Digital Commons Network^™

Transnational Writing Program Administration: Mobility, Entanglement, Work., Joseph Franklin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation advances the global turn in writing studies by examining academic mobilities through an ethnographic study of transnational writing program administrative (TWPA) work outside of the United States. The literature review reads global writing studies scholarship through a critical-transnational lens to locate the gap for new knowledge in TWPA work. Influenced by Dorothy Smith’s Institutional Ethnography, this dissertation grounds the findings of its interview-based study in the terms of everyday lived experiences by internationally mobile scholars currently doing WPA work in order to construct more nuanced narratives of navigation and sensemaking. Participants discussed the consequences and limitations of us/them …

A Spatial Analysis Of Supply-Demand Of Public Transportation In Jefferson County, Kentucky., Nastaran Abdoli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Public transportation is important as it serves individuals, especially the transit-dependent population, by providing a basic mobility service to these people and all others who rely on public transportation. This research utilized estimating public transportation demand and supply to analyze the spatial patterns of public transportation in Jefferson County, Kentucky. The study focuses on the transit-dependent population, and it considers indicators of age, poverty status, vehicle ownership, and foreign-born population with less than five years residency in the United States. This study conducted a public transit supply-demand analysis to identify areas with imbalanced supply and demand in Jefferson County at …

Shifting Sands., Rachid Tagoulla

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Shifting Sands is a re-exploration of the presentation of North Africans in colonial postcards, an examination of identity, and a critique of the modern Western museum. Since the inception of photography, colonizers used this medium- especially in the form of postcards- to categorize and exoticize Eastern peoples in order to more easily subjugate them. Shifting Sands is a series of reconstructed colonial postcards which challenges colonial-era stereotypes of North African peoples. The colonial gaze, represented by the camera lens, is subverted through a lensless image-making process in which sand is used to remove the subject from the colonial gaze and …

The Shifting Role Of Teachers: A Case Study On Teachers’ Perceptions Of Personalized Learning In A Rural School District., Steve Miracle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This case study will explore teacher perceptions of the implementation of personalized learning as a means of supporting teachers in the process of transitioning to a new model of teaching and learning. A review of research revealed that there are many versions of personalized learning based on as many different definitions of what personalized learning is and what it looks like in the classroom. It is due to the lack of one consistent model that implementation can be problematic for schools and districts. As teachers are on the front line of implementing personalized learning their perceptions are important to future …

Rurality As A Moderator Of Perception Of Need For Medical Care And Patient Satisfaction, Kyndal Grammer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many individuals experience barriers to accessing medical care, especially in rural areas. Some barriers are attitudinal and represent perceptions of quality care. Patient satisfaction and perceived need for medical care are two such attitudinal barriers related to health care utilization, yet the relationship between these variables has not been explored. Using data from an online survey, the current study examined the association between these variables, and further, whether rurality status moderated this association. Results indicated a significant correlation between patient satisfaction and perception of need. Although the overall moderation model was significant, perception of need was not significantly associated with …

Black And White Student Achievement Gaps In Tennessee, Haley Dirmeyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Achievement gaps between Black students and White students have existed since public education was desegregated, and they still persist despite efforts to close the gap. This research describes the achievement gaps between Black and White 3^rd through 8^th grade students in the state of Tennessee from 2017-2019. This is a non-experimental, quantitative, comparative-analysis describing the ELA and math test scores of Black students and White students in each of the three geographic regions of Tennessee. Data were arranged in 2x2 contingency matrixes to compare the expected frequencies of students in each race scoring on-track and mastered versus below …

First-Generation Women Students’ Perceptions Of Support While Enrolled In Higher Education Institutions: A Phenomenological Study, Erin Blankenship Messmer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological study used qualitative research methods to explore the perceptions of support first-generation women students enrolled in college have. Eleven first-generation women students who were enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs across the United States completed one-on-one interviews with the researcher. The participants explained the support they felt from family, friends, and members of their college or university, as well as areas where further support could be given. In these interviews, key themes emerged, such as the roles of mentorship and emotional support, the need for financial assistance, the role of family in support and providing cultural capital, the …

Online Education And The Pandemic: A Narrative Of The Experiences Of First-Time Online Instructors During The Spring 2020 Semester, David Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore faculty members’ accounts of their experiences as first-time online instructors during the Spring 2020 academic semester as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting mandatory shift to online instruction. The rapid and widespread nature of the outbreak created an unprecedented phenomenon that significantly impacted instructors with no prior experience teaching courses in a fully online fashion. I interviewed 10 professors from various disciplines with at least three years of teaching experience in the traditional classroom. Each instructor was asked to express how the pandemic affected them personally as well …

