Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring Servingness Through Pedagogy: A Critical Case Study Of An Hispanic Serving Institution, Yemin Sánchez

Theses and Dissertations

This critical ethnographic case study advances current understandings of what it means to teach at an Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and how faculty enact servingness within an HSI enrolling high indices of Latin@/Hispanic students. Drawing on decolonial, culturally sustaining and liberatory pedagogical frameworks, this study interrogates how constructs such as Hispanic, Latin@/Latinx, or coloniality shape the pedagogical conditions under which faculty operate. Using pláticas with ten faculty members, this research study demonstrates servingness is not a technique or an institutional designation, instead, it is a fluid and deeply humanizing ecology with five mutually reinforcing dimensions: Servingness as Relational Praxis, Servingness …

Use Of Complementizer That Among English-Spanish Bilinguals, Aziz Abraham Quenun

Theses and Dissertations

Languages vary in how they signal the presence of an embedded clause. Both English and Spanish use what are termed complementizers—that in English and que in Spanish—but in English, the complementizer is often optional while in Spanish, it is generally required. This thesis tested if the presence of que in a Spanish sentence could induce a bilingual speaker to insert a previously omitted that into an English sentence using a syntactic priming task. The results of these trials showed that this was the case, finding a statistically significant priming effect, supporting the idea that syntax is cognitively shared across languages …

Academic Anxiety, Anxiety Sensitivity, And General Mental Health In Collegiate Student-Athletes, Finley Gabrielle Elkins Sims

Theses and Dissertations

Collegiate athletes’ mental health is on the decline, and they have unique experiences that can influence the prevalence of mental health struggles. This study examined academic anxiety, comorbid forms of anxiety, and predicting factors in 187 collegiate student-athletes across 29 U.S. colleges. Athletes had significantly higher levels of academic anxiety and general anxiety compared to a college nonathlete population. There were significant gender differences in athletes, with females having greater levels of anxiety sensitivity, academic anxiety, sport anxiety, general anxiety, depression, and a history of depression than male athletes. Gender, history of depression, anxiety sensitivity, and depression were significant predictors …

Modeling Causal Interactions Across Brain Functional Systems For Population-Specific Disease Analysis, Alissen Moreno

Theses and Dissertations

Functional brain connectivity provides critical insight into neural mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative and affective disorders. Traditional neuroimaging studies rely on undirected or region-specific connectivity measures developed predominantly using racially homogeneous cohorts, limiting fairness and generalizability across diverse populations.

We propose a population-aware framework modeling directed causal interactions across large-scale brain functional subnetworks. Resting-state fMRI data from the HABS-HD cohort were used to construct subject-level causal connectivity matrices via ICA-LiNGAM, aggregated into interpretable system-level hyper-connectomes representing interactions among eleven canonical brain subsystems. These features trained nonlinear models for Alzheimer’s disease stage classification and trait worry prediction.

Results demonstrate that MLP models outperform …

Ground Penetrating Radar Spiral Antenna Transient Response Based On Target Radar Cross Section, David Rohde

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a significant advancement in Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) detection technology through the development of a novel method for the detection and classification of buried conductive objects using custom-designed Archimedean spiral antennas. The research demonstrates that the transient electromagnetic response of an Archimedean spiral antenna is strongly correlated with the Radar Cross Section (RCS) characteristics of buried objects operating within the radar resonance scattering, or Mie, region. By leveraging this relationship, the proposed approach enables not only the detection of buried objects, but also generalized classification based on object geometry and size.A primary contribution of this work is …

Bridging Culture And Education To Enhance Cherokee Student Health And Wellness, Lindsey Hammer

Theses and Dissertations

Indigenous populations face ongoing health disparities, often worsened by a lack of culturally relevant and Indigenous-led programs and interventions. This dissertation in practice was inspired by the need for community-driven, culturally grounded approaches that address these disparities for Cherokee Nation in Northeastern Oklahoma. Each of the three products are inspired by and aligned with the principles of Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR), the Cherokee value of gadugi, and the concept of relationality, offering a holistic approach to community health and well-being. Not every product represents a fully implemented CBPR process but rather a CBPR-informed approach. Future stages will emphasize more meaningful …

