The Professional Roles and Functions of School Psychologists in Alternative vs Traditional Education

Alternative Education Settings (AES) are unique environments that serve students whose educational and/or social-emotional needs are not being met in traditional schools. Students frequently enter AES with a range of mental health diagnoses, previous traumas, and behavioral/academic challenges. AES also serve many students from systemically marginalized and oppressed backgrounds, who are placed in these settings at higher rates than privileged peers. Considering these patterns, it becomes critical that AES provide effective student support, rather than serve simply to contain students based on disciplinary factors and convenience. School psychologists, with training in mental health and education, are well-positioned to provide these supports, but little is known about the professional roles and responsibilities of school psychologists within AES. The current study surveyed 422 school psychologists, 56 from AES and 365 from traditional school settings, regarding their frequency of engagement in consultation, intervention, assessment, and social justice activities. T-tests were conducted to examine differences in job functions across settings. Overall, school psychologists reported engaging in consultation activities more often than any other practice. Direct intervention activities were reported least often overall. Comparisons between AES and traditional settings indicated that school psychologists in AES engaged in assessment activities significantly less often than those in traditional settings. There were no significant differences in how often school psychologists engaged in consultation, direct intervention, or social justice activities across settings. These findings add to the current literature on school psychology and alternative education, of which there is relatively little. Findings indicate that assessment may be relatively less emphasized in alternative education settings, suggesting that those working in AES may wish to seek training that also emphasizes other practice domains or activities (e.g., counseling approaches). Findings also suggest that more emphasis is needed on social justice work across the entire field. Finally, despite differences, many similarities were noted between alternative and traditional settings. Thus, given the comprehensive nature of school psychology graduate training, school psychologists may already be well-equipped to provide services in alternative settings. Additional training opportunities specific to individual work settings, rather than alternative settings broadly, may be more desirable

Summary of Statedata: The National Report on Employment Services and Outcomes Through 2021

This Data Note summarizes the findings from the National Report on Employment Services and Outcomes Through 2021. Overall, the findings suggest that across data sources, people with IDD experience greater levels of unemployment, underemployment, low wages, and poverty compared to those without disabilities and those with non-IDD disabilities

Transforming Credit Allocation to Support Economic Justice through Shared Value: A Mixed-Methods Decision Modelling Approach

Transformation of the business system focuses on addressing the bottlenecks of capital injection and ensuring equitable distribution of economic justice, particularly in countries reliant on state economies. Consequently, this study aims to investigate and resolve the key issues in Iran\u27s credit allocation system, which requires a deep understanding and modification to benefit businesses, community, and the government. In this regard, this paper introduces a novel integrated methodology known as co-value creating (COVAC), which integrates critical systems heuristics (CSH), strategic choice approach (SCA), and multiple-attribute decision-making (MADM). COVAC employs a comprehensive logical process that combines systems thinking and soft operational research, with a focus on creating shared value. The results of this study reveal a significant gap between the current and ideal situations in terms of equality, transparency, standards, globalization, knowledge, governance, and dependency in the credit allocation system of Iran. To implement the final scheme based on the results, significant attention is required, taking into account the shared value score and ensuring compatibility to address the identified gaps in the government, central bank, and commercial banks\u27 sectors. Notably, since the initiation of this research, several changes have occurred, aligned with enhancements made to the credit allocation in Iran’s banking system

Increasing Housing Stability Through State-Funded Community Mediation Delivered by The Massachusetts Housing Mediation Program (HMP) FY2023 Evaluation Report

The Massachusetts Housing Mediation Program (HMP) is a comprehensive statewide program that provides free housing mediation services as a tool to increase housing stability with the intention of preventing homelessness created by landlord-tenant disputes. It is administered by the Massachusetts Office of Public Collaboration (MOPC) at the University of Massachusetts Boston and deploys the community mediation system infrastructure with 11 Community Mediation Centers (Centers) participating and serving all 14 counties of the Commonwealth to provide free conflict resolution services for tenants and landlords/property managers with housing disputes at any stage, from the earliest point a problem occurs, up to, and after any eviction action in court. The HMP is a vital public program, particularly against the backdrop of a housing crisis that has worsened. MA residents cited housing as the biggest issue on their minds. The country is also facing a dramatic 12% increase in homelessness, which is its highest reported level as soaring rents and a decline in COVID-19 pandemic assistance combined to put housing out of reach for more Americans. Homelessness among individuals rose by 11%, among veterans by 7.4%, and among families with children by 15.5%. Though a clear causal link between housing mediation through the HMP and homelessness prevention is difficult to determine, several factors support housing mediation’s role in preventing homelessness and increasing housing stability. These factors include: 1) the ability of mediation to improve communication and help reduce landlord-tenant/tenant-tenant conflict; 2) the opportunity afforded by mediation for landlords/property managers and tenants to negotiate in good faith and the option to generate creative solutions to issues surrounding the non-payment of rent, repairs and a host of tenancy-related issues; and 3) the coupling of mediation with housing counseling and other assistance programs. Data from the centralized case management system (MADtrac) indicates that mediating landlord-tenant cases resulted in 65.2% of the tenants preserving their tenancy in FY2023 where Centers served 428 housing cases under the HMP resulting in 279 tenancy preservations. A strong correlation does exist between housing mediation provided through the HMP and tenancy preservation. For example, using a subset of mediated cases and an analysis of a sampling of 163 written mediated agreements reached between landlords/property managers and tenants through housing mediation provided by Centers during the 12-month period from July 2022 to June 2023 shows that 85 agreements, a little over one half (52%), resulted in the preservation of tenancy, suggesting a strong correlation between housing mediation and the preservation of tenancy

Racial Disparities in SNAP Receipt for Eligible Asian Americans in Massachusetts

Despite qualifying as income eligible, many Massachusetts families do not access SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits. Due to the sharp increase in the cost of living, especially the cost of housing and food expenses, more families are facing food insecurity. Thus, it is critical to ensure that families in need receive SNAP benefits. While previous studies have examined racial disparities, there is a limited focus on Asian American families. Even fewer studies disaggregate data to explore disparities among Asian American ethnic subgroups. Further, few studies have addressed disparities in SNAP receipt specifically for income eligible families. The purpose of this study was to identify racial disparities and disparities in SNAP receipt among Asian American subgroups for income eligible families. This study also explored the extent to which English fluency, immigration status, education level, and employment status determine recipience of SNAP benefits in Massachusetts. American Community Survey 5-year data (ACS 2016-2020) were used to analyze racial-ethnic disparities in receiving SNAP among income eligible families in Massachusetts (those with total incomes at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL)). The results revealed that among families that are income eligible to receive SNAP benefits, Asian American and White families generally were not different in SNAP receipt. However, income eligible Asian American families with a bachelor’s degree were more likely than White families to receive SNAP. The interaction terms also indicated that even at different levels of education, income eligible Asian American families tend to be less likely to receive SNAP than Black and Hispanic families. The analysis of subgroups revealed that income eligible Cambodian families are more likely than income eligible Chinese families to receive SNAP. These results suggest the counterintuitive recommendation that policymakers should pay closer attention to Asian Americans with higher education levels, who may be reluctant to access SNAP benefits even when food insecure. The report concludes with additional implications for policy and directions for future research

How Families and Employment Professionals can Form Partnerships to Support Youths and Young Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)

This brief highlights the perspectives and experiences of family members of four young adults with IDD who shared their employment and community engagement stories. The brief outlines the roles families played to support the youth adults to find and maintain competitive, integrated employment and to engage meaningfully with their communities. It draws from in-depth, semi structured interviews with young adults with IDD, their family members, and job coaches

What Did Your Mama Think About That?: An Asset-Focused Approach to the Socialization Experiences of Black Doctoral Students

This dissertation explores how Black doctoral students navigate their educational journeys, even when faced with systems that limit their potential. The study delves into how these students tap into their unique cultural assets to confront and surmount barriers to their success. The dissertation’s primary focus lies in understanding and appreciating the cultural wealth, unique knowledge, and profound insights Black doctoral students bring to their academic pursuits. Through a qualitative study involving 12 participants, it uncovers valuable insights and fresh counter-narratives that can lend support to Black doctoral students and spur the generation of more data reflecting their successes. One of the key outcomes of this study is the development of a novel framework for understanding success in doctoral education, named the Black Doctoral Student Asset Model (BDSAM). The BDSAM is not just an academic model but a practical guide for individuals and institutions committed to boosting success rates for Black doctoral students. From pre- enrollment and admissions, through doctoral socialization and program interactions, to advising, mentoring, and engagement leading to graduation, the BDSAM offers a comprehensive look at the journeys of Black doctoral students. In providing this holistic perspective, this research fills an existing void in the current body of literature

Name Stories as Narrative Strategies for Asian American Advocacy in an AANAPISI Context

This chapter draws qualitatively on our name-centered narrative experiences, reflections, and interventions during the past 25 years at an urban public research university that is federally designated as an Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI). As co-authors with diverse ethnic, educational, and generational backgrounds, we offer examples of our own name stories, together with evidence to illustrate the value of name-centered Asian American Studies curricular strategies and pedagogical approaches. Grounded by the personal meanings, cultural legacies, and educational implications of name stories, our chapter sheds light on the curricular and pedagogical model of Asian American Studies at our own minority-serving AANAPISI university while contributing to the broader literature on low-income or first-generation Asian American college student persistence. Through our chapter, we seek to reveal ways to mobilize student narratives strategically to have institutional impact on our campus and beyond

Maternal Immune Activation Alters Placental Histone-3 Lysine-9 Tri-Methylation, Offspring Sensorimotor Processing, and Hypothalamic Transposable Element Expression in a Sex-Specific Manner

Schizophrenia is a heterogenous disorder characterized by a myriad of perturbations including those related to brain physiology, learning, memory, attention, and sensorimotor processing. While the cause of schizophrenia has yet to be elucidated, the use of animals has been critical to teasing apart the individual and intersecting roles of genetic and environmental risk factors in schizophrenia etiology. One way to recreate certain behavioral impairments seen in people with schizophrenia is to disrupt the prenatal or neonatal environment of laboratory rodent offspring. This approach results in a phenotype that is congruent to humans with schizophrenia. While the use of animal models has propelled the mechanistic understanding of schizophrenia pathogenesis forward, there is still more to be uncovered. Recently, strong evidence has demonstrated a role of the non-coding genome, specifically transposable elements (TEs), in schizophrenia etiology. Yet, TEs have only received a fraction of the amount of research as the protein coding genome within animal models of schizophrenia. Therefore, the deep genome represents a novel frontier by which the mechanistic underpinnings and potential therapeutic targets for schizophrenia can be explored. In the present study, we investigated the prenatal disruption known as maternal immune activation (MIA), which is a leading risk factor for developing schizophrenia. We induced MIA in Sprague-Dawley rats to mimic a prenatal exposure to maternal infection and found a sex-specific rearrangement of the heterochromatin landscape of the placenta, as evidenced by an increase in histone-3 lysine-9 trimethylation (H3K9me3). Moreover, MIA was associated with long-term sensorimotor processing deficits as indicated by reduced prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex (PPI) and an increased mechanical allodynia threshold. Analyses of gene expression within the hypothalamus- chosen for its involvement in the sex-specific pathogenesis of schizophrenia and the stress response- revealed significantly higher levels of the stress-sensitive genes Gr and Fkbp5 and lower levels of Fkbp4. In addition, we found sex-specific increases in the expression of several TEs including IAP, B2 SINE, and LINE-1 ORF1. The data from this study warrant the future consideration of epigenetic regulation of the non-coding genome as a mechanism that drives changes in the development of the brain

The Role and Regulation of EHMT-Family Proteins in Prostate Cancer Progression

Post-translational Modifications, and specifically lysine methylations of histones, are critical to regulating the epigenetic transcription programming. In Prostate cancer (PCa), many lysine methyltransferases and lysine demethylases are aberrantly expressed or altered, leading to advanced progression of PCa. By performing a screening study to identify novel lysine methylations in PCa cells, we discovered methylated lysine 450 and 451 at the EHMT1/GLP protein, which is a lysine methyltransferase known for mono and di-methylating histone 3 lysine 9 and primarily functions as a transcriptional repressor. While the EHMT1 gene is expressed in higher levels in advanced Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer (CRPC), very little is known about its role and regulation in PCa progression. I found that a known chromatin remodeler and lysine demethylase, LSD1, can demethylate the K450me site. Notably, the dual demethylation of both K450me and K451me expands the chromatin binding of EHMT1 globally and switches EHMT1 into a transcription activator in PCa cells to activate oncogenic signaling pathways. Through acting on these pathways, silencing EHMT1 with RNAi or using inhibitors on EHMT1 activity can markedly decrease PCa cell proliferation and metastasis in vitro and in vivo. In addition to these studies, I also performed mass-spectrometry analysis to identify specific interacting proteins of methylated and unmethylated EHMT1 and attempted to identify the core amino acid sequences that are required for substrate recognition by LSD1. Overall, my studies suggest that the dual-lysine demethylation of EHMT1 can function as a molecular switch to induce oncogenic transcriptional reprogramming in PCa cells