Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Gender Roles And The Social Agent: Framing The Women’S Movement(S) In Postcolonial Morocco, Lily Ross

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For my Independent Study, I conducted a four-week research project on what I will refer to as the “Women’s Movement” in Morocco. My initial goal was to understand the framing and aims of this movement. To do so, I sought to explore the different forces impacting the movement – such as local cultural contexts, religion, globalization and colonization – and to analyze the impact of these forces on how different women conceptualize their goals surrounding gender. I studied a variety of scholarship on the Moroccan Women’s Movement, focusing on a critical analysis of the state, international interests and non-profit organizations. …

Perceptions Of The Efficacy And Trustworthiness Of Faith-Based Organizations And Secular Ngos In Mgwashi, Bumbuli District, Tanzania, Naomi Tomlin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigated perceptions of faith-based organizations (FBOs) compared to secular non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Mgwashi, Bumbuli District, Tanzania. Perceptions were sorted into two categories: efficacy of services and trustworthiness. This study also examined gender and religion to determine potential influences on perceptions of trustworthiness and efficacy.

This study conducted 72 interviews of Mgwashi residents (18 Muslim men, 18 Muslim women, 18 Christian men, and 18 Christian women). Participants were asked for their opinions on the trustworthiness and efficacy of secular NGOs and FBOs with which they had experience. Then, those who had experience with both types (n=41) were asked …

Aid For Ed: An Analysis Of Rwanda’S 12-Year Basic Education System And Its Relationship With Government-Channeled Aid, Gabriel K. Anzeze

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The field of foreign aid has been widely explored, particularly as relates to economic development of developing states. This paper however delves into the specific utilization of foreign aid within the education sector in Rwanda and the effects it bears not just on the recipient state in general, but also on its financial practices with regard to aid. By exploring trends in financial expenditure by aid agencies and government, it appears that foreign aid does not necessarily influence government budget allocations and this absence of ‘crowding-out’ gives Rwanda an upper hand in managing foreign aid. Education also appears to be …

Improving Pre-Departure Training For English Teacher Volunteers In Costa Rica: An Examination Of Aliarse And Recommendations, Derek Schwartz

Capstone Collection

Volunteering outside of one’s country and culture is a challenging endeavor. While abroad, international volunteers generally encounter a new language, culture, and lifestyle which can create challenges for volunteers. Pre-departure training can buffer and lend nuance to the difficulties that volunteers face. In Costa Rica, the organization Aliarse manages a volunteer project that experiences high volunteer attrition and incorporates minimal pre-departure training. This case study draws on quantitative and qualitative data collected from questionnaires and semi-structured interviews of former Aliarse volunteers over two months. Results from the data found that ninety-four percent of the interviewees said interacting either directly or …

Ngos, Religious Diversity, And Displacement In Morocco: How Ngos In Morocco Navigate Religious Diversity When Working With Displaced Populations From Other Countries, Anjali Patel

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research delves into how Christian organizations serving displaced populations and migrants from other countries in Morocco navigate religious diversity. The research explores how Christian NGOs navigate their religious identity in a predominantly Muslim society as well as how they aid migrants in being able to practice their faith. The paper examines what displacement looks like in Morocco, the complexity of how Islam is incorporated into the Moroccan constitution, and the breakdown of organizations providing services to refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants in Morocco. A hybrid case study-literature review approach is taken to highlight the ways in which two Christian …

An Overview Of Supply-Chain Logistics In International Humanitarian Aid: Finding Challenges And Solutions, Arjun Ganga

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Humanitarian supply chain logistics concern the flow of goods and services in public health delivery. Such supply chains operate in both general development contexts and in acute crisis situations. In this paper, I give an overview of supply chains and then explore some of the challenges and potential solutions in delivering goods and services effectively and efficiently. Specifically, I analyze procurement, maintaining quality goods, incentivizing countries to act, collaboration, verification, possible losses in the supply chain, and ensuring appropriate use of product. I conclude that although humanitarian supply chains pose unique challenges, there is surprising efficiency in the system. This …

Ensuring Accountability To Affected Populations In Humanitarian Settings: "Holding Humanitarian Organizations Accountable To People.", Jazmin Williamson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Aim: This research aims to examine what guidelines and regulations help ensure that humanitarian organizations are held accountable to their beneficiary populations.

