Digital Commons Network^™

Ordered Mini-Batch Training For Differentially Private And Encrypted Logistic Regression, Ryan Leone

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Logistic regression has found extensive use as a supervised machine learning algorithm due to its simplicity and efficiency in binary and multivariate classification tasks. As data sharing grows across connected devices, safeguarding sensitive personal and industrial information is of increased importance. Privacy-preserving machine learning techniques such as differential privacy and homomorphic encryption offer mathematically rigorous security guarantees, but introduce difficult accuracy, privacy loss, and computational overhead issues. This thesis investigates PPML for logistic regression through a collaborative mini-batch training framework. I propose and implement an ordered mini-batch strategy, compare it to standard shuffled methods, then integrate differential privacy noise injection …

Inferring Genes And Biological Systems Under Selective Pressure In The Secondarily Temperate Cryonotothenioids, Esteban Cabrera

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Notothenioid fishes represent one of the most compelling examples of adaptive radiation driven by extreme environmental change, having diversified in the chronically cold waters of the Southern Ocean. While most cryonotothenioids evolved highly specialized cold-adapted characteristics, several secondarily temperate species later re-invaded warmer environments. These lineages provide a rare opportunity to examine evolutionary reversibility and the genomic mechanisms enabling escape from extreme specialization. In this study, we investigate two secondarily temperate species, Dissostichus eleginoides and Champsocephalus esox, comparing their protein-coding orthogroups to background sets from Antarctic cryonotothenioids and basal temperate teleosts. Using phylogeny based evolutionary models (BUSTED, aBSREL, and RELAX) …

A Trajectory Of Zostera Marina (Eelgrass) Ecosystem Recovery: Pre- And Post-Hurricane Sandy Degradation In Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, Edgar A. Medina

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Hurricane Sandy struck Barnegat Bay, New Jersey in 2012 and obliterated the benthic marine ecosystem with extensive damage to Zostera marina meadows. Previous genetic assessments of Barnegat Bay Z. marina in 2008 revealed low heterozygosity and low connectivity between populations. The great disruption caused by Hurricane Sandy motivated us to investigate the long-term effects of the storm on the genetic condition of the eelgrass populations in the year 2021. The investigation revealed improvements in heterozygosity, inbreeding, and connectivity. These findings drove us to investigate the genetics of Barnegat Bay eelgrass populations in the intervening years of 2013 and 2017 with …

Examining The Enactment Of Teacher Leadership Through Self-Created Social Network Maps, Shanna Dawn Anderson

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Much of a teacher’s work is unseen. It extends beyond classroom instruction and into collaborative, relational work that positions teachers as essential actors in educational change. Yet this work occurs within a neoliberal education system that intensifies accountability, erodes professional autonomy, and reinforces hierarchical, patriarchal models of authority. Although schools depend on teachers’ expertise, these structures constrain opportunities for collaborative professionalism and relational forms of leading and learning. This study pushed back on the neoliberal agenda and examined the phenomenon of teacher leadership. Using descriptive and interpretive phenomenology, I analyzed self-created social network maps and narrative data to understand how …

Seeking The Goodness In Culturally Responsive Practices Of New Jersey Suburban Public Elementary Teachers, Kimya S. Jackson

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

In the United States, suburban elementary schools continue to diversify, while teaching staff remain predominantly White, creating urgency for culturally responsive practices (CRP) in non-urban settings (Stanford, 2023). In this study, I examined CRP’s goodness enacted by four teachers in New Jersey suburban elementary schools, a context shaped by state mandates for diversity and inclusion (New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), 2022). The question guiding my research was: In what ways do New Jersey suburban elementary (kindergarten through fifth grade) schoolteachers engage in culturally responsive practices? Using Lawrence-Lightfoot and Hoffman Davis’s (1997) portraiture methodology, I developed portraits of four suburban …

A Deep Learning Approach For Mapping Shrubs, Wet Tundra And Surface Water In Arctic Tundra With Very High Resolution Satellite Imagery, Darko Radakovic

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Arctic shrub expansion threatens to accelerate permafrost thaw through complex feedbacks, yet whether shrubs primarily indicate or drive degradation remains unresolved. This dissertation integrates deep learning analysis of two decades of satellite imagery with LiDAR canopy structure and radar soil moisture data to reveal that shrubs play a dual role: young, expanding shrubs signal active permafrost thaw, while mature, tall shrubs stabilize underlying permafrost through insulation. By demonstrating that vertical canopy structure predicts thaw depth better than cover extent alone, this work establishes a scalable framework for monitoring permafrost vulnerability across the rapidly changing Arctic. Arctic shrub expansion is accelerating …

Introduction To Shakers At The Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles In Nineteenth-Century America, Douglas L. Winiarski

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Current Active U.S. Patents Held By Sop Inventors - Updated 3/19/26, Soumyajit Majumdar

U. S. Patents, School of Pharmacy

List of current active U.S. Patents held by the School of Pharmacy Inventors - updated 3/19/26

Adolescent Cyberbullying And Polysubstance Use: Unpacking Sex Differences, Maggie K. Richardson, Osayande Agbonlahor, Joy L. Hart, Meman Diaby, Delvon T. Mattingly

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

The rise of social media platforms has heightened cyberbullying among adolescents, closely tied to negative mental health outcomes. Substance use, including alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco, also remains a significant concern for this population. This study examines the relationship between cyberbullying and substance use, exploring potential sex differences in these associations. We analyzed data from the 2021 Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey (ABES) (n = 6,740 students in grades 9–12). We used multinomial logistic regression models to assess the relationship between past-year cyberbullying and current patterns of substance use (exclusive, dual, and poly), adjusting for sociodemographic factors, screen time, and mental …

Legislative Debate-Attributed Suicidality Among Lgbtq+ Adults: The Buffering Effect Of Community Belongingness, Keith J. Watts, Shawndaya S. Thrasher, Laneshia Conner, Nicole Campbell, Louis G. Baser, Dekeitra Griffin, Sydney Howard, Missy Spears, Justin X. Moore

Social Work Faculty Publications

Background: In recent years, the sociopolitical landscape in the United States has shifted due to an increase in state-level legislation regarding LGBTQ+ rights, a trend that has been particularly pronounced in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. While the mental health impacts of enacted laws are increasingly documented, a critical gap remains in understanding the psychological toll of the legislative debates themselves—the prolonged periods of public discourse surrounding the restriction of rights.

Methods: Utilizing data from the 2025 Queer Kentucky Survey (N = 817), this exploratory study examined the association between LGBTQ+ community belongingness and acute suicidality attributed specifically to anti-LGBTQ+ legislative …

Smokejumper Magazine, January 2026, National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper and Static Line Magazines

This issue of the National Smokejumper Association (NSA) Smokejumper Magazine, contains the following articles:

Message from the President; Smokejumpers in Indochina; Visionary in Aisle Three!; 2025 NSA Scholarship and Education/Training Grant Awardees; The Greatest Generation; You can Get Great Firefighters; You Just Have to Work for It; Bagger Crew; The OC Fire Program: A Fire Path to Life; The Summer My Life Changed; Only In Alaska; Burned Out: It Doesn't Have to Be This Way; Jumpin' at 300 Feet; 56 Years Later; Round vs. Square; Featured Member: Ken Herrick; Notes From the Ranks; Thoroughly Modern McCall; Sounding Off; Odds and …

Grown-Ups, Grown-Downs, And Pan-Generationality, In Parents, Children, And The Ripples Of Transitional Justice (Kirsten J. Fisher & Caitlin Mollica Eds., 2026), Mark A. Drumbl

Books and Chapters

Until one becomes a grown-up, one perhaps remains a ‘grown-down’. Indeed, a refrain among concerns that have been raised about demobilization programmes for former child soldiers is that they treat former child soldiers as grown-downs, often even as infants, notwithstanding the experiences of these young people in terms of fighting and foraging and fending and fleecing which, indeed, surpass the kinds of challenges that many grown-ups ever face. In the end, then, as Grace Akello has poignantly demonstrated, many decommissioned child soldiers remain grown-downs who end up going down paths on which they shift from armed conflict to drift into …

Dental Board Of California, William Truong, Katie Gonzalez, Marcus Friedman

California Regulatory Law Reporter

No abstract provided.

Board Of Barbering And Cosmetology, Jordan Simoes, Marcus Friedman

California Regulatory Law Reporter

No abstract provided.

Explicit Teaching Of Chatgpt In Introductory Educator Preparation Programs, Emily George, Lotta Larson

Posters

I will share success stories on what works in the field, teacher candidate & classroom teacher feedback on ease of use and effectiveness for task. Will provide a list of field-tested ideas to ease the workload of general and special education teachers.

Designing A Two-Semester Undergraduate Data Science Sequence For Computer Science, Mathematics, And Actuarial Science Majors, A. Jayawardhana

Posters

The proposed two-semester sequence is designed to provide students with a rigorous foundation in statistical thinking, computational modeling, and modern machine learning. The curriculum integrates probability, inference, optimization, and algorithmic learning into a coherent framework for data-driven decision-making. The sequence progresses from statistical foundations to computational machine learning systems, emphasizing both theory and implementation.

Classical Vs Quantum Machine Learning: A Fair Test Of Data Encoding In Phishing Detection, Muhammad Huzaifa Shafique

Posters

This is a planned study that compares how much does data encoding techniques affect Quantum Machine Learning (QML) performance compared to Classical Machine Learning (CML)? Unlike classical models, QML cannot directly read a dataset; it must first convert features into quantum states using conversion methods like Classical machine learning reads normal numbers directly, but Quantum machine learning first turns those numbers into quantum form (qubits) that can be present in multiple states at once. This strengthens core AI skills for data preprocessing, PCA (Principal Component Analysis) features, model training, and evaluation. These are the basic building blocks of both approaches, …

Ai As A Support Tool For International Students, Gabi Alvarez, Derrel Fincher

Posters

This poster presentation explores the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to enhance teaching, learning, and communication in higher education, with a special focus on supporting international students. Demonstrating how AI can serve as a supportive tool to foster inclusion, improve communication, and enhance learning experiences for diverse student populations. Drawing on my experience as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Department of Teaching and Leadership at Pittsburg State University, this project examines how AI-supported strategies can help bridge language barriers, clarify academic expectations, and improve student engagement. Many international students arrive at PSU with strong academic backgrounds but must …

Wild Rice Life Cycle: An Integrated Science, Social Studies, And Ela Lesson, Rhett Zima, Lily Deming

OER Materials

This lesson is designed to deepen students’ understanding of wild rice, a plant native to Minnesota, by integrating life science concepts such as structure, function, life cycles, and seed dispersal with prior knowledge from English Language Arts and Social Studies. Using the 5E instructional model (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate), students participate in a structured, inquiry-based learning experience. They begin by connecting to prior knowledge and generating questions, then investigating the life cycle and growth patterns of wild rice through hands-on exploration. As students build their understanding, they analyze how the plant’s seed dispersal supports its survival and reproduction. …

Z Variant Heterozygosity In Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency: Disease Risk And Treatment Implications, Craig P. Hersh, Jeffrey H. Teckman, Pavel Strnad, Aaron Hakim, Tomás P. Carroll, Ian P. Hall, Auyon J. Ghosh, Igor Barjaktarevic, Noel G. Mcelvaney, Joseph E. Kaserman, David A. Lomas, Charlie Strange, M Bradley Drummond, Stephen I. Rennard, Kathi E. Hanna, Virginia C. Clark, Monica P. Goldklang, Peg Iverson, Andrew A. Wilson

Journal Articles: Pulmonary & Critical Care Med

BACKGROUND: Individuals heterozygous for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD) have one copy of the normal "M" allele and one copy of an abnormal allele ("Z", "S", or another variant) in the SERPINA1 gene. Historically, evidence has been lacking to support the concept that heterozygotes are at increased risk for liver and/or lung complications compared to individuals homozygous for the M allele. However, growing evidence suggests that inheritance of a single Z allele increases the risk of disease in some individuals. The Alpha-1 Foundation convened a workshop on October 27, 2023, in Bethesda, Maryland that included stakeholders from the research, pharmaceutical, and …

Closing The Literacy Gap: Comparing Student Outcomes Based On Three Phonemic Awareness Programs, Juanita Diaz

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

The nationwide literacy crisis has been in existence for decades. Numerous governmental acts, research, and studies have yet to positively affect the nationwide literacy policies and instruction in schools. The Science of Reading, a body of research from many disciplines inclusive and exclusive of education, has illustrated how structured literacy can positively affect reading outcomes. One of the skills under literacy, phonemic awareness, is an instrumental foundational reading skill that researchers have identified as critical to early literacy and eventual reading proficiency. Historically, many districts have not been mandated to utilize instructional tools or practices grounded in research or evidence. …

Inclusion Meets Innovation: Exploring Vr Technological Acceptance And Accessibility Barriers For People With Physical Disabilities, Andrew E. Bedard

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

The central goal of this work was to examine the usability barriers Middle School and High School students encountered while using VR during an educational learning activity. 20 Middle and High School students aged 11–21, with little or no prior VR experience, participated in a set of explanatory VR activities, after watching instructional videos. After the activity, students completed a brief survey on their ease of setting up the headset, using the controllers, and managing both devices during gameplay. This study used a mixed-methods approach, combining descriptive survey results with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), which was ultimately framed in the …

Teacher Burnout In 2026 - Context, Student Effects, And Interventions, Colin David Thies

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In order to aid teachers in 2026, this paper aims to identify what teachers and administrators can do to protect against and treat teacher burnout in K-12 schools. To achieve this, research was conducted on the post-pandemic context of teacher burnout, the secondary effects of teacher burnout on students, individual and organizational interventions. Teacher burnout is a multifaceted ailment, and many of the factors behind burnout can be beyond one’s control. There is no single answer, though there is an emphasis on emotions, as research suggests emotions may be greatly important to both succumbing to and treating teacher burnout. Thus, …

Integrating Discipline-Specific Literacy In Business Education: Implications For Skill Development, Katherine M. Mitzner, Quinn J. Longueville

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Literacy is a vital part of a students’ education. Not only is it important to know how to read, but it is also important for students to comprehend what is read. There are many aspects of literacy, including content area literacy and disciplinary literacy. This thesis explores the importance of disciplinary literacy in the context of a business education lens and how business literacy impacts the success of a secondary student. It explores disciplinary literacy, the impacts of business literacy on other fields, implementation in the classroom, and professional development for literacy strategies. Application materials related to the findings are …

Music-Based Interventions And Social Communication Outcomes For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Tom M. Coughlin

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by persistent differences in social communication, social interaction, and ritualistic and repetitive behaviors. This thesis examined participation in music-based instruction and intervention to support social communication outcomes for students with ASD. Literature studies included systematic reviews, empirical interventions, and music-based approaches, including improvisational music therapy, song-based instruction, classroom-based music intervention, and technology-mediated music-making. Across the literature, music-based practices were analyzed considering engagement, joint attention, emotional understanding, initiation, reciprocal interaction, and expressive communication. The literature reviewed suggests that music-based instruction and intervention provide meaningful contexts to support social communication skills for ASD students, highlighting the …

Beyond Permissions: A Privacy And Security Analysis Of Sensor And Network Activity On Xr Devices Using Xrmonitor, Gayatri Sravya Siripurapu

Computer Science and Engineering Theses - Archive

Standalone virtual reality headsets integrate multiple sensors and cameras whose runtime behavior is not transparently documented, creating potential privacy and security risks that are difficult to audit using existing tools. The relationship between software feature activation and the underlying hardware engaged at runtime remains opaque, limiting the ability of users and researchers to assess what data is being collected and when.

This thesis presents XRMonitor, a unified framework for monitoring and analyzing sensor activation behavior and network traffic on Meta Quest devices. The framework is motivated by the lack of transparency in how standalone XR devices engage their hardware sensors …

Differentiating Blunt Force Trauma Fractures From Thermal Fractures In Fleshed And Skeletal Deer Heads, Alyssa Ranney

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Blunt-force trauma deaths are one of the most common cases encountered by forensic anthropologists because they involve accidental, suicidal, and homicidal deaths (Batalis 2025). In forensic cases, blunt force trauma is sometimes concealed by thermal alteration to cover evidence. Because of the mechanical and chemical properties that influence thermal and blunt-force trauma, distinguishing between them becomes difficult (Raniero et al. 2024). Previous literature discussing thermal alteration after blunt force trauma has typically focused on either fleshed or skeletal remains. This study uses both fleshed and skeletal deer heads under the same conditions to determine if: 1) Thermal trauma can be …

Health Behaviors Of First-Generation College Students Affected By Acculturation, Angel Castro

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The purpose of this qualitative narrative ethnographic study was to understand how acculturation affects health behaviors and wellness of first-generation college students at a state university on the West Coast of the United States. The theory guiding this study was social constructivism theory, proposed by Lev Vygotsky, who claimed behaviors are constructed by social interactions around social settings. This research focused on how students navigated the changes in inherited cultural values of health behaviors and wellness practices affected by mainstream and college cultures. The dissertation investigated challenges first-generation college students faced in an environment that often conflicted with family values …

Lyell, Elizabeth Interview 21 November 2025, Elizabeth Lyell, Maughn Rollins Gregory, Megan Jane Laverty

All IAPC Oral Histories

In this IAPC Oral History Interview, Dr. Elizabeth Lyell reflects on her participation in the first cohort of the Master of Arts in Teaching degree with a Concentration in Philosophy for Children at Montclair State College during the 1981–1982 academic year. Lyell recounts her introduction to philosophy for children, her intensive year of study with Matthew Lipman, Ann Margaret Sharp, and Phil Guin, and teaching philosophy in public school classrooms in Montclair, New Jersey and Harlem. Lyell offers vivid memories of Lipman as a teacher, mentor, and moral presence, highlighting his pedagogical generosity, seriousness, and commitment to grounding philosophy in …

An Evidence-Based Approach To Standardizing Occupational Therapy Services For Functional Neurological Disorder: Protocol Development And Provider Education, Kimberly Yuen

OTD Capstones

Functional Neurological Disorder is a complex neurological condition that continues to be misinterpreted and stigmatized by healthcare practitioners. Occupational therapists play a vital role in the care team for an individual with FND, as their scope of practice helps to empower individuals with this condition to return to daily, meaningful occupations. However, there remains a lack of evidence-based protocols and resources for occupational therapists to utilize when treating functional neurological disorder (FND), resulting in minimized confidence and understanding of how to treat this population. This capstone project addressed these concerns through the creation of multiple deliverables to help improve clinician …