Digital Commons Network^™

Budget Fy 2026 - 2027, Swosu Administration

SWOSU Fiscal Year Budgets

No abstract provided.

July 2026, Swosu Rural Health Center

RURAL ROCKS

Rural Health Center

As we prepare to kick off our first semester in the new Jerry & Margaret Hodge College of Pharmacy and Rural Health Center, there is a lot to be excited about! It has been incredible to watch this vision become a reality, and we can't wait to welcome students, faculty, healthcare partners, and community members into a space designed to strengthen rural healthcare across western Oklahoma. The opportunities for collaboration, education, and innovation are endless, and we are especially looking forward to creating more hands-on learning experiences for our students while continuing to build strong partnerships that …

Interpretable Machine Learning Of Plasma Proteomics Reveals Stage-Specific Signatures Across The Alzheimer's Disease Continuum, Hemshankar Laugi

2026 Spring Honors Capstones Projects

Alzheimer’s pathology begins years before clinical symptoms, starting early with amyloid-β accumulation, followed by tau deposition and neurodegeneration. Although existing tools, such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) screening and PET/MRI imaging, can accurately track disease progression, they are invasive, expensive, and not scalable for population-level screening. So, there is a growing interest in using blood-based plasma biomarkers as a scalable alternative. While recent studies demonstrate strong predictive performance with plasma biomarkers, most rely on a small set of canonical blood-based protein biomarkers such as amyloid-β, p-tau, and neurofilament light. These biomarkers primarily reflect downstream brain pathology and may fail to capture …

Mapping Minority Investigative Powers In Congress, David Rapallo

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

“Shut down the Senate . . .” “Roll over and play dead . . .” In the first hundred days of President Donald Trump’s second term, these were the rallying cries of two far ends of a debate among Democrats about how to respond to the administration’s unprecedented actions. This debate, which rages on today, has been marked by a lack of specificity about the various oversight tools available to members of the minority party in Congress, particularly when they investigate whether the Executive Branch is faithfully executing the laws Congress passes. Scholarship too has focused little on the full …

Making Ai Interesting And Safe For K-6 Students, Anshi Moreno Jimenez, Fred Klein, Mason Dong, Kunal Jain, Jasmine Gu, Yuanheng Mao

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

This group project explores strategies for making artificial intelligence engaging, educational, and safe for K-6 students. The project addresses concerns associated with irresponsible AI use, including risks to children, unnecessary use of natural resources and computing power, and the development of unproductive AI habits. It presents classroom activities designed to help young students understand AI as a technology rather than simply a toy. One activity uses AI-generated images to encourage creativity, clear communication, critical analysis, collaboration, and reflection on the computational costs and limitations of generative AI. A second activity, “AI Detective,” teaches students to critically evaluate AI-generated responses for …

Sdg 4.1.1 Minimum Proficiency Levels. Definition And Blueprint For Assessment, Prue Anderson, Andrew Mannion, Ursula Schwantner, Maurice Walker, Colin Watson, Toby Simmer

Global education monitoring

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 aims to ensure that, by 2030, “all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.” The primary indicator 4.1.1 concerns the proficiency of girls and boys in two learning areas (reading and mathematics) at three stages of education: at the end of lower primary, at the end of primary, and at the end of lower secondary. Large-scale learning assessments are essential tools to capture data on learning outcomes and to provide system-level evidence on education quality and equity. In the context of SDG 4, …

Examining The Relationship Between Trauma-Informed Safety Drill Practices And School-Level Chronic Absenteeism In Maine Secondary Schools, Tina Nightingale

Dissertations

School safety practices can influence students' perceptions of safety, emotional well-being, and engagement in the educational environment; however, limited research has examined whether trauma-informed safety drill practices are associated with measurable educational outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative, non-experimental, correlational study was to examine the relationship between trauma-informed safety drill practices and school-level chronic absenteeism in Maine middle and high schools. Guided by trauma-informed care, adolescent neurodevelopment, and Protection Motivation Theory, the study investigated whether higher levels of trauma-informed implementation of safety drills, as measured by the Trauma-Informed Safety Drill Practices Index (TISDPI), were associated with lower rates of chronic …

Exploring Primary Care Providers’ Compassionate Care And Their Evidence-Based Practice With Death, Grief, And Loss: Patient Experience And Perspective, Kathryn Krzykala

