Digital Commons Network^™

Changing Minds: Measuring The Impact Of A Student-Led Club To Reduce Mental Health Stigma Among Teenagers, Jennifer Anolin

Master's Projects and Capstones

Introduction: Stigma is a major barrier for teenagers to access mental health services. Additional barriers include low health literacy, and demographic factors, such as gender, socioeconomic status, and race/ethnicity. Studies show that successful solutions to decreasing stigma involve interventions inside of schools. The purpose of this project was to measure impact of the Bring Change 2 Mind (BC2M) program and recommend program improvement needs.

Methods: Four survey instruments were used to evaluate BC2M’s student-led club program and to determine the club’s impact on reducing stigma at each participating high school. Each survey consisted of both qualitative and quantitative questions fielded …

Parental Influence On Sedentary Behavior In Children: A Systematic Review, Kaitlyn Albrecht Bsn, Rn, Neil Peterson Phd, Rn, Np-C, Agacnp-Bc, Jane Lassetter Phd, Rn

Student Works

The purpose of this systematic review is to appraise and synthesize the evidence regarding parental influences on sedentary behavior (SB) in children and explore associations promoting parent-based interventions. Prominent research in the last decade has established SB as a health risk, but to our knowledge, no systematic reviews observing parent to child SB associations have been conducted. Inclusion criteria required publication in the English language, utilization of objective measures for SB evaluation, and samples that included the 11 to 17 year age range, thus yielding a total of 15 identified studies. PRISMA guidelines were used to lead the search methodology …

Ny State Marijuana Law Clears The Records Of Thousands, But Will It Help Immigrants?, Jaime Longoria, Harsha Nahata

Capstones

In July 2019, Governor Cuomo signed legislation that would clear criminal records for over 200,000 people with marijuana related convictions and reduce punishment for possession. But, there’s one group of New Yorkers who are left out — and that’s immigrants. With over 4 million immigrants in New York State, the lives of those with prior marijuana convictions are still in limbo. Harsha Nahata and Jaime Longoria spoke with immigrants and advocates to find out why. The full story can be found here: https://jaimelongoria.github.io/nys-marijuana-law/

Inequity And Resistance: Latinx Students And The College Readiness Process, Israel Velez

Doctoral Dissertations

This qualitative study used Youth Participatory Action Research and Community Cultural Wealth Framework (Yosso, 2005) to understand how Vamos a La Universidad (VALU), a high school bilingual college preparation program, impacts first-generation Latinx ninth grade students’ community cultural wealth and understanding about college. This study expands our understanding of how Latinx students interpret the college preparation process after participating in a college preparation program and emphasizes the importance of students’ cultural background and social contacts in their college readiness process. This study proposes new initiatives to add to Latinx students’ college learning process and increase the students’ interest in continuing …

Virtual Reality As A Pedagogical Tool For Interdisciplinarity And Place-Based Education, Laureen Park

Publications and Research

Place-based education (PBE) has long been recognized as a high-impact educational practice. It embeds learning in a multi-sensory context that nurtures active, praxis-driven, interdisciplinary, and collaborative learning. More recently, educators have begun to utilize digital media and virtual reality technologies in ways that seem to parallel PBE. Using phenomenological concepts, especially following Edmund Husserl and Alfred Schütz, this chapter explores what the parallels and differences might be between physical and virtual places, ontologically as well as in its pedagogical role in PBE. It also attempts to interpret the other chapters of the book in light of the philosophical implications.

A Survey Of Single-Use Plastic Foodware Ordinances Of The San Francisco Bay Region, Christopher Slafter

Master's Projects and Capstones

Municipal jurisdictions in the San Francisco Bay Region (SFBR) are passing comprehensive single-use plastic (SUP) foodware ordinances in response to growing public pressure, and a California mandate to achieve zero waste. SUP foodware items have become an issue of concern because they are readily available in the restaurant industry, and are regularly among the top-ten pollutants collected during beach cleanups. SUP foodware items pose a danger to marine wildlife and contribute to rising carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. Policy makers in the SFBR are creating local ordinances that regulate the distribution and use of a variety of SUP foodware …

Beyond The Elevators: How The New York City Subway System Can Better Serve Blind, Deaf And Cognitively Disabled People, Ethan B. Stark-Miller

