Digital Commons Network^™

It Takes One To Know One: Authentic Learning And Multiple Literacies In A 100 Level, Technical Writing Classroom, Matthew Sterner-Neely

Theses and Dissertations

At Ciudad Community College (pseudonym) and across the Colorado Community College System, the course competencies for Technical Writing I (ENG 131) have more than tripled to accommodate ENG 131 as a guaranteed transfer course equivalent to ENG 121: English Composition I. Unfortunately, this has had the effect of increasing the workload for students, and the increase in competencies plus the struggle that students already had in meeting course competencies demanded the need for an intervention. The purpose of this convergent, mixed methods, action research study was to examine the effects of authentic learning on the competency levels of technical writing …

Administrative Support: What Teachers Say They Need, Jennifer Harris Watson

Theses and Dissertations

For more than three decades research has shown Administrative Support as a mitigating factor for teacher attrition. It has also been associated with teacher satisfaction and positive school climate. In all of these studies authors have failed to agree on consistent definition of the phenomena and attrition rates along with satisfaction rates have been relatively unchanged. In 1981, House established four dimensions of worker support (1981) to mitigate worker burnout and attrition. His theoretical framework consisted of emotional support, appraisal support, instrumental support, and informational support in a factory work setting. Littrell et al. (1994) used House’s work to attempt …

#Blackfemaleteachersmatter: The Experiences Of Three African American Female Teachers Who Left The Classroom During Their Induction Years, Ashlye Victoria Wilkerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study captured the lived experiences of three African American, female classroom teachers who left the profession within three years of beginning their careers. The main goal that led this research was to center the perspectives of African American women in the conversation about teacher retention, turnover, and attrition percentages that plague the field of education. The primary questions that guided this study were: (1) “What can be learned from the life stories of former African American female teachers who left the teaching profession from South Carolina public classrooms during their induction years?”, (2) “What do their life stories reveal …

Optimization And Application Of Electrochemical Probes For Neurotransmitter Detection, Colby E. Witt

Theses and Dissertations

The brain is a complex matrix that is difficult to study. Signaling molecules, neurotransmitters, are constantly being released and sequestered back into neurons within milliseconds to facilitate communication and normal function, a process called neurotransmission. There are few analytical techniques available to selectively probe such a dynamic system, and even fewer can detect these discrete changes in real-time. In order to make robust measurements in the brain you need speed, sensitivity, selectivity and small probe size, which are encompassed by fast-voltammetry with microelectrodes. Traditional fast-voltammetry at carbon fiber microelectrodes (fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV)) requires background subtraction to overcome the large …

“Hungering And Thirsting” For Education: Education, Presbyterians, And African Americans In The South, 1880-1920, Rachel Marie Young

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the relationship between the white-dominated Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA) and African Americans from 1880-1920, exploring the motivations, philosophies, and strategies of the PCUSA and the ways that they used education to achieve their goals of helping forge educated and devoutly Christian African Americans. The church’s history highlights the ways in which Presbyterian paternalism developed in the years leading up to 1880, as well as contradictions in white church members’ understandings of race relations and their conflation of civic duty with religious responsibility. The church’s efforts in primary education provide a window into …

Multiple Frailty Model For Spatially Correlated Interval-Censored, Wanfang Zhang

Theses and Dissertations

In this paper, we consider the problem of multiple frailty selection for general interval-censored spatial survival data, which often occurs in clinical trials and epidemiological studies. The general interval-censored data is a mixture of left-, right- and interval-censored data. We propose a Bayesian semiparametric approach based on the Cox proportional hazard model, where monotone splines were used for non-parametrical modeling of the cumulative baseline hazards where the variable selection priors were used for frailty selection. A two-stage data augmentation with Poisson latent variables is developed for efficient computation. The approach is evaluated based a simulation study and illustrated using a …

Let’S Be Friends: Examining Consumer Brand Relationships Through The Lens Of Brand Personality, Engagement, And Reciprocal Altruism, Daniel D. Haun

