Digital Commons Network^™

Reaching The Finish Line: Teacher Perceptions Of Intervention Strategies To Reduce Dropouts And Improve Student Engagement In Rural Schools, Carter J. Baran

Doctor of Education Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine educator perceptions of intervention strategies designed to reduce student dropout rates and improve student engagement in rural school settings. Rural schools often face unique challenges, including limited resources, geographic isolation, and socioeconomic factors that may contribute to student disengagement and increased dropout risk. This study sought to identify strategies educators perceive as effective in supporting at-risk students and promoting persistence toward graduation. Data were collected through 18 semi-structured interviews with educators in a rural school district, including six core content teachers, six elective teachers, and six administrators. Following the interviews, a …

A Closer Look At Quality: A Mixed Methods Study On International Teachers’ Perceptions Of Educational Technology-Focused Professional Development In South Carolina, Melissa Mcclary

Doctor of Education Dissertations

Educational technology (EdTech) is widely promoted as a means of improving instruction; however, limited research has examined how international teachers are supported through EdTech-focused professional development (PD) in South Carolina (SC) schools. Using a convergent mixed methods design, this study explored international teachers' perceptions of EdTech PD quality through the lens of Desimone's (2009) core features of effective PD and Expectancy-Value Theory (EVT). Quantitative data were collected from 81 respondents using the Teacher Professional Development (TPD) Monitor Survey (Richter & Richter, 2024), complemented by 16 semi-structured interviews. Survey results indicated high overall ratings, with clarity and structure, practical relevance, and …

Developing Collaboration And Community Through An Online Virtual Modality: Participatory Action Research, Jennifer Reed

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This action research study examined educators’ perceptions of collaboration and community within a virtual professional learning community and investigated how participation influenced collaborative actions over time. The study also compared the needs and goals of secondary and postsecondary educators participating in a shared VPLC model. Grounded in the Community of Inquiry and Online Collaborative Learning theoretical frameworks, this study addressed a growing need for effective, flexible professional learning structures that support collaboration across educational contexts. Data were collected from six educators, including three secondary and three postsecondary instructors, through pre- and post-administration of the Professional Learning Community Assessment–Revised, recorded virtual …

Exploring The Role Of Phonics Within A One-On-One Early Literacy Intervention, Katherine W. Herring

Doctor of Education Dissertations

Literacy is a strong predictor of academic achievement and long-term success beyond the school years; Therefore, educators must have access to a broad range of instructional resources, including evidence-based intervention models, to address students' diverse literacy needs. This study examined the role of phonics within a one-on-one Early Literacy Intervention, explored teachers’ understanding and experiences implementing phonics instruction in that context, and compared the phonics skills of students who successfully completed the intervention with those of the average first-grade student. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, the study integrated quantitative and qualitative data to provide a comprehensive analysis. Findings …

Playing With Fire: A Phenomenological Study Of Burnout Among Career And Technical Education Teachers And Factors That Fuel The Dilemma, Kaye C. Harris

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of Career and Technical Education (CTE) teachers who self-identified as having suffered from burnout. While burnout in education is a commonly researched topic, burnout related to CTE is underrepresented but relevant due to an increasing emphasis on the need for skills-based training. This study sought to understand the internal and external factors that contributed to teacher burnout and how shame, gaslighting, and toxic positivity influenced professional identity and emotional well-being. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used to conduct 14 personal interviews and a follow-up focus group consisting of six participants. Findings indicated that …

Exploring Teacher And Business Partner Perspectives On Cte Effectiveness, Jada Owenby

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study explored stakeholder perceptions of Career and Technical Education (CTE) program effectiveness for preparing students for postsecondary pathways. The investigation focused on CTE teachers’ and business partners’ perspectives about student readiness and workforce preparation. This study used qualitative research and a theoretical framework from the Human Capital Theory, the Social Cognitive Career Theory, and the College and Career Readiness Framework. Participants included nine high school CTE teachers from different career clusters and five local business partners who were currently aligned with the district CTE program. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. Interview data were analyzed using theme analysis. Both …

