Digital Commons Network^™

Call To Action: Evidence-Based Perinatal Care In Lebanon, Clare Beymer, Abigail C. Brandt, Ryan O'Rourke, Anum Effendi, Lindsay Kaufman, Brandon Beattie, Elizabeth Prevou Trad

GW Research Showcase 2021-2026

No abstract provided.

Who Is A Champion Teacher? A Comparative Longitudinal Analysis Of Teacher Practices In Teacher Professional Development Programmes In East Africa, Jane Rarieya, Esther Kibga, Omari Abunga, Fredrick Mtenzi, Nyagwegwe Wwango

Institute for Educational Development, East Africa

This comparative mixed-methods study defines and profiles the “champion teacher” by synthesising primary longitudinal and cross-sectional data from two complementary teacher professional development (TPD) initiatives implemented across East Africa (Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda): the long-term, pre-service teacher-oriented Foundations for Learning (F4L) programme and the short-course, in‑service teacher Strengthening Education Systems East Africa (SESEA) programme. The champion teacher construct is operationalised through a Champion Teacher Index (CTI) comprising three integrated domains: head (cognitive pedagogical knowledge), hands (psychomotor instructional practice), and heart (affective, leadership, and gender-responsive dispositions). Quantitative analysis revealed statistically significant longitudinal differences between the programmes. F4L teachers demonstrated higher mean …

Virtual Reality As Pedagogical Space: A Usability Study Of An Interactive Exhibition For Culturally-Based Design Education, Abdul Bashiru Yussif

MFA Theses Exhibitions Final Papers

View the Digital Exhibition of Virtual Reality as Pedagogical Space

This research presents an immersive, culturally grounded pedagogical framework that integrates Virtual Reality (VR) with experiential and project-based learning. Despite the potential of immersive technologies to enhance engagement, contemporary design curricula often exhibit a disconnect between theoretical instruction and embodied practice. This study addresses that gap by aligning virtual reality and emerging technology with design theories, culturally responsive pedagogies and localized knowledge systems.

Drawing upon David Kolb’s experiential learning cycle, the research validates active engagement and reflection into interactive, three-dimensional environments. The research also adopted two other frameworks in the …

Navigating Faith, Race, And Belonging: A Qualitative Study Of Students Of Color At A Private Christian University, Eunice Hong

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

No abstract provided.

The Problems With Sin, Steve Beers

Growth: The Journal of the Association for Christians in Student Development

No abstract provided.

Rethinking Objectivity: The Problem Of Pretext In The Fourth Amendment, Monu S. Bedi

Indiana Law Journal

Pretextual encounters continue to erode the legitimacy of the Supreme Court’s Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. Simply put, a police officer can act on personal bias or animus as long as the search or seizure is deemed “objectively reasonable.” Numerous scholars (e.g., Bennett Capers, Gabriel Chin, and David Harris) have critiqued this objective standard, contending it perpetuates discriminatory practices, particularly against communities of color. The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg herself suggested that the Court might need to reconsider the legal precedent she helped establish. More recently, Orin Kerr has also argued that the Court’s reliance on objective determinations is inconsistent with …

The Addison C. Harris Lecture: Intellectual Diversity Mandates And The Freedom To Teach, Keith E. Whittington

Indiana Law Journal

This Essay provides the first examination of the Indiana Senate Bill 202, which was adopted into law in the spring of 2024. The new law imposes an “intellectual diversity” mandate on public university classroom teaching in the state. The law is novel in its approach but is part of a larger movement to intercede in what is taught in university classrooms. The intellectual diversity mandate raises difficult and unexamined conceptual, normative, and practical problems that will now demand attention from university officials in Indiana and that might soon confront university administrators in other states across the country if the Indiana …

Wildfires, Smoke Pollution, And Household Purchasing Behaviors, Tamara Sheldon, Crystal Zhan

Faculty Publications

In this paper, we investigate households’ behavioral responses to wildfires in California to understand their mitigation and adaptation strategies. We combine daily household-level consumer purchase data from the NielsenIQ Consumer Panel with detailed wildfire incident and smoke exposure data from various sources. Our analysis reveals that wildfires reduce retail trips and overall spending, both in-store and online, likely due to evacuations. However, wildfire-driven smoke increases purchases of essential goods, indicating adaptive behavior. More experienced households tend to respond more cautiously, and we observe heterogeneity in responses based on income, age, and pre-existing health conditions. These findings highlight the complexity and …

A Word From The Writing Team (April 2026), Pam Walter, Mfa, Laura Deloretta, Phd

A Word From the Writing Team (Newsletter)

No abstract provided.