Capstones

Many blind and visually impaired, deaf and cognitively disabled New Yorkers face challenges when using the subway. A large portion of the system is still missing key accessibility features that would make the subway usable for these groups. And while this problem is on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) radar – the MTA has launched a pilot program to address it – the agency still has no clear plan or timeline for quickly expanding these features to the entire system. Link to full project: https://medium.com/@tough_coquelicot_muskrat_287/beyond-the-elevators-132c31e3ef48

They Dance To Bring Attention To A War. But Who’S Watching?, Fruhlein Chrys Econar

Capstones

Potri Ranka Manis Queano has been at the helm of Kinding Sindaw, the heritage dance troupe she founded, for the last 27 years. When a group of ISIS-affiliated local terrorists attacked Marawi City, the home of the Maranao people, it infused a sense of urgency into her group’s work.

http://www.fruhlein.com/kindingsindaw

Locked Out: Thanks To State Policies, Minorities Are Being Left Behind By The Cannabis Industry, Nikitha Sattiraju, Evelina Nedlund

Capstones

Locked Out: Thanks to State Policies, Minorities Are Being Left Behind by the Cannabis Industry

Social justice provisions in states with legal cannabis usually include a percentage of business licenses for minorities and expungements for those formerly incarcerated for cannabis possession so they can participate in the industry. But that isn’t enough for minority communities to successfully start cannabis businesses. Expensive start-up and operation costs, competition from corporate cannabis, lack of banking services for the industry, and fear stemming from decades of over-policing for cannabis use continue to be major roadblocks.

Cannabis legislation across the country is failing to address …

Maternidad, Denise Cervantes

Capstones

It was a hot summer day in 1985 when my mother, Ada Reyes, left El Salvador and crossed the border into the United States. Behind her, she left her one-year-old son and a war-stricken country. I sat down with her and she told me the story of how she built a life in the United States and raised my brother and me alone as a single mother.

Link: https://denisecervantes.com/capstone

From Muhammed To The Jobup: Engaging Malemployed Immigrants Through Journalism, Tiziana Rinaldi

Capstones

I focused my graduate work on the local community of malemployed immigrants. They are foreign-educated newcomers — medical doctors, pharmacists, teachers, lawyers and engineers, to name a few of their professions — who lack the resources to find skill- appropriate work in the U.S. They end up either unemployed or working at "jobs for which they’re overqualified or overeducated or both,” I wrote for NJSpotlight in 20171.

Using the social journalism method2 of engaging members of a chosen group to fill important if not crucial information gaps, I developed The JobUp, a series of free, offline educational events, as my …

Promesa, Puerto Rico’S Recipe For Disaster, Cristina M. Corujo Oruña

Capstones

PROMESA was signed with the purpose of helping the island’s economy recover from its crippling indebtedness. But three years later, the law has caused financial and social instability. Although, PROMESA grants Puerto Rico the right to file for bankruptcy, the effects of the law are worsening the island’s situation. Austerity measures, high costs, migration and a deeper economic recession are drowning the island.

Link to Capstone: https://medium.com/@cristina.oruna/promesa-puerto-ricos-recipe-for-disaster-1eadde7b6719

Rise, Fall And Renaissance Of Graffiti, Georgina S. Hallowell

Capstones

In a losing battle against street artists, “Make your mark in society, not on society” was the statement written in bold letters on Mayor Ed Koch’s 1982 anti-graffiti campaign. Graffiti writers decided why not? We’ll do both.

New York has witnessed the rise, fall, and renaissance of graffiti culture. There was a time when a “mark” on your property was considered vandalism. Today, those marks are used to drive profit, attract tourists, keep neighborhoods alive and are more than welcome through the doors of museums and galleries around the world. From scribbled tags to murals, graffiti writers have completely changed …

Woodhouse, Bianca M. Rosembert, Mankaprr Conteh, Netsanet Negussie

Capstones

The film WOODHOUSE, in production, profiles Julian Woodhouse, a gay, black, burgeoning fashion designer in New York, before, during and after the chance of a lifetime. In addition to designing, Woodhouse serves in the Army Reserve. His military career is the only aspect of his life that his religious, conservative black parents support. Julian has survived without the approval of his parents, who he says sent him to conversion therapy when he came out. After revealing a dark family secret in the context of this new opportunity in fashion, we’ll see Julian attempt to meaningfully reconnect with his parents for …

