Hearing God's Word Through Ecclesial Listening, Nathan Burrow

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project dissertation was designed to enhance ecclesial listening when sermons are preached at the Hillcrest Church of Christ. The challenge of listening to the Word of God in a way that forms community is not unique to Hillcrest. It is a common problem for preachers and churches today. Our context, marked by shifts in church membership, societal division, and the isolating effects of digital culture, calls for a renewed emphasis on listening as a church community. This project explores the ways in which we can cultivate practices that encourage ecclesial listening—a way of hearing the preached Word that draws …

Querying The Ecological Sublime: Colonial Aesthetics, Anticolonial Thought, And The ‘Double Fracture’, Tacuma Peters

Publications and Research

This article examines the ecological sublime in its relationship to the history of colonial aesthetics, anticolonial thought, and contemporary colonialism. It argues that, while Edmund Burke utilized the sublime in support of colonialism (including settler colonialism) in North America and colonial slavery, Samson Occom and Ottobah Cugoano developed versions of the sublime to contest British colonialism in the Americas. The history of this aesthetic contestation has not been represented in scholarship on the ecological sublime, which, this article shows, has a vexed relationship with historical and contemporary colonialism. The article argues that the ecological sublime exhibits the “double fracture” of …

Strategic Construction Of Anomalies: A Quantum International Relations Framework For Uap, Nate Ostdiek

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), commonly known as UFOs, are notoriously tricky to understand and analyze. The persistent ambiguity surrounding UAPs is not accidental but strategic; by keeping them in a liminal state of explanation, actors construct a geopolitical anomaly that blurs the boundaries between threat, curiosity, and control. Utilizing a Quantum International Relations (QIR) framework pioneered by Alexander Wendt, James Der Derian, and others enables new analytical tools to explain the creation and impact of these strategic anomalies. The social ontological status of UAP (extraterrestrial, fake, interdimensional, secret technology, natural phenomena, etc.) is determined by an entangled network of epistemological …

Global Nomads: Identity And Belonging In Third Culture Kids And Adult Third Culture Kids, Vallon Bucayu-Lee

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone examines the subculture of Third Culture Kids and Adult Third Culture Kids who have experienced living abroad as children. There were two main objectives in this study. First, to understand the perceptions of Adult Third Culture Kids on how their global childhoods have impacted their self-identity and sense of belonging as adults. Secondly, to understand the opinions of Adult Third Culture Kids on transitional programs through their personal experiences with them. The methodology of this capstone included a twelve-question survey distributed to seventeen Adult Third Culture Kids born in six different countries around the world. The questions in …

Heartbeat Of The Heartland: Sonic Engagement With Hip-Hop In The American Midwest, Lauren R. Millhorn

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This project analyzes Hip-Hop artists from the American Midwest through the context of the Midwest’s construction as a nostalgic, peaceful area where conflict seems nonexistent. This study applies Adam Ochonicky’s concept of nostalgic spatiality, or “instances in which nostalgia is projected onto a physical environment, thereby altering the perception, understanding, and/or experience of that space and its accompanying cultural sphere” (Ochonicky 29) to close readings on Midwest Hip-Hop texts. In the case of the Midwest, projected nostalgia is rooted in whiteness and propels the narrative that the Midwest is predominantly occupied by white people who maintain its peace and serenity …

Coming Back To Bite: Reflecting On Constructs Of Adolescence And Girlhood In Young Adult Vampire Media, Gwendolyn Grace Klinkey

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The YA vampire genre has experienced a great amount of success throughout the past two decades with titles including Joss Wheadon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy. Within this group, two of the most widely successful examples are Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Saga and the CW’s The Vampire Diaries, both of which have had a significant impact on Western popular culture. In this thesis, I use these two texts to explore the constructs of adolescence and girlhood that manifest as a result of the literary moves the writers seem to make in an effort to invite …

