Julian Carroll Newspaper Article 3

https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/julian-carroll-coll/1014/thumbnail.jp

A Call for Increased Support for Spanish-speaking workforce, clients and caretakers in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)

The Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts (Behavior Analyst Certification Board, 2020) requires all professionals certified in ABA service delivery to provide services in a manner that supports client rights and the diversity of the client population. As the Hispanic/Latinx and Spanish-speaking client population increases in the United States over time, an increased need for culturally competent professionals in the field of mental health care is made apparent. Though there are professionals delivering multilingual and culturally competent services, it is unknown how many Spanish-speaking behavior analysts practice in the United States as the BACB does not currently collect data regarding certificant language capabilities. Though current research on these populations is limited, multilingual service providers have reported an absence of resources and opportunities for professional development in the field of ABA, specifically as a multilingual service provider. With this in mind, this project calls on policy-making and credentialing boards to provide an increase in systemic support for multilingual and culturally diverse practitioners. This project also aimed to provide a cultural competency assessment and training for behavior technicians. There were 13 total participants in this study that were all recruited from a service provider in the Western Kentucky area. The training and assessment was based on the following criteria: 1) common values of the Hispanic/Latinx/Spanish-speaking population, 2) how they may affect service delivery and treatment adherence, 3) culturally competent and culturally sustaining practices to utilize throughout direct interaction with client and caretakers. Both the mean total knowledge of culturally competent practices in ABA and the service providers’ mean overall confidence in their ability to apply the practices in the context of service delivery increased from pretest to post-test. Future research should focus on what may inform participants prior knowledge and confidence or what effect this assessment and training would have on behavior in reality

The relationship among perceived environmental exposures, socioeconomic factors, and chronic disease outcomes

INTRODUCTION: Environmental exposures to pollutants and hazardous substances significantly impact the public’s health, contributing to chronic disease outcomes and exacerbating health disparities. Previous studies have highlighted associations between environmental pollutants and adverse health effects. However, few studies have explored how perceptions of environmental health risks influence chronic disease prevalence, especially across diverse demographic groups. Additionally, the influence of socioeconomic factors on vulnerability to these exposures has been under explored. METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was carried out using 15-minute electronic surveys administered at community outreach events. The survey collected information on demographics, individuals\u27 perceptions of their neighborhood and built environment, chronic health conditions, beliefs about the impact of environmental factors on health, personal stress related to community environments, and levels of information about community environmental issues. Descriptive (and future analytical) statistics were summarized using SAS version 9.4. RESULTS: Among the 84 respondents, the mean age was 28.9 ±15.1 years, 64 (76%) were female, 18 (21%) male, and 2 (2%) non-binary, and 59% were non-white. Nearly 60% reported a chronic condition, with asthma (19%) being the most frequently reported followed by migraines (12%). Three participants (4%) reported a cancer diagnosis (1 cervical and 2 not listed). Eighty percent believe environmental factors contribute to chronic health conditions while nearly half reported experiencing stress related to their community environment 1-2 days per week. Nearly 30% of participants reported feeling slightly or not at all informed about their community’s environment. CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the intersection between socioeconomic factors, environmental perception, and chronic disease outcomes. While a moderate portion of the community reports being informed of environmental health risk a significant portion of the community remains under informed, potentially exacerbating health disparities. These findings highlight the need for public health strategies to promote environmental justice, improve health literacy, and engage communities to reduce chronic disease burdens

Assessing Cybersecurity Awareness of ChatGPT\u27s New Memory Feature

OpenAI’s recent introduction of the memory feature in ChatGPT marks a significant enhancement, enabling the model to extract and store user information from conversations automatically to deliver more personalized responses. However, despite its potential benefits, this feature raises critical concerns regarding user cybersecurity and privacy. To investigate these issues, this study examines user awareness of ChatGPT\u27s memory functionality, their attitudes toward its privacy implications, and the behavioral changes prompted by perceived risks. Using an assessment framework used in the healthcare and cybersecurity fields, a questionnaire was developed and distributed primarily among college students, and an analysis of the responses revealed that, while some users have a basic understanding of the feature, many remain unaware or uncertain about its operation, particularly regarding data extraction, storage, and management practices. These findings highlight the importance of enhancing transparency and providing users with greater control over memory features in ChatGPT and similar large language models, emphasizing the need to address privacy and security challenges associated with such advancements

Passive integrated transponders: an effective marking technique for individual identification of Anaxyrus fowleri?

With the rise of fungal disease such as Chytridiomycosis causing massive population declines for many species of frogs and toads (order Anura), specific conservation strategies are needed now more than ever. In many cases, being able to mark and identify individuals is a necessary step in developing an effective conservation plan. Individual identification allows researchers to obtain accurate population estimates, which are needed to test the progress and validity of conservation management decisions. However, due to their unique life history, including cutaneous respiration, Anurans are among the most difficult wildlife species to effectively mark for individual identification. In a mesocosm study, we are testing Passive Integrated Transponders (PIT) tags on Anaxyrus fowleri in western Kentucky to determine if PIT tags are a safe and effective marking technique for this and related species. In 2023, we implanted PIT tags directly into the body cavity of Anaxyrus fowleri, resulting in low tag retention. This led us to implant the tags subcutaneously in 2024, and that experiment is ongoing. We predict that tag retention will increase with subcutaneous implantation when compared to body cavity implantation. Additionally, we predict that there will not be any significant body condition or survival differences between PIT-tagged toads and the control (visual ID) group

Risk Assessments for COVID-19

In the world of COVID-19, a person’s risk assessment of the disease and its vaccines can greatly impact their likeliness of receiving said injections. Risk assessment is impacted by everything in a person’s life. Their political ideology, the region they live, or the age they are all impact how a person views, in this case, COVID-19 and its vaccines. These risk assessments tell scientists which groups of people are most and least likely to receive vaccinations and which areas can be focused on for vaccine education or promotion. Different factors of risk assessment impact each other as well. For example, men of different ages or women of different political parties will have varying risk assessments. Two such factors are whether a person finds the CDC ad about the COVID-19 vaccine reliable and how many out of 100 people a person would think would experience serious side effects. Using regression models, the ratio of people who do or do not agree with statements or trust certain sources can be found. Regression models can also be used to find the average number of people participants say will have extreme or mild symptoms. The regression model then uses each demographic, such as age or gender, to find the difference in each sub-sections average. It was concluded that the people who found the CDC ad credible were more likely to be elderly, married, and a democrat. It was also concluded that people who are young, have kids, or republican are more likely to guess that a larger amount of people with experience severe or serious symptoms after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine

OH254 Bradie S. Kindrick Oral History

Bradie S. Kindrick began the interview by describing Pleasant Hill Elementary School, in Almo, Kentucky. She mentions attending Douglas High School in Murray, Kentucky for two years and West Kentucky Industrial College from 1923 to 1925. She chronicles her thirty-four years of teaching experiences in Graves County and Ballard County. She recounted her further education at West Kentucky State College, and Murray State College and being one of the first African Americans to graduate from Murray State with a Bachelor of Science degree. She discussed the process of school consolidation and integration in Graves County and provided her views on racial integration in schools. She observed that job opportunities for African Americans have expanded in Graves County and that racial relations have improved. She details the education and occupations of her grandchildren and her daughter

OH267 Charles E. Polk Oral History

Charles Polk named his elementary teachers at the all-black Garfield School in Paducah, Kentucky. He acknowledged his principal, Mrs. Ross, as instilling a respect for women in the young boys and having a positive impact on his life. He also named his teachers at Lincoln High School in Paducah during the early 1940s and discussed their efforts to help him and others to achieve in all aspects of life. He named the Lincoln graduating class of 1944 and their locations and occupations at the time of the interview. He chronicled his jobs and college education in Decatur, Illinois after he left Paducah in the late 1940s. He described his involvement with the Masonic Lodge in Kentucky and Illinois. He mentioned his role in the creation of numerous businesses. He recounted the honors of receiving the Duke of Paducah Award in 1974. Polk reflected that living conditions in Paducah had improved since his youth. He concluded the interview with biographical information about his wife, only son, sisters, and parents

OH091 Neva Grey Allbritten Oral History

Neva Grey Allbritten describes life in Murray, Kentucky during the early half of the 20th century. She describes attending school and church, working at her father\u27s store, attending social and community activities and events during her childhood and young adulthood. She discusses her family history, as well as detailed descriptions of her home and family life in Murray. She mentions that Murray was originally named Spring Hill due to all the natural springs in the area which she claimed attracted people to the area. As a young child, she remembered roller skating around the newly paved court house square and attending plays and musicals. She also recalled witnessing a touring circus downtown

Teacher Decision Making in Guided-Reading

Guided reading provides teachers the opportunity to support students in literacy learning. When planning for and implementing this instructional approach, teachers are required to make various in-advance and in-the-moment decisions that involve responding to students’ instructional needs through adaptive teaching. Grounded in sociocultural and social constructivist theories, this study was designed to understand teacher decision-making within the context of guided reading instruction. This research was a collective case study aimed at providing a better understanding of the various decisions teachers make when teaching in a guided reading context. Findings pertaining to in-advanced decisions that emerged from the data can be categorized into three overarching themes: teachers used assessment data to group students, teachers utilized a program-influenced structural framework to make decisions about planning for guided reading instruction and lastly, teachers made instructional connections between whole group instruction and guided reading, and between students and their interests. Implications of this study include more focus on supporting teachers’ instructional planning, a refinement of teachers’ skills in helping them understand how to best scaffold instruction, and raising awareness to educators, administrators, and stakeholders on how guided reading can provide supportive instruction to meet students’ individualized needs