Digital Commons Network^™

Beyond The Border: Analyzing The Role Of Unjust U.S Policies In Shaping The Migrant Crisis In New York City., Elvita Bouzy

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how unjust and dysfunctional U.S. immigration laws have shaped the migrant crisis in New York City, particularly during the 2022-2024 influx of migrants, through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT). It explores how racialized immigration policies, systemic inequities, and rising nativism have intensified challenges faced by migrants from Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and other marginalized regions. The study examines political opposition and media portrayals since the mid-1980s that hindered immigration reform, exposing a flawed system lacking adequate legal pathways. This inadequate framework has fueled discrimination and worsened asylum seekers' hardships. Driven by nativist sentiment and …

Broad And Specific Parenting Practices’ Effects On Toddlers’ Prosocial Development: A Three-Month Longitudinal Study, Cassandra Cheeseman

Theses and Dissertations

Prosocial behaviors typically emerge by age two and are associated with positive social and behavioral outcomes. Caregivers shape toddlers’ prosocial behavior development through broad (i.e., general warmth and sensitivity) and specific (i.e., social and material reinforcement) parenting practices. However, current research findings are mixed due to differences in toddler age, parenting practices studied, and the tendency to aggregate prosocial behaviors into one category. This aggregation approach overlooks the unique neurocognitive correlates, skills, and developmental trajectories of individual prosocial behaviors. To address these gaps, the current study investigates how broad and specific parenting practices relate to helping, sharing, and comforting, both …

The Beliefs And Attitudes Held By High School Students On Emoji Usage For Communication, Stacy Bonano

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative, phenomenological study explored the attitudes and beliefs of high school students regarding emoji use and its impact on their communication with others. Despite the prevalence of emoji use among adolescents, limited research has examined how students interpret and apply these visual symbols. Eleven high school students from Dutchess County, New York, participated in in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed using the theoretical frameworks of semiotics and constructivism to interpret how the students assigned meaning to emojis. Key findings identified emojis as emotional amplifiers, tone clarifiers, and tools of efficient communication. Participants also noted challenges related to misinterpretation and generational …

Barriers To Success In Higher Education For Second-Generation Caribbean American Men, Leonard S. Breton

Theses and Dissertations

While the United States may be progressing, second-generation Caribbean American men, those with at least one foreign-born parent (US Census Bureau, 2016), are a population that, despite literature addressing benefits and detriments of their cultural experiences, still warrants continued examination through empirical testing (Lyttle et al., 2011). These students have a range of factors that make them nontraditional students. Challenges such as racism, sexual and ethnic identity, and generational status in this country can be compounded when cultural perspectives of immigrant families are factored in. Caribbean American men are guided by learned behaviors and cultural traditions that influence training and …

Hyper Segregation And Poverty: An Examination Of The Historical Forces That Shape The Academic Self-Concept Of African-American High School Students 1900 To 2000, David Byer-Tyre

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this historical qualitative study was to identify the historical consequences of segregation, racism, and poverty on African Americans residents of Hempstead Long Island, and how these phenomena shaped contemporary Black students’ academic self-concepts. Among the issues that purportedly afflict American public education are the low academic achievements of African-American students in what might be termed “inner suburban” schools. The history of how Black communities and school were created and sustained was examined through a historical review of Black education in America, and a comparative analysis of the oral histories of fourteen graduates of Hempstead High school between …

Unraveling The Roots: A Historical And Sociocultural Perspective Of Family Literacy Practices And Parent Involvement In Black Communities Through A Critical Lens, Tasean D. Baldwin

Theses and Dissertations

Family literacy plays an essential role in a child's educational journey by laying the foundation for their academic success and shaping their attitudes toward learning. Social and cultural factors influence the value of literacy and education within families and communities. In Black communities, literacy has significant social and cultural influences, acting as a tool for resistance, empowerment, cultural preservation, identity formation, community building, and social and economic mobility while also historically facing obstacles due to systemic and institutional racism, which continues to impact access to education, resources, and opportunities today. This qualitative study explores the relationship between home and school …

College Students’ Beliefs: Association Between Skin Color And Acceptance, Christopher James Thompson