Background: Although people have always been the focus of humanitarian aid, their voice and participation didn't become a centralized part of the conversation until the 1990s and later gained real traction in the early 2000s. During these times, many new foundational documents were created to highlight the "centrality of local participation in aid." Among the documents that enshrined this new principle of population participation included the 1992 Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent …

Prescribing Public-Private Partnerships To Global Health Initiatives, Elizabeth Rhoads

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For six weeks I served as a finance intern with the Toilet Board Coalition (TBC) and created a Portfolio Presentation to deliver to TBC’s corporate board members in May. With my background in Public Health and interest in Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, I was interested in learning how cross-sector partnerships can help accelerate global health development. My internship with TBC provided me with valuable firsthand experience in my topic of research, Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), which I was able to compare alongside a formal literature review. In this research paper I combine my research with my internship experience to …

How To Attract Young Adults To Americorps Service, Rachel Goldstein

Capstone Collection

AmeriCorps offers a variety of options for US citizens to serve their country in a non-military fashion while providing an opportunity for skill development, career exploration, community service, and self-growth. In exchange for service, AmeriCorps provides a minimal living allowance and an education award. Even with these benefits geared towards young adults, few young adults choose to enter AmeriCorps service upon the completion of their undergraduate studies. This research sought to understand motivations for and against service in an attempt to inform and improve AmeriCorps current recruitment practices. To understand how AmeriCorps can attract more young adults, a qualitative research …

Pasantía En Red Oss: Más Que Una Clínica, Saad Ehsan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

RED OSS es una organización en Conchalí, Santiago que provee pruebas rápidas de VIH y actualiza otras pruebas para ETS en una manera gratuita desde 1991. Durante mi pasantía, investigué como una organización disminuye las desigualdades de salud. También aprendí sobre el financiamiento de RED OSS, las pruebas rápidas y el nicho de RED OSS en un país con un sistema pública. Utilicé observaciones y entrevistas para estudiar la clínica. Tuve oportunidades para asistir los talleres para prevenir homofobia y ver las consejerías con un voluntario. También actualicé el sitio web para reflejar los servicios que RED OSS ofrece. En …

Changing Donor-Ngo Relations Thorough Viable Alternatives To Conventional Grantmaking, Kio Okawa

Capstone Collection

The purpose of this research is to explore ways in which non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can become more sustainable in light of a crucial challenge facing them today: that of financial instability. In the charitable sector in the U.S, NGOs, especially small-scale NGOs, have struggled with securing daily operating revenue rather than revenue for long-term program operations, in spite of the continuing needs of their beneficiaries (Janus, 2018; Le, 2017; Meehan & Jonker, 2017). Fundraising has come to involve relationships between NGOs and institutional donors such as foundations, government agencies and corporations. Competition among NGOs and rampant power asymmetry between donors …

Values Driven Strategic Thinking And Planning In Federated Non-Profits, Michael Baker

Capstone Collection

This paper, as a reflective practice, will explore organizational models and frameworks commonly found in non-profit organizations, as per the Leading and Managing Social Sector Organizations course at SIT.

This paper attempts to draw on my experiences at the national non-profit, Reading Partners, and coursework from SIT to suggest the best decision making models for a mission driven, non-profit organization. The findings and reflections largely surround the methodologies of strategic thinking and planning for large, complex, federated organizations.

The paper first explains Reading Partners organizational structure, program model, and culture, as per the different organizational frames in Boleman and Deal …

Cacao Together: A Model For True Sustainability In The Chocolate Industry, Kerstin Roos

Capstone Collection

This Course Linked Capstone provides a critical analysis of the concept of sustainable development and then uses this analysis to create a social venture plan for a non-profit called Cacao Together. This capstone project will identify challenges in the sustainable use of cacao by first critiquing the mainstream sustainable development initiatives of certification schemes and corporate sustainability programs. It then offers an alternate framework through the 5 Capital Livelihood assessment tool which when applied, shows the gaps in cacao sustainability initiatives generally. I then propose a social venture that will addresses the needs of many parts of the chocolate supply …

The Dynamics Of Participatory Monitoring And Evaluation (Pm&E) In Traditional Pakistan., Aamer Shams

Capstone Collection

This research seeks to explore the interpretation and application of Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation (PM&E) in the context of Educational Empowerment by analyzing insights gathered from multiple stakeholder groups in four cities of Pakistan, Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta, and Peshawar. Analysis of the findings reveals nuances of PM&E, including “Equality and Equity, Respect and Tolerance” (pg. 58-61) that limit the potential of this transdisciplinary empowerment process. Empowerment and educational programs often employ the continuous processes of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) to gain an understanding of the implementation, efficiency, impact, and overall performance of the program. M&E also provides valuable information about …

