Digital Commons Network^™

Autoethnographies Exploring The Cultural Spirit Murdering And Nurturing Of Three Minority Educators In K-12, Sara Z. Beg, Maritza Caldera, Denise Ross

Dissertations

This autoethnography sought to understand how our experiences during our K-12 journey as three minority students shaped our identities as students and our teaching style today. An autoethnography allowed us to analyze our experiences through the lens of Cultural Spirit Nurturing and Cultural Spirit Murdering. Cultural Spirit Nurturing, as we defined it, is the acceptance, respect, and inclusion of different cultures, ethnicities, nationalities, races, languages, and religions in society. We dissected our lived moments as Pakistani Muslim American, African American, and Mexican American students turned educators, defined them as Cultural Spirit Nurturing or Murdering, and bridged them with the concepts …

A Multi-Site Qualitative Analysis Of The Juvenile Justice And Child Welfare Systems: Implications For Dual System Youth, Lauren Morgan

Dissertations

Researchers have been studying juveniles who experience both child maltreatment and delinquency for decades. These studies document the prevalence, outcomes, and demographics of youth who navigate child welfare and juvenile justice systems, also known as dual system youth. However, there is a lack of investigation into the complex processes occurring at the intersection of these two systems. This dissertation aims to fill that gap by building on previous research, organizational theory, and the growing area of punishment literature in criminal justice. The goal is to better understand how juvenile justice and child welfare systems organizationally manage dual system youth. Specifically, …

Finding Combinatorial Patterns In Real Valued Omics Data, Kenneth Smith

Dissertations

Precision medicine is a healthcare approach which tailors disease prevention and treatment to an individual, based on their genetics, environment, lifestyle, and physiological state. These factors interact to produce biological changes that can be measured to produce data called omics, and include genomics, lipidomics, and proteomics. Despite the abundance of omics data and analysis techniques, researchers still struggle to identify biological findings that replicate across data sets and translate into clinical applications. In this dissertation, we employ combinatorial optimization techniques to improve upon three steps in the precision medicine analysis pipeline: 1) data cleaning, 2) community detection, and 3) feature …

Confronting Whiteness: When Critical Whites Studies And Racial Trauma Collide: An Autoethnography, Tracy Barron

Dissertations

This autoethnographic dissertation research explores Critical White Studies (CWS) and racial trauma and their impact on Students of Color in a higher education setting. This study aims to challenge the deficit thinking of white educators who perpetuate racism in higher education. The relationship is examined to dismantle the white ideology of white educators who believe they have the same experiences of their Students of Color regardless of their own similar experiences. Through personal narratives the author will share the complexity of CWS and Racial Trauma. The findings suggest white educators need to examine their white identity and become culturally responsive …

Aren't Only Girls Secretaries…?”: Leadership Lessons From Women U.S. Secretaries Of State, Lindsay Allen

Dissertations

American political systems, predominantly steered by White males, often conform to masculine leadership paradigms derived from traditionally male-dominated domains like the U.S. government. Thus, it is vital to explore women’s roles in political leadership to foster a more comprehensive understanding of effective leadership.

The purpose of this study was to examine how women who have served as U.S. secretary of state exhibited leadership. Of the 71 people to have served as secretary of state, just three have been women: Madeleine Albright, Condoleezza Rice, and Hillary Rodham Clinton. Due to the complexity of gendered experiences, and the challenges of having direct …

Diverse Gamers: Resistance Through Video Gameplay, Breon Rose

Dissertations

With most of the global population engaging with video games, it is crucial to understand the relationship between gaming and the holistic health of players. However, counseling scholarship exploring the relationship between gaming technology and mental health is nascent. Moreover, ethical guidelines in counseling require professionals to further their awareness and competence while working with underrepresented populations (American Counseling Association; ACA, 2014). To address the preceding statements, this two-study dissertation focused on expanding awareness and clinical understanding of video game technology and human experience. The first study used quantitative methods to examine the relationship between race-related stress, motivations to play …

Exploring Strategies For Placement Stability Among Foster Care Children, Gabrielle Sewester

