Digital Commons Network^™

The Core Collapse Of The Rising Sun, Elisabeth J. Craft

Honors Theses

There are many different types of literature in the world so it is no surprise that some gets overlooked in the sheer volume. This is more so seen in Western literature overpowering Eastern literature’s importance. One such place overlooked is Japan. There is plenty to unpack in Japanese literature, but one such area is the changes it has due to cultural events. Using well known events can make Japanese literature more accessible for other audiences. One of these events is WWII because of Japan’s incredibly active role in it. WWII changed Japanese literature from Romanticism and Naturalism to a more …

Fueling Success: How Effective Supplier Relationship Management Affects Automotive Supply Chain Performance, Alexa M. Dickenson

Honors Theses

Since the invention of the first automobile, more than one hundred and thirty-six years ago, the amount of people owning or traveling via automobiles has grown substantially. Over time, the automotive industry has continued to grow into a massive organization delivering vehicles to consumers everywhere. To understand how the automotive industry has evolved over the years, one must look at the various aspects that go into creating the parts needed for each vehicle. Understanding how effective supplier relationships affect supply chain performance begins with buyers who can efficiently select adequate suppliers. Once a buyer can do so, they then must …

The Influence Of Race: College Students’ Sense Of Belonging At Their Predominantly White University, Jaelyn Barker

Honors Theses

Racism, underrepresentation, and anti-Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity (DEI) movements are current, ongoing battles on college campuses across the nation, specifically at predominantly white institutions (PWIs) and universities. This study will examine the influence of race and other relevant factors on undergraduate students’ sense of belonging on their college campuses by understanding how students define and use race to shape and change their lives. The researcher created and distributed an original survey to undergraduate students at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), collecting a total of 466 responses. The study found that race, divided by white and nonwhite categorizations, did not have a …

The Gendered Room And The Lock On The Door: Women Writers And The Patriarchy In Virginia Woolf’S A Room Of One's Own, Lauren Kelley

Honors Theses

This thesis analyzes the life of Virginia Woolf and her foundational feminist text, A Room of One’s Own (AROO) to understand women’s need for control in their journey to become Authors through Woolf’s requirements of “500 a year and a room with a lock on the door.” It discusses the significance of becoming a capital A Author and how authorship impacted women’s lives in the eighteenth, nineteenth, and even twentieth centuries. Through a summary of Woolf’s historicizing of women writers’ struggles this thesis investigates the impact these struggles had on how women wrote—often resulting in anger and anonymous authorship. Through …

Play Like A Girl! A Then And Now Comparative Analysis Of Title Ix In Collegiate Athletics: An Oral History Collection, Gretta Gunn

Honors Theses

Title IX in collegiate athletics aims to provide female athletes with the same opportunities as their male counterparts, through equal resources, financial scholarships, viewership, etc by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of gender. This is accomplished through certain compliance standards and a Three Prong Test. However, the results of a literature review show that Black female athletes, female coaches and administrators, and male athletes whose sport has been cut still don’t receive fully equal opportunities. Through the creation of an oral history project with the William Berge Center and Special Archives at Eastern Kentucky University, personal stories and experiences related …

Death And Drugs: Exploring Grief And Addiction Among College Students, Alexis B. Kelly

Honors Theses

Grief and addiction are typically associated with death and drugs. However, there are many types of non-death losses and behavioral addictions that are overlooked in research and daily living. The experiences of grief and addiction affect everyone, often at many points in their lifetime. College students are at particular risk for these factors, as many changes are occurring in their environment during these years. This research aims to explore the impact and relationship of grief and addiction on college students. The main hypothesis is that grief and addiction are positively correlated with one another. To study this, a survey was …

Environmental Justice: Assessing The Impact Of Socioeconomic Status On Drinking Water Quality In Kentucky, Morgann K. Rowe

Honors Theses

Poor water quality can lead to adverse health effects, and having access to clean water is essential to overall health. There are many possible sources of water contamination, and it is important to properly maintain water to ensure that it is up to standard. Socioeconomic status (SES) may influence drinking water quality, and marginalized populations may be the victims of disparities. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets drinking water standards through the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), and violations can be issued if water standards are not met. Previous research suggests low-income non-white populations may experience higher water violations. Rural …

What Are The Barriers? An Examination Of College Students' Perspectives On Mental Health Care Utilization, Isabella Robbins

