Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluating The Preparedness Of Local Zoning Regulations For Flood Risk Reduction In The Most Affected Local Jurisdictions In Nebraska, Md Asaduzzaman Noor

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

Flooding has profound social, economic, and environmental impacts on local communities, and zoning plays a critical role in mitigating these risks. The 2019 Nebraska floods, among the most severe in the state’s history, highlighted the urgent need to strengthen local preparedness and mitigation strategies. This study assesses the extent to which local zoning regulations in Nebraska’s most affected jurisdiction, including rural areas, address flood risk reduction. A systematic review of 117 zoning ordinances from counties, cities, towns, and villages, we applied a structured analytical framework encompassing regulatory and permitting policies, voluntary and incentive-based measures, and nature-based solutions. The results show …

Bridging Conservation And Disaster Recovery: A Dual Study On Wetland Program Plans Evaluation And Midwest Post Disaster Recovery Assessment, Rao Nargis Jahan

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

Wetlands provide essential ecological, social, and economic benefits for our society. In the United States, states and tribes play crucial roles in wetland protection, restoration, and management. However, no research has systematically measured state-level wetland planning efforts towards national conservation goals. This study is the first to comprehensively evaluate how state-level Wetland Program Plans (WPPs) align with national missions, particularly the "no-net-loss" of wetlands goal. Our research assesses the EPA-approved state-level WPPs from 42 out of 50 states in the United States during the period from 2015 to 2024. Using a protocol of 30 indicators across five categories, this study …

Flood Resilience Through Working-Land Conservation: Assessment Of Wetland Inundation Dynamics Across Wrp, Wma, Wpa, Padus And Crp Lands In Nebraska (2018–2024), Pranjay Joshi

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

This study first confirms whether Nebraska’s wetlands are still functioning hydrologically in ways that reduce flood impacts. Wetlands are known to lessen flood damage by storing water, slowing runoff, and moderating peak flows, but these benefits depend on the wetlands’ ability to maintain inundation and saturation through time. Many wetlands across the state have undergone drainage, hydrologic alteration, or isolation from surrounding watersheds, raising uncertainty about their present-day functioning. Using seven years of Sentinel-2 imagery processed in Google Earth Engine, this research establishes a clear, long-term record of inundation patterns across thousands of wetland parcels. This analysis verifies which wetlands …

Chapter 1 Slides: Introduction To Experiential Learning, Lisa Dunkley

Internship, Practicum, and Capstone: A Guide for Health Sciences

To request exams (including quizzes and answer keys), please email [email protected] from your institutional account (e.g., university or college) and include a link that verifies your status as an instructor. Once your instructor status is confirmed, the files will be provided.

Sincerity Or Substantial Burden? Investigating The Proper Threshold Test For Prisoner Free Exercise Claims, David Wang

University of Chicago Law Review

When prison officials violate the free exercise rights of prisoners, prisoners can seek recourse under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. However, due to the specialized and restrictive nature of prisons, courts adjudicate these claims under a reasonableness test set out in the case Turner v. Safley instead of under a strict scrutiny standard. While circuits agree on using the Turner test for prisoner free exercise claims, there is a deep circuit split on the proper threshold test for these types of claims.

While some circuits hold that inmates need to show that their religious practice was substantially burdened, other circuits hold …

Graduates List - December 2025, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Commencement Lists

No abstract provided.

West Susitna Access Road Project 2025 Cultural Resources Report: Culturally Modified Trees, Nicholas Maness

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT&PF) is undertaking the proposed West Susitna Access Road Project which aims to construct a new road that extends from West Susitna Parkway in Big Lake, Alaska through State Lands west of the Susitna River.  The project would include land clearing and construction of transportation infrastructure across waterways including the Little Susitna River, Fish Creek, Susitna River, and Alexander Creek.

The proposed project footprint lies in the traditional ancestral territory of several Upper Cook Inlet Alaska Native cultures, and project activities have the potential to adversely affect cultural and natural resources in …

Applied Project Management Methodologies To Create A Volunteer Engagement Guide For New Hope Nonprofit Organization's Volunteer Program, Carlos San Miguel

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) rely on volunteers to sustain operations and fulfill their missions, yet many realize persistent challenges in recruiting, training, and keeping them. New Hope Compassionate Ministries (NHCM), a nonprofit organization in Alaska, has struggled to attract and keep volunteers for inventory and restock days—limitations that directly impact its ability to combat food insecurity. This project applies structured project management methodologies to find and address NHCM’s volunteer engagement gap. Through mixed-methods research, including surveys and interviews, the project analyzes current volunteer recruitment and retention practices to uncover underlying barriers. Findings inform the development of a Volunteer Engagement Guide designed …