Theses and Dissertations

The Multiracial population represents the fastest-growing demographic group in the United States and is expected to more than double by 2060 (Vespa et al., 2018). Despite this rapid increase in the Multiracial population, there is a dearth of research regarding racial identity development, anxiety, and depression on this group. Social inclusion has been recognized as a fundamental human need, and Multiracial individuals may be more likely to be accepted into a majority group if their appearance is racially ambiguous. The current study builds on previous knowledge by utilizing a novel measure developed to examine the beliefs held by Monoracial and …

Brain-Targeting Polymeric Micelles For Intranasal Delivery Of Rapamycin In Alzheimer’S Disease Treatment, Vrashabh V. Sugandhi

Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a long-term neurological disorder associated with neuroinflammation and amyloid-beta (Aβ) aggregation, which leads to a decline in cognitive and behavioral changes. Rapamycin (Rapa) is an immunosuppressive drug effective in preventing organ rejection after a kidney transplant. In the last few years, orally delivered Rapa has emerged as a potential candidate for improving cognitive function in patients with AD. However, it is evident that long-term oral treatment of Rapa causes systemic toxicity, and although controversial, it may even trigger the aggregation of Aβ deposition. This study investigated the therapeutic potential of intranasally delivered brain-targeting polymeric micelles carrying …

Establishment And Characterization Of Vincristine-Resistant S1 Colon Cancer Cells, Harsh Patel

Theses and Dissertations

Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains one of the most common causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Vincristine is frequently used to treat CRC, although the specific pathways leading to acquired resistance are still not fully understood. In this study, we established two novel vincristine-resistant human colon cell lines (S1/V1 and S1/V4) to explore the mechanisms underlying vincristine resistance, with a particular emphasis on the overexpression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. The S1/V1 and S1/V4 sublines were derived by continuously exposing human S1 colon cancer cells to vincristine. An MTT cytotoxicity assay revealed that S1/V1 cells exhibit about 39-fold greater resistance to vincristine …

Gastronomy At The Heart Of Communication: A Locus Of Human Conviviality, Victoria M. O’Keefe

Theses and Dissertations

The significance of food over time is central to humanity and can aid in making people humane in a myriad of ways. This study seeks to (a) define the role of food in communication across sectors of global society and in the media realm (b) by analyzing a data set of all food related publications of the flagship magazine of UNESCO, The Courier, (c) through ethnographic study and inductive coding, I draw themes and trends that alter food communication from a multinational organization and pass the content through a theoretical lens and Large Language Model tool, to (d) illuminate implications …

Expression And Function Of Floral Symmetry Genes In The Regulation Of Flower Shape In Fedia Graciliflora, Theresa A. Mustacchio

Theses and Dissertations

Shifts between radial symmetry (actinomorphy) and bilateral symmetry (zygomorphy) in flowers have occurred multiple times independently within angiosperms (flowering plants). Evidence across angiosperms indicate the transcription factors RADIALIS (RAD), DIVARICATA (DIV), and CYCLOIDEA (CYC) play a major role in regulating floral symmetry and morphology. The CYC-like genes have been shown to shift their expression dorsally independently in nearly all shifts to bilaterally symmetrical flowers examined. Three core eudicot clades of CYC-like genes have been identified: CYC1, CYC2 and CYC3, with only CYC2 genes being shown to have a role in floral symmetry. We use the non-model plant, Fedia graciliflora (Caprifoliaceae) …

Propelling Whole-Cell Biosensor Creation By Leveraging Gene Fusion To Assemble Synthetic Functional Transcription Factors For The Detection Of Biomarkers, Samuel J. Verzino

Theses and Dissertations

Biosensors are analytical devices that leverage biological modules for the detection of molecules of interest. As customizable tools designed to aid in a wide array of diagnostics, these instruments are rapidly advancing the field of synthetic biology. While varied in their construction and purpose, biosensors are ultimately concerned with converting a physicochemical stimulus into a detectable signal. Among the many existing variants, whole-cell biosensors (WCBs) stand out due to their versatility and engineering potential. WCBs are a type of biosensor in which a physiologically active cell sustains an array of biomolecular elements - receptors, transporters, regulators, etc. - capable of …