Dissertations

Children in foster care are considered a vulnerable population because of the maltreatment and abuse that previously occurred. In addition to the trauma resulting from previous abuse or neglect, children in foster care face ongoing exposure to trauma due to the lack of stability within the system. Instability in the foster care system is displayed by frequent changes in placement providers, multiple school changes, inconsistent mental and physical health treatment, prolonged permanency, and loss of connections with biological family members. The aim for this study is to fill the gap in the literature on foster parent’s experiences with successful placement …

Nontraditional Community College Students In Nursing: Perceptions Personified, Helene P. Seibert

Dissertations

Nontraditional students in nursing have been the topic of multiple research studies to gain insight into their perceptions regarding retention. This mixed methods study, using Jeffreys' Student Perception Appraisal-Revised (SPA-R, 2007a) takes the quantitative findings a step further by using a qualitative approach to generate findings that extend the value of that instrument by exploring the details pertaining to each of the environmental items using focus groups and individual interviews with community college nursing students, just prior to graduation. One hundred seven associate degree nursing students in their last semester at three Midwestern community colleges were surveyed with the SPA-R …

Simulation In Interprofessional Education: A Case Study With Baccalaureate Nursing Faculty, Sherleena Ann Buchman

Dissertations

Nursing programs across the country are facing the challenge of providing students with optimal clinical skill learning experiences. Faculty members are rising to this challenge in a variety of ways, and current research in nursing education advocates the addition of interprofessional education to the nursing curriculum. History and governing bodies explain how nursing education can achieve this goal but faculty have to implement required and suggested changes. Further research is needed to gain insight into perceptions of the baccalaureate nursing faculty of interprofessional education and how the simulation in interprofessional experience contributes to overall patient safety. Patient safety is a …

Career Technical And Agricultural Education Teachers In Rural Schools: Perceptions Of Leadership Abilities, Professional Support, And Overall Job Satisfaction Following Participation In A Teacher Leadership Professional Learning Community, Tasia Ellis

Dissertations

Career Technical Education (CTE), including Career Technical Agricultural Education (CTAE) in Georgia, are experiencing difficulty retaining quality teachers. This problem is exacerbated in rural communities, which have a smaller workforce pool and fewer nearby colleges to certify CTE/CTAE teachers (Morton, 2021). A potential solution to offset teacher retention concerns is teacher leadership. When teachers are given opportunities to take on leadership roles, they are likely to feel more valued and experience increased self-efficacy and perceptions of ability (Katzenmeyer & Moller, 2009). The purpose of this phenomenographic study was to examine whether a teacher leadership Professional Learning Community (PLC) enhanced teachers' …

Using Therapeutic Writing To Deconstruct Recovery From Postraumatic Stress Disorder (Ptsd), Pamela Phillips

Dissertations

Exposure to physical and psychological trauma has produced a post-millennial epoch of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a debilitating anxiety disorder that occurs after exposure to an extreme stressor or prolonged victimization. After an extensive review of treatment protocols in 2008, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) exhorted clinicians to focus on defining the concept of recovery, concentrating on symptom reduction, removal of the PTSD diagnosis, and end-state function. Although the IOM report mobilized large-scale efforts to quantify treatments and standardize delivery of treatment protocols, PTSD recovery remains a concept that has been largely unexplored. The primary aim of this study was …

A Case Study Of The Organizational System Of Articulation At A Midwestern Regional Public University, Katherine J. Giardello

Dissertations

Quantitative research has long shown lagging community college transfer student completion rates, in addition to excess credits earned and lengthened time-to-degree for transfer students that do earn a bachelor’s degree (Horn & Skomsvold, 2011; Jenkins & Fink, 2016; Simone, 2014; U.S. GAO, 2017). Scant qualitative studies exist related to student transfer, particularly the academic enterprise of articulation and the university perspective on transfer.

