Digital Commons Network^™

Race, Racial Matching, And Cultural Understanding As Predictors Of Treatment Engagement In Youth Mental Health Services, Wendy Chu

Theses and Dissertations

Racially marginalized youth experience barriers that impact their ability to maximally benefit from mental health services; thus, efforts to identify strategies that support youth treatment engagement may address mental health and treatment disparities. This study examined the role of youth race, youth-therapist racial matching, and youthreported therapist cultural understanding on youth’s early treatment engagement in mental health services. The youth sample (n = 1159; M_age = 13.8 years, SD = 2.9; 52.1% female) comprised of 778 (67.1%) Latinx, 221 (19.1%) African American, 139 (12.0%) White, and 21 (1.8%) Asian American clients. The therapist sample (n = 126; Mage …

Supervisory Allyship For University Custodial Staff, Daniel Colascione

Theses and Dissertations

This study will examine the lived experiences of campus custodians in search of creating an anti-racist workplace. Custodians will have the opportunity to share about their experiences involving racism and will be asked to explain their expectations of leadership in creating an anti-racist workplace. This study seeks to understand the expectations Black staff members have of their departmental and university level leadership to identify ways to narrow the gap between their expectations and the support they receive from those in positions capable of doing so.

An Evaluation Of The Impact Of Academic Policies And Athletic Procedures For Student Athletes, Seanta Cleveland

Theses and Dissertations

The current study is an evaluation of the ways academic policies and athletic procedures can impact learning for student athletes as inconsistent practices regarding athletic travel and make-up work can have negative effects on learning for student athletes. A total of 11 participants (i.e., 8 student athletes, 3 faculty members) participated in this qualitative phenomenological study. Chickering’s student development theory and Kolb’s learning theory framed the current inquiry into (1) the needs of student athletes and the ways they process important information (e.g., policies and procedures) and (2) related faculty guidance, student affairs, and the governing body for athletics, practices, …

Racism-Related State Policies And The Psychological And Physiological Wellbeing Of Black And White Adults, Calley Elizabeth Fisk

Theses and Dissertations

Recent research on how state-policy affects population health outcomes suggests that state contexts are important sites for producing health disparities. In the United States different domains of state policy are historically linked to the livelihood of Black Americans and enacted within a racist system designed to maintain white supremacy. Despite this history and evidence of racial inequities in health outcomes linked to institutional discrimination for Black and white adults, scholars have yet to examine whether racism-related state policies affect the wellbeing of Black and white Americans. Combining a dataset of racism-related state policies with a nationally representative data of older …

Describing The Impact Of The Sales Of Antibiotics On The Environment And In Population Health, Andrés Gaviria-Figueroa

Theses and Dissertations

The role of antibiotics in human health is of significant importance in the advancement of the medical field. It has contributed to an improvement of the quality of life and the age expectancy of the population. Antibiotic resistance is an expected consequence of the use of antibiotics. Bacteria have developed biological mechanisms that would help them become resistant to antibiotics. The uncontrolled use of antibiotics is significantly contributing to the ability of bacteria to become resistant to those antibiotics. This study, using the model of the Socio-Ecological Coupling of Antibiotic Resistance, explains how social and environmental factors interact and impact …

A Case Study Of Rural Southern Desegregation: How Black Students In A South Carolina Community Experienced Segregated Schooling And The Integration Process, Margo Mcdowell Gore

Theses and Dissertations

My purpose for this study is to shed light on how the African-American community in a small Southern rural community experienced segregated schools and the long school desegregation process. Conflicts over school integration in urban centers like Little Rock drew the media's attention, but how small communities beyond the glare of the media fared is less well understood and documented. Archival data and contemporary media coverage provide a timeline and context for the experiences of this Black community, and oral history interviews were collected and analyzed to document the range of desegregation experiences.

