Predicting the Future of the Whole Language Literacy Movement: Past Lessons and Present Concerns

Progressive Education. The Open Classroom. New Math. Educational innovations have come and gone over the years. The reasons for each one\u27s demise were different, and some innovations probably were not worthy of continued support, but there certainly seems to be a pattern (or pendulum) regarding educational change. What does the future hold for the Whole Language Literacy Movement

The Empower Action Model: A Framework for Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences by Promoting Health, Equity, and Well-Being Across the Life Span

The empower action model addresses childhood adversity as a root cause of disease by building resilience across multiple levels of influence to promote health, equity, and well-being. The model builds on the current evidence around adverse childhood experiences and merges important frameworks within key areas of public health—the socio-ecological model, protective factors, race equity and inclusion, and the life course perspective. The socio-ecological model is used as the foundation for this model to highlight the multilevel approach needed for improvement in public health. Five key principles that build on the protective factors literature are developed to be applied at each of the levels of the socio-ecological model: understanding, support, inclusion, connection, and growth. These principles are developed with actions that can be implemented across the life span. Finally, actions suggested with each principle are grounded in the tenets of race equity and inclusion, framing all actionable steps with an equity lens. This article discusses the process by which the model was developed and provides steps for states and communities to implement this tool. It also introduces efforts in a state to use this model within county coalitions through an innovative use of federal and foundation funding

Giving Community Psychology Away: A case for open access publishing

Amidst increased pressure for transparency in science, researchers and community members are calling for open access to study stimuli and measures, data, and results. These arguments coincidentally align with calls within community psychology to find innovative ways to support communities and increase the prominence of our field. This paper aims to (1) define the current context for community psychologists in open access publishing, (2) illustrate the alignment between open access publishing and community psychology principles, and (3) demonstrate how to engage in open access publishing using community psychology values. Currently, there are several facilitators (e.g. an increasing number of open access journals, the proliferation of blogs, and social media) and barriers (e.g. Article Processing Charges (APCs), predatory journals) to publishing in open access venues. Openly sharing our research findings aligns with our values of (1) citizen participation, (2) social justice, and (3) collaboration and community strengths. Community psychologists desiring to engage in open access publishing can ask journals to waive APCs, publish pre-prints, use blogs and social media to share results, and push for systemic change in a publishing system that disenfranchises researchers, students, and community members

Dietary Transfer of Heavy Metals in Manatees

In recent decades, manatees and dugongs globally have exhibited potentially detrimental levels of a variety of heavy metals in their body tissues. The threatened Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris), which is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), has shown corresponding high levels of heavy metals in their blood, skin, liver, and kidneys. As obligate herbivores, these animals rely heavily upon seagrasses as a major component of their diet. Globally, seagrasses at low latitudes have high levels of heavy metals in their tissues. Detrimental levels of heavy metals in Sirenians have not been established until now. This study is assessing the heavy metal concentrations of seagrasses in South Florida as a major dietary contributor to manatees, and investigating possible sources of these metals

Giving Community Psychology Away: A case for open access publishing

Amidst increased pressure for transparency in science, researchers and community members are calling for open access to study stimuli and measures, data, and results. These arguments coincidentally align with calls within community psychology to find innovative ways to support communities and increase the prominence of our field. This paper aims to (1) define the current context for community psychologists in open access publishing, (2) illustrate the alignment between open access publishing and community psychology principles, and (3) demonstrate how to engage in open access publishing using community psychology values. Currently, there are several facilitators (e.g. an increasing number of open access journals, the proliferation of blogs, and social media) and barriers (e.g. Article Processing Charges (APCs), predatory journals) to publishing in open access venues. Openly sharing our research findings aligns with our values of (1) citizen participation, (2) social justice, and (3) collaboration and community strengths. Community psychologists desiring to engage in open access publishing can ask journals to waive APCs, publish pre-prints, use blogs and social media to share results, and push for systemic change in a publishing system that disenfranchises researchers, students, and community members

Characteristics Of Diligent Audit Committees

The mounting attention given to audit committees following a series of corporate financial reporting failures has resulted in numerous provisions within Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX hereafter) of 2002. The SOX addresses aspects of the audit committee, including its authority and composition characteristics, but the requirement for minimum meeting frequency for the audit committee member was absent from the final SOX provision despite the recommendations of regulators. Since audit committee activity, or degree of audit committee diligence, is determined by the audit committee itself, we investigate various firm-level and governance attributes that likely influence audit committees’ choice to meet more often than anticipated.   After analyzing a sample of 2,715 firm-year observations spanning fiscal years 1998-2003, we find that audit committee diligence is positively associated with audit committee attributes such as financial expertise, but negatively association with audit committee tenure, suggesting that efficiency gains are enjoyed by audit committees as they become more familiar with firm-specific reporting issues. We also document positive associations between audit committee diligence and both governance and agency cost variables.  Finally, we document a significant increase in audit committee diligence in the years following the implementation of the SOX 2002 provisions

Chemical Analyses for Alcove 8/Niche 3 Tracer Studies

The objective of this task “Analytical Support For Tracer Studies in Alcove 8 / Niche 3” is to provide chemical analyses for the tracer studies at Alcove 8 / Niche 3 in the Exploratory Studies Facilities (ESF). This analytical support includes developing procedures for measuring tracer concentrations and then performing the tracer (and other background constituent) analyses for the water samples generated from each Alcove 8 / Niche 3 tracer test. These tracer tests are part of the Flow and Seepage Testing in Alcove 8/Niche 3 (TWP-NBS-HS-000004 REV 00). The overall goal of this study is to quantify large scale infiltration and seepage processes in the unsaturated zone at the ESF at Yucca Mountain

Constructing Whiteness in Health Disparities Research

There is a long tradition within the United States of constructing whiteness (the racial subject) against racialized others (the racial object) and in the process displacing the focus of critical analysis. Here we turn our lens to the often invisible--or at least underinterrogated--concept of whiteness within the context of the literature on racial disparities in health. Specifically, we examine how whiteness is constructed in the active literature documenting and interpreting racial disparities in health and the implications of these constructions for efforts to eradicate inequalities in health. We draw on the concepts of racial formation and racial projects that emphasize the fluidity, mutability, and historically constructed nature of race, as well as the social and political processes through which racial categories are created and transformed. A racial project is simultaneously an interpretation, representation, or explanation of racial dynamics. In particular, we apply Winant\u27s concept (1997) of racial projects to examine the construction of whiteness in ongoing dialogues about race and racial disparities in health. We consider the ways that varying constructions of whiteness enter into, influence, and are influenced by discussions of racial disparities in health, and the role of those constructions in the reproduction or disruption of racial categories and the inequitable distribution of resources along racial lines

Results of chemical analyses for Alcove 8/ Niche 3 tracer studies

This is the final report detailing the analyses performed under ORD-FY04-011 Chemical Analyses for Alcove 8/Niche 3 Tracer Studies, The work was performed under The University and Community College System of Nevada (UCCSN) and the Department of Energy (DOE) Cooperative Agreement DE-FC28-04RW12232, This task provided method development and analytical support for the Alcove 8/Niche 3 Tracer Studies in the Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF). Concentrations of tracers as well as major anions and cations were reported for samples provided by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and the US Geological Survey (USGS). Samples were analyzed using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Ion Climatography (1C). Samples were analyzed and controlled according to Implementing Procedures (IP\u27s) written and approved in accordance with the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) approved Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Quality Assurance Program

Chemical Analyses in Support of Yucca Mountain Studies

The objective of this task “Chemical Analyses in Support of Yucca Mountain Studies” is to provide the Department of Energy (DOE) with data and reports from comprehensive chemical analyses of waters sampled from the wells of the Nye County Early Warning Drilling Program (NCEWDP), the Inyo County’s Drilling Program, and the Nye county Tracer Test. In addition, this task will be used to provide other laboratory support needs as they arise within the Yucca Mountain Project. This support is provided by the Harry Reid Center for Environmental Studies (HRC) at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), which is part of the University and Community College System of Nevada (UCCSN)