Theses and Dissertations

Brands have always exuded personality and status to consumers in order to promote a competent impression and induce positive perceptions and behaviors (Griskevicius, et al., 2007). In order for individuals to identify with brands, the brands must become more personable by consciously embodying a specific personality trait. Research has found that when a brand embodies a personality, there is an associated increase in consumer preference and usage (Sirgy, 1982), purchase choices for that brand (Ha & Janda, 2014; Gordon et al., 2016; Guèvremont & Grohmann, 2013; Swaminathan et al., 2009), and consumer preference and brand loyalty (Louis & Lombart, 2010; …

Integration Of Process Planning Into The Automated Fiber Placement Design For Manufacturing Cycle, Alex Brasington

Theses and Dissertations

Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) is a composite manufacturing technique utilizing a robotic or gantry-based system and an attached fiber placement head to lay a prescribed number of strips of composite material, additively forming large composite structures. This technique has enabled increased throughput with increased accuracy and reliability when compared with prior composite manufacturing methods. However, even with the current state-of-the-art AFP process which employs advanced computer simulations and complex robotic operations, the data from various levels of the manufacturing lifecycle is isolated. This results in an incoherent system between the initial design phase and final part completion with limited ability …

Personalized Geometry Instruction: A Mixed Methods Action Research Study Implementing An Adaptive Web-Based Learning Environment To Support High School Students’ Geometry Problemsolving Skills, Catherine D. Jordan

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to evaluate the implementation of an adaptive web-based learning environment to personalize geometry instruction and practice for high school students at a private school in North Carolina. This study was guided by the following three research questions: (1) How and to what extent does implementing personalized geometry instruction and practice through an adaptive web-based learning environment affect high school students’ knowledge of geometry? (2) How does using personalized geometry instruction and practice through an adaptive web-based learning environment affect students’ motivation to learn geometry as well as their mathematics self-efficacy, anxiety, and …

A Project-Based Learning Approach To Community-Based Learning: Action Research To Explore Transformative Change In 1st Year Occupational Therapy Students’ Awareness About Contextual Barriers, Occupational Justice, And Advocating For Community Health And Wellness, Patricia Ann Wisniewski

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing reflexive photography as a means for a transformative community-based learning (CBL) experience. CBL is an experiential teaching pedagogy that helps prepare college students for a rapidly changing and diverse society that fosters social, health, and cultural awareness about individuals and populations. Students engage collaboratively within the local community to help solve societal problems.

This study focused on three research questions, each exploring how a reflexive photography project (RPP): (a) changes how students view occupational justice, (b) influences students awareness about contextual barriers that may impact community residents …

Sex Differences And Neuroimmune Effects Of Microglial Response In The Mesolimbic Reward Pathway In Nicotine Substance Use Disorder, Erin Leigh Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Smoking remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, with less than 5% of smokers attempting to quit succeeding. This is due to the unpleasant withdrawal symptomology, which includes affective symptoms, such as irritability, weight gain, anxiety, and severe craving among others, as well as the cognitive effects, such as difficulty concentrating. This low smoking cessation success rate is also thought to be due to the long-lasting sensitization of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) leading to long-term neuroadaptations in the brain’s reward system and alterations in synaptic plasticity that occur following chronic nicotine exposure and withdrawal. Glial …

Operating Strategies And Disturbance Characterization For Dc Microgrids, Miles Leonard-Albert

Theses and Dissertations

The present state of the electrical grid is unable to meet the demands of transmission. Digital twin technology provides a promising solution to this problem by allowing for analysis and control of distributed energy resources. This thesis presents initial work towards development of a digital twin for a DC power system. Two versions of the DC power system are created and evaluated against randomly generated load profiles. System performance is evaluated on the basis of the quantity of the load that is unserviced by the generation and energy storage. Energy storage operating strategies that modify the model to prioritize different …

Hear My Voice: Qualitative Studies To Explore What Empowers Patients To Talk With Their Doctor And Participate In Making Health Care Decisions, Alicia Marie Oostdyk

Theses and Dissertations

Patients with fibromyalgia are faced with many decisions throughout the process of seeking and obtaining health care. For patients to feel empowered to take action, it is essential they feel as if they can play a role in making decisions up to their desired level of participation. However, it is unclear what constitutes empowerment in shared decision making between patients and providers. For patients with fibromyalgia, who deal with complex symptomology and individualized treatment choice, it is important to know what makes them feel empowered to participate in care. The objective of this dissertation is to create a patient-centered definition …

Nonlinear Intelligent Model Predictive Control Of Mobile Robots, Benjamin Albia

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents a framework for an artificial neural network (ANN) model-based nonlinear model predictive control of mobile ground robots. A computer vision analysis module was first developed to extract quantitative position information from onboard camera feed with respect to a prescribed path. Various strategies were developed to construct nonlinear physical plant models for model predictive control (MPC), including the physics-based model (PBM), the ANN trained on PBM-generated data, the ANN trained on test-captured data, and the ANN initially trained on PBM-generated data and then retrained with captured data. All the models predict physical states and positions of the robot …

The Road Home Program: An Efficient Model Of Ptsd Treatment In Veterans, Alexandra J. Fischer, Brian J. Klassen, Rhea A. Merck

Senior Theses

This thesis details my experiences at Rush University’s Road Home Program during the summer of 2021. The Road Home Program is an intensive treatment program for veterans suffering from PTSD. It is unique from conventional PTSD treatments in that it provides the equivalent of six months of treatment in just two weeks. The Road Home Program approaches PTSD in a comprehensive way by implementing a variety of therapies and supplemental treatments to veterans. These therapies include Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Mindfulness Based Resiliency Training (MBRT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Art Therapy. The supplemental treatments include cognitive seminars, acupuncture, and …

Conditional Cash Transfer Program Design: A Case Study Of Parent Educational Attitudes And Experiences In One Honduran Village, Karsen Ward

Senior Theses

In Honduras and other countries globally, there is a large gap to fill in school enrolment and attendance before the Sustainable Development Goal of universal quality education can be achieved. One method that has grown in popularity over the past couple of decades is the use of conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs, which serve to incentivize families in the relevant educational area of need. In Honduras, students still need to be encouraged to enroll in and regularly attend school, so this is what is primarily incentivized. The literature review of this paper compiles the takeaways of a variety of existing …

Interpersonal Discrimination And Older Latinx Adults In The United States, Adrianne Dues

Theses and Dissertations

Discrimination is a chronic source of stress among Latinx adults in the United States (Lopez et al. 2017; Williams 2012). Limited research, however, considers differences within ethnicity-nativity, the influence of important psychosocial mechanisms such as sense of control, and the ways interpersonal discrimination may extend beyond the individual, known as vicarious effects (Wofford et al. 2019). For my chapters, public data comes from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationally representative longitudinal study of Americans aged 50 and older. My three dissertation chapters proceed in the following manner: Chapter 1 provides information to better understand Latinx adults beyond the …

Task-Based, Learner-Centered Language Instruction: Educational Innovation In An Adult Foreign Language Program, Clayton D. Leishman

Theses and Dissertations

This study involved educational innovation and implementation of a task-based, learner-centered curriculum within a foreign language program. The concerns-based assessment model (originally proposed by Hall et al., 1973, and further developed by Hall & Hord, 1987; 2011) was used to investigate the degree to which language instructors adopted the innovation. An adapted form of the concerns-based assessment model’s levels of use focused interviews and instructional artifacts were used to measure the level of implementation of the task-based approach. Analysis of the data identified categoricalchanges as instructors implemented the new curriculum. The category of sharing revealed higher levels of use due …

Fe-Catalyzed Sulfide Oxidation In Hydrothermal Plumes Is A Source Of Reactive Oxygen Species To The Ocean, Timothy J. Shaw, George W. Luther Iii, Richard Rosas, Véronique E. Oldham, Nicole R. Coffey, John L. Ferry, Dewamunnage M. C. Dias, Mustafa Yücel, Aubin Thibault De Chanvalon

Faculty Publications

Historically, the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the ocean has been attributed to photochemical and biochemical reactions. However, hydrothermal vents emit globally significant inventories of reduced Fe and S species that should react rapidly with oxygen in bottom water and serve as a heretofore unmeasured source of ROS. Here, we show that the Fe-catalyzed oxidation of reduced sulfur species in hydrothermal vent plumes in the deep oceans supported the abiotic formation of ROS at concentrations 20 to 100 times higher than the average for photoproduced ROS in surface waters. ROS (measured as hydrogen peroxide) were determined in hydrothermal …

