Digital Commons Network^™

Sustainability Fee Committee Year End Report [2024-2025], East Tennessee State University

University Level Committee Year End Reports

No abstract provided.

Repowering Through Indigenous Research Methodologies: A Case Study Of Culturally Appropriate Mental Health Interventions For Native/ Indigenous Men, Stephen Silva-Brave

Social Work Theses - Archive

Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing have the power to strengthen social work and healing practices for all communities. This study explores how relationships and connections create spaces that feel more like ceremony than research, where trust, storytelling, and shared knowledge guide the way. Bringing Native/Indigenous (N/I) men together in Talking Circles, this work reflects how culturally rooted approaches can shape meaningful mental health support that honors lived experience and community care. Instead of following rigid models created outside of Indigenous ways of life, this approach prioritizes relational accountability, centering voices often excluded from traditional research. Through conversations with …

The Invisible Struggle: Unveiling The Realities Of Living With Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Maura A. Stewart

Social Work Theses - Archive

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) is a group of rare connective tissue disorders that impact multiple systems of the body and are frequently misunderstood or misdiagnosed. This thesis explores the lived experiences of adults with EDS, focusing on the physical, emotional, and systemic challenges they face in daily life and healthcare. Using a mixed-methods survey, data were collected from 83 participants across the United States and beyond. The results revealed common themes of delayed diagnosis, medical dismissal, mental health struggles, and lack of access to knowledgeable providers. While chronic pain and fatigue were the most frequently reported symptoms, participants also described emotional …

The Unintended Consequences Of Normalization: Unmonitored Mental Health Discourse Among Youth And Suicide Risk, Farley Morris

Social Work Theses - Archive

Suicide has become an increasingly common cause of death among U.S. children ages 10–14. In 2001, suicide accounted for 8% of deaths in this age group; by 2010 the proportion rose to 12%, and by 2020 it reached 22% (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2020). Although factors such as adverse childhood experiences (Felitti et al., 1998; Jones et al., 2024), psychache (Shneidman, 1998), burdensomeness (Joiner, 2005; O’Connor, 2011), and hopelessness (Bat Tonkus et al., 2022; Qiu et al., 2017) are associated with suicide, these elements alone do not explain the significant rise in suicide deaths over the past …

Academic Preparedness And Institutional Support For Low-Income Students: A Scoping Review Of College Success And Retention, Davina Wilson

Social Work Theses - Archive

Students from lower-funded high schools often enter college with lower levels of academic preparedness and limited access to advanced coursework, individualized advising, and extracurricular opportunities, all of which contribute to disparities in retention and academic success. These inequities, rooted in longstanding school funding gaps and systemic barriers, disproportionately affect first-generation and racially minoritized students, who may also experience cultural mismatch or isolation within college environments. This scoping review synthesizes existing research conducted by other scholars to examine how academic preparedness and institutional support services such as tutoring, mentoring, bridge programs, and college transition initiatives influence college readiness for students from …

Social Drivers Of Suicide In Rural And Urban Texas Counties, Maria Y. Vaughan

Social Work Theses - Archive

Abstract

Suicide remains a critical public health issue in Texas, with rural counties consistently experiencing higher mortality rates than urban areas. This study examined county-level suicide rates across Texas and analyzed how demographic characteristics and Social Drivers of Suicide (SDoS)—including economic stability, education access and quality, health care access and quality, neighborhood and built environment, and social and community context—relate to suicide outcomes. Using a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational design, secondary data from the 2024 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps and the American Community Survey were analyzed for 170 Texas counties with reliable suicide data. Results showed that rural …

Resilience And Reality: Exploring The Lived Experiences Of People Living With Hiv In Texas During The Covid-19 Pandemic – A Qualitative Study., Ahmed F. Alanazi

Social Work Dissertations - Archive

This study investigated the lived experiences of individuals living with HIV (PLWH) in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area of Texas during the COVID-19 pandemic, using an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) framework. The research examined the intersection of health, social dynamics, and psychological resilience among PLWH, who faced compounded vulnerabilities due to systemic inequities and the dual public health crises of HIV and COVID-19. Through semi-structured interviews with ten participants from diverse backgrounds, the study captured the profound impacts of disrupted healthcare systems, heightened stigma, and social isolation on this marginalized population. The findings reveal that the pandemic exacerbated existing inequities …

Unmet Family Planning Care And Health-Literacy Needs Among Low-Income Immigrant Women In The United States, Priyanjali Chakraborty