Super, Brown And Queer, Carolyn Adams

Capstones

In response to policy seeking to turn back time for marginalized communities, characters and creators - standing at their intersections - are springing into action to change lives in their worlds and ours. Carolyn Adams explores the circumstances surrounding contemporary mainstream representation of women of color and queer superheroes on the big screen and bookshelves alike.

link to capstone: https://www.carolyn-adams.com/writing-updates/capstone

Not Manly Enough: Femmephobia’S Stinging Impact On The Transmasculine Community, Tat Bellamy - Walker

Capstones

My capstone project is about femmephobia in the transmasculine community. In interviews with at least six trans men and non-binary people, they explained the struggles they faced accessing health care and the discrimination they faced within their families for having a femme gender presentation. In the story, I speak to Rhea Hoskin, one of the leading researchers on femmephobia in Canada who details why this issue is harmful to the transmasculine community. Additionally, the director of the National Center for Transgender Equality talks about how femmephobia can rear its head and contribute to suicidality and depression in the transmasculine community. …

Wanda And Me: The Continuous Rise Of Puerto Rico's Greatest Pyramid Schemer, Natalia Rodriguez Medina

Capstones

Wanda Rolón is Puerto Rico's most prolific pastor. Her megachurch seats more than 4,000 people. She has ties to the government. She owns several radio and TV stations, and has reached millions. Follow the reporter as she visits Rolón's church, and discovers Wanda's modus operandi, and a bit of herself in this longform narrative.

https://medium.com/@nataliarodrguezmedina/wanda-and-me-the-continuous-rise-of-puerto-ricos-greatest-pyramid-schemer-f2d4ab9e8b5c

W()Men, Natalia M. Keogan

Capstones

W()MEN is a short documentary that examines the horror movie genre and the way that it focuses on women’s bodies. It integrates talking head interviews, clips from over 50 horror films, and narration in order to critically examine how women’s bodies have been portrayed as monstrous within the genre.

nataliakeogan.com/thesis-film

An Approach To Increase Education In The Flu Vaccination Clinic Process, Koki Guangxi Inlow, Lucy Dale, Devante Lindsey, Nancy Tran Manalo, Elena Teresa Cleary

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Health Ministries Program, located in Orange County, is supported by a large faith-based community hospital and provides community resources such as flu vaccinations that are overseen by the Faith Community Nurse (FCN). In collaboration with the program, University of San Francisco (USF) nursing students researched and developed an implementation of a multi-purpose educational flyer to increase education and better streamline the process at flu vaccination clinics throughout Orange County faith-based organizations. Research shows that many individuals still do not get vaccinated due to misconceptions, misinformation, and lack of knowledge on the importance of flu vaccinations. The cost of flu-related …

Modeling Indoor Environment With Kinect, Lianrui Xu, Jinming Zhang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To solve the problems of point cloud noise, depth data mismatching and local details prone to hollowing in the process of Kinect camera reconstruction of indoor three-dimensional environment. By improving the assignment method of depth image pixel and the threshold relationship of time frame matching, this paper denoises the point cloud with optimizing mean filtering and time frame weighting methods. Combined with recent iteration algorithm (Iterative Closest Point, ICP) to complete the adjacent point cloud splicing so that it can achieve completely indoor model to build 3D environment. To test the validity of the algorithm, the experiment of …

Someday We'll Look Back On This And Laugh, Ben Masten

Capstones

The People's Improv Theater was an oasis for young New York comedians. Its own success-- and a volatile owner-- changed that. Project contains a narrative journalism piece and an an audio documentary.

Full Project here: https://medium.com/@benmasten/someday-well-look-back-on-this-and-laugh-e6b1dc8468db

Whatever Happened To The Movie Theme Song?, Luka Vasic

Capstones

Film music is as important as it’s ever been and a good theme song can absorb you into the world of a movie. Despite this, our idea of the theme song has changed a lot, and the kinds of themes that have traditionally been memorable parts of classic cinema have now lost their importance and role in modern filmmaking.

http://lukavasic.com/capstone/

The Rockaway Project - Townes, Diara Jepris D. Townes

Capstones

The Rockaway Project is a story-driven website that provides information on the government response to Superstorm Sandy recovery on the Rockaway peninsula in Queens, New York. Dozens of climate resiliency projects have been delayed or remain unfinished, despite millions of dollars in funding and six years of promises. The website hosts audio, visual and digital content, gathered through interviews and data collection.