Sociological Understandings Of Entrepreneurial Action And Intention, Jeffrey Cavanaugh

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Entrepreneurship as a trend has emerged across many different disciplines, drawing on theory from psychology, economics, and sociology. Importantly, sociologic aspects of entrepreneurship remain hidden from scholarship, as existing topics are often vague or narrowly partitioned. In my dissertation, I utilize sociological understandings of human interactions which define entrepreneurial intention and action. Specifically, I explore how entrepreneurs’ religion, rurality, and social media use influences their behaviors. Throughout these three quantitative essays, I contribute to a better understanding of the social psychology of entrepreneurship, and why entrepreneurial pursuits are so intricately linked to every aspect of society. Throughout my research, which …

Creed And Variations: Tracing The Divergence Of Christian Traditions In Select Piano Works Of Arvo Pärt, Olivier Messiaen, And J. S. Bach, Rebekah E. Stiles

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Within the classical music universe, the works of J. S. Bach, Olivier Messiaen, and Arvo Pärt stand apart as particularly evocative of the divine. Much has been written on these three men’s integration of faith with musical practice, exploring how their music is not only spiritual in nature but distinctly Christian. But in comparing the three, one encounters deeply rooted distinctions between their religious worldviews, a distinction not only found in their personal testimonies but actually heard in their music. Their compositional languages reflect three traditions: Protestantism (specifically Lutheranism), represented by Bach; Roman Catholicism, represented by Messiaen; and Eastern Orthodoxy, …

The Overturning Of Roe V. Wade And People Capable Of Pregnancy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Carrie Bohmer

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) overturned Roe v. Wade in their decision within Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, removing the constitutional right to abortion within the United States (US). Leading up to this anticipated and highly politicized case, 13 states passed preemptive legislation (i.e. “trigger bans”) that immediately made abortion illegal following the Dobbs decision. Limited research has explicitly explored the intersection of sexual health and reproductive health from a psychological perspective. Grounded in a reproductive justice framework, this interpretative phenomenological analysis sought to understand how people capable of pregnancy living …

Harnessing The Affordances Of Whatsapp For Online Learning, Ogbonnaya B. Akpa

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The perennial problem of inadequate funding of public universities in Nigeria hinders their ability to implement online learning using conventional platforms and tools. Educators are compelled to explore alternatives for the cost-effective implementation of online learning. WhatsApp is a tool faculty and students at universities in Nigeria already use, which may be adopted for online learning implementation. This study used a mixed-methods approach to investigate the usefulness of WhatsApp for online learning as perceived by faculty members and students at a Nigerian public university.

Findings of the study revealed that both students and faculty members perceived WhatsApp as a highly …

Mujeres En Movimiento: La Posmigración En Obras Contemporáneas De Hijas De Inmigrantes En España Y Estados Unidos, Olatz Sanchez-Txabarri

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation investigates contemporary works of daughters of immigrants in Spain and the United States. Through a postmigration approach, this study delves into the analysis of Ser mujer negra en España (2018), by Desirée Bela-Lobedde, Hija del camino (2019), by Lucía Mbomío, A Cup of Water Under My Bed (2014), by Daisy Hernández, Juliet Takes a Breath (2016), by Gabby Rivera, La hija extranjera (2015), by Najat El Hachmi, Hija de inmigrantes (2022), by Safia El Aaddam, and the documentaries Fruits of Labor (2021), by Emily Cohen Ibáñez and Vida diferida (Life, Deferred) (2017), by Brenda Ávila-Hanna. I …

Chasqui, Nicole Lachat

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Chasqui is a creative dissertation comprised of a thirteen-page critical introduction and a series of poems which consider varying forms of migration, including that of border crossings. The internalization of displacement through longing and alienation is examined in these poems. The author considers questions of inheritance through an exploration of personal, familial and sociopolitical bonds. Varying forms of violence, including colonial and gendered violence are reflected upon in the work.