The Disenchanted Grove: Postcolonial Modernity And The Decline Of Ri’I Bamboo Governance In Flores, Indonesia, Handoyo Handoyo, Puji Hastuti, Lukas Rumboko Wibowo, Budiyanto Dwi Prasetyo, Surati Surati, Kresno Agus Hendarto, Lila Juniyanti, Dewi Ratna Kurnia Sari, Desmiwati Desmiwati, Sanusi Sanusi, Ane Dwi Septina, Ramawati Ramawati

Forest and Society

This article explores the erosion of ri’i, a traditional ecological governance system practiced by the Ngadha people in Flores, Indonesia, in the face of modernization and postcolonial development. Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with cultural elders, ritual practitioners, and local authorities, the study documents how ri’i—a ritual-based regulatory system for bamboo resource management—has been progressively dismantled through the combined pressures of technocratic governance, land commodification, and shifts toward individualism. Empirically, the main drivers identified are state land certification (including Sertifikat Hak Milik, SHM) and village modernization campaigns, which reconfigure communal tenure and everyday governance practices. Once embedded …

Stim1-Dependent Treg Dysfunction Promotes Cardiometabolic Hfpef: Insights From Patients And Animal Studies, Balaji Srinivas, Alluri Kiran, Hongmei Peng, Jiang Xu, Paula Fortuno, Jennifer May, Ismail El Moudden, Nour-Eddine Rhaleb, John M. Herre, Raymond L. Benza, Khalid Matrougui

Department of Biomedical and Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

Background

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) arises from chronic cardiometabolic and vascular stress and is increasingly recognized as an inflammatory syndrome with immune dysregulation. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are critical modulators of cardiovascular inflammation, yet the mechanisms driving Treg dysfunction in HFpEF remain poorly defined. stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1)-dependent calcium signaling is a key stress-responsive pathway in immune cells; however, its role in Treg maladaptation during HFpEF remains unknown.

Methods

Circulating Tregs from patients with and without HFpEF were analyzed for abundance, STIM1 expression, and stress-associated signaling pathways. To establish causality, mice with Treg-specific deletion of STIM1 …

4-H Livestock Field Day Sponsor Form, Hannah Majewski

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.

Nh Youth Code Of Conduct, Hannah Majewski

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.

Marketing Water Quality Friendly Services, Julia Peterson

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.

Welcome From The Editor, Joshua E. Young

Iowa Journal of Communication

No abstract provided.

Feasibility Study On The Development Of Indiana’S Connected And Automated Vehicle Roadmap And Strategic Plan, Can Cui, Juanwu Lu, Yupeng Zhou, Abin Mathew, Jue Zhou, Ziran Wang, Yaobin Chen

JTRP Technical Reports

This study provides INDOT with critical insights into major OEMs’ connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) development plans and related research and demonstration activities in several surrounding states, guiding infrastructure investment and policy decisions. The report delivers three outputs that guide the CAV technologies implementation in Indiana. First, it synthesizes the best regional practices and industry direction to distinguish what is feasible now from what requires further development. Second, it establishes a technical baseline that links priority applications to sensing and communications architectures with explicit attention to interoperability, security, and maintainability. Third, it defines an implementation framework that connects capital and …

Development Of Dashboards And Procedures For Using Connected Vehicle Data To Prioritize Investments In Electric Vehicle Related Infrastructure, Jairaj C. Desai, Nathaniel J. Sturdevant, George Mccue, Darcy M. Bullock

JTRP Technical Reports

The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program and the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program together provide $7.5 billion to support states with building out a nationwide EV charging network. Indiana’s Charging the Crossroads program, funded through the NEVI program, plans to invest almost $100 million to build an EV charging network along Indiana interstates and highways. There is broad consensus among states, that these fast charging station investments should be based upon quantitative geospatial data with the objective of maximizing the impact of the NEVI program investments.

