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Are School Districts Allocating Resources Equitably? The Every Student Succeeds Act, Teacher Experience Gaps, And Equitable Resource Allocation, David S. Knight

Working Papers

Ongoing federal efforts support equalizing access to experienced educators for low-income students and students of color, thereby narrowing the “teacher experience gap.” I show that while high-poverty and high-minority schools have larger class sizes and receive less funding nationally, school districts allocate resource equitably, on average, across schools. However, the least experienced teachers are still concentrated in high-poverty and high-minority schools, both across and within districts. I then show that additional state and local funding is associated with more equitable district resource allocation. The study offers recommendations for state and federal education policy related to the Every Student Succeeds Act.

Humanitarian Intervention: Determining The Effectiveness Of Outsourcing Humanitarian Intervention During Humanitarian Crises, Clarissa Caola

Political Science Theses and Capstones

At the end of the Cold War we witnessed a growing reluctance on part of many national powers to intervene in international crises. This unwillingness allowed for the development of Private Military and Security Companies (PMSCs). PMSCs have been deployed to provide a wide variety of security-related functions including combat, logistics, training programs, and armed guarding of personnel and infrastructures. Exploring the concept of outsourcing these military functions, others have applied the idea towards addressing humanitarian crises. PMSCs may face fewer geopolitical impediments that can hinder the efforts of many state actors. In certain humanitarian crises PMSCs may better address …

International Lessons For Promoting Transit Connections To High-Speed Rail Systems, Stan Feinsod, Eduardo Romo Urroz, Peter J. Haas, James Griffith

Mineta Transportation Institute

As the California High-Speed Rail (HSR) project becomes reality, many communities involved in, or affected by, the California HSR project have considered how to connect the new HSR passenger services to local urban transportation systems – such as bus and light rail systems – and how they can take advantage of HSR accessibility and speed throughout the state. European and other overseas systems have decades of experience in forging connections between HSR and various transportation options. This study examines international HSR stations and identifies patterns in transit connections associated with stations on the basis of size, population levels, and other …

Sub-Saharan Refugees Finding Space And Place In Rabat, Morocco, Katherine Knapp

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In an attempt to affiliate itself with the Europe, Morocco has aligned its policy closer to the desires of the European Union, including stricter migration borders. As a result, Morocco is becomingmore and more the interstice between a refugee’s past and dreamed future until one can manage the journey to Europe or meet their needs in Morocco and return to their country of origin. Under prevailing notions of space as it accommodates systems of power and thought, and with consideration of Asef Bayat’s theory of ordinary encroachment, I explore the experiences of Sub-Saharan refugees, economic and political, in Rabat, Morocco, …

The Chinese Housing Registration System (Hukou): Bridge Or Wall?, Andrew Kryshak

Political Science Theses and Capstones

In 1958 the Chinese government created the hukou housing registration system to control the migration of Chinese citizens from rural to urban areas. A person’s hukou has major implications on their lives; it controls food rations, medical benefits, quality of education, as well as movement within the country. I look to answer the question of whether the hukou can be seen as a bridge with which individuals achieve socially, or is it better seen as a wall that prevents social advancement. This has been a question that researchers have been looking into for many years but there has been no …

Examining American Attitudes On The Use Of Military Drones, Todd Brandon

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Recent polls have revealed that Americans of both the political left and right support the use of military drones. This statement stands true among groups who traditionally do not support the use of military force. I hypothesize that people of a more liberal persuasion will be more concerned with whether or not the drone program endangers innocent civilians, while those of a more conservative view will be more concerned with the legality of conducting military drone strikes. I analyze data obtained from the Pew Research Center to examine people's attitudes on military drone strikes via framing theory. My hypothesis has …

The Cyber-Industrial Complex, Connor O’Malley

Political Science Theses and Capstones

When Edward Snowden released a massive trove of classified files from the National Security Agency, the world became aware of numerous global surveillance systems. As Snowden hoped, a global dialogue began concerning surveillance, privacy, and government transparency. While there was a lively discourse surrounding the leak and Snowden, another story was missed. Snowden was not an employee of the NSA; rather he was an employee of Booz Allen Hamilton, a private contractor maintaining computer systems for the NSA. The deeper story here is the emerging relationship between government agencies and technology companies. This paper discusses the theory of iron triangles …

Boston Children Thrive In 5: Connecting Families, Building Community, Year 4 - Summative Evaluation Brief, Prepared For Thrive In 5, Donna Haig Friedman, Mary Coonan, Anne Douglass, Alice Carter

Center for Social Policy Publications

Boston is a diverse vibrant community that has become a 'majority minority' city; 64% of Boston households with young children are people of color. However, economic and racial disparities hinder the realization of children's potential: over 38,000 children five and younger live in the city and 24% of these children live below the federal poverty line.

