Digital Commons Network^™

A Portfolio Of Actionable Science: How Public Sector Opportunities Can Unlock Equitable Outcomes, Kathryn Dana Sjostrom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Patterns of structural and socioeconomic disparities are stark. Public sector actors, in particular planners and grant managers, have a responsibility to thoughtfully allocate funds to better address longstanding disparities. This study provides examples of how actionable science looks in practice in local government contexts and grounds the work in the literature across planning, public administration, and anthropology fields. This inter-disciplinary approach helps identify co-production as a common theme to stitch these works together. First, a case study in green fleet efforts offers a co-produced approach and detailed program evaluation to justify and continue encouraging the use of idle mitigation technology …

Adapting Early Music For Tuba/Euphonium Quartet, Bryson Camby Harding

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

This dissertation addresses the absence of pre-nineteenth-century repertoire for the tuba and euphonium by demonstrating the pedagogical and musical viability of adapting Late Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque works for tuba/euphonium quartet. Because the tuba and euphonium emerged only after the invention of the valve in the nineteenth century, no original repertoire exists for these instruments from earlier periods. Consequently, low brass chamber literature has remained largely confined to modern compositions, limiting student engagement with modal harmony, imitative counterpoint, isorhythmic structure, basso continuo practice, and early formal design. Through historically informed and methodologically grounded transcription, this project expands the quartet canon …

Lithics Of An Abandoned Town: A Source And Typological Analysis Of Lithic Materials From Units 5 And 6 At The Chucalissa Site (40sy1), Ireland Reisinger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

The thesis analyses the lithic artifacts from the Chucalissa site (40SY1) to look for any differences in the source of the lithic resources in order to understand the resource range and/or social networks used by the site’s inhabitants. These findings will allow for the identification of possible stone use differences depending on context, as well as the geographic range of the procured stone resources utilized. Chucalissa is a Mississippian period village site located inside T.O Fuller State Park in Shelby County, Tennessee. Although there have been extensive excavations at the site, little analysis of the lithic assemblage has been conducted. …

Appeal No. 1031: Mason Drilling, Inc.. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order No. 2024-73

Appeal No. 1036: G & M Smith Family, Llc. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2024-287

April 7, 2026 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

China Town Hall: Local Connections, National Reflections, Academic Affairs

Campus Events

No abstract provided.

Machine Learning-Based Determination Of Sex-Related Bladder Cancer Biomarkers, Joseph Pizzi

Theses

Bladder cancer exhibits sex-specific behavior, occurring more frequently in males but progressing to advanced stages more commonly in females. The activation of sex hormone receptors may explain these differences, but the exact genetic drivers remain poorly understood. Furthermore, current bladder cancer biomarkers have inconsistent sensitivities and specificities in practice, making early diagnosis a challenge. This study approaches bladder cancer biomarker discovery through machine learning techniques on gender and disease-stratified RNA-seq data. Training sets limited to differentially expressed genes were subjected to four different feature selection methods: differential gene expression analysis adjusted p-value, recursive feature elimination with support vector machine, logistic …

The Hypocrisy Of The Wizards—A Proposal To Correct Incentives In Higher Education Loan Financing, Caden Benedict

School of Public Policy Capstones

This paper explores the origins of the student loan debt crisis and proposes tying university incentives to graduates' repayment plans and disclosing median earnings for degrees before students apply. Specifically, while there are numerous factors explaining why the price of education has increased dramatically since the 1970s, this paper proposes solutions that will specifically target university moral hazards by requiring universities fund: (1) the current subsidies to federal student loan repayments under income-driven plans as the House of Representatives intended before the Senate removed "risk-sharing," and (2) bankruptcy law discharge amounts. Moreover, requiring universities to disclose the median earnings of …

2026 U.S. News Grad School Rankings Includes 13 Ud Schools, Programs, University Of Dayton

News Releases

Thirteen University of Dayton schools and programs are listed among the '2026 U.S. News Best Graduate Schools Rankings.'

George C. Roberts Award Recipients

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Emotional Disclosure Dilemmas: How Personal And Relational Factors Predict Ambivalence Over Emotional Expression, Julie A. Tobin, Camilla S. Øverup, Qian Lu

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

Ambivalence over emotional expression (AEE) has been associated with various health and wellbeing outcomes, yet the relational factors that may be associated with AEE have been underexplored. The current study explored the associations between social support, conflict, gender, and AEE across a variety of different relationship types. Participants (N = 135) read scenarios describing situations where they imagined either expressing or suppressing different emotions (anger, pride, apprehension, appreciation) to five different people and then indicated the amount of regret (AEE) they anticipated over that expression decision. The results suggest that although social support was particularly related to emotional expression, …

Art Battle: Perceptions Of Criminality In Rap Vs. Stand-Up Comedy, Abiodun A. Akinseye, Fabiana Alceste, Ashley N. Peters