Advisor: Kwame Dawes

Familismo And Family Achievement Guilt In Latine College Students: Relationships With Psychopathology And Wellbeing, Abril Rangel-Pacheco

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the relations between familismo, family achievement guilt, subjective wellbeing, and anxious and depressive symptoms in a sample of Latine young adults enrolled in college in the United States. Familismo has previously been linked to educational success and psychological and behavioral health. On the other hand, family achievement guilt has been linked to low self-esteem and internalizing symptoms. However, it is unclear how these factors interact to impact the psychopathology (i.e., anxious and depression symptoms) and psychological wellbeing (i.e. subjective wellbeing) of Latine young adults in college. Data were collected from 83 Latine …

Mass Of Perpetual Indulgence, Michael Joseph Willette

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Mass of Perpetual Indulgence for chamber orchestra, electronics, soprano solo, and drag performer was written to bridge the gap between queerness and spirituality, to sanctify queer people and celebrate queer lives and communities. Amalgamating musical styles ranging from disco to opera, art song to EDM, this appropriation of the traditional Mass blurs the lines between the sacred and the profane. This work features original text by librettist Caroliena Cabada that responds to the narrative of the Mass Ordinary from a distinctly queer perspective. Ultimately, this work celebrates the queer body as a holy body, queer community as a sacred communion, …

Sustainable Fashion Identified: An Exploration And Education Of Sustainable Apparel, Michaela M. Lentsch

Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Consumers today are searching for and are loyal to companies who support their views and concerns about sustainability. The fashion industry is one of the biggest industries in the world, but one that has many environmental and sustainability concerns. Fortunately, there are many ways the fashion industry and consumers can take steps to make sustainable change and better the planet. Small fashion businesses and boutiques can make positive changes to operate and provide sustainable options and services for customers which can help the planet become more sustainable.

Through this manuscript, an assortment of sustainable methods and practices will be shared …

Household Wealth And Mental Health In Older Adults Across Racial Groups: Moderating Role Of Social Support, Sunkanmi Folorunsho

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis examines the relationship between household wealth and mental health outcomes among older adults, with particular attention to racial and ethnic differences and the potential moderating role of social support. Although financial resources are widely recognized as important determinants of psychological well-being, less is known about how social support interacts with economic conditions to shape mental health in later life. The study also addresses how these patterns may vary among different racial and ethnic groups, given persistent inequalities in wealth and disparities in access to social resources.

Drawing on data from the 2020 wave of the Health and Retirement …

The Commodification Of Native American Remains: The Use Of Native American Remains Within Educational Institutions And The Implementation Of Nagpra, Molly Nowak

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Indigenous communities have been commodified within educational institutions such as museums, universities, and governmental agencies throughout American history. Unethical collection practices have allowed for a disproportionate representation of Indigenous remains and materials within educational institutions. Indigenous bodies, funerary objects, religious materials, and other important cultural materials have been stolen from their communities and used for scientific discovery and education. The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), passed in 1990, created legal protections for Indigenous graves and remains and instigates the return of the stolen materials. This project reviews the historical contexts behind the collection of Indigenous remains, the …

Commencement Program 2025, Loma Linda University

Commencement Programs

CONTENTS

2 | Message from the President

3 | 2025 Events of Commencement

5 | The Academic Procession

6 | Institutional Administration

7 | Board of Trustees

8 | Significance of Academic Regalia

9 | University History Highlights

11 | Criteria for Institutional Awards

13 | Loma Linda University Health and Loma Linda University Honorees

The Programs, The School Honorees, and The Speakers

29 | School of Medicine

50 | School of Pharmacy

63 | School of Dentistry

81 | School of Public Health

94 | San Manuel Gateway College

101 | School of Allied Health Professions - Allied Health …

Kentucky History Is Native History: Decolonizing Native Portrayals In Kentucky Museums., Mandala Gupta Verwiebe

