Digital Commons Network^™

Managing Water Stored For The Environment During Drought, Sarah Null, Jeffrey Mount, Brian Gray, Michael Dettinger, Kristen Dybala, Gokce Sencan, Anna Sturrock, Barton Thompson, Harrison Zeff

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Storing water in reservoirs is important for maintaining freshwater ecosystem health and protecting native species. Stored water also is essential for adapting to the changing climate, especially warming and drought intensification. Yet, reservoir operators often treat environmental objectives as a constraint, rather than as a priority akin to water deliveries for cities and farms. Reservoir management becomes especially challenging during severe droughts when surface water supplies are scarce, and urban and agricultural demands conflict with water supplies needed to maintain healthy waterways and wetlands. In times of drought, most freshwater ecosystems suffer.

This blog post examines 2021 water year actions …

Educational Policies Committee Minutes, November 4, 2021, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Approval of 6 October 2021 Minutes
• Curriculum Subcommittee Report
• Academic Standards Subcommittee Report
• General Education Subcommittee Report
• Other Business

Educational Policies Committee Agenda, November 4, 2021, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Curriculum Subcommittee Report
• Academic Standards Subcommittee Report
• General Education Subcommittee Report
• Other Business

Curriculum Subcommittee Minutes, November 4, 2021, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Approval of 6 October 2021 Minutes
• Program Proposals
• Semester Course Approval Reviews
• Other Business

Curriculum Subcommittee Agenda, November 4, 2021, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Approval of 6 October 2021 Minutes
• Program Proposals
• Semester Course Approval Reviews
• Other Business

The Utah Statesman, November 1, 2021, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Faculty Senate Minutes, November 1, 2021, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

• Approval of Minutes – October 4, 2021
• University Business
• Educational Policies Committee – October 6, 2021
• PRPC Update
• Athletic Council Annual Report
• Honors Program Annual Report
• Old Business

Tremblings, November 2021, Western Aspen Alliance

Tremblings

Lindroth + Aspen: A Legacy of Good Chemistry

Ken Keefover-Ring

The license plates on Professor Rick Lindroth’s vehicle read “Q ASPEN,” referring to quaking aspen. This gives you a hint of the extent of his obsession; one he will surely carry into his upcoming retirement. Rick has co-authored almost 220 peer-reviewed articles and 15 book chapters over his academic career and more than 70% of them involve aspen (Populus tremuloides) in some way. In fact, many issues of Tremblings have listed one or more of his papers. This research has largely been focused on aspen chemical ecology and …

Faculty Senate Agenda, November 1, 2021, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

• Approval of Minutes – October 4, 2021
• University Business
• Educational Policies Committee
• PRPC Update
• Athletic Council Annual Report
• Honors Program Annual Report
• Format for Faculty Senate meetings

Latinx Caregivers’ Perceived Need For And Utilization Of Youth Telepsychology Services During The Coronavirus Pandemic, Alejandro L. Vázquez, Cynthia M. Navarro Flores, María De La Caridad Alvarez, Melanie M. Domenech Rodríguez

Psychology Faculty Publications

Telepsychology has the potential to provide a safe method of addressing mental health problems among Latinx youth during the coronavirus pandemic. However, the extent to which Latinx caregivers are accessing telepsychology services for their child and whether this format is perceived to be an appropriate method of addressing youth psychopathology is unknown. The present study examined indicators of youth psychopathology and external stressors in relation to Latinx caregivers’ perceived need for and utilization of youth telepsychology during the coronavirus pandemic. The sample consisted of 598 Latinx caregivers of school-age youths (MAge = 11.9, SD = 3.4) from across the United …

Voting And Civic Engagement Among Utah Women: A 2021 Update, Susan R. Madsen, D. Candice Pierucci, Robbyn T. Scribner

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

In 2016, the Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) released a research snapshot called “Voting and Civic Engagement Among Utah Women.” At the time, despite having a strong history of women’s political and civic involvement, Utah had fallen to the bottom of national rankings in terms of women’s political participation. In 2019, UWLP released an update of this report, which showed some improvement in voter participation rates for both the United States and for Utah women. Since 2016, the level of political engagement among women in Utah and the United States has grown, and civic engagement—a critical element of change …

Food And Purity In Zoroastrianism: Then To Now, Taylor A. Nelson

Intermountain West Journal of Religious Studies

This study seeks to examine the concept of purity as it relates to food in Zoroastrianism. In the past and until today, the essence of Zoroastrian religion rests on belief in an ongoing struggle between light and dark forces within each human being. Focused on “good thoughts, good words, good deeds,” Zoroastrianism has emphasized pure living, both in ancient times and today, in ways that bear upon what people eat. In terms of food, there are many examples of purity and ritual in Zoroastrianism. As one example, religious participation has required eating food cooked only by Zoroastrians. Another example is …

The Utah Statesman, October 25, 2021, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Factors Associated With The Psychosocial Wellbeing Among Parents Of Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard-Of-Hearing, Karen F. Munoz, John J. Whicker, Clarissa W. Ong, Michael P. Twohig

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Purpose: To identify factors associated with low psychosocial wellbeing among parents of children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

Method: A cross sectional survey that included instruments to measure psychological distress, functional impairment, and psychological inflexibility. Two hundred and ninety-six parents completed the survey.

Results: Analyses revealed that lower income, presence of additional disabilities, younger child age, and psychological inflexibility were factors associated with low parent psychosocial wellbeing.

Conclusions: Parents of younger children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing with low income, have children with additional disabilities, and higher psychological inflexibility may experience lower psychosocial wellbeing. Clinicians serving families may need to …

Readability Of Online Hearing-Based Early Intervention Materials, Torri Ann Woodruff, Kathleen Cienkowski

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Purpose: A quantitative readability assessment of currently accessible online materials for parents of children who are D/deaf and hard of hearing.

Design: Consistent with current recommendations discussing “grade-level” of materials, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) analysis, along with five other related measures, was conducted for each website. These analyses provide a readability score for each of the websites analyzed.

Study sample: The first five pages of results from a Google search of “early intervention deaf” and “early intervention hear” were compiled for readability assessment.

Results: Sixty-three websites were included in the analysis. Following article modification, inter- and intra-rater reliability were excellent …

Theory Of Mind Acquisition In Children Who Are Deaf: The Importance Of Early Identification And Communication Access, Kimberly A. Peters, Jessica Beer, David Pisoni, Ethan Remmell

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare Theory of Mind (ToM) acquisition in typically-hearing preschool-age children (TH), and deaf children of hearing parents (DCHP) who received a cochlear implant by 18 months of age, to determine if early access to spoken language via a cochlear implant affected ToM acquisition.

Methods: Participants included 25 children with cochlear implants ages 3.0 to 6.5 years and 25 age-matched children with TH all of whom were enrolled in preschools with typical peer models. The test battery included measures of expressive and receptive language and ToM.

Results: There were no …

Exploring Speech And Language Intervention For Preschoolers Who Are Deaf And Hard Of Hearing: A Scoping Review, Hillary Ganek, Janis Oram Cardy

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Purpose: The objective of this study was to summarize the extant literature on the effectiveness of speech and spoken language interventions for young children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) in order to determine which types of speech-language interventions might be most effective, for which hearing levels and types of hearing losses, and at which dosage.

Methods: Using a scoping review methodology, a database search identified 10,360 studies of which 16 met the requirements for inclusion. Data was extracted from each for analysis.

Results: Due to the limited number of studies available, high variability in the nature of …

Audiologist Perception On Reporting Hearing Assessment Results To State Early Hearing Detection And Intervention Programs, Winnie Chung, Maria Sanchez-Gomez

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Purpose

To describe an evaluation conducted by 39 state EHDI programs on how acceptable the reporting process and system audiologists had to use when reporting the hearing test results to the EHDI program and the barriers encountered during reporting.

Methods

Each author independently extracted numbers, percentages, and texts from the evaluation reports into an Excel spreadsheet, which then became the dataset. Authors then compared and cross-checked the datasets before coding. Texts conveying similar concepts were coded with the same name and organized into categories. Finally, thematic identification and analysis were performed when a theme(s) or concept(s) that pertained to similar …

Impact Of Face Masks On Audiovisual Word Recognition In Young Children With Hearing Loss During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Erin Lipps, Jody Caldwell-Kurtzman, Lina Motlagh Zadeh, Chelsea M. Blankenship, David R. Moore, Lisa L. Hunter

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Objective: To investigate effects of surgical and transparent face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic on audiovisual speech recognition of words for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

Design: Recorded Word Intelligibility by Picture Identification test (WIPI) was presented in quiet via a computer monitor to children in a quiet test room. The acoustic power spectra of each mask type were compared to the baseline no mask condition. Percent correct word recognition was recorded for four mask conditions (no mask, surgical mask, transparent apron mask and ClearMask) in counterbalanced order. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to test for significant differences in word recognition …

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Newborn Hearing Screening Programs In Western States, Nathan A. Blaseg, Hannah M. Williams, Shelby Jepperson, Jessica J. Messersmith

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The primary objective of this study was to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on newborn hearing screening guideline adherence and the respective rates of screening, diagnosis, and intervention. This was a review of newborn hearing screening data compiled from the Departments of Health of six states for the time periods of March-September 2019 and March-September 2020. Endpoints included the numbers of live births as well as the numbers and timeframes of screening, diagnostic, and intervention events. Two-tailed paired t-tests were performed to determine statistical significance. 181,662 births in six states were assessed. Compared to March-September 2019, March-September 2020 …

Hearing Loss Diagnosis Provision Of Information And Support: Audiologist And Parent Perspectives, Brandi Davis, Emily Knowd, Alisha L. Jones

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

When a child is diagnosed with hearing loss, the parents are faced with many decisions that will impact their child’s future. This study aimed to obtain data to determine viewpoints on information being provided to parents of children with hearing loss from both audiologist and parent perspectives. Topics of information surveyed included information on modes of communication, Deaf culture, cochlear implants, emotional support, and state resources/laws. A survey was created and shared in Facebook groups for audiologists and parents of Deaf/hard of hearing children. The survey was completed by 91 audiologists and 111 parents. Audiologist and parent survey data was …

