Digital Commons Network^™

A Student-Centered Model For Ethically Evaluating Ai Integration In Learning Support Services And Beyond, Cristina Caputo, Raymond Bruels Iii, Alexis Rivera

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes higher education, learning support centers are uniquely positioned to intentionally assess whether if and how to best integrate AI tools into academic services. This session presents a 6-week project framework that was designed to:

• Review the literature on critical AI literacy and training

• Benchmark current best practices in AI policy, use, and integration alongside human-centered academic services

• Examine student AI knowledge and use (needs assessment)

• Identify and evaluate relevant AI tools or platforms

The framework was developed within the Academic Success Center (ASC) at Nevada State University where Center peer educators …

Teaching In The Ai Era: Studying Faculty Course Redesign, Visible Thinking, And Sustainable Implementation, Sierra Adare-Tasiwoopa Api

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

How can faculty development move beyond generic AI guidance toward redesigns that make student thinking visible, clarify AI expectations, and remain feasible for teaching-intensive institutions? This presentation shares the design and emerging findings from Nevada State University’s AI & Accessibility Academy study, which follows faculty from a summer course redesign academy into fall implementation. The study examines changes in faculty self-efficacy around AI-era pedagogy and accessibility, the redesign practices faculty implement, how course artifacts reflect process-focused assessment and accessible design, and what factors support or constrain sustained implementation.

The session describes the study’s mixed-methods design, including faculty pre/post/follow-up surveys, artifact …

Building Bots That Teach Thinking: Using Custom Ai Chatbots To Enhance Critical Thinking And Decision-Making, Megan Biagi

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

Generative AI is increasingly common in education, but its effect on student learning depends largely on how it is used. This interactive session will introduce practical strategies for creating custom AI chatbots that encourage students to think through problems rather than simply ask for answers. Participants will explore ways to design bots that ask learners to explain their reasoning, consider alternative perspectives, identify assumptions, and revise their thinking before receiving feedback.   Examples from healthcare education and other disciplines will show how these tools can support guided inquiry, reflective questioning, clinical reasoning, and decision-making. Participants will review and revise sample chatbot …

Testing Personalization In Llm-Based Mental Health Support: A Proposed Experimental Design For College Students, Tchalim P. Agninoube, Greg Williams

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

Rising student mental health demand has outpaced campus counseling capacity. This paper proposes a 2x2 between-subjects experimental design to test whether a personalized LLM-based chatbot, grounded in just-in-time adaptive intervention principles and cognitive load theory, provides better short-term anxiety reduction than a standard chatbot across stress and neutral contexts. The personalized chatbot uses wearable stress data, sleep quality, self-reported overwhelm, and support preferences to select between low-load and elaborative support paths. The design contributes a practical framework for evaluating personalization in AI-driven mental health tools and informs scalable, responsible institutional deployment.

Bridging Awareness And Action: A Multilevel Model Of Organizational Learning, Safety Climate, And Sickle Cell Trait Safety Compliance, Kimberly Snowden

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

Despite the existence of NCAA and National Athletic Trainers’ Association guidelines, preventable sickle cell trait (SCT)-related adverse events continue to occur in athletic settings. This study examines how organizational learning capacity, safety climate, leadership commitment, and individual risk perception influence compliance with SCT safety protocols and related safety outcomes. Drawing on Organizational Learning Theory, Safety Climate Theory, and the Health Belief Model, the study proposes a multilevel framework tested through an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design. Findings are expected to identify organizational predictors of compliance and provide practical recommendations to strengthen SCT safety implementation and reduce preventable athlete harm.

The Paradoxes Of Mental Health Disclosure In The Workplace: What Employee Voices Reveal About Courage And Organizational Culture, Steve G. Winkel D.B.A.