This qualitative study takes up the cause, using organizational and systems theories (Birnbaum, 1988; Clark, 1983; Cohen & March, 1974; Morgan, 2006; Senge, 1990; von Bertalanffy, 1972; Weick, 1976) to frame a single site case study with …

Understanding Chemistry Concepts Through Analogies And The Frayer Model, Ashley A. Walls

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate how high school Honors chemistry students create and learn from analogies that were created using the Frayer Model. Pragmatism, analogies in science, and Reality Pedagogy served as the theoretical foundation of this study. A phenomenography method was used to answer the following research questions: What connections do high school honors chemistry students make when using analogies relating chemistry concepts to their prior knowledge, interest, or hobbies? What are high school honors chemistry students’ perceptions of the use of the Frayer Model for analogy creation? How do high school honors chemistry students of …

Say Her Name: A Phenomenological Study On Black Women’S Experiences With Fearful Encounters With The Police, Marilyn Shantey Buford

Dissertations

Police violence is a historical, systemic issue that continues to plague the Black community to this day. Research discussing the systemic oppression of police violence on Black people has seen an increase over the past decade. However, little has been discussed on the effects of police violence on Black people’s health and wellness, particularly their mental health. The research that exists surrounding police violence and mental health is largely concentrated on the experiences of Black men. Little is known about how Black women personally experience police violence or how these experiences impact their mental, emotional, and physical health. Not exploring …

Systematics, Biogeography, And Floral Trait Evolution Of The Plant Genus, Medinilla (Melastomataceae), John Peter Quakenbush

Dissertations

Medinilla is a large paleotropical genus in the plant family Melastomataceae with a long history of systematic uncertainty. The first objective of this research is to test the monophyly of Medinilla. A species tree is estimated using 599 nuclear gene trees, and 87 concatenated chloroplast genes are used to estimate the plastid phylogeny. Sampling includes 272 Medinilla and outgroups. Pachycentria and Plethiandra are resolved within Medinilla. Other fleshy-fruitedgenera long associated with Medinilla (i.e., Catanthera, Heteroblemma, Kendrickia) belong to other clades. With this new evolutionary framework, an infrageneric classification system is proposed for Medinilla consisting of …

Longitudinal Evaluation Of Vitamin D Concentrations In Relation To The Onset Of Type 2 Diabetes In American Adults: A Secondary Data Analysis, Kathryn Michelle Schurr

Dissertations

Background: Prior research has suggested that low levels of Vitamin D may have negative effects on various biological functions, including Type 2 diabetes. The relationship between Vitamin D and the risk of Type 2 Diabetes has not yet been fully investigated. The objective of this research is to examine patients’ laboratory test data longitudinally to determine how vitamin D and other covariates of interest affect Type 2 diabetes status over time.

Methods: This study used retrospective data review from Quest Diagnostics from January 1, 2010, through December 31, 2022. Patients included in the study were required to have consecutive test …

Beneficial Effects Of Exercise On Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Content And Endplate Morphology In Skeletal Muscle Of Aging Male And Female Rats, Juliana M. Vangyseghem

Dissertations

Premenopausal women display lower incidence and severity of neurological disease compared to men of the same age, yet these populations are often treated similarly. A decline in neuromuscular function is associated with aging, which may be partially explained by a decline in neurotrophic factor expression with age. A possible way to maintain neuroprotection would be to regulate the production and release of a target-derived neurotrophic factor, such as glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF). GDNF has been shown to be the most potent survival factor for motor neurons and GDNF content of skeletal muscle has been shown to increase with …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Heavy-Metal Oxoanion- And Phosphonate-Binding Nanojars, Pooja Singh

Dissertations

Nanojars are an emerging class of anion-binding and extraction agents. These supramolecular coordination complexes (2 nm wide) exhibit exceptional anion binding strength that points to their possible application in the recovery of toxic or valuable anions from water bodies. Nanojars of the formula (TBA)2[XO3/42−⸦{CuII(μ-OH)(μ-pyrazolate)}n] (TBA = tetrabutylammonium cation; XO3/42− = anion; X = Se, Te, Cr, Mo, W, HP, HAs, HV; n = 26 – 36) are synthesized from Cu2+, OH−, pyrazole and the TBA salts of various anions. Nanojars possess hydrophobic exteriors with an array of pyrazolate ligands and hydrophilic interiors with a …

Experiential-Based Research Depicting Humanistic Survival After Violent Victimization & Traumatization Exploring Human Resilience, Spirituality, Meditation & Expressive Writing, Sabrina Harris

Dissertations

Unattended trauma-induced stressors resulting from incidents of violent victimization can escalate into mental health challenges, including trauma-related and substance-abuse disorders, which most often co-occur in a debilitating manner. Therefore, it is essential to conduct ongoing exploratory research on cognitive-based approaches (e.g., spirituality), psychological adaptations (e.g., human resilience), and trauma-informed approaches (e.g., meditation, expressive writing), which serve to reduce or offset the adverse impact of trauma.

