Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Cooperation, Competition And The Development Of Institutional Capacity: Civil Rights And Public Transportation In Southern Nevada, Bruce Erwin Turner

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examines the implementation of social goals through government action and the context and relations of agencies charged with demonstrating and enforcing equality in transit. Specifically, I explain complexities involved in the top-down federal mandate to demonstrate equal transit service for minority communities and low income residents. Institutional entrepreneurship by local government agencies influenced the legislation and regulation that they were charged to enforce. The local Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), created to enable a local voice in major capital road projects, acquired new institutional capabilities as federal agencies tasked them with implementing new social goals. Engineers and planners, initially …

Ask What Your Country Can Do For You: Social Spending And Satisfaction With Democracy In Latin America, Kenneth Retzl

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Past research on social policy in Latin America has primarily focused on how each countries' policies were formed, the institutional framework that bred the policies, or the economic constraints that necessitated certain reforms. Little work has been done to examine the effects those policies have had on the populace. This thesis attempts to determine if there is a relationship between social spending and satisfaction with democracy. The research takes two forms. First I present case studies of Brazil, Ecuador, and Venezuela. The second is an ordered logit hierarchical linear model utilizing survey responses from the 2005 Latinobarometer survey. In total …

Evaluation Of Mentoring In Southern Nevada, Andrew Merz, Glen Leavitt

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition (SNRPC) is charged with the issuance of grants and funding to groups who provide and run mentoring programs in Southern Nevada (which is primarily composed of Clark County.) The SNRPC desires to streamline and regiment this process, as currently it is operated with minimal oversight and regulation. We designed a survey to ascertain what mentoring groups in Clark County consider to be central to mentoring; both within and without their own programs. It is our desire that the SNRPC be able to administer the newly created survey to groups who receive and groups who …

Public Utilities Commission Of Nevada: A Research Design For Data Collection, Mario Heresi, Jamie Stout, Brandy Davis, Cheyenne Pasquale

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) needs tools to develop a system by which reliable data can be collected in order to assist in the regulation of public utilities in Nevada. Their particular emphasis is on low-income and elderly populations. The PUCN needs to have reliable data they can utilize to make decisions that are fact based. Part of their needs is to have a thorough understanding of the factors that affect both low-income and elderly populations. Like so many other organizations, the PUCN does not have a set system to investigate all issues and makes decisions on a …

Beyond The Demographic Transition: The Case Of Japan, Mary Beth Horiai

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A combination of declining birthrates and increasing life expectancy in industrial countries has led to aging populations. In addition, more rapidly declining birth rates combined with only slowly increasing life spans has led to declining populations in some countries. These continuing demographic shifts are likely to be accompanied by economic, political and social changes. Japan is unique relative to other countries in four ways: 1) it has reached the condition of aging faster than any other industrialized country, 2) it has the highest life expectancy rate among major industrialized countries, 3) the proportion of elderly population (over 65) is the …

Hopelink: A Program Evaluation, Cheryl Edwards, Telma Lopez, Bryan Osborne, Erik Pappa

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In January 2009, a four-member team of University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Department of Public Administration students set out to evaluate the effectiveness of HopeLink, a transitional housing program in Henderson, Nevada. The research team was tasked with evaluating the effectiveness of the agency and assisting the Committee on Homelessness in deciding future funding allocations. This paper provides our review and analysis, including program strengths and weaknesses, and recommendations for future program and funding improvements.

According to the 2007 U.S. Census, there are approximately 11,000 homeless people in Clark County, Nevada, with 75% of those utilizing transitional housing programs, …

Program Evaluation Of Help Las Vegas Genesis Apartments, Shauna Davis, Bristol Ellington, Alexis Mussi, Jason Lamarr Wasden

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Our group conducted a program evaluation of HELP Las Vegas Genesis Apartments (HELP Genesis). We began the evaluation on November of 2008 and concluded May 2009. HELP Genesis is a permanent supportive housing facility for veterans and homeless with disabilities. It was a concern that they may be a transitional housing facility because of their turnover rate. We concluded that this was not the case.

We have identified the following limitations in our analysis. There was a lack of accessibility to the budget and accounting documents, limited access to key contacts for necessary information, and time constraints which prohibited us …

Policy Analysis: Compressed Workweek, Rick Crosby, Matt Richardson, Stephen Nowicki, Ly Doan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Today the economy has slowed down and inflation has risen to near record highs. Corporations, governments, and agencies are looking at ways to save costs. Budget expenditures on payroll are addressed as well as the cost of utilities, resources, and the costs of doing business. One implicated method to help solve these problems is for the use of compressed workweeks. Compressed workweeks are both beneficial to the agencies and the employees. The employee can have more time for home life while putting in the same amount of hours at work, and save money on commuting to work. Additionally the agency …

Recruit Training Academy Las Vegas Fire And Rescue, Kristin Cooper, Christine Dudas, Torrell Huber, Stephanie Jordan, Darryl Martin

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

After the retirement of Fire Chief Washington, the Las Vegas City Manager, Doug Selby and the Deputy City Manager, Betsy Fretwell sought input from Fire Department personnel on what qualities they would like to see in a new fire chief. Selby and Fretwell visited all fire department personnel, whether located in a fire station (called "the floor") or in administration. While Selby and Fretwell did learn about the leadership qualities the fire fighting personnel expected in a new chief, they also heard serious concerns expressed about the Recruit Training Academy (the Academy) and the quality of the rookies it was …

Nevada's Textbook Adoption Process: The State Perspective, Mitch Bishop, Katie Bliven, Scott Hess

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The process in Nevada used to select textbooks, the main tools for classroom instruction, is a complex web of various stakeholders and interactions. Ensuring that quality textbooks get into the hands of Nevada's teachers and students is the goal of the selection process. The main impediments affecting the selection process may be found in the structure of the process and how the stakeholders interact. In most cases, these interactions and responsibilities are dictated by state law and were established gradually over several years. While the current process functions to place textbooks in schools, it also shows great potential for improvement …

Nevada's Textbook Adoption Policy: The Role And Influence Of Parents And Interest Groups, Brady Dehn, David Hood, Barry Michaels, Harry Williams

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The textbook adoption process in the State of Nevada has its share of flaws, bureaucracy red tape, and "legal E's" however; its intentions are meant to benefit all instructors and students in the state. Textbooks are as integral to education as school buildings and teachers, and they should be part of the free, public education provided by the state and school districts (New Sentinel Editorial, 2006). In the complexity of this process, legislators have deemed it important to have parents involved to assist with providing appropriate material for students. What appears to be justifiable and logical thinking has created basic …

Program Evaluation Report For: Nevada Child Seekers, Nori Evans, Raymond Keeler, Lisa Pletz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A program evaluation of the Nevada Child Seekers (NCS) organization was conducted from October 2006 through April 2007. The evaluation consisted of a qualitative assessment of the organization's volunteer recruitment and retention program. The evaluation was conducted by performing a series of interviews of staff and by conducting a web-based survey of available volunteers. Information gathered from the interviews and surveys was compared with benchmarking data from multiple scholarly and community sources.

Department Of Family Services: Adoption Program Evaluation, Bonnie Abramson, Kristy Amasaki, Michael N. Johnson, James Padgett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Persons contemplating adoption in Clark County face many legal boundaries and lengthy delays. Since adoption is a creature of Clark County, the answers usually can be found in state statutes, agency regulations, and court opinions. Federal statutory and constitutional laws also play a huge part in such areas as adoption subsidies, adoption of children with special needs, and training of all adoption workers.

While the overall adoption program is similar in all states, the fine points frequently differ. This research outlines the legal foundation of adoption, describing the adoption legal process, and the workings of the Department of Family Services …

Clark County Outreach Assistance To The Chronically Homeless, Sandy Von Wolffradt, Kirk Medina, Tony Vibabul

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The COACH program was created through a Social Security Administration (SSA) grant provided to assist eligible chronically homeless individuals apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits. On April 1, 2004, the SSA released $6.6 million in "HOPE" awards to 34 organizations, including Clark County Social Services (CCSS) who received $450,000 over three years. Later in 2004, they released additional funding to include seven more organizations in the program. In total, the SSA has committed nearly $18 million to the program over three years. The purpose of the assistance is to improve the quality of life …

Policy Analysis Of The Victim Offender Restitution Program, Veronica Damon, Marie Bostick, Lamont Mcgary

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Both the criminal justice and the juvenile justice systems have experienced increased strain due to criminal acts committed by juveniles. Many experts suggest that one way to ease the burden of the courts can be found in the theory of restorative justice. Most often the juvenile justice system is most concerned with the risk and needs of youthful offenders without significant consideration for the victims. A key component in the restorative justice theory is victim offender mediation which seeks to reduce the impact of crime on victims and the community. Clark County, Nevada has one such program, the Victim Offender …

Public Libraries: Is Independence Better?, Gayle Hornaday

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Since the origin of public libraries in the United States during the nineteenth century, they have been primarily supported by public taxation, due to their intended purpose of benefiting all of society, and especially the economically disadvantaged. Public libraries are provided in much the same spirit as public education, to uphold the American value that knowledge and information should be equally available to all, without regard to individual ability to pay. The dilemma of how to pay for library services has involved considerable debate in the library community about the implementation of user fees to supplement revenue, as an alternative …

City Of Las Vegas Sidewalk Maintenance And Repair: Who Is Responsible?, Daphnee Legarza

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The City of Las Vegas (CLV) has recently adopted several new plans and elements requiring the creation of more pedestrian friendly and cluster development communities. The City of Las Vegas’ 2020 Master Plan requires pedestrian friendly neighborhoods in newly developing areas by stating, “The importance of creating neighborhoods that are walkable and sustainable and which foster a sense of community must be key elements of our newly developing areas”. (CLV Master Plan 2020, October 2000, p. 47) Also, in neighborhood revitalization areas the City requires “That new commercial development be designed in a walkable and non-vehicular friendly manner, providing shelter …