However, traditional methods for monitoring electric vehicle (EV) usage have …

Guidelines For Use And Design Of Deep Foundations For Three-Sided Structures, Yao Wang, Rodrigo Salgado, Monica Prezzi

JTRP Technical Reports

Buried three-sided structures are widely used for roadway crossings and underpasses. Whereas spread footings are common, deep foundations are required when weak soils, scour risk, or site constraints exist. This study aimed to improve understanding of load-transfer mechanisms and develop guidance for the design of deep foundations supporting buried three-sided structures.

A nationwide survey of 34 state DOT engineers and 12 three-dimensional finite element analyses were conducted. Results show that greater stem wall height and thicker earth cover lead to a more uniform live-load distribution between piles. The most critical condition occurs when the design truck is placed near the …

Identify Bridge Design Guidelines For Wildlife Crossings, Jon Padfield, Kyle Squillace

JTRP Technical Reports

Annual vehicle miles driven in the United States doubled, from 1.6 trillion to 3.2 trillion in the 40 years between 1983 and 2023. Unfortunately, one side effect of the increase in vehicle miles driven has been the prevalence of Animal-Vehicle Collisions (AVCs).

As early as 1975, efforts began in some Western states to create safe animal passages such as the wildlife overpass over I-15 in Beaver, Utah. Wildlife passages increased in popularity from the 1970s through the 1990s, but they were mainly being designed and constructed in the Western United States.

Today, there is increasing and broader interest in safe …

Physics-Based Modelling Of Concrete Degradation Phenomena: Impact Of Construction Defects On Long Term Cost And Material Properties, Manuel Salmeron, Oscar D. Forero, Talha Faiz Mohammed, Kabir Shrivastava, Shirley J. Dyke, Julio A. Ramirez

JTRP Technical Reports

The quality of workmanship and adherence to specifications during the bridge construction phase of concrete decks, slabs, and continuous T-beams, are key factors on which future structural performance and durability hinge. If construction practices do not meet the required standards of quality, they may trigger early onset of deterioration processes that shorten the service life leading to unplanned interventions or unscheduled repairs, thus intensifying the need for maintenance actions and increasing costs during the service life of the bridge. Despite the consensus view that substandard construction practices reduce the performance of concrete structures, quantifying the impact is challenging. This difficulty …

Receiver, Vehicle, And Roadway Systems For A Dynamic Wireless Power Transfer Roadway Testbed, Oscar Andrés Moncada, Isaac Abram, Nicholas Frooninckx, Vatan Mehar, Chiara Cervini, O'Brien Ben, Bruno Cesar Krause Moras, Steve Pekarek, John E. Haddock, Dionysios Aliprantis, Aaron Brovont, Konstantina Gkritza, Rob Swanson

JTRP Technical Reports

A dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT) system using a novel three-phase transmitter/receiver design was embedded 2.4 in beneath the surface of an existing rigid pavement on US 52/US 231 in West Lafayette, Indiana, with 85 coils installed and paired with a retrofitted Class-8 Cummins electrified truck. The system successfully delivered 50–190 kW at speeds up to 65 mph with efficiencies approaching 85%, and all coils met electromagnetic balance targets; similar results were validated on a 3-coil testbed at Utah State University, with magnetic flux densities well below human exposure limits. Testing also demonstrated strong misalignment tolerance and reliable high-power delivery …

Relentless: The Pressures Shortening Law School Deanships And What Must Change, Katie Kempner, Patricia E. Roberts

Faculty Articles

It is no small thing when a law school loses its dean. The departure triggers a national search, stalls institutional momentum, disrupts fundraising, and requires rebuilding years of relationships with faculty, alumni, and university leadership, all while the institution navigates one of the most turbulent periods in legal education's history. Approximately 25 percent of the nation's law schools transition to a new dean in any given year. That reality prompted this study.

This study combined a survey of 624 current and former law school deans, which yielded 256 responses and data on 294 deanships, with 70 qualitative interviews conducted between …

Gender-Inclusive Language In Spanish: A Data-Informed Sociolinguistic Exploration Of Naming Variation, Silvia Rivera Alfaro, Jonathan Hanon

Publications and Research

ABSTRACT

This paper presents a data-informed sociolinguistic exploration of the variation in the names given to gender-inclusive language in Spanish. We use publicly available Google Trends (GT) data to describe the frequency of usage of different names over time and explore their geographical distribution. To account for the challenges and limitations of using Google Trends, we compare the data with information from two large linguistic corpora (CORPES XXI and Google Books Ngram Viewer). Using these tools, we generate small datasets to explore the intricacies of the topic addressed in this paper. In our literature review, we identified 17 names for …

Masculine Devotion And Moral Decay: The Paradox Of Chivalry In Malory's Le Morte Darthur, Julia Annunziato

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This thesis investigates how, within Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur, the concept of chivalry as a literary construct is misunderstood and misrepresented by the knights who attempt to uphold it. Through a close reading of Le Morte, this paper concludes that Malory presents chivalry not as a coherent moral code, but as a paradoxical system that both promotes and undermines the values it claims to uphold. While chivalry is typically meant to emphasize honor, loyalty, and spiritual devotion, Malory’s narrative reveals how these ideals are compromised by structures of masculine competition, performative identity, homosocial desire, and corrupted …

Reclaiming The Self: A Visual Narrative Of A Process Of Individuation Through Artistic Practice, Stacie Becker

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Reclaiming the Self: A Visual Narrative of a Process of Individuation Through Artistic Practice features a multidisciplinary practice that uses visual narrative, metaphor, and symbolism to reconcile the complex intersections of internal and external identity-shaping experiences, informed by lived experience as a woman. Working across painting, mixed media, printmaking, book arts, sculpture, and restorative medical tattooing, the artist dissects the tension between internal identity and external expectations, addressing themes of gender roles, relationships, trauma, and agency. Various artistic methods serve not only as a process but also as a parallel for reclaiming, healing, and restoring an authentic, unashamed sense of …

Contested Air: Politics, Prejudice, And Radio Broadcasting In New York State, 1925-1928, Sebastian Garcia

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This thesis examines the intersection between radio broadcasting as the "new media" of the 1920s and American political culture of the period, using New York Governor and 1928 Democratic presidential candidate Alfred E. Smith as a case study. Smith entered 1925 as a political lone wolf and left the year as a triumphant victor set to take the presidency. Building on the work of Smithian scholars, this thesis illuminates how Smith’s radio use remained central to this political transformation. Smith found in radio an apt space to bypass Republican opposition and mobilize the body politic through direct engagement, which, in …

Two Essays On Geopolitical Risk And Investment Decisions, Jie Hu

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

My first essay studies how global institutional investors adjust cross-country equity allocations in response to rising geopolitical risk. Using quarterly equity holdings of institutional investors over 1997–2023, combined with news-based global and country-specific geopolitical risk indices, I find that following increases in geopolitical risk within a country, foreign institutions actively reduce their allocations in that country and the nearby region. Elevated global geopolitical uncertainty triggers both a flight-to-home response toward domestic equities and a flight-to-safety effect toward U.S. equities. Investor responses are heterogeneous: Institutions with higher geopolitical risk sensitivity respond more aggressively, whereas larger or better-performing hedge funds often maintain …

Framing Home: Extending Beyond The Threshold, Kaitlin R. Kirsch

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This thesis body of work inspects the changes in the artist’s relationship to domesticity and their perceived sense of control over the spaces they have called home. By creating and embellishing spaces that subvert the threshold between the physical and psychic, the works stimulate feelings of comfort or discomfort. Installations of found materials, mixed media, and text-based dark humor, come together to account for this artist’s attempt to navigate the tediousness of daily life. The work takes into consideration the intangible rules that infiltrate a household, defining the framework in which a person learns to live within, or adapt to, …