Dissertations

Research on primary care providers’ (PCPs) education regarding Death, Grief, and Loss (DGL) remains limited. Specifically, data is lacking regarding patients' perceptions and opinions on what they need and expect from their PCPs regarding grief and loss. This exploratory mixed-method study comprised 146 participants who had experienced death and non-death loss. It examined participants' perceptions of 1) PCP compassion, 2) PCP utilization of evidence-based grief and loss practices, 3) their own level of comfort discussing DGL with their PCPs during medical visits, and 4) their personal grief and loss experiences. The findings revealed that PCPs' grief-informed evidence-based treatment, as reflected …

Implementing Student Choice Through Social-Emotional Learning To Support Independence And Motivation In Elementary Education, Allison Sloan

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Most people feel more motivated and invested in the work they are doing when they have a voice in the matter. This remains true for elementary students with their school work. This capstone paper analyzes and compares research articles to answer the guiding question: How can classroom strategies grounded in SEL and student choice promote independence while supporting diverse learning needs? The guiding question and project were created due to a noticeable lack of choice being represented and provided in elementary classrooms. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between student choice, social-emotional learning, and student independence …

Finding The Confidence To Speak: Reducing Public Speaking Anxiety In Secondary English Students, Nickolas Johnson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Public speaking is an essential academic, professional, and civic skill, yet many secondary students experience anxiety when asked to speak in front of peers and when assigned a presentation. This capstone project explored the question: How can secondary English language arts teachers develop methods to decrease anxiety around students who struggle with public speaking? The end result of this project is a Google Site resource guide that is designed for secondary English language arts teachers. The site provides background information on public speaking anxiety in the classroom, a bank of low-stakes speaking activities that can be used independently or in …

How Mentoring Can Close The Gender Gap In Post-Secondary Education, Jared Hinkley

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The purpose of this project was to examine the causes of the post-secondary enrollment gap between young men and women and create a curriculum that uses mentoring to help narrow the divide. The research question: How could mentoring for middle-school-aged males help narrow the post-secondary enrollment gap between boys and girls? was developed after self-reflection on my own middle school experiences, as well as reading well-documented support showing the need for male guidance, especially for young men. The literature reveals that school-based mentoring programs typically show limited success compared to community-based mentoring. However, some school-based mentoring focused on task-oriented goals …

Authentic Material Use In English Language Development Classrooms, Kenneth Fields

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

With attention on the topic of globalization at an all time high, more and more focus has been shifted towards student-centric, evidence-based approaches for second language education. In order to address the perceived need of more culturally-centered content, this project attempts to answer the question: What are the benefits of using authentic materials over grammar-based texts and how can authentic materials be implemented into low-proficiency ELD classrooms? Authentic materials, or materials created by native language speakers not for the purposes of L2 education, have been gaining more popularity among educational researchers as second language acquisition theories have begun to favor …

Supported Decision-Making And The Inclusion Of People Who Lack Decisional Capacity In Greater Than Minimal Risk Research, Aaron Eli Segal, David Wendler, Dana Howard

Faculty and Staff Publications

In recent years, some have argued that supported decision-making can be ethically superior to surrogate decision-making with respect to decisions involving adults with cognitive and intellectual impairments or disabilities. In this paper, we argue that supported decision-making could also be ethically superior to surrogate decision-making in the context of clinical research that involves greater than minimal net risks. In current practice, adults who lack decisional capacity are often excluded from research that involves greater than minimal net risks (call this the minimal risk requirement). While this approach is intended to protect them, it can be ethically problematic, in part because …

Replacing Surrogate Decision-Making With Supported Decision-Making For Minimal Risk Research, Jennifer Hawkins, Aaron Eli Segal, David Wendler, Dana Howard

Faculty and Staff Publications

We advocate for a change in the way individuals with cognitive impairment are enrolled in minimal risk clinical research. We do so in the hope that such a change will lead to more cognitively impaired individuals being enrolled in research. Our proposal applies only to cases where would-be participants retain some interest in decision-making as well as the ability to express a decision. In these cases, we argue that the common practice whereby researchers either obtain consent from the individual or consent from a surrogate and assent from the individual, is ethically unnecessary. Instead, a process of facilitated decision-making based …

Board Exam Preparation Resource Trends In Academic Health Sciences Libraries Serving Colleges Of Osteopathic Medicine Programs, Joanne M. Muellenbach, Kyle Robinson, Hsin-Liang Chen, Harold S. Bright Iv, Lori A. Fitterling

Faculty and Staff Publications

Background: The study seeks to identify the board exam preparation (prep) resources made available to medical students by academic health sciences libraries and other departments within U.S. colleges of osteopathic medicine (COM) programs, and the extent to which these resources are utilized by medical students and educators.

