Parent Involvement in Education and College Planning for African American High School Students

Parent involvement is critical for students’ success in high school and in accessing college, especially in low-income and minority families. However, many schools have failed to engage low-income African American parents, thereby contributing to a popular narrative of uninvolved and uninterested parents. Traditional models of parent involvement have favored a narrow range of activities undertaken by white and middle class families and do not account for the wider social and cultural context in which parenting occurs. The purpose of this qualitative study was therefore to investigate (1) caregiver and adolescent perceptions of parent involvement in education and college planning for African American high school students, (2) barriers to involvement and resources that are drawn on, and (3) how perceptions of involvement might differ according to gender and family composition. The ultimate goal was to form a culturally and developmentally appropriate conceptualization of parent involvement in education and college planning for low-income African American high school students living in urban communities. In depth interviews were conducted with 24 caregivers and 23 students recruited through a community based college access program. Data was analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Caregivers engaged in many activities that are included in traditional models: parents supported their children’s learning at school, at home, and in the community, they built their children’s motivation, and they laid a foundation on which learning could occur. Other types of involvement arose from the context in which the participants lived: parents navigated complex systems to gain access to particular schools and they taught their children how to confront discrimination. Barriers to involvement included lack of systemic knowledge, isolation in certain schools, stereotypes of African American families, developmental needs of the child, and time and money. Resources that caregivers drew from included extended family and friends, professional help, religious faith, self-reliance, and familial knowledge. Parent involvement different by gender principally in terms of racial socialization. The complexity and fluidity of the families in which the students lived made patterns of involvement according to family composition more difficult to discern. A conceptualization of parent involvement that incorporates these themes in addition to the individual and societal context is presented. Implications for social work research and practice are discussed

Impact of Social Capital on Employment and Marriage among Low Income Single Mothers

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA, P. L. 104-93) called primarily on women to achieve two goals: work and/or marriage. For low income single mothers with limited access to capital, the PRWORA presents a quagmire in that the public safety nets previously guaranteed by the policies of the New Deal were abruptly supplanted by policies with obligations that require various forms of capital. Using longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing dataset, we examine the impact of social capital on the chances of marriage and employment among single, unemployed mothers. We find that social capital increases a woman\u27s chances of both marriage and stable employment, but the social capital must be expansive in order to challenge significant social disadvantage. We conclude with a discussion of the importance of social capital as a precursor to upward social mobility for low income mothers as opposed to simply getting \u27off of welfare.\u2

Case studies: Raman implementation for process lifecycle management in fermentation based processes

Existing metabolite analyzers for several inline fermentation based vaccine processes are becoming obsolete in upcoming years. Analyzers are used to support classified parameters and attributes as well as characterization of the fermentation processes. A PAT solution is preferred as a replacement as it would allow for enhanced process understanding and control. Raman spectroscopy has been aligned as a core technology for implementation with varying challenges based on media, organism, processing parameters and attributes being measured. Implementation requires a highly collaborative approach across functions and sites to ensure effective implementation with no interruption to supply. Using a standardized approach to Raman model development and validation, robust models have been developed for 2 product lines with implementation scheduled over the next three years

Case study: Raman implementation for process lifecycle management in fermentation based processes

Existing metabolite analyzers for several inline fermentation based vaccine processes are becoming obsolete in upcoming years. Analyzers are used to support classified parameters and attributes as well as characterization of the fermentation processes. A PAT solution is preferred as a replacement as it would allow for enhanced process understanding and control. Raman spectroscopy has been aligned as a core technology for implementation with varying challenges based on media, organism, processing parameters and attributes being measured. Implementation requires a highly collaborative approach across functions and sites to ensure effective implementation with no interruption to supply. Using a standardized approach to Raman model development and validation, robust models have been developed for 2 product lines with implementation scheduled over the next three years

Mental health pathways linking maltreatment to interpersonal revictimization during adolescence for girls in the child welfare system

