Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Data-Driven Decarbonization Of Residential Heating Systems: An Equity Perspective., John Wamburu, Emma Grazier, David Irwin, Christine Crago, Prashant Shenoy

Publications

Since heating buildings using natural gas, propane and oil makes up a significant proportion of the aggregate carbon emissions every year, there is a strong interest in decarbonizing residential heating systems using new technologies such as electric heat pumps. In this poster, we conduct a data-driven optimization study to analyze the potential of replacing gas heating with electric heat pumps to reduce carbon emissions in a city-wide distribution grid. We seek to not only reduce the carbon footprint of residential heating, but also show how to do so equitably. Our results show that lower income homes have an energy usage …

Supporting Latine Children’S Informal Engineering Learning And Spatial Thinking Through Tinkering And Storytelling, Diana Acosta

Dissertations

In the United States, the Latine community is the fastest growing minority group. Projections estimate that by the year 2060, they will represent 28% of the total population. Yet, Latines continue to be underrepresented and underserved in STEM fields and careers. Providing equitable informal STEM learning opportunities to young children may be a way to increase access and interest in STEM, to address the broader goal of increasing representation. Importantly, for these learning experiences to be truly equitable they must be meaningful and engage everyday cultural practices. Guided by a strengths-based approach, the current study examines how oral stories as …

Barriers To Charitable Nonprofit Access And Advocacy Amid A Pandemic: A Case Study Of The Louisiana State Legislature, Stephanie M. Riegel, Steven W. Mumford

Political Science Faculty Publications

Research has long established nonprofit organizations’ vital role advocating for the needs of vulnerable populations before legislative policymakers. In the best of times, it is difficult for 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofits employing grassroots advocacy to mobilize vulnerable constituencies to compete with 501(c)(4) and 501(c)(6) advocacy and special interest groups. The latter organizations inherently have greater flexibility and resources to lobby lawmakers directly, permitting greater access to influencing the policy agenda. Through a multi-method case study of the 2020 regular session of the Louisiana State Legislature, this article demonstrates how the COVID-19 pandemic’s unique contextual conditions made legislative advocacy more difficult than …

Data-Driven Analysis Of Rural Equity And Cost Concerns For Mileage-Based User Fees In Vermont, Clare Nelson, Gregory Rowangould

University of Vermont Transportation Research Center

Examining substitutes to the current state and federal gasoline and diesel fuel excise taxes has become a pressing issue, exacerbated by the rise of high efficiency and alternative fuel vehicles threatening the revenue generating capacity of these taxes. A mileage-based user fee has been frequently proposed in the literature as an alternative which would offer greater benefits to rural and low-income populations than to urban and higher income populations. However, most prior analyses relied on small data sets and aggregated data. This study examined the impact of replacing the Vermont state fuels tax with a revenue-neutral mileage-based user fee using …

An Agent Of White Supremacy: Diversity, Equity And Inclusion, Karolina Barrientos

General Student Scholarship

Diversity Equity and Inclusion initiatives have increased in the last decade and have become an essential aspect of all types of institutions, including higher education. Trinity being no stranger, with their Office of Diversity Equity and Inclusion being established in 2018. Diversity Equity and Inclusion at its root was created to uphold white supremacy and those in power of societal institutions. White Supremacy is at the foundation of higher education and is pervasive in all of its aspects. I argue that DEI provides the illusions of combating white supremacy while training “white” people to evade having to truly face and …

Strategy Vs. Humanity? American Corporations May Be Facing A Momentous Paradigm Shift In The Age Of Diversity, Equity And Inclusion, Mark Rennella

Comparative Civilizations Review

The business discipline of strategy was born at Harvard Business School in the America of the 1970s, an era of disorienting economic fluctuations and sometimes naked vulnerability that was punctuated by disturbing events like the OPEC oil embargoes and the Iran hostage crisis. By the end of the decade, strategy claimed the imaginations of business executives and relegated its predecessor, marketing, to a distant second place. Marketing, whose focus was serving customer needs to grow demand, was neither tough enough nor quick enough to deal with the sudden appearance of economic and cultural monsters invading American life.

Critical- Diversity, Belongingness, Inclusion, And Equity Sel, Jeanny Eliana Marroquin

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The social and civil unrest across the United States has ignited a call for more school-based social and emotional learning (SEL) frameworks and practices that are social justice-oriented. The Collaborative for Academic and Social Emotional Learning (CASEL) is one of the organizations that chose to revisit their existing SEL framework and introduced transformative SEL as an attempt to take steps toward creating a more social justice-oriented approach. This critique will review the SEL landscape of some pre-K-12 SEL programs and their methods to highlight gaps and limitations in the fields for future research considerations. Then, a new social and emotional …

Inclusion Of The Mobility Impaired In Our Community: Ask First!, Jeffrey M. Heinz Dds, Msd

The Journal of the Michigan Dental Association

This DEI Series feature article provides a unique perspective on the inclusion of individuals with physical disabilities, focusing on mobility impairment, in the dental profession and community. The author, a paraplegic orthodontist, shares personal experiences and challenges, shedding light on the importance of considering physical disabilities in dental offices. Navigational difficulties in compliant yet wheelchair-unfriendly spaces are discussed, urging practitioners to have contingency plans. The article emphasizes the significance of etiquette in assisting individuals with disabilities, encouraging respectful communication and asking before offering help. Practical insights on dental chair usage and transfer assistance are provided, promoting a more inclusive environment …

The Promise Of Labor-Based Grading Contracts For The Teaching Of Psychology And Neuroscience, Jasmine Mena, Jennie Stevenson

Faculty Journal Articles

Introduction: Instructors assign grades to communicate to students how well they are learning the course content. However, students and instructors are often displeased with the process and outcome of grading. Statement of the Problem: We contend that conventional grading inadvertently detracts from student learning and simultaneously replicates systems of oppression in academia. We discuss Labor Based Grading Contracts (LBGC) as an alternative to conventional grading. Literature Review: We review the conceptual and empirical literature on LBGCs as an alternative method of assessing student work and extend its application to psychology and neuroscience courses. Teaching Implications: We present recommendations for implementing …

Implementing Diversity Training Targeting Faculty Microaggressions And Inclusion: Practical Insights And Initial Findings, Ellen Ernst Kossek, Patrice M. Buzzanell, Brittany J. Wright, Cassondra Batz-Barbarich, Amy C. Moors, Charlene Sullivan, Klod Kokini, Andrew S. Hirsch, Kayla Maxey, Ankita Nikalje

Communication Faculty Publications

Despite the importance of faculty diversity training for advancing an inclusive society, little research examines whether participation improves inclusion perceptions and belongingness. Integrating training and diversity education literature concepts, this study examines the effectiveness of training targeting microaggressions in six STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) oriented departments at a research-intensive university. Reactions data collected at the end of face-to-face training suggested that participation generally increased inclusion understanding. Self-assessments on inclusion concepts collected from 45% of participants before and three weeks after training suggest participation increases perceptions of the importance of inclusion, microaggression allyship awareness, inclusive behaviors, and organizational identification. Compared …

Connecting School Finance Policy With Practice: A Site-Based Expenditure Report Study, Julia Chapdelaine Pontarelli

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the policy requirement of site-based expenditure reporting which is a requirement of the newest reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the Every Student Succeeds Act. For the first time, the federal government has required school districts to report site-level expenditure data publicly. In Illinois, the tool used to meet this federal reporting requirement is Site-Based Expenditure Reporting. In this study, I focus on how school finance leaders understand, process, and implement the site-based expenditure reporting requirement while considering concepts of equity and adequacy. Sensemaking theory offers a helpful conceptual lens for understanding how …

Beyond Debt And Equity: Dissecting The Red Herring And A Path Forward For Normative Critiques Of Finance, Aaron Z. Pitluck

Faculty Publications—Sociology and Anthropology

A recurring theme in academic, moralizing, and religious discourses laments the individual and societal perils of debt and praises equity. Contemporary Islamic banking and finance is one conspicuous example. Th is article recontextualizes this conversation by demonstrating that since the 1980s financial practitioners have been interpreting debt and equity as increasingly illegible cognitive schemas that nonetheless retain their historical and moral connotations. Th is line of argumentation suggests that normatively contrasting debt and equity is a red herring— a literary device and theoretical construct that misleads and distracts from the fundamental discussion of what constitutes salubrious or odious finance. Little …

Leadership For Change: Teacher Education In Afghanistan: A Decade Of Challenge In Reconstruction, Reform, And Modernization In A Post Conflict Society, Susan Wardak

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation used interpretive case study methodology focused on the story of rebuilding the national education system of Afghanistan destroyed by decades of conflict. The study documents the challenges and progress in preparing adequate and qualified teachers for the nation. The dissertation is based on critical analysis of available documents tracing events, policies, and programs. The research asks: What are the critical leadership strategies and organizational frameworks that promote or impede institutional change? What are the barriers to change in teacher education in a conservative Islamic society? The dissertation is unique in that this story of educational intervention in a …

Broadband Development In Lexington: A Study Of Access And Equity, Alex Sergent

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Broadband equity is at the forefront of today’s issues. Those that have the ability to access the internet regularly from home are given an opportunity to participate in countless social, work, and learning opportunities that those without access must forgo. It is difficult to determine where broadband infrastructure fails. Through this study of Lexington-Fayette Urban County, it was found that connection within Urban Service Boundaries is on par with national goals, while rural areas are left out. This paper contains a descriptive analysis of the overall broadband access equity of Lexington-Fayette county.

A National Investigation On The Effect Of College Readiness Counseling On Postsecondary Outcomes, Dana L. Brookover, Kaprea Johnson

Journal of College Access

The current study utilized the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009, from the National Center for Education Statistics, to conduct a longitudinal investigation into how access to school counseling impacts postsecondary outcomes. Findings indicate that school counselor time spent college readiness counseling, in addition to lower student socioeconomic status and identifying as multiracial, were predictive of lesser odds of college attainment and persistence. The results of the current study offer practice, policy, and training implications.

Evaluating Long-Range Transportation Plans For Mainstreaming Of Climate Adaptation Among Virginia Mpos, Sebastian L. Shetty

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the strides made towards addressing climate change through greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction strategies, it has become increasingly apparent that attempting to mitigate the crisis in such a manner alone is insufficient. This thesis joins a growing body of research on how our societies must adapt to a changing climate, contributing more evidence on common barriers to adaptation and how they might be overcome. Through an attempt to evaluate the progress made towards mainstreaming, or integrating, climate change concerns into five Virginia MPOs’ long-range transportation plans (LRTPs), this study provides support for prior hypotheses around the potential for MPOs …

Developing The Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Power, And Privilege Assessment In Cft/Mft: A Delphi Study, Carrie Hatch

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Marriage and Family Therapists (MFTs) and Couple and Family Therapists (CFTs) engage in clinical practice from a systemic framework. This framework positions MFTs to consider the impact of social systems on the MFT/CFT field and their clients. Issues related to diversity, equity, inclusion, power, and privilege (DEIPP) impact all of the systems in which we operate. Currently, there is no consensus on a tool measuring training clinicians’ competencies related to DEIPP beyond self-report. There is a need for a DEIPP competency measure because, currently, the most widely used measure is self or observer report, which may not provide a complete …

Critical Analysis Of Arl Member Institutions’ Diversity Statements, V. Dozier, Adebola Fabiku, Sandra A. Enimil

Copley Library: Faculty Scholarship

In March 2018, the Board of Directors of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) approved a new mission statement that includes a call to “promote equity and diversity” and lists “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) as one of its four priorities. ARL encourages but does not mandate similar visible commitments from its member institutions. This is evident by the resource webpage that ARL maintains entitled, “ARL Library Statements and Signs Affirming Our Core Beliefs.” The listed members represent approximately 19% of ARL’s membership. After reading the existing statements, the authors noticed a similar pattern in terms and context. This led …

Resource Access And Equity In Humboldt County (How Social Myth Becomes Social Fact), Colton J. Hubbard

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Rural areas of Northern California have gone without health and social services for decades. The shortcomings of local services have given rise to the idea that there are no services in these rural and isolated communities. Conditions and beliefs have brought up two important questions. The first question is how can access and knowledge of available services be improved in rural areas? The second question is, through what mechanisms do communities develop their facts?

To address the previous questions, I worked with the primary health and social service provider in Humboldt County, CA. We developed a database of local services …

Smartphrases: Optimizing Discharge Education In Limited English Proficiency (Lep) Spanish-Speaking Patient Encounters, Somer Knight

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Health inequities due to communication barriers exist at a high rate for those who identify with limited English proficiency. This quality improvement project aimed to decrease these inequities by providing pre-translated discharge instructions (AVS) to patients who receive surgical services and recover in the pediatric post anesthesia care unit (PACU) of a state hospital. Specifically, this project examined if the availability of pre-translated instructions (SmartPhrases) increased nurse and interpreter satisfaction with the discharge process, and improved their perceived level of equitable care they are able to provide. Discharge instructions were gathered from the participating surgical and interventionist teams, and the …

Duty And Diversity, Chris Brummer, Leo E. Strine Jr.

All Faculty Scholarship

In the wake of the brutal deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, a slew of reforms from Wall Street to the West Coast have been introduced, all aimed at increasing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (“DEI”) in corporations. Yet the reforms face difficulties ranging from possible constitutional challenges to critical limitations in their scale, scope and degree of legal obligation and practical effects. In this Article, we provide an old answer to the new questions facing DEI policy, and offer the first close examination of how corporate law duties impel and facilitate corporate attention to diversity. Specifically, we show that …

“You’Re Not My Leader.” The Impact Of Gender And Ethnic Stereotypes On Leadership Evaluations, Arief B. Kartolo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The effectiveness of a leader is important to the success of an organization across many levels. Because the effectiveness of leadership is subject to the evaluation and perception of followership, it is often influenced through biases and expectations – such as stereotypes. Although ample studies have demonstrated the impact of stereotyping on leadership roles, several gaps still need to be addressed in the literature. First, the literature tends to focus on the impact of gender stereotypes, while fewer studies have considered the impact of ethnic stereotypes on leadership roles. Second, few studies have investigated the impact of stereotypes based on …

Using Agile Principles To Implement Workplace Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Best Practices, Jennifer Bernardez

CMC Senior Theses

Companies understand the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace and are willing to invest to achieve successful DEI results. Unfortunately, the results of these efforts have been inconsistent at best. Over the last twenty years, companies have successfully applied Agile principles to to achieve successful project management results. This paper describes how to apply Agile principles to DEI initiatives. Additionally, a practical model for achieving DEI results in the areas of hiring, onboarding, employee retention, and assessment, has been developed and is presented. Application of this innovative model will help companies achieve desired results from investments …