Deep Brain Stimulation For The Management Of Non-Motor Symptoms Related To Parkinson’S Disease, Kyla A. Wallaszek

The PA Department Journal of Medical Science

Introduction: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a modern neurosurgical technique where electrodes are implanted in specific brain areas and deliver electrical impulses in order to help regulate abnormal brain activity. DBS is used for the management of several neurological conditions and was approved by the FDA for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease in 2003. The purpose of this review is to analyze the effectiveness of DBS for the management of the non-motor symptoms related to Parkinson's disease.

Methods: PubMed was searched using the key terms “Parkinson disease,” “deep brain stimulation,” “voice,” “sleep,” “mood,” “cognition,” and “dysphagia.” Operators and filters narrowed …

Glp-1 Agonists For Pediatric Obesity: A Clinical Review, Grace Burgin

The PA Department Journal of Medical Science

Introduction: Pediatric obesity is a chronic disease with multiple complex causes and many potential consequences if carried into adulthood. Lifestyle modifications alone have not been effective for all patients in the treatment of pediatric obesity. GLP-1 RAs already being prescribed in the adult population were also recently approved for pediatric patients. The purpose of this clinical review is to analyze the efficacy of GLP-1 RAs in decreasing markers associated with obesity, such as BMI, cholesterol, etc. in pediatric patients diagnosed with obesity.

Methods: PubMed was first searched using synonyms of the keywords “pediatric obesity,” “GLP-1 agonists,” “lifestyle modifications,” and “biomarkers …

Psilocybin Treatment For Refractory Depression: A Clinical Review, Hailey A. Jensen

The PA Department Journal of Medical Science

Introduction:

Depression is a widespread mental illness that affects a large portion of the world population and many of those who suffer from depression are resistant to treatment currently available. The purpose of this review is to compare the efficacy of psilocybin to the current available methods for the treatment of refractory depression.

Methods:

PubMed was searched with the key search terms: resistant depression, psilocybin therapy, and adults. Operators and filters narrowed down the search to 43 results. Four articles were then chosen based on quality and specificity with this review.

Results:

The articles included in this review compare the …

“I Don’T Always See A Future For Me Here”: Oppressive Political Pressures On Lgbtq+ College Students’ Well-Being, Jodi Linley, Olivia M. Copeland, Kathleen J. Buell, Cindy Ann Kilgo, Megan Pendleton, Alex C. Lange, N F. Tennessen

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

In recent decades, colleges have broadly supported LGBTQ+ students. Now, institutions have shuttered LGBTQ+ initiatives in response to political pressures, with little consideration for the effects on students. This study answers the question, what current policy factors do LGBTQ+ college students describe as affecting their well-being, and in what ways? We analyzed 426 responses from a multi-institution study of LGBTQ+ students. By and large, students feel anxious and fearful as they navigate the current climate. Our analysis illustrated numerous factors, from the President and his administration to states and general emboldened violence, and the real and potential consequences of those …

Forum Shopping, Statutes Of Limitations, And Borrowing Statutes, John F. Coyle

Faculty Publications

When a claim is stale in one state but timely in another, a rational plaintiff will always file a lawsuit in the latter jurisdiction. To discourage plaintiffs from shopping around for the longest statute of limitations, thirty-six states have enacted laws known as borrowing statutes. A borrowing statute directs the state’s courts to apply the shorter statute of limitations of another state—typically the one where the cause of action arose—to bar the plaintiff’s claim.

The conventional wisdom holds that borrowing statutes merely restrain plaintiffs from filing lawsuits in out-of-the-way jurisdictions with no connection to the lawsuit. This Article reveals that, …