Digital Commons Network^™

Dialogue After Dobbs: Introduction, M. Therese Lysaught, Mari Rapela Heidt, Mary Doyle Roche, Kate Ward

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Christianity And Mental Health Counseling: Voices Of The Black-Negro American Experience, Kyle Preston Goodwin

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The narration of the lived experiences of Black-Negro Christian Americans in relation to mental health counseling services is vital because opportunities for researchers and clinicians to hear their voices instead of a story written for them by the leading culture is created. Specifically, when it comes to Black-Negro spirituality and religion as part of Black-Negro culture, it is one of the most beautiful and intriguing experiences that exists. A critical theory paradigm is being used for how knowledge is created and disseminated for the purposes of social change. Narrative Qualitative research is used to capture the Black-Negro voice, along with …

Engineering Ph-Dependent Antibody Interactions Through Introduction Of Linked Protonation Equibria Within The Antigen Binding Interface Or Linked Oligomeric Interfaces, Tosha Laughlin

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Antibodies are widely applied as affinity reagents across a variety of fields, due to their high affinity and specificity. While high affinity across a range of conditions is useful for many applications, the ability to modulate affinity with environmental conditions (e.g., pH) opens new opportunities for antibody applications. This dissertation focuses on exploring the impact of an antibody’s interface size on engineered pH dependence, as well as exploring engineered pH-dependence through perturbing oligomerization equilibria that are linked to target binding. An anti-maltose binding protein (MBP) Fab 7O antibody fragment was used as a large protein-protein interface model to explore a …

Exploring Beaver-Facilitated Restoration In Grassland Channelized Streams, Jessica L. Sikora

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Freshwater streams provide vital ecosystem services, but their ecological function is gravely impacted by agricultural practices especially in grassland ecosystems. Though there is evidence that the re-introduction of beavers can help restore the ecological function of streams, little is known about their restorative impacts in grasslands. At Nachusa Grasslands Preserve in Franklin Grove, IL, we investigated the presence and impact of beaver dams on their waterways. With increasing beaver dam volume, we found an increase in sediment retention and less sediment retention with increasing beaver dams upstream from a dam. Though we did not find evidence that beaver dam volume …

K-12 Teachers’ Perceptions And Experiences In Their Teaching Practices Of Utilizing Multimedia Integrating With Online Classroom Technology, Rateeba Turki Algoufi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation aimed to explore how teachers perceive and engage with multimedia integration in their online teaching practices to effectively involve students. The study specifically focused on teachers in grades three through seven at an international school in Saudi Arabia. The research questions delved into teachers' descriptions of their perceptions and experiences when using online technology and utilizing appropriate multimedia to engage students. The literature review highlighted the existing gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application when it comes to integrating technology and multimedia in the learning environment. The research presented the TPACK framework and multimedia cognitive theory as guiding …

Attending, Ben Mcintire

The Art of Medicine

No abstract provided.

Jody, John Price

Mighty Pen Project Anthology & Archive

A young man learns some valuable life lessons before joining the army when he gets involved with a soldier's wife.

Articles, stories, and other compositions in this archive were written by participants in the Mighty Pen Project. The program, developed by author David L. Robbins, and in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, offers veterans and their family members a customized twelve-week writing class, free of charge. The program encourages, supports, and assists participants in sharing their stories and experiences of military experience so both writer and audience may benefit.

Fraternal New Member Processes: An Alumni Perspective, C J. Gibson

Masters Theses

Hazing has always been an issue in fraternities and sororities. Even though there has been a push to reduce the amount of hazing through research and trainings, it continues to cause harm to the community. The purpose of this study is to gain incite from fraternity alums toward understanding the use of hazing activities while orienting fraternity men to the organization. This study examined the issue from the individuals experience, to their role in inducting new members, and now as alums to gain insight in to why chapters continue to that cycle. Results showed that individuals in groups social construct …

A Non-Profit As A Branded House: Douglas-Hart Nature Center And Foundation Branding Alignment, Skylar Fushi

Masters Theses

Branding plays a significant role in representing an organization and can help further its mission (Kylander & Stone, 2012). The purpose of this creative thesis is to help the Douglas-Hart Foundation and its three nature locations: the Douglas-Hart Nature Center, Friendship Garden, and the Whiteside Garden assess its branding and establish fitting strategies for the branding of the organization moving forwards. The method used to accomplish this was a brand audit of several key communication channels and documents of the organization and a SWOT analysis of these aspects along with suggested strategies and examples showing how the organization might integrate …

Assessing The Knowledge On Sustainability And Barriers To Daily Sustainable Practices Among Faculty And Students In Higher Education: The Case Of Eastern Illinois University, Joel Edem Holison

Masters Theses

The concept of sustainable development gained prominence with the publication of the Brundtland Report, which emphasized economic progress without jeopardizing future generations' well-being. Following that, the Education for Sustainability (EfS) program was created by the United Nations to raise sustainability awareness. However, the transition to sustainable living is fraught with difficulties, including a lack of knowledge, financial constraints, infrastructure gaps, and political ideologies. This study focuses on sustainable practices among Eastern Illinois University (EIU) students and faculty, as well as the barriers to daily sustainable behaviors. As independent variables influencing sustainable practices, the study evaluates sustainability knowledge/awareness, personal financial situation, …

Development Of A Chemical Biology Approach To Uncover The Influence Of Sequence Variations On Ces1 Activity In Live Cells, Samuel James Knebel

Masters Theses

Drug metabolism is the biochemical process of modifying drugs to detoxify and remove them through enzymatic transformations. These biotransformation’s occur primarily in the liver and are critical to understanding how pharmaceutical compounds are chemically altered inside the human body. Human carboxylesterases (CESs) catalyze the hydrolysis of esters, amides, thioesters, and carbamates. CES-mediated hydrolysis plays an important role in the metabolism of many drugs including the first FDA approved antiviral treatment for COVID-19, remdesivir (Veklury), the seizure control medication rufinamide (Banzel), and the flu antiviral drug oseltamivir (Tamiflu). CES activity is known to be influenced by a variety of factors including …

Triclosan Degrading Bacteria From Wastewater Treatment Plants In Central Illinois, Mohammed Alsulami

Masters Theses

Triclosan is an antimicrobial agent that has been used in personal care products and has been identified to cause malformation on cartilage and bone development in zebrafish and influence on thyroid hormone system in humans. Due to its widespread usage and insufficient removal from wastewater treatment plants, triclosan has emerged as a pervasive contaminant that poses a potential threat to the environment and human health. The goal of the study was to isolate and characterize triclosan-degrading bacteria from WWTPs in central Illinois. Using enrichment culture with NMS media containing triclosan as sole carbon source, eighteen bacterial strains were isolated. The …

The Amulet Of Nethelar, Sarah J. Brown

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Influence Of Cover Crops On Grassland Restoration, Josh C. Poland

Masters Theses

Grassland ecosystems comprise almost a fourth of all Earth’s land mass; however, due to ever-increasing rates of agricultural land conversion, these habitats are facing a large-scale biodiversity crisis. The degradation of grasslands extends beyond physical impacts, such as soil erosion, to include the loss of soil microbial communities as a serious risk to the health and productivity of these habitats. Cover cropping, commonly used in agriculture to revive agricultural soils, has rarely been applied to grassland restorations, and could combat or reverse the harmful effects of modern agriculture techniques. For the first chapter of my thesis, I used a greenhouse …

Personal Branding, Reality Television, And Social Media: How Former Big Brother Contestants Create, Maintain, And Alter Their Public Image, Justin L. Richards

Masters Theses

This study interrogated how these theories were potentially used, or aspects of the theories used to create, alter, or maintain, the contestant’s personal brands on two social media platforms. Informed by previous literature on personal branding and impression management, 1,021 pieces of social media communication were analyzed, 499 pieces of communication from Taylor Hale, and 522 pieces of communication from Paulie Calafiore. This study determined that there were up to five different patterns on the kind of content produced that still qualified under these theories for Taylor Hale, and up to four different patterns for Paulie Calafiore. Some patterns appeared …

Evaluating The Contribution Of Adjacent Charges On The Observed Ph-Dependent Binding Profile For A Vhh/Antigen Interaction With A Linked Histidine Protonation Equilibria, Kiruthika Arulmoly

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

pH dependent protein-protein interactions are of great importance for various biological processes. In addition, the generation of engineered pH-dependent therapeutic antibodies opens opportunities for the extension of therapeutic half-life, thereby reducing drug dosage or frequency of administration, as well as providing pH-dependent targeting, such as the tumor microenvironment. Engineering pH-dependent antibody-antigen interaction is mostly achieved through the incorporation of ionizable residues within the antigen binding interface. These ionizable residues must undergo a change in environment upon forming a protein-protein complex, which causes a change in the ionizable group’s pKa value. This coupled protonation equilibria is responsible for the observed pH-dependent …

Undocumented Students’ Voice, Mtss, And School Counselors’ Mental Health Advocacy: A Transformative Mixed Methods Study, Oliver Camacho

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Many young undocumented students are experiencing mental health issues in K-12 schools. Researchers have found a myriad of psychological stressors that add to the complexity of being an undocumented student in the United States. Educators have noted an increased concern in undocumented students expressing concerns of fears at school, acculturation stress, migratory stress, heightened reports of depression, increased anxiety, and a proclivity towards emotional and behavioral problems. There is limited research that reviews mental health supports in schools for undocumented students that includes the voices of school counselors and undocumented students in a transformative paradigm. This study seeks to inform …

Structural Violence And Cooperation For Survival: Exploring Livelihood Strategies In Rural Mexico, Luis Chavez

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This research investigates the effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement on trade between Canada, Mexico, and the United States. As a result of increased competition in the agricultural sector, households in El Fresno, Michoacán, and El Paso de Piedra, Jalisco in Mexico had to compete with conventional agriculture from the United States. This ethnography studies how community members cooperate and work together to overcome difficulties caused by open markets. The research involved conducting twelve interviews in El Fresno and El Paso de Piedra using the framework of sustainable livelihood approach to understand how households use their resources to …

Evaluating The Attention Training Technique As A Transdiagnostic Intervention For Fear-Based Psychopathological Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Benjamin John Ellem

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Recent research indicates that fear-related psychological disorders are a distinguished class of psychopathology, all of which share the underlying endophenotype of maladaptive acute fear responding. The relationship between maladaptive fear responding and psychopathology has been found to be moderated by executive functioning capacity—most notably attentional control. However, the current psychopathological nosology does not link fear-based disorders together. As a result, many fear-based disorders are treated separately with different evidence-based psychotherapies. These psychotherapies tend to focus on reducing phenotypic behaviors or self-reported experience of symptoms. Individuals with fear-based disorders may be better served by treatments that focus on the aforementioned endophenotypes …

"Killers Who Preach": Horror And The "Victorian" Culture Text In The Modern American Musical, Amy Erickson

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines American Broadway musicals adapted from Victorian horror and mystery novels, investigating the ways in which the musical adaptations represent and critique modern American social problems and traditional American values and ideology. Specifically, it analyzes Stephen Sondheim’s 1979 musical Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, a Musical Thriller, adapted from the anonymously published Victorian penny serial The String of Pearls; Rupert Holmes’s 1985 musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood, adapted from Charles Dickens’s unfinished 1870 novel of the same name; Frank Wildhorn’s 1997 musical Jekyll & Hyde, adapted from Robert Louis Stephenson’s 1886 novella The Strange …

Three Essays On The Effects Of Parental Income And Labor Supply On Child Health And Labor Market Outcomes., Kassahun Mamo Geleta

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation constitutes three separate essays on labor and health economics using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) dataset. The first essay examines the long-run effect of childhood poverty on labor market outcomes using propensity score matching (PSM) and average causal mediation effect (ACME) methods. The results show that persistent childhood poverty significantly decreases average annual labor income and hours worked, whereas it increases the number of weeks unemployed per annum during adulthood. The study also shows that a significant portion of the total effect of childhood poverty on labor market outcomes passes indirectly through its negative effect on …

Grey To Green: The Impact Of Environmental Policy On Us Crime Rates, Kassandra Gonzalez

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study explores the social implications of climate change and environmental degradation on deviant and criminal behavior. This study employs general strain theory to examine the effectiveness of city-level climate change mitigation actions in reducing crime rates. Through a systematic approach, this study reviews literature on environmental harms and community strain and explores the impact of local pro-environmental policies on crime reduction. Focusing on the United States, UCR crime rate reports and UN-guided Sustainable Development Goal data are analyzed at the US county level. The findings suggest that sustainable practices, especially those related to local infrastructure and community engagement, could …

Visualizing Dynamic Multivariate Networks, Bharat Kumar Kale

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Many real-world networks are multivariate in nature and also evolve over time. Such a network whose nodes and/or edges along with their associated attributes, evolve over time is called A dynamic multivariate network (DMVN). For instance, in the scholarly community, researchers often collaborate with others. These collaborations have various attributes, such as scientific domain and number of publications, as well as they change over time. At any given point in time, the collaborations among researchers can be modeled as a network resulting in a collaboration network. When the changes in collaborations and associated attributes are also included in the network, …

I. Design, Synthesis, And Evaluation Of The Human Phoshodiesterase-4 And Fungal Acetyl Coa Synthetase Enzyme Inhibitors Ii. Evaluation Of Biological Activity Of Kenyan Medicinal Plants, Chaitanya Kondam

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE4) enzyme mainly present in immune cells, epithelial cells, and brain cells that regulate inflammation and epithelial integrity in cells. Inhibition of PDE4 enzyme leads to regulation of various inflammatory mechanisms by elevation of cyclic adenosine monophosposphate (cAMP) levels in the cells. PDE4 enzyme is promising target for treatment of pulmonary, dermatological, and neurological inflammatory diseases. Several PDE4 inhibitor drugs Roflumilast, Apremilast, and Crisaborole were approved and marketed as Dalsirep, Otezla and Eucrisa for the treatment of inflammatory pulmonary diseases, psoriatic arthritis, and atopic dermatitis. However, these drugs have adverse effects such as nausea, emesis, and gastrointestinal effects. Benzothiazole …

Intergenerational Transmission Of Parenting: Does Emotion Regulation Buffer The Effect Of Negative Early Care Experiences On The Cortisol Stress Response And Subsequent Caregiving?, Erin Rochelle Mckay

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

A phenomenon known as the intergenerational transmission of parenting, where children tend to parent their children in a manner similar to how their own parents provided care, has received notable attention within developmental research. While several mechanisms focusing on cognitive and psychological factors have been proposed, there is less research examining biological mechanisms within the intergenerational transmission of parenting framework, especially when considering caregiving behavior exhibited in the context of child distress. Further, few studies have examined parent attributes which may disrupt the intergenerational transmission of parenting. The current study seeks to examine the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis stress response as …

Sampling Methods And Transportation Analysis Of Shipping Containers, Omar Roman-Sanchez

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Biomass is a perpetually burgeoning commodity as a sustainable energy resource, but some of the consistent drawbacks are transportation and sampling. The efficiency of pick-up and delivery to conversion facilities needs to be sufficient to allow for longer transport distances. Concurrent work explores the viability of using 20 ft intermodal shipping containers by using a screw auger to pack biomass feedstocks (miscanthus and corn stover) in ¼-scaled containers, which resulted in dry matter packing densities exceeding 8 lb/ft3. Full analysis of compaction energy plus transportation needs was found to understand net positive energy return on investment. To enhance the sampling …

The Impact Of Climate Change On The Cultural Identity Of Indigenous Peoples And The Nation’S First “Climate Refugees”, Jordan K. Medaris

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Pachamama Over People And Profit: A Case For Indigenous Ecology And Environmental Personhood, Hilda Loury

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Mass Spectrometry Does Not Need To Be A “Grind”: Plant Secondary Metabolites In Coffee And Black Pepper As A Practical Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry(Lc-Ms/Ms)Teaching Tool, Maris A. Cinelli, Alexander E. Wilson

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Epideictic Priming Amid Covid-19: Metonymy Under The Microscope, Ben Wetherbee

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.