Comprehensive Analytical Approaches To Biophysical And Hard Matter Systems, Carlos Munoz

Theses and Dissertations

In this work we define the methods and experimental techniques that are used in the synthesis, characterization, and development of biophysical and hard matter systems. These efforts encompass six principal areas: Comprehensive characterization of pathogenic bacteria, development of novel chemical methods for probing binding affinities in cellular systems, understanding the electronic properties of silicon/silicon dioxide interfaces, characterization of catalytic perovskite oxide materials, and lastly, heteroepitaxial growth of vanadium nitride thin films on the silicon nitride surface.The Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi (B. burgdorferi) causes an infection with diverse clinical outcomes, which can include arthritis as well as cardiac and neurological …

Student Engagement As A Predictor Of Stem Student Success, Mosab Shaher Abu Al Foul

Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative study investigates factors influencing engagement, persistence, and degree completion among underrepresented minority (URM) students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Guided by Tinto’s Interactionist Model (1975) and Bandura’s Self-Efficacy Theory(1977), it examines how institutional practices and socioeconomic conditions contribute to inequities in student outcomes. Using a non-experimental, correlational design, the study analyzes National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) data and institutional records from a Midwestern Research 2 university (N = 620; URM subsample n = 52). Binary logistic regression, MANOVA, and t-tests were used to assess relationships among High-Impact Educational Practices (HIEPs), engagement indicators, faculty interaction, pre-college …

Self-Talk In Esports: Extending Sport Psychology Frameworks To Digital Competition, Brett Anne Thompson Machamer

Theses and Dissertations

Self-talk is a key mechanism underlying performance, confidence, and emotional regulation, yet its use in esports remains underexplored. This study examined self-talk patterns among esports players, focusing on associations with hours played, self-talk type and valence, and contextual and motivational factors influencing its use. Esports players (N = 102; M = 18.53 hours/week, SD = 13.74) across a range of competitive levels completed an online questionnaire assessing self-talk type, valence, and contextual use. Greater hours played were associated with increased use of strategic self-talk, while self-talk valence was not significantly related to time spent playing. Participants most frequently reported using …

Reactive-Fluid-Transport Controls On Co2-Eor Applications In The Upper Red River Carbonate Reservoir, Abdelmalek Abes

Theses and Dissertations

Reactive-transport phenomena during CO2 injection in carbonate reservoir were examined in detail. Three core samples from the primary producing units of North Dakota’s Upper Red River Formation (U2-H055, U4-H069, and U6-H009) were used to experimentally investigate geochemical reactions and petrophysical alterations, impacting carbon dioxide enhanced-oil-recovery (CO2-EOR) and geologic-carbon-storage (GCS) projects. During corefloods using a CO2/brine mixture, two samples demonstrated early permeability increases followed by declines, whereas the third sample demonstrated an early decrease; all samples gradually recovered at a later stage. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements revealed slight porosity increases due to dissolution-induced wormholes, while the pore-size distribution (PSD) shifted …

Non-Terrestrial Colonial Security And Critical Contingency Operations, Augustine Gabriel Wesley Batten

Theses and Dissertations

Since the turn of the century, the dependence of state functionality and capability on cyber infrastructure has grown exponentially, resulting in an equally expanding list of means to exploit this dependency. Cyberattacks have demonstrated the ability to target the space industry and critical infrastructure beyond our atmosphere. The potential damage this growing threat can bring is what this research aims to prepare for and mitigate. The purpose of this research is to determine cyber-attack indicators and develop responses designed to mitigate the effects of worst-case scenarios. It is important to understand that this study included a theoretical scenario to address …

Machine Learning For Laminar Heat Transfer In Supercritical Fluids, Luke Holtshouser

Theses and Dissertations

In the last 10 years machine learning has become increasingly more used in the field of fluid dynamics and heat transfer. However, with this increase in activity, gaps still exist with respect to supercritical fluids and laminar flows, where laminar flow in general seems understudied. For supercritical fluids, there are many peculiar studies that are isolated to unique systems or they are obscure enough to include everything but the kitchen sink. This strategy provides no real insights into how the field can make further progress in the utilization of the technology available, or rather build-upon previous knowledge. For this reason, …

Techno-Economic Analysis And Density Functional Theory Modeling Of Hydrogen Fuel Cells With Platinum-Based Catalysts For Effective Deployment In Long-Range Electric Vehicles, Thomas Cheekwang Yap

Theses and Dissertations

The transition to sustainable transportation is constrained by carbon emissions and fossil fuel dependence. Hydrogen fuel cells (HFCs), particularly those utilizing platinum-based catalysts, offer high efficiency and suitability for long-range electric vehicles (EVs). However, the high cost and durability limitations of platinum catalysts remain major barriers to large-scale deployment.

