Haunted Savannah: Dark Tourism and the Afterlives of Slavery

This paper examines the transformation of places associated with slavery in Savannah, Georgia into central sites of tourism, particularly focusing on the rise of ghost tours. The Sorrel-Weed House, a mid-19th century mansion, epitomizes this phenomenon, where historical narratives intertwine with paranormal allure to attract visitors. Despite lacking historical basis, stories like that of Molly, allegedly a slave involved in a tragic affair, are crafted to captivate tourists. This paper explores how the Savannah tourism industry obscures the unsettling histories of these sites in favor of Southern opulence and spooky intrigue. It investigates the commodification of slave narratives as ghostly spectacles, contrasting them with movements for social justice and historical accuracy. By analyzing these dynamics, this study underscores the importance of authentic storytelling in heritage sites to foster meaningful memory work and contribute to ongoing social justice efforts. Additionally, the paper provides recommendations for more contextualized and improved educational experiences at these sites, advocating for the inclusion of comprehensive, accurate historical narratives that honor the true stories of those who suffered under slavery

\u27No Nose Club\u27: The Quackish Consumption of Pox Care in Long Eighteenth-Century England.

(World History) This article explores the rise of non-institutional syphilis care in eighteenth-century England and the growing popularity of the barbershop as a centre of pox care among middle-class men. It argues that middle-class pox sufferers sought out the barbershop as a primary location of health care because of the invasive treatments offered by physicians at institutional centers of pox care – including those offered in private offices. The social stigma that was associated with syphilis also encouraged middle-class men to seek pox treatment at the barbershop, since its location in bustling downtown entertainment districts and its reputation as a place of sociable entertainment offered greater anonymity for gentlemen wanting to keep their infection a secret. On the other hand, it also allowed men to conform to sociable ideals since the barbershop offered cosmetic, as well as medical, treatment for middle-class men to mediate the visible symptoms that prevented their integration and participation in polite society. This article fills the gap in the existing scholarship that fails to comprehensively examine the barbershop as a place of pox care in the eighteenth-century. While there has been significant exploration of the relationship between pox care and institutional medical centres like the hospital and private offices in recent scholarship, there has been limited overall engagement with the barbershop as a medical centre. Even less work has been done on the relationship between the barbershop and syphilis in the eighteenth century, whereas there have been some foundational studies that explore the tropic correlation between the barber, the barbershop, and the pox. This article supplements existing scholarship with primary source materials, like medical manuals and newspaper articles, to provide a comprehensive examination of the barbershop’s role in the middle-class medical marketplace

Transparent Wood, Rhetoric, and the Cycle of Discovery

Transparent wood, first discovered in 1992 by Siegfried Fink, received little recognition until 2021, when it was deemed one of the year’s “best new discoveries.” Fink’s discovery of the material was originally only considered for its use within the field of forest ecology. However, when rediscovered decades later by two independent research teams, transparent wood was found to have far-reaching implications for improving technology display systems, like phone screens, and reducing buildings’ energy consumption. Often, researchers justify the value of their work through practical applications such as these, but practicality is especially subject to the rhetorical situation in which research occurs. Kairos, or the idea of perfect timing, is a rhetorical concept influential in understanding how discoveries, their relevance, and their potential uses are constrained by the time they are discovered in. Using the story of Siegfried Fink and the discovery of transparent wood as a case study, this piece explores how scientists must argue the value of their work, whether through application or intrinsic worth, to ensure its legacy

An Empire in a City: Foundations of Washington, D.C., 1776 to 1861

This research project will examine the foundations of Washington, D.C., and how the city’s map and construction identify imperial inspirations that influenced its design and use. It will also examine how these imperial frameworks were intentionally created to sustain historical narratives about the American people and their government. Using correspondence from James Madison and other Founding Fathers, the intention behind the construction of the national capital city becomes significant to our understanding of the political and national philosophy that exists in the current national atmosphere. By placing the capital at the geographic and economic center of the empire, the government followed the scripts of past Empires that sought to consolidate power and legitimize their national existence. The goal of this project is to analyze the establishment of the federal capital city of the United States, examine the city of Washington D.C. as a symbol of American imperial power, and explore the impact of its construction and reconstruction on narratives of national pride and international presence

January 23, 2025

The Breeze is the student newspaper of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia

THE IMPACT OF ABSENTEEISM POLICY INTERVENTIONS ON ADULT DRUG TREATMENT COURT OUTCOMES

Participants in Drug Treatment Courts (DTC) often fail to attend the treatment services, which hinders the behavioral changes that the DTC and participants aim to achieve. This study uses a systemic purposive sampling of 176 high-risk high-needs participants in the Rockingham Harrisonburg Drug Treatment Court (RHDTCP) over a 15-month period. We analyzed the impact of an absenteeism policy on absences and program outcomes using an inquiry mode, an explanatory research design, and a quantitative analysis methodology approach to provide empirical support for our research findings. The study also examines the individual subgroup absences and their effect on program outcomes. Since there is limited research on absenteeism policies in DTCs, this study uses a healthcare study on potential barriers to attending treatment for comparison. The findings suggest that implementing an attendance policy significantly reduces the number of participant absences from treatment. However, there are other factors, such as employment, housing, substance abuse, mental health, and absences, that negatively impact DTC participant graduation. Further research is necessary to address the barriers to attending DTCs, including Can\u27t Go, Won\u27t Go, Don\u27t Know, to increase the success rates of Drug Treatment Courts and support participants in their journey toward successful recovery from addiction. We recommend that DTCs mitigate absences by implementing an absenteeism policy that contains specific consequences for non- compliance, is reviewed frequently with participants, and is accessible in all formats and languages

Exploring the Causal Effect of Test-Optional Policies on Enrollment Rates for Underrepresented Minority Students

Test-optional policies have become increasingly prevalent among institutions of higher education over the past decade. As of fall 2023, more than 80% of U.S. bachelor-degree granting institutions no longer require SAT or ACT scores of applicants (FairTest.org). While the SAT and ACT were designed with the intention of promoting access to college, some have argued that standardized tests have perpetuated socioeconomic and racial divides in higher education admissions (e.g., Grodsky et al., 2008). Historically, student scores on standardized admissions tests like the SAT and ACT have had significant weight in admissions decisions. Thus, as the number of universities adopting test-optional policies continues to grow, a notable shift is occurring in college admissions. This has sparked a broader conversation about the impact of admissions policy changes on equity and access in higher education. Researchers have recently begun investigating the impacts of changes in test-optional policies on various outcomes such as enrollment rates, graduation rates, and academic achievement (i.e., GPA). In particular, researchers have explored potential differential impacts of these policies across various aspects of student identity (e.g., race, gender, socioeconomic status). In general, there have been conflicting findings; some have found that test-optional policies increase enrollment rates for underrepresented groups, while others have claimed test-optional policies stifle diversity efforts. This lack of agreement may be attributed to different samples (e.g., public vs. private, R1 vs. R2 vs. R3, more/less selective) and different methodology (e.g., pre-post t-tests, difference-in-differences). The current study aims to include as many institutions with available data as possible, to attempt to generalize the effects of test-optional policies on American institutions as a whole. Several prior studies implemented DiD analysis, which estimates the effect of an intervention or treatment by comparing changes in outcomes measured at two single time points (i.e., before intervention, after intervention) for a treatment group and a control group. This method is limited as it only includes observations at two individual time-points, thus making it difficult to meet the parallel trends assumption (Bernal et al., 2019). The current study implements comparative interrupted time series (CITS) which uses multiple consecutive observations pre- and post- intervention. Results yield opportunities for more generalizable discussions regarding the impact of test-optional policies on underrepresented minority enrollment over time

Student Success Stories Jan 2025: Defining Student Success

Presentation to the JMU community from Student Success Analytics. This session focused on defining student success

The Impact of a minimally processed high fat meal on postprandial glucose, lipids and metabolic index in prediabetics.

There is an increasing global prevalence of prediabetes, which often progresses to Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and may result in other cardiovascular complications. Elevated levels of glucose (GLU) and triglycerides (TRG) have also been linked with other diabetes-related complications such as kidney disease, nerve damage, vision impairment, and so on. Even a single high-fat meal (HFM) may result in adverse metabolic outcomes which are a better predictor of risk for cardiovascular disease risk than measuring fasting levels. Also, a single HFM induces a greater TRG, GLU and metabolic load index (MLI; GLU + TRG) response in prediabetics compared to healthy control subjects. Therefore, reducing these metabolic outcomes after a typical HFM which is often consumed in the Western diet is of critical importance to reduce chronic disease risk. Various lifestyle interventions, dietary modifications, and drug therapies have been explored for managing prediabetes. Our study aimed to investigate whether incorporating polyphenols and dietary fiber into a high-fat meal HFM would reduce postprandial TRG, GLU and MLI in prediabetics compared to the HFM without added polyphenols and fiber. Further, we wanted to identify whether the polyphenols and/or the fiber content of the pies contributed to the greatest attenuation in postprandial TRG, GLU and MLI. We hypothesized that the HPHF meal would exhibit the largest attenuation in postprandial TRG, GLU, and MLI compared to the other three meal conditions. A randomized crossover design was utilized where eight subjects diagnosed with prediabetes by fasting GLU or HbA1c levels between 5.7-6.4% were randomly assigned to four HFM conditions: (1) a standard high-fat meal (HFM) we have previously shown to increase TRG and GLU, (2) a high polyphenol, high fiber (HPHF) meal, (3) a high polyphenol, low fiber (HPLF) meal, and (4) a low polyphenol, high fiber (LPHF) meal. Each HFM was matched in kcals, fat and carbohydrate, and each HFM was 12 kcals/kg of body weight. On each trial day, subjects arrived after a 12-hour overnight fast, and their weights were measured to ensure stability throughout the study. Catheter insertion was performed to assess baseline values before administering the meal. Meals were consumed within 20 minutes, and blood samples were drawn from the catheter at 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, 240, 300, and 360 minutes to evaluate metabolic markers (i.e. TRG, GLU, MLI, low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) cholesterol and total cholesterol (TC)