Emr: A New Metric To Assess The Resilience Of Directional Mmwave Channels To Blockages, Faith Erden, Ozgur Ozdemir, Ismail Guvenc, David W. Matolak

Faculty Publications

Millimeter-wave (mmWave) communication systems require narrow beams to compensate for high path loss and to increase the communication range. If an obstacle blocks the dominant communication direction, alternative paths (directions) should be quickly identified to maintain reliable connectivity. In this paper, we introduce a new metric to quantify the Effective Multipath Richness (EMR) of a directional communication channel in the angular domain. In particular, the proposed metric takes into account the strength and spatial diversity of the resolved Multipath Components (MPCs), while also considering the beamwidth of the communication link and the blockage characteristics. The metric is defined as a …

The Future Of Zoonotic Risk Prediction, Colin J. Carlson, Maxwell J. Farrell, Zoe Grange, Barbara A. Han, Nardus Mollentze, Alexandra L. Phelan, Angela L. Rasmussen, Gregory F. Albery, Bernard Bett, David M. Brett-Major, Lily E. Cohen, Tad Dallas, Evan A. Eskew, Anna C. Fagre, Kristian M. Forbes, Rory Gibb, Sam Halabi, Charlotte C. Hammer, Rebecca Katz, Jason Kindrachuk, Renata L. Muylaert, Felicia B. Nutter, Joseph Ogola, Kevin J. Olival, Michelle Rourke, Sadie J. Ryan, Noam Ross, Stephanie N. Seifert, Tarja Sironen, Claire J. Standley, Kishana Taylor, Marietjie Venter, Paul W. Webala

Faculty Publications

In the light of the urgency raised by the COVID-19 pandemic, global investment in wildlife virology is likely to increase, and new surveillance programmes will identify hundreds of novel viruses that might someday pose a threat to humans. To support the extensive task of laboratory characterization, scientists may increasingly rely on data-driven rubrics or machine learning models that learn from known zoonoses to identify which animal pathogens could someday pose a threat to global health. We synthesize the findings of an interdisciplinary workshop on zoonotic risk technologies to answer the following questions. What are the prerequisites, in terms of open …

Concussion History And Heart Rate Variability During Bouts Of Acute Stress, Adam Harrison, Abbi Lane-Cordova, Michael F. La Fountaine, Robert Davis Moore Ms, Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Context

After a sport-related concussion, many athletes experience persisting neurophysiological alterations. These alterations may be absent at rest but emerge during moments of physiological stress. Unnoticed and untreated neurophysiological dysfunction may negatively affect long-term neurologic health in adolescent athletes, as they are at a critical point in development. Objective

To assess cardio-autonomic functioning in athletes with and those without a history of concussion by quantifying measures of heart rate variability (HRV) during times of physical and mental exertion. Design

Case-control study. Setting

Research laboratory. Patients or Other Participants

Thirty-four male Hockey Quebec Midget-AAA hockey players were separated into those with …

Advancing Use Of Nutrition Knowledge To Improve Practice By Policy And Program Communities In India During A Political Transition, Edward A. Frongillo Jr., Jessica L. Escobar-Alegria

Faculty Publications

Models are needed for how to advance use of knowledge by programs and policy officials to make evidence-based decisions about nutrition. How to advance use of nutrition knowledge in India from 2011 to 2015 during a political transition was investigated through studying a knowledge initiative led by the International Food Policy Research Institute. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 37 diverse participants, and 1091 news articles, 318 Twitter and 175 Facebook posts, 12 YouTube events, 65 knowledge products, and 130 engaging events were assessed. Open-axial coding, content and themes analysis, triangulation, and process tracing were used. The knowledge initiative analyzed the …

Drone-Based Vibration Monitoring And Assessment Of Structures, Sabrina Carroll, Joud Satme, Shadhan Alkharusi, Nikolaos Vitzilaios, Austin Downey, Dimitris Rizos

Faculty Publications

This paper presents a novel method of procuring and processing data for the assessment of civil structures via vibration monitoring. This includes the development of a custom sensor package designed to minimize the size/weight while being fully self-sufficient (i.e., not relying on external power). The developed package is delivered to the structure utilizing a customized Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS), otherwise known as a drone. The sensor package features an electropermanent magnet for securing it to the civil structure while a second magnet is used to secure the package to the drone during flight. The novel B-Spline Impulse Response Function (BIRF) …

Results For The South Carolina Teacher Exit Survey From The 2020-21 Pilot Administration, Tammiee Dickenson, Angela Starrett, Thomas Hodges, Dawn Coleman

Reports

The pilot administration of the SC Teacher Exit Survey (SC-TEACHER, 2021) from the 2020-21 academic year yielded insights directly from teachers in the state on key reasons for teacher turnover. The sample was limited to five school districts located in the Midlands region. Expanded data collection statewide would provide results that more fully represent the SC teaching population. It should also be noted that the results are comingled with the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Functions Of Social Networks In Maternal Food Choice For Children In Mexico, Ligia I. Reyes, Edward A. Frongillo, Spencer Moore, Christine E. Blake, Wendy Gonzalez, Anabelle Bonvecchio

Faculty Publications

Food choice for children has important implications in establishing early-life dietary habits and preferences. Food choice for children has been studied as parent–child dyad dynamics, but little is known about the extended system of relationships in maternal food choice for children. The objective of this study was to understand the functions of mothers' social networks in the food choices that mothers make for their children ages 1 to 5 years old in rural Mexico. In-depth interviews were conducted with 46 participants in three rural communities. The interviews inquired about participants' child-feeding practices, personal and local beliefs about child feeding and …

September 8, 2021 Faculty Senate Minutes, University Of South Carolina

Faculty Senate

No abstract provided.

High Tech And High Touch: Recruitment Strategies For Enrolling African American Stroke Survivors In Community Based Intervention Under Nurse Guidance After Stroke (Cings) Trial, Gayenell S. Magwood Phd, Rn, Faha, Faan, Charles Ellis, Joy N. Buie, Stephanie Slan, Leo Bonilha, Robert J. Adams

Publications

BACKGROUND: Substantial effort has been undertaken to improve the recruitment and retention of participants in stroke trials. African Americans are disproportionately under-represented in stroke clinical trials as well as clinical trials for other chronic disease conditions. To circumvent barriers to recruitment, clinical trial recruitment strategies used to recruit African Americans have focused on different aspects of community engagement. PURPOSE: This study examined a community-engaged, multi-phased tailored approach to recruiting African Americans with stroke. The recruitment approach described was designed to support the Community Based Intervention under Nurse Guidance after Stroke (CINGS) trial, part of the Wide Spectrum Investigation of Stroke …

Concurrent Associations Between Expressive Language Ability And Independence In Adolescents And Adults With Fragile X Syndrome, Leonard Abbeduto, Jessica Klusek, Julie Lounds Taylor, Nadia Abdelnur, Nicole Sparapani, Angela John Thurman

Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Few individuals with fragile X syndrome (FXS) successfully meet adult normative expectations in education, employment, peer relations, and habitation, although there is within-syndrome variability in this regard. The primary goal of this study was to determine whether expressive language skills contribute to the capacity for independent functioning in adulthood even after controlling for nonverbal cognitive ability. METHODS: Participants were 18- to 23-year-olds with FXS. Expressive language was assessed using the psychometrically validated Expressive Language Sampling (ELS) conversation and narration procedures. The language produced was transcribed and analyzed to yield measures of expressive vocabulary, syntax, and intelligibility. Parents concurrently completed …

The Power Of Tolerance Vs. Unselfishness As A Cultural Determinant Of Cooperation, Kimmo Eriksson, Brent Simpson, Irina Vartanova

Faculty Publications

Cooperation in collective action problems and resource dilemmas is often assumed to depend on the values of the individuals involved, such as their degree of unselfishness and tolerance. Societal differences in cooperation and cooperative norms may therefore result from cultural variation in emphasis on these personal values. Here we draw on several cross-national datasets to examine whether society-level emphasis on unselfishness and tolerance and respect for other people predict how societies vary in cooperation [in a continuous prisoner’s dilemma (PD)] and in norms governing cooperation [in a common pool resource dilemma (CPR)]. The results suggest that high levels of cooperation …