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Announcements, No.42 2006

Medieval Feminist Forum: A Journal of Gender and Sexuality

No abstract provided.

Funding Michigan K-12 Educational Adequacy Without Rewarding Inefficiency, James J. Walters

Dissertations

Resource equalization represents the historical and theoretical basis for American school finance and its ideals continue to dominate discussion and practice. During the last decade and a half, the national aspiration for equitable distribution of school finance resources has started a transformation into a derivative notion of adequacy. This equity policy derivative embraces the idea of sufficiency, which in turn implies a standard. The concept of educational adequacy has grown to mean the achievement of high absolute standards. Equity (equalization) theorists measure resource level on a relative basis; each student relative to all others. Adequacy adherents measure student achievement against …

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 33, No. 4 (December 2006)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SPECIAL FEATURE: CENSORSHIP IN NASW JOURNALS?

• THE PERILS OF SELF-CENSORSHIP - Robert D. Leighninger, Jr
• INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL WORK, GLOBALIZATION AND THE CHALLENGE OF A UNIPOLAR WORLD - James Midgley
• LETTERS TO THE EDITOR REGARDING NASW PRESS CENSORSHIP
• Marcia B. Cohen, Co-editor, Journal of Progressive Human Services
• Richard Hoefer, Editor, Journal of Policy Practice
• Tony Tripodi, Former Editor of Social Work Research, Former Co-editor of Journal of Social Work Research and Evaluation
• Stanley L. Witkin, Former Editor-in-Chief, Social Work
• Elizabeth J. Clark, Executive Director, National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
• NINETEENTH CENTURY REVIEW OF MENTAL HEALTH CARE …

Analyzing The Effects Of Inquiry-Based Instruction On The Learning Of Atmospheric Science Among Pre-Service Teacher Education Students, Robert James Ruhf

Dissertations

This study tested whether or not pre-service teacher education students enrolled in inquiry-based earth science courses gained more thorough knowledge, comprehension, and application proficiencies with regard to atmospheric science concepts included in the Michigan Curriculum Framework for Science Education---the content standards of the Michigan State Board of Education for K-12---than did pre-service teacher education students enrolled in a traditionally-based earth science lecture/laboratory course. Content proficiencies were tested at the beginning of the semester (the pretest) and again at theend of the semester (the posttest). A sample of students participated in post-test interview sessions designed to examine in depth their knowledge, …

Determinants And Consequences Of Workers’ Remittances, Carlos Ivan Vargas-Silva

Dissertations

In this dissertation we study the determinants and consequences of workers' remittances. It is important for developing countries to have a clear understanding of the motivations that migrants have to remit money home, in order to increase remittances inflows. It is also important to understand the impact of remittances in the receiving countries in order to develop policies that can maximize the benefits of remittances, while minimizing any possible detrimental effects. In this dissertation we concentrate on the relationship between remittances and macroeconomic variables in the receiving countries. To this end we use both individual and aggregate level data.

In …

A Statistical Analysis Of The Distribution Of Roads Salt In Blueberry Farm Soils Of Van Buren County, Michigan, Melissa M. Kovach

Masters Theses

The purpose of this research is to compare and analyze the leaching of road salt (sodium chloride) in soils of blueberry farms. Due to recent events in Ottawa County, Michigan, road salt is increasingly being blamed for blueberry production loss. Sodium chloride is harmful because once a significant amount of salt enters the soil profile the salt is unable to be flushed out, and reduces the chance for nutrients to reach the plant for effective growth. This study tested the farms' soils for salinity before winter (October 2005), during winter (March 2006) and after winter (May 2006) to determine if …

Nineteenth Century Review Of Mental Health Care For African Americans: A Legacy Of Service And Policy Barriers, Tony B. Lowe

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The need to focus on service and policy barriers to mental health service delivery for African Americans remains critical. The purpose of this article is to review nineteenth century care as a method for understanding contemporary service and policy barriers. A case study strategy is used to compare the efforts of Pennsylvania and South Carolina using primary and secondary sources to document these developments through a political economy perspective. These findings suggest that the prevailing social, political and economic realities have created mental health disparities along racial lines. Existing barriers are likely rooted in this same reality.

Western News, Nov. 30, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: WMU establishes award for emerging scholars; Ten staff members received fall service awards; Obituaries for Harry Hefner and David Morris; On Campus with Jan Dekker.

Western News, Nov. 16, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: WMU gets cutting-edge aviation training devices; Baileys established endowed jazz scholarship; New Issues releases six new poetry collections; On Campus with Rosanna Metoyer.

Western News, Nov. 2, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: Washington selected as CHHS dean; Bronco Legislative Network offers voter information; Nominations sought for revived teaching award; On Campus with Donna Gardner-Lawson.

Prism #18, October/November 2006, Office Of The Provost

Prism: Western Michigan University's Newsletter for Academic Affairs

No abstract provided.

Reading Interest And Behavior In Middle School Students In Innercity And Rural Settings, Daphne Greenburg, Amanda D. Gilbert, Laura D. Fredrick

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

We examined the reading interest and behavior of students in one rural (n = 664) and one inner-city (n = 510) middle school. Responses to the questionnaire indicated that in general, middle school students are not interested in reading and spend very little time engaged in various reading activities. Further analysis of the data showed differences among school, gender, and grade in responses to the questionnaire. Therefore, although one can make broad claims about middle school students, we propose that it may be useful to look also at different groups of middle school students when trying to make decisions concerning …

Western News, Oct. 5, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: Advisory group poised to begin presidential search; NCAA recertification process begins; Fedotov wins Fulbright; Baas gets teaching excellence award; On Campus with Patty DeLoach.

Insider Vol. 8 No. 1 Fall 2006, College Of Arts & Sciences

College of Arts and Sciences news

A Publication for Friends of the College of Arts and Sciences

Western News, Sept. 21, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: External funding for research reaches nearly $39 million; WMU gets Jobs Fund dollars; Ballard, Case-Parris, Northey, Paff get service excellence awards ; On Campus with Linda Comrie.

Seeking Justice For Victims And Offenders: A Needs-Based Approach To Justice, Patrick M. Gerkin

Dissertations

This dissertation is a case study investigation of a victim-offender mediation program in a mid-western state. Victim-offender mediation is one form of amuch greater movement currently emerging within the criminal justice system known as restorative justice. The focus of this dissertation is to examine the connections between theory and practice with regards to mediation as a form of restorative justice.

This research fills avoid in the restorative justice literature. It offers findings based on empirical research about the issues that are central to restorative justicetheory and practice. There is a wealth of theory claiming that restorative justice can deliver a …

The Impact Of A One-Half Day Environmental Education Program On Elementary Students, David C. Pagel

Masters Theses

The hypothesis of this research is that elementary students benefit from the Kalamazoo Nature Center's (KNC) one-half day inquiry program, based upon data collected using a Likert scale instrument. The earth science inquiry program at KNC is intended to enhance student attitude about the natural environment. There are two primary components to the research. First, data were collected through a pre-/post-survey from elementary students who participated in the Kalamazoo Nature Center's one half-day environmental education program. The survey was based on the Test of Science Related Attitudes (Fraser, 1981). Second, data were analyzed to assess student attitudes and beliefs before …

Far From The Heart: The Social, Political, And Ecclesiastical Milieu Of The Early Abbotsof La Chaise-Dieu, 1052-1184, Maureen M. O’Brien

Dissertations

This study examines the institutional development of the abbey of La Chaise-Dieu, whose evolution depended upon its community of monks, its patrons, and its response to the demands placed upon it by the society at large and the Church in general. It examines these factors as they were managed by its first eightabbots by tracing the development of their personal, social, political, and ecclesiastical networks in an effort to identify how those interactions took place and why they took the forms they did. This analysis rests on the examination of charters that were drawn up by the abbey and by …

Wmu Board Of Trustees Formal Session July 14, 2006, Wmu Board Of Trustees

WMU Board of Trustees Meetings

Minutes of the WMU Board of Trustees meeting include appendices:

• Acceptance of the Agenda
• Revised Procedure to Address the Board
• Remarks by the Chair
• Remarks by the President
• Remarks by the WSA President and GSAC Past Chair and Current Chair
• Reorganization of the College of Education

The Western Michigan University Magazine, Summer 2006, Western Michigan University

Western Michigan University Magazine (1997-present)

• No stone left unturned
• The second time around
• College news
• Campus places
• Classnotes/Obituaries

The Olde Town Of Segovia And Its Aqueduct: Preservation And Tourist Management, Rose Ann Switt

Masters Theses

The city of Segovia, Spain is known for its Acueducto (Aqueduct), the Alcazar Castle, its Catedral (Cathedral), la Casa de la Moneda de Segovia (the House of Money of Segovia), and over 60 additional historical buildings, monuments, and protected vistas. This abundance qualified the city for designation in 1986 as a World Heritage site under guidelines established by the United Nations Education and Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Site status is coveted by city and regions around the world, but little research conducted in Spain has been recorded in English to determine if receiving this status actually affects …

The Representation Of Race And Ethnic Relations In Japanese Junior High School English Language Textbooks From 1987 To 2002, Mieko Yamada

Dissertations

This dissertation explores how cultural attitudes about race/ethnicity are taught and how international power relations are expressed in Japanese junior high school textbooks. In a content analysis of Japanese junior high school textbooks in English as a foreign language, I examine how race and ethnic relationswere expressed and what types of interracial communication took place in the textbooks. Applying the racial formation theory developed by Omi and Winant (1994) and the concept of color-blind racism by Bonilla-Silva (2001, 2003), I explain how cultural ideology towards racial and ethnic relations were guided in the Japanese English language textbooks.

Fifteen English language …

A “Southern Tradition?”: Stockcar Racing As Contextual Tradition, Patrick A. Lindsay

Masters Theses

A large number of academics who have examined stockcar racing have concluded that stockcar racing is a “Southern tradition.” While the implicit definitions of tradition may vary, many generally agree that there is a clear historical relationship between stock car racing and the South. It is my contention that the idea that stockcar racing is a “Southern” tradition does not represent the reality of stockcar racing fandom for many people outside of the South. I assert that stock car racing is instead a “contextual tradition”, a practice that became labeled a tradition through specific historical and cultural circumstances. By examining …

Western News, June 8, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: Pisaneschi named provost; Bundy appointed admission director; Joslin and Dybek star at Chicago book fair; Bailey unveils results of latest business survey; On Campus with Richard McMullen.

Bibliography: Works By Sylvia Thrupp, Joel T. Rosenthal, Caroline Barron

Medieval Feminist Forum: A Journal of Gender and Sexuality

No abstract provided.

Western News, May 11, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: Geological facility for state gets new home ; Campuswide diversity plan approved; Marie Stevens earns STAR Award; Szarmach garners more medieval honors; On Campus with Mat Kanan.

Acculturative Stress And Social Support Among Korean And Indian Immigrant Adolescents In The United States, Madhavappallil Thomas, Jong Baek Choi

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This study examined acculturative stress and its relationship with social support among Korean and Indian immigrant adolescents. The data were collected from 165 Korean and Indian adolescents using the Acculturation Scale for Asian American Adolescents and Social Support Scale. Findings show that respondents experience low to moderate level of acculturative stress. Social support activities reduce the level of acculturative stress. Social support from parents is the most important predictive factor in determining the level of acculturative stress. These findings not only contribute to social work education and practice but also increase cultural sensitivity and awareness in working with these populations.

Wmu Board Of Trustees Formal Session April 28, 2006, Wmu Board Of Trustees

WMU Board of Trustees Meetings

Minutes of the WMU Board of Trustees meeting include appendices:

• Acceptance of the Agenda
• Approval of the Minutes of the March 9 Formal Session
• Remarks by the Chair
• Remarks by the President
• Remarks by the WSA President and GSAC Chair
• Diversity & Multiculturalism Action Plan (DMAP)
• Preliminary Report

Western News, April 20, 2006, Western Michigan University

Western News (1972-2018)

Story highlights: Bailey leads delegation to Qatar ; Miller wraps up WMU career; Board approves 11 retirements; Obituaries for Roger Bresson, Mary Frances Fenton, Herbert Hannon; On Campus with Kim Cauchy.

International Education Forum, International Education Council

International Education Council

This was presented to the WMU Faculty Senate on April 6, 2006.