Honors Theses

This study delves into the perceptions and experiences of college students regarding the utilization of mental health services at a university in the central Appalachian region of the United States. Focusing on understanding barriers to help-seeking, perceived stressors, and preferences for mental health resources, the research aims to inform strategies for enhancing mental health support on campus. A total of 91 undergraduate students completed an electronic survey at Eastern Kentucky University, providing insights into their attitudes towards seeking professional help, perceived stressors, and factors influencing help-seeking behavior. Contrary to expectations, demographic factors showed no significant correlation with willingness to seek …

In Search Of Empire's Monsters: Horror And American Imperialism, 1890-1910, Cj Seals

Honors Theses

Horror is a commonly recognized concept that is closely associated with notions of fear and disturbance. However, horror can also serve as a valuable historical tool to learn about the people of the past through what they feared most. As such, this project adopts this historical approach to horror in investigating an often overlooked period of American history: American imperialism in the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth century. Namely, this project examines the connection between horror and American imperialism to understand how horror shaped and informed imperialism. Performing this examination through the analysis of historical sources that employed …

Drip Water Chemistry Response To Human Activities At Diamond Caverns In Park City, Kentucky, Madison R. High

Honors Theses

This research aims to give insight into factors contributing to seasonal variation of karst cave drip water hydrochemistry relative to surface condition. The study area is a small show cave, Diamond Caverns, located just outside the boundary of Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Various water chemistry parameters, such as chloride, pH, and temperature were monitored. A YSI EXO2 was deployed to measure the aforementioned parameters at one-hour intervals in a drip water pool starting in November 2023. To discern significant changes in solute concentrations, daily averages were calculated based on the hourly data. Daily averages were then compared to …

Justice In The Icelandic Commonwealth, Geffen W. Stanhope

Honors Theses

The Icelandic Commonwealth was an example of an effective justice system that was unique in its decentralization and ability to operate without an executive governmental body. Evidence of this can be observed through several primary sources including the Icelandic sagas, historical chronicles, and legal codes. The Commonwealth era began at the end of the age of settlement and establishment of the Icelandic Althing, a national assembly that included the legislative and judicial processes by which Commonwealth operated. The Commonwealth’s judicial system was very meticulous and detailed but remained ever-changing over the era, indicating the importance of its operation to further …

Hab Cyanobacteria In Northeastern Sc Retention Ponds: Time Trends In Abundance And Relationship To Water Quality, Kathryn I. Hanson

Honors Theses

The accumulation of polluted runoff in retention ponds can create water quality conditions that favor development of harmful algal blooms, including toxin-producing cyanobacteria. This can present a health risk to pedestrians and nearby residents, as many such ponds are surrounded by walkways or housing complexes. Blooms can also cause harm to natural ecosystems, periodically causing hypoxic conditions and toxin buildups. This study aims to form a more complete understanding of the population dynamics of certain potentially harmful phytoplankton genera, in relation to water quality parameters in retention ponds. Sampling was performed in five ponds chosen to reflect a variety of …

Validation Of A Passive Sampler For Tracking Harmful Algal Toxins In Natural Waters, Hailee Eiker

Honors Theses

Algal blooms that produce toxins that are harmful to the health of people, animals, and the environment are known as harmful algal blooms (HABs). Recently, rising global temperatures, nutrient pollution, and an increase in the frequency of extreme hydrologic events have made HABs a bigger problem. This has all led to greater cultural eutrophication which is a major contributor to the spread of HABs. Cyanobacteria make up the bulk of HABs in freshwater systems, microcystins being among the cyanotoxins that are most frequently reported and studied. Taking grab samples of water is the current standard procedure for sampling cyanotoxins, however, …

Error Analysis Of Numerical Weather Prediction Forecasts And Remotely Sensed Air Properties, Caleb R. Sease

Honors Theses

Communication and sensing technologies are influenced by atmospheric properties such as the air’s index of refraction, humidity, and temperature in the marine atmospheric surface layer (MASL). Recent research has demonstrated that radar can remotely sense the index of refraction in the MASL and, sometimes, numerical weather prediction models (NWP) can be used to aid this process. These developments are important because they allow for larger spatial coverage and finer temporal resolution than is possible with in-situ atmospheric sensors. More recently, on-going research is working toward extending this remote sensing capability to humidity using refraction as an intermediary. In order to …

A Theological Analysis Of Catholic Liturgies Celebrating Those With Disabilities, Jack H. Gorman

Honors Theses

The Catholic Church is at a moment of receiving those with disabilities through catechetics, liturgical accommodations, and structured ecclesial guidelines; the Church realizes that the reception of Catholics with disabilities is necessary. Throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis has utilized the two poles of Neo-Pelagianism and Gnosticism to speak about this liturgical fragmentation, or “spiritual worldliness”. Working from this insight from the Holy Father, this paper applies these terms to the current reception of Catholics with disabilities in the Mass. In this paper, Neo-Pelagianism is characterized as the temptation to receive those with disabilities in the Mass solely through human means …

Benefits Of A Community Reentry Intervention For Reentry Self-Efficacy In Homeless Shelter Residents With Past Incarceration, Kathryn E. Hurley

Honors Theses

The U.S. has one of the highest levels of incarceration and recidivism in the world (American Civil Liberties Union, 2022; U.S. Department of Justice, n.d). Several factors contribute to recidivism, including the loss of monetary funds and loss of housing upon incarceration. Homelessness especially predicts recidivism. It has been found to increase the risk of recidivism by almost 50% (Jacobs & Gottlieb, 2020). Within the context of a long-term ongoing participatory community action research Project in homeless shelters (Reeb et al., 2024), this study examined the benefit of reentry support sessions within the homeless shelter environment, with an attempt to …

A Phenomenological Investigation Into The Lived Experiences Of Service Dog Utilizing Undergraduate Students, Shay Barrett

Honors Theses

The transition from high school to college can be a difficult time for students. Utilizing a service dog can make that experience more complex (Hadley, 2018). College is an important time in a young adult’s life as they develop independence and their identity (Chickering, 1969). This study recognizes the role that universities and colleges play in the development of students who utilize service dogs, as such the purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences of service dog utilizing undergraduate students who attend in-person classes on campus at Texas A&M University-Commerce (TAMUC) and to examine how these experiences have …

Navigating Social Commerce: Analyzing The Economic Impact And Practical Strategies For Small E-Commerce Ventures Utilizing Social Networks For Sales And Brand Loyalty, Zachary Redmon

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Autoethnography For Professional Growth In Science And Social Studies Pedagogy, Grace E. White

Honors Theses

A large body of research shows that reading and math instruction receive significantly more time, attention, and instructional minutes than science and social studies instruction in elementary classrooms(VanFossen, 2005; Wilkens, 2009; Blank, 2013; Rosenshine, 2015). In this study, I use an autoethnographic reflective research framework to combat the challenges of science and social studies professional growth while student teaching at a rural texas elementary school that has chosen to require only math and reading instruction from their teachers. It was found that science and social studies is most easily incorporated through the existing reading and math curriculum. The autoethnographic process …

Personality Linked To Tv Genres, Kinsey P. Skinner

Honors Theses

The goal of this study was to consider the relationship between people’s personalities and their television preferences. One model for this study was the work of Samuel Gosling from UT- Austin. Gosling has explored connections to personality from the mundane, such as music. To do this research in relation to television, students at Texas A&M University-Commerce completed the Big Five personality inventory as well as rating their interest in different genres of television, reporting on their favorite shows, and providing basic demographic variables. From this, correlations were found between certain personality traits and what television shows they are associated with. …

The Pussification Of Man: Evangelical Pastor Mark Driscoll And The Construction Of An “Ideal” Evangelical Masculinity, Phillip E. Cicero

Honors Theses

Scandals involving evangelical churches seem to appear daily in the news. Whether the scandals involve a church leader engaging in bullying, sexual harassment, sexual abuse or something else there seems to be no end in sight. One might imagine that people would flee the churches where these leaders have or continue to serve. But, in general, they do not. A good question to ask is why. Why do people continue to follow someone who has been proven through their discourse that they are aggressive, sexist, and sometimes even violent?

To answer this question, this project focuses on the rhetoric utilized …

Beyond Technology: Social Predictors Of Energy Efficiency In Industrial Facilities, Garret B. Cowdery

Honors Theses

Energy is the lifeblood of the industrialized world with electrical energy expected by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to increase 25% between 2016 to 2050 in the United States. Combined with the ever-present climate crisis, energy-efficient buildings are becoming increasingly important to conserve resources and alleviate strain on aging energy systems. The Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) program through the US Department of Energy aims to reduce the consumption of large, single-site energy users, industrial and commercial buildings, through comprehensive energy audits. Such investigations find that energy-efficient structures are a technological challenge as much as social. The mentality of building …

Behavioral Responses Of Two Color Morphs Of The Eastern Red-Backed Salamander (Plethodon Cinereus) To Novel Urban Environments, Amy Q. Friemoth

Honors Theses

Human modified landscapes can provide challenging new environments that can lead to rapid changes in species traits. In temperate forest ecosystems, salamanders play a critical role in forest floor dynamics, but populations are now faced with rapid habitat change, which can lead to local extinction events unless species can adapt behaviorally. The Eastern Red-backed Salamander, Plethodon cinereus, is the most common salamander species in the northeastern United States and can serve as a model species for examining the effects of anthropogenic change. Further, the Eastern Red-backed Salamander poses two common color morphs (striped and unstriped) that appear to differ in …

Identifying The Effects Of Environmental Conditions On Listeria Monocytogenes Fitness And Pathogenesis Modified By Transcription Factor Cody, Elizabeth K. Herr

Honors Theses

Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogen with the capability of causing severe illness in individuals who consume contaminated foods. Many foods have been found to harbor the bacterium, but dairy products, produce, and other prepackaged foods are particularly susceptible to contamination. Contaminated foods are exposed to a variety of environmental conditions during packaging, processing, consumption, and digestion, all of which play an essential role in modulating the survival and pathogenesis of L. monocytogenes. Conditions of particular interest include cold storage, presence of food additives, and activity of antimicrobial enzymes such as lysozyme. My honors thesis research has focused on elucidating how …

Political Representation, Democracy, And The Electoral College: An Applied Theoretical Analysis, Jordan A. Marsh

Honors Theses

Though a key institution in the United States presidential election, the Electoral College has often been overlooked for close theoretical analysis and even less frequently dissected for a deeper understanding of its consistency with theories of representative democracy. As such, this presentation summarizes a study of the Electoral College through a theoretical perspective to ultimately investigate the degree to which it is democratically representative. The first section of this thesis analyzes the Electoral College through both a historical and a modern contextual lens. The second section explores various theories of representation, highlighting the works of Pitkin, Rehfeld, and Manin. The …

Unhappy Endings: Queer Time In Evelyn Waugh’S Brideshead Revisited, Caitlin G. Spicer

Honors Theses

This thesis examines Evelyn Waugh’s 1945 Catholic novel, Brideshead Revisited, through the lens of queer theory. My work focuses on reproductive heteronormativity and queer time and how these concepts can be used to analyze Waugh’s text. I argue that Charles and Sebastian, among other characters, step out of the traditional—or heterosexual—timeline in a way that queers temporality. I examine Sebastian, Charles, and Julia to understand how their lonely yet holy lives contribute to a larger tradition of unhappy endings in queer and Catholic fiction. In this thesis, I define reproductive heteronormativity as the assumption that people will follow a heterosexual …

Russian War Crimes Against Ukraine, Katherine J. Hoener

Honors Theses

Russia and Ukraine have a long and complicated history. The conflict escalated with Russia’s invasion in February 2022 designed to challenge Ukraine's right to statehood on the dubious pretext they were governed by “extremists” who persecuted the Russian minority. According to treaties, war crimes can be defined as acts committed during armed conflict that violate international humanitarian laws. This research explored the alleged war crimes Russia has committed. There have been systematic and intentional attacks against civilian targets such as hospitals, schools and churches; survivors of torture report they were beaten and waterboarded; victims of sexual violence recount their experiences …

Far From First Kill: Sapphic Fan Campaigns + The Fight For Queer Television, Lake Best

Honors Theses

Over the decades, LGBTQ+ media has had a long history of, despite getting better, more popular, more powerful each time, being canceled, delayed, even simply never seen again. This has led to justified anger, sorrow, + distress from the queer fandom communities, who, already inspired by the sense of activism that their community is founded on, have created over 8 years of online fan campaigning to fight back, maybe even bring the shows from the grave to a new life. This case study will examine 6 of those campaigns, ranging from the birth of modern queer fandom in We Deserve …

Academic Achievement Gap Of Ell Students After The Covid-19 Pandemic, Megan K. Buzzanca

Honors Theses

As ELLs continue to be the fastest-growing population of K-12 public school students, it is critical to examine how ELLs were impacted by the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. ELL students struggled to transition from in-class to remote learning because many educational materials were not appropriate for their learning style, both before and because of COVID. (Long, 2022). Now, some of these ELL students are approximately 2-3 years behind their English native peers in terms of academic progress. The following research will have a foundation through a literature review as well as a focus qualitative study on ELL students and …

Recent Snap Participation In Farmers Markets: Market Representatives’ Perspectives, Laura Fincher

Honors Theses

As the 2023 farmers market season is the first in three years without Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Emergency Allotments, SNAP participation in farmers markets is likely to decrease, which could have negative impacts for farmers market earnings and community relations. The purpose of this study was to examine farmers market SNAP participation and the impacts of the expiration of SNAP Emergency Allotments from the perspective of market representatives. Farmers market representatives from Central Arkansas and East Texas were interviewed in field testing, then representatives from North Texas were interviewed in target data collection. Observations of farmers market sites and …