Hair Matters: African American Women and the Natural Hair Aesthetic

This thesis addresses the negative cultural and social connotations of natural hair for African American women. This issue is examined throughout history from slavery to present day with a visual analysis of hair care advertisements. Presently, natural hair is gaining more positive implications; which can be affected by creating more positive images with natural hair. Using art as the vehicle for social change and using research to inform art has a positive impact on teaching and learning in the art classroom

“I’ll Sing with My Buddies” – Fostering the Possible Selves of Male Choral Singers

The stories of three high school boys about their experiences in school-based choral music provide the framework for a discussion of the role music educators can play in retaining male singers. The “possible selves” construct (Markus & Nurius, 1986) is explored alongside research-based implications about specific steps toward developing boys’ identities as choral musicians. Possible selves are future conceptions of the self that are either positive (hoped-for) or negative (feared). The changing adolescent male voice occurs at approximately the same time as major social, academic, and other physical changes. It is thought that these issues coincide in a manner that discourages boys from participation in choral music (Freer, 2007). Drawing upon a successful non-musical model, the author proposes a variant of the “Possible Selves Program” (Hock, Deshler, & Schumaker, 2006) for use in music settings

Friends with Benefits: Other Regard in Epicurean Ethics

Friendship and hedonism are both major components of Epicureanism. I attempt to relieve the tension that seems to follow from endorsing both of these. I argue that Epicurean friendships require valuing a friend’s well-being in the same way as one’s own and that embarking on such friendships is what David Schmidtz terms a maieutic end – one that is achieved by taking on a new set of ends. This conception fits with other-regarding concern that is espoused throughout the Epicurean texts discussing friendship and, as I argue, remains consistent with other psychological and ethical commitments of Epicureanism

Expression, Purification, and Characterization of the SIAA M79A Protein

Some pathogenic bacteria derive significant amounts of iron heme from their hosts. In this study we investigated SiaA, a heme binding protein from Streptococcus pyogenes. The wildtype methionine79 putative axial ligand was mutated to alanine. SiaA M79A was expressed in E. coli in three production runs, lysed by sonication or French press, and purified by fast protein liquid chromatography (FPLC). Nickel affinity FPLC was found to give much purer SiaA when 30 mM imidazole was added to the binding buffer. The protocol using extensive sonication resulted in SiaA weighing 30464 Da. The protocol using French press resulted in SiaA weighting 33358 Da. Despite the difference in masses, the two forms of SiaA interacted with heme similarly

ECON 420 Managerial Economics

Course syllabus for ECON 420 Managerial Economics Course description: Deals with analysis and theoretical constructs of microeconomics applied to managerial decision making. Emphasizing consumer demand, production and cost analysis, business behavior, market performance and growth equilibrium

A Case Study of Student Instructor Connectedness In An Asynchronous Modular Online Environment

The use of the Web as an instructional medium has gone hand in hand with the ever-increasing growth of the computer and the proliferation of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Early studies provided a foundation on building web-based learning environments and focusing on presenting the online content. However, as online or e-learning continues to grow, it has brought pivotal changes to the educational landscape (Gatlin). Online learning has now been adopted by many throughout the world, precipitating a shift in research from “how to develop courses online” to “what attributes best contribute to the success of an online course.” Research has been conducted on student satisfaction within an online environment and the significance of achieving an online community to enhance the educational aspects of an online course. Feeling involved in the community is vital to feeling successful in a course (Wegerif). Yet, the concept of connectedness between student and student as well as student and instructor warrants further investigation. This research associates connectedness with the perceived closeness between student and instructor. Using a qualitative case study of a completely online class, the researcher asked participants to respond to a questionnaire and participate in interviews in an attempt to analyze student-instructor connectedness within the online environment. This study addressed the following question: Is student-instructor and instructor-student connectedness a part of this online community? The implications of this research expand understanding of online learning and whether student-instructor connectedness plays a role in student perception of the instructor, the class, and perhaps their satisfaction in a Web-based learning environment

Respiratory Therapy Students’ Perceptions of Effective Teaching Characteristics of Clinical Instructors at an Urban University

Clinical instructors may have a negative or positive effect on student’s clinical practice. The behavioral characteristics of respiratory therapy clinical instructors are vital to the success of student’s clinical learning experience. Therefore, respiratory therapy student’s perception of the effectiveness of the clinical instructor’s behavior is an important indicator to modify and facilitate effective clinical instruction. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify the most effective clinical teaching behaviors (ECTB) perceived by undergraduate respiratory therapy (BSRT) and integrated graduate respiratory therapy (MSRT) students and to identify any similarities in their rankings. METHODS: The study used descriptive exploratory design with a self-reporting survey. The survey was administered to a convenience sample of first and second year BSRT and MSRT students attending an accredited respiratory therapy program at an urban university located in the southeastern United States. The survey consisted of 35 teaching behaviors presented on a five-point Likert scale according to importance. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Seventy-two students were surveyed, more than two-thirds of the respondents were female. Seventy-five percent of respondents studied were BSRT, which females accounted for 78% and males 22%. Graduate MSRT studied were 25% of the total sample with females and males equally split at 50%. Two thirds of MSRT students reported previous education with BSRT students reporting less than one-quarter. The study findings indicate BSRT and MSRT students’ perceptions ranking of the most important behavioral characteristics hold similarities but both perceive the ordered rank of importance differently. Both BSRT and MSRT students ranked “be approachable” as the most important clinical behavioral characteristic with mean scores and S.D respectively (M 4.89, S.D ±0.37, and M 4.94, S.D ±0.24). Additionally, BSRT students rank the characteristic “respect student as an individual” (M 4.87, S.D ±0.34) next significant while MSRT students rank “demonstrate self-control & patience” (M 4.94, S.D ±0.23) the next highest. CONCLUSION: Although BSRT and MSRT students’ perceptions demonstrated similarities, mean scores data between first year and second year show a shift in ranking between characteristics. This may be because student’s perceptions could change as they advance in their clinical course work or their past educational experience. In addition, the results may assist respiratory therapy clinical instructors to appreciate students’ views and acknowledge areas of success as well as areas needing improvement

Evaluating and Improving Title IX and Related Federal Mandate Compliance as They Relate to Sexual Violence at Berea College

This paper seeks to examine Berea College’s current policies and programs as they relate to Title IX and sexual violence. The aims of the first half of this paper are to: 1.) describe the scope of sexual violence on the campuses of institutes of higher education (IHE), with a focus on Berea College’s campus in relation to its mission, and to 2.) detail the best practices in policy, training, and programming to achieve the highest level of Title IX compliance in accordance with federal and professional recommendations. The second half of this paper will seek to 3.) identify the strengths and weakness of Berea College’s current policies, programs, and governance structure and provide policy, programming, and adjudication recommendations based on those structures that are currently in place, 4.) identify the potential cost, both human and financial, in pursuing a more comprehensive level of Title IX compliance, 5.) identify the benefits of utilizing the recommendations provided herein, or similar recommendations, to improve campus climate, and 6.) to conclude with identification of further areas of study for evaluating the success of programming and policies related to Title IX