Topping The Queue: A Mixed Methods Exploration Of Principal Selection In Mississippi\u27s Public School Districts

As a result of the competitive principal market and the varying qualities of a perfect job applicant, information is critical to job candidates, educational leadership program developers, and superintendents or members of school hiring committees. Informed by research from the fields of industry and education, this study utilized explanatory sequential mixed methods design to identify and describe the process, the participants, and the prominent factors involved in the selection of principals for k-12 schools in Mississippi. Non-parametric quantitative analysis and qualitative thematic coding were used in seeking to answer four critical related questions for those seeking to find effective school leaders, those candidates seeking to fill those leadership roles, and the educational leadership program developers preparing candidates to present themselves as capable and ready to lead schools: What factors are most significant as superintendents select a principal candidate for recommendation to hire? Do leaders of districts lower in the work queue—low-achieving or high poverty districts—make selections in a different manner or with a different set of expectations than districts higher in the work queue? How do some districts utilize human resource or personnel directors regarding the selection of principals? How do human resource or personnel directors involved in the selection process perceive their contributions

Outcomes of 23- and 24-weeks gestation infants in Wellington, New Zealand: A single centre experience

Optimal perinatal care of infants born less than 24 weeks gestation remains contentious due to uncertainty about the long-term neurodevelopment of resuscitated infants. Our aim was to determine the short-term mortality and major morbidity outcomes from a cohort of inborn infants born at 23 and 24 weeks gestation and to assess if these parameters differed significantly between infants born at 23 vs. 24 weeks gestation. We report survival rates at 2-year follow-up of 22/38 (58%) at 23 weeks gestation and 36/60 (60%) at 24 weeks gestation. Neuroanatomical injury at the time of discharge (IVH ≥ Grade 3 and/or PVL) occurred in in 3/23 (13%) and 1/40 (3%) of surviving 23 and 24 weeks gestation infants respectively. Rates of disability at 2 years corrected postnatal age were not different between infants born at 23 and 24 weeks gestation. We show evidence that with maximal perinatal care in a tertiary setting it is possible to achieve comparable rates of survival free of significant neuroanatomical injury or severe disability at age 2 in infants born at 23-week and 24-weeks gestation

Long-term remission of myopic choroidal neovascular membrane after treatment with ranibizumab: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Myopia has become a big public health problem in certain parts of the world. Sight-threatening complications like choroidal neovascularisation membranes occur in up to 10% of pathological myopia, and natural history studies show a trend towards progressive visual loss. There are long-term financial and quality-of-life implications in this group of patients, and treatment strategies should aim for long-term preservation of vision.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 56-year-old Caucasian woman presented with a best-corrected visual acuity of 6/6-1 in her right eye and 6/24 in her left. Fundal examination revealed pathological myopia in both eyes and an elevated lesion associated with pre-retinal haemorrhage in the left macula. Ocular coherence tomography and fundus fluorescein angiogram confirmed a subfoveal classic choroidal neovascularisation membrane. The patient decided to proceed with intravitreal ranibizumab (0.5 mg) therapy. One month after treatment, best-corrected visual acuity improved to 6/12 in her left eye, with complete resolution subretinal fluid on ocular coherence tomography. After three months, best-corrected visual acuity further improved to 6/9, which was maintained up to 16 months post-treatment.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We suggest intravitreal ranibizumab as an alternative treatment for long-term remission of myopic choroidal neovascular membrane. It also suggests that myopic choroidal neovascularisation membranes may require fewer treatments to achieve sustained remission. Furthermore, this could serve as a feasible long-term management option if used in conjunction with ocular coherence tomography.</p

The genetics of myopia

Myopia is the most common eye condition worldwide and its prevalence is increasing. While changes in environment, such as time spent outdoors, have driven myopia rates, within populations myopia is highly heritable. Genes are estimated to explain up to 80% of the variance in refractive error. Initial attempts to identify myopia genes relied on family studies using linkage analysis or candidate gene approaches with limited progress. More genome-wide association study (GWAS) approaches have taken over, ultimately resulting in the identification of hundreds of genes for refractive error and myopia, providing new insights into its molecular machinery. These studies showed myopia is a complex trait, with many genetic variants of small effect influencing retinal signaling, eye growth and the normal process of emmetropization. The genetic architecture and its molecular mechanisms are still to be clarified and while genetic risk score prediction models are improving, this knowledge must be expanded to have impact on clinical practice

Fair Trade certification and social determinants of health : the case of coffee producers in Rwanda

Health of individuals and populations is now understood to be strongly influenced by social conditions and structures, yet health policy remains focused on addressing individual medical and behavioural factors instead of the more fundamental social factors that determine health. Without policies that address the social causes of health, there is a risk of not only imposing interventions that are ineffective, but also missing opportunities to adopt broader societal interventions that could produce significant health benefits for populations. For small-scale agricultural producers, one way to improve the social determinants of health is through certification systems that use production standards, monitoring, certification and labelling to identify and reward items produced under exemplary social conditions. This thesis examines the effects of Fair Trade certification, one of the most established product certification systems, on producers in order to understand its effectiveness as a market-based tool for improving the health of populations. A meta-study of the Fair Trade literature finds evidence that Fair Trade certification positively affects producer health through three main processes: improvement of material conditions (physical capital); better education (human capital); and more extended and robust social networks (social capital). Yet the research design of the reviewed studies limits the ability to conclude that benefits are the effects of certification and not associated with prior cooperative organization resulting in the adoption of certification. These shortcomings in research design were addressed through a case study of Fair Trade certified coffee producers in Rwanda. Given the importance of social structure for health outcomes, the study tested the relative importance of Fair Trade certification versus cooperative organization for producer-level social capital. Regression analyses of farmer survey data and interview responses indicate that both Fair Trade certification and cooperative organization are associated with dimensions of social capital. It seems that prior social organization matters more than certification, and how much more depends on a farmer’s particular experience of his/her producer organization. The research suggests that government and non-governmental organizations may help ensure positive effects of Fair Trade certification on the social determinants of health of producers through interventions that strengthen cooperative producer organizations.Science, Faculty ofResources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), Institute forGraduat

Assessing the impacts of retail supply chains on food security and agricultural sustainability in the global South : the case of Walmart in Nicaragua

Multinational food retailers are expanding in size and reach, gaining buyer-driven power to govern global agrifood production and consumption. Alongside a rise in private governance is a growing belief by governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that corporate social responsibility (CSR) will be effective at achieving rural development goals for smallholder farmers and their families in the global South. This dissertation investigates the on-the-ground impacts of rising corporate governance for household food security and agricultural sustainability, and how and why the particular terms of farmer engagement in retail-led supply chains mediate these impacts, through the case of Walmart in Nicaragua. The analysis is based on nine months of original fieldwork in Nicaragua in 2013, including 65 interviews with produce sector stakeholders and a survey of 250 smallholder vegetable farmers, and draws on theoretical traditions in the private governance and development studies literatures. The results show that CSR is ineffective at advancing food security and agricultural sustainability in Nicaragua. Walmart’s CSR program is designed to achieve business not development goals, and farmers are exiting the Walmart supply chain due to business practices they perceive as unfair, leaving Walmart unable to exert control over its supply chains. Cooperative organization is not sufficient for improving the terms of farmer engagement in Walmart supply chains, particularly for the most resource-poor farmers, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are in some cases worsening farmer vulnerability by linking them to buyers unwilling to adapt to local needs. Instead, voluntary public standards appear to be filling a gap that private standards do not address in supporting local farmers to improve their agricultural practices. The evidence presented in the dissertation extends understanding of why corporate social responsibility is not in many cases an effective development strategy. The findings challenge theories of private governance effectiveness, showing that multinational retail CSR programs in some cases fail to increase control over suppliers, and highlighting the agency and dynamism of smallholder farmers and governments in the global South. The findings also point to practical considerations in the design of policy to promote food security and agricultural sustainability in rural areas.Science, Faculty ofResources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), Institute forGraduat

Normal sleep patterns in infants and children: A systematic review of observational studies

s u m m a r y This is a systematic review of the scientific literature with regard to normal sleep patterns in infants and children (0e12 years). The review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Mean and variability data for sleep duration, number of night wakings, sleep latency, longest sleep period overnight, and number of daytime naps were extracted from questionnaire or diary data from 34 eligible studies. Meta-analysis was conducted within age-bands and categories. In addition, fractional polynomial regression models were used to estimate best-fit equations for the sleep variables in relation to age. Reference values (means) and ranges (AE1.96 SD) for sleep duration (hours) were: infant, 12.8 (9.7e15.9); toddler/preschool, 11.9 (9.9 e13.8); and child, 9.2 (7.6e10.8). The best-fit (R 2 ¼ 0.89) equation for hours over the 0e12 year age range was 10.49e5.56 Â [(age/10)^0.5 À 0.71]. Meta-regression showed predominantly Asian countries had significantly shorter sleep (1 h less over the 0e12 year range) compared to studies from Caucasian/nonAsian countries. Night waking data provided 4 age-bands up to 2 years ranging from 0 to 3.4 wakes per night for infants (0e2 months), to 0e2.5 per night (1e2 year-olds). Sleep latency data were sparse but estimated to be stable across 0e6 years. Because the main data analysis combined data from different countries and cultures, the reference values should be considered as global norms