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Utilizing prominent decolonial museums scholarship, interviews conducted with anthropology and museum professionals, and Kentucky museum exhibitions, this research explores the history of Kentucky’s public institutions’ Indigenous representation and recommends guidelines to improve their portrayal of Native people. Through a historical analysis, this research finds factors that influence Kentucky institutions’ portrayals of Native history, such as early harmful grave looting of Indigenous ancestral remains, the prominence of the Myth of the Dark and Bloody Ground, and a weakened state governmental Native American Heritage Commission. After considering both decolonial theory and the experiences of Kentucky heritage professionals, this research recommends three methods …

Populism And Religious Rhetoric In Spain's Right-Wing Vox Party, Ainsley Taylor

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

This thesis examines the intersection of populism and religious rhetoric in Spain’s right-wing political party, Vox. By analyzing Facebook posts from Vox’s national and regional accounts in the months leading up to the 2019 and 2023 national elections, as well as key regional elections in Andalusia and Cantabria, this study explores how the party strategically employs religious themes to shape its populist discourse. The findings indicate that Vox primarily uses religious rhetoric to construct an exclusive national identity, framing perceived external threats such as immigration, secularism, and leftist politics. While the party's use of religious rhetoric declined slightly between 2019 …

Moving The Goalposts: American Sports Coverage In Newspapers And The Construction Of Gender, Race And Sexuality In The Olympics In 1928, 1932, 1936., Jacob Havers

All Theses

This thesis takes an in-depth look at the media coverage of women in the Olympics in 1928, 1932 and 1936. Specifically following the track athletes Kinue Hitomi, Louise Stokes, Tidye Pickett and Mildred “Babe” Didrikson the thesis explores how by being athletic women they had their identities as feminine figures heavily questioned and scrutinized in newspapers at the global level. The harshest of these critics was often the American media, who held strict standards of race, gender and sexuality in the late 1920s-mid 1930s. They sought to uphold these standards at the global scale, and the American media’s interrogation of …

Sacred Grounds: A Risk Assessment Framework Developed For Historic African American Cemeteries Threatened By Sea Level Rise In Georgetown, Sc, Jocelyn Patterson

All Theses

ABSTRACT

This study acknowledges historic African American cemeteries as vital cultural and historical landmarks that preserve the stories and traditions of often overlooked communities. However, coastal cemeteries, particularly in Georgetown, South Carolina, face increasing environmental threats. These burial sites risk severe damage or complete loss as climate change accelerates from sea level rise, flooding, storm surges, neglect, development pressure, and land development.

This research develops and considers a risk assessment framework to address the risks of cemeteries proximity to water, elevation, flood risk, and cultural significance. The research employs Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping, historical records, and site analysis to …

Koxinga: The Catalyst Of Taiwan's Current Geopolitical Conflict, Lauren Masterson

Honors College Theses

Taiwan, strategically located in the South China Sea, has long faced challenges in asserting its sovereignty. While much of the existing scholarship focuses on the 20th-century conflict between the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang) and the Chinese Communist Party, this study turns to the mid-17^th century to trace the roots of the island’s contested status. It centers on Zheng Chenggong (1624–1662), also known as Koxinga, who established the Ming loyalist Kingdom of Tungning in Taiwan (1661–1683) following the fall of the Ming dynasty. By examining Koxinga’s actions and the legacy he left behind, this research draws parallels between his retreat …

Book Review: Local Signs And Wonders: Essays About Belonging To A Place, Susanna R. Smith

Georgia Library Quarterly

Book Review of Local Signs and Wonders, by Richard Rankin

Predicting Steroid Concern Through Tiktok Use And Self-Esteem, Adam Lorio, Brandon C. Bouchillon, Sisi Hu, Jennifer Mortensen

Journalism Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study examined student perceptions of steroid use through a survey of 154 participants. While self-esteem did not directly predict steroid concerns, specific TikTok engagement patterns revealed complex relationships. Using TikTok to pass time correlated with viewing steroids as a public health issue, whereas surveillance-based use was associated with lower self-esteem. Using the platform to interact was positively related to self-esteem, highlighting how different modes of engagement can shape perceptions about individual and collective health.

