Classroom Assessment in Action

Book/Media Revie

Managing Food Quality Risk in Global Supply Chain: A Risk Management Framework

Today, the food sector is one of the sectors most vulnerable to intentional contamination by debilitating agents [1]. Some cases of contaminated food have indicated that product quality risk is one of the vulnerabilities in the global supply chain. A series of company scandals, affecting reputation and causing the recall of products and increasing costs have hit the food industry. The obvious problem is that even a minor incident in one part of the chain can have disastrous effects on other parts of the supply chain. Thus, risks are transmitted through the chain. Even though the dangers from members in the supply chain are small, the cumulative effect becomes significant. The aim of this study is to propose an integrated supply chain risk management framework for practitioners that can provide directions for how to evaluate food quality risk in the global supply chain. For validating the proposed model in‐depth, a case study is conducted on a food SME distributor in Central America. The case study investigates how product quality risks are handled according to the proposed framework

Cuatro Vientos- A Reconsideration Of Seven Prehistoric Sites In The Lower Rio Grande Plains Of South Texas Webb County

On behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) conducted testing investigations on seven prehistoric sites located within the Cuatro Vientos roadway project right-of-way in Webb County, Texas. The test excavations, conducted in June 2005, were performed in compliance with the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and the Texas Antiquities Code. The work was designed to assess each site’s potential for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and for designation as State Archeological Landmarks (SAL). The work was performed under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 3755 with Kevin A. Miller serving as Principal Investigator. Field investigations were performed under TxDOT Work Authorization No. 573 26 SA007 of the SWCA/ TxDOT General Services Contract 573 XX SA007. The seven tested sites are distributed primarily within the drainage basin of San Idelfonso Creek, a tributary of the Rio Grande in south Texas. The sites, including 41WB441, 41WB572, 41WB577, 41WB578, 41WB621, 41WB622, and 41WB623, are all prehistoric open sites situated in both buried and surficial contexts on terraces and adjacent uplands. The sites principally consist of various prehistoric features and artifacts associated with lithic procurement locales and open occupations. According to the temporal data, the sites contain occupational components from the Middle Archaic through Late Prehistoric, though Late Archaic components are the most prevalent throughout the project area. Because of poor preservation and the lack of integrity, SWCA did not recommend any of the sites as eligible for the NRHP or as SALs. TxDOT, however, did not concur and recommended three as eligible, though all were effectively mitigated by the testing investigations. This difference of opinion formed the basis for developing a different approach to the assessment of the south Texas archaeological record. In essence, this project is a reconsideration of evaluations of significance and research potential of seven sites, specifically addressing the well-known problems with the regional archaeological record, namely erosional or stable settings that create mixed or incomplete assemblages. The proposed solution is the development of a contextual frame of reference, utilization of specific point-plotted data in addition to the site construct, and variable temporal scales

Cuatro Vientos- A Reconsideration Of Seven Prehistoric Sites In The Lower Rio Grande Plains Of South Texas Webb County

On behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) conducted testing investigations on seven prehistoric sites located within the Cuatro Vientos roadway project right-of-way in Webb County, Texas. The test excavations, conducted in June 2005, were performed in compliance with the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and the Texas Antiquities Code. The work was designed to assess each site’s potential for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and for designation as State Archeological Landmarks (SAL). The work was performed under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 3755 with Kevin A. Miller serving as Principal Investigator. Field investigations were performed under TxDOT Work Authorization No. 573 26 SA007 of the SWCA/ TxDOT General Services Contract 573 XX SA007. The seven tested sites are distributed primarily within the drainage basin of San Idelfonso Creek, a tributary of the Rio Grande in south Texas. The sites, including 41WB441, 41WB572, 41WB577, 41WB578, 41WB621, 41WB622, and 41WB623, are all prehistoric open sites situated in both buried and surficial contexts on terraces and adjacent uplands. The sites principally consist of various prehistoric features and artifacts associated with lithic procurement locales and open occupations. According to the temporal data, the sites contain occupational components from the Middle Archaic through Late Prehistoric, though Late Archaic components are the most prevalent throughout the project area. Because of poor preservation and the lack of integrity, SWCA did not recommend any of the sites as eligible for the NRHP or as SALs. TxDOT, however, did not concur and recommended three as eligible, though all were effectively mitigated by the testing investigations. This difference of opinion formed the basis for developing a different approach to the assessment of the south Texas archaeological record. In essence, this project is a reconsideration of evaluations of significance and research potential of seven sites, specifically addressing the well-known problems with the regional archaeological record, namely erosional or stable settings that create mixed or incomplete assemblages. The proposed solution is the development of a contextual frame of reference, utilization of specific point-plotted data in addition to the site construct, and variable temporal scales

Cuatro Vientos: A Reconsideration of Seven Prehistoric Sites in the Lower Rio Grande Plains of South Texas

With this report, Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) begins a reconsideration of approaches to the evaluation and treatment of those areas where surface lithic scatters are the main constituent of the archeological record. The reconsideration was inspired by the Cuatro Vientos project in Laredo, Webb County, Texas. The project and the ideas surrounding it developed slowly. The ideas continued to evolve through discussion between SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) and TxDOT as additional work on the project occurred. Because this project proceeded in an idiosyncratic fashion, some words of explanation might be helpful. The following discussion provides an account of how the project developed and where future work might be heading

The Midlands LGBT Needs Assessment Community Report

Health disparities research seeks to understand specific health-related needs and outcomes for groups of people, particularly minority groups. In 2011, the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) released a report commissioned by the National Institutes of Health entitled The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) People: Building a Foundation for Understanding. For the first time, research on the health and well-being of LGBT persons has been prioritized by research funders at the highest levels

Natural history and evolution of an elevational generalist, the Cinereous Conebill (Conirostrum cinereum)

Elevational generalism is relatively rare in the tropical Andes Mountains, likely owing to the inherent requirements of enduring a high degree of climatic zonation and coping with hypoxic stress. The Cinereous Conebill (Conirostrum cinereum) appears to be an exception, and inhabits a continuous elevational distribution that spans over 4,500 m. Two subspecies, cinereum and fraseri, are restricted to high elevations and may be isolated, whereas the third and most widespread, littorale, occurs continuously along the western slope of the Andes from 0 to over 4,500 m. First, we aim to characterize the morphology, genetics, and climatic niche of the three subspecies using a comparative biogeographic approach to explore patterns and timing of differentiation and to consider possible mechanisms of diversification. Second, we study whether hemoglobin adaptation plays a role in this elevational generalist’s ability to thrive in high-elevation environments, and whether localized adaptation is possible despite altitudinal migration and gene flow. We used a comparative phylogeographic framework to examine whether lineage divergence within C. cinereum is associated with climatic, geographic, and/or physiological barriers leading to incipient speciation

Immigration in the 21st Century: Perspectives on Law and Policy

The program consisted of a keynote presentation by Linda Chavez, Chairman of the Center for Equal Opportunity, followed by a panel featuring Leticia Saucedo, Associate Professor of Law at the William S. Boyd School of Law, University of Nevada, Law Vegas; Andrea Rahal, Associate at McCandlish Holton, PC in Richmond; Robert Redmond, Jr., Partner at Williams Mullen in Richmond; Michael Hethmon, General Counsel for the Immigration Reform Law Institute; and Tim Freilich, Legal Director of the Legal Aid Justice Center\u27s Immigration Advocacy Program. Christopher Nugent, Senior Counsel at Holland & Knight, D.C. Office, served as moderator

Development of a Cyberinfrastructure for Assessment of the Lower Rio Grande Valley North and Central Watersheds Characteristics

Lower Laguna Madre (LLM) is designated as an impaired waterway for high concentrations of bacteria and low dissolved oxygen. The main freshwater sources to the LLM flow from the North and Central waterways which are composed of three main waterways: Hidalgo/Willacy Main Drain (HWMD), Raymondville Drain (RVD), and International Boundary & Water Commission North Floodway (IBWCNF) that are not fully characterized. The objective of this study is to perform a watershed characterization to determine the potential pollution sources of each watershed. The watershed characterization was achieved by developing a cyberinfrastructure, and it collects a wide inventory of data to identify which one of the three waterways has a major contribution to the LLM. Cyberinfrastructure development using the Geographic Information System (GIS) database helped to comprehend the major characteristics of each area contributing to the watershed supported by the analysis of the data collected. The watershed characterization process started with delineating the boundaries of each watershed. Then, geospatial and non-geospatial data were added to the cyberinfrastructure from numerous sources including point and nonpoint sources of pollution. Results showed that HWMD and IBWCNF watersheds were found to have a higher contribution to the water impairments to the LLM. HWMD and IBWCNF comprise the potential major sources of water quality impairments such as cultivated crops, urbanized areas, on-site sewage facilities, colonias, and wastewater effluents