Twelve women who experienced victimization and traumatization but did not seek professional mental-health intervention were interviewed; six had been abused as children and eight as adults. Some did not contact or follow through with reports …

Exploring The Nexus Of Community College Faculty And The Actual Application Of Generative Artificial Intelligence Technologies In Courses And Syllabi, Jamie Pang

Dissertations

This study's basis was examining the specific pairing of higher education and Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technologies. For this study, Generative AI technologies is defined as technology that is prompted by text to produce text, images, media, or other end products. A survey was conducted with community college faculty members at a research site that did not have an institutional Generative AI technology policy or mandate on how Generative AI technologies can or cannot be used in the classroom or by students. In a quantitative analysis, this study looked at the convergence and relationship between community college faculty characteristics, perceptions, …

Shigella Flexneri Diguanylate Cyclases Regulate Pathogenesis, Ruchi Ojha

Dissertations

The intracellular human pathogen Shigella invades the colonic epithelium to cause disease. Prior to colon invasion, this bacterium navigates through different environments within the human body, including acidic conditions in the stomach and the small intestine which contains antimicrobial molecules including bile acids. To adapt to changing environments, Shigella uses the bacterial second messenger c-di-GMP signaling system. C-di-GMP is synthesized by diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) encoding GGDEF domains. Shigella encodes 10 DGCs in its genome, but 6 of these genes have acquired mutations that presumably inactivated the c-di-GMP synthesis activity of these enzymes. In this study, we first expressed VCA0956, a …

The Development Of Youth Voice In A Community-Based Social Action Program, César A. Briones Mendieta

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the dynamics of youth voice development within the Great Lakes PeaceJam program, a community-based initiative aimed at engaging high school and college students in social action. This research builds upon scholarship that explores youth development in the context of community-based and social action programs. Situated within the overlapping fields of youth development, developmental psychology, and sociopolitical theory, these narratives frame youth voice as a normative process influenced by social interactions and cultural contexts and as a driving force in youth activism, civic engagement, and social action, highlighting the role of youth in …

Synthesis And Structure-Property Relationships Of Sustainable Nanostructured Materials Towards Energy And Environment Applications, Nizamudeen Cherupurakal

Dissertations

This doctoral research aims to advance clean energy technologies by developing specialized nanostructured materials. The study covers significant research themes, each forming separate sections in the thesis, explaining the important role of nanostructures in enhancing the efficiency and sustainability of energy devices and photocatalytic technologies.

The enduring effort toward stabilizing and improving the efficiency of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) has stirred the solar research community to follow innovative approaches. The primary objective of the research is centered on electrode materials design, which improves photoanodes' Light-Harvesting Efficiency (LHE). To improve the Photoanode of DSSCs, a Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) derived porous photoanodes …

Transforming Fermentation Residues From Date Fruit Pomace For The Synthesis Of Bioadsorbent Material In An Integrated Biorefinery Framework, Sabeera Haris

Dissertations

In the pursuit of enhanced waste management solutions, this comprehensive research delves into the untapped potential of Date Fruit Pomace (DFP), an abundant byproduct from the date syrup industry that is currently underutilized, leading to environmental concerns. The study emphasizes the need for proper waste management and valorization strategies to mitigate the environmental impact of DFP and promote sustainability within the date processing industry. The initial phase involves characterizing DFP from Emirati varieties, highlighting its compositional and functional properties. The analysis reveals that DFP is rich in total dietary fiber (45.5%), residual sugars (35.3%), protein (10.6%), ash (4.1%), and fat …