Although the Brown v. Board of Education …

“I Like A Fight”: Margaret Sanger And The First Birth Control Clinic In The United States, Rebecca Linnea Hall

Theses and Dissertations

It is nearly impossible to read the news in the United States today without hearing the name Planned Parenthood, but few Americans know about the origins of this organization. Margaret Sanger founded the Birth Control Clinical Research Bureau, the precursor to Planned Parenthood, in 1923, but this was not the first time she opened a clinic. In this paper, I assess Margaret Sanger’s 1916 opening of the Brownsville Clinic, the first birth control clinic in the United States, and the responses to this event from multiple historical perspectives. I use historical newspapers to demonstrate how popular media, legal experts, and …

Testing Models Of Context-Dependent Outcome Encoding In Reinforcement Learning, William M. Hayes Iv

Theses and Dissertations

Previous studies of reinforcement learning (RL) have established that choice outcomes are encoded in a context-dependent fashion. Several computational models have been proposed to explain context-dependent encoding, including reference point centering and range adaptation models. The former assumes that outcomes are centered around a running estimate of the average reward in each choice context, while the latter assumes that outcomes are compared to the minimum reward and then scaled by an estimate of the range of outcomes in each choice context. However, there are other computational mechanisms that can explain context dependence in RL. In the present study, a frequency …

“Whoz Ya People?”: Defining Lumbee Citizenship And Belonging In The 21St Century, Timothy Blake Hite

Theses and Dissertations

The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina is a state-recognized tribe with an estimated 60,000 citizens. From 2018-2020, the tribe closed their enrollment office so that the tribe could reexamine enrollment policies, particularly the criterion for appropriate contact with the tribal homeland. During this closure, the tribe was continuing its long journey for federal recognition, with a bill passing the U.S. House of Representatives and receiving support from then President Donald Trump and current President Joseph Biden. During the summer of 2021, I conducted ethnographic fieldwork with the tribe’s enrollment department, located in Pembroke, NC, to answer the question of how …

The Utilization Of Healthcare Chaplains By Genetic Counselors, Elizabeth G. Hollingsworth

Theses and Dissertations

Healthcare chaplains prioritize the spiritual and religious care a patient and their family may need during their healthcare experience. This study investigated the current utilization of healthcare chaplains by genetic counselors, as well as the ability, in time and skill, of the healthcare chaplains to see genetic counseling patients. Lastly, the study investigated if genetic counseling patients would accept a referral to meet with a healthcare chaplain. We hypothesized that genetic counselors are not utilizing healthcare chaplains, healthcare chaplains have the ability to see genetic counseling patients, and genetic counseling patients would consider meeting with a healthcare chaplain.

This study …

Catalytic Cracking Of Oxygenated Polymer Waste Via Zeolite Catalysts, Andrew Jaeschke

Theses and Dissertations

Plastic recycling has been a prevalent issue since the commercialization of plastics due to lack of adoption and insufficient technology. There are many different types of plastics used in modern day society; however, majority of recycling efforts are focused solely on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyethylene plastics. Some of these overlooked plastics include polyols and polyurethanes, which can be found in a variety of applications including furniture stuffing, adhesives, and insulation foams. Recently, plastic research has turned to catalytic cracking units as a means of plastic recyclability. Catalytic cracking of hydrocarbons is a field dominated by zeolites catalysts, especially ZSM-5. …

Epitaxial 4h-Sic Radiation Detectors For Harsh Environment Applications, Joshua W. Kleppinger

Theses and Dissertations

Epitaxial 4H-silicon carbide (4H-SiC) is an essential semiconductor material for the development of harsh environment radiation detectors due to its excellent electrical and thermal properties and resistance to radiation damage, opening the door for a wide variety of applications in NASA space missions, nuclear safeguards, and nuclear energy. However, the low atomic numbers of its constituent atoms Si (Z = 14) and C (Z = 6) make 4H-SiC nearly transparent to most neutrally charged radiation which can only be compensated using thicker active volumes.