In 2008, cognizant of persistent academic achievement gaps, especially for low income children and children of color in the city, the late Mayor, Thomas M. Menino, and United Way of Massachusetts Bay issued a school readiness call for action. Sixty-five community leaders, representing all …

Improving Police-Community Partnerships: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

Our examination of community-based policing research and literature includes thirty-two articles. The articles contained original information on departmental procedure, training, and interactions, both positive and negative, between law enforcement organizations and the communities they serve. The overall goal of community-based policing is to improve the relationships between police and their local communities. Community-based policing promotes positive relationships and collaboration between the police and the citizens in communities in which they serve. In order to improve police legitimacy and community relations throughout the country, proper training and a set of new performance standards needs to be implemented nationwide. Maintaining trust with …

Examining The Feasibility Of Implementing A Deconstruction Nonprofit In East St. Louis, Il, David M. Hoag Jr.

All Capstone Projects

Background: According to an environmental justice case study by Kozol (2005), East St. Louis is considered the country's most distressed city. It has suffered from environmental and economic misfortunes for several decades. Many residents of the city have left due to the economic conditions of the city, which resulted in a loss of tax base. According to Hou (2010), the loss of tax base has had a severe impact on the community; the city that once had flourishing parks, streets, and businesses has now become blighted with condemned, abandoned, and foreclosed structures. Poor maintenance and neglect has led to decay …

Creating A Veteran Centered Wellness Treatment Model For Successful Reintegration, Lisa Troupe Wallace

All Capstone Projects

In today's society the issue of reintegration following combat deployment among American Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraq Freedom (OIF) veterans has been met with significant barriers. The purpose of this study was to examine current wellness models and to create a model that will assist veterans with reintegration into society. The current models will be examined to identify if the needs of the veterans are being met who are returning from combat and to examine community agencies, Department of Veteran Affairs and the Department of Defense programs and services essential to meeting their needs. A grounded study was …

An Independent Review Of The Mine Action Sector In Cambodia, Gichd

Global CWD Repository

Cambodia is one of the oldest and most established mine action programmes in the world. Because of its extensive landmine and Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) contamination and the early response that was provided 25 years ago with the assistance of the international community, the country's mine action sector has developed a robust and qualified capacity of national professionals and has benefited from the assistance of an extensive number of international organizations as well as the massive support from international development partners.

As a State Party to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC), Cambodia has demonstrated a strong commitment in …

New York State’S Missing Data, John Yinger

Center for Policy Research

It’s Elementary is a series of essays on topics in education and education policy. The main focus is on education finance in New York State, but general research findings in education and education policy issues in several other states are also discussed. John Yinger, Professor of Economics and Public Administration at the Maxwell School, Syracuse University is the author of most of these essays, although a few are written by or co-authored with other scholars.

Operating In The Gray Zone: An Alternative Paradigm For U.S. Military Strategy, Antulio J. Echevarria Ii

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

So-called gray zone wars are not new, but they have highlighted shortcomings in the way the West thinks about war and strategy. This monograph proposes an alternative to the U.S. military's current campaign-planning framework, one oriented on achieving positional advantages over rival powers and built around the use of a coercion-deterrence dynamic germane to almost all wars as well as to conflicts short of war.

