SMALL RURAL SCHOOL DISTRICT CONSOLIDATION IN TEXAS: AN ANALYSIS OF ITS IMPACT ON COST AND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Historically, the number of public school districts in the United States has decreased despite a dramatic increase in the number of students enrolled. Although public school district consolidation has impacted districts of all sizes, since the late 1930’s smaller rural districts facing dwindling community resources have merged or consolidated with each other, resulting in fewer school districts. When school districts consolidate, all aspects of the newly-formed district are affected. Each year, lawmakers and rural public school district officials face dwindling finances, and each year these decision makers question whether to consolidate to avoid fiscal perils. Proponents tout the benefits of fiscal efficiency, a broadened curriculum, and a projected increase in student achievement. Critics argue that the community suffers when the community school closes, students are burdened with new transportation issues, increased academic opportunities do not necessarily impute to greater student performance, and a host of tangible and non-tangible arguments are put forth. This ex post facto quantitative study examines the fiscal efficiency of small, rural, consolidated school districts by comparing per-pupil expenditures with matched non-consolidated school districts in the state of Texas. The study also examines student achievement levels by comparing passing rate percentages on all Texas state assessment tests for 3rd, 5th, and 8th grade students attending these schools. For before and after consolidation comparison purposes, rural community public schools were matched according to Texas state designated “paired” protocol. Districts meeting Texas Education Agency (TEA) Snapshot criterion for Absorbing districts were matched with Joining districts. Expenditure and student achievement data for Absorbing and Joining districts were collected for the ten-year period from 1999 to 2009. A paired samples t-test measured differences in the district’s efficiency, and the Lawshe-Baker Normative t-test measured differences in student achievement. Four null hypotheses were examined with an a priori alpha level = 0.05. This study, when the data for the joining and absorbing districts was subjected to appropriate t-tests, supports other research that suggests per-pupil expenditures increased and student achievement decreased for the absorbing district

Programmable Multimode Quantum Networks

Entanglement between large numbers of quantum modes is the quintessential resource for future technologies such as the quantum internet. Conventionally the generation of multimode entanglement in optics requires complex layouts of beam-splitters and phase shifters in order to transform the input modes in to entangled modes. These networks need substantial modification for every new set of entangled modes to be generated. Here we report on the highly versatile and efficient generation of various multimode entangled states with the ability to switch between different linear optics networks in real time. By defining our modes to be combinations of different spatial regions of one beam, we may use just one pair of multi-pixel detectors each with M photodiodes in order to measure N entangled modes, with a maximum number of N=M modes. We program virtual networks that are fully equivalent to the physical linear optics networks they are emulating. We present results for N=2 up to N=8 entangled modes here, including N=2,3,4 cluster states. Our approach introduces flexibility and scalability to multimode entanglement, two important attributes that are highly sought after in state of the art devices.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables, comments welcome

TEM10 homodyne detection as an optimal small displacement and tilt measurements scheme

We report an experimental demonstration of optimal measurements of small displacement and tilt of a Gaussian beam - two conjugate variables - involving a homodyne detection with a TEM10 local oscillator. We verify that the standard split detection is only 64% efficient. We also show a displacement measurement beyond the quantum noise limit, using a squeezed vacuum TEM10 mode within the input beam.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure

A quantum study of multi-bit phase coding for optical storage

We propose a scheme which encodes information in both the longitudinal and spatial transverse phases of a continuous-wave optical beam. A split detector-based interferometric scheme is then introduced to optimally detect both encoded phase signals. In contrast to present-day optical storage devices, our phase coding scheme has an information storage capacity which scales with the power of the read-out optical beam. We analyse the maximum number of encoding possibilities at the shot noise limit. In addition, we show that using squeezed light, the shot noise limit can be overcome and the number of encoding possibilities increased. We discuss a possible application of our phase coding scheme for increasing the capacities of optical storage devices.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures (Please email author for a PDF file if the manuscript does not turn out properly

Exploring Attitudes on Environmental Responsibility on a College Campus

The primary intention of this project is to determine the driving factors that would encourage environmental responsibility on a college campus. After observing increases in "global average air and ocean temperatures," the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded that global warming is unmistakable. In order to reduce our negative impact on the environment, we need to take action. Many college campuses are moving toward more sustainable practices, such as energy efficient buildings, but these are not always translated into a more environmentally responsible student body. My methods consisted of both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The qualitative section consisted of an extensive review of existing literature. This produced a best practices report of the most sustainable colleges in America. The quantitative portion was comprised of the development and administration of a survey. The survey questioned students on their attitudes on green behavior, attitudes and knowledge of the best green practices on a college campus, and their current green behaviors. The highlighted factors in the survey were incentive, convenience, ethics, and awareness. The target audience was members of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars from Texas A&M and the University of Colorado - Boulder, one of the most sustainable schools in the country. The survey results were compared to determine any significant differences. The results showed that convenience and awareness are the driving factors in sustainable student behavior. Incentive and ethics can be considered cultural factors that vary by region. These factors can be reduced by the driving factors. I believe a compromise can be reached at Texas A&M between attitudes and behaviors to create an environment that encourages a more sustainable student body

Continuous-Variable Spatial Entanglement for Bright Optical Beams

A light beam is said to be position squeezed if its position can be determined to an accuracy beyond the standard quantum limit. We identify the position and momentum observables for bright optical beams and show that position and momentum entanglement can be generated by interfering two position, or momentum, squeezed beams on a beam splitter. The position and momentum measurements of these beams can be performed using a homodyne detector with local oscillator of an appropriate transverse beam profile. We compare this form of spatial entanglement with split detection-based spatial entanglement.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, submitted to PR

Quantum measurements of spatial conjugate variables: Displacement and tilt of a Gaussian beam

We consider the problem of measurement of optical transverse profile parameters and their conjugate variable. Using multi-mode analysis, we introduce the concept of detection noise-modes. For Gaussian beams, displacement and tilt are a pair of transverse profile conjugate variables. We experimentally demonstrate their optimal encoding and detection with a spatial homodyning scheme. Using higher order spatial mode squeezing, we show the sub-shot noise measurements for the displacement and tilt of a Gaussian beam.Comment: 3 page

Photothermal Fluctuations as a Fundamental Limit to Low-Frequency Squeezing in a Degenerate Optical Parametric Amplifier

We study the effect of photothermal fluctuations on squeezed states of light through the photo-refractive effect and thermal expansion in a degenerate optical parametric amplifier (OPA). We also discuss the effect of the photothermal noise in various cases and how to minimize its undesirable consequences. We find that the photothermal noise in the OPA introduces a significant amount of noise on phase squeezed beams, making them less than ideal for low frequency applications such as gravitational wave (GW) interferometers, whereas amplitude squeezed beams are relatively immune to the photothermal noise and may represent the best choice for application in GW interferometers

Continuous Variable Quantum State Sharing via Quantum Disentanglement

Quantum state sharing is a protocol where perfect reconstruction of quantum states is achieved with incomplete or partial information in a multi-partite quantum networks. Quantum state sharing allows for secure communication in a quantum network where partial information is lost or acquired by malicious parties. This protocol utilizes entanglement for the secret state distribution, and a class of "quantum disentangling" protocols for the state reconstruction. We demonstrate a quantum state sharing protocol in which a tripartite entangled state is used to encode and distribute a secret state to three players. Any two of these players can collaborate to reconstruct the secret state, whilst individual players obtain no information. We investigate a number of quantum disentangling processes and experimentally demonstrate quantum state reconstruction using two of these protocols. We experimentally measure a fidelity, averaged over all reconstruction permutations, of F = 0.73. A result achievable only by using quantum resources.Comment: Published, Phys. Rev. A 71, 033814 (2005) (7 figures, 11 pages

Polarization Squeezing of Continuous Variable Stokes Parameters

We report the first direct experimental characterization of continuous variable quantum Stokes parameters. We generate a continuous wave light beam with more than 3 dB of simultaneous squeezing in three of the four Stokes parameters. The polarization squeezed beam is produced by mixing two quadrature squeezed beams on a polarizing beam splitter. Depending on the squeezed quadrature of these two beams the quantum uncertainty volume on the Poincar\'{e} sphere became a `cigar' or `pancake'-like ellipsoid.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure