Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluation Of Mycoplasma Genitalium Positivity And Co-Infection With Chlamydia Trachomatis And/Or Neisseria Gonorrhoeae At Various Care Sites Across The United States, Rebecca Lillis, Stacey House, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) positivity and co-infection with Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and/or Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG), based on results from a trial assessing clinical performance of the Cobas® Liat CT/NG/MG point-of-care test.

METHODS: A prospective, US, multicenter, noninterventional study assessed MG positivity in prospective urine samples (male) and clinician-collected vaginal swabs (female) from symptomatic/asymptomatic patients aged ≥14 years attending various clinical settings. Participants were designated positive or negative for MG, CT, and NG based on combined results from three US Food and Drug Administration-approved assays and one laboratory-developed test. MG co-infection with CT and/or NG was assessed.

RESULTS: Among …

Influence Of Obesity And Insulin Resistance With Hepatic Steatosis On The Human Plasma Lipidome, Max C Petersen, Gordon I Smith, Aaron M Armando, Xiong Su, Oswald Quehenberger, Edward A Dennis, Samuel Klein

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Insulin resistance accompanied by hepatic steatosis is a common complication of obesity. In an effort to identify plasma lipids that could be biomarkers or causes of insulin resistance with steatosis in people with obesity, we evaluated the plasma lipidome in three distinct groups separated by adiposity, hepatic steatosis, and insulin sensitivity, assessed by using the hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp procedure: i) insulin-sensitive lean (ISL, n = 13); ii) insulin-sensitive obese (ISO, n = 14); and iii) insulin-resistant obese with hepatic steatosis (IROS, n = 13). We evaluated 759 complex lipid species in 16 subclasses (including phospholipids, glycerolipids, sphingolipids, acylcarnitines, and cholesteryl esters) …

An Integrated Analysis Of Three Medulloblastoma Clinical Trials Refines Risk-Stratification Approaches For Reducing Toxicity And Improving Survival, Kyle S Smith, Jeff M Michalski, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: The identification of clinical and molecular heterogeneity in medulloblastoma has produced risk-stratified therapy, but establishing the most effective yet least toxic regimens has remained elusive owing to numerous treatment options. To improve risk-stratification, we performed an integrated analysis from three clinical trials.

METHODS: Medulloblastoma patients from ACNS0331/NCT00085735, ACNS0332/NCT00392327, and SJMB03/NCT00085202 were included if they had methylation profiling. Molecular groups [WNT, SHH, Group 3 (G3), and Group 4 (G4)], subgroups, and copy number variations were procured from methylation profiles and mutations from next-generation sequencing. Data was assembled into an interactive portal to capture patient characteristics. Cross-trial comparisons, univariable, and multivariable …

Identifying Disparities In Same-Day Surgery Cancellations: Impact Of Race And Socioeconomic Factors In A Pediatric Health System, Nicole M Santucci, Daniel Alligood, Amanda Maytin-Hevia, Danyi Wang, Kelly Chilson, Jesse Vrecenak, Andrew Yeh, Colin A Martin

2020-Current year OA Pubs

PURPOSE: Same-day surgery (SDS) cancellations have significant implications on patients and hospitals. This study aimed to identify demographic and socioeconomic factors that impact SDS cancellations across a single pediatric health system.

METHODS: A case-control retrospective review captured patients (age < 18) who underwent SDS procedures from July 2022 to August 2024. Patients were included if they underwent any procedure at three operative sites: a tertiary pediatric academic hospital (PAH) and two outpatient surgery centers (OSC). Patients whose SDS was cancelled (n = 2,034) were compared to those whose surgeries proceeded as scheduled (n = 25,573). Patient zip codes were matched to Child Opportunity Index (COI) 2.0 data.

RESULTS: The overall SDS cancellation rate was 7.37 %, with a significantly higher rate observed at the PAH compared to OSC (11.4 % vs 53 %, p < 0.001). Patients with cancelled cases were more likely to identify as Black and have the lowest quintile COI (p < 0.001). Cancelled in preop and no shows were two reasons with the most racial disparities. In a sub-analysis comparing cancelled cases between operating sites, PAH cancelled patients tended to be Black (23.8 % vs 11.7 %, p < 0.001) and have very low COI (20.1 % vs. 10.6 %, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION: SDS cancellation rates are significantly higher amongst patients who identify as Black and reside in low opportunity neighborhoods. Disparities in cancellation rate are more significant in patients scheduled at the urban PAH compared …

Beyond Restless Sleep: A Cross-Sectional Study Of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Risk, Aging Biomarkers, And Chronic Low Back Pain, Khalid W Freij, Fiona Bat Agbor, Philemon Domoyeri, Kiari R Kinnie, Asia M Wiggins, Demario S Overstreet, Tammie L Quinn, Shivraj S Grewal, S Justin Thomas, Walid W Freij, Shameka L Cody, Michael A Owens, Robert E Sorge, Burel R Goodin, Edwin N Aroke

2020-Current year OA Pubs

This secondary data analysis aimed to determine the nature of the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) risk, biological age acceleration, and nonspecific chronic low back pain (CLBP). In total, 199 adults aged 18-82 years who filled both STOPBANG and pain questionnaires subsetted for secondary analysis. Based on the STOPBANG questionnaire, 104 had a low OSA risk and 95 had an intermediate or high OSA risk. Dunedin Pace of Aging Computed from the Epigenome (DunedinPACE), Horvath's, Hannum's, PhenoAge, and GrimAge clocks were used to determine biological age and pace of biological aging. Individuals with low OSA risk reported increased DunedinPACE …

Lost Before Forgetting: Objective Driving Metrics Track Navigation Deficits Tied To Preclinical Alzheimer's Disease, Yiqi Zhu, Ramkrishna K Singh, Semere Bekena, David C Brown, Chen Chen, Matthew Blake, Jean-François Trani, Ganesh M Babulal

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Navigation is a complex, multisensory process in which subtle changes may emerge before the onset of symptomatic Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study investigated whether navigation abilities were associated with amyloid and tau pathology in cognitively normal older adults.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Among 285 cognitively unimpaired older adults, navigation and objective driving behaviors were assessed using the self-reported Santa Barbara Sense of Direction Scale (SBSOD) and a datalogger, respectively. Amyloid and tau burden were quantified using PET-MRI 2 years post-initial driving data collection. Linear mixed-effects models were used to evaluate the associations between biomarker status and longitudinal …

Advancing Inter-Brain Synchrony Measurement: A Comparative Hyperscanning Study Of Diffuse Optical Tomography And Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy, Shuo Guan, Yuhang Li, Yingbo Geng, Dongyun Li, Qiong Xu, Peisong Niu, Dalin Yang, Adam Eggebrecht, Yingchun Zhang, Rihui Li

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Inter-brain synchrony (IBS), measured by hyperscanning, refers to the synchronization of multiple individuals' brain activities during social interactions. Traditional fNIRS-based hyperscanning suffers shortcomings like low spatial resolution and high susceptibility to superficial interference, causing imprecise estimation of IBS in complex social tasks. This study aims to fill the knowledge gap by comprehensively assessing diffuse optical tomography (DOT), an enhanced alternative to fNIRS, can benefit hyperscanning studies of complex social interactions. Sixteen dyads were engaged in both collaborative and individual tangram puzzle tasks, and their brain activities were recorded simultaneously using DOT and fNIRS. We found that DOT demonstrated significantly stronger …

Abnormalities In Sensorimotor Brain Function Are Related To Chronicity Of Low Back Pain, Jo Armour Smith, Rongwen Tain, Kelli G Sharp, Laura M Glynn, Linda R Van Dillen, Jesse V Jacobs, Steven C Cramer

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Maladaptive plasticity in the brain may contribute to chronic low back pain (LBP) and underlie the altered postural control of the lumbopelvic musculature that is evident in some individuals with LBP. We recently described an MRI-compatible leg-raise paradigm to measure brain activity associated with lumbopelvic postural control. The objective of this study was to compare brain function in young adults with and without a history of LBP and to determine relationships between brain function, pain, and postural control characteristics. We recruited 55 participants with a history of LBP, who were asymptomatic when studied, and 30 healthy controls. Postural control during …

Clinical Outcomes Following Mechanical Thrombectomy In Pulmonary Embolism Response Team-Consulted Patients: A Retrospective Analysis, Ryan Nolan, Maanasi Samant, Suresh Vedantham, Westley Ohman, Nathan Droz, Kristen Sanfilippo, Pavan Kavali

2020-Current year OA Pubs

PURPOSE: To determine if use of mechanical thrombectomy (MT) impacts survival and additional outcomes in patients with acute intermediate-high-risk and high-risk pulmonary embolism (PE) who were evaluated by a Pulmonary Embolism Response Team (PERT).

METHODS: This retrospective, single-center study included patients with intermediate-high-risk and high-risk PE who received PERT evaluation over 3.5 years and were treated with anticoagulation (AC) alone or MT + AC. The primary outcome was 30-day all-cause mortality, measured with inverse probability of treatment weighting. Exploratory outcomes included survival during the study period, PE-associated/caused mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), supplemental oxygen at discharge, and MT-related metrics. …

Modeling Clinical Relevance And Risk In Yttrium-90 Radioembolization Of The Liver: Lung Shunt Fraction Variability According To Imaging Modality, Cancer Type, And Tumor Size, M Allan Thomas, Tharun Alamuri, Ryan C Lee, Dan Giardina, John Karageorgiou, Naganathan Mani, Daniel A Braga, Christopher D Malone

2020-Current year OA Pubs

PURPOSE: To test the hypothesis that lung shunt fraction (LSF) in yttrium-90 (

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of 354 consecutive cases from a 34-month period at a single institution. Cancer type (hepatocellular carcinoma [HCC] vs non-HCC) and maximum tumor size were tracked. LSF was computed from planar imaging (LSF

RESULTS: Median LSF was significantly different (all P < .001) among LSF

CONCLUSIONS: Despite significant variations with imaging modality and correction methods, consistent trends in LSF magnitude with cancer type and tumor size were still uncovered. The relative risk of observing clinically relevant LSF can be modeled for different liver tumor …

Knowledge, Interest, And Willingness Of Hematologists And Oncologists To Care For Adults With Vascular Anomalies, Bryan A Sisk, Anna M Kerr, Sally Cohen-Cutler, Margaret T Lee, Katie Harmoney, Alexandra Borst, Shelley E Crary, Shelbie Fishman, Stephanie Chen, Danielle Cicka, Stephanie Milam, Christine Bereitschaft, Kristen M Sanfilippo

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Vascular anomalies (VAs) are rare diseases that cause significant morbidity. Adults with VAs struggle to access expert care. Hematologists and oncologists in adult medicine are positioned to provide expert care, but no prior studies have characterized their openness to this role.

OBJECTIVES: This study characterized the experience, confidence, willingness, and motivating factors for hematologists/oncologists to care for adults with VAs.

METHODS: We surveyed United States hematologists and oncologists in adult medicine between October 2024 and March 2025. The questionnaire assessed knowledge, experience, confidence, and willingness to care for adults with VAs, as well as open-ended questions assessing factors influencing …

Immortalization And Characterization Of Schwann Cell Lines Derived From Nf1-Associated Cutaneous Neurofibromas, Hua Li, Angela Hirbe, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is an autosomal dominant condition in which patients are heterozygous for a disruptive pathogenic variant in the NF1 gene. The most characteristic feature of the condition NF1 is the neurofibroma, a benign, multi-cellular tumor which initiates when a cell of the Schwann cell lineage gains a somatic pathogenic variant of the other NF1 allele. Neurofibromas developing at nerve termini in the skin are termed "cutaneous" neurofibromas (cNFs), while those developing within larger nerves are termed "plexiform." Most patients develop cNFs beginning in late childhood or early adulthood, continuing throughout life at variable rates. Some patients may …

Spatial Variation In Socio-Economic Vulnerability To Influenza-Like Infection For The Us Population, Shrabani S. Tripathy, Joseph V. Puthussery, Taveen S Kapoor, John R. Cirrito, Rajan K. Chakrabarty

2020-Current year OA Pubs

This study aims to quantify environmental health impacts and assess risk by understanding the disproportionate burden of infectious diseases, specifically Influenza-like Illness (ILI), across regions with varying socio-economic characteristics. We introduce a novel vulnerability-based approach to better understand the complex relationship between socio-economic factors and ILI burden. We develop a machine-learning-driven framework to assess and map state-level socio-economic vulnerability to ILI in the United States. A vulnerability index was created by integrating 39 diverse socio-economic and health indicators from the latest CENSUS. A Random Forest Regression model then weighed these indicators to quantify each state's vulnerability for the ILI values …

Characterization Of The Spatiotemporal Representations Of Visual, Semantic, And Memorability Features In The Human Brain, Yue Wang, Peter Brunner, Jon T. Willie, Runnan Cao, Shuo Wang

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Object recognition requires integrated processing that extends beyond the visual cortex, incorporating semantic and memory-related processes. However, it remains unclear how different attributes, such as visual, semantic, and memorability features, are encoded and interact during perception. Here, we recorded intracranial electroencephalography from 5,143 channels while participants viewed natural object images. We systematically characterized the spatiotemporal patterns of neural encoding for visual, semantic, and memorability attributes and showed that memorability was encoded in a distributed manner, which can be dissociated from visual and semantic coding. While the ventral temporal cortex (VTC) was engaged in encoding all three attributes, the representations were …

Capacity And Site Readiness For Hypertension Control Program Implementation In Nigeria: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study, Innocent Ijezie Chukwuonye, Mark D. Huffman, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to determine the capacity and readiness of Nigerian primary healthcare facilities to adopt a multi-level approach for the diagnosis, treatment, and control of hypertension.

METHODS: Using a multi-stage sampling technique, 5 states were selected for the nationwide study, and 10 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) were selected from each of the participating states. The 50 PHCs were evaluated using the World Health Organization-modified Service Availability and Readiness Assessment, focusing on the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension in Nigeria. The indicator scores for general and cardiovascular service preparedness were computed using the proportion of PHCs …

An Emerging Timer-2c Framework For Addressing Barriers To Research Culture And Productivity Among Local Healthcare Providers In The Middle East And Sub-Saharan Africa: A Qualitative Study And Modified Delphi Approach, Beryne Odeny, Dorothy Mangale, Dhananjaya Sharma, Mariam Balogun, Elizabeth Bukusi, Fatima Suleman, Miliard Derbew, Juliet Iwelunmor, Ermyas Birru, Isaac Che Ngang, Akila Anandarajah, Vaishnavi Mamillapalle, Wael Almahmeed

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Contributions from healthcare professionals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to global health research remain disproportionately low. We conceptualized the TIMER-2C framework to capture the multi-level barriers and facilitators shaping research productivity among local healthcare professionals in MENA and SSA. We conducted qualitative interviews using a modified Delphi approach comprising two rounds to: 1) identify barriers and facilitators, and 2) establish consensus on the most prominent factors influencing research productivity. We purposively sampled 17 participants from Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, Lebanon, North Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, South Africa and India. Interview …

Implementing The Lung Donor (Lundon) Acceptability Score In U.S. Donor Management And Transplant Decision-Making: A Multi-Aim, Mixed-Methods Protocol, Nikki E. Rossetti, Su-Hsin Chang, Yan Yan, Graham Jaensch-Frie, Charles R. Liu, Nahom Y. Seyoum, Meghna Katta, Arvind Kumar, Zhizhou Yang, Christian Oncken, Christy Hamilton, Kyle Stumbaugh, Brendan Heiden, Sarah Peskoe, Varun Puri, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Despite advances in transplantation science, a persistent shortage of donor lungs continues to limit access to life-saving lung transplants. The Lung Donor (LUNDON) Acceptability Score is a validated tool that predicts donor lung utilization and post-transplant recipient outcomes, but integration into practice remains limited. This study will evaluate determinants of LUNDON score adoption, its impact on clinical decision-making, and develop tools to support its implementation.