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

The lived experience of mental health disclosure is deeply paradoxical. Drawing on thematic analysis of qualitative data from 572 U.S. employees with diagnosed mental health conditions — 282 of whom disclosed to a manager or HR professional — this paper presents three central paradoxes: (1) disclosure normalizes experience but does not neutralize vulnerability; (2) the same conversation produces both safety and stigma; and (3) disclosure requires courage, revealing the inadequacy of existing organizational norms. A constructivist grounded theory approach guided the inquiry. Theoretical implications for stigma management theory (Goffman, 1963) and psychological safety research (Edmondson, 1999) and practical implications for …

Money Talks: What Parents Are And Aren’T Teaching Kids About Financial Literacy, Joseph D. Foresi, Robert J. Glew

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

Financial literacy among young adults remains low despite the family's central role in early financial socialization. This study examines the relationship between parental financial socialization and children's financial literacy, extending the LeBaron-Black et al. (2022) parent financial socialization survey to incorporate cornerstone financial literacy concepts including budgeting, saving, borrowing, and investing (Redmund, 2010). Survey results reveal that while many parents introduce their children to basic financial concepts, they systematically fall short of teaching the foundational literacy skills associated with long-term financial well-being.

Ai Readiness Of Operations & Finance Professionals In A Large Urban Public School District Amidst Ai-Driven Digital Transformation, Adetunji Onamade

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

This qualitative study examined AI readiness among Operations and Finance professionals in a large urban public school district, a public-sector workforce underexamined in the AI adoption literature. Using a grounded theory approach, data from 24 interviews and three focus groups (37 participants) produced 164 codes across 12 themes. Findings converge on a single proposition: AI readiness in this District is an organizational infrastructure problem, not a technology problem. Two theoretical contributions emerged: the Organizational AI Readiness Infrastructure Framework, a three-level diagnostic model, and the AI Readiness Conditions Model, a five-stage prescriptive sequence from governance through systemic transformation.

Internship Factors That Affect Job Pursuit Intention In Nonmetropolitan Areas, Alex R. Henkel

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

Demographic trends show an outmigration of young adults from areas outside metropolitan areas, leaving employers and colleges looking for ways to reduce or reverse the trends. This mixed methods explanatory sequential study seeks to explain how internships relate to college graduates’ post-graduation plans via a study population of approximately 630 college seniors in a nonmetropolitan regional college. The study will survey students via two waves followed by in-person interviews using an integrated model combining Job Embeddedness Theory and Job Characteristics Model in a novel application that may suggest new approaches for internship programs to retain young people in nonmetropolitan areas.

Leadership Adaptation In Persistent Turbulence: An Empirical Model Of Sensemaking, Sensegiving, Preparedness, And Human Capacity, Daragh King

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

Leaders increasingly operate within environments characterized by uncertainty, disruption, ambiguity, and accelerating technological change. This research study investigated how experienced leaders adapt to persistent turbulent environments and identified the practices that support effective leadership under such conditions. An interpretivist qualitative research design was employed, drawing upon semi-structured interviews with eighteen senior leaders from diverse organizational contexts. The findings revealed five interconnected leadership practices: iterative sensemaking, sensegiving as mobilization, adaptive authority modulation, preparedness as enacted routine, and human-capacity regulation. Participants described turbulence not as an episodic event but as a continuous operating condition requiring ongoing adaptation. The study proposes an empirical …

Microbusiness Owner-Managers And Financial Planning: A Transtheoretical Model Of Behaviour Change Approach, Christopher L. Gorman

Annual DBA Scholars Conference

The practitioner-scholar proposes a cross-sectional study to investigate how microbusiness owner-managers adopt financial planning behaviour through the lens of the Transtheoretical Model of Behaviour Change (TTM). The study will examine the TTM’s stages of change and the factors that influence these owner-managers’ decisions to engage in financial planning. By applying a behaviour change framework to an underexplored area of financial planning research, the study will aim to identify barriers and opportunities to microbusiness owners’ adoption of financial planning. The findings will inform strategies CFP^® professionals can use to enhance client engagement, communication, and decision-making among microbusiness owner-managers.