Formate Dehydrogenase Immobilized On Metal Organic Framework For Enhanced Conversion Of Co2 To Formate, Shadeera Rouf

Dissertations

Enzymatic hydrogenation of carbon dioxide (CO₂) to formate by formate dehydrogenase (FDH) is a promising technology for reducing CO₂ concentrations in an environmentally friendly manner. For practical and economical implementation of the process, however, enhanced reusability of the enzyme is essential, which requires easy separation from the reaction mixture, coupled with sustained stability. One way to achieve this is by using the enzyme in an immobilized form. In this work, the effectiveness of using different metal organic frameworks (MOFs) as promising alternative supports for FDH immobilization has been assessed. A highly stable zirconium-based MOF, UiO66 and its …

Enzymatic Production Of Cyclodextrin Using Cyclodextrin Glycosyltransferase Immobilized In Metal Organic Frameworks (Mofs), Babatunde Azeez Ogunbadejo

Dissertations

Cyclodextrins (CDs) and their derivatives have attracted significant attention in the pharmaceutical, food, and textile industries, which has led to an increased demand for their production. CDs are typically produced by the action of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGTase) on starch. Owing to the relatively high cost of enzymes, the economic feasibility of the entire process strongly depends on the effective retention and recycling of CGTase in the reaction system, while maintaining the enzyme’s activity and stability. Previous supports used for this purpose such as silica and hydrogels, have numerous drawbacks, including enzyme leaching, activity loss and significant mass transfer limitations. The …

Valorization Of The Polymeric Constituents In Plastic Wastes Through Thermo-Chemical Processes By Using Viable Metal Oxides Additives, Labeeb Hamad Ali

Dissertations

The rapid accumulation of different types of plastic waste necessitates the development of effective and economically viable waste management operations. Such a process should ideally not only mitigate associated environmental burdens but also recycle and recover value-added products. Through incineration or pyrolysis, thermal processing has emerged as a mainstream approach to waste management of the ever-increasing loads of different categorized plastic wastes. Throughout the work of the thesis, we have utilized a multitude of complementary techniques spanning material characterizations, catalysis, kinetic modelling, and density functional theory (DFT) to comprehend the complex chemistry that underpins catalytic chemical recycling of plastic wastes. …

Developmental Programming Of Normal Versus Metabolically Altered Pancreas In Rat: Effect Of Gestational Diabetes, Sanabil Ali Ahmed

Dissertations

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a chronic condition characterised by pancreatic β-cell dysfunction and consistently elevated blood glucose levels (hyperglycaemia), either due to the inability of the body to produce any or adequate amounts of insulin or the inability of the body to effectively utilise the produced insulin (i.e., insulin resistance). DM can be classified into 3 main types: Type 1 DM (T1DM), Type 2 DM (T2DM), and Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). GDM is defined as “hyperglycaemia that is first diagnosed during pregnancy with glucose levels below those considered diagnostic of overt diabetes outside of pregnancy”.

The mature pancreas is a …

Increasing Folic Acid Self-Efficacy In College-Age Women Of Childbearing Age, Kristie Buchanan

Dissertations

Preventative measures taken by women of childbearing age before and during conception limit the risk of fetal defects or complications. One specific measure that is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is that all women of childbearing age take folic acid 400 mcg daily. Evidence-based research suggests that taking 400 mcg daily limits the risk of fetal neural tube defects if taken daily and started at least two months before conception. Fetal neural tube defects are classified as defects that damage the baby's spine and brain. The researcher conducted an evidence-based practice project that sought to determine …

The Effect Of Teacher Identity On The Level Of Cultural Inclusion In The Classroom, Jennifer Jones

Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenographical study was to investigate high school teachers’ perceptions of cultural inclusion and the impact of teacher identity on the level of cultural inclusion in the classroom. This research study utilized semi-structured one-on-one interviews as the primary source of data and participant surveys and researcher notes taken during the interviews as the secondary sources. This study sought to address two research questions: (1) What can we learn from teachers' experiences at a southeastern suburban high school regarding the post-COVID perceptions of cultural inclusion in the classroom? (2) How does teacher identity affect cultural inclusion in …