Application Of A Nonprofit Project Management Methodology To Solid Rock Bible Camp Infrastructure Planning, Austin Laber

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

Over the last decade, several costly infrastructure issues have been presented to Solid Rock Bible Camp (SRBC) due to deferred maintenance, poor record-keeping, and short-term, donation-based funding. This has cost the organization substantial time and money and has risked its ability to obtain insurance for its infrastructure. The application of project management principles to SRBC’s unique nonprofit structure and values identified SRBC's current infrastructure needs, pursued future infrastructure solutions, and prioritized future project recommendations. This project documented the campus’s current state and compared its inventory to industry standards and the needs of its stakeholders to find deficiencies. These deficiencies were …

Evaluating Intersectional Variation Of Hpv-Associated Cancers In Rural America, Jason Semprini, Gabriel A. Benavidez, Whitney E. Zahnd, Heather M. Brandt

Public Health

Purpose: For decades, incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated cancers has been increasing in rural communities across the United States. Although emerging evidence shows a widening rural-urban disparity, rural intersectionality has been understudied. Our study examined the incidence of HPV-associated cancers within rural communities to identify differences by race/ethnicity for males and females, and explore how these differences varied by cancer type, socioeconomic, and geographic factors.

Methods: We accessed age-adjusted cancer incidence rates (2010–2019) from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR) for HPV-associated cancers (cervical, vaginal, vulvar, penile, anal, oropharyngeal) in rural counties. Stratifying by sex, we calculated …

Earnings, Ethics, And Fast Fashion: How Does Income Affect Consumers’ Decisions?, Ava M. Minton

All Theses

This thesis examines if annual earnings influence consumers’ likelihood of avoiding clothing brands associated with labor exploitation. To examine this question, the study draws on four major U.S. datasets that together capture two decades of consumer attitudes and self-reported behaviors. The results show that income has a strong and statistically significant effect: household income increases the odds of avoiding exploitative brands by roughly 27 percentage points. Education, ideology, and gender also exhibit meaningful positive associations with ethical consumption, while age slightly reduces the likelihood of boycott participation. Overall, the analysis provides evidence that ethical consumption behaves like a normal good …

Impact Of Antibody Fc Engineering On Translational Pharmacology, And Safety: Insights From Industry Case Studies., Frank R Brennan, J Ryan Polli, Jean Sathish, Melissa Ramones, Babette Wolf, Tilman Schlothauer, Shirley J Peters, Curtis C Maier, Changhua Ji, David L Wensel, Derrick Witcher, Patricia C Ryan, T Scott Manetz, Adriano Flora, Brian Soper, Birgit Fogal, Lindsey Dzielak, Xiaoting Wang, Prathap Nagaraja Shastri, Karen Price, Michael Doyle, Nidhi Sharda, Mary Struthers, Maximilian Brinkhaus, Bianca Balbino, Eric Stefanich, Masaki Honda, Jan Terje Andersen, Shermaine Mitchell-Ryan, David P Humphreys

Faculty Research 2025

Therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are often designed to not only bind targets via their antigen-binding domains (Fabs) but to also engage with cell surface receptors, FcγRs and FcRn, through their Fc regions, which may result in a variety of functional outcomes, including antibody- dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP), complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) and alteration of circulating half-lives. Engineering the Fc regions to achieve desirable pharmacology and pharmacokinetics is a widely adopted strategy in drug development. Fc regions can be modified through amino acid substitutions and glycoengineering, resulting in enhanced or reduced effector functions, preferential binding to FcR subtypes, …

Low-Coverage Whole-Genome Sequencing Facilitates Accurate And Cost-Effective Haplotype Reconstruction In Complex Mouse Crosses., Samuel J Widmayer, Lydia K Wooldridge, Emily Swanzey, Mary Barter, Chrystal M Snow, Michael C Saul, Qingchang Meng, Beth L Dumont, Laura G Reinholdt, Daniel M Gatti