This study integrates techno-economic analysis (TEA) with density functional theory (DFT) modeling to evaluate cost–performance trade-offs of platinum-based catalysts for long-range hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. DFT simulations were conducted to assess platinum alloy compositions and oxygen reduction reaction activity. These performance metrics were incorporated into a MATLAB-based TEA framework to quantify …

Student Affairs Staff Retention In Illinois Community Colleges: A Descriptive Case Study, Autumn Scott

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored the experiences of student affairs professionals at community colleges to gain insight into the problem of staff retention, especially as it exists at community colleges, a sector that is under-researched in the literature on student affairs staff turnover. As open access institutions, community colleges must engage diverse student populations in a dynamic environment. Retaining quality student affairs staff is an important strategy to support student success and meet community college missions. As part of a bounded case study approach, two Illinois community colleges served as research sites. Data collection consisted of participant interviews, participant demographic …

Stigma Is Committing: Public Perceptions Of Race, Substance Use, And Civil Commitment, Meliyah Anderson-Tryon

Theses and Dissertations

Civil commitment in the United States is a legal process through which individuals experiencing severe mental illness may be involuntarily admitted for psychological treatment. Despite its far-reaching consequences, public knowledge and perceptions of civil commitment remain largely underexamined. These gaps may contribute to increased stigma toward individuals with severe mental illness or those who engage in substance use. This study used a vignette-based experimental design manipulating a hypothetical individual’s race and presence or absence of past substance use. The hypothetical individual was portraying symptoms related to schizophrenia, subsequently leading to being civilly committed. Participants (N = 208) evaluated perceived dangerousness …

A Privacy-Preserving, Ai-Driven Framework For Bathroom Activity Monitoring And Health Recommendation In Elderly Care, Collins Poku Obeng

Theses and Dissertations

The rapid aging of the global population necessitates scalable, non-invasive solutions, for monitoring Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) to detect early signs of health decline. This thesis presents a novel, end-to-end framework for monitoring bathroom activities—specifically bathing, toileting, and oral hygiene—using wearable sensors, machine learning and Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI). The research addresses three critical gaps: the lack of granular activity recognition in privacy-sensitive spaces, the need for personalized health insights without manual logging, and the cybersecurity risks inherent in deploying AI in healthcare. First, algorithms utilizing wearable humidity and accelerometer sensor data were developed to classify hygiene behaviors with …

Filling The Gaps: Rural-Remote High School Teachers’ Perceptions Of Professional Training In Student Mental Health Preparedness, Angela N. Muhs

Theses and Dissertations

Rural-remote high school teachers are frequently the first to notice and respond to student mental health concerns, yet they operate within communities characterized by significant shortages in mental health providers. Access to professional mental health services in these settings remains persistently limited, placing considerable responsibility on teachers who may lack adequate preparation. This study employed an interpretive case study design to qualitatively examine how rural-remote high school teachers in North Dakota perceive their professional training and overall preparedness in addressing student mental health concerns. Twelve licensed teachers, whose experience ranged from six months to 33 years, participated in in-depth interviews. …

Studying The Hidden Heat: A Theoretical Approach To Better Understanding The Thermal Conditions Of The Yellowstone Volcano In Wyoming, Usa, Daniel Burke Brunson

Theses and Dissertations

Using the spatiotemporal record of the 2.1–0 Ma ignimbrite flare-up of the Yellowstone Plateau Volcanic Field (YPVF) as a proxy for batholith formation at depth, this dissertation develops and applies the Finite Difference Heat Flow Simulation (FDHFS) program to model crustal thermal evolution beneath the supervolcano. FDHFS, a modular C++ numerical simulator, solves the transient heat equation incorporating variable thermal conductivity, radiogenic heat production, and directional advection in three-dimensional Cartesian grids. Validation against analytical benchmarks and seafloor-spreading analogs confirms its fidelity for combined conduction-advection processes in heterogeneous crustal settings.

