Digital Commons Network^™

Why Teachers Write Office Referrals On Black Students: A Case Study, Darrin Lamont Hemphill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined why teachers write office discipline referrals on Black students, addressing a gap in the literature about the writing of office discipline referrals by teachers for disciplinary reasons. Few studies have office discipline referrals as a factor in the discipline gap between Black and White students. The researcher utilized a qualitative case study method to interview participants. Semi structured interviews were conducted and analyzed manually by the researcher. Fifteen classroom teachers participated: five from elementary, five from middle school, and five from high school. The study used the social-ecological theory framework to analyze the phenomenon of writing office …

An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Of Urban Early College High School Teachers' Experiences, Tamika Vanessa Taylor Young

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teachers are fundamental to students' performance by fostering relationships and imparting knowledge in the classroom. Dual-credit teachers work for Early College High School (ECHS) programs to assist historically underrepresented students in accelerating their path toward earning college credits and associate degrees while attending high school. Hard-to-staff ECHS programs with underrepresented pupils in lower socioeconomic urban areas suffer high teacher attrition. How urban ECHS teachers define their professional experiences is still being determined, which affects organizational outcomes. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative exploratory study was to investigate and understand the lived experiences of urban ECHS teachers in Texas. This study …

Establishing Recharge Rates In The High Plains Aquifer: Mapping, Precipitation Modeling, And An Evaluation Of The Chloride Mass-Balance Method, Arindam Mukherjee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, three studies related to understanding and predicting recharge are presented. First, geospatial techniques were used to identify potential groundwater recharge areas in the High Plains Aquifer. Second, a precipitation generator was developed to produce site specific synthetic precipitation series that depend on daily precipitation occurrences, particularly on the distribution of wet spells for sites to be used in numerical modeling. Third, the unsaturated flow code VS2DI was modified to allow the simulation of chloride accumulation from recharge, and this model was used to evaluate errors in the Chloride-Mass-Balance (CMB) method for estimating recharge due to heterogeneity.

In …

Acculturation And Seeking Campus Counseling Services Among Saudi International Students In The United States: An Intrepretative Phenomenological Analysis, Abdullah Almutairi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study adopts a phenomenological qualitative approach to explore and examine the acculturation process of Saudi students living in the United States, particularly in relation to their access to campus counseling services. The findings of this study identify five themes: 1) premigration expectations and realities, 2) journey of cultural adaptation, 3) navigating academic adaptations, 4) coping with acculturation and academic pressures, and 5) expectations of services provided by campus counseling experiences. This study highlights that the acculturation journey is a complex experience that affects Saudi students’ psychological well-being, which hinders their access to campus counseling services. The purpose of this …

The Relationship Between Nutrient Intake And Performance Recovery In Ncaa Softball Athletes, Derionne Brooks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collegiate athletes are faced with the challenge of maintaining optimal performance outcomes in spite of their demanding training schedules. As a result, athletes rely on recovery strategies such as nutrition and adequate sleep to optimize their recovery in these shortened windows. This study aimed to explore the relationship between dietary intake, sleep, and athletic performance in female collegiate athletes (N=27) using dietary recalls analyzed using the Nutrition Data System for Research, self-reported sleep data, and data collected using PERCH devices. Twenty-seven current members of a collegiate softball team participated in the data collection throughout their fall season (August – December). …

Design Of Topical Ocular Drug Delivery Systems For Management Of Eye Keratitis, Chuntian Cai

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Due to the complexity of the anatomical and physiological barriers in the eye, ocular drug delivery presents significant challenges. The poor solubility of many drugs and short retention times on the ocular surface results in low bioavailability from traditional topical dosage forms. Various types of eye infections, such as bacterial keratitis (BK) and fungal keratitis (FK), can become critical and lead to serious visual disabilities. Therefore, this research study aims to enhance the solubility and corneal permeation of two drugs, Ciprofloxacin (CIP) for BK and the antifungal agent Natamycin (NT) for FK, using nanoemulsion (NE) and cyclodextrin (CD) based technologies.

"A Transient Veil": Appropriation Of Exclusionary Form In Eighteenth-Century Women's Writing, Andrea Ferniany

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

“’A Transient Veil’ : Appropriation of Exclusionary Form in Eighteenth-Century Women’s Writing” is an exploration of how women writers of the eighteenth century strategically and subversively appropriated patriarchal, often misogynistic, literary idioms to expand literary discourse and craft flexible, alternative, and feminine literary forms. It emerges from the desire to underscore what rhetorical features of women’s writing can tell us about the creative agency of women writers. By exclusionary form, I mean to reference both rhetorical conventions and aesthetic traditions that excluded women writers by assuming a male subject position or by the explicit objectification of feminine figures. This dissertation …

Exploring The Role Of Chief Marketing Officer In Profit And Non-Profit Organizations, Aisha Ghimire

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the significance of marketing in top management teams (TMTs) by examining three key areas: CMO studies in marketing strategy literature, the role of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) in non-profit TMTs, and the role of CMO in crises such as privacy policy changes. Through a combination of panel data analysis, ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, and event studies, this dissertation investigates the influence of CMOs and provides insights for both researchers and practitioners. Overall, the essays aim to test the relevance of CMO presence in different contexts, given that the title of CMO is a significant representation …

The Third Ethos: Asexual Potentialities In Transnational Literature Between 1900-1926, Kimberly Allyn Kotel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Third Ethos responds to the call put forth by sexuality studies for more extensive research into asexualities as a burgeoning field of identity and modality. At the same time, it furthers recent literary scholarship that locates the origins of modernism in earlier aesthetic movements such as symbolism, decadence, and aestheticism, underscoring the influence of modernization on artistic output during the fin de siècle while concurrently contributing to the development of Decadent studies. Analyzing Rachilde’s La Jongleuse, Willa Cather’s O Pioneers!, and Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Lolly Willowes, I argue that the Western sociocultural understanding of sex that existed in the …

Bigger Than Bees: Victorian England’S Relationship To The Bee – Considering Symbolism And Understanding, Grace Jacqueline Kaim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The complex and beautiful relationship the people in Victorian England had to the bee is one that goes beyond ideas of politics and religion. This thesis will explore this relationship by utilizing print, ephemera, jewelry, and household items, to demonstrate how the representation and symbolism of the bee was recognized and cherished by Victorians. While bees did certainly have an intimate relationship to the areas of politics and religion, one that is acknowledged throughout this work, their connection to grander themes of introspection, industrialism, folklore, morality, and status helps us understand the Victorians on a deeper level.

Dixieland Do Sul: Brazilian Racial Democracy And The Recontextualization Of Transnational Confederate Symbols (Vol. 1), Maximilian Xavier Conrad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Following their defeat in the American Civil War, tens of thousands of American Southerners, many of them former Confederates, fled the United States to seek out new homelands in Latin America. Thousands would set their sights on Brazil, encouraged by the promise of arable land and the prospect of a new society in one of the hemisphere’s last slaveholding societies. Though many of these Confederados returned to the United States after Reconstruction, their influential presence in Brazil has remained a persistent factor. What has been the resulting impact of this nineteenth century Confederate immigration? This thesis volume will argue that …

Dixieland Do Sul: Brazilian Racial Democracy And The Recontextualization Of Transnational Confederate Symbols (Vol. 2), Maximilian Xavier Conrad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Following their defeat in the American Civil War, tens of thousands of American Southerners, many of them former Confederates, fled the United States to seek out new homelands in Latin America. Thousands would set their sights on Brazil, encouraged by the promise of arable land and the prospect of a new society in one of the hemisphere’s last slaveholding societies. Though many of these Confederados returned to the United States after Reconstruction, their influential presence in Brazil has remained a persistent factor. This thesis volume will focus on a semiotic struggle over the role of transnational Confederate symbols in the …

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus Plexippus) Oviposition Preferences And A Survey Of Fungal Pathogens On Native Milkweeds (Asclepias) Of The Northern Great Plains, Grace Damiano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

North American monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) populations are experiencing significant declines due to habitat loss caused by land use changes. Much of the American Midwest where milkweed, the only host plant of the monarch butterfly, was once much more abundant has been converted to a predominantly agricultural landscape. There are nineteen species of milkweed native to the northern Great Plains region occupied by South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota. Some of these milkweed species may be preferable to monarch butterflies for different reasons, including morphological factors such as stem length, species-level chemical factors, and temporal factors. As monarch …

Impact Of Solar Radiation On Perchlorate Formation In The Atmosphere: Evidence From Ice Core Measurements, Bishnu Kunwar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Perchlorate, which derives from both anthropogenic and natural sources in the current environment, poses a substantial health hazard to humans as it competes with iodine uptake in the thyroid gland. Consequently, there has been considerable concern about minimizing human exposure to environmental perchlorate by restricting its release from man-made sources. However, the absence of a clear understanding regarding the respective contributions of man-made and natural sources has hindered widespread regulation efforts. A 300-year (1700–2007) Summit, Greenland ice core record from a previous study showed relatively stable perchlorate concentrations in Greenland snow prior to 1980, with some elevated perchlorate levels associated …

Physicochemical And Functional Properties Of Different Varieties Of Spring And Winter Peas Of South Dakota, Prakriti Dhakal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Peas are a good source of nutrients for both humans and animals, and they are the world's second most significant and sustainable legume. There have been studies on different kinds of pea grown in other parts of the world, but there is no information on the compositional and functional characteristics of pea varieties grown specifically in South Dakota. The objective of the study was to evaluate the proximate composition and functional properties of various pea varieties and determine if the pea variety impacted cookie properties. The proximate composition (moisture, protein, starch, and amylose), functional capacities (water holding, oil holding capacity, …

Advancing Biological Applications Through Microfluidic-Based Tool Development, K.M. Taufiqur Rahman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research undertook an interdisciplinary approach, integrating bioengineering, microbiology, molecular biology, and systems biology to investigate bacterial dynamics behavior. Specifically, it delved into the development of microfluidic devices for biological applications such as bacterial cell counts, real-time observation of plant roots (here, specialized lectin-coated microbeads are used that mimic root characteristics), and soil microbe interactions. Furthermore, Next-Generation Sequencing and systems biology methodologies were employed to explore the intricate, multifaceted survival mechanisms of Escherichia coli persister population. Studying and quantifying persisters or testing for the existence of VBNC (viable but nonculturable) is challenging. These experiments require precise counts. It has been …

Parametric Study Of Protodune - I And Protodune - Ii Single-Phase Neutrino Detectors Using Computational Fluid Dynamics, Sahil Sharma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models of two designs of ProtoDUNE single-phase neutrino detectors were developed, refined, and analyzed. These detectors are prototypes for the full-sized far detectors that are part of the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), an international research collaboration aimed at better understanding of neutrinos and the role they play in our universe. Representative simplified models of the complex geometries of the prototype detectors were created using commercial modeling software, Dassault System’s SolidWorks, and these simplified models were imported to the commercial CFD program SimCenter Star-CCM+®. The baseline parameters including inlet temperatures, ambient temperature, electronic heat load, liquid …

Using The Disc Personality Assessment To Enhance Organizational Climate And Culture At A Mississippi University, Brian Carlyle Grizzell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Employee turnover presents a costly challenge for institutions of higher learning. This includes significant financial burdens, diminished productivity, and disruptions in business operations. Moreover, high employee turnover erodes morale and negatively influences organizational climate and culture. According to the literature, many organizations have incorporated tools such as the DiSC, a personality assessment tool that measures individuals’ behavioral styles based on four key traits: Dominance (D), Influence (I), Steadiness (S), and Conscientiousness (C), to enhance team cohesion and improve person-environment fit (PE-Fit). However, limited research exists on whether the DiSC assessment is effective in addressing these issues in a higher education …

Quality & Credibility Ff Adhd Information On Social Media And Adhd Help-Seeking Intentions, Saara Zakkiya Nasruddin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background: There is an increased prevalence of adult Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and stimulant prescription use in the United States, especially when compared to years prior to 2020. Due to accessibility and popularity of ADHD on social media, many individuals gain information on ADHD from these sources. People may view information on social media as credible due to its ability to provide connection, community, and empowerment. However, content analyses of ADHD information on social media show the quality of content on social media is poor. These content analyses utilized outdated quality evaluation tools that are not specific for social media. Principles …

Persuasion Knowledge In A Post-Truth Era, Emma Welch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Commenting on a world replete with conspiracy theories, fake news, and virality on social media, some have dubbed the era we are currently living in as the “post-truth” era, defined as “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”. The post-truth era is said to affect how individuals make decisions, form opinions, and communicate with one another. Although many frameworks have emerged along the way that describe how consumers deal with persuasive communication, truthful or otherwise, emerging technology has added a new layer to the …

Substance Use Amongst Veterans Following Post-Deployment Reintegration: An Examination Through The Lens Of Acculturation, Brittany Hampton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Each year, approximately 46.3 million Americans are diagnosed with substance use disorder (SUD), which costs the United States healthcare system approximately $13 billion in annual costs. One group particularly at risk for SUD is veterans due to the unique stressors that veterans face (e.g., being apart from loved ones, exposure to life threatening events, transitioning between military and civilian life) and a military culture that often reinforces maladaptive patterns of substance use. Little research has been done to examine substance use as a negative outcome associated with the acculturative experience veterans face when transitioning from military life back to civilian …

Regional Differences In The Adoption Of Automated License Plate Readers Among Police Departments, Dalton Lee Massingill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since the 2000s, the adoption of License Plate Readers (LPRs) in the United States has steadily increased. Prior research has shown that agency characteristics (mainly size) strongly impact the likelihood of LPR usage. However, researchers have primarily examined larger police departments and used smaller samples in examining the adoption of LPRs. This study uses recent data from a nationally represented sample of law enforcement agencies to examine the relationship between agency geographical location and LPR usage. The current study extends past literature by examining the impact an agency’s geographical location has on LPR usage. Research has not studied if LPR …

Isolation Of Novel Myxobacteria And Progress Towards Heterologous Expression Of Uncharacterized Secondary Metabolites, Andrew Ahearne

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Myxobacteria, first observed by Roland Thaxter in the late 19th century, are known for their unique swarming behavior, complex fruiting body formation and biosynthetic potential. Myxobacteria are noted for their large genomes and the presence of numerous biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) that hint at their potential to produce novel metabolites with therapeutic properties. Isolation of myxobacteria utilizing E. coli and filter paper baiting yielded 20 myxobacteria isolated from rhizospheric soil samples in North America. Among these isolates, nine were identified as novel species, representing the genera Archangium, Myxococcus, Nannocystis, Polyangium, Pyxidicoccus, Sorangium, and Stigmatella. Comprehensive growth profiles, biochemical assays, and …

Make It Funny! Developing A Novel Humor-Based Digital Positive Psychology Intervention To Investigate The Influence Of Duchenne Laughter And Mirth On Psychological Distress In Daily Life, Joshua Semko

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the present research was to develop a novel digital humor-based PPI (Make it Funny!) to investigate the influence of Duchenne laughter and mirth on psychological distress in daily life. Participants (N = 159; Agemedian = 39 years; 47.77% biologically female; 68.15% White) were tasked with completing Make it Funny! or a placebo activity every day for 7 days. Duchenne laughter frequency had a small negative cross-sectional moderation effect on the relationship between the occurrence of stressful events and psychological distress (t(79.71) = -2.33, b = -10.89, p = .022). Within participants, Duchenne laughter frequency slightly increased the …

Formulation Development Of Simvastatin Self-Emulsifying Drug Delivery System Using Hot Melt Extrusion, Srikanth Chilamula

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Simvastatin, a potent HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, lowers cholesterol levels. It prevents cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes in patients with high cholesterol and heart disease. However, its oral bioavailability is limited due to its poor aqueous solubility The current study aims to enhance the solubility of the poorly water-soluble drug simvastatin through the development of self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS). Gelucire® 48/16 (oil), Gelucire 44/14 (surfactant), and Cremophor RH40 (co-surfactant) were assessed as potential excipients for SEDDS formulation. Initial SEDDS (Before adsorption) formulations were created based on the solubility of simvastatin in solid lipid excipients, as determined by a …

Imaginative Play In The Inculcation Of Creativity As An Intellectual Virtue, Annie Elisabet Gustafsson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Creativity, defined as the ability to generate original and innovative ideas and products, is widely valued yet not explicitly taught. This largely stems from the understanding that creativity cannot be cultivated through traditional methods like imitation or direct instruction, as such approaches contradict the essence of creativity itself. However, we must not write it off as unteachable. To help us better understand what can be done to teach creativity effectively, we must consider its character.

This paper offers a theory of creativity as an intellectual virtue, drawing on Linda Zagzebki’s components of virtue and aligning creativity with Aristotle’s phronesis and …

Lesbian Ferality: Ecco/Kin Disturbance In Sapphic Modernist Literature, Kara Michelle Russell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lesbian Ferality: Eco/Kin Disturbance in Sapphic Modernist Literature considers the intersections of lesbian literature, queer modernity, and multispecies ecofeminisms in its discussion of literary kinship and worldmaking practices. Colette’s La Naissance du jour (1928), Nella Larsen’s Passing (1929), Olive Moore’s Spleen (1930), and Djuna Barnes’s Nightwood (1936) are all texts committed to unsettling various binaries through attempts at non-normative kinship. This dissertation examines these attempts and encounters as modes of disturbance for personal and political ends. The limiting dualities of natural/unnatural, political/anti-social, insider/outsider, and domestic/wild are challenged by an attention to and intimacy with nonhuman entities that I term lesbian …

Tennessee's Mississippi: An Audio Documentary, Michelle Bright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tennessee’s Mississippi is a four-episode audio documentary preview of a future podcast in the making. It centers on Tennessee Williams’ Mississippi plays and stories and how they connect to the real cultural history of this state. Williams is known as an international playwright, and while much scholarship has been done on his work, very little has focused on the significance of Mississippi in creating a place identity for his characters for his most successful plays in the first twenty-five years of his career. This place identity is even more apparent when he begins to move away from using Mississippi in …

Formulation Design And Development For Extended-Release Drug Delivery System, Sheng Feng

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The drug delivery system enables the release of the active pharmaceutical ingredient to achieve a desired therapeutic response. Conventional, non-controlled drug delivery systems are unable to deliver the drug at a sustained rate which leads to poor bioavailability, fluctuations in plasma drug concentration, and potential side effects. The extended drug delivery system enables drug delivery at a sustained or predetermined rate to achieve maximum efficacy and safety. Different routes of drug administration, along with various extended-release dosage forms have been extensively developed such as oral delivery, parenteral delivery, transdermal delivery, ocular delivery, and tumor delivery among others. This dissertation developed …

Heterologous Expression, Isolation, And Metabolomic Profiling Of Myxobacteria To Explore Their Potential In Natural Product Biosynthesis, Nawal Mohamed Hamed Elsayed Shehata

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Myxobacteria are distinguished by their ability to produce a spectrum of natural products,positioning them as an active resource for therapeutic discovery. These products include metabolites with significant antibacterial, antifungal, cytotoxic, antiviral, and immunosuppressive properties. Current synthetic biology tools for the exploration of myxobacteria are not as advanced as those for the well-studied Streptomyces. This thesis presents an evolution of synthetic biology techniques specifically designed for the exploitation of myxobacteria in the realm of natural product discovery. Chapter One investigates the potential of myxobacteria to act as heterologous hosts due to their large genomes and their capacity for diverse biosynthetic processes. …