The Long Shadow Of Pride And Prejudice On Contemporary Fictions Of Arranged Marriage And Marriages Of Alliance, Candice Belluscio

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an examination of the conflicts between arranged marriage and companionate marriage in selected contemporary Anglo-Indian novels and novels about Orthodox Judaism. The project’s guiding focus is how modern ideals of independence and choice in marriage coexist simultaneously with older ideals of marriage as family or personal “alliance.” The dissertation has a historical chapter that shows that although ideals of companionate marriage have become norms of 20th century western society and literature, the term “companionate marriage” is a recent invention and convention, and that various degrees and forms of arranged marriage, or marriages of alliance, continue despite their …

Latent Transition Analysis Of Prosocial Behavior And Physical Aggression In Toddlerhood, Annette Schieffelin

Theses and Dissertations

The current study is the first to apply Latent Transition Analysis (LTA) to examine short-term stability and change in toddlers’ physical aggression and prosocial behavior, using a person-centered, longitudinal approach to capture behavioral heterogeneity and stability during a critical developmental period. Mothers of 333 toddlers (18 or 24 months at Time 1; 21 or 27 months at Time 2) completed reports of provoked and unprovoked aggression, prosocial behaviors (helping, sharing, comforting), temperament, and parenting practices. Four profiles emerged consistently across time: High Aggression / Low Prosocial, Low Aggression / Average Prosocial, Low Aggression / High Prosocial, and Average Aggression / …

Sonic Futures: Exploring Podcasting, Artificial Intelligence, And The Evolving Landscape Of Composition, Grant David Crawford

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates podcasting and audio projects as multimodal practices in composition, analyzing how audio-based assignments both challenge and reproduce traditional writing norms. Drawing from personal teaching experience and a dataset of publicly accessible assignment prompts, rubrics, and instructional guides, the study examines how podcast projects are framed, assessed, and implemented in higher education. While often promoted as creative and accessible alternatives to essays, these assignments frequently replicate the same thesis-driven, rubric-centered, and exclusionary structures that define conventional academic writing. Through a cross-textual analysis of fifteen podcast rubrics and fifteen assignment prompts, this project identifies recurring patterns, including paradoxical expectations …

Embracing An Online Literary Identity: How Booktok Makes Literature More Accessible, Elizabeth Kaufmann

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis I examine conversations that occur on TikTok’s literary corner, “BookTok.” My research involves focusing on the multimodality of BookTok, following comment sections and search options, as well as analyzing the components of the videos themselves. BookTok content creators focus on these features in order to spark literary conversation in an approachable way. These influencers heavily sway the app itself and the books being recommended. Extending my research beyond BookTok influencers, this essay seeks to understand the value of influencer backing on products towards their social legitimacy. Some users on TikTok are not fans of how the algorithm …

Predicting Price Movements Of The S&P 500 Using Conventional And Alternative Market Indicators, Patrick M. Scarborough

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates whether integrating alternative data sources with conventional financial indicators enhances S&P 500 forecasting accuracy in modern financial markets characterized by increased complexity and rapid information flows. The study analyzes daily S&P 500 returns using twelve predictor variables comprising conventional indicators (VIX volatility index, WTI crude oil, gold futures, AAA bond yields, Federal Funds Rate, Treasury yield spreads) and alternative data sources (Bitcoin returns, Daily News Sentiment Index, Indeed job postings, Economic Policy Uncertainty Index) across 1,341 observations from February 2020 to June 2025. The methodology employs ordinary least squares regression and ARIMAX(5,5) modeling with rigorous preprocessing including …

“Makings Of A Teenage Revolutionary”: An Analysis Of Power Through The Lenses Of Gender And Institution Within The Universes Of Frank Herbert’S Dune And Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games, Ayah Cruzado

Theses and Dissertations

It is my objective within this paper to lead us through an in depth analysis of both Katniss Everdeen and Paul Atriedes, investigating every feature of their lives especially in the ways that they compare and differ to one another, after all, it is their written depth and complexity that makes them and their novels so fascinating to the public and earning them fame. Through my exploration, I hope to shed some light on the ways these three elements work and coincide with one another within both narratives. To separate them from one another and simply examine them as independent …

