Digital Commons Network^™

Multilevel Network Governance For United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: The Role Of European Subnational Entities In Urban Resilience, Hasan Isgandar

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This dissertation investigates the role of subnational actors in European Union (EU) multilevel governance networks focused on reducing urban poverty and achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Focusing on the SDG #1 (No Poverty), SDG #11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and SDG #17 (Partnerships for the Goals) it examines the participation and impact of subnational actors in two case studies: Naples, Italy and Krakow, Poland. Using Social Network Analysis (SNA), the research investigates the configuration and performance of the networks created within the framework of the URBinclusion projects, which are part of the URBACT and Urban Innovative Actions …

Health Behavior In A Culture-Driven Society: Using Mixed Methods Research To Examine Medical Pluralism In Zimbabwe, Stephen Mhere

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This dissertation examined the role of cultural influences on health-seeking behaviors and healthcare choices among Zimbabweans, focusing on medical pluralism – where individuals simultaneously access traditional, faith-based, and allopathic medical systems. It applied the PEN-3 Cultural Model to examine Cultural Identity, Relationships and Expectations, and Cultural Empowerment. Using a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, data were collected via a Shona-language survey on WhatsApp. Multiple choice, closed-ended, and open-ended survey questions were texted to participants, and they responded by text or audio messages. Response data were collected from 137 study participants. Multinomial logistic regression was used for quantitative data analysis, while deductive …

Teacher Retention And The Disabilities-To-Prison Pipeline, Angela P. Mccloud-Bond

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

There is an overrepresentation of individuals with disabilities in the criminal and juvenile justice systems. Similar to the commonly known School-to-Prison Pipeline, Christoper Mallet has coined the term the Disabilities-to-Prison Pipeline to refer to this growing problem. Research has not yet determined how individual variables at the school or district levels lead to the expansion of the Disabilities-to-Prison Pipeline. Mallot (2021) presented three possible hypotheses to explain the expansion of this phenomenon: the differential treatment hypothesis, the school failure hypothesis, and the susceptibility hypothesis. There is a significant gap in the literature that focuses specifically on the differential treatment of …

Eating Disorder Patient Experiences With Best Practices During Psychiatric Treatment: An Exploratory Sequential Mixed Methods Study, Pamela L. Dow

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Eating disorders are among the deadliest mental health disorders and represent a significant financial burden to the U.S. healthcare system. However, little is known about eating disorder patients' experiences during psychiatric treatment. Informed by the Picker Principles of Person-Centered Care and recommendations from the American Psychiatric Association, this study explored eating disorder patient experiences with best practices during psychiatric treatment. First, 10 patients were interviewed about their treatment experiences with a psychiatrist. Themes were analyzed using iterative categorization in Dedoose and informed a quantitative survey to examine patient experiences with their psychiatrist performing best practices during eating disorder treatment. The …

Examining The Impact African American Male Teachers Have On The Math Scores Of Underserved Students, Demetrice Thomas

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This study contributed to a growing body of evidence emphasizing that teacher identity profoundly influences not only how students learn but also how they perceive themselves and their potential. As Gershenson (2022) noted, “Black teachers provide benefits to all students, fostering higher achievement and stronger aspirations,” highlighting the essential role of diverse educators in shaping student success. Consistent academic gains observed among students taught by African American male teachers reinforce the urgent need for educational systems to prioritize equity not only in student outcomes but also in diversifying the teaching workforce. Despite African American male teachers comprising less than 2% …

Fluidity In Structure: Balancing Form And Freedom, Tyler Stevens

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

In our postmodern society, there is a natural urge to want to decentralize the metanarratives that make up the standards and structures of defined aesthetics within the theatre landscape. This urge poses a potential threat to the authenticity of the dramatic context, encouraging performers to create narratives outside of the text. This led me to investigate how theatre artists can strike a balance between creative exploration and authenticity of context, of form and freedom. In seeking a way to engage with the effects of postmodernism in the theatre, I follow Hans-Theis Lehmann’s Postdramatic Theatre to a dead end and must …

Not Just Playing Pretend: Story Drama As Queer And Humanist Praxis, Julia Veiga

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

While conventional story time typically involves passive listening and enforced stillness, Story Drama transforms the storytelling experience into a participatory process where children use their voices, bodies, and imaginations to shape the narrative collaboratively. Indeed, Story Drama, combined with queer and humanist learning theory, fosters an inclusive, student-centered environment where youth practice critical thinking, problem-solving, and self-realization. Using the techniques of Story Drama transforms storytelling into a tool for cultivating socially engaged, independent learners, encouraging critical thinking and activism by nurturing empathy, community awareness, and creative agency from an early age.

