David Dunston in a Senior Percussion Recital

This is the program for a senior percussion recital of David Dunston. Bradley Permenter and the OBU Jazz Combo accompanied the performance. This recital took place on May 5, 1986, in the Mabee Fine Arts Recital Hall

DIRECTED EVOLUTION FOR THE DESIGN OF NEW CATALYSTS

Introducing new catalytic function into existing proteins provide ways of understanding the fundamental principles of enzyme catalysis and has gained recognition as a leading tool for understanding protein folding, structure, and function. De novo computational design coupled with directed evolution can yield catalysts with novel functions and improved catalytic rate enhancement of enzymes.1-2 Minimalist protein design that focuses on the bare minimum requirements to achieve activity presents several important advantages. By utilizing basic physico-chemical properties and strategic placing of only few highly active residues one can feasibly sample a very large variety of possible catalysts. In more general terms minimalist approach looks for the mere possibility of catalysis, rather than trying to identify the most active catalyst possible. Even very basic designs that utilize a single residue introduced into non-enzymatic proteins or peptide bundles are surprisingly active. No complex calculations need to be set up and even a beginner can master this technique in a very short time. An enzyme nicknamed AlleyCatE is an allosterically regulated catalyst of ester hydrolysis that was generated by introducing a single histidine residue into a non-enzymatic protein calmodulin (CaM). The catalytic efficiency of the resulting enzyme is higher than that of any other rationally designed p-nitrophenylesterase and is on par with some catalytic antibodies

Using a research-informed interprofessional curriculum framework to guide reflection and future planning of Interprofessional Education in a Multi-site Context

Abstract Background: Over the past two years health educators in Australia have benefited from funding made available from national organizations such as the Office of Learning and Teaching (OLT) and Health Workforce Australia (HWA). Funded research has been conducted into educational activities across the country that aim to promote integrated and sustainable interprofessional learning. Methods and Findings: A collaboration between multiple stakeholders led to the establishment of a consortium of nine universities and interprofessional organizations. This collaboration resulted in a series of research studies and the development of a conceptual framework to guide the planning and review of interprofessional health curricula. A case study of the development of a suite of health education programs at a regional university in Australia is used to demonstrate how the framework can be used to guide curricular reflection and to plan for the future. Shedding a light on interprofessional health education activities across multiple sites provides a rich picture of current practices and future trends. Commonalities, gaps, and challenges become much more obvious and allow for the development of shared opportunities and solutions. Conclusions: The production of a shared conceptual framework to facilitate interprofessional curriculum development provides valuable strategies for curricular reflection, review, and forward planning.The authors acknowledge the contribution of the Interprofessional Curriculum Renewal Consortium, Australia (2014)

Globalization, Mobile Technology, and Social Media\u27s Influence on Leadership Communication Involving Millennials

Current research identifies effective leadership communication, which includes frequent direct conversational communication from company leaders, influences worker performance during organizational change. Social media, mobile technology, and the Millennial workforce have shifted leader communication style from purely top-down, town hall style communication to incorporate more collaborative and engaging forums. The case study addressed how globalization, social media, and mobile technology affects leadership communication and then subsequently effects worker performance as Millennials join the workforce. Qualitative data were collected from observations and interviews from a purposeful selection of 9 Millennial employees, including 2 Millennial leaders, and 8 non-Millennial leaders of a Fortune 100 company. The data were focused on leadership communication during the leaders\u27 implementation of key company and organizational structural changes, which centered on the company\u27s U.S. Location Strategy program. Data analysis involved the identification of themes relating to current leadership communication trends that included recognition that globalization requires updated technology and tools along with communication of best practices. Encouraging employees to share these tools and resources trend improvement in company performance. These findings contribute to social change by producing information about how globalization, Millennials, social media, and mobile technology use influenced leadership communication and effectiveness. The adaption and use of newer technology has influenced leadership communication effectiveness. Company leaders could use this information to implement changes that help employees communicate better within their workforce

The Effects of University Conversation Groups on English Language Learners

The purpose of this study was to examine the benefits of a peer-led conversation group for English Language Learner (ELL) university students. Class discussions and interaction among classmates are common requirements in US university classrooms, yet ELL students experience many obstacles with oral communication. Prior research has revealed peer strategies as one way ELL students can improve oral communication. This study evaluated how peer-led conversation groups affect self-efficacy and investigated how ELL students could benefit from these groups by using a convergent mixed methods design. A self-efficacy pre-test and post-test was used, and the groups were observed for five weeks. Participants were given short questionnaires, and data sources were reviewed by independent researchers to triangulate findings and to provide additional reliability. Only four participants completed the pre-test and post-test, and the results did not support the hypothesis. However, open and axial coding of the qualitative data revealed three main themes of benefits to the participants, and these findings suggest conducting future qualitative research for ELL oral communication and peer-led conversation groups

Evaluation of Depression, Anxiety and Stress in Graduate Nursing Students

Mental health issues are growing in the United States. Postgraduate school is widely known to increase the level of psychological difficulties (Dyrbye et al., 2006) experienced by students. There is a need to address mental health care in graduate nursing students. This project was a descriptive observational comparison pre-post-intervention design used to see if online modes of delivery would aid in decreasing mental health issues for nursing graduate students. Participants were provided with access to three podcasts and encouraged to use the Sanvello mobile application provided to all students at this university. The first podcast focused on using the Sanvello application, mindfulness and positive thinking, managing stress and incorporating healthy coping habits, the importance of sleep, and healthy eating and movement on mental well-being; the second focused on problem solving skills, setting goals, strategies to overcome barriers, strategies to improve sleep, dealing with emotions in healthy ways, and the importance of nutrition and physical activity; and the third integrated information from the previous podcasts and focused on setting long term goals. It occurred virtually over 12 weeks at a large Midwestern public urban university during the Spring 2021 semester. A convenience sample of 30 nursing graduate students who “opted in” completed the pre intervention survey and 7 students completed the post-survey. These surveys included a demographic survey, healthy lifestyle behaviors, use of Sanvello and the following validated evidence-based scales: the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), Personal Health Questionnaire-8 (PHQ-8), and The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Both the pre and post intervention surveys found participants had mild anxiety, mild depression, and moderate stress levels. This project did not result in any statistically significant results; however, the post-intervention survey means of the PHQ-8 and PSS decreased, indicating a clinically significant difference. All post-intervention participants did use the Sanvello application and 85% of those participants found it at least “somewhat helpful”. This result suggests that the Sanvello application could continue to be an effective mental health aid for graduate nursing students. Further research is needed to determine if podcasts could aid in delivering mental health care aid to graduate nursing students

Mastery Behavior and Brain Injury in Infancy

This study aims to determine the combined effect of degree of brain injury and age on mastery behavior among infants. Specifically, it investigates whether degree of brain injury in infancy can predict later competence, or mastery motivation behavior at both 7 and 10 months of age. In this context, mastery motivation is defined as “persistence” or the percent of time spent engaging in persistent behavior. To test the hypothesis that there would be a significant interaction between age and brain injury on mastery scores, participants engaged in 12-15-minute toy play sessions at 7- and 10-months-old. Data was analyzed using a two-way mixed ANOVA. Although a statistically significant interaction between age and brain injury was not found, the results showed a small main effect in the direction hypothesized: more brain injury was associated with lower mastery motivation scores. Also found in the direction hypothesized was that on average, mastery motivation scores were higher at age 10 months than at age 7 months among infant participants. Lastly, there was a significant difference in mastery motivation scores found among the severe brain injury group, where scores were statistically significantly higher at 10 months old than 7 months old. These results suggest that brain injury may remain relatively stable throughout infancy, unless the brain injury is severe. In the case of severe brain injury, mastery behavior appears to show a natural incline, as there were no interventions used in this study. On this understanding, varying degrees of brain injury should be considered when investigating brain injury in infancy and its effects on mastery behavior

A critical evaluation of the pink plateau experienced by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) business leaders

This study aims to examine the idea that the pink plateau exists for those who identify as LGBTQ. There is very little research on this topic, in contrast to the feminist theory of the glass ceiling. The conceptual framework for this study considers how these people have achieved leadership success and broken through the pink plateau. Therefore, this study's aims and objectives were conceived to address the research gaps which appear to highlight a lack of scholarly concern for how LGBTQ people from the UK achieve their leadership positions. Equally, there is little published knowledge of whether those people who have achieved their success have been supported by champions, allies or whether this was related to their social class. The equality act 2010 is in place to provide employment protection, and the participants shared their views of its success as a stand-alone piece of legislation. However, the scant literature that exists does not examine how well it works or how it is embedded into employment settings. Therefore, to provide more depth to this study, I examined leadership styles and the potential to link characterised associations of gender or sexuality to them. Although some comparisons on this subject can be drawn from other countries, the key focus of this research is LGBTQ English business leaders, the pink plateau and British law. The study provides valuable insight into this under-researched topic, using semi-structured interviews and examining the findings using interpretive phenomenological analysis to understand the participants’ lived experiences from growing up, and working experiences in public, private and third sectors. Often the participants shaped their leadership delivery to fit in, for example to be more authoritative or remain strategically closeted. It was found that internal and external cultural influences and business sectors continue to hold many biased views despite attempts by organisations to remove them. These findings help to fill the paucity of knowledge as these topics have only been considered in specific industries or individual groups under the banner of LGBTQ. However, this research paves the way for further studies to be undertaken in the fields of LGBTQ career trajectories and leadership styles