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

Applied research on perceptions of rap music shows that it is viewed more negatively than other musical genres, such as rock or country (e.g., Dunbar et al., 2016). This is in part due to associations between rap and Blackness, including stereotypes about Black people in general and about rappers specifically (e.g., Reyna et al., 2009). In the United States, prosecutors will sometimes present a rapper’s lyrics as a form of confessionary evidence in the courtroom (e.g., State of New Jersey v. Vonte Skinner, 2012). The practice of using art as criminal evidence appears to be unique to the musical genre …

Developing A Community Partnership Toolkit To Expand Vocational Opportunitiesfor Adults With Disabilities In A Day Program Setting, Bonnie Chapman

Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctorate - Doctoral Capstone Symposium

This capstone project aimed to address the gap in community-based vocational opportunities for adults with disabilities within a day program setting. It was identified that participants lacked consistent opportunities to engage in real-world work experiences, which limited their ability to develop vocational skills and explore meaningful roles within the community. This gap was further compounded by a limited number of local businesses willing or prepared to establish partnerships with the program. Additionally, staff reported having insufficient resources and tools to effectively develop and sustain these partnerships, creating a significant barrier to expanding vocational opportunities.

The purpose of this project was …

April 2026 Faculty Senate Packet, University Of Nebraska At Kearney Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Packets

No abstract provided.

Heck Coupling Of Α-Vinyl Β-Lactne, Adaobi I. Udokwu, Jimena Garcia Nunez, Barnabas Otoo

ASPIRE 2026

Antibiotic resistance remains a critical global health challenge, underscoring the urgent need for novel antibiotics with unique structural frameworks. β-Lactones represent a promising class of bioactive molecules with significant therapeutic potential. Interestingly, most β-lactone-based antibiotics reported to date share a common structural feature: relatively long α-side chains. Our research focuses on expanding the structural diversity of β-lactones to explore new biological activities. We have synthesized a series of β-lactones via boron-mediated aldol reactions of substituted acetic acids with aldehydes and ketones, followed by dialkyl carbodiimide-mediated lactonization of the resulting β-hydroxy acids. However, this approach imposes limitations on the length and …

The Qualitative And Quantitative Analysis Of Fresh Produce Distribution In Rockingham County And The City Of Harrisonburg, Lauren A. Fisher, Alisa Hart

ASPIRE 2026

Fresh produce is essential to a balanced diet; however, many families struggle to access consistent sources of it. In 2022, about 17 million households were without access to nutritionally sound food from an easy to access source (Godoy 2023). About 10% of the populations of Rockingham County (approximately 17,000 people) are considered to be food insecure with at least 1,000 of those being children (Map the Meal Gap 2016).  Many of those experiencing food insecurity rely heavily on the emergency food system (e.g. food pantries).  Highly processed foods tend to be less expensive and shelf stable than the healthier fresh, …

Artificial Intelligence Assisted Evaluation Of Fungicide Efficacy In Acorn Squash, Olivia Grace Daniels

ASPIRE 2026

Powdery Mildew is a common fungus that infects a multitude of plants. This project will be working with Podosphaera Xanthii, the fungal pathogen that causes powdery mildew in cucurbits. Cucurbitaceae is a plant family that includes squash, pumpkins, melons and watermelons. Powdery mildew ends up significantly reducing the plants yield and infection causes an economic loss for growers which poses a great threat to the farmer’s lively hood. Powdery mildew is also extremely contagious and spreads rapidly to nearby plants. It can be absolutely decimating to populations. So there has been a push to find methods to control the spread …

Competing For Power In Postwar Europe: The Marshall Plan, Comecon, And Authoritarian Strategies Of Control In Eastern Europe, Jordan R. Mongold

ASPIRE 2026

This presentation will examine the authoritarian tactics used by Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union to consolidate control over Eastern Europe between 1945 and 1955. Case studies on Czechoslovakia, Poland and Romania are used to explore how Stalin weakened political and social systems in these states.

Minutes, Curriculum Committee Meeting, Tuesday, April 07, 2026, Curriculum Committee

Curriculum Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of Parents And Guardians Surrounding The Inclusion Of Their Autistic Child In The General Education Setting, Alyssa L. Napier

Undergraduate Theses

The prevalence of autistic students being taught in general education classrooms continues to rise, which emphasizes the need for strong and purposeful inclusive education. The characteristics of autism spectrum disorder (e.g., resistance to change and routines, difficulty in relationship building, sensitivity to environmental stimuli, etc.) can create challenges in the classroom setting that ultimately may impede social and academic growth. Having adequate knowledge and understanding about these challenges is important for teachers as they plan high-quality, differentiated instruction. Considerable amounts of existing literature examine teachers’ perceptions of inclusion, suggesting many general education teachers feel unprepared to meet the needs of …

Examining Moderators In The Relationship Between Injury/Injury Anxiety And Eating Disturbances In College Women Athletes, Lydia M. Reichley

Undergraduate Theses

Introduction: Injury and injury-related anxiety are common in collegiate athletes and may contribute to maladaptive psychological and behavioral outcomes, including eating disturbances. This study examined the relationship between injury/injury anxiety and eating disturbances, and whether athletic identity, injury self-efficacy, and body shame moderated this relationship. Methods: A cross-sectional design was used with 57 female collegiate and club athletes from Bellarmine University (M age = 19.98 + 1.37). Participants completed an online survey including the Sport Injury Anxiety Scale (SIAS), Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS), Athletic Injury Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (AISEQ), Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), and the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBC; …

It’S A Lawyers’ World!: A Commentary On Katharina Pistor, The Law Of Capitalism And How To Transform It, Ingo Venzke

University of Miami Law Review

Affirming Katharina Pistor’s significant contributions to understanding law’s centrality in capitalism, this commentary explores the tension between law’s stabilizing function and its potential for change. Regarding the drivers of change, the commentary highlights an unexpected, unspoken love for lawyers. Those “masters of the code of capital” have made the law into what it is today, and now they should remake it. Could they, even if they wanted to? What would that something else be? By freeing herself from the binary choice between capitalism and socialism, Pistor inevitably raises the question of what socioeconomic system will emerge instead. If The Code …

Self-Assembly Interactions In Magnetite-Coated Cellulose Nanocrystals: Implications For Magnetic Hyperthermia Applications, Mohammad J. Hasan, Erin L. Mcneill, Kishore Chand, Juganta Roy, Monishita Deb, Katherine Schlaak, Sydney Herzog, Yvonne Sun, Sarah Watzman, Esteban E. Ureña-Benavides, Erick S. Vasquez-Guardado

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

Magnetic cellulose nanocrystal (MCNC) nanocomposites are promising sustainable and biocompatible platforms for magnetic hyperthermia; however, the molecular mechanisms governing Fe3O4 adsorption and deposition onto CNCs remain poorly understood. Here, sulfated (S-CNC) and TEMPO-oxidized CNCs (T-CNC) were used to prepare nanocomposites at 1:2 and 1:4 CNC:Fe3O4 mass ratios, enabling a systematic evaluation of how surface chemistry and nanoparticle loading dictate interfacial interactions and magneto-colloidal behavior. Bare magnetite nanoparticles were 21 ± 5 nm by TEM but grew to 144 ± 18 in the DLS measurement at pH 7. The S-CNC nanocomposites had hydrodynamic sizes between 144 and 210 nm, not much …

Budget Transparency Report, Isaac Slaven, Barbara Carlsward, Steve Brantley

Faculty Senate Reports

This budget transparency report focused on the benefits and costs of EIU being a Division I athletics school, compared to the benefits/costs of being Division II or Division III.

2026 Library Award Winners, University Of Dayton

University Libraries Blog Archive

Congratulations to Lilly Lowe, Maggie Romano and Stacy Ngo.

Implications Of Leisure Activities On Veterinarian Mental Health Outcomes, Kevin Garuccio

Undergraduate Theses

While there are many professions that are stressful enough to be linked with negative mental health outcomes, few measure up to the mental dangers of veterinary medicine, with suicide rates twice that of the dental and medical professions and four times that of the general population (Stoewen, 2015). The current study aimed to focus on veterinarians and their mental health. While there have been a few studies done about the veterinary workplace, none thus far have investigated how veterinarians are spending their leisure time outside of work and how it could be impacting their mental health. The current study was …

Can The Implementation Of The Pause Decrease Death Anxiety And Poor Mental Health In Practicing Nurses?, Lilli Meyer

Undergraduate Theses

Practicing nurses are frequently exposed to patient death, placing them at increased risk for death anxiety and compromised mental health. Despite this, there remains a lack of structured, in-the-moment interventions to support emotional processing within clinical settings. This study evaluates whether the implementation of “The Pause,” a brief moment of silence following a patient’s death, may reduce death anxiety and improve mental health outcomes among practicing nurses. A quantitative survey consisting of eight questions was distributed to nurses in the Louisville, Kentucky area over a three-month period, yielding 26 responses. Findings indicated that 80.8% of participants reported no improvement or …

How Gender Impacts Mock Jurors’ Receptiveness To Aggravating And Mitigating Evidence In Capital Trials, Jolie E. Parker

Undergraduate Theses

This study examines how gender influences mock jurors’ receptiveness to aggravating and mitigating evidence in capital trials. Drawing on prior research that highlights the critical role of mitigation in reducing death sentences and persistent gender differences in death penalty attitudes, this study addresses a gap in the literature by analyzing how gender shapes responses to specific types of evidence rather than general support for capital punishment. Using a quantitative survey of 209 participants, the research analyzes Likert-scale responses measuring how various aggravating and mitigating factors impact sentencing preferences. Results indicate a weak but consistent relationship between gender and receptivity to …

Gender And Emotional Expression In The Courtroom: Mock Juror Perceptions Of Attorney Effectiveness, Emma Cantrell

Undergraduate Theses

This quantitative study examines how gender and emotional expression influence mock jurors' perceptions of an attorney's courtroom effectiveness. Using mock jurors, this study extends previous research suggesting that assertiveness and emotional displays are evaluated differently by gender. Participants were randomly assigned to view one of four closing statements in a mock burglary trial. The videos were of either a male or a female attorney delivering a passive or an aggressive argument. Participants then evaluated the attorney’s effectiveness across four categories: competence, persuasiveness, ability to instill confidence, and emotionality. Male participants generally rated female attorneys as less effective than female participants …