In this dissertation, Ni/n-4H-SiC Schottky barrier diode (SBD) radiation detectors are fabricated for the first time …

Describing The Experiences Of Canadian Genetic Counseling Students Studying In The United States, Madeline Emma Ladouceur

Theses and Dissertations

There are fewer and smaller genetic counseling master’s programs in Canada compared to the United States, which makes it challenging for prospective Canadian students to train in their home country. We investigated which factors influenced Canadian students to apply or not to apply to American genetic counseling training programs, as well as the experiences of those Canadians who attended a program in the United States. We predicted that Canadian students applied to American genetic counseling training programs primarily because of limited training opportunities in Canada and a competitive application process across North America. We used a mixed method, online survey …

The Submission Of A Section 513(G) Request For Information, Morgan Ashley Lano

Theses and Dissertations

The Food and Drug Administration designates all medical devices into one of three general classes contingent on their intended use, indications for use, and potential risk to the user. This classification dictates the further path the device must take to be approved for the commercial market. Section 513(g) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 360c(g)) is submitted in order to gain the agency’s unofficial classification and suggested regulatory requirements. The Coagulation Companion (MicroVide) is a device designed to fluorescently quantify a key enzyme involved in the coagulation cascade, plasmin, in pediatric patients. clot formation and degradation …

Assessing Identification Of Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer Patients For Referral To Genetic Counseling, Corinne Marie Locke

Theses and Dissertations

Since 1998, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines have specified clinical indications for genetic testing for breast cancer susceptibility genes, but retrospective studies have shown that, despite meeting the NCCN criteria, patients are not always advised of the option of genetic testing. Further compounding this issue, studies have shown that cancer family history intake and documented family history can be incomplete even when taken by oncology providers. At this study site and other cancer centers in the country, patients with a new diagnosis of breast cancer are referred for genetic counseling by their cancer care team if they are …

Who Has The Right To Reproduce? Forced Sterilization In South Carolina In The Early Twentieth Century, Kathryn Pownall

Theses and Dissertations

This paper aims to uncover the history of forced sterilization in South Carolina. Compulsory sterilization of the feebleminded, a form of eugenics, gained prominence in the United States throughout the early twentieth century. It was both an ableist and misogynistic movement that targeted women because they were seen to be responsible for reproduction. Sterilization was regarded as a solution to halting the reproduction of feebleminded individuals, who would otherwise continue to depend on the state financially. South Carolina was slow to implement a sterilization law, becoming the thirty-first (and second-to-last) state to pass one. Although South Carolina shares a border …

Community School Implementation, Melanie Blea

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

A community school model is one way that struggling schools can restructure under the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act. Schools operate under the idea that the needs of the whole child must be met before academic advancement can begin. Implementation of a community school model includes obtaining feedback from all stakeholder groups in a school community (students, staff, parents, and community organizations) and examining data to make collective decisions that generate shared responsibility and accountability. The four pillars of a community school (integrated student supports, expanded learning time and opportunities, family and community engagement, and collaborative leadership and practices) …

Rocscholar Annual Report 2021, Lisa M. Buda, Elizabeth Mamo

Rochester Regional Health authored publications and proceedings

RocScholar is the institutional repository (IR) for Rochester Regional Health (RRH) and is managed by the Libraries at RRH. It provides storage and access for RRH’s research and scholarly activity. This report highlights the repository’s first year of implementation.