Becoming Anything: Stem Cells And The Power Of Analogy, Sarah O’Leary-Driscoll, Dr. Jessica Amacher, Academics

Professional Learning Day

How does a single cell become a heart, a neuron, or skin? In this session, we will explore stem cells and cell differentiation through analogy-based modeling. No prior knowledge necessary! Participants will work through a hands-on analogy that makes gene expression familiar and concrete. Then we will discuss other examples, and consider what makes analogies effective and where they break down. Come to learn the fascinating science of how we each develop; leave with a powerful teaching strategy you can use in any discipline.

Beyond Adoption: Shared Values And Guiding Questions For Ai-Aware Teaching, Sarah Cummings, Lyndsay Munro

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

We will discuss how shared questions can provide coherence without requiring uniform practice across disciplines, courses, or instructors. Examples from faculty across disciplines demonstrate how educators can begin with common values while reaching different, contextually appropriate decisions. By shifting attention from finding the single “right” approach to AI toward asking shared questions about teaching and learning, the framework offers a practical way forward amid varied practices, perspectives, and policies.

Ai Across The Curriculum: Early Insights From Unr Students And Faculty, Elisabeth Linn, Elena S. Azadbakht, Rosalind Bucy

AI in the Classroom: A Virtual Summit

In July 2025, the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) joined librarians, educators, and administrators across 15-20 institutions to participate in an Ithaka S+R AI cohort. Ithaka S+R has worked with academic libraries, teaching and learning centers, and college administrators across more than 60 institutions, leading cohorts focused on teaching and learning with AI, integrating AI literacy into the curriculum, and more. This third cohort focused on defining, implementing, and scaling AI literacy initiatives across higher education. Through interviews with faculty and students, cohorts investigate needs surrounding AI literacy specific to their campus. This presentation will describe the preliminary results of …

Unpaid Academic Internship Award- Avance, Sebin Chirayil

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

Sebin is currently interning at Avance Counseling, located in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago. Avance provides therapeutic services for individuals primarily referred through the court system or DCFS, including domestic violence, substance abuse treatment, anger management interventions, parenting coaching, and individualized mental-health counseling. In this role, Sebin assists counselors with case management services, intake interviews, mental health evaluations, and integrated summaries. He also shadows various group counseling sessions. Through this experience, Sebin is deepening his understanding of evidence-based therapeutic approaches and how they can be applied to support the long term recoveries of individuals.

Going Organic: Capturing The Patient Voice To Inform Patient-Driven Interventions And Outcomes, Wendy R. Trueblood Miller

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

This presentation describes a novel approach for embedding the organic patient voice into intervention design through analysis of patient-generated data. By leveraging social media and other naturally occurring narratives, this method captures patient identified concerns authentically, revealing priorities often missed by traditional approaches. Examples from epilepsy and other chronic conditions demonstrate how this work informs scalable, patient driven self management tools and outcomes.

Theory Generation And Research: The International Impact On Families’ And Nurses’ Mental Health, Karen J. Foli

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

This special session will focus on Dr. Karen J. Foli’s two decades of research, based on her mental health-focused nursing theories. A brief overview of her theories, the middle-range theory of parental postadoption depression and the middle-range theory of nurses’ psychological trauma, will be offered. Select studies from her research trajectories as well as the link between theory and empirical studies will be emphasized. Last, the international impact of her work will be illustrated.

Mothers And Infants In Multiple Pregnancy And Birth, Li-Yin Chien

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Background: ART-driven multiple births create unique health challenges.

Purpose: This research examines family trajectories, focusing on offspring health and maternal well-being.

Methods: Mixed-methods using national databases and a longitudinal maternal study.

Results: Multiples face higher risks of heart defects and cancer. Maternal depression peaks postpartum, driven by stress and declining support.

Conclusion: Specialized care and SET promotion are vital for family outcomes.