Armenia’S Social Sector: An Analysis Of Armenia’S Nonprofits, P L. Wierikko

Capstone Collection

The purpose of this study was to explore and analyze the common traits and operational methods of Nonprofits in regions located outside of Armenia’s capital, Yerevan. A comprehensive organizational analysis using The Six Practices Framework by Crutchfield and Grant (2012), along with additional frameworks and theories were utilized to assess Kapan Women’s Resource Center Nonprofit Organization (KWRC NGO). From the analysis, a strategic plan was developed as well as the projected impact implementation of the plan would have on KWRC NGO, their partners, and their community. Nine other organizations were surveyed to gain a better understanding of prevailing operations and …

Ndoto Au Ota: Jifundishe's Strategic Planning Process: A Case Study Of An Appreciative Approach To The Strategic Planning Process For A Small Ngo, Margaret Bearor

Capstone Collection

In January 2017, Jifundishe, a small, local nonprofit organization based in Ngongongare, Tanzania undertook its first strategic planning process. I was asked to design and lead this initiative for the organization, finding a way to introduce tools and resources so that they, or a similar organization, could replicate the process in the future. To better reflect the values, culture, and constraints of Jifundishe, the methodology selected to drive the process was Appreciative Inquiry (AI). AI is a change model focused on strengths, and an appreciative strategic plan looks to take the best of what you already have and work to …

Effective General Entrepreneurial Learning Programs For Sme Development, Paul Kenneth Steele

Capstone Collection

The principle objective of this paper is to reexamine the potential for impactful, general programs in education for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) owners by assessing the success of a program called SME PRIME; conducted by AMIDEAST, Oman for six Omani entrepreneurs over a seven-month period.

General programs for entrepreneur education are produced and implemented the world over despite consistent assertions throughout academic literature that such programs are ineffective. Typical approaches to training program development and evaluation emphasize the critical role of training needs analysis. Training needs analysis is often an ignored step in the process of SME training program …

Assessing Organizational Data Culture To Create An Ideal Data Ecosystem, Lauren M. Leary

Capstone Collection

The year 2015 marks a critical turning point in the global development arena. The Millennium Development Goals galvanized support and collaboration across sectors and now the world is recalibrating focus to prepare for the final push with the forthcoming Sustainable Development Goal Framework. We are also in the midst of a data revolution that aims to hold governments and organizations accountable to these goals and to ultimately create synergy between systems and processes in an ever-globalizing world. This paper intends to prompt discussion and learning around organizational readiness and preparedness for these imminent changes. Drawing from best practices within the …

An Examination Of South Carolina’S Institutions Of Reform And Their Impact On The Self-Narratives Of African American Men, Ashley E. Krejci-Shaw

Capstone Collection

In the State of South Carolina (SC), African American male adolescents disproportionately face disciplinary action in public schools and other institutions. In 2013, South Carolina’s Department of Juvenile Justice (SCDJJ) released data that listed Black male children comprising 57% of all juvenile referrals in the state. This disproportionate trend is also present in South Carolina’s correctional system. In 2013, South Carolina’s Department of Corrections (SCDOC) reported that out of 20,777 male prisoners, 13,631 were Black. For adolescents or young adults looking to continue their education, alternative programs are available. One program that captures educationally displaced children in South Carolina is …

The Importance Of Community Resilience: Developing The American Red Cross International Services Department In The New Hampshire Region, Sarah Romac

Capstone Collection

Disaster management and humanitarian aid organizations have had to reevaluate how communities and individuals can better adapt and prepare for future disaster events. One concept organizations are incorporating into their overall framework is strengthening community resilience. Increasing a community’s resilience level increases its ability to cope with the changes that affect it. Creating awareness of the vulnerabilities in an area, addressing these vulnerabilities with preparedness training, disaster risk reduction (DRR), and sustainable changes made over the long-term can develop a community’s adaptive capacity to be more resilient.

For my practicum, I was given the opportunity to be the International Services …

A Tale Of Two Trusts: A Case Study Of The Consolidation Of Two Community Land Trust Affordable Housing Organizations In Vermont, Isaac I. Wagner

Capstone Collection

Between early 2010 and May 2011 the Windham Housing Trust conducted a feasibility analysis to study the possibility of merging with or acquiring the Rockingham Area Community Land Trust, a similar community land trust organization providing affordable housing in an adjacent county.

This study analyzed the one year feasibility study and merger negotiation process between the two organizations, and explored the complex set of relationships between financial partners, communities, residents, and funding stakeholders. The methodology for this work included reviewing current literature about nonprofit mergers and acquisitions, funder involvement, and community impact of consolidating services. In addition the author interviewed …