High-resolution volume–time analysis of major ignimbrite pulses (Huckleberry Ridge, Mesa Falls, …

Critical Minerals Recovery From Oil And Gas Fields Produced Water In The Bakken Formation, North Dakota, Md Jakaria

Theses and Dissertations

The growing demand for critical minerals essential to clean energy technologies presents an opportunity to transform oilfield produced water (PW) – traditionally treated as waste – into a valuable resource. This dissertation investigates the recovery potential of lithium, salts, and other critical elements from produced water in the Bakken Formation, North Dakota, and evaluates the economic feasibility of integrating such recovery processes into existing petroleum operations. Comprehensive geochemical analyses were conducted on samples collected throughout the Bakken, revealing total dissolved solids (TDS) ranging from 46,815 to 327,714 ppm and lithium concentrations exceeding 200 ppm in several wells, indicating economically recoverable …

The Effects Of Geography, Forage Sources And Seasonality On Microbial Communities In Honey Bees, Adam Pachl

Theses and Dissertations

There has been growing research examining the effects on honey bee nutrition through their gut microbial communities. While there is some consensus about the core composition of the honey bee gut, there has been very little work to examine if regional or seasonal differences affect the microbiome. To examine if seasonal or regional differences have any impact on the composition of the gut microbiomes on North Dakota honey bees, worker bees were sampled from commercial honey bee colonies both pre and post honey flow in 2022 in six different regions of North Dakota. The gut bacteria from the bees were …

Exploring Student Emotions And Needs In Pre-Medical Laboratory Science Education: A Control-Value Theory Approach, Allison Jean Waswick

Theses and Dissertations

There is a current workforce shortage of qualified medical laboratory scientists (MLS) in the healthcare field. Without these individuals completing their analysis of patient samples, patients may experience detrimental effects to their health. To help narrow the gap between the number of open positions and the number of MLS graduates per year, MLS programs could better understand pre-MLS students’ needs to better support and retain them. Using Control-Value Theory as the framework for this qualitative study, this study explored pre-MLS students’ needs by examining the emotions they experienced in their programmatic contexts to better understand this population’s needs. Five themes …

The Speech, Language, And Feeding Development Of One Child With Wiedemann–Steiner Syndrome, Alyssa Ann Erickson

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the longitudinal speech, language, and feeding development of a child with Wiedemann–Steiner syndrome (WSS) from birth to age 10. The study aimed to characterize developmental patterns, identify strengths and challenges, and evaluate changes over time within the context of ongoing speech-language intervention. A qualitative longitudinal case study design was used, combining retrospective review of medical, therapeutic, and educational records with direct clinical assessment at age 10. Measures included the Oral and Written Language Scales–Second Edition (OWLS-II)), a spontaneous language sample, a phonemic inventory, a Childhood Apraxia of Speech screening, a caregiver feeding questionnaire, and a clinical feeding …

Climate Messages In An Ai-Integrated Experiment: Interpretive Divergence, Policy Support, And A New Resonance Consistency Framework, Jayme Colosimo

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examined how environmental frames—particularly “Mother Earth” and “Mother Nature”—influence public support for climate policy and how these effects differ across demographic groups. Using a mixed-methods explanatory sequential design, the study executed a media survey experiment (N = 470) followed by semi-structured expert interviews to assess responses to two primes using a conventional corporate media message, and a message with similar content that was generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Quantitative findings showed that these metaphors generated uneven and sometimes divergent priming effects. Some groups—most notably White male Republicans—reported higher support for environmental policy under the conventional media prime. Under …

Impact Of Multicultural Literature Through Reader's Response, Rachel Konrad

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine how students respond to using five multicultural read aloud texts and responding to them in a response. The goal of this study was to see if student engagement improved as a result of the study and if student comprehension improved through the use of pre and post assessments. Student data was collected that included a pre and post assessment, anecdotal records of student discussion, responses to texts, and student and parent surveys. Students discovered and discussed themes across texts such as cultural identity, community, and belonging.