Accelerating Nursing Science With Ai: Promise, Risk, And The Path Forward, Maxim Topaz

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

AI is transforming nursing at unprecedented speed, but our institutions lack safeguards to match. This Hall of Fame address presents five projects spanning bibliometric analysis, living systematic reviews, multimodal clinical AI, fabricated citation detection, and clinical deskilling. Actionable frameworks for preserving clinical competence are presented.

Hospital Falls In Hybrid Virtual Nursing Models: A Need For Future Health Outcomes Research, Lindsay E. Colby

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Background and Purpose: Hospital falls are a global health concern with adverse implications for patients’ health-related quality of life. As a nurse-sensitive indicator, hospital falls reflect the quality and safety of the healthcare system. Hybrid virtual nursing, an emerging care delivery model, utilizes digital telehealth technologies and combines in-person nursing care with remote care. There is a dearth of literature related to the impact of hybrid virtual nursing on hospital falls.

The purpose of this poster is to: explore health outcomes measures and data sources related to hospital falls; review literature related to hospital falls in hybrid virtual nursing models. …

Preliminary Study Of Moral Distress Among York College Nursing Students, Nikea S. Debidin, Andrey Aminov

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Moral Distress can occur when individuals are unable to act in accordance with their moral or ethical belief, this can be due to either internal or external constraints. While moral distress has been widely examined in among practicing nurses, limited research has explored the presence among undergraduate nursing students. The purpose of this study was to examine the level of distress and frequency of moral distress at a preliminary level, among undergraduate nursing students enrolled in a baccalaureate nursing program at York College in Queens, New York.
A quantitative descriptive design was adopted. Undergraduate nursing students (n=47) completed an anonymous …

Cultural Humility, Cultural Intelligence, Colorblindness, And Social Justice In Nursing Faculty, Marta I. Santiago-Jones

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

This study examined relationships among cultural humility, cultural intelligence, colorblind racial attitudes, and social justice attitudes among U.S. nursing faculty. Grounded in emancipatory knowing and emancipatory nursing praxis [1,6], the purpose was to explore how faculty cultural competencies and racial attitudes relate to social justice orientation in nursing education, particularly amid health inequities and scrutiny of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

A quantitative, correlational design was used with 54 nursing faculty. Data were collected via an anonymous online survey and analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlations, and multiple regression. Validated instruments measured cultural humility [3], cultural intelligence [2], colorblind racial attitudes …

Rompiendo Fronteras: Addressing Language Barriers In Hispanic Palliative Cancer Care, Carla Mcnulty, Catherine Finlayson

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Background: Cancer is the leading cause of death among Hispanic people, accounting for 20% of deaths (American Cancer Society, 2023). In 2024, the American Cancer Society predicted that 195,300 Hispanics would be diagnosed with cancer in the United States, and 50,400 (25%) would die from their disease, leaving approximately 144,900 (75%) living with cancer. As the Hispanic population rises in the United States, one can predict that cancer diagnoses will also increase. This is likely to result in a higher number of cancer-related deaths, as well as more individuals living with cancer. Consequently, there will be an increased demand for …

Improving Identification Of Older Adult Financial Exploitation Using The Oafem Screening Tool, Paige N. Horvath, J’Andra Antisdel, Lori J. Pajakowski

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Older adult financial exploitation is a growing public health concern that frequently goes unrecognized in healthcare settings. Financial exploitation can result in significant financial loss, psychological distress, and decreased quality of life for vulnerable older adults. Primary care settings represent an important opportunity for early detection; however, routine screening for financial exploitation is rarely incorporated into standard patient assessments. The purpose of this evidence-based practice project is to evaluate whether implementation of the Older Adult Financial Exploitation Measure (OAFEM) screening tool increases identification of older adults at risk for financial exploitation in a community-based primary care clinic. The guiding PICOT …

Dnp Student Implementation Of Pc4 Model In A Pregnancy Resource Center To Improve Quality Of Care, Priscilla A. Outlaw

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Pregnancy resource centers (PRCs) play a critical role in supporting women from underserved communities but often struggle to consistently meet clients’ emotional, cultural, and psychological needs. The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project was to evaluate the impact of implementing the Person-Centered Care and Communication Continuum (PC4) Model—an evidence-based framework designed to enhance respect, communication, and individualized attention in maternal healthcare—on client satisfaction and service engagement at a local PRC.