This study compares the association of histories of childhood emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, and physical neglect with revictimization among adolescent girls, and investigates the role of posttraumatic stress and symptoms of depression as mediators. Participants were 234 girls aged 12 to 19 years, who have been involved with the child welfare system in a Midwestern urban area. Data were collected from baseline surveys of a trauma-focused group program to which the participants were referred. The majority of participants were youths of color (75%) who were primarily African American (70%), and the remaining participants were White, non-Hispanic (25%). Data were collected through surveys that assessed histories of child abuse and neglect, symptoms of posttraumatic stress and depression, and experiences of physical, verbal, and relational revictimization in the last 3 months. All types of abuse and neglect were significantly associated with higher frequencies of revictimization and higher levels of posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms. Parallel mediation analyses demonstrated that both posttraumatic stress and depression fully mediated the relationships between emotional abuse and revictimization, and sexual abuse and revictimization. Physical abuse was fully mediated by posttraumatic stress, but not by depression. Results also indicated that neither posttraumatic stress nor depression were mediators for the relationship between neglect and revictimization. There were similar pathways to revictimization in adolescents from emotional and sexual abuse through posttraumatic stress and depression. Evidence is mounting for the deleterious effects of emotional abuse. There is evidence that treatment of both posttraumatic stress and depression in emotionally and sexually abused adolescents involved in child welfare is warranted to prevent future revictimization

Human Salmonella and Concurrent Decreased Susceptibility to Quinolones and Extended-Spectrum Cephalosporins

For complicated infections, decreased susceptibility could compromise treatment with drugs from either antimicrobial class

A central support system can facilitate implementation and sustainability of a Classroom-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) in Genomics

In their 2012 report, the President\u27s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology advocated replacing standard science laboratory courses with discovery-based research courses -a challenging proposition that presents practical and pedagogical difficulties. In this paper, we describe our collective experiences working with the Genomics Education Partnership, a nationwide faculty consortium that aims to provide undergraduates with a research experience in genomics through a scheduled course (a classroom-based undergraduate research experience, or CURE). We examine the common barriers encountered in implementing a CURE, program elements of most value to faculty, ways in which a shared core support system can help, and the incentives for and rewards of establishing a CURE on our diverse campuses. While some of the barriers and rewards are specific to a research project utilizing a genomics approach, other lessons learned should be broadly applicable. We find that a central system that supports a shared investigation can mitigate some shortfalls in campus infrastructure (such as time for new curriculum development, availability of IT services) and provides collegial support for change. Our findings should be useful for designing similar supportive programs to facilitate change in the way we teach science for undergraduates

Mental Health and School Functioning for Girls in the Child Welfare System : the Mediating Role of Future Orientation and School Engagement

This study investigated the association between mental health problems and academic and behavioral school functioning for adolescent girls in the child welfare system and determined whether school engagement and future orientation meditated the relationship. Participants were 231 girls aged between 12 and 19 who had been involved with the child welfare system. Results indicated that 39% of girls reported depressive symptoms in the clinical range and 54% reported posttraumatic symptoms in the clinical range. The most common school functioning problems reported were failing a class (41%) and physical fights with other students (35%). Participants reported a mean number of 1.7 school functioning problems. Higher levels of depression and PTSD were significantly associated with more school functioning problems. School engagement fully mediated the relationship between depression and school functioning and between PTSD and school functioning, both models controlling for age, race, and placement stability. Future orientation was not significantly associated with school functioning problems at the bivariate level. Findings suggest that school engagement is a potentially modifiable target for interventions aiming to ameliorate the negative influence of mental health problems on school functioning for adolescent girls with histories of abuse or neglect

Urbanisation generates multiple trait syndromes for terrestrial animal taxa worldwide

Cities can host significant biological diversity. Yet, urbanisation leads to the loss of habitats, species, and functional groups. Understanding how multiple taxa respond to urbanisation globally is essential to promote and conserve biodiversity in cities. Using a dataset encompassing six terrestrial faunal taxa (amphibians, bats, bees, birds, carabid beetles and reptiles) across 379 cities on 6 continents, we show that urbanisation produces taxon-specific changes in trait composition, with traits related to reproductive strategy showing the strongest response. Our findings suggest that urbanisation results in four trait syndromes (mobile generalists, site specialists, central place foragers, and mobile specialists), with resources associated with reproduction and diet likely driving patterns in traits associated with mobility and body size. Functional diversity measures showed varied responses, leading to shifts in trait space likely driven by critical resource distribution and abundance, and taxon-specific trait syndromes. Maximising opportunities to support taxa with different urban trait syndromes should be pivotal in conservation and management programmes within and among cities. This will reduce the likelihood of biotic homogenisation and helps ensure that urban environments have the capacity to respond to future challenges. These actions are critical to reframe the role of cities in global biodiversity loss.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio