Digital Commons Network^™

Employer Perceptions Of Essential Skills Required Of Postsecondary Agriculture Students, Emily Mcclure

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined agriculture employers' perceptions of what essential skills their recent hires possess and which skills they feel their recent hires need some additional guidance in before their companies hire them. The study also asked participants what activities postsecondary agriculture students should be involved in to help develop these essential skills. The study's participants were human resource representatives from companies that participated in the Illinois State University Department of Agriculture career fair. The sample consisted of 26 subjects.The data analysis revealed significant results. Those who participated in the study came from across the United States. An overwhelming number of …

Thanatechnology: Designing For Death, Samantha Grace Bruner

Theses and Dissertations

Thanatechnology, or the study of death technology, is based within the human need to “figure out” death. Through the ages, humans have used technology to further our understanding of what it means to die and what it means to mourn as a way of figuring out what it means to live. Digital data is a huge part of recent digital technology and includes social media data which is a part of many peoples’ daily lives. This leads to many questions including what happens to social media pages when someone dies. These “digital graveyards” leave a lasting impact on many social …

Moral Foundations In Bunkerville And Malheur, David Keith Frey

Theses and Dissertations

The events of the Bunkerville standoff and the Malheur wildlife refuge occupation were both important confrontations with the government by the western land rights movement. Participants in and responders to the events engage in distinct moral judgments and rationales. Utilizing cultural schema analysis and moral foundations theory (MFT), I explored the differences in rationales and judgments made by participants and responders in their explicit, public moral discourses of both events. My analysis indicates that responders and participants defined and utilized the same moral foundations, but in distinct ways. Participants were more diverse in their invocation of moral foundations while responders …

The Effectiveness Of Planned And Incidental Focus On Form In Learning Grammatical Concepts In Two Spanish As L 2 Classrooms, Rebeca Monasterio

Theses and Dissertations

The present research study examines the effectiveness of two types of in two Spanish classrooms for beginner students: planned focus on form and incidental focus on form. Focus on form is understood as an instructional practice that creates a real-life context to let students practice some aspects of the language in a communicative environment based on both meaning and form. In this study, planned focus on form is operationalized as input enhancement in classroom materials and teacher talk. On the other hand, incidental focus on form involves teacher´s spontaneous attention to form in teacher talk. Language learning was measured through …

The Impact Of Flipped Learning On The Language Performance And Attitudes Of Beginning Spanish As A Second Language Learners, Susana Dimas

Theses and Dissertations

The present study evaluated student academic performance on grammar focused tasks in a Spanish L2 flipped classroom compared to a non-flipped classroom as well as examined learners’ attitudes towards the implementation of the flipped model in the Spanish L2 instruction. This research included a between-group design, which involved a control group being instructed via a flipped approach and a comparison group learning the same material under a non-flipped model; and a within-group design with a group of learners combining these two different methodologies during one semester. Results in grammar-focused pre and post-tests indicated that Spanish L2 learners did not improve …

Revitalizing The Russian Of A Heritage Speaker, Aaron Jordan

Theses and Dissertations

This study presents a linguistic profile of a heritage speaker of Russian and recounts the efforts to revitalize his Russian after he had nearly stopped speaking it. The study was conducted over the course of almost two years, starting when the subject was twelve years old and ending when he was fourteen. Although this study found that the subject displayed many of the linguistic features typical of heritage speakers, the subject's Russian had suffered less attrition than is common for heritage speakers of Russian in the United States. This study presents its linguistic findings under the rubrics of phonology, morphosyntax, …

Trypanosome Infection Disturbs The Gut Microbiota Of Bumble Bee Hosts, Bryan Sierra-Rivera

Theses and Dissertations

Host-microbe interactions are ubiquitous with both positive and negative outcomes for host health and fitness. While pathogens abound, there has been an increased focus beneficial host-microbial community associations, such as native gut microbiota that can aid in disease resistance, nutrient sequestration, and detoxification. However, while beneficial microbes can protect against infection, there is a limited appreciation for how pathogen infection may disrupt healthy gut microbiota structure and function. Crithidia bombi is a common trypanosomatid gut parasite of bumble bees with fitness-relevant effects on individuals and colonies. The native bumble bee gut microbiota has been shown to increase protection against Crithidia, …

Using Behavior Skills Training To Promote Self-Advocating Behaviors: A Single Subject Research Design To Examine The Effectiveness Of Behavior Interventions Among Teachers, Clarence Cooper

Theses and Dissertations

Using Behavioral Skills Training to Promote Self-Advocating Behaviors: A Single-Subject Research Design to Examine the Effectiveness of Behavior Interventions Among Teachers. Clarence Cooper, 2022: Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice. Keywords: applied behavior analysis, behavioral skills training, inclusion, individual education plan, operant conditioning, prompting, reinforcer, self-advocacy, accommodation

This applied dissertation utilized the behavioral skills training to train teachers on how to prompt, identify, and reinforce self-advocacy behaviors among students with learning disabilities. In applying behavioral analytic interventions to strengthen desired outcomes, a one- day intervention that was grounded in a …

Steps Towards Liberation For Low-Income Black Residents Through Anti-Racist And Counter-Racial Capitalist Community Development Practices, Natasha Moodie

Theses and Dissertations

Racial capitalism has historically and systematically disenfranchised Black residents in the United States of America. Racial capitalism perpetuates the racial wealth gap and continues to inhibit Black residents from accumulating wealth. I argue that the community development field must implement practices that address the disenfranchisement of Black residents by the systems of racial capitalism. This research aims to highlight community development processes and practices that counter the effects of racial capitalism on low-income Black residents. I conducted a case study on the City and County of San Francisco due to their anti-racist approach to housing and community development, specifically focusing …

Of Mites And Brains: Ectoparasitism In Nestlings Alters The Development Of Song Control Nuclei In European Starlings, Elliot Parker Lusk

Theses and Dissertations

The developmental stress hypothesis suggests that birdsong can reflect the current condition and developmental history of a songbird. Developmental stressors such as food restriction or ectoparasitism can hinder normal song development, leading to altered song quality in adulthood. Previous research has demonstrated that early food restriction results in reduced growth of song control nuclei, which may account for the effects of early food restriction on adult song quality. However, the neural mechanisms underlying the effects of early ectoparasitism on birdsong have not been directly investigated. In this study, we examined the development of song control nuclei in European starling (Sturnus …

Factors Motivating Individuals With No School-Based Agricultural Education Background To Enter The Profession, Jenna Kay Offerman

Theses and Dissertations

Teacher recruitment and retention have been deemed a national issue across all disciplines and grade-levels in education. School-based agricultural education (SBAE) has been no exception as it has also seen a substantial decline in individuals majoring in agricultural education, entering the teaching profession, and then choosing to remain a SBAE teacher until eligible for retirement. This has resulted in a shortage of qualified SBAE teachers across the country. While alternative licensure routes have existed to help fill these teaching vacancies, it has done little to solve the long-term problem of acquiring qualified, career SBAE teachers. Agricultural education stakeholder groups have …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On Employment Characteristics, Eliana Shatkin

Theses and Dissertations

The following study examines ways in which COVID-19 has disrupted the United States labor market. My findings present disproportionately negative effects of COVID-19 on employment, labor force participation, worker absence, and weekly working hours for the female population in my sample, as well as veterans, disabled persons, and racial minorities.

Conflict And Nature: How War In Cambodia Shaped Its Natural Landscape, Emily Lifs

Theses and Dissertations

Through the efforts of the Cambodian people and historians, the world is familiar with the tragic human story that unfolded over decades of war and the brutal rule of the Khmer Rouge. This thesis is an attempt to tell the equally tragic but untold story of how decades of conflict shaped the Cambodian landscape and the lives and populations of elephants and other animals.

Trends In Nutrients Load And Driving Factors In Illinois River Basins, Olaoluwa David Oladuji

Theses and Dissertations

The demand for clean and potable water increases as the population number grows, and surface water serves as a significant source of water supply to many municipalities. However, the quality of surface waters is altered due to excess load of nutrients in the water bodies. For example, excess nitrate and dissolved phosphorus in water may lead to eutrophication. The 2019 bi-annual Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategies reported about 13% and 35% increases in nitrate and total phosphorus, respectively, across the statewide basins compared to the previous baseline data of 1980-1996. The biannual report stated that Illinois River basin was a …

Mapping The Distribution Of The Scarlet-Banded Barbet ( Capito Wallacei ) Using Geographic Information Systems ( Gis ) And Species Distribution Modeling ( Sdm ), Stephanie Marie Scherer

Theses and Dissertations

The Scarlet-banded Barbet (Capito wallacei) is a Neotropical barbet discovered in 1996 in the eastern Andean foothills of Peru. Despite being fairly common at the site of discovery, its known distribution is limited to two sites, and searching for other suitable sites is difficult in the wilderness of the eastern Andes. Through the use of geographic information sysems (GIS), remote sensing methods, and Maxent, we constructed a species distribution model (SDM) to determine the likelihood of occupancy of the Scarlet-banded Barbet outside of its current known distribution. The model predicted the occupancy with an area under the curve (AUC) of …

The Structures Of Intra-National Class Divisions In Neoliberalism: The Women Of “Light” And “Dark” In The White Tiger, Sneha Madimi

Theses and Dissertations

Aravind Adiga’s novel, The White Tiger, represents gender hierarchies and the class struggle of India’s neoliberal present. Adiga uses elements of satire and allegory to teach us something about how women are differently positioned in the neoliberal system. David Harvey in A Brief History of Neoliberalism defines neoliberalism as “a theory of political economic practices that proposes that human well-being can best be advanced by liberating individual entrepreneurial freedoms and skills within an institutional framework characterized by strong private property rights, free markets, and free trade” (2). I will consider the novel, alongside Chandra Mohanty’s “Under Western Eyes” …

High School Principal's Perception And Experience With Student Voice And Youth-Adult Partnerships, James D. Flynn

Theses and Dissertations

High school principals can foster student voice (SV) and youth-adult partnerships (YAP) while leading their students towards being engaged and informed citizens in our democracy. It is critical to understand the advantages and opportunities high school principals have in listening to and partnering with their students. It is also critical to understand the challenges facing high school principals in their journey towards SV and YAP. A qualitative multicase study of 10 high school principals from across the nation was used to understand the perception and experiences of high school principals in the area of SV and YAP. In addition, this …

Analysis Of Selected Pieces Influenced By Taiwanese Aboriginal Music For Solo Violin And String Quartet, Isabel Hsin-Yi Ong

Theses and Dissertations

This is an analysis of three pieces that contribute to solo violin and string quartet repertoire through the lens of intervallic relationships, rhythmic and gestural motifs, and instrumental technique. Briefly delving into the Aboriginal history of Taiwan and illuminating aural concepts inherent within each tribe, the research blends musicological research, theoretical analysis, and intuitive performance-based interpretations to meld and expand the technical and musical possibilities of the violin with the essence and impact of these songs.

The Role Of Village Savings And Loan Associations In Poverty Graduation Programs: A Process Analysis, Noha Abdel Hamid

Theses and Dissertations

Ten percent of the global population live in extreme poverty under $1.90 a day. To combat chronic multidimensional poverty, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC)created the Graduation Approach, which consists of a Big Push effect implemented through a series of interventions including asset transfer, mentoring, saving groups and a series of service provisions, to push ultra-poor households to exit poverty sustainably. Implemented so far in over 50 countries, the model has shown positive results even after ten years of the first interventions. Sawiris Foundation for Social Development partnered with BRAC and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Laboratory (J-PAL) to …

A Multiple-Case Study: Motivating Students With Disabilities In Personalized Literacy Instruction, Courtney Kozelski

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents often experience a decline in motivation, yet support for basic psychological needs can prevent such a decline. Individuals with disabilities face particularly high motivational obstacles, placing them at the center of this action research study. This study took place within a special education classroom during one school year. The intervention unfolded over the course of the year, using personalized learning to support students’ basic psychological needs and provide sources of self-efficacy. The findings lend support to previous studies, indicating literacy motivation can be promoted through implementation of a needs-supportive personalized learning intervention that builds upon both self-efficacy and self-determination …

Investigating The Impact Of Endothelial Dysfunction And Aging On Vascular Remodeling Using Mouse Models, Liya Du

Theses and Dissertations

Endothelial dysfunction, characterized by a reduction in the bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO), is a major factor in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis, an age-related chronic inflammatory process in the arterial wall and the leading cause of mortality and morbidity globally. A better understanding of alterations in vascular structure and function associated with endothelial dysfunction can facilitate the early detection of atherosclerosis and the development of potential pharmaceutical interventions. This study aims to clarify the impact of endothelial dysfunction in conjunction with aging on the microstructure of aortic extracellular matrix (ECM) and to elucidate the relationship between microstructural adaptation …

Spatial And Age Disparities In Covid-19 Outcomes, Qian Huang

Theses and Dissertations

COVID-19 has caused significant social, economic, environmental, and political impacts globally and affected communities unequally in the U.S. The pandemic has also sparked interest in age-specific manifestations of infection, for example, studies confirmed the risk of increasing age with COVID-19 severity. However, the nonstationarity effects of health determinants among age groups have not been well examined. This study aims to explore the nonstationarity effects of social, behavioral, environmental, health care access, and political contexts on COVID-19 outcomes. This study poses three broad questions: 1) how did COVID-19 vaccinations align with COVID-19 daily cases and deaths in the United States; 2) …

Examining Executive Dysfunction In Dementia: Vascular Etiology As A Contributor To Greater Impairment, Julianne Szemko

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: The present study examines executive functioning and overall neuropsychological functioning within a memory disorder clinic population with a specific focus on examining performance on the Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (M-WCST) among individuals with and without cerebrovascular disease. Method: This study utilized test data collected between 2018-2022 from the research database at the Health First Memory Disorder Clinic (HFMDC) in Melbourne, Florida. Participants were included if they completed a brief neuropsychological evaluation (BNE) at the HFMDC with the M-WCST, Trail Making Test - Form B (TMT-B), and Color/Word subtest of the Golden Stroop as part of their battery and …

Histomechanical Compatibility Of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafts, Colton J. Kostelnik

Theses and Dissertations

Coronary artery disease is a localized form of atherosclerosis that can severely restrict blood flow to the heart often requiring a surgical intervention known as coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) to reestablish perfusion to this essential circulation. To some extent, the selection of the autograft tissue is at the surgeon’s discretion with factors such as stenosis location and the existing tissue’s pathological state contributing to a choice that could be deterministic in surgical outcomes. Many post-operative complications and premature graft failures originate from graft-target tissue incompatibilities and altered blood flow patterns. We hypothesize that mechanical mismatching between the graft material …

Changes In The Regulation Of The Unfolded Protein Response During Aging In Peromyscus, Elham Soltanmohammadi

Theses and Dissertations

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has been linked to various metabolic pathologies, neurodegeneration, and aging. Although various mechanistic aspects of the resulting unfolded protein response (UPR) have been elucidated, its regulation in genetically diverse populations remains elusive. In the present study we evaluated the expression of chaperones BiP/GRP78, GRP94 and calnexin (CANX) in the lungs, liver, and brain of 7 months old and 2–3 years old outbred deer mice P. maniculatus and P. leucopus. Chaperones’ _expression was highly variable between species, tissues and ages suggesting that levels of expression of individual chaperones do not change consistently during aging. Despite this variation, …

Behavioral And Neurophysiological Measures Of Speech Auditory Feedback Processing Impairment In Left Hemisphere Stroke, Stacey Sangtian

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify behavioral and neural correlates of impaired speech auditory feedback processing in people with a history of left-hemisphere stroke (LHS). To do this, we used the altered auditory feedback (AAF) paradigm to externally induce speech errors by randomly shifting the pitch frequency of the online auditory feedback up or down at ±100 cents in 38 LHS and 27 neurologically intact control participants under two experimental conditions: 1) active vocalizations of a steady speech vowel sound “ah,” and 2) passive listening to the playback of the same self-produced vocalizations. Randomized control trials were included …

Coastal Stormwater Pond Pollutants And The Potential For Development Of Antimicrobial Resistance In Vibrio And Enterococcus Bacteria, Cassandra L. Horton

Theses and Dissertations

The Southeastern coastal plain is the most rapidly urbanizing region in the United States. Associated landscape changes which increase imperviousness lead to hydrological cycle alterations, increasing runoff of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution. Urban and agricultural NPS runoff is generally discharged into stormwater ponds, which sequester chemical contaminants, nutrients, and microbes to reduce loading into coastal ecosystems. Studies of these ponds have indicated elevated levels of trace metals, antimicrobial compounds, and bacterial contamination (SCSGC 2018).

Interactions of aquatic pathogens Vibrio vulnificus and Enterococcus faecium with trace metals (arsenic, copper, zinc) and clinically relevant antimicrobials (triclosan, ciprofloxacin, oxytetracycline) commonly found in coastal …

Novel Dietary Index For Gut Microbiota And Associations With Colorectal Cancer And Breast Cancer Risk, Bezawit Eyob Kase

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Diet serves as a driving force for shaping the gut microbiome. Understanding how diet may modify gut microbiota and subsequently may be associated with chronic disease is critical to public health prevention efforts. Aims: We aimed to develop a novel dietary index that captures the quality of diet with respect to attaining beneficial composition and function of gut microbiota. We then examined the relationship between the dietary index and two gut microbiota-related cancers, i.e., colorectal and breast cancers.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review of studies that examined the effect of foods on gut microbiota in adult populations. Dietary …

Implementing A Technology-Based Instructional Module In An Introduction To Engineering Course: The Impact On Student’S Vocabulary Retention And Attitudes Towards Learning, Robin T. Amick

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the academic impact of a technology-based instructional module for content vocabulary instruction in the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Introduction to Engineering course. The goal of the study was to answer two key questions: 1) How does implementing a technology-based instructional module impact Engineering vocabulary academic gains for students taking the Introduction to Engineering course? and 2) What is the effect of implementing a technology-based instructional model on attitudes towards learning Engineering vocabulary for students taking the Introduction to Engineering course? This study was conducted with Introduction to Engineering students (N …

Peromyscus Maniculatus Bairdii And Peromyscus Maniculatus Sonoriensis Polymorphisms, Matthew Dixon Lucius

Theses and Dissertations

Sequencing technology has advanced greatly over the past couple of decades. This has led to many studies developing hypotheses based on genomic data. This requires many genomic studies to have up-to-date information on the species’ or subject’s genome being investigated. If a study does not have accurate or up-to-date background information, then they cannot fully develop their theories that are being established. In this study, I utilize outbred Peromyscus maniculatus, deer mice that are genetically diverse, to record the polymorphisms that are found throughout the Peromyscus maniculatus genome. I first explore the differences between the polymorphisms found in Peromyscus …