Parameters – Full Issue – Spring 2016, Usawc Parameters

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Special Commentary: Making Sense of the “Long Wars” Tami Davis Biddle US Leadership and NATO Luis Simón, Alexander Mattelaer, John R. Deni, Magnus Petersson Is Nation-Building a Myth? Charles J. Sullivan, M. Chris Mason Learning from Today’s Wars Ben Nimmo, Roger N. McDermott, Erik W. Goepner

Jesus With A Kalashnikov: Examining Marxist Elements In Liberation Theology And Soviet Influence On Its Origins, Todd "Cameron" Swathwood Jr

Senior Honors Theses

Liberation theology emerged as a prominent feature of religion and politics in the 1960s. Since the beginning, detractors have noted the overtly Marxist tendencies within this ideology. This thesis introduces the core concepts and presuppositions of liberation theology itself, and then focuses on specific and varied allegations concerning any influence the Soviet Union may have had on its formation and propagation. Particular weight is lent to the testimony of Lieutenant General Ion Mihai Pacepa, formerly the head of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu’s national intelligence service and the highest-ranking defector ever received from the Soviet Bloc. Pacepa has shared his insider …

An Analysis Of Women’S Access To Acute Opioid Detoxification Services In Maine: Identifying The Barriers To Treatment, Karen E. Conley

Muskie School Capstones and Dissertations

The lack of treatment facilities and services for opioid use disorder in Maine, combined with an increased prevalence of addiction, creates a potential for health inequity between men and women that may be intensified by barriers in access to care. This capstone study utilized detoxification screening inquiry forms and data obtained from the Milestone Foundation’s acute opioid detoxification program to assess and categorize barriers to access by gender. A barriers model was developed based on existing literature and was to identify potential associations among and between the known barriers to accessing treatment. Barriers were described as internally or externally based, …

'Very Quiet Day, Vague Tension': Digitizing And Sharing The Stories Of School Desegregation And Busing In Boston, Andrew Elder

Joseph P. Healey Library Publications

In the summer of 2015, University Archives & Special Collections at UMass Boston began to work with a number of area archival institutions to create “a digital library of material that can be widely disseminated for both curricular and scholarly use” related to the history of school desegregation and busing in Boston. Too often, the history of Boston school desegregation seems weighted down by some of the most visible characters involved – politicians, policy-makers, court officials – so we decided early on to focus largely on identifying materials that tell a more complex, personal history of school desegregation and busing …

Examining The Comparative Use, Experience And Outcomes Of Community Service Orders As Alternatives To Short Prison Sentences In Ireland., Kate O'Hara

Doctoral

Background: In Ireland, under the Criminal Justice (Community Service) 1983 Act, a community service order (CSO) must only be imposed if a custodial sentence has first been considered. In 2011, an amendment to the 1983 Act was made, requiring courts to consider imposing CSOs as alternatives to prison sentences of less than one year. This amendment sought to address the underutilisation of community service, decrease the number of short-term committals, and benefit offenders and communities. Methodology: Administrative data from the Irish Prison and Probation Services pertaining to all cases sentenced to a short-term of imprisonment or CSO between 2011 and …

Inquiry Into The Implementation Of Bush’S Executive Order 13211 And The Impact On Environmental And Public Health Regulation, Elizabeth Ann Glass Geltman, Gunwant Gill, Miriam Jovanovic

Publications and Research

Executive Order 13211, promulgated in 2001, requires the federal government to consider the impact of federal action on energy independence as part of the George W. Bush’s National Energy Policy. This law review examines whether EO 13211 was used to curtail environmental protection and natural resource conservation. The article begins with a review of the procedure required of federal agencies under EO 13211 and its associated documents. The paper then examines case law and published federal rulemaking proceedings and examines how federal agencies apply tests to evaluate the potential energy effect. The study concludes that EO 13211 strikes a reasonable …

The Buried Pipeline Replacement Era: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Of Pipeline Replacement Strategies For The Santa Clara Valley Water District, Tony Ndah

Master's Projects

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Using Natural Gas In Light-Duty Vehicle Fleet Of The United States On Its Energy Dependency And Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Nurullah Ayyilmaz

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Shale boom has changed the track of discussions on the future of the U.S. energy politics. A new opportunity emerged to meet domestic demand of the U.S. by using secure sources. Transportation accounts for a quarter of energy consumption in the U.S. Increasing the share of natural gas in the transport sector bolsters the U.S. energy security because of shifting from insecure sources (imported oil) to secure sources (shale gas reserves). Using natural gas instead of oil in light-duty vehicles (LDVs) contributes to the efforts of decreasing dependence on insecure sources and also decreases anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused …

Culture And Military Effectiveness: How Societal Traits Influence Battle Outcomes, Eric Stephen Fowler

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

What must states do to ensure victory on the field of battle? Conventional scholarship claims that a number of material and institutional factors significantly affect a nation’s ability to generate military power. Recent studies suggest that other factors, including levels of education, civil-military relations, and western culture also play an important role. This new line of logic is important because these factors tend to be glaringly absent from rigorous concepts of military power. The principle finding of this study is that culture matters and that it matters more than originally thought. Culture is admittedly complex, intangible, and difficult to count, …

Impacts Of Ecotourism In Costa Rica: A Sustainable Alternative To Conventional Tourism, Kimberly A. Kleszczynski

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This ethnographic project examines the economic and social influences of tourism, specifically ecotourism, on the local communities of Costa Rica. The proposed research seeks to investigate the effects of ecotourism on the environment and quality of life for residents in Costa Rica while demonstrating the importance of sustainable development in relation to the ecotourism sector. The primary purpose of this research is to view the impact of ecotourism on Costa Rican society, with a particular focus on culture, economics, the environment, and specifically from the perspectives of local Costa Rican residents. Ultimately this paper will define what ecotourism is and …

Leadership And Corruption In Governance: A Case Study Of Liberia, Theresa Okpokwu

Capstone Collection

Writers like Mutasa (2009) and Ebegbulem (2012) argues that Africa is both the poorest continent in the world and one of the richest in terms of natural resources. Consistent with this observation the history of Liberia indicates that corrupt leadership deprives the general population of its fair access to Africa’s rich resources while exacerbating ineffective government bureaucracy and underdevelopment. The bureaucratized central government in turn entrenches corrupt practices which give rise to more serious underdevelopment as well as insurgencies and a possible state failure.

Given this background, this study examines how leadership and corruption in governance affects socioeconomic development. To …

The Octofoil, April/May/June 2016, Ninth Infantry Division Association

The Octofoil

The Octofoil is the offical publication of the Ninth Infantry Division Association, Inc., an organization formed by the officers and men of the 9th Infantry Division in order to perpetuate the memory of fallen comrades, preserve the esprit de corps of the Division, promote peace and serve as an information bureau about the 9th Infantry Division. The Association is made up of 9th Infantry veterans from WWII and Vietnam, spouses, widows and lineal descendants.

Refining The Prize: Chinese Oil Refineries And Its Energy Security, Inwook Kim

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Since China became a net oil importer in 1993, oil refineries have played integral roles in China's quest for oil security. And yet, the capacity, security, and configurations of refineries were rarely featured in the discussions about China's oil policy. To fill this gap, this paper explains the basics of refinery economics and technology, and details the development in China's refining industry since the early 1990s. By taking refineries into consideration, it then revisits and reassesses the existing literature regarding the motives and drivers behind China's foreign oil policy, its effectiveness, and the political interactions between China and crude oil …

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Achieving The Vision Of Global Health With Justice, Eric A. Friedman, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

We are resolved to free the human race from the tyranny of poverty and want and to heal and secure our planet” (UN General Assembly, 2015, September 25, preamble). So pronounces the 2030 Agenda, the United Nations declaration on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted on September 25, 2015, succeeding the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). If achieved, the SDGs will secure an improved level of health, development, and global justice. However, if the international community fails to live up to its commitments, an untold number of people will likely perish prematurely, people’s opportunities to thrive will be cut off, social …

Paediatric Tuberculosis In Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India: Dots, Diagnosis, And Determinants, Emma Klein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the world’s largest public health challenges, and it has a disproportionate impact on India. In children, TB is a serious but understudied illness due to the complexity of case-notification and relative lack of public health importance. This study took place over the course of one month in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. In a mixed method study consisting of 53 quantitative patient interviews and qualitative interviews with healthcare providers, social determinants of TB in this setting were investigated as well as challenges faced at all stages of healthcare delivery. Malnutrition and housing were the most severe …

A Critical Analysis Of The Public Sphere: How The Lgbtq Movement Utilizes And Occupies Space In Morocco, Katherine Hirsch

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper examines the nature of the LGBTQ movement in Morocco in relation to the theoretical concept of the public sphere. Specifically, it explores what spaces LGBTQ organizations, which do not have access to the public sphere in Morocco, occupy in order to pursue activism. Theory surrounding the public sphere and collective social movements is very much based on a Western perspective, despite claims of universalism. Western theory defines modern social movements by collective action, a unified movement, occupying and the public sphere as a site of resistance. However, this fails to recognize the fact that many people in semi-authoritarian …