“That Was Denied Thee On Earth”: An Intersectional Bioarchaeology Of Institutionalized Euro-American Women Throughout 19Th And 20Th-Century America, Madeline Maria Atwell

Theses and Dissertations

In the mid 19th-century, American state-supported insane asylums, later renamed state mental hospitals in the 20th-century, were constructed to house and humanely treat individuals perceived to be socially deviant or mentally and physically ill. Women were particularly vulnerable to undue institutionalization because of the prevailing patriarchal gender ideology within medical and colloquial spheres that contributed to the perception that they were biologically pathological. This dissertation interprets the findings of combined archival, historical, and osteological analysis from two U.S. skeletal collections: The Colorado State Insane Asylum (CSIA) Collection and the Hamann-Todd Human Osteological Collection (HT), to examine the embodied, physiological impact …

Engineering And Optimization Of An Aav Based Viral Vector To Limit The In-Vitro Expression Of Sars-Cov-2 Spike-Protein, Ronald Anderson Smithwick

Theses and Dissertations

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus-2, also known as SARS-CoV-2, is a newly emerged respiratory viral pathogen. The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 started in Wuhan, China, in late 2019 and rapidly transformed into a pandemic. Several vaccines have been developed and are available to the public on an unprecedented timeline, protecting individuals from a severe infection and saving precious lives. However, none of the vaccines can provide a sterile immunity, and the SARS-CoV-2 transmission cycle continues. Additionally, because of the mutation-prone RNA genome and immunological selection pressure, SARS-CoV-2 is rapidly mutating, especially the Spike(S) protein, and new viral strains are arising …

Female Reproductive Toxicity Of Harmful Algal Blooms-Produced Toxin Microcystin, Yingzheng Wang

Theses and Dissertations

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have become a global emerging environmental concern; however, its impact on women’s reproductive health is poorly understood. Microcystin-LR (MC-LR) is the most common and hazardous type of HAB toxin. Using both a chronic oral exposure mouse model and an acute exposure mouse model, I found that human-relevant exposure to MC-LR could compromise follicle ovulation via affecting follicle maturation. Both in vivo mouse exposure model and encapsulated in vitro follicle growth (eIVFG) model revealed that exposure to MC-LR did not affect follicle development, but significantly reduced the expression of some follicle maturation-related genes, such as Lhcgr and …

Molecular Architecture Of Cardiometabolic Responses To Regular Exercise, Jacob L. Barber

Theses and Dissertations

Background: To investigate the molecular mechanisms, determinants, and predictors of cardiometabolic responses to regular exercise, this dissertation had two primary aims: 1) Examine the molecular architecture of cardiometabolic responses to exercise training (unsupervised approach) and 2) Identify molecular signatures of responsiveness to regular exercise within clinically relevant lipoprotein traits (supervised approach).

Methodology: Multi-omics data (17,945 muscle transcripts, 4,979 proteins, 411 metabolites) from participants (n=647) who completed 20 weeks of endurance training as part of the HERITAGE Family Study was collected before and after training. We employed an unsupervised machine learning approach (Aim 1) to identify patterns of molecular responses to …

Longitudinal Relation Of Dietary Quality And Hemoglobin A1c In Youth And Young Adults With Diabetes, Hope Bercaw

Theses and Dissertations

Background Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) is a clinical measure of glycemic control among people with diabetes and is associated with health outcomes such as cardiovascular disease. It is possible to decrease HbA1c by improving diet, but it is largely unknown which dietary components are most important in targeting glycemic control.

Objective This study aims to examine whether changes in diet quality across diabetes duration, assessed with the 2015-Healthy Eating Index (HEI), are associated with HbA1c in youth and young adults (YYA) with type 1 (T1D) and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Additionally, we aim to assess whether these relationships differ when dietary …

Specific Learning Disability: Rates Across A Southeastern State, Joseph T. Ferraracci

Theses and Dissertations

Reading, writing, and mathematics are crucial academic and life skills. Specific Learning Disability (SLD) in these areas is the most common disability in children and account for almost 40% of all students in special education. Special education law permits for the identification of these students in multiple ways; IQ/Achievement Discrepancy, Response to Intervention, or the use of other, alternative research-based procedures (e.g. Pattern of Strengths and Weaknesses Model. There is variability within and across these methods, causing incongruity and inconsistency in rates. Other variables associated with SLD such as socioeconomic status, age, sex, and race also play important roles when …