Social Work Dissertations - Archive

Unintended pregnancies have been linked to adverse outcomes such as pre-term births and low infant birthweight (Harron et al., 2020), psychological distress(Abbasi et al., 2013; Barton et al., 2017; Gauthreaux et al., 2017; Mercier et al., 2013), relationship strain (Barton et al., 2017; Moseson et al., 2019), intimate partner violence (IPV) and reproductive coercion (K. T. Grace & Anderson, 2018), and economic strain from unanticipated medical costs despite insurance coverage (Trussell, 2007). Unintended pregnancy outcomes offer crucial insights into the complexities of women's reproductive desires and intentions (CDC, 2023; Rossen et al., 2023). These outcomes inform public health interventions to …

Beyond Filters: Exploring Social Media Effects On Social Physique Anxiety And Physical Activity, Morgan T. Rios

Psychology Theses - Archive

With obesity rates reaching new heights, there has been a pressing demand for research focused on sedentary lifestyles, specifically investigating the consequences of increased screentime and social media use on mental health and physical activity levels. This study explored the impact of both screentime and social media use on physical activity engagement and social physique anxiety among college students. Additionally, it examined complex interrelationships among these variables and identified key psychosocial factors contributing to social physique anxiety. Ultimately, this research provided insights into the predictive power of social media content, social physique anxiety, and relevant psychosocial variables (e.g., perceived health, …

Exploiting Artificial Intelligence And Optimization For Smart Agriculture, Jackson K. Butcher

Theses and Dissertations--Computer Science

Dynamic integration of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a vital component for unlocking the potential of smart agriculture. Currently, limitations such as limited computational resources, poor network connectivity, and rigid treatment strategies stifle optimal agricultural outcomes. This creates a challenge of leveraging the capabilities of modern artificial intelligence to combat the natural and artificial constraints of the smart agriculture environment. The primary contribution of this thesis is the development of frameworks to alleviate the overhead data and computational demand for AI within smart agriculture settings. The first framework, iCrop+, utilizes TinyML and LoRa to guarantee high-precision …

Biomedical Relation Extraction In The Era Of (Large) Language Models, Yuhang Jiang

Theses and Dissertations--Computer Science

Biomedical relation extraction is a key task in information extraction supporting downstream applications such as knowledge discovery, information retrieval, and question answering. As such, improvements in relation extraction (RE) are expected to have major implications for other information needs in biomedicine. In this dis- sertation, we pursue biomedical relation extraction in several advanced settings with recent advances in large language models (LLMs) and retrieval augmented generation (RAG). First, we address an important slot filling task on social media that arose during the Covid-19 pandemic, using the idea of continuous prompts with encoder models. Next, we handle a tricky dynamic n-ary …

Assessing The Dallas-Fort Worth Urban Microclimate And Surface Ozone Variability Under Differing Drought Conditions, Patrick Sumner

Earth & Environmental Sciences Theses - Archive

The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in North Central Texas is the 4^th largest and fastest growing region in the United States. In this study, the response of the urban microclimate and ozone levels to drought conditions will be assessed. The urban heat island (UHI), defined as the temperature difference between an urban and rural weather station, was filtered for low wind speeds (≤ 3 m s^-1). An in-depth analysis of the UHI at 1200 CST was done from 2008-2023 to identify trends. A significant correlation exists between the Palmer drought severity index and the UHI at 1200 CST, …

Genetic Analysis Of Methionine Restriction-Associated Mitochondrial Unfolded Protein Response Signaling., Josh D. Dodge

Biology Dissertations - Archive

The lifespan of an organism is dictated by various genetic and environmental factors. One such determinant is the health of mitochondria which are organelles that mediate various critical cell functions including a significant role in generating the vast supply of cellular energy. Indeed, the gradual decline of mitochondrial function is believed to be a hallmark and possible cause of aging. Paradoxically, mild mitochondrial dysfunction early in life extends lifespan in various model organisms. Cells use diverse approaches to promote mitochondrial homeostasis, including the transcriptional reprogramming of cells by mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt) to mitigate mitochondrial stress. Consistently, UPRmt activation …

Understanding Middle School Teachers’ Content Knowledge And Pedagogical Content Knowledge For Effective Teaching Of The Nature Of Science, Austin C. Wilson

