Digital Commons Network^™

Traffic Studies 101, Laura Slusher

Purdue Road School

This presentation will introduce how to conduct your own traffic studies to save your agency money. We will cover how to collect and use data for volume counts, speed limit studies, sight distance studies, and more.

Pavement Marking Types And Best Choices For Designers, Rick Smith, Brad Henry

Purdue Road School

This presentation will discuss the topics of types of pavement markings, bonding characteristics, long-term investments, and best applications.

Hancock County’S Journey From Planning To Execution, Gary Pool, Ann Sheidler

Purdue Road School

Over the past decade, Hancock County has seen both successes and challenges in funding public projects, including roads, bridges, utilities, a technical school, healthcare, and retail development. Using a variety of capital sources, the county turned plans into real construction efforts that served the public good. This presentation will explore real projects with real financing—highlighting lessons learned, unexpected outcomes, and strategies that can inform and benefit similar efforts in other counties.

From Planning To Reality: Designing Clarksville’S Riverside Drive Project, Nick Batta, Kevin Baity

Purdue Road School

This presentation will highlight key infrastructure improvements along the Ohio River in Clarksville, Indiana. We will discuss projects including the reconstruction of Riverside Drive and the completion of the Ohio River Greenway trail. Attendees will learn about the complex project designs that necessitated the relocating a fabrication facility, working in close proximity to the flood control district’s levee wall, and minimizing impacts to the river’s floodway.

Smarter Projects With Microsoft 365 And Ai, William Fort, Warren Brown

Purdue Road School

This presentation explores how Microsoft 365 apps—SharePoint, Teams, Planner, and AI—can transform project management and collaboration. Learn how to centralize project information in SharePoint, streamline communication with Teams, and organize tasks through Planner. Discover how AI enhances insights, automates workflows, and supports smarter decision-making. Attendees will gain practical strategies for improving efficiency, accountability, and teamwork across projects, becoming more effective project managers and collaborators in today’s fast-paced, technology-driven environment.

Day 1 Login And Welcome, Wendy Doucette

Transforming Libraries for Graduate Students

History and highlights of the TLGS (Transforming Libraries for Graduate Students) Conference

Classroom To Corridor: Partnerships Driving Civil Engineering Education, Charlie Kacmar, Victoria Farkas, Benjamin Moster, Reis Walker

Purdue Road School

This presentation will include a discussion panel with Marian University senior civil engineering students, Avenew, and Indianapolis DPW. The discussion will highlight a Marian University senior capstone project partnership that conceptualizes and studies a new gateway corridor for the City of Indianapolis and Marian University. Attendees will learn how this collaborative approach helped students gain hands-on experience and mentorship while delivering momentum towards an impactful community infrastructure project.

100 Years Since “The Great Renumbering”, Crystal Weaver

Purdue Road School

On October 1, 1926, all Indiana State Routes were renumbered to today’s naming convention. To note the centennial of our modern highway numbering system, this presentation will cover the Good Roads movement; the how, what, and why of the standards set by AASHO and the Feds; the logistics of renumbering all of the roads in the state (including cardboard temporary signs); and details about the State Highway budget at the time.

Geosynthetics And The Indot Approval Process, Sam Clawson, Lucas Monroe

Purdue Road School

This presentation will introduce the different kinds of Geosynthetics, INDOT’s Standards for them, and the approval process for getting onto the Qualified Product List (QPL).

Using Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Continuum Modeling To Evaluate Drought Tolerance In The Urban Environment, Md Jahidul Islam, Samantha Hartzell

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Global climate change expansion in the past few years is affecting the urban environment in the Pacific Northwest. The Mediterranean climate, combined with climate change, is making conditions more severe for plant function and ecosystem services through increasing soil moisture limitation. As a result, identifying the changes in plant physiological processes caused by soil moisture limitation is important for conservation and restoration initiatives.