Advancing Clinical Practice Through Integration Of Congenital Cytomegalovirus (Ccmv) Testing With Newborn Hearing Screening At Mayo Clinic, Joscelyn R. K. Martin, W. Charles Huskins, Lisa A. Schimmenti, Shelagh A. Cofer, Gayla L. Poling

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Although cCMV is the leading non-genetic cause of childhood hearing loss in the United States, neither targeted nor universal screening protocols have been well established to identify cCMV in newborns. Moreover, until cCMV testing is universal, clinical protocols need to account for the complexities of individualized care in partnership with interprofessional care teams. This work addressed an immediate clinical practice need to identify cCMV with subsequent hearing monitoring of babies who test positive for cCMV. This effort focused on three primary objectives to: 1) define interprofessional, team-based approach to facilitate care pathways; 2) develop a clinical workflow for all babies …

Intervention And Outcomes Of Children In Different Types Of Listening And Spoken Language Programs, Jace Wolfe, Sharon Miller, Erin C. Schafer, Amanda M. Rudge, Betsy Moog Brooks, Joanna Smith, Darcy Stowe, Amy L. Birath, Parker Wilson, Elizabeth Fales, Tamara Elder

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

This study explores the impact of the type and dosage of listening and spoken language (LSL) services on speech and language outcomes in children with cochlear implants or hearing aids in two LSL programs. Identical demographic variables were collected across the two programs for use in the statistical analyses. Speech and language outcomes were examined at ages 3 and 5 using standardized test measures. At age 3, significant differences in LSL outcomes existed between programs for children using cochlear implants but not for children using binaural hearing aids. However, at age five, outcomes were similar between the different LSL programs …

Journal Of Early Hearing Detection And Intervention: Volume 6 Issue 2

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

No abstract provided.

Designing And Implementing A Land-Grant Faculty-To-Student Mentoring Program: Addressing Shortcomings In Academic Mentoring, David D. Law, Don Busenbark, Kim K. Hales, James Y. Taylor, Jeff Spears, Andy Harris, Hannah M. Lewis

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Mentoring programs at universities have become common because of the perceived benefit to student persistence and retention. Evaluation of the effectiveness of these programs has not kept pace, primarily due to the following three problematic issues: (1) lack of theoretical guidance, (2) lack of an operational definition of mentoring, and (3) lack of methodological rigor. This article describes the evolution of a regional Faculty-to-Student Mentoring program into a statewide program, and how it addressed each of these three problematic issues. Using logic modeling, the intimate connections between theory, operational definitions, and sound methodology are made explicit, thereby addressing many of …

Using Online Genres To Promote Students’ Audience Awareness, Elena Taylor

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Writing assignments that students complete in university courses are typically designed for evaluation and grading by the instructor, who, therefore, acts as the sole reader of student written work. However, most written genres students would--and do--encounter in the world beyond the classroom are composed for diverse audiences who influence writers’ text construction considerably. Because most students will be likely to write for multiple audiences as part of their career or future academic endeavors, it is crucial for them to develop a sense of audience awareness as an indispensable rhetorical concept that shapes composing processes. Writing online presents a great opportunity …

Full Issue: Journal On Empowering Teaching Excellence, Volume 5, Issue 2, Fall 2021

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

The full Fall 2021 issue (Volume 5, Issue 2) of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Opioid Facts For Youth, Timothy Keady, Stacey Macarthur, Gabriela Murza, Suzanne Prevedel

All Current Publications

This fact sheet explains what opioids are, lists street names, and reviews the risks of using or misusing opioids. It reviews reasons why youth may abuse opioids. Ways youth can help and support peers are included as well as resources to get educated and find treatment for substance abuse and addiction. Several poster-styled and social media-compatible posters are included as an additional file that youth can share with other youth to spread the message and encourage safety.

Testing The Efficacy Of Leadership For Empowerment And Abuse Prevention (Leap), A Healthy Relationship Training Intervention For People With Intellectual Disability, Parthenia Dinora, Seb Prohn, Elizabeth P. Cramer, Molly Dellinger-Wray, Caitlin Mayton, Allison D'Aguiliar

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

Leadership for Empowerment and Abuse Prevention (LEAP) is an abuse prevention intervention for people with intellectual disability. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the intervention’s efficacy. Findings indicated no significant differences in scenario identification questions depicting acceptable or concerning situations. However, statistically significant improvements were noted in participants’ depth of understanding, including their ability to correctly describe why a scenario was abusive or exploitative and what to do next when confronted with unhealthy situations. Limitations and implications for practice are discussed.

Testing A Wellness Indicators Measure For People With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Matthew Bogenschutz, Michael Broda, Sarah Lineberry, Parthenia Dinora, Seb Prohn

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

Background and Purpose: People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often have health and wellness issues that are not as good as people without disabilities. States are required to monitor health and wellness for people with IDD who use many disability services. However, there are few ways to monitor wellness between states or at different points in time. In this study, we share a new model that states may use to monitor wellness of people with IDD.

Methods: We used data from a survey called the National Core Indicators (NCI) to develop this model. First, we developed the model using …