Curriculum and Instruction (Ed.D.) Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine middle school science teachers’ knowledge of the nature of science (NOS) and their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching NOS. Developing students’ scientific literacy requires teachers who not only understand NOS but also know how to effectively integrate it into classroom instruction. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods study investigated in-service middle school science teachers’ NOS content knowledge (NOS-CK), their NOS-PCK, the relationship between these two constructs, and the extent to which demographic variables predicted teacher knowledge. NOS-CK and NOS-PCK data were collected from 61 teachers in a large suburban district through the Views …

Aeg Improved Football Helmet Liner, Matthew Dyson, John Clore, Brady Slates, Nathan Walker

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The National Football League (NFL) is a leading professional American football organization experiencing rapid growth in popularity. However, the high-contact nature of the sport frequently results in player injuries, with head trauma and concussions being major concerns. This project aims to mitigate these risks by developing an advanced helmet liner designed to reduce the impact of direct collisions and torsional shear forces. In order to do this, we will utilize an impact testing machine with a modified helmet mount. By enhancing the liner's effectiveness, the proposed design seeks to improve player safety without compromising performance. The study focuses on innovative …

Selling Trust: The Evolution Of Relationship Selling In The Investment Industry, Kaden N. Kroslak, Frederik Beuk

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This honors research project examines how relationship selling in the investment industry, especially within registered investment advisory firms, has evolved over time. Advisor-client relationships are being shaped by technology, analytics, regulations, and a frenzy of information. This literature review explores whether the stated factors of technology, credibility, regulations, information access, and fiduciary duty, caused change in how investment advisors create, maintain, and grow client relationships within the context of trust. The project styling, in form of a literature review analyzes peer-reviewed studies on financial technology, artificial intelligence, psychological approaches, and regulatory systems. The outcome is a paper which helps fill …

Innovative Approaches To Combat Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Integrating Metabolic Modulation, Advanced Therapies, And Lifestyle Interventions, Ngozi Damilola Chidumebi Akingbesote

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), an aggressive and often lethal subtype of breast cancer, continues to challenge researchers and clinicians due to its poor prognosis and limited therapeutic options. This thesis explores novel therapeutic strategies that integrate metabolic modulation, advanced radionuclide therapies, and lifestyle interventions to combat TNBC effectively. The first component investigates metabolic scaling and its implications for cancer metabolism. Gene and protein expression analyses across species reveal that metabolic processes, including oxidative metabolism and detoxification, scale inversely with body mass. This foundational insight underscores the importance of systemic metabolic regulation in understanding cancer progression. In the realm of cancer …

The Duality Of Lawyers As Escrow Agents, Douglas R. Richmond

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

An escrow agent is someone who holds money or property in trust for others under agreed terms until a transaction is completed, or a dispute is resolved. Although institutional depositaries are widely available, clients frequently ask their lawyers to serve as escrow agents in connection with transactions in which the lawyer represents the client. In fact, lawyers are generally permitted to serve as escrow agents with respect to clients' transactions so long as all parties involved knowingly consent to the arrangement. This is true both under agency law and as a matter of lawyers' professional responsibility.

Unlike a lawyer who …

Dignitatis Humanae, Francis J. Beckwith

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

Sixty years ago the Second Vatican Council issued the document Dignitatis Humanae, a declaration on religious freedom. At the time it was considered to be the Catholic Church's most significant concession to the modern world, though the Council argued that the declaration was, given the political and religious realities at the time, a legitimate doctrinal development rooted in the Church's most ancient teachings. Its defense of religious liberty relied on widely held and uncontroversial beliefs about human nature, the common good, and the meaning of religion. But since the beginning of the 21st century those beliefs have been challenged …

Table Of Contents, Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Right To 'Trip:' Navigating Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy Under The Right To Try Pathway, Caitlyn S. Greenspun

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

This Comment explores the legal, ethical, and regulatory challenges surrounding the use of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for terminally ill patients under the federal Right to Try (RTT) Act. While psychedelics like psilocybin are demonstrating extraordinary therapeutic potential, particularly in easing end-of-life psychological distress, patients remain barred from access due to the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) narrow interpretation of its authority. Through a comprehensive analysis of legislative history, regulatory frameworks, and administrative law principles, this Comment argues that the DEA's position not only misinterprets the statutory relationship between the RTT Act and the CSA, but also …

Table Of Contents, Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Temporary/Forever: The Fissured Economy, Obstacles To Employment, And Regulating The Future Of Exploitation In Temp Work, Kevin Herrera