This research uses the Photo3 model to quantify gas exchange, plant water use, and water use efficiency under urban environmental conditions in Portland, Oregon. Meteorological data required for the model simulation were obtained from the weather station …

Ecoroof Runoff Mitigation Comparison By Photosynthetic Pathway In Three Species Of Interest, Harper Thomson, Samantha Hartzell

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Stormwater management is critical as urban areas expand and impervious surfaces cover more area. Ecoroofs are increasingly deployed to attenuate roof runoff (mean reduction 33–42% in Portland studies) and peak flows (up to 88% in Portland studies). However, few studies have compared plant functional types, or more specifically photosynthetic pathways in ecoroof hydrologic performance, especially as it relates to seasonal rainfall variability. While sedum (a Crassulacean Acid Metabolism or CAM species) is popular for its drought resilience, its nocturnal stomatal opening behavior may limit evapotranspiration driven water loss compared to C3 or C4 photosynthetic species. In this study, nine modular …

What Is The Value Of A State? Accounting For The Ecosystem Service And Natural Capital Values Of Oregon, Kathryn T. Liebrecht, Sahan Dissanayake, Luis Ruedas

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Ecosystem services are vital to human welfare, but often overlooked in planning and policy. By neglecting to incorporate the benefits received from natural resources, policy makers may unknowingly make decisions that harm the long-term sustainability and use of these services. We used the Institute for Natural Resources’ Oregon statewide habitat map and the Ecosystem Services Valuation Database (ESVD), and value transfer methodology to calculate a range of ecosystem service values for each Oregon ecosystem and its services. We provide an estimate of the total value of Oregon’s natural capital, by county and by ecosystem. We find a total median value …

Latex: Overleaf, Anette Moreno-Lozano Phd, John Connolly Phd

Day Family Research Lab Workshop Series

This workshop introduces participants to LaTeX for scientific writing. Attendees will learn to create and compile documents in Overleaf, insert and format equations, figures, tables, and references, use collaboration and version control tools, and find discipline-specific resources and templates.

The Impact Of Relative Humidity And Soil Moisture On Foliar Water Uptake For Urban Tree Planning, Rory Price, Samantha Hartzell, Sybil Gotsch Dr., Lauren Lowman Dr.

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Foliar water uptake (FWU), uptake of water into plant leaves, occurs through several pathways during fog events. Interactions between FWU and environmental conditions must be understood to predict plant survivability in water-stressed environments, such as street tree planting, and create accurate projections of water and carbon budgets as fog regimes change. Rates of FWU are assessed assuming that water vapor can be taken up through the leaves by entering the substomatal cavity and leaf cuticle, after which it condenses and is absorbed.

Results show that FWU is highly sensitive to soil moisture and relative humidity (RH). Soil moisture at or …

Thermal Imaging Drones: A "Cool" Solution To Incorporating Climate Resiliency In Restoration Design, Amy D. Van Riessen

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Coldwater fish species, such as salmonids, are highly sensitive to elevated summer water temperatures. However, they can persist in thermally stressful environments by seeking out cold-water refugia (CWR). CWR can include areas where groundwater seeps and springs introduce cooler water into the stream system. These microhabitats are critical for survival during peak temperature periods.

To enhance climate resiliency in restoration planning, the North Clackamas Watersheds Council has integrated thermal imaging drone technology to identify cold-water inputs within project areas. By pinpointing these thermal anomalies, restoration designs can strategically incorporate features such as pools and large wood structures near seeps and …

Early Detection Of Agrilus Planipennis Using Environmental Dna, Hannah Ferguson, Blythe Layton, Matt P. Mills

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

As a recent pest to Oregon, Agrilus planipennis (Emerald Ash Borer, EAB) stands to decimate native ash tree stands, as it has throughout Eastern USA. As shown in common garden studies, Oregon Ash is extremely susceptible to EAB with expected mortality rates of 99% (Herms 2015). EAB infestations are cryptic, and traditional monitoring relies on advanced infestations and costly tree girdling and bark peeling, resulting in appropriate responses lagging the leading edge of the infestation. Environmental DNA (eDNA), the practice of collecting and identifying traces of DNA left in an environmental sample, is a promising tool for early infestation detection …

Planning For Potential Change: Climate Vulnerability Of Commonly Planted Restoration Species In The Willamette Valley Ecoregion, Jess Nettle Shamek

