Digital Commons Network^™

Balancing Burdens In Religious Freedom Claims, T. J. Denley

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The article examines the expansion of religious freedom claims under the First Amendment and related laws, arguing that recent developments risk creating unequal treatment and burdening marginalized groups. It critiques the shift in doctrine that favors conservative Judeo-Christian morality, potentially undermining antidiscrimination protections and creating "theocratic zones of control." The analysis emphasizes the need to balance religious freedom with the rights of third parties and equality-implicating rights.

Haitian Centenarians: An Undocumented Phenomenon, Erna Dasilma

Theses and Dissertations

A ceaselessly neglected phenomenon until recent years, especially in developing countries, centenarians bring unique wisdom, perspective, history and science to our society based on their lived experiences. Although there is a strong interest in the experiences of individuals who are over 100 years old, few formal research studies have been conducted concerning centenarians, principally in developing countries. One of the central goals of conducting this study was to bridge the gap in the literature when it comes to centenarians in less developed countries, given the lack of reported statistics, with emphasis given to those living on the battered, but resilient …

The Teacher’S Role In Increasing Student Engagement In High School Social Studies Courses, Quarnitra L. Price

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored (a) how teaching practices of high school teachers influence student engagement levels and performance in social studies classes, (b) how teachers might deliver more student relatable social studies content, (c) how teachers might help students relate to and become more engaged with important social studies concepts, and (d) how teachers can motivate students to become well-informed and fully engaged citizens. This study also examined existing barriers that prevent students from learning or engaging in social studies coursework.

Research findings suggest teachers play essential roles in how students perceive social studies content and respond to lessons …

Front Matter

SMU Law Review

No abstract provided.

“In The Beginning, It Was Little Whispers...Now, We’Re Almost A Roar”: Conceptualizing A Model For Community And Self In Lgbtq+ Health Information Practices, Vanessa Kitzie, Travis L. Wagner, Alexander N. Vera

Faculty Publications

Although LGBTQ+ populations experience significant health challenges, little research exists that investigates their health from an informational perspective. Our study addresses this gap by exploring the health information practices of LGBTQ+ communities in South Carolina, focusing on how sociocultural context shapes these practices. Thirty semi-structured interviews with South Carolina LGBTQ+ community leaders analyzed using open qualitative coding informed the development of a conceptual framework describing their information practices. Findings show that participants engaged in two broad types of practices – protective and defensive – as responses to risks and barriers experienced, which are in turn produced by social and structural …

I Would Just Want To Leave This World: Women's Experiences Of Domestic Violence In Northern Namibia, Belinda L. Selebano, John D. Matthews

All Works

Background: Domestic violence (DV) is a traumatic experience that is influenced by a complex interplay of intrinsic and extrinsic factors and which exists worldwide. Namibia, located in Southwest Africa, is no exception to this as local media continuously report incidences of physical and sexual violence committed against women throughout the country. Materials and Methods: Using a qualitative design, twelve (N=12) female participants who experienced first-hand the effects of DV provided extensive insights into this phenomenon and its causal factors and offered suggestions as to what can be done to address this issue. Results: The results from this inquiry detail the …

Latinx Diversity Officers In Higher Education: Capacitating Cultural Values As Champions Of Equity, Diversity, And Inclusion, Maria Teresa Chavez-Haroldson

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this research study is to share scholarly data that may assist in the recognition and cultural understanding of LatinX Chief DOs in higher education institutions. This multi-phase, qualitative study critically considers the participants’ sociopolitical, psychological, and, cultural situated-ness as equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) leaders in higher education institutions (HEIs). Despite the psychological stressors, the participants described how and why they are energized by their commitment to creating change as social justice campeonas (champions). This study explains why LatinX DOs leading EDI institutional change in the 21st century, places them in precarious sociopolitical circumstances. Cultural values are …

Therapists Who Specialize In Addiction: A Grounded Situational Analysis Of A Stigmatized Profession, Heather J. Humphrey-Leclaire

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study used the methodology of a grounded situational analysis to explore the lives of therapists who specialize in addiction. Historians have researched the history of addiction treatment itself and some have identified parallel processes of discrimination, stigma, and stigma by association for therapist and client, but the complex intersectionality between social processes and organizational issues have been largely invisible. In this study, therapists who specialize in addiction (including social workers, clinical mental health counselors, and alcohol and drug counselors) were asked about their sense of how others see them in their role. These conversations made visible the many, enmeshed …

The Construction And Impact Of Power In Cross-Sector Partnerships: An Interpretive Phenomenological Study, Kimberly Allyn Walker

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In the United States, cross-sector partnerships, a form of collaboration, are becoming increasingly common in practice (Gray & Purdy, 2018). However, questions remain regarding the effectiveness of these partnerships and if the many challenges of using them can be overcome. In particular, the intersection of cross-sector partnerships and power, which can deeply impact these partnerships, needs more attention. This study used interpretive phenomenology to understand, from the participant perspective, (a) the experience and construction of power, (b) the impact of power on participants, and (c) how power dynamics in these initiatives compare to dynamics in organizations. Seventeen participants from four …

Generative Leadership And The Life Of Aurelia Erskine Brazeal, A Trailblazing African American Female Foreign Service Officer, Atim Eneida George

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

There is a gap in the literature on generativity and the leadership philosophy and praxis of African American Female Foreign Service Officers (AAFFSOs). I addressed this deficit, in part, by engaging an individual of exceptional merit and distinction—Aurelia Erskine Brazeal—as an exemplar of AAFFSOs. Using qualitative research methods of portraiture and oral history, supplemented by collage, mind mapping and word clouds, this study examined Brazeal’s formative years in the segregated South and the extraordinary steps her parents took to protect her from the toxic effects of racism and legal segregation. In addition, I explored the development of Brazeal’s interest in …

Ethical Leadership: Life Story Of George Ciampa, U.S. Wwii Military Veteran And Community Leader, Susan M. Wiedemann

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative research study explored the influence of life experiences and personal ethics of George Ciampa, a United States military veteran; his work in establishing American military cemeteries in Europe; and later work as a community leader committed to teaching American youth about the cost of freedom. Dimensions of ethical leadership and public service motivation served as the theoretical framework for the study. The research extended knowledge on ethical constructs within the fields of leadership studies and public administration; recorded personal experiences that were absent in military historical archives; and increased awareness of aspects of the U.S. military subculture. The …

Living Through The Chilean Coup D’Etat: The Second-Generation’S Reflection On Their Sense Of Agency, Civic Engagement And Democracy, Denise Tala Diaz

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation illuminates how the experience of growing up during the Chilean dictatorship (1973–1990) affected the individual's sense of self as citizen and the impact on their sense of democratic agency, civic-mindedness, and political engagement in their country's current democracy. To understand that impact, the researcher chose to study her own generation, the “Pinochet-era” generation (Cummings, 2015) and interviewed those who were part of the Chilean middle class, who despite not being explicit victims of perpetrators, were raised in dictatorship and surrounded by abuse of state power including repression, disappearance, and imprisonment. The theoretical frame of the Socio-Political Development Theory …

Persistence Of Jewish-Muslim Reconciliatory Activism In The Face Of Threats And “Terrorism” (Real And Perceived) From All Sides, Micah B.D.C. Naziri

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation concerns how Jewish-Muslim and Israel-Palestine grassroots activism can persist in the face of threats to the safety, freedom, lives, or even simply the income and employment of those engaged in acts of sustained resistance. At the heart of the study are the experiences of participants in the Hashlamah Project, an inter-religious collaboration project, involving Jews and Muslims. Across chapters and even nations, chapters of this organization faced similar threats and found universally-applicable solutions emerging for confronting those threats and persisting in the face of them. This raised the question of whether revolutionaries and activists in general can persevere …

Navigating The Silences: Social Worker Discourses Around Race, Cherie Bridges Patrick

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This thesis explored social worker discourses to learn what they could reveal about professional workplace practices and experiences with race and racism. The study traced the subtle and elusive racism often found in everyday professional conversations that are not considered racist by dominant consensus. Using tools of thematic and critical discourse analysis (CDA), and van Dijk’s (1993, 2001, 2008, 2009, 2011) general theory of racism and denial (1992, 2008), data from 14 semistructured interviews and one focus group with a racially diverse group of social workers was analyzed in two ways. First, thematic analysis offered a horizontal or flat exploration …

Saving A Seat For A Sister: A Grounded Theory Approach Exploring The Journey Of Women Reaching Top Policing Executive Positions, Nicola D. Smith-Kea

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The world of women in law enforcement is a thought-provoking one that has received increasing attention both in academia as well as in practice over the past few decades. Even more intriguing, and despite advances in the profession, is the low number of women in executive leadership positions in law enforcement. There is a vast underrepresentation of women in top executive leadership positions across the 18,000 law enforcement agencies in the United States. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the complex journey of women to top executive policing leadership positions. Embracing a positive psychology approach, …

Perspectives From The Pew: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Congregants' Experiences Of Change In Their Churches, Courtny Davis Olds

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Christian churches in the United States are notoriously resistant to change, whether in regard to leadership, worship style, church governance, positions on social issues, or myriad other aspects of congregational life. Yet the ability to navigate change successfully is vitally important to churches’ continued survival and renewed relevance. A particular body of literature, consisting of both scholarly and practitioner-oriented works, has attempted to address the necessity and the challenges of change in a church context. However, the literature is largely silent when it comes to the perspectives of those who are most impacted by congregational change: namely, the congregants themselves. …

Culturally Collaborative Teaching: A Path Toward Black Student Learning, J. Love Benton

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Inservice teachers’ influence and power are vital components for academic success among Black children. Previous research has shown that when teacher/student interactions are culturally responsive, engaging, and equitable, student learning is positively impacted (Banks, 2001; Gay, 2010; Ladson-Billings, 2011; Sleeter, 2000; Warren, 2018). However, equity gaps between Black and White k-12 students continue to exist within classroom settings (Grant & Sleeter, 2012; Ladson-Billings, 2018). Using a mixed-method approach that includes Repertory Grid Technique underpinned by Personal Construct theory to identify the teaching perceptions of inservice teachers, I gathered data that indicate how k-12 teachers understand what enables Black students to …

Positionality Of Paraeducators: A Phenomenological Study In A Public School District In The Pacific Northwest, Ann Rene' Flynn

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Paraeducators play an important role in the classroom supporting students and certificated teachers. However, literature on the actual roles of paraeducators has revealed that paraeducators are rarely included in the teaching team (Patterson, 2006). Paraeducators are frequently asked to perform difficult or unpleasant jobs and may not be recognized as important professionals who support the educational system (Giangreco, Suter, & Doyle, 2010; Lucero, 2010). Surveys and interviews have shown that paraeducators view themselves differently from how coworkers view them (Chopra, Sandoval-Lucero, Aragon, Bernal, De Balderas, & Carroll, 2004; Patterson, 2006). The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain a …

A Case Study: The Role Of Compassionate Cities, Healthy Cities, And Un Sustainable Development Goals In City Leadership And Planning, Lisa A. Berkley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This research is a case study examining the relevance of three holistic city frameworks—Compassionate Cities, Healthy Cities, and UN Sustainable Development Goals—to the intentional or tacit thinking of city leaders, community leaders, and activists of Marina, California. Beginning with a discussion of the origin and development of the three frameworks, the study occurred in three phases: Phase I involved interviewing the five elected leaders, city manager, community development leaders, and two planners; Phase II consisted of a survey of appointed city leaders and community organizers and activists; and Phase III was an analysis of relevant public discourse, drawing from local …

The Role Of Geospatial Information And Effective Partnerships In The Implementation Of The International Agenda For Sustainable Development, Etta Delores Jackson

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon (2014), repeated the core promise in the 1986 UN Declaration on the Right to Development, in which the General Assembly called for an approach guaranteeing meaningful participation of everyone in development and the fair distribution of the benefits of that development. To this end, partnerships are central and can lead to the dignity of the citizens involved as they participate in the development of their own communities. This dissertation research conducted in Manyatta A and B in the Port City of Kisumu, Kenya sought to do just that. The purpose of this study …

A Corpus Linguistic Approach To Discursive Representation Of Lgbt Identities In The Bangkok Post Newspaper, Duangkamon Chuaikun

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The present study examines how each group of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) is represented discursively in Bangkok Post, a major English-language newspaper in Thailand. The data comprise LGBT-related news articles from 2012 to 2019. Statistically significant collocates of each term were extracted via AntConc and Sketch Engine and were then categorized according to their semantic relations as observed from their concordance lines. Findings from the Bangkok Post corpus show that the key terms share common semantic preference patterns that point to the discourse about LGBT political movement. However, the terms; GAY and TRANSGENDER are also associated with “crime”, …

A Presumption In Favor Of Openness: Unsealing Adoption Records, Emily Ingall

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that the current system of sealed adoption records in the United States, which prioritizes confidentiality over adoptees' rights, is outdated and harmful. It advocates for a presumption of openness, asserting that adoptees have a fundamental right to access their birth records, which is essential for their identity, medical needs, and psychological well-being. The analysis calls for legal reforms that balance the privacy rights of birth parents with the rights of adoptees to their personal information, proposing a model that includes contact preference registries and access to non-identifying information.

Annotated Legal Bibliography

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Utilizing Relational Dialectics Theory To Identify Dominant And Marginalized Discourses In Women's Miscarriage Podcast Stories, Cherinicole Lardino

All Student Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the discourses of miscarriages from the podcast narratives of women who have experienced miscarriage by utilizing Relational Dialectic Theory (RDT). The process of contrapuntal analysis identified the discourse of silence as the dominant miscarriage discourse in which the marginalized miscarriage discourse of silence as the dominant miscarriage discourse in which the marginalized miscarriage discourses of open and honest and fear and anxiety were counterpoint to. There were four interrelated themes of shame, lack of supportive and encouraging messages, lack of readily available information, and a communicated feeling that their circumstances could be worse that revealed the silence …

Simulating Gender: Student Learning In Clinical Nursing Simulations, Lillian Campbell

English Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor: The Court’S Premier Defender Of The Fourth Amendment, David L. Hudson Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarship

This essay posits that Justice Sonia Sotomayor is the Supreme Court’s chief defender of the Fourth Amendment and the cherished values it protects. She has consistently defended Fourth Amendment freedoms—in majority, concurring, and especially in dissenting opinions. Part I recounts a few of her majority opinions in Fourth Amendment cases. Part II examines her concurring opinion in United States v. Jones. Part III examines several of her dissenting opinions in Fourth Amendment cases. A review of these opinions demonstrates what should be clear to any observer of the Supreme Court: Justice Sotomayor consistently defends Fourth Amendment principles and values.

Fixed Stars: Famous First Amendment Phrases And Their Indelible Impact, David L. Hudson Jr., Jacob David Glenn

Law Faculty Scholarship

Some passages in First Amendment law have taken on a life and legend of their own, entering our cultural lexicon for their particular power, precision or passion. Some phrases are just so beautifully written that they cannot escape notice. Others aptly capture the essence of a key concept in a memorable way. Still others seemingly have grown in importance simply by the frequency for which they are cited in later court decisions. This article analyzes ten phrases from U.S. Supreme Court First Amendment decisions that qualify as some of the most enduring passages in First Amendment jurisprudence.

Beyond Formal University Technology Transfer: Innovative Pathways For Knowledge Exchange, Jacob H. Rooksby

Law Faculty Publications

University technology transfer is often associated with formal transmission of science-based inventions, for instance through the licensing of patented technology to a firm. Formal conceptions of technology transfer limit our ability to understand fully how scientific knowledge evolves into industrial and social application. In this introductory article, we discuss how knowledge is shared and accessed across boundaries, and argue for a broader conceptualization including the transfer, translation, and transformation of knowledge. This view underlies a necessary conceptual shift from formal technology transfer to a more encompassing conception of pathways for knowledge exchange. We discuss promising avenues for extending research on …

Popular Constitutional Argument, Thomas G. Donnelly

Law Faculty Publications

Critics have long attacked popular constitutionalists for offering few clues about how their theory might work in practice—especially inside the courts. These critics are right. Popular constitutionalism—as a matter of both theory and practice—remains a work in progress. In this Article, I take up the challenge of developing an account of (what I call) popular constitutional argument. Briefly stated, popular constitutional argument is a form of argument that draws on the American people’s considered judgments as a source of constitutional authority—akin to traditional sources like text, history, structure, and doctrine. Turning to constitutional theory, I situate popular constitutional argument within …

The Politics Of Annexation: Oligarchic Power In A Southern City, John V. Moeser, Rutledge M. Dennis

The Politics of Annexation

This Open Access Edition of The Politics of Annexation presents a newly formatted version of the original 1982 edition. The text itself has been edited only for non-substantive style changes and corrections. The Preface, the new Introduction (“Fifty Years Later”), and the index were prepared especially for this edition. The original edition was published by Schenkman Publishing Company, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and is available online through the UR Scholarship Repository at https://scholarship.richmond.edu/bookshelf/307/

The Politics of Annexation examines the process of American cities using annexation of suburban areas as a tool to increase their tax base and generate new revenue. The authors …