“But Where Are Those Good Old-Fashioned Values?”—The Racial Politics Of Animated Satire In Family Guy, Jordanne Greenidge

Master's Theses

Few animated shows have shaped American pop culture quite like Family Guy. Known for its rapid-fire cutaway gags and irreverent humor, the series has remained a television mainstay since its debut in 1999, despite frequent criticism and even two cancellations. Created by Seth MacFarlane and based on his 1995 student film The Life of Larry, Family Guy has built its reputation on pushing the boundaries of taste, especially when it comes to race, gender, and politics. Though often defended as satire, the show’s use of racial humor raises questions about its true impact: Do its portrayals of Black characters challenge …

The Adirondack Frontier: Reclaiming A Vital Role In Shaping The Nation, Peter Nelson

Master's Theses

The traditional version of Adirondack history from the revolutionary period to the middle of the nineteenth century, which portrays the region as unexplored primeval wilderness, is nineteenth-century romantic mythology. It ignores thousands of years of Indigenous habitation and misrepresents early Euro-American activity in the region as well. In fact, from the earliest days of colonial exploration of North America until the middle of the 19th-Century, New York's Adirondack region was a dynamic American frontier, as important in shaping the destiny of the nation as the Northwest Territory or, later, the West. Activities in the Adirondack frontier contributed to the decimation …

Dekonstruktion Der Afd: Eine Analyse Der Rechtspopulistischen Deutschen Partei Der„Alternative Für Deutschland”, Elizabeth A. Breckenridge, Elizabeth Breckenridge

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Die Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) ist eine rechtsextreme populistische Partei, die innerhalb eines Jahrzehnts rasch an Macht gewonnen hat, insbesondere in den ostdeutschen Bundesländern, aufgrund ihrer Betonung der Nationalisierung, ihrer populistischen Rhetorik und ihrer Anziehungskraft auf Wähler, die Ängste vor Einwanderung und kulturellem Wandel hegen. Die AfD hat es innerhalb von fünf Jahren geschafft, eine starke Wählerschaft zu mobilisieren, 2017 Sitze im Bundestag zu erringen und gilt nun als wichtigste Oppositionspartei zu den etablierten Parteien. Die AfD ist die erste rechte Partei seit 1945, die aufgrund des Aufstiegs rechtspolitischer Ideologien bedeutende Wahlerfolge erzielen konnte. Aufgrund des reaktionären Pendelschwungs nach dem …

Bathrooms As Borders: Moms For Liberty And The Policing Of Women’S Spaces, Eva Burklund

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

As debates about transgender identity and inclusion influence discussions and policy across the United States, it is important to understand the rhetoric and manifestations of transphobia and trans exclusion. One organization advocating for the exclusion of transgender individuals is Moms for Liberty which is dedicated to preserving parental rights. On their official X (formerly Twitter) account Moms for Liberty often voices their opposition to the inclusion of transgender women in women’s sports and women’s private spaces, justifying their exclusive stance by denying transgender women’s womanhood. They additionally cast themselves as the authorities on who is a woman and who is …

The Effectiveness Of International Courts In Contributing To Rebuilding And Resolving Conflicts In Societies Post-Genocide, Garrett Connely

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

In the aftermath of mass atrocities, international courts have emerged as key mechanisms for delivering justice and fostering post-conflict reconciliation. Rooted in the precedent set by the Nuremberg Trials after World War II, these institutions aim to prosecute crimes that often go beyond national legal systems. However, their effectiveness remains contested, largely due to their dependence on state cooperation and the complexity of post-conflict environments. This project examines the societal impact of international courts in two significant cases – Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. Through a comparative analysis of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal …