Governance and Ethical Gaps in the J-1 Summer Work and Travel Program: A U.S.–China Case Study on Public Trust and Participant Protection

This study examines how implementation gaps shape public trust in transnational exchange programs, using the J-1 Summer Work Travel (SWT) program as a case in a U.S.–China context. The SWT program, a U.S. government–regulated cultural exchange initiative, is designed to promote cultural exchange through a well-established regulatory framework. It operates through a multi-actor governance system involving government agencies, nonprofit sponsors, employers, and intermediary organizations across national boundaries. Drawing on a mixed-methods approach that combines 43 survey responses and 9 semi-structured interviews, this study explores how program design is translated into practice and how governance dynamics affect participant experiences. The findings show that, despite high overall satisfaction and relatively clear formal procedures, significant gaps exist at the implementation level. Participant experiences differ across employers, communication often fails to resolve problems, and responsibilities are fragmented among stakeholders. Focusing on the China case, the study highlights how recruitment practices and intermediary structures shape information asymmetry and early-stage expectations, extending governance challenges beyond the U.S. regulatory framework. These findings suggest that governance challenges are driven less by policy design and more by uneven implementation. The study contributes by linking administrative ethics, polycentric governance, and public trust in a transnational context

Some Things Never Change

Some Things Never Change is a coming-of-age play that explores the intersection of memory, identity, nostalgia, faith, and the process of growing up. The play follows two versions of the same character: Young Ryann and Older Ryann. Young Ryann is the eleven year old version of Older Ryan, the young woman she grows to become. This play was born from my own interest in how identity evolves and continues to shape us through adulthood. Some Things Never Change is the culmination of my own experiences, broader themes of self-discovery, and the science behind nostalgia. Through this play I uncover the emotional tension between who we once were, who we imagined ourselves to become, and the realities of adulthood. In this process I employed the use of parallel storytelling, split staging, music, and visual motifs to illustrate the continuity between childhood and adulthood. Through dialogue, monologue, and stage direction, the play examines how nostalgia can act as both a comforter and a means of reflection. Ultimately, this play argues that growth and becoming do not require us to leave our past selves behind, but rather learning to reconcile our past and present identities. This piece comments on the conversation surrounding identity while making space for the exploration of nostalgia and intergenerational memory within the scope of performance

TLR3 mediated Type I Interferon response in mammalian cell defense against Cryptosporidium parvum infection.

Cryptosporidium parvum is a major cause of a diarrheal disease which affects many children in the USA as well as the rest of the world, yet the contribution of its double stranded RNA (dsRNA) viral symbiont, Cryspovirus (CSpV1) to host innate immunity remains unclear. This study investigated whether CSpV1 activates Toll Like Receptor 3 (TLR3) signaling pathways and downstream Interferon type I (IFN I) responses in mammalian intestinal epithelial cells. Confluent Human Ileocecal Colorectal Adenocarcinoma cells (HCT8) were exposed to CSpV1, and the expression levels of Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor-Associated Factor 3 (TRAF3), Nuclear Factor--light chain enhancer of activated B-cells (NF-B), Interferon Regulatory Factor (IRF3) and IFN- were measured using Indirect Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), Time Resolved Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (TR-FRET), Cell-based colorimetric-ELISA, sandwich-ELISA, respectively, and compared with uninfected controls. CSpV1 exposure induced a time dependent increase in TRAF3 with a peak at 3h, enhanced NF-κB phosphorylation, and a reduction in total IRF3 signal consistent with activation and nuclear translocation. These changes were accompanied by a significant increase in IFN- production compared with controls. Together these findings support a model in which CSpV1 dsRNA activated epithelial TLR3, initiating TRIF-dependent activation of TRAF3, NF-κB and IRF3 activation, culminating in the induction of IFN I responses

The (Non-) Protection of Indigenous Rights in ISDS

International investment law largely flows from the protections afforded foreign investors under bilateral and multilateral investment treaties.  Until recently, few of these treaties required investors to comply with human rights provisions in national constitutions or in international law, or preserved the ability of states to regulate to protect constitutional rights.  As a result, critics have argued, investor-state dispute settlement fails to protect human rights or preserve the ability of states to regulate in the public interest, and that arbitral awards rarely consider, let alone give effect to, rules of human rights. This article considers the question of how Indigenous rights, as a subset of human rights, are protected in international arbitration.  It examines the various international and domestic human rights instruments at play, including UNDRIP, as well as New Zealand’s Waitangi Clause and Canada’s Section 35 protections. It then examines arbitrations where Indigenous rights were at play – including Bear Creek v. Peru and South American Silver Limited v. Bolivia – and shows that the manner in which arbitrations have proceeded has effectively sidelined such protections.  Indigenous rights are only considered, it argues, when assessing the contributory negligence of investors.  It closes by considering other mechanisms that have been used to protect indigenous rights and then attempts to develop a theory of how and when Indigenous rights could be better protected

Is the School Environment the Leading Cause of the Rise in Burnout Rates Among Tenured Teachers?

Teacher burnout has become an increasingly significant issue within the field of education, affecting not only teachers themselves but also the learning environments within schools. Many educators face growing pressures, including overwhelming workloads, limited resources, and a lack of consistent administrative support, which can lead to emotional exhaustion and frustration over time. As more teachers report experiencing burnout or leaving the profession altogether, it becomes increasingly important to better understand the factors that contribute to this issue and how schools can respond to it. This thesis explores how school environments and leadership practices influence teacher burnout and why stronger support systems within schools are essential for maintaining teacher well-being. Through a review of existing research, several recurring themes emerged, including the impact of administrative support, workload demands, and teacher autonomy. These findings suggest that burnout is not simply an individual challenge but one that is deeply connected to the structures and expectations within schools. In addition to analyzing the research, this project includes a creative component in the form of an informational brochure designed to translate academic findings into a practical and accessible resource for educators and school leaders. The brochure highlights common causes of burnout while also encouraging schools to consider strategies that promote supportive, collaborative, and sustainable teaching environments. By combining research with a practical resource, this thesis aims to raise awareness about teacher burnout and contribute to ongoing conversations about how schools can better support the educators who play such an important role in shaping students’ lives

Using effect sizes, confidence intervals, and the Bayes Factor to better understand the t-test, analysis of variance, and regression results

Null hypothesis testing is a widely used paradigm for assessing research hypotheses across the social sciences. Despite their ubiquity, researchers have discussed a number of problems and limitations to hypothesis testing and have suggested alternatives that might provide greater depth and explanation of research results. The purpose of this paper is to describe the use of several such alternatives and to show how they can be integrated with one another and with null hypothesis testing in order to provide a more holistic view of research hypotheses

Lessons in Pedagogy: My Experience with Problem-Based Learning

This Article chronicles my experimental adoption of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in first-year Contracts. After three decades of conventional teaching, I observed that Gen Z students struggled to transition from undergraduate memorization strategies to law school-level analytical reasoning, prompting my desire to engage in a fundamental pedagogical change. Drawing on successful PBL implementations in medical and mathematics education, I restructured my Contracts course around collaborative problem-solving in small groups, transforming my role from lecturer to facilitator. Students worked through authentic legal scenarios at whiteboards, developing rule-based reasoning through active engagement rather than passive reception. This article first details my reasons for adopting PBL in my 1L classroom. It then offers the reader a detailed explanation of how I adopted the program for my classroom. Finally, it provides the reader with a fair assessment of both the positives and negatives of my experience teaching exclusively through the PBL method. I argue that pure PBL, despite its demands on faculty and initial student resistance, better serves contemporary legal education\u27s core mission in light of the kinds of students learning today. The methodology aligns with both the MacCrate Report\u27s call for practice-oriented learning and the NextGen Bar\u27s emphasis on analytical application over memorization. My candid assessment offers fellow legal educators both inspiration and cautionary guidance for implementing PBL, while ultimately advocating resistance to evaluations fetishism when student preferences conflict with demonstrably superior pedagogical approaches for developing practice-ready lawyer

Project Wildest Dreams

“Project Wildest Dreams” is a hybrid psychological correlational study and short fiction collection based on anecdotes of vivid, frightening, or bizarre dreams. This collaboration of art and science explores the nature of dreaming, a phenomenon that has intrigued and perplexed both the humanities and the STEM fields for many years. The goal of this thesis was twofold: primarily, it was intended to utilize the outlandish, surreal, and unique feelings and images that dreams elicit in order to procure an anthology of surrealist and absurdist short stories across primarily the genres of horror, comedy, and fantasy. In addition to this, the collection of anonymous dream retellings were paired with a survey to collect data on the demographics, mental and emotional history, past and background, and dreaming history of any participants willing to engage in the larger study. Likewise, those who did not wish to submit a detailed recollection of a dream to be considered for a short story were welcome to partake in the study portion instead. This thesis was intended to deepen the existing pool of dream research and potentially contributing something new