The Effects Of Exercise Training On Cholesterol Efflux Capacity In The Heritage Family Study, Joshua Adam Hawkins

Theses and Dissertations

Cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC) has been associated with cardiovascular disease risk independent of HDL-C levels. However, the effect of regular exercise on CEC is not yet fully understood. Therefore, we examined the effects of exercise training on CEC in the HERITAGE Family Study. In HERITAGE, subjects participated in an endurance training program that consisted of exercise on a cycle ergometer three times per week for 20 weeks. Global and non-ABCA1 CEC were measured at baseline and post-training in 542 subjects via a cell- based radiolabeled CEC assay. Neither global nor non-ABCA1 CEC significantly changed with training in the whole cohort. …

Higher Calling: A Qualitative Study Of The Lived Experiences Of Black Women Presidents Of 4-Year Colleges And Universities, Rushondra Janeé James

Theses and Dissertations

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), women are out earning men in the numbers of associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees awarded. When separated by race, Black women are the largest proportionally, representing 64 percent of bachelor’s degrees among Black women and men. Moreover, Black women account for 15 percent of all master’s degrees and 10 percent of earned doctoral degrees among all women. Given the most recent NCES statistics, the student body of degree granting institutions includes a significant number of Black women students. Conversely, about 9 percent of all college presidents and 3 percent of full-time …

Economic Development, Political Processes And Climate Change Adaptation In The Solomon Islands, Adam Christopher Ereth

Theses and Dissertations

Climate change exacerbates existing societal inequalities, including those related to uneven adaptation developments. Often, climate change prompts societies in Oceania to implement adaptation strategies to deal directly and indirectly with related issues. The futures of island nation inhabitants have sparked as much curiosity and inquiry as it has fears of diminished futures for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Narratives and discourse on climate change adaptation range from engineered solutions to address sea level rise and storm wave issues, to pessimistic retreat with claims that islands are sinking and little can be done but move elsewhere. These disparate realities call into …

Classification Of Acoustic Emission Data Into Load Steps Using An Artificial Neural Network, Allen Ross

Theses and Dissertations

The average age of bridges in South Carolina is approaching 40 years, very close to the 50-year service life. Almost 11% of the bridges in South Carolina are rated as structurally deficient, greater than the national average of 7.5% (South 2021). Health monitoring is the concept that in-situ sensors can continuously monitor civil structures and send real time signals of damage. This process allows for automation and could save time and money on the inspection and load rating of bridges. Health monitoring requires sensors that provide uninterrupted data without sacrificing the functionality of the bridge. A prime candidate for this …

Inside The Black Box Of Prosecutor Discretion, Megan S. Wright, Shima Baradaran Baughman, Christopher Robertson

Faculty Scholarship

In their charging and bargaining decisions, prosecutors have unparalleled and nearly-unchecked discretion that leads to incarceration or freedom for millions of Americans each year. More than courts, legislators, or any other justice system player, in the aggregate prosecutors’ choices are the key drivers of outcomes, whether the rates of mass incarceration or the degree of racial disparities in justice. To date, there is precious little empirical research on how prosecutors exercise their breathtaking discretion. We do not know whether they consistently charge like cases alike or whether crime is in the eye of the beholder. We do not know what …

Bargaining For Abolition, Zohra Ahmed

Faculty Scholarship

What if instead of seeing criminal court as an institution driven by the operation of rules, we saw it as a workplace where people labor to criminalize those with the misfortune to be prosecuted? Early observers of twentieth century urban criminal courts likened them to factories.¹ Since then, commentators often deploy the pejorative epithet “assembly line justice” to describe criminal court’s processes.² The term conveys the criticism of a mechanical system delivering a form of justice that is impersonal and fallible. Perhaps unintentionally, the epithet reveals another truth: criminal court is also a workplace, and it takes labor …