Methods: The study was conducted in two phases. In phase one, forty-two COM library directors were invited to complete a survey regarding their usage, funding, and access models for available board prep resources. In phase two, semi-structured interviews were conducted via Zoom to explore the library's role in providing access to these resources. …

How Preservice Teachers' Confidence Is Impacted By A Geometry Course, Stephanie Hastings, Gabriel T. Matney

School of Inclusive Teacher Education Faculty Publications

A large body of literature supports the notion that a K-12 teacher's confidence in teaching and content impacts student achievement. This study explores a group of preservice teachers and their confidence in teaching geometric concepts. The eight participants were preservice secondary mathematics teachers enrolled in a high-school-focused geometry course centered on pedagogical content knowledge. Using mixed methods, the study examined how their confidence to teach geometric topics changed over the course, with participants rating that confidence on a 4-point Likert scale. Confidence to teach most topics increased significantly. Six themes emerged from the second round of interviews: (1) deep understanding …

Modeling And Simulation Of Efficient State Information Diffusion In Wireless Ad Hoc Networks, Mengyao Jia, Shaozhu Gu, Junhan Wang, Denghao Wang, Du Xu, Xiaoning Zhang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To solve the problems of significant communication overhead and limited real-time response capability in the traditional flooding-based state diffusion mechanism, an efficient diffusion algorithm based on regional partitioning and information compression was proposed. A multi-dimensional feature clustering method integrating geographic distance and link quality was used to achieve high-cohesion network partitioning through weighted Euclidean distance and the K-means algorithm; a dynamic selection mechanism for representative nodes was designed to conduct comprehensive scoring by combining the link quality and geographic centrality of nodes, realizing the efficient compression and aggregated transmission of regional information. Simulation results indicate that the algorithm significantly …

Improving Continuity Of Care: Evaluating Universal Nursing Handoff Sheets, Elizabeth Ifeloluwa Sanya

Doctor of Nursing Practice Posters and Presentations

Effective communication during nursing handoffs is essential for safe, patient-centered care, as breakdowns in communication are a leading cause of adverse patient outcomes. At a large academic level I trauma center, inconsistent nursing handoff practices were identified across progressive care units following the COVID-19 pandemic. This variability contributed to incomplete transfer of patient information and was associated with increased patient safety incidents, including delayed wound care, central line dressing lapses, and medication errors involving high-alert therapies. The purpose of this DNP project was to plan, implement, and evaluate the use of  standardized nursing handoff sheet and its impact on continuity …

Harnessing Nitrogen Fixing Plants For A Bio-Solar Nitrogen Economy, Taufiq Nawaz, Liping Gu, James Young, Riffat Latif, Mazhar Sher, Lan Xu, Shah Fahad, Ruanbao Zhou

Natural Resource Management Faculty Publications

The fossil fuel–driven chemosynthesis of ammonia for nitrogen fertilizers is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, releasing approximately 1130 million metric tons (MMT) of CO₂-equivalent annually. In addition, the extensive use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers (≈108 MMT annually) results in substantial emissions of nitrous oxide (N₂O), while nearly 50% of applied nitrogen is lost through leaching and runoff, leading to widespread nitrate pollution and ecosystem degradation. In contrast, solar-powered biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) by nitrogen-fixing plants offers a sustainable alternative that supports agricultural productivity and healthy ecosystem resilience. BNF by leguminous and non-leguminous plants …

Beyond Ai Detection: A Pilot Study Of Integrevise And Viva-Based Verification Of Student Understanding In Ai-Mediated Assessment, James Hutson, Kyle Poyer, Kelvin Adshola Atologun

Faculty Scholarship

This article examines the Integrevise platform through a repeated cross-sectional, multicycle pilot case study of viva-based verification in AI-mediated assessment environments. Integrevise pairs a submitted written artifact with a short adaptive viva in which students explain their work, reasoning, and application in their own words. Rather than functioning as an AI detector or automated grading system, the platform operates as a diagnostic assessment layer intended to surface comprehension, authorship confidence, and disengagement risk before final grades become the only available signal. The pilot was conducted across Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 at a private liberal arts college in the Midwest; …

Therapy With Empathy

DePaul Magazine

DePaul's Speech Language Pathology and Occupational Therapy graduate programs, newly aligned in the Department of Rehabilitative Sciences and Professions at the College of Science and Health, employ a community assets-based approach to serving diverse populations and individuals' needs across the lifespan.

Millennial Memories

DePaul Magazine

Social media influencer Kate Steinberg (CMN '13), who studied public relations and advertising at DePaul, revisits her youth and DePaul days to create viral content with a nostalgic edge.

Electronic Resource Updates - 2026 Q2, Brigitte Galauner, Gregg Harris

Electronic Resources Quarterly Updates

No abstract provided.

Voices Unheard: A Phenomenological Study Of Access And Inclusion Of College Students With Autism In The Southeastern United States, Janet L. Kuchinski

Dissertations

Although access to higher education has expanded for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), many continue to encounter barriers to meaningful inclusion, belonging, and participation within the college environment. The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) study was to explore the lived experiences of college students with ASD regarding access and inclusion in higher education. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit five college students with ASD who were at least 19 years of age, currently enrolled in college, and registered with disability services. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted via Microsoft Teams and analyzed using established IPA procedures. …

Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 41. Violet Wallace’S ‘Natural History For Infants’, Charles H. Smith

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

In 1893 Violet Wallace (1869-1945), daughter of Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913), published a serialized work entitled ‘Natural History for Infants’.

Reclaiming The Sacred Science Of Garbha Samskara: The Adi Shaiva Tradition's Vision Of Conscious Conception And Prenatal Care, Rani Muthukrishnan

All Faculty Scholarship (Archived)

This paper examines Garbha Samskara practices described in the Garbha Upanishad within the Adi Shaiva tradition, exploring how ancient prenatal sciences cultivated cognitive development and spiritual consciousness in children. Drawing on original Sanskrit verses, the eNpregnancy program revived by Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism Sri Nithyananda Paramashivam (SPH), Akashic record readings, historical accounts of royal women who raised enlightened children, and testimonies of parents participating in the eNpregnancy program in modern times, the study demonstrates that pre-colonial Indian societies possessed advanced understandings of fetal consciousness and maternal–fetal bonding. It argues that modern Western educational paradigms and the contemporary expectations imposed on …

Characteristics Of Intensive Care Unit Registries - Findings From The Global Registry Icu Datasets (Grid) Survey, Luigi Pisani, Paola Lecce, Cornelius Sendagire, Vrindha Pari, Carlo Olivieri, Rabiul Uddin, Diptesh Aryal, Priyantha Athapattu, Sean Bagshaw, Wangari Siika

Anaesthesiology, East Africa

Background: Intensive care unit registries, which aim to improve the quality of intensive care unit care through benchmarking and quality improvement initiatives, are active worldwide, with considerable dishomogeneity. We aimed to map core datasets, additional variables, and research activities of these registries.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was disseminated to registry leads between October 2023 and June 2024. The survey was structured into four main topics: registry characteristics and coverage, core dataset features, additional modules, and registry-enabled research.

Results: Leads of 34/42 national registries responded (response rate 81%), covering 3,337 intensive care units, with a larger representation from …

Adjustment Challenges In The International Student Population At A Rural Mid-Size Midwestern University, Sara El Bizri Hussein

All NMU Master's Theses

This qualitative descriptive study explored the adjustment experiences of non-athlete international students attending a rural, mid-size Midwestern university and identified the challenges and supports that shaped their transition.

Guided by Berry’s acculturation framework and informed by theories of student integration and coping, data were collected through an initial survey and semi-structured interviews. Seven participants were interviewed. Interview transcripts were analyzed using open and focused coding procedures to identify recurring patterns and themes.

Analysis revealed that international student adjustment is multidimensional and influenced by social, academic, emotional, cultural, environmental, and structural factors. Three major themes emerged from the data: (1) Social …

Spreading Awareness And Advocating For The Shortage Of Special Education Resources In Martin County, Florida, Lynn Potter

Selected Social Change Portfolios in Prevention, Intervention, and Consultation

Goal Statement:

The goal is to prevent staff shortages of special education and student support professionals in Martin County, FL, and advocate for systemic changes that improve staff retention, raise awareness, and expand special education resources.

Significant Findings:

The shortage of ESE resources in Martin County, Florida, is affecting students’ success outcomes and relationships between parents and educators. With a 42% turnover rate over the past four years, the district needs to drastically improve teacher retention (WPBF 25 News, 2023). The western zone of Indiantown, which has a minority population of Hispanic and Latino students, is critically affected (United States …

Highly Confident But Slightly Uncertain: A Long Overdue Reinvention Of The School Scientific Method, Teaching - Volume 4, Stephen Demeo

Publications and Research

In Volume 4, the last book of the series, I continue the argument for greater parity between conceptual knowledge—the "what" of science—and methodological knowledge—the "how" of science—but in the context of teacher instruction. To this end, two literature reviews are presented: One on how students build confidence, specifically regarding the reliability or consistency of measurement or results, and the other on scientific uncertainty. Research studies focusing on student misconceptions are summarized and organized from the elementary to the college level. These literature reviews describe invaluable ways for teachers to improve their instruction, while providing examples of experiments that can be …