Guided by Watson’s Theory of Human Caring, this mixed-methods quality-improvement project assessed antenatal client satisfaction and service delivery before and after PC4 implementation. Surveys and structured observations …

Supporting Socialization & Expression In Ltc: A Scoping Review Of Language Barriers & Older Adults, Christina Oleynikov, Amanda Mcintyre

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Communication is central to socialization and the expression of cultural identity [7]. In multilingual societies such as Canada, language barriers can hinder full integration, affecting social participation and overall quality of life [6,7,9]. The proposed study focuses on language barriers faced by minority older adults in long-term care settings. Non-English speaking residents who face barriers in communication and lack the adequate support necessary to overcome them, become vulnerable to impaired meaningful interactions and social isolation [3,11]. This study plans to gather and review existing scientific literature on how these barriers affect older adults and impact their socialization needs. A scoping …

Eating Disorders In Male Athletes, Robbie-Lynn C. Puspoky

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

The purpose of this integrative review was to explore the risk of eating disorders in male athletes aged 15-36 years old in high performance sports. Whittmore and Knalf’s integrative review method was followed to address this research aim. Two databases (Ovid MEDLINE 1946 to present and CINAHL) were searched between the years of 2000 and 2023. Suitability for inclusion was assessed, and data were extracted and analysed using thematic analysis. Twenty-three articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. Three themes were identified and reflect the risk of eating disorders in male athletes in high performance sports between the ages …

Hospital Falls In Hybrid Virtual Nursing Models: A Need For Future Health Outcomes Research, Lindsay E. Colby

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Hospital falls are a global health concern with adverse implications for patients’ health-related quality of life. As a nurse-sensitive indicator, hospital falls reflect the quality and safety of the healthcare system. Hybrid virtual nursing, an emerging care delivery model, utilizes digital telehealth technologies and combines in-person nursing care with remote care. There is a dearth of literature related to the impact of hybrid virtual nursing on hospital falls.

The purpose of this poster is to: explore health outcomes measures and data sources related to hospital falls; review literature related to hospital falls in hybrid virtual nursing models. …

Assessing Bse Knowledge And Practice Among Female Undergraduates In Oyo, Nigeria, Esther Oluwatoyin Famutimi, Phoebe O. Ayandokun

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Background: Breast cancer is a major global health burden and the most common malignancy among women in Nigeria. Early detection through Breast Self-Examination (BSE) remains a cost-effective method for reducing mortality, especially in low-resource settings. Despite high awareness levels, many young women lack adequate knowledge and regular practice of BSE. This study, therefore, assessed the knowledge and practice of BSE among female undergraduate students in two tertiary institutions in Oyo State, Nigeria.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional research design was adopted. The study population comprised female undergraduates from Atiba University and Emmanuel Alayande University of Education, Oyo. A multistage sampling technique …

Social Determinants Of Health: Beliefs About Healthcare As A Right Or A Privilege, Dianne Mcadams-Jones

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Nursing education nationwide has integrated Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) into curricula to prepare future healthcare providers to address inequities and improve outcomes. While understanding SDoH is essential for equitable care, nurses’ own beliefs—shaped by personal experiences and environments—can influence practice behaviors and perpetuate disparities (Egede, Walker & Williams, 2024). This qualitative descriptive pilot study explored perceptions of healthcare as a right or privilege, examining how personal beliefs intersect with SDoH and bad science which ultimately impact healthcare outcomes (Bandura, 1971). Using an unstructured survey distributed via email, 110 responses were received, with 64 healthcare professionals and first responders included …