The Relationship Between Psychotherapist Self-Disclosure And Occupational And Emotional Variables, Kay Nikiforova

Theses and Dissertations

The effect of therapist self-disclosure practices on patients and the therapeutic relationship has long been debated. The historical trend of viewpoint toward self-disclosure began from predicting a negative, therapy-interfering stance to a growing openness towards the consideration that therapists sharing about themselves in session can have a positive effect on the patient. Evidence exists for both potential patient benefit and harm from therapists engaging in self-disclosure. Still, there is an increasing body of evidence that demonstrates that therapist self-disclosure benefits the therapeutic process, increases patient disclosure, and provides a more positive view of the therapeutic relationship. However, at present, there …

Increased Dissolution Rate And Decreased Processing Temperature For Immediate Release Fdm 3d Printed Tablet Of Weakly Acidic Drugs By Acid-Base Supersolubilization, Mohammed Irfan Syed

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, there has been much interest in three-dimensional (3D) printing for the development of personalized and on-demand medications for better therapy. In 3D-printing, materials are deposited layer by layer to form tablets and pellets. Among various 3D-printing technologies, the fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing, where melt-extruded filaments of drug-polymer mixtures are used for 3D printing, is most promising. However, the FDM 3D-printing often produces slow-release tablets that are not suitable for rapid drug action in the body. The present investigation was undertaken to demonstrate how rapidly dissolving 3D-printed tablets of poorly water-soluble acidic drugs could be developed …

Developing Stiripentol Analogs As Potential Ldh Inhibitors For The Treatment Of Glioblastoma, Anshika Y. Jain

Theses and Dissertations

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a highly proliferative brain tumor that has a 5-year survival rate of ~7 %. Temozolomide (TMZ) is the current standard of care therapeutic for GBM. However, 50% of patients develop resistance to TMZ. Therefore, further investigation for new GBM therapeutics is necessary to overcome this issue of drug resistance. GBM patients are known to overexpress lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), which is inversely correlated with their survival. This key glycolytic enzyme catalyzes the interconversion of pyruvate and lactate and plays an important role in cancer proliferation and invasion. Therefore, we aimed to inhibit LDH for developing therapeutics for …

Identification Of Pharmacophore Modifications That Enhance Bmp-Receptor Agonism, An Investigation To Understand The Development Of Potential Therapeutic Interventions, Maleka T. Stewart

Theses and Dissertations

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are the largest subfamily of the Transforming Growth Factor (TGF)-ß superfamily. BMPs are renowned for their pivotal role in cellular functions such as cell growth, apoptosis, and differentiation. Yet, BMPs have also been attributed to the maintenance of adult tissue homeostasis. BMPs elicit physiological function at the cell membrane via a heterotetrameric complex composed of two Type I and two Type II serine-threonine kinase BMP receptors. Activation of BMP transmembrane receptors results in activation of either canonical (Smad-dependent) and/or non-canonical (Smad-independent) signaling. Given the physiological importance of this intricate communication between receptor activation and induction of …

Next-Gen Device For Uniform Cellular Migration Assay Execution, Nicholas M. Bittner

Theses and Dissertations

Cellular migration assays, particularly scratch assays, are pivotal in biomedical research for cell motility, wound healing, and metastasis. However, conventional scratch assays suffer from variability due to operator dependence, non-uniform scratch geometry, and a modified microenvironment that impacts reproducibility. This thesis presents the development and validation of a low-cost, 3D-printed device designed to standardize cellular migration assays. The device utilizes a spring mechanism and a biocompatible elastomer to create a uniform cellular exclusion zone without harming the surrounding cells. Through iterative prototyping and testing with MCF10A cell lines, the device demonstrated a significantly lower average standard deviation of length compared …

Mctr3 Mitigates Cigarette Smoke-Induced Pulmonary Inflammation And Damage, Yu Par Aung Myo

Theses and Dissertations

Smoking is deleterious to our lungs and can precipitate in a multitude of diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD is primarily caused by smoking cigarettes and is a major public health issue. Current therapies only treat symptoms without halting or reversing disease progression, thus highlighting a large unmet need to develop new therapies. We address this gap by investigating maresin conjugate in tissue regeneration 3 (MCTR3) which is a newly discovered specialized pro-resoling mediator (SPM) that has the novel property of promoting tissue repair and regeneration in addition to being anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving. For the first time, we …