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Climate change in the Willamette Valley ecoregion of western Oregon is expected to have a complex impact on native plant species. These potential changes could pose significant challenges for ecological restoration and highlight the need for evidence-based tools to identify species most vulnerable to future climate conditions. Rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, changing hydrologic and disturbance regimes, and increasing pressure from pests and pathogens are likely to have wide ranging impacts on our commonly planted restoration species. Understanding species-specific vulnerability to projected climate change is necessary for helping restoration practitioners allocate resources effectively and design management strategies for species and …

Using Passive Camera Monitoring To Investigate Northern Red-Legged Frog Use Of A New Road Undercrossing Structure, Alyson W. Yates, Catherine De Rivera, Susan Barnes, Rachel Wheat, Justine Brumm

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

Northern Red-legged Frogs (Rana aurora) make seasonal movements between lentic waters and adjacent upland forests to meet their life history requirements. This movement behavior makes the species particularly vulnerable to landscape fragmentation by roads, where traffic can cause large mortality events during the breeding period. To mitigate R. aurora mortality on U.S. Route 30 near Burlington, Oregon, an under-road wildlife crossing structure was installed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and other partners in late 2024, reconnecting a forested public recreation area with protected wetland habitat in the floodplain of the Willamette River.

We used two specialized optical …

Exploring The Genetic Origins Of Pacific Salmon And Steelhead Trout That Use The Habitats Of The Willamette River And Its Tributary Streams In The City Of Portland, Oregon., Melissa Brown

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

The lower Willamette River is Endangered Species Act (ESA)-designated critical habitat for five listed salmon and trout populations in the Columbia River basin. These five genetic stocks of fish comprise the majority of salmon and trout identified using habitat in the region that extends into the City of Portland.

It is well understood that migratory fish from other watersheds throughout the Columbia Basin may use habitat found in Portland. It is unclear where those fish originate, whether in Portland or in other watersheds outside the city, without genetic analysis. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the federal agency tasked with …

Proceedings Of The 24th Annual Urban Ecology & Conservation Symposium March 16, 2026, Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium Of Portland/Vancouver

Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver

These proceedings document the agenda and abstracts for presentations and posters from the 24th annual conference organized by the Urban Ecosystem Research Consortium of Portland/Vancouver (UERC) which occurred on March 16, 2026. The UERC is a consortium of people from various universities and colleges, state and federal agencies, local governments, non-profit organizations and independent professionals interested in supporting urban ecosystem research and creating an information-sharing network of people that collect and use ecological data in the Portland/Vancouver area. The annual conference has an open call for abstracts. The UERC organizing committee selects the final oral and poster presentations, along with …

1. Utilizing Virtual Rns To Decrease Length Of Stay On An Acute Care Unit, Sarah Culbert, Lillian Embree

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

3. Skin To Skin Holding To Reduce Neonatal Hypoglycemia, Merebea Danforth

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

5. Driving Participation: Increasing Nurse Participation In Committees Using An Evidence-Based Practice Approach., Kara Reposa, Dana Orvis

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

4. Impacting Nurse Leader Satisfaction And Retention Through Standardized Support And Education., Rebecca Hawkins

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

2. Impact Of Gum Chewing On Postoperative Ileus Following Open Heart Surgery, Jacinta Smith

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

Professional Quality Of Life Among Medical Surgical And Telemetry Registered Nurses, William Lim, Emy-Lee Marie Anglo Ricafrente, Jenny Carrillo

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

Guiding Growth: A Mentorship Initiative For Unit-Based Councils, Annika Daphne Bilog

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

The Lived Experience Of New Nurses In A Medical-Surgical/Telemetry Float Pool Residency, Tanya Hartley, Martha E F Highfield

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

Clinical Innovation -- Program Evaluation Of "Fall In Love With Nursing Research" Outreach, Andrea Contreras, Tanya Haight, Gloria Perea

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.

3. Impact Of Co-Caring Model On Cargivers' Perceptions Of Stress, Burnout, And The Caregiver Experience, Rosemary Timmerman, Cara Gallegos

Providence Nursing Research Conference 2023 – Present

No abstract provided.