METHODS: This is a multi-aim mixed-methods pre-implementation study that will be conducted across U.S. Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs) and lung transplant centers. Aim 1 will identify barriers and facilitators of LUNDON score adoption through …

Chronic Oral Cannabidiol Delays Seizure Onset And Reduces Seizure Burden In A Mouse Model Of Cln2 Disease, Joshua T. Dearborn, Keigo Takahashi, Nicholas R. Rensing, Michael Wong, Jonathan D. Cooper, Mark S. Sands

2020-Current year OA Pubs

A growing body of literature describes the anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, and anti-epileptic properties of the cannabis sativa constituent cannabidiol, suggesting that it might play a useful role in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Late infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (CLN2 disease) is a rare pediatric neurodegenerative disorder resulting from an inherited dysfunction of the lysosome. CLN2 disease, and its representative animal models, display neuroimmune response, neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and epileptic seizures, and these symptoms are all touted as potential targets of cannabidiol therapeutic benefit. Here, we treated a valid model of CLN2 disease with long-term daily cannabidiol (300 mg/kg) from 1 month of …

Emmanuel Annor Poster, Emmanuel Annor Md

Fellows and Residents

No abstract provided.

Tooth Ablation And The Jōmon - Yayoi Transition In Japan, Laura R. Erickson

Theses and Dissertations

The Jōmon – Yayoi period transition in Japan is marked by many migrants coming through the Korean Peninsula into Kyushu, sparking changes such as the introduction of wet-rice agriculture to the native hunter-gatherer-fisher Jōmon population and decreases in tooth ablation patterns and percentages. Ritual tooth ablation, or the removal of healthy front teeth, is typically seen as a coming-of-age practice, with the Jōmon having a diverse amount of ablation patterns. In this study, I explored how the rates and variation of tooth ablation changed throughout Japan after the arrival of Yayoi migrants from the continent. After calculating ablation rates per …

Examining The Current And Potential Impacts Of Erosion, Flooding, And Permafrost Thaw On Small Businesses In The Lower Kuskokwim Basin, Alaska, Dela Yao Agbagba

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Climate change has intensified hazards such as flooding, erosion, and permafrost thaw in Arctic Communities, threatening small business buildings, disrupting operations, and reducing income. Small businesses are important to these communities because they provide essential goods and services and support local economic activity. Understanding their vulnerability and adaptation needs is therefore important for sustaining communities in the Lower Kuskokwim Basin, Alaska.

This study used GIS spatial analysis and content analysis as its two main methods, supported by a limited number of semi-structured interviews. A spatial database of 78 businesses across seven Alaska Native Communities was developed, and flood susceptibility was …

Public Preferences And Trade-Offs In Critical Mineral Mining Development In The United States, Bamidele Joseph Ajiga

Masters Theses

Rising demand for battery-critical minerals has increased U.S. mining efforts, but projects often face public opposition. There is limited work on how individuals in affected regions evaluate trade-offs between economic and environmental risks.

This research applies a discrete choice experiment to examine individual preferences for proposed battery-critical minerals mining projects in Missouri, Minnesota, and Idaho. 1908 respondents evaluated hypothetical mining projects defined by jobs, state tax revenue, the proportion of tailings reprocessed, groundwater impacts, and surface water impacts, under gold and silver versus battery-critical mineral framings.

Conditional and mixed logit models were used to assess the importance of attributes, demographic …

Autonomous Navigation Development And On-Ground Validation For Satellite Rendezvous And Proximity Operations, Logan Banker

Masters Theses

Spacecraft rendezvous and docking are critical mission phases for various applications of spaceflight, including active debris removal (ADR) and in-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM). While previous missions utilized humans to perform rendezvous and docking, this style of mission greatly increases safety risks and cannot be implemented on a large scale. Autonomous servicing satellites provide a path towards scalable rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) because these autonomous agents do not require human intervention. This work presents a lightweight convolutional neural network (CNN) for the navigation system of an agent which analyzes monocular images and predicts the target's position and orientation …

Wattage- And Composition-Dependent Ocular Surface Toxicity: An In Vitro Study On E-Cigarette Aerosol Exposure In Human Corneal Epithelial Cells, Tzu-Ling Lin

Masters Theses

As electronic cigarette consumption continues to escalate globally, its impact on non-respiratory mucosal surfaces, particularly the ocular surface, remains largely understudied. This study investigated the toxicological effects of e-cigarette aerosols using a human corneal epithelial cell (HCE-2) model. Our findings reveal that aerosol exposure induces a significant, dose-dependent reduction in cell viability, exacerbated by higher device wattage and specific flavor agents such as watermelon. Exposure was found to trigger intracellular oxidative stress and the activation of apoptotic pathways, leading to programmed cell death. Furthermore, the upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines suggests that vaping may predispose users to chronic inflammatory conditions of …

Sources Of Tensions In Ai Adoption For Organ Procurement Organizations, Amaneh Babaee

Masters Theses

"Although medical AI systems have promise, the healthcare system has not fully integrated them for improved organizational operations. Studies have been conducted to identify root causes for this hesitancy without targeting a specific domain in healthcare. This generalization can be enhanced for the nuanced or domain-specific factors that offer practical insights to organizations leader. In this thesis, I focus on the factors and sources of tensions in AI adoption in transplant system, which is highly regulated but encourages innovation. Applying the Extended Technology, Organization, Environment (TOE) framework, 10 interviews were conducted at Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs).

Although not always technically …

Great Power Competition In Africa: Sustaining Openness Amidst Transnational Threats And Authoritarian Fragmentation, Chick Edmond

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

As the United States seeks to position itself in an increasingly competitive world, Africa has emerged as an increasingly key arena of great power competition where the United States, China, and Russia are competing to determine the nature of political norms, economic governance and security architecture on the continent.

The combination of growing transnational threats (such as terrorism, pandemics, climate-related instability, and digital vulnerability), and growing authoritarianism, has transformed the continent into a testbed for competing visions of international order. In light of this backdrop, this paper posits that the United States must pursue a strategy of sustained strategic openness …

The Evolving Beijing Consensus: Chinese Communist Party Political Control And Economic Trade Offs, Ian Murphy

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

China’s rapid economic rise and unique development trajectory have long been the subject of scholarly debate, often framed through the concept of the “Beijing Consensus” as an alternative to the Washington Consensus. While initial conceptualizations highlight innovation, sustainability, and national sovereignty, later analyses highlighted elements like state capitalism and authoritarianism, particularly in the wake of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. This paper argues that the Beijing Consensus is undergoing a significant evolution under Chairman Xi Jinping, increasingly prioritizing the Chinese Communist Party’s political security, regime stability, and ideological control at the expense of economic growth. This marks a notable departure …

Evidence-Based Policymaking And Global Governance: An Examination Of The Role Of The Policy Studies Organization And Ecosoc, Chick Edmond

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

Transnational challenges, such as climate change, global inequality, pandemics, digital governance, and institutional legitimacy crises, are becoming increasingly complex, therefore, the demand for evidence-based decision-making has become an important developing normative and practical issue in the area of global governance. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the principal organ of the UN responsible for coordinating policy processes across all areas of economic, social and development issues. However, despite ECOSOC’s ability to make decisions concerning how the world addresses these problems, it has been widely criticized for being unable to translate expert knowledge into tangible policy outcomes. Therefore, this paper …

Are Iowa Pk-12 Schools Prepared For A School Shooting? A Needs Assessment Of Iowa Superintendents, Kurt Mj Devore

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

As school shootings remain a persistent threat to PK-12 education, this quantitative survey study examines the preparedness levels and beliefs of 75 out of 277 Iowa superintendents regarding active shooter events. In the wake of the 2024 tragedy in Perry, Iowa, results indicate a near-universal recognition of risk (97.3%), prompting a shift toward "muscle memory" training and the adoption of the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) to ensure a common language during a crisis. The data reveals a significant move away from high-intensity simulations in favor of trauma-informed tabletop exercises, alongside a definitive rejection of arming educators (0%) due to insurance …

An Exploratory Study In Sports Geography: The Interaction With The Environment And Sense Of Place In Endurance Running Events, Jackson Steffener

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study examines how endurance running shapes runners' sense of place through interactions with physical environments, social dynamics, and embodied experience. With sports geography, it explores how participants form emotional and spatial connections to race settings while moving through varied landscapes under physical strain. A phenomenological multi-site case study design was used, focusing on four endurance events in Iowa that differed in terrain, setting, and structure.

Data were collected from 46 participants using mental mapping and semi structured field notes. Mental maps identified meaningful locations along race courses, while field notes captured emotional responses, environmental conditions, and social interactions. Thematic …