The Impact Of Mentor Text On Second Grade Writing, Brittany A. Still

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to (a) ascertain the effect mentor text had on student engagement and (b) determine the impact mentor text had on student writing style. Students utilized strategies from five mentor texts during the writer's workshop to write their own personal narratives. Students demonstrated increased engagement through class discussions following each read aloud. Writing style was impacted as students implemented different writing elements into their own writing based on the mentor text discussed. Implications for teaching writing are discussed.

Preserving The Untold Stories: Leveraging Emerging Technologies (Ai And Machine Learning) For Archiving Hidden Histories Of Children And Families Impacted By The Little Rock School Integration Crisis, Oluseyi Noah Adebanjo

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis challenges the dominant narrative of the Little Rock School Integration Crisis by recovering the hidden histories of families and siblings who made integration possible but have been systematically overlooked by historians. While existing scholarship focuses on the Little Rock Nine as individual heroes, this research demonstrates that integration was fundamentally a family crisis requiring collective decision-making, economic sacrifice, and multigenerational support networks. Through close reading of published memoirs, newspaper clippings, school board minutes, and original oral history interviews with Phyllis Brown and Dr. Sybil Jordan Hampton, this study reveals how approximately 200 eligible families were systematically reduced to …

Gratitude And The Second Language Writer: The Effects Of Gratitude Journaling In The English Language Writing Classroom, Lauren Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Gratitude journaling interventions have repeatedly been shown to enhance wellbeing when conducted in participants’ first language (Emmons & McCullough, 2003; Sansone & Sansone, 2010), yet no studies to date have examined these practices in second language (L2) contexts. This mixed-methods quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of a six-week gratitude journaling intervention on adult L2 English writers enrolled in an intensive English program. Eleven writing classes (N = 183) were randomly assigned to either a gratitude journaling group or a neutral-events control group, with 123 participants completing all four stages of data collection. Trait gratitude and subjective wellbeing were measured pre-intervention, …

The San José De Laguna Mission: Christian Iconography Through The Lens Of Pueblo Oral Traditions, Natalie Sims Rasmussen

Theses and Dissertations

The San José de Laguna Mission was constructed in 1699 in modern New Mexico. Following on the heels of the second Pueblo revolt, it stands as a testament to the Pueblo adoption of Christian symbols in the portrayal of their own oral traditions. A central theme in the Laguna oral tradition is the complementary nature of masculine and feminine forces that make up the universe. The Christian figures of the altar screen, such as Saint Joseph, Saint John Nepomuck, Saint Barbara, and the Trinity, can be interpreted through the lens of the Pueblo oral tradition regarding a 19th century Laguna …

Improving Electrochemical Measurements And Informing Future Reprocessing Of Advanced Nuclear Fuels, J. Marvin Torrie

Theses and Dissertations

This research promotes the application of molten salts through developing analytical tools in electroanalytical studies and in the data analysis of vapor pressure data. The electrochemical community lacks standardized, stable, and repeatable reference electrode designs which threaten the reliability of measured thermophysical properties and repeatability of published studies. This work confirms the application of a saturated reference electrode design for molten chlorides systems that outperforms traditional Ag+/Ag reference electrodes. In the field of thermal physical property measurements, vapor pressure data for chloride salts are diffused throughout the literature, uncertainty quantification is absent or limited, and all previous studies rely on …

These Wretched Waters: A New Perspective On The Myth Texts And Visual Adaptations Of The Danaids, Tessa Haney

Theses and Dissertations

Both Greek and Latin texts regarding the Danaids are rife with gestational imagery and vocabulary. This textual focus on chthonic, symbolic aparturience coheres with both Greek and Roman perceptions of femininity. Women in both cultures were socially mandated to marry, have children, and confine themselves to the domestic sphere. The Danaids’ refusal to participate in this system would have been viewed as a breach of cosmic order, and a punishment that grounded the sisters in their 'traditional’ femaleness would have been viewed as a solution to such a breach. While early modern visual adaptations of the Danaid myth lack gestational …