This thesis explores the reimagining of traditional storytelling practices …

High-Efficiency Micro-Display Light Engines, Yizhou Qian

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Augmented reality displays, which integrate digital information with environmental backgrounds, are emerging in our daily lives. To ensure readability under outdoor environments with intense ambient light, AR displays must achieve high luminance levels suitable for human visual perception. However, severe light leakage in waveguide couplers and significant losses during exit pupil expansion limit the overall system efficiency to approximately 4%, requiring the light engine to reach luminance levels over one million nits. In addition, to match visual acuity while keeping a compact light engine size (< 1cc), full-color pixel pitch must be below 4 µm. This dissertation is devoted to addressing the possibility of existing light engines to meet these demanding requirements.

In Chapter 2, we comprehensively analyze the power consumption of existing commercial light engines …

Molecular Basis For The Disaggregase Activity Of Protein Disulfide Isomerase, Antonio Mele

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an essential, multifunctional, and promiscuous protein with a modular abb’xa’c domain arrangement. Conformational flexibility and the independent, yet coordinated, functionality of PDI domains facilitate protein folding, redox regulation, and the maintenance of cellular homeostasis. Previous investigations have shown that PDI can inhibit amyloid β peptide aggregation, associated with Alzheimer's disease, and is required for cholera toxin disassembly, the rate-limiting step in Vibrio cholerae pathogenesis. However, the precise mechanistic details underlying these interactions remain to be elucidated. Using molecular and biophysical approaches, this study has begun to establish substrate-induced unfolding, or conditional disorder, of PDI as …

Designing Immersive Educational Experiences: An Exploration Of Animal Attractions And Exhibits To Create A National Park Themed Experience, Sarah G. Merrill

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis analyzes the disconnect between immersive environmental storytelling and conservation education at animal attractions. How can designers create immersive educational experiences that engage audiences? Can environmental narrative practices be applied in a new way to develop effective conservation and wildlife education? A literature review assists in defining immersion, discovering the evolution of Modern Zoo design as an immersive experience, and evaluating conversation education in animal facilities. When combined with educational techniques, immersive habitat design improves guest engagement and informal conservation learning outcomes in zoos and animal-related experiences. Using Scott Lukas’ theming and immersion modes, three attractions are analyzed as …

Exploring The Role Of Geofencing, Geolocation, And Audio Descriptions In Enhancing Mobility And Inclusion For Individuals With Blindness And Visual Impairments In Museums And Indoor Spaces, Javier Enrique Molinares

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This dissertation explores the challenges individuals with blindness and visual impairments face in navigating cultural spaces, explicitly focusing on museums, and emphasizes the importance of inclusion. The study explores how conventional accessibility solutions can accidentally establish obstacles which restrict autonomy and diminish chances for meaningful participation. Accessibility challenges were identified through qualitative observations at the Gateway Museum, located within the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Merritt Island, Florida. Additionally, interviews and a participatory co-design methodology involving five participants with blindness and visual impairments were conducted. These methods led to the development of a mobility application that combines geolocation technology, …

Visual Experience Enhancement In Augmented Reality Waveguide Displays, Yuqiang Ding

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

In the dynamic arena of display technology, augmented reality (AR) displays represent a pivotal advancement, seamlessly bridging the digital and physical worlds. This dissertation mainly examines waveguide-based AR display technologies—which enable slim form factors and large eyebox via exit pupil expansion—yet still face persistent challenges: low ambient contrast ratio (ACR), poor color performance and slow simulation design cycles. To address these issues, this dissertation introduces novel liquid crystal photonic devices and system-level optical solutions—together with accelerated simulation methods for design—to enhance user experience and system performance. First, the dissertation examines one of the major efficiency bottlenecks arises from multiple interactions …

Netflix And The Platformization Of Film And Television Content Discovery, Jacob Boccio

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This dissertation investigates the Netflix streaming platform to better understand the platformization of film and television cultural production and content discovery. Building on platform studies and scholarship on platformization, this work contributes to the growing body of literature that critically examines the implications of digital platforms in reshaping cultural and creative industries. Using this framework, the dissertation explores how the evolution of content discovery mechanisms on Netflix affects the cultural production of the film and television industries. Chapter 1 frames Netflix as a platform within the platformization framework. Chapter 2 examines Netflix employees, who serve as gatekeepers by curating and …

Bent Never Broken: A Study Of Multidimensional Perfectionism Through Animation, Sabrina R. Dias

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Bent Never Broken is a 3D animated short film about a martial artist that strives to gain his mother’s love through perfection. The film focuses on maladaptive multidimensional perfectionism and how it affects parent-child relationships. Bent Never Broken utilizes stylized rendering and animation to maintain maturity and appeal. It has a mature storyline with an ending that enforces the idea that perfection does not equate to love, and that it is okay to walk away from maladjusted parent-child relationships.

Catching Light Finding Encouragement Through Art And The Role Of Women In Impressionism, Vlada Evtushenko

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Catching Light is a two-dimensional (2D) animated film about the importance of human connection through the tale of an artist rediscovering their passion for painting through the support of a fellow artist. Catching Light is told through the lens of the period in art history when the artists, who eventually came to be known as 'Impressionists', broke free from the traditions of the Academy. The story highlights how the Art Academy restricted and discriminated against people based on social class and gender, and its disrespect towards the craft of paintmaking. By setting this story in the late 19th century, Catching …

Ghosts Moving From The Margins: Comparing Representations Of Migrants In Contemporary Italian Media, Madeline Grohowski

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis examines how two different cultural mediums produced by a prominent Italian director and a popular Italian musical artist engage with themes of immigration and diaspora and their impacts on Italian national identity. The works that I have selected represent a mix of well-known and emergent figures in Italian cultural life and its related discourses around immigration and identity from the last 20 years of Italian history. Focusing on director Emanuele Crialese’s film Terraferma (2011) and rapper and singer Ghali’s songs “Mamma” (2017) and “Bayna” (2022), I analyze how each work frames migration as a metaphorical haunting that engages …

Just Breathe: Demystifying Breath In Theatre Performance And Pedagogy, Gabriella Headley

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Breathing is an involuntary reflex that happens every day, usually without any extra effort or consideration. Often as actors we are instructed to “just breathe” in a scene, but what does that really mean when breathing is something that is already done subconsciously? Since beginning graduate training, I have realized how imperative breath is in our work as performers, and how it is the cornerstone of everything: the voice, the body, the text, and how it acts as the connecting force between the performers and the audience. How can actors, educators, and directors expand their vocabulary and use breath as …

Roleing In & Out Of Character, Dominique E. Marshall

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis explores different methods for an actor to safely get in and out of character. There is a myriad of methodologies for actors to get into their roles, but not much public information on how actors should get out of character. My research navigates how to release a role, or ‘de-roleing,’ along with what actors need in preparation for taking on a role, or ‘pre-roleing.’ The risks of not having an efficient pre-roleing and de-roleing method are emphasized. Using a combination of ideas brought on by Augusto Boal, Susana Bloch, Suzanne Dieckman, and others, I explore methods to de-role …

“Let The Little Lady Have It!”: Carrie And Ella Rossetter And The Role Of Corporate Women In Early Twentieth Century Business History, Angela R. Mchugh

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis examines the entrepreneurial journeys of Carrie and Ella Rossetter, two pioneering women who navigated the male-dominated business landscape of early 20th century Florida. Their experiences challenge the prevailing narrative that women were largely excluded from corporate roles prior to World War II. The Rossetter sisters, through their respective ventures in the oil and insurance industries, illustrate the complexities faced by women entrepreneurs during this era, including societal expectations, gender norms, and limited access to capital. Despite operating within a framework that favored traditional feminine roles, Carrie and Ella found ways to assert their business acumen and establish successful …

Screen Time On Stage: The Effect Of Internet And The Smartphone On The Actor, Nathan A. Olmeda

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis examines the potential link between an actor’s cell phone use and their work in the rehearsal process. Using Paula Thomson and S. Victoria Jaque’s Creativity and the Performing Artist and Nichola Carr’s The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing To Our Brains, I analyze the neural networks of the brain that are engaged in acting and their functions to develop a greater understanding of their association to behaviors and emotional responses that may impact the actor in the rehearsal/performance space. Furthermore, I investigate the emergence of smartphone use within the cultural zeitgeist and its effect on the …

The Coffee Corner Project: Creating Rehearsal Community Through The Café Space, Jacob Romeo

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

The ensemble is the heart of any rehearsal process, and a sense of community as an ensemble is enriched more in the moments between rehearsing than in the rehearsal room itself. Approaching the ensemble from this perspective, this thesis examines how this connection can be strengthened or deepened by observing the history of the coffee shop social space. I implemented this lens of community into the rehearsal process by constructing a pared-down cafe space adjacent to the rehearsal room that elevated coffee beyond its “grab and go” forms into an enriching sensory experience where the cast and creative team were …

Mat 1320g : Mathematical Modeling, Mathematics And Computer Science

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Tha 3555 : Acting In Performance, Theatre

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Swk 3850 : Social Work Practice: Working With Groups, Human Services

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Swk 4570 : Social Work Practicum I, Human Services

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Cds 4275 : Internship In Communication Disorders And Sciences, Cds

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Ksr 4902 : Chronic Diseases/Conditions And Effects On Exercise Testing And Perception, Ksr

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Locked Out: An Empirical Study Of The Impacts Of Technological Protection Measures On Digital Content Access In Canadian Academic Libraries, Anthony D. Rosborough, Katherine Silins

Reports & Public Policy Documents

This report presents findings from a comprehensive empirical qualitative study involving interviews with Canadian academic librarians, copyright officers, and information professionals to examine how TPMs affect digital content access. The research reveals that TPMs are deeply embedded within the technology and licensing frameworks used by libraries, creating opaque barriers to lawful access. Practitioners often lack clarity on whether restrictions stem from TPMs or from contractual or platform design, complicating their ability to support fair dealing uses of works, preservation, and teaching. This ambiguity has increased substantially with the rise of controlled digital lending (CDL) and other access models that have …

Developing Novel Therapeutic Strategies For Mcrc With A Brafv600e Mutation, Mariah Geisen

Theses and Dissertations--Toxicology and Cancer Biology

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The overall incidence rates of CRC have decreased in those over 50, but there is an increasing incidence rate in those under 50. Risk factors for CRC include diet, family history, and a sedentary lifestyle. Early detection of CRC is key to patient survival and treatment response. Localized CRC has a survival rate of 90% and allows for surgical resection and chemotherapy. The 5-year survival for metastatic CRC (mCRC) is significantly reduced to around 14%. Despite early detection, 50% of patients will develop metastasis after surgical resection and …

Elucidating The Adverse Effects Of Chronic Pfos Exposure On Gastrointestinal Pathology And Colorectal Cancer, Jerika Durham

Theses and Dissertations--Toxicology and Cancer Biology

Commonly referred to as "forever chemicals," per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been linked to a number of detrimental health effects, including an elevated risk of cancer. One "long-chain" subtype of PFAS, perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), has a long elimination half-life and a significant propensity for bioaccumulation. Because PFOS is commonly found in drinking water, the gastrointestinal system absorbs it at a high rate. Recent studies demonstrate that PFAS exposures promote intestinal inflammation and gut barrier dysfunction. However, how a long-term PFOS exposure affects colorectal cancer (CRC) progression is not known. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to understand how …