills contribute to the situation (Helfrich, Chan, & Sabol, 2011). Although there are programs available that provide services to the homeless population, these programs typically do not extensively address work-related needs (Herzberg & Finlayson, 2001; Roy et al., 2017). A literature review was conducted using numerous databases and an informal interview was conducted with a key stakeholder at Seton House, a transitional housing program for homeless single parents. With this information, a program was developed to address vocational needs for the homeless, titled Work …

Aquatic Therapy For Occupational Therapy Education And Practice, Emily L. Lablanc, Megan L. Lauck

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: With injuries, diseases and various conditions occurring daily among millions of Americans, the need for therapeutic intervention is steadily growing, as indicated by The American Occupational Therapy Association (2017a). Aquatic therapy is a unique practice that may be utilized across multiple healthcare professionals to benefit clients with a variety of conditions. Occupational therapists are qualified to perform aquatic techniques with clients in the pool; however, aquatic therapy is rarely utilized in occupational therapy practice (Franken, Mische Lawson & Santalucia, 2013). The problem may be derived from the lack of knowledge from occupational therapy students and entry-level practitioners regarding …

Experiences Of Occupational Therapists Working In Rural Areas Of Minnesota And North Dakota, Sarah Hanson, Jessica Magee

Occupational Therapy Capstones

There is limited research regarding the experiences of occupational therapy practitioners working in rural areas of the United States. The purpose of this phenomenological, qualitative study was to gain an understanding of the experiences of occupational therapy practitioners working in rural areas of Minnesota and North Dakota. Many of the occupational therapy practitioners working in these states encounter experiences that are unique to the rural context. These experiences help to form an occupational therapy practitioner’s professional identity. The Professional Identity Model (Tornebohm, 1991) was utilized to further understand the impact of the rural context on a practitioner’s professional identity. The …

A Group Protocol For Individuals With High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder: Transitioning Into College, Annika Eckholm, Karol Santistevan

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: The numbers for young adults with a disability transitioning to college are increasing yearly (U.S. Department of Education, National Center of Education Statistics, 2016). Changes and transitioning to the college context is particularly challenging for individuals with high functioning autism (HFA) (Elias & White, 2017; Wehman et al., 2014). The purpose of this scholarly project was to develop a group protocol as a resource for young adult students with HFA to transition successfully in a college setting.

Methodology: A literature review was conducted on topics relating to individuals with HFA, success and barriers to college, effective interventions …

An Occupational Therapy Perspective Of A School-Based Suicide Prevention Program With A Peer-Mentorship Emphasis, Maddie Bjornstad, Karyssa Kimery

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in adolescents today (Pisani et al., 2012; Katz et al., 2013). Zalsman et al. (2016), reported the recognition of suicide prevention as a public health priority has helped to encourage research, detection, treatment, and management of individuals at risk for suicide, however the implementation of proven, evidence-based, and cost-effective strategies are the duty of public health policy makers and healthcare providers. Occupational therapists are trained to help individuals determine what occupations are meaningful and completed in order to feel a sense of self-efficacy, therefore occupational therapy can play a critical role …