Link to capstone project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAq2BeR4bS0&t=1s

The Miss America Pageant Should Restore Prioritizing The Evening Gown Segment, Keishel Williams

Capstones

Evening gown in pageants, as in society, has always represented a woman's way of expressing her personality and femininity through fashion. Miss America's attempt to stop requiring evening gowns implies that wearing formal gowns does not equate to being a modern, empowered woman.

Instead of attempting to erase the evening gown as an outdated part of a modern woman’s wardrobe, the Miss America pageant should restore the original gown segment and use this opportunity to reshape America’s perspective on how modern women can choose to wear gowns and still be empowered.

https://keishelawilliams.wordpress.com/

Using Engagement Journalism To Serve The Needs Of Caregivers Of People With Autism, Ariam Alula

Capstones

I’m Ariam. I worked with a diverse group of families who are intimately impacted by the autism spectrum disorder and other disabilities through caring for a loved one with the diagnosis. During the program, I used my journalism education, advocacy work, and interpersonal skills to support the emotional and informational needs of the community. The majority of the caretakers I engaged over the duration of the program reside in the Bronx, my home borough. I chose to focus on the lived experiences of people in this community because they represent my own. I have an older brother on the spectrum …

The Battle For Bushwick, And Beyond: Inside The Radical Grassroots Movement To Reshape Urban Planning In New York City, Chase Brush

Capstones

Mi Casa No Es Su Casa, Take Back The Bronx, Northern Manhattan Is Not For Sale -- in neighborhoods all across New York City, a movement is afoot to take back community control of the urban planning process. These groups and others, faced with increasing gentrification in their own neighborhoods, are fighting back against city-led rezonings that they say would further exacerbate the displacement of longtime residents. Among those leading the charge is Mi Casa No Es Su Casa, a team of social justice activists using the tools of radical grassroots organizing to oppose a slate rezoning of Bushwick, a …

All Our Hearts: Sharing Stories Of Love, Grief And Hope From The Opioid Crisis, Lena R. Camilletti

Capstones

In October 2018, Maddie Linsenmier died as a result of opioid-use disorder. Her sister, Kate O’Neill, wrote an incredibly humanizing obituary, which was published in Seven Days, and went viral. Individuals from all over the world were commenting on the obituary, sharing their own stories of people they love and lost as a result of opioid-use disorder.

As a result, in January 2019, Seven Days hired Kate O’Neill to write a year-long series called Hooked: Stories and Solutions for Vermont’s Opioid Crisis. And Seven Days deputy publisher Cathy Resmer proposed a related project: an online memorial that would allow …

The Impact Of Utilizing Peer Mentoring Interactions, New Laboratory Experiments, And Writing-To-Learn Practices In Undergraduate Chemistry Education, Dulani Samarasekara

Theses and Dissertations

High attrition rates in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields are major challenges in undergraduate education. Many students enrolled in STEM fields end up switching their majors to non-STEM fields or leave college without earning any academic qualification. Due to these reasons, the United States is facing a critical shortage of future talented STEM personnel in the domestic workforce. Therefore, graduating a sufficient number of talented students in STEM fields has come to national attention. It is important to examine strategies for improving STEM-major retention and undergraduate education in STEM disciplines. The main purpose of this study was to …

Service And Empathy: A Comparison Study Of Intercultural Experiences Among Students At Mississippi College, Victoria Rose Marshall

Theses and Dissertations

Service to the community is a key element in mission statements of public and private universities. In the 21st century, higher education shifted by establishing community engagement offices and encouraging student community service through service-learning. Previous literature indicated that experiential learning increased ethnocultural empathy and volunteerism among college students. This study compares two experiential learning programs’ influence on the ethnocultural empathy development among college students at Mississippi College, a private, religious-affiliated university to explore how this empathy increases community service. 38 students were asked to complete the Scale of Ethnocultural Empathy (Wang et al. 2003) and were interviewed about their …

Don't Fear The Nobodies: A Critical Youth Study Of The Columbiner Instagram Community, Brianna L. Wright

Theses and Dissertations

This research sheds light on how one particular group of young people, Columbiners, use social media to build and maintain a sense of community. Through a content analysis of 200 Instagram posts containing a school shooting fandom hashtag, or #Columbiner, and drawing on both Critical Youth Studies and Sense of Community Theory, this research demonstrates how Columbiners use their hashtag to create a sense of community on Instagram, to explore what it means to be young and cool, and to make sense of the problems that shape their social world, including school shootings. Exploring how this particular group of young …