Examination of Student Affairs Culture in Relation to Student Engagement and Success: An Explanatory Sequential Case Study

Higher education models have continued to shift, with the primary focus of Student Affairs moving from the extra-curricular to the co-curricular, yet little data is available to assess the impact of this co-curricular focus on student engagement and success. It is vital for both faculty and student affairs staff to provide students with educationally purposeful activities, both in and out of the classroom. It is imperative for a deeper collaboration between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs in order to provide students with a holistic learning experience, which will prepare them for the "real-world", post-graduation. It is important for Student Affairs to implement a culture of assessment to ensure positive outcomes, in the programs and services that they are providing to students, to secure its position within the co-curricular. Limited research is available examining various cultures of assessment in Student Affairs on college campuses. Through a conceptual framework, this dissertation examined the existing literature, encompassing four streams of theory, research and practice: (a) framework of student affairs; (b) assessment and evaluation; (c) student affairs and academic affairs; and (d) student affairs and leadership. This research assessed how student affairs professionals recognize their own proficiency, knowledge, and skills to identify the strategies, skills, and leadership techniques, they used in their practice. This was an explanatory sequential, case study, which surveyed Student Affairs professionals from one large urban private institution. Key findings of this study examined how assessment is being used in Student Affairs, its impact toward enhancing student engagement and success, as well as clarifying experiences with Student Affairs staff surrounding assessment and leadership styles. Implications and recommendations for future creativity research are discussed.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201

Detection of Hypoxia in Humans

Humans exposed to high altitude or high acceleration conditions for prolonged periods of time often exhibit hypoxic symptoms. The commencement of physiological and cognitive changes due to the onset of hypoxia may not be immediately apparent to the exposed individual. These changes can go unrecognized for minutes and even hours; and may lead to serious performance degradation or complete incapacitation. Despite interest in the detection of hypoxia, existing detection methodologies have limited scope of reliable performance in the field. This research investigates the underlying physiological and cognitive signals under environments prone to development of hypoxic symptoms. Attention is focused toward developing temporal models for physiological signals, state-augmented Kalman filters, and designing of hypoxia detection frameworks. These frameworks utilize parallel fusion architectures that use Bayesian decision criteria to combine local decisions from ensembles of raw physiological, cognitive, and environmental signals, along with outputs of local classifier/detectors trained using machine learning techniques, to provide reliable hypoxia detection.Ph.D., Electrical Engineering -- Drexel University, 201

Accelerating Drug Development with Health-Consumer-Contributed Data and Heterogeneous Network Mining

New drug development is a time-consuming, high-investment, and high-risk process. It usually takes more than ten years to bring a new medication to market and costs the pharmaceutical companies an average of $1.2 billion during the procedure. As a result, taking drugs that have been developed for one disease and "repositioning" them to another disease is becoming more and more common and an increasingly important strategy in both industry and academia. Current drug repositioning researches can be categorized as biological experimental methods and computational methods. The fast development of biomedical knowledge bases and computational capabilities has elevated a number of computational drug repositioning approaches, with less investment in time and cost compared with experimental approaches. Additionally, another important starting point for drug repositioning is off-label drug use. The detection of off-label drug uses in clinical practice can provide relevant hypotheses for drug repositioning and drug development, meanwhile, the findings in drug repositioning also provide possible off-label use opportunities. In this dissertation, we focus on both off-label drug use and drug repositioning to accelerate the drug development. With consideration of the insufficient utilization of unstructured biomedical data especially the contents contributed by health consumers, we employed health-consumer-contributed data for the topics. Specifically, for off-label drug use, we develop an automated method to detect off-label drug use from the heterogeneous healthcare network based on meta-path mining. In order to find better ways to represent the relationships between medical entities, we improve the method by introducing word embedding models to measure those associations on the basis of association rule mining. In order to deal with the sparsity and missing data problem in user-generated contents, we furtherly employ tensor decomposition techniques for detecting off-label drug-disease relationships. Experiment results show that the proposed approaches could identify off-label drug uses from health-consumer-contributed data effectively and accurately. Especially, when incorporating word embedding models and tensor decomposition, the models achieve better results. For drug repositioning, we propose a systematic method to identify repositioning drugs from health-consumer-contributed data by using the adverse drug reaction (ADR)-based repositioning strategy and heterogeneous network mining approaches. Based on the constructed heterogeneous healthcare network, we develop path-mining approaches to extract the significant associations between ADRs and diseases and then identify the novel associations between drugs and diseases for repositioning opportunity. To better understand the repositioning results and examine the computational repositioning approach, we conduct detailed literature review and case studies for a specific disease, Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Additionally, in order to resolve the challenge of extracting ADR entities from health-consumer-contributed texts and improve the performance of drug repositioning detection, we utilize bidirectional long short-term memory (LSTM) models to recognize ADRs first and then use the expanded vocabulary to construct and mine the heterogeneous healthcare network. Experiment results show that ADRs are effective intermediaries to reveal drug-disease associations and the proposed approaches could suggest quite potential repositioning drug candidates.Ph.D., Information Studies -- Drexel University, 201

Behavioral and biochemical studies of novel allosteric modulators of the dopamine transporter with therapeutic potential

Cocaine is a highly abused drug used recreationally for social purposes. The intense sensation of euphoria induced by cocaine is the root cause of its high abuse potential. Cocaine inhibits the dopamine transporter (DAT), a membrane bound protein responsible for the clearance of dopamine (DA) neurotransmitter from the synaptic cleft. Cocaine binding to the DAT blocks DA reuptake leading to an increase extracellular DA concentration, resulting in enhanced neurotransmission causing euphoria. Currently, there are no Food and Drug Administration approved treatments for cocaine abuse and addiction. Many attempts have been made to prevent the cocaine-DAT interaction, but have largely failed due to lack of efficacy, leading to an urgent need for clinically efficacious therapeutics to treat cocaine addiction. Previously, our lab found that psychostimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines have low affinity towards the monoamine transporters (SmMATs) of the parasite, Schistosoma mansoni as compared to the human MATs (hMAT) even though both transport their respective neurotransmitters with equal or comparable efficacies. By comparing the structure of SmMATs to the hMATs, secondary allosteric sites were discovered in the human serotonin transporter (hSERT) and subsequently in the human DAT. A database of several molecules was virtually screened for binding to this site, resulting in KM822 as one of the hits which showed promising results in reducing the effects of cocaine in preliminary in vitro experiments. To improve solubility and other drug-like properties, a series of analogs of KM822 were synthesized including NP-1-152. Our current study focuses on the pharmacological characterization of NP-1-152 and to test if this compound has therapeutic potential for the treatment of cocaine addiction. We employed biochemical experiments such as substituted cysteine accessibility method (SCAM) to explore the binding site of KM822 and NP-1-152, and compared the results with two known DAT inhibitors, Modafinil and Sydnocarb. In addition, two behavior models were used to assess NP-1-152’s effect on cocaine-induced behaviors like hyperactivity and reward association in Long Evans male rats: locomotor behavior paradigm and conditioned placed preference. We found that NP-1-152 decreased cocaine-induced locomotion which was dose and time dependent. During the active wake-cycle period, NP-1-152 alone decreased locomotion at varying doses suggesting off-target effects. NP-1-152 alone did not promote place preference but did significantly decrease cocaine conditioned place preference. Modeling of this novel allosteric site using NP-1-152 might suggest a viable mechanism for the prevention and treatment of cocaine addiction.M.S., Pharmacology and Physiology -- Drexel University, 201

Urinary Catheter Usage and Care A Gap Analysis

CAUTIs are one of the most common preventable causes of mortality in the United States. Urinary catheter-related infections increase the length of stay, antibiotic use, and healthcare cost. The daily risk of acquiring bacteriuria when an indwelling catheter in situ is 3-7%. This project aims to reduce CAUTI rates by reducing inappropriate urinary catheterization and duration of catheterization by 10 %. A gap analysis was performed to assess the system's current state of compliance with Catheter Usage and Care policy. Twenty-five charts total reviewed from October 2017 thru March 2018. The indications catheterization included: ten for neurogenic bladder, eleven for urinary retention, two post-operative surgical procedure, one for urinary obstruction and one for pelvic fracture. The ten for neurogenic bladder, one for urinary obstruction and one urology patient, did not meet the criteria of inclusion. A patient associated with a pelvic fracture had three days of unnecessary catheter days. Findings included the Catheter Usage and Care policy compliance rate of 86%. The cause of untimely removal is the failure to remove the urinary catheter when the indication is no longer valid, and no daily assessment of the urinary catheter indication. To improve patient outcomes, hospitals can use strategies to reduce CAUTI through the application of accepted evidence-based prevention practices. Documentation of the indication for the urinary catheter daily will assist in decreasing urinary catheter-related infections.M.S.N., Clinical Nurse Leader -- Drexel University, 201

Assessing and Analyzing Stakeholder Perceptions of School Climate: Discovering Perceptual Congruence to Inform School Improvement

Although research indicates the establishment and sustainability of a positive school climate contribute to school improvement, school leaders do not always assess and properly analyze the perceptions of its stakeholders. When school districts are void of proper assessment and data analysis methods, school leaders may inadvertently ignore conflicting stakeholder perceptions. If this gap in perceptual congruence among stakeholders is not addressed, districts can make uninformed educational decisions, which can lead to a poor school climate. In contrast, if these discrepancies are properly identified through a systematic method of data collection and analysis by which all stakeholders' perceptions are accounted for and valued, school leaders can move forward with a plan of action for school improvement. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to identify and analyze the perceptual congruence that existed among stakeholder groups when assessing dimensions of school climate, so that it could inform district leaders of next-step school improvement efforts. The researcher identified perceptual discrepancies that exist between groups of students, staff, parents, and administrators when considering certain dimensions of school climate by analyzing survey data. Once discrepancies were discovered, focus groups comprised of the various stakeholder groups were asked to reflect on the survey data results and provide further insight on the findings. Data was collected after the administration of a school climate survey and through the facilitation of several stakeholder focus groups. The participants represented four buildings within a small, rural school district in Pennsylvania. Subjects included school staff, students, parents, and administrators. By discussing and questioning the gap in perceptual congruence among stakeholder groups, the school organization could begin to acknowledge the areas for improvement in their educational climate.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201

Rank in Matrix Analysis: On the Preservers of Maximally Entangled States and Fractional Minimal Rank

For Hilbert spaces \s X, \s Y, the set of maximally entangled states, \MES_{\s X, \s Y}, is a set of rank-1 positive semidefinite operators over the space \s X \otimes \s Y. In this thesis, we consider the problem of classifying the linear maps that take maximally entangled states to maximally entangled states in the case of finite dimensional spaces \s X, \s Y. After classifying these linear maps in the case where \dim \s X divides \dim \s Y, we consider possible avenues of extending these results and consider the set \WMES_{\s X, \s Y}, which is a set of low-rank positive semidefinite operators over \s X \otimes \s Y. We then discuss the "fractional minimal rank", a fractional parameter assigned to partial matrices. We compute the fractional minimal rank for partial matrices whose pattern of knowns is a "minimal cycle", which is the family of the smallest cases for which it is known that the ''minimal rank'' and ''triangular minimal ranks'' differ in general.Ph.D., Mathematics -- Drexel University, 201

The Position of Microbiology between Organismal Biology and the Applied Sciences: The American Type Culture Collection: 1911-1984.

Microbiology occupies an uncertain position within the life sciences. Microbiology is never fully assimilated into organismal biology, and maintains a deep connection to experimental and applied sciences. Competing and conflicting methods and theories in evolutionary biology are developed by bounded communities of scientists formed around their organism of study, driving and maintaining the separation between microbiology and organismal biology. The American Type Culture Collections (ATCC), a national museum of microbial cultures, acts as both a museum maintaining collections in service to the descriptive organismal biologies, and as a distribution center providing materials for external communities of researchers in the experimental and applied sciences. The ATCC is historically situated at the end of the "golden age of the American museum," characterized by the modern museum model in which function of museums extends beyond the collections to an external community, and the rise of experimental biology in the twentieth century. The ATCC becomes a new kind of museum housing live, replicable materials that can be distributed. The mission of the ATCC includes maintaining a dual function, seeking funding and support from external institutions affiliated with both sides of its mission, resulting in a tension when these two purposes are not compatible. The tension of this dual purpose forms the institutional identity of the ATCC, which acts as a boundary object between organismal biology and the experimental and applied sciences. Here the ATCC is shown to illustrate the uncertain position of microbiology within the life sciences.M.S., Science, Technology and Society -- Drexel University, 201

sTNF[alpha] Signaling Mediates Autonomic Reflex Circuits Implicated in Cardiovascular and Immune Dysfunction After Spinal Cord Injury

The sympathetic nervous system is a critical regulator of cardiovascular and immune function. Sympathetic preganglionic neurons (SPN) reside in thoracolumbar cord and project peripherally to communicate information to vasculature and lymphoid organs. High-level spinal cord injury (SCI) can result in a loss of descending modulation of SPNs and lead to cardiovascular and immune dysfunction, which are two leading causes of mortality and morbidity after injury. Following SCI, SPNs become hyperactivated by autonomic reflexes in response to noxious stimuli below the level of the injury. Activation of these spinal sympathetic reflexes (SSR) can acutely manifest as autonomic dysreflexia (AD), a condition characterized by life-threatening hypertension in response to visceral or cutaneous stimuli. Recent work suggests that aberrant activity of this reflex can also suppress immune function. Furthermore, there are injury-induced changes to plasticity within the SSR circuits that further exacerbate sympathetic output and drive cardiovascular and immune dysfunction over time. Hyperexcitable circuits are a common sequela in other CNS disorders, including epilepsy and neuropathic pain. One commonality that may underlie these pathologies is an activated neuroimmune system. Interestingly, the pro-inflammatory, soluble form of the “master regulator” cytokine tumor necrosis factor [alpha] (sTNF[alpha]) has been shown to not only recruit immune cells to an injury site – sTNF[alpha] can also modulate neural circuits. Whether neuroinflammation instigates spinal plasticity related to the exacerbation of AD and dysimmunity has not been directly tested. We hypothesize that sustained sTNF[alpha]/TNFR1 signaling in the spinal cord below a SCI plays a crucial role in SSR circuit hyperactivity and consequent cardiovascular and immune dysfunction. In this thesis, we will assess whether pharmacologically inhibiting sTNF[alpha]/TNFR1 signaling attenuates these maladaptive changes. Results from chapter 2 demonstrate that immediate application of a sTNF[alpha] biologic, XPro1595, via continuous, intrathecal delivery below a thoracic segment 3 transection (T3Tx) can dramatically attenuate the development of naturally-occurring and induced AD as well as immunosuppression 4 weeks after SCI. Extracted mesenteric arteries from T3Tx-Saline animals exhibited increased sensitivity to vasopressors, suggestive of maladaptive vascular remodeling. Additionally, harvested spleens from T3Tx-Saline animals showed reduced levels of leukocytes suggestive of diminished immune function. Conversely, arteries from T3Tx-XPro1595 animals showed a normal pressor response and spleens from these animals also had normal leukocyte profiles Furthermore, XPro1595 animals show diminished intraspinal plasticity compared to T3Tx-Saline animals - far less activation of spinal interneurons in response following a colorectal stimulus, likely due to decreased arborization of colorectal nociceptive primary afferents. We believe that results from chapter 2 indicate that intrathecal XPro1595 may be a promising therapeutic strategy, so as a follow up study in chapter 3, we determined whether delaying initiation of XPro1595 at a more clinically relevant time point would sufficiently dampen SSRs, AD and improve dysimmunity. Indeed, delaying XPro1595 decreased recruitment of sympathetically-associated interneurons at both lumbar (where colorectal afferents synapse) and thoracic (locally to SPNs) levels compared to T3Tx-Saline animals. Likewise, T3Tx-XPro1595 animals had less naturally-occurring episodes of AD and diminished colorectal distension-induced AD over 8 weeks post-SCI. Interestingly, T3Tx-XPro1595 also fared much better than T3Tx-Saline animals following a bacterial infection 8 weeks after injury, suggestive of improved immunity. Collectively, the data presented in this thesis suggest that spinal inflammation may be a useful therapeutic target to curtail sympathetic reflexes implicated in secondary consequences of high-level SCI.Ph.D., Neuroscience -- Drexel University, 201

Investigation of light propagation and detection in human head under healthy and clinical settings

Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a neuroimaging modality that allows investigation of brain tissue oxygenation non-invasively. It is widely used to measure changes in the concentration of oxy-hemoglobin and deoxy-hemoglobin in tissue. Infrared light emitted from a source placed over scalp propagates through the tissue and eventually part of it is back-scattered and can be collected by a photodetector. The attenuated light received at the detector encodes the information about brain activity as a consequence of absorption and scattering dominated light tissue interaction. Understanding and modeling light tissue interaction is critical for developing next generation NIRS systems. Several photon migration models have been proposed to investigate light tissue interaction through computerized Monte Carlo (MC) simulations. Using these, a set of NIRS system parameters have already been explored, such as wavelength selection, source-detector separation (SDS), depth of penetration, and effect of layers' thickness. Among those simulation studies, most have not declared the detector or fiber size clearly, also the selection of core system parameters remains controversial, like SD separation. More importantly, all these studies were performed only under healthy settings, no clinical conditions were taken into consideration. With numerous applications of NIRS technology in the assessment of brain function under various clinical conditions caused by traumatic brain injury (TBI) or stroke indicate the importance of study and evaluation of light tissue interaction under such conditions. In this thesis, we developed a reconfigurable and adaptive digital head model for healthy and clinical conditions that can be used to study diverse NIRS parameters for optimization. The thesis provided several novel contributions to the knowledge base that can further optical neuroimaging research applications, technology and algorithm development. First, it investigated new sensor parameters within digital head phantom, such as detector surface area and SDS, which are potential sources of systematic error in calculating hemoglobin concentrations. Secondly, several clinical conditions such as cerebral hematoma and edema development were modeled in silico, their effect on optical parameters and NIRS measurements were demonstrated with modeling for the first time. Such modeling and evaluation of neurological conditions and their effect on optical parameters and measurements can further help in the development of advanced algorithms for NIRS to provide more accurate hematoma and edema detection. Furthermore, virtual measurements from MC simulation on head models for different age groups were extracted and compared to actual measurements on equivalent physical models. The findings of this research can be used to optimize NIRS sensors and provide guidance for the design of next generation optical brain imaging systems for the monitoring of brain activity under healthy and clinical conditions.Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering -- Drexel University, 201