Plza Rna Chaperone Activity In Borreliella Burgdorferi Is Modulated By C-Di-Gmp, Dhara T. Patel

Theses and Dissertations

Lyme disease (LD) is the most common arthropod-borne disease in North America and is caused by the spirochete, Borreliella burgdorferi. LD spirochetes are maintained in an enzootic cycle of Ixodes species ticks and a vertebrate reservoir. The secondary messenger molecule c-di-GMP plays a crucial role in adaptive responses during the enzootic cycle. PlzA is the sole c-di-GMP-binding protein identified to date that is encoded by all Borreliella burgdorferi isolates. PlzA has both c-di-GMP-dependent and c-di-GMP-independent functions and is required to complete the enzootic cycle. The full range of PlzA regulatory activities has yet to be fully defined. We determined …

Tate Speech: Radicalizing Rhetoric And Multi-Level Marketing Recruitment Strategies In The Manosphere, Carey J. Priebe

Theses and Dissertations

My study aims to uncover the discursive elements behind the gendered recruitment strategies that influencers in the manosphere use to pipeline men and boys into their multi-level marketing (MLM) companies. In the manosphere, male supremacy is presented as desirable and subversive, and MLMs take advantage of emotional and economic instability. My study examines the Twitter (X) account of the popular manosphere influencer Andrew Tate as I trace his rhetoric along a three-pronged gendered recruitment framework, a framework originally developed around women selling essential oils online and funneling their followers into radical alt-right politics. What are the similarities and differences in …

Examining Multiple Stakeholder Perspectives On The Acceptability Of Pain-Mitigation As A Tool To Manage Needle Fear, Sarah C M Morton

Theses and Dissertations

Needle fear affects up to 63% of the global adult population and is associated with significant fear-based medical care avoidance (e.g., blood donation refusal, vaccine hesitancy, insulin injection adherence). Current behavioral treatments have low acceptance in this population, and often fail to address the experience of pain associated with needle procedures. Despite the existence of evidence-based pain-mitigation for needle procedures, these interventions are not commonly used in clinical settings. The current study used qualitative methods to examine patient and provider perceptions of: 1) current methods of needle fear management, and 2) the acceptability of pain-mitigation as an effective tool to …

Just Give Me A Reason: Developing A Scale To Explore The Drive For Seeking Provocation, Sydney R. Kavanaugh

Theses and Dissertations

Provocation seeking (PS) is defined as the deliberate choice an individual makes to enter into a situation wherein other people are likely to provoke (e.g., threaten, insult) them towards some type of dispute. Rooted in the broader framework of situation selection, which describes how individuals choose environments that align with their goals and emotional states, PS specifically captures the tendency to seek out contexts likely for conflict. The present studies represent an initial step in investigating the novel concept of PS by identifying commonly endorsed PS behaviors and developing a measure to assess them. Given the lack of existing research …

In Praise Of Dust, Hasler Gomez-Perez

Theses and Dissertations

A desire path is a physical manifestation of where a system has failed, but also where it has been refused, where a new path has been made. The wake exists in the post, it is not a singular, untethered event, but a subtle double entendre that lives in the post-death, but also in the pre-life—not a liminal limbo, but a superposition of dying and waking.

This collection was assembled and composed over the course of two years as I navigated my practice, myself, and others. Present here are my thoughts, my experiences, and in many ways my beliefs. IN PRAISE …

How To Remain A Stranger / Encountering, In A Basement, Hannah Rotwein

Theses and Dissertations

How to Remain a Stranger / Encountering, in a Basement consists of two parallel essays. On the lefthand side of the page, How to Remain a Stranger explores the ways that the legend of the Wandering Jew, the Tradescantia genus of plants, peddlers, and exile relate to my practice of collecting, sorting, and combining found objects. On the righthand side, Encountering, in a Basement describes my thesis exhibition at the Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University. Focusing on the idea of the encounter, I detail the materials, considerations, and processes behind four of the ten sculptures in the …