The Tangled Roots Of The Holocaust: An Analysis Of The Evolution Of Colonial Discourse Through The Prohibition Of Sexual Relations And Marriages Between Races, Bianka Adamatti

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Nazi violence did not have its origins only in the brutality of the First World War or radical nationalist ideologies, but also in European colonialism. Hence, the goal of this thesis is to demonstrate that colonial processes were fundamental to the origins of the Holocaust. To prove this, I applied the content analysis to detect colonial discourse (stereotype, ambivalence, and mimicry) in three legislations from different contexts, which prohibited sexual relations and marriages between races. The documents analyzed exemplified the segregationist thinking of each period of colonization. Portuguese laws from the beginning of modernity demonstrate the transition from religious …

The Camouflaged Crime: Perceptions Of Poaching In Southern Appalachia, Randi Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of poaching within the Southern Appalachian Region. To date, little research has been conducted on the general topic of poaching and no studies have focused on this Region. Several research questions were pursued, including perceptions of poacher motivations, methods and concern regarding apprehension and punishment. The study gathered data through qualitative interviews with 27 conservation officers and outdoorsmen located in Southern Appalachia to address these questions. Results provided useful information regarding the unique characteristics of the poaching problem within the Region, which are discussed in detail. Implications and directions for future …

K-12 Economically Disadvantaged Students, Poverty, And Education: Ecological Narratives Of Successful Raised-In-Poverty, Texas Educators, Rebecca N. Morris

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research study aimed to understand how successful Texas educators who grew up in poverty understood and improved the educational experience of economically disadvantaged students. This study utilized a structural ecological theory and three theories of social relationships (Social Identity, Standpoint, and Cultural Capital). This phenomenological and qualitative study used a cross-sectional, descriptive, online case study design rooted in narrative nonfiction. Virtual interviews with six successful Texas educators that grew up in poverty were conducted. A narrative method of analysis was utilized to generate codes then organize them into themes, and to construct and compare the narrative findings. The results …

Remembering Jacob: The Literary Representation Of Memory In The Jacob Narrative, Isaac Borbon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to describe the Jacob narrative through the lens of memory. Taking Gen 28:10-22 as a case study, the objective is to place Jacob’s visit to Bethel alongside other ancient referential claims, analyzing it for authentic memories. However, the complex nature of memory is susceptible to preservation and revision. That is to say, having no desire to comport to modern historical-critical sensibilities, memory’s epistemological underpinnings are concerned primarily with reconstructing a remembered past for subsequent generations of Israelite tradents. In order to understand the historical background to the Jacob narrative in its entirety, a formal analysis of Iron …

Effects Of Organizational Climate On Dual Language Teacher Retention, Joseph Lewis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There has been notable growth in the number of dual language programs across the United States in recent years. Like traditional bilingual programs, dual language programs rely heavily on the adequate staffing of bilingual teachers—a subgroup of educators who are in short supply. Despite notable findings from research regarding bilingual teacher retention, the topic of dual language teacher retention remains relatively unexplored. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate to what extent a statistically significant association exists between factors related to organizational climate and dual language teacher retention. Using the Organizational Climate Index, the researcher explored four key …

Putting Myself Back Together, Kailan Counahan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Putting Myself Back Together is a collection of works created from poetry that is created from memories and phrases. The work is autobiographical in nature as it deals with my life and loved ones who have passed away. I have found the poems alone are not enough to fully represent or honor the memory or person they are about, leading me to create them three-dimensionally. I create from a large body of materials which is incred- ibly specific to my experiences while still allowing the viewer into the piece to connect with it through their own experiences.

An Eemd Approach To Non-Stationary, Non-Linear Environmental Long- And Short-Term Time Series Data Of Charleston, Sc, With A 2009 Flood Anomaly Case Study, Dylan David Carpenter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Systematic Review Of Acuity-Based Staffing In Acute Healthcare Environments, Demitria Idella Stafford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nursing leadership is responsible for considering the equity of patient care assignments when providing nursing care. Nursing leadership is responsible for assuring the delivery of patient care assignments with the intent to offer nurses an unbiased, evenly distributed patient load. Effective distribution of patient care assignments ensures patients receive the safest, most efficient, and highest quality of care. The purpose of this project was to provide nursing leadership with an executive summary of a systematic review of evidence-based research on the structure and process of making patient care assignments, and it provided evidence on how those patient care assignments affect …

Challenging The Limitations Of Asserting Jurisdiction: A Case Study Of The South China Sea, Joshua Villanueva

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The South China Sea dispute challenges the future development of maritime legal order and international law. China’s behavior in the South China Sea challenges widely accepted rules governing maritime jurisdiction worldwide as it tries to expand the limits of its jurisdiction. In China’s view, the Arbitral Tribunal in Philippines v. China also challenged the jurisdiction of the UNCLOS by taking a highly political issue related to sovereignty. This thesis argues that mere rhetorical rejection of China’s actions in the South China Sea will not determine the resolution of the dispute. China’s behavior will be dependent on striking the right balance …

Airbnb Release Of Latent Economic Value And Return To Equilibrium, Daniel Joseph Trujillo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We empirically consider Airbnb’s effect on a new variable in Short Term Rental (STR) research, second homes, employing a model pre-Airbnb diffusion (2009), and post-Airbnb diffusion (2019). In doing so we test our hypothesis that second home use will be converted to short-term rentals with the advent of Airbnb. We do so through a natural experiment examining housing stock. We create a schema to segregate tourist and non-tourist counties based on economic variables and deploy these in our research framework observing a shock to housing supply. Notably, we observe a structural change in the use of second homes resulting in …

Spiritual Care Of Gay Men In Committed Relationships: An Evidenced-Based Intercultural Approach, Marc J. Coulter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sexual minorities have historically been targets of homophobia, heterosexism, discrimination, and persecution particularly within traditional, conservative religious organizations. As a result, many people who identify as male and gay reject traditional forms of religion and seek alternative spiritual beliefs and practices affirming their sexual orientation, often self-identifying as “spiritual but not religious” (SBNR). Some white, gay male couples in committed relationships also reject traditional views of sexual fidelity and negotiate open, consensual, non-monogamous sexual relationships with their primary partner. Gay couples seeking behavioral health assistance to navigate relational difficulties may encounter clinicians who fail to acknowledge the harmful influence of …

The Orient In The Empire’S Poetry: Scholarship, Translation, And Imaginative Geography (1770-1857), Zeeshan Riyaz Reshamwala

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation uses the idea of imaginative geography to study literary and scholarly representations of what writers in Europe referred to as the Orient during the long nineteenth century. Imaginative geography refers to a subjective collection of associations that accumulate around a place about which positive knowledge is limited, such that the imaginative associations overpower and structure any empirical knowledge about it, even when further knowledge is acquired. The imaginative geography of the Orient emerged from texts, images, and artifacts that traveled from Asia to Europe through sustained colonial contact. This dissertation studies how writers in India and Britain constituted, …

The Design, Development, And Determination Of A Virtual Reality Classroom, Victoria Alexxis Reddington

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed the way students learn and engage with their peers and instructors. Likewise, instructors have had to quickly transform their course materials to suit the online classroom format. Results from a survey of students and instructors at the University of Denver revealed that perceived levels of learning and collaboration were lessened with the transition to online learning. Moreover, the sense of presence in an educational atmosphere with other individuals was reported to be significantly stronger in a real physical classroom, as compared to an online classroom. This thesis therefore seeks to provide a new, alternative …

Lebanese Colonial Hang-Ups: Anti-Blackness And The Kafala System In Lebanon, Sarah Gonzalez Noveiri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lebanon’s colonial legacy has not only influenced the legal and political systems which operate in the country today. As I hope to demonstrate in this dissertation, the strength and cementation of these systems can be seen as a consequence of negotiations of identity, citizenship and nation state that took place during the Ottoman Empire and French colonial rule. The Kafala is one of such systems that developed through the Ottoman Empire and against the backdrop of European colonization. Discourses of race, citizenship, gender and sexuality that were being negotiated by colonial citizens and colonial powers, served to cement the racialized …

The Martyr’S Desire: Levinas, Girard, And Infinite Responsibility, Joshua Alan Lawrence

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Perhaps the whole of human history could be summed up with one word: economy. The law of the home and the home of all law. Without fail, this situation results in a structured devotion that must decide what to do with desire. And the economic decision often follows a violent trajectory, most commonly described as sacrifice. Today, states will make efforts to conceal this underlying logic, but the insidious configurations of ‘real politik’ usually surface with a frightening intensity.

My project considers these problematic vestiges through Emmanuel Levinas’s reconfiguration of subjectivity. To address these bio-historical realities, my work highlights the …

Assessing The Variations Of Educational Attainment At National And Subnational Levels Using Hierarchical Linear Models, Bingxin Qi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Education is a human right, and equal access to education is not only crucial for an individual’s well-being, but also essential for eradicating poverty, ensuring long-term prosperity for all, transforming the society, and achieving sustainable development. Measuring education development, especially the variations of educational attainment, in a timely and accurate manner can help educators, practitioners, scientists, and policymakers compare and evaluate various education indicators at both subnational and national levels. This research presents an approach that combines multi-source and multidimensional data including population distribution, human settlement, and education data to assess and explore educational attainment trajectories at both national and …

Student Expressions Of Aesthetic Learning Experiences, Jodie L. Wilson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aesthetic learning experiences are grounded in qualities influenced by the arts: perceptive, sensorial, imaginative, and creative. While the concept of aesthetic experience has been applied broadly within education, student expressions of such experiences have been neglected. This poses a problem of equity both ethically in that the suppression of student voice is perpetuated and pragmatically in that the range and form of aesthetic learning expressed by students is insufficiently attended to and acted upon.

Theoretically guided by John Dewey’s explications of an aesthetic experience and conceptually supported by three interpretive frames—Eisner’s dimensions of schooling, Uhrmacher et al.’s instructional arc, and …

We All Want To Change The World: How Behavioral Insights Can Help Reduce Carbon Emissions, Thomas C. Gifford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The world is in the midst of an unprecedented environmental crisis driven primarily by human behavior. As the world has globalized, countries have developed, and standards of living have improved, global pollution has skyrocketed and has resulted in a wide range of environmentally destructive outcomes. All paths to environmentally sustainable development involve a dramatic cut in carbon emissions from current day levels. In this thesis, I explore how the omission of behavioral factors from mainstream neoclassical models has contributed to, and can aid in reducing unsustainably high levels of carbon emissions. Throughout the history of economic thought, classical economists such …

Resentenced And Released: Re-Entry Needs Following Release From Juvenile Life Without Parole, Daphne M. Brydon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over 2,100 individuals serving juvenile life without paroles (JLWOP) sentences in the U.S. became eligible for resentencing following the 2016 Montgomery v. Louisiana Supreme Court ruling. Michigan housed an estimated 370 juvenile lifers at that time, the second largest JLWOP community in the country and has since resentenced and released approximately 120 juvenile lifers. Folx released from prison encounter many barriers to successful re-entry. Barriers are often amplified for those incarcerated as adolescents. Further, services are de-prioritized for folx serving JLWOP sentences, which can be especially damaging for this community whose life experiences are marked by high rates of trauma, …

“I Shan't Ever Play Down These Influences”: Poulenc’S Neoclassicism As Musical Legacy, Juliet E. Levy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Leaving behind an abundance of primary documents, Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) reveals himself to be a colorful, opinionated composer, with an intriguing mindset regarding the role of twentieth-century composers. Poulenc’s writings place importance on the idea of musical legacy, where engaging with the music of past composers can only enrich compositions of the present, as opposed to the idea that such inspiration makes one’s work less “original.” This idea of compositional heritage stems from Poulenc’s musical education, which was informal, and mainly the product of his robust social network of important musical and artistic figures. Poulenc’s ideology adds a new perspective …

A Grounded Theory Inquiry Into The Pedagogical Socialization Of Graduate Students Within Graduate Quantitative Methods Courses, Amanda Kay Thomas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Quantitative methods are one of the most highly technical fields of study within social sciences graduate programs. Although classroom pedagogy is an important factor connected to student success within graduate quantitative methods courses little is known on the pedagogical socialization experiences of masters and doctoral students. The purpose of this grounded theory inquiry was to discover graduate students perspectives on their pedagogical socialization experiences and the norms, values and role expectations transmitted during the teaching and learning of quantitative methods. Narrative data was collected from in-depth interviews among a theoretical sample of 31 masters and doctoral students enrolled in introductory, …

A Study Of Geographic Information System-Based Watershed Processing For Hydrologic Analysis Of Ungauged Watersheds, Philip Adanbe Adalikwu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The increasing application of geographic information system (GIS) technology in watershed modeling makes is necessary to further evaluate its impacts on runoff characteristics as a basis for improved hydrologic analysis in ungauged watersheds. Experts in the field of water resources and hydrology have recommended the practice of subdivision when modeling a watershed, and the use of observed data from hydrologically similar watershed to calibrate and validate an ungauged watershed’s model. However, previous studies have failed to adequately address the issues of watershed heterogeneity, spatial and temporal variability in physical parameters, GIS data resolution issues, including artifacts in automated extraction of …