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

Among workers in United States, contingent and temporary work arrangements have grown to represent a substantial segment of available jobs, with spikes in their predominance corresponding to major economic shake ups like the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic. These arrangements are part of a larger trend of the “fissuring” of United States employment, wherein applicants are hired by one company and then sent to do their job at another, obscuring who actually employs the worker. Jobs through temp staffing agencies are a particularly dominant form of fissuring among low-wage workers and create conditions under which accountability for workplace abuses …

Racing To The Top Instead Of The Bottom In Illinois Estate Law, Sarah E. Waldeck

Loyola University Chicago Law Journal

In the last two decades, competition for trust business has led states to abolish the Rule Against Perpetuities, authorize trust decanting, and permit self-settled asset protection trusts all in the hope that settlors will bring their trusts (and the fees they generate) within a state's jurisdiction. But this legislation is profoundly inequitable because it primarily benefits wealthy settlors and those lucky enough to be their beneficiaries, while shifting cost and risk to everyone else.

In the face of such competition, Illinois has fought to retain its trust business by passing legislation that allows settlors to opt out of the perpetuity …

Improving Thermal Comfort Of Firefighter Personal Protective Equipment With A Focus On Enhancing Insulation And Moisture Management Abilities: A Meta-Analysis, Hallie Ivory

Major Papers by TMD Master of Science Students

Firefighters wear personal protective equipment (PPE) composed of multiple layers, each designed to serve a specific function in ensuring safety and comfort in high heat environments. The thermal liner is the innermost layer and plays a crucial role in thermal comfort by providing insulation and moisture management. Insulation provides protection from external hazards while moisture management keeps the wearer cool and dry.

Heat stress is a significant safety concern for firefighters, as prolonged exposure to high temperatures and insufficient evaporative cooling can lead to discomfort, injuries and or fatalities for them while on duty. Effective moisture management is critical in …

Incentivizing Evidence-Based Care: Policy Levers And Delivery-System Response, Tamara Beetham

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

This dissertation examines how state and federal policies shape the addiction treatment landscape, focusing on how the treatment delivery system responds to policy changes. Through three chapters, I evaluate policy tools designed to expand access to life-saving yet underutilized services and their potential to mitigate or reinforce disparities. The first two chapters analyze a Medicaid policy change that allowed states to access previously restricted funding, contingent on improving their addiction treatment systems. Chapter one finds that improvements in access and quality were primarily driven by facility turnover - new facility openings and closures - rather than changes within existing facilities. …

Radial, Steffy Jeswin

Quill & Scope

No abstract provided.

Investigating The Structure And Assembly Of The Hiv-2 Capsid Protein: How Does It Compare To Its More Infamous Cousin?, Matthew David Cook

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Several million people live with infection by human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2). Like its pandemic-causing relative, HIV-1, infection with HIV-2 can progress to AIDS, is largely incurable, and is similarly mutation-prone, presenting a challenge for treatment. Despite this, detailed study of HIV-2 is widely lacking while most of the understanding of the virus and its proteins is borne out of comparison with HIV-1. The two are sufficiently similar that this is generally effective, but differences in infection outcomes of the two viruses must be explicable by molecular determinants. One domain of viral biology particularly worth attention in this regard …

New Statistical Methods For Mediation Analysis With Independent And Correlated Data, Chao Cheng

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Causal mediation analysis is a popular statistical tool for evaluating the extent to which an observed exposure-outcome relationship is mediated by an intermediate variable, also referred to as the mediator. Through mediation analysis, the total effect (TE) from the exposure on the outcome can be decomposed into a natural indirect effect (NIE) through the mediator and a natural direct effect (NDE) whose impact is due solely to the exposure and possibly other mediators. Causal mediation analysis has been applied in a variety of empirical research fields, including but not limited to epidemiology, implementation science, economics, and psychology. In implementation science, …

Mechanisms Of Heart And Major Vessel Development: Nup107 And Cacna1g As Novel Regulators, Valentyna Kostiuk

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is the most common congenital malformation and a leading cause of infant mortality. While advances in genomic sequencing technology have enabled a fast and inexpensive candidate gene identification, the molecular mechanisms of CHD remain mostly unknown. Both nup107 and cacna1g are novel CHD genes identified in CHD patients with no plausible mechanisms explaining their roles in cardiac development. Here, we show that nup107 plays a key role in early embryonic patterning and subsequent organ development. The loss of Nup107 has a direct impact on germ layer specification, Left-Right patterning and downstream cardiac looping. Specifically, Nup107 depletion …