Human Biology Group Project, Wroud Saleh

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

People's Upr Written Record: Compiled By The International Human Rights Clinic At The University Of Illinois Chicago School Of Law And The Human Rights At Home Litigation Clinic At The Saint Louis University School Of Law, Sarah Dávila A., Lauren E. Bartlett

Faculty White Papers

This written record compiles the lived experiences of directly impacted persons. Directly impacted persons include people who have personally faced the conditions, policies, or practices documented in this written record in the United States and who have chosen to share their testimonies. The testimonies in this written record include those provided in-person, via video recording, which have been transcribed, or in writing. Testimonies are presented anonymously with ▊ sign as names and identifiable information has been redacted. Their accounts provide first-hand evidence of how these human rights issues operate in practice, offering essential context and depth that cannot be captured …

Inferring The Breakdown Scales Of The Chiral Expansions For GA And MN, Andreas Ekström, Daniel R. Phillips, Lucas Platter, Matthias Schindler

Faculty Publications

We apply Bayesian inference to the order-by-order chiral perturbation theory (χPT) expansions for the axial-vector coupling constant g_A and the nucleon mass m_N, and thereby infer the scales at which χPT breaks down for these two observables. Using a pointwise Bayesian analysis, we find that the inferred breakdown scales are notably different for the two observables. For the chiral expansion of g_A, we obtain 251⁺²⁰₋₅₀ MeV and 211⁺²⁰₋₃₀ MeV using two distinct sets of low-energy constants, while for the chiral expansion of m_N we infer a significantly …

Journal Of The Arts And Special Education: Volume 6, Issue 1

Journal of the Arts and Special Education

No abstract provided.

Let’S Dance!: A Community Partnership Fostering Movement, Connections, And Inclusion, Michelle J. Cook, Michele Dunleavy, Carrie A. Payne, Sarah E. Whitney, Matthew Levy, Jack M. Mcbride, Ella Garrity

Journal of the Arts and Special Education

Despite the many documented physical and social benefits, dance is frequently not accessible to individuals with and without disabilities. We share an inclusive dance community partnership called Let’s Dance! that was developed to foster movement, connections, and inclusion. To increase awareness and inclusive dance opportunities, this community partnership involved (a) a workshop on inclusive dance practices for preservice teachers and (b) a community-based inclusive Let’s Dance! dance event. Following a review of the literature outlining the benefits of dance and the barriers that need to be dismantled to make dance more inclusive for students of all abilities, we share inclusive …

Interprofessional Perspective: Development Of The National Academies Of Practice Joint Health Literacy Position Statement, Teresa Wagner, Vincent Salyers, Bich Nguyen, Tanya Sudia, Kate Taylor, Devora R. Winkfield, Nancy Colletti, Felicia Chew, Sarah Manspeaker

Department of Occupational Therapy Faculty Papers

No abstract provided.

Dnp Final Report: An Evidence-Based Project To Decrease Stress In Undergraduate Nursing Students, Elaine Wallace

DNP Final Reports

Stress among undergraduate nursing students is a well-documented concern that negatively affects academic performance, clinical readiness, well-being, and program retention. Stress levels are often heightened before clinical skills check-offs, highlighting the need for practical, evidence-based interventions. This Doctor of Nursing Practice quality improvement project examined whether mindfulness-based mandala coloring could reduce perceived stress in undergraduate nursing students. Using the PICOT framework, the project evaluated whether undergraduate nursing students (P) who participated in mindfulness-based mandala coloring (I), compared with no intervention (C), experienced reduced perceived stress levels (O) over a 12-week implementation period (T).

A comprehensive search of the literature supported …

Steric And Electronic Considerations Of Ester Hydrolysis: Updating A Longstanding Physical Organic Kinetics Experiment, Mara J. Aucoin

Chemistry Theses

A current, longstanding undergraduate physical chemistry kinetics experiment uses UV-Vis spectrophotometry to follow the hydrolysis of para-nitrophenyl acetate (NPA) with an imidazole (Im) catalyst. The catalyzed and uncatalyzed reaction paths can be studied simultaneously under pseudo first order conditions ([Im]>>>[NPA]). To obtain the rate constants for the catalyzed and uncatalyzed reactions, the concentration of imidazole is varied between reactions and then plotted against the observed rate constant (k_obs).This produces a linear line where the slope is equal to the rate constant of the catalyzed reaction (k_cat) and the intercept is equal to …

Targeting Oncogenes: Development And Characterization Of Aurka And Her2 Inhibitors, Itzel Montoya

Chemistry Theses

Targeted inhibition of oncogenes has remained a key strategy in the development of more potent, effective, and less toxic therapeutic anticancer agents. Among the most clinically significant signaling pathways are those mediated by the Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2) and Aurora Kinase A (AurKA). HER2 is a member of the ErbB receptor family that supports cell growth and proliferation through downstream signaling of the PI3K and MAPK pathways and is closely linked to more aggressive tumors and therapeutic resistance. AurKA is a protein kinase essential for mitotic spindle assembly, centrosome maturation, and other key processes in cell cycle …

Understanding P53 Regulation On Transposable Elements In Cancer, Xuan Qu

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Transposable elements (TEs), traditionally known as “jumping genes”, are known to have the ability to move in the genome and alter the activation of transcriptions from nearby genes. Taking up nearly half of the human genome, TEs have evolved, and some have been selected to play important roles in biological processes. We found that in human diseases such as cancer, global hypomethylation resurrects many ordinarily silenced TEs. These TEs can often serve as alternative promoters for oncogenes and play functionally meaningful roles in driving disease processes. One of the top genetic mutation status that correlates with differential numbers of TE …

National Fund For Children In Kazakhstan: Vision And Purpose, Askhat Aimagambetov

Center for Social Development Research

This Perspective presents the address given by Askhat Aimagambetov, honorable member of the Majilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, on the occasion of “The National Fund for Children of Kazakhstan: Policy Innovation and Potential for Global Impacts,” an international symposium held at Maqsut Narikbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan, on October 30, 2025. The Center for Social Development is honored to publish his remarks.

Daily Eastern News: April 01, 2026, Eastern Illinois University

Daily Eastern News: 2025-2026

No abstract provided.

The Extension Newsletter, Issue 119, Spring 2026, Wright State University Retirees Association

The Extension Newsletter

This issue of The Extension shares updates from the Wright State University Retirees Association, including upcoming events, member news, and organizational developments. It features sections such as book recommendations, obituaries, poetry, and an oral history interview highlighting a retiree’s career. The newsletter emphasizes community engagement and ongoing connections among retirees.

Zambia: Teaching And Cultural Immersion, Darnelle Hillard, Jasmine Pena, Jourdan Summers, Tamiel White

International Professional Development Partnerships (IPDP) Consortium

As Childhood Education majors at Buffalo State, we chose to participate in the IPDS–Zambia program to broaden our pedagogical perspective and gain firsthand experience with education in a different cultural context. Having grown up in the United States under our education system, we were eager to observe how Zambian educators employ creativity and resourcefulness to deliver meaningful instruction despite limited material resources. This experience reshaped our understanding of effective teaching shifting our focus as a whole from reliance on technology to the central importance of relationships, adaptability, and cultural respect.

Consensus Ad Artificialis: Contract Theory Meets The Genai Mind, Katie Szilagyi, Marina Pavlovic´

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

The advent of generative AI (GenAI) has generated shockwaves across industries. Many established professions are grappling with how GenAI’s functionality transforms their daily activities, staying power, and raison d’eˆtre. GenAI’s newfound facility with words and language has rapidly encroached upon the purview of lawyers, whose trade has long been expertise with words. While some worry about lawyers’ place in a GenAI-oriented future economy, others are optimistic about the transformative potential GenAI offers as a tool to the practicing lawyer. Legal service providers have been quick to adopt GenAI tools in the name of efficiency, harnessing its generative power for tasks …

Who Is A Champion Teacher? A Comparative Longitudinal Analysis Of Teacher Practices In Teacher Professional Development Programmes In East Africa, Jane Rarieya, Esther Kibga, Omari Abunga, Fredrick Mtenzi, Nyagwegwe Wango

Institute for Educational Development, East Africa

This comparative mixed-methods study defines and profiles the “champion teacher” by synthesising primary longitudinal and cross-sectional data from two complementary teacher professional development (TPD) initiatives implemented across East Africa (Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda): the long-term, pre-service teacher-oriented Foundations for Learning (F4L) programme and the short-course, in‑service teacher Strengthening Education Systems East Africa (SESEA) programme. The champion teacher construct is operationalised through a Champion Teacher Index (CTI) comprising three integrated domains: head (cognitive pedagogical knowledge), hands (psychomotor instructional practice), and heart (affective, leadership, and gender-responsive dispositions). Quantitative analysis revealed statistically significant longitudinal differences between the programmes. F4L teachers demonstrated higher mean …

Staging Technological Change: Media Ecology, Cultural Memory, And Fantasy Theme Analysis In The Tesla Cybertruck Unveiling, John Rodgers

Communication Theses

This thesis examines contemporary product launches as communicative events, arguing that they help shape how technological change is publicly interpreted and remembered. Drawing on media ecology and cultural memory, and using Fantasy Theme Analysis as the primary method, the study analyzes Tesla’s 2019 Cybertruck unveiling as a case of symbolic meaning-making at the moment of introduction and in its immediate circulation. The analysis identifies four dominant fantasy themes that organize the launch’s symbolic world and cohere into a rhetorical vision presenting Tesla as a disruptive actor introducing a resilient technology for an already arriving future. It then traces how that …

Chalmers Library Research Award Winner 2026, Cooper Bertschi

Chalmers Library Research Award

No abstract provided.

What Common Themes Are Challengers Trying To Silence And What Would Be Lost Without Them?, Corrine H. Martello

Richard T. Schellhase Essay Prize in Ethics

This research paper aims to analyze the controversies surrounding The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky, three commonly challenged books that are often found in high school English classes, in order to answer the question “what themes in these books are challengers trying to silence, and what would be lost without them?”. It will be broken into four sections, Alienation, Mental Health Struggles & Trauma, The Loss of Innocence, and Exploring Identity, which are common themes presented in all three books. …

"Under The Fig-Tree": Anti-Federalist Conceptions Of American National Identity, Clara Kernodle

Tenor of Our Times

The constitutional convention of 1787 gave America some of her most energetic and exciting few months in American history. The Federalists proposed the Constitution as a replacement for existing government, opposed by Anti-Federalists on principled grounds. Thus ensued a mountain of political writing and propaganda that historians still study today. The Anti-Federalists lost the debate, and then were lost to history. Few Americans have even heard of the Anti-Federalists and even fewer scholars study their writings. But reading and evaluating Anti-Federalist writing is an important part of studying the Founding era and Constitutional debates. The Anti-Federalists, as much as their …

Obscuring Vivian Maier, Caroline Yuratich

Richard T. Schellhase Essay Prize in Ethics

Vivian Maier, despite being unknown during her lifetime, has undoubtedly become one of the most impactful photographers of the twentieth century. Her vast oeuvre has been shown worldwide, her bold and unconventional photographs rapidly capturing the attention of millions. Maier primarily photographed the streets of Chicago in the 1950s to 70s, snapping people and storefronts on her iconic Rolleiflex camera. Her most well-known works are perhaps her self-portraits, and her foreboding upward-shot street portraits have also taken the stage as some of her best work. However, people who knew her during her lifetime state that they knew almost nothing about …