Faculty Research 2025

The search for the underlying genetic contributions to complex traits and diseases relies on accurate genetic data from populations of interest. Outbred populations, like the Diversity Outbred (DO), are commonly genotyped using commercial SNP arrays, such as the Giga Mouse Universal Genotyping Array (GigaMUGA). However, array genotypes are expensive to collect, subject to significant ascertainment bias, and too sparse to capture the genetic structure of highly recombined mouse crosses. We investigated the efficacy of sequencing-based genotyping by comparing genotyping results between the GigaMUGA, double-digest restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq), and low-coverage whole-genome sequencing (lcWGS). We aligned reads at ~ 1× …

Single-Cell Landscape Of Sex-Specific Drivers Of Alzheimer's Disease., Yiyang Wu, Kyle J Travaglini, Mariano Gabitto, C Dirk Keene, Amy R Dunn, Catherine C Kaczorowski, Philip L De Jager, Vilas Menon, Julie A Schneider, David A Bennett, Logan Dumitrescu, Timothy J Hohman

Faculty Research 2025

INTRODUCTION: We investigated sex-specific gene expression associations with the neuropathology and cognitive manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD) leveraging single-nucleus transcriptomic datasets including 2.84 million nuclei from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC).

METHODS: We delineated the full scope of sex-specific transcript associations, differential gene expression, signaling pathway, and cell-cell communication network changes in eight major DLPFC cell types.

RESULTS: Nine female-specific associations were identified and replicated, involving ADGRV1, OR3A3, IFI27L1, LYRM1, STAP2, TSTD2, PDYN, and TMEM50B. We observed the preponderance of protective female-specific associations in neurons. Sex-specific genes were enriched in the immune-, inflammation-, and damage-related stress-response pathways. Six ITGB1-mediated microglia-specific …

Pak1 Inhibitor Nvs-Pak1-1 Preserves Dendritic Spines In Amyloid/Tau Exposed Neurons And 5xfad Mice., Tao Yang, Hasi Huhe, Sean-Paul Williams, Sukhneet Kaur, Yeonglong Albert Ay, Zachary W Davis-Gilbert, Gregory Cary, Carolyn Paisie, Robert R Butler, Jesse Wiley, Ranjita Betarbet, Haian Fu, Duc Duong, Nicholas T Seyfried, Karina Leal, Gregory W. Carter, Aled Edwards, Allan I Levey, Jacob L Capener, David H Drewry, Mohammad A Hossain, Hans J Oh, Alison D Axtman, Stacey J Sukoff Rizzo, Frank M Longo, The Emory-Sage-Sgc-Jax Treat-Ad Center

Faculty Research 2025

INTRODUCTION: Synaptic spine loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD) contributes to cognitive decline. p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1), a regulator of spine integrity, is aberrantly activated in AD. We investigated whether PAK1 inhibition might preserve dendritic spines in vitro and in vivo.

METHODS: Oligomeric amyloid beta (oAβ) or tau (oTau) were applied to hippocampal neurons ± NVS-PAK1-1, a selective PAK1 inhibitor. NVS-PAK1-1 was orally administered to 5xFAD mice. The effects of NVS-PAK1-1 treatment on PAK1 activity, spine density, and the proteome were assessed using phospho-PAK1 (pPAK1) western blotting, Golgi staining, and mass spectrometry for proteomic analyses.

RESULTS: NVS-PAK1-1 prevented oAβ and oTau-induced …

Integrated Phenotypic And Proteomic Screening Identifies Top-Tier Alzheimer's Disease Therapeutic Targets., Gregory Cary, Qianjin Li, Jesse C Wiley, Carolyn Paisie, Yuhong Du, Elizabeth L Zoeller, Duc Duong, Haian Fu, Nicholas T Seyfried, Allan I Levey, Ranjita Betarbet, Gregory W. Carter, The Emory-Sage-Sgc-Jax Treat-Ad Center

Faculty Research 2025

INTRODUCTION: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder. Hundreds of therapeutic targets have been nominated through genetic and multi-omic studies, but effective prioritization remains a major bottleneck.

METHODS: We applied an integrative screening framework to assess 29 candidate targets from risk-enriched biological domains. Using disease-relevant murine BV2 microglial cell lines with stable Psen2 knockdown, we performed small interfering RNA-mediated perturbations followed by cellular phenotypic assays and quantitative proteomics.

RESULTS: Twenty-five candidate targets significantly altered at least one phenotype, with stronger effects in Psen2 knockdown cells. Integrated proteomic analyses identified several perturbations that reversed AD-associated molecular patterns. Five targets-Ap2a2, Pdhb, …

Dendrimer Gel Nanoparticles With Dual-Targeting Of Upar And Ribonucleotide Reductase R2 Influence Necrosis, Apoptosis, And Cell Cycle Arrest In Triple-Negative Breast Cancer, Hsin Yin Chuang, Yue-Wern Huang, Hu Yang

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive breast cancer subtype with limited treatment options due to the absence of estrogen (ER), progesterone (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) receptors. We previously developed highly adaptable polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimer-based gel nanoparticles (GDP-uPA/GTI) with dual-targeting capabilities against urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) and ribonucleotide reductase R2 (R2) to achieve selective antitumor effects. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanisms of GDP-uPA/GTI-induced tumor inhibition. In vivo, GDP-uPA/GTI significantly downregulated R2 expression and activated caspase 8 and caspase 3, indicating caspase-dependent apoptosis. Histological evaluation of major organs revealed no observable toxicity. …

Upcycling Commodity Polymers To Advanced Materials For Energy And Environmental Sustainability, Anthony Griffin-Espinoza

Dissertations

Synthetic polymers play an essential role in nearly every aspect of our lives. Extending beyond single-use packaging, polymeric material design has progressed to attain tailorable architectures granting exceptional performance across advanced applications, including carbon-fiber reinforced polymer composites for aerospace, conductive materials for soft electronics, and drug carriers for biomedicine. While highly promising, intricately designed polymers needed to achieve excellent performance often have limited processability, complex synthetic methods, and expensive precursors. Furthermore, due to a lack of recyclability, commodity polymer waste streams result in both environmental impacts and a substantial loss of economic value. This dissertation focuses on developing robust strategies …

Privacy Preserving-Based Artificial Intelligence For Precision Agriculture, Partha P. Sengupta

Dissertations

The research work finds a solution to precision agriculture of cotton cultivation using artificial intelligence (AI) models. Two sets of model performance based on the application are selected namely a low resource and a high resource setting. This is because using drone surveys to capture images identifying the classes of stressed and unstressed cotton plantation requires limited model architecture and CPU based computation. Thus, traditional AI models were selected for low resource settings. Again, for high computation intensive models like transfer learning-convolution neural network (CNN) based architectures were grouped into high resource settings. There was another issue of class imbalance …

The Malonate Template: The Key To Unlocking Novel Amino Acids, Thomas Owens

Dissertations

The “Malonate Template” provides access to various amino acids, all from a common intermediate. Herein, demonstrates the use of the malonate template to establish a synthetic route to both 2-thiohistidine and 2-thio-3-N-methyl-histidine from a benzyl methyl malonate derived intermediate. Furthermore, efforts exploiting the applicability of the malonate template for the of both 2-thiohistidine and 2-thio-3-N-methyl-histidine as a suitable alternative to methods previously described by Erdelmeier are described.

The method presented incorporates modifications to the biomimetic pathway described by Erdelmeier for the synthesis of 2-thiohisidine. By exploiting the biomimetic formation of 2-thiohisitidne’s mechanism via mass spectrometry, we …

Understanding Crystallization Behaviors Of Polyethylene-Derived Vitrimers, Sara Valdez

Dissertations

Polyolefins (POs), particularly polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), are among the most widely utilized polymers globally, valued for their low production costs and favorable mechanical properties stemming from their semicrystalline microstructure. However, their extensive use and improper disposal have raised serious environmental and human health concerns. In response, PO-derived covalent adaptable networks (CANs) have emerged, integrating dynamic chemistries to enable recyclability and sustainable end-of-life strategies. While existing literature has largely focused on novel CAN systems, structure–property relationships, and network rearrangement in relation to thermal transitions (e.g., topological freezing temperature), the influence of network formation on crystallinity and crystallization kinetics remains …

An Exploration Of Enablers, Barriers, And Strategies Influencing Black College Alumni's Sense Of Belonging Through The Lens Of Cultural Competence, Marc' C. Bady

Dissertations

According to Pew research, 53% of Black students in the United States are enrolled in predominantly White institutions, or PWIs (Hatfield & Anderson, 2024). Black alumni who attend PWIs are one among many marginalized and underrepresented vulnerable populations (Tucker, 2021). The purpose of this study was to engage with Black alumni who attended and graduated from PWIs to learn about their experiences with academic enablers, barriers, and strategies for success as a PWI student. The researcher interviewed six alumni who graduated from a Southeastern research one institution to explore their lived experiences at a PWI. The researcher chose to use …

Motivators And Work Role Satisfaction Among A Post-Pandemic Multi-Generational Sports And Entertainment Industry Workforce, Christopher J. Kinnan

Dissertations

This quantitative causal-comparative study explored intrinsic and extrinsic motivators and work-role satisfaction among a post-pandemic, multigenerational workforce in the North American sports and entertainment industry. Using an adapted version of the Sports Grounds Safety Authority’s (SGSA, 2022) Evaluation of Systematic Stewarding Challenges instrument, the study analyzed data from 560 participants representing safety, security, and service roles across sports and entertainment venues. The research examined generational differences in motivation, satisfaction, and barriers to retention within the framework of Human Capital Theory, Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory, and Self-Determination Theory.

Principal component and confirmatory factor analyses verified the reliability and validity of the adapted …

Impact Of Community College Size And Meeting Types On Leader-Member Conversation Quality In Career And Technical Education (Cte) Leaders: A Mixed Methods Study, Kenneth Wayne Kirkland Jr.

Dissertations

Community colleges are complex institutions with the primary mission of workforce preparation and academic transfer. In many cases, community colleges produce the majority of their local workforces. Political influences upon workforce priorities, increased national calls for transparency in higher education training, complicated infrastructure, and technical expertise requirements for faculty have created substantial challenges for career and technical education (CTE) leaders. These complexities require the 21st-century CTE leader to be as externally focused as their presidents, highlighting the importance of communication effectiveness in both leaders.

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to investigate the influence of community college enrollment levels …

An Examination Of African American Male College Students’ Perceptions Of Academic Engagement, Social Capital, And Success As Members Of Black Greek Letter Organizations On Predominantly White Campuses, Jerid P. Woods

Dissertations

This exploratory qualitative study examines the experiences of Black male students at predominantly White institutions (PWIs) through the lens of Yosso's Cultural Capital framework. It explores how membership in Historically Black Greek Letter Organizations (HBGLOs) shapes academic engagement, development of cultural and social capital, and academic success by leveraging cultural wealth.

Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with ten participants from various HBGLOs, and thematic analysis was used to identify key themes and patterns. Findings highlight that HBGLOs act as vital sources of social, cultural, and academic support, fostering a sense of belonging, promoting academic achievement, and creating leadership opportunities. …

Across The Pond, Across The Waistline: A Comparative Look At The Childhood Obesity Crisis In The United States And United Kingdom, Samantha N. Eales

Honors College Theses

Childhood obesity is no longer just a local concern; it’s a global epidemic shaping the health of future generations. This paper compares how two similar nations with drastically different healthcare systems, the United States and the United Kingdom, tackle this growing crisis. Although both countries struggle with fast food culture, sedentary lifestyles, and targeted marketing, their health policy strategies differ dramatically. The U.S. leans on community programs and education, while the U.K. enforces stronger national regulations and advertising restrictions. By examining nutrition, physical activity, and policy, this thesis explores what each country does well and where they fall short. It …

Metabolically Guided Walking And Plant-Based Nutrition Enhance Body Composition And Weight Loss Dataset, Harold Mayer, Gregory Heath, Chris S. Hansen, Lucas G. Valenca, Kristina Nelson Hall, Cassie J. White

Datasets

Dataset for research published in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

Nymc Synapse Issue 56, School Of Medicine Student Senate, New York Medical College

The Synapse

No abstract provided.

Exploring Faculty Perspectives Of Roadblocks To Accommodating Students With Disabilities In Community Colleges, Shalither S. Cushenberry

Dissertations

This qualitative study explores faculty perspectives on student accommodation in the community college setting. The one-on-one, semi-structured, in-depth interviews with faculty and perspectives of accommodation experts will result in outcomes that better prepare faculty, as a workforce, to support students with accommodations. The study utilized the social cognitive career theory (SCCT) to understand how increasing faculty awareness and engagement through professional development can enhance their ability to provide services to students with accommodation requests. The study underscores the critical importance of understanding the rationale for students with granted accommodations and faculty members supporting their academic success. The findings revealed gaps …

Optimizing Indigenous Timber Short-Gap Crossing Designs By Minimizing Wood Moisture Content, Robert Greenwood

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reducing moisture content increases wood strength and reduces the weight of timber members. An accurate and efficient method for measuring moisture content is important for the design and construction of indigenous timber short-gap crossings. This study evaluates different methods for measuring moisture content in timber, describes a methodology for developing a representative moisture content value for a timber log, and approaches for quickly drying large timber logs. The results of this thesis will support activities in developing a representative moisture content of a log for structural design purposes and reducing weight for constructability purposes. The approaches discussed were developed considering …