Strategic planning for the Loveland Sculpture Invitational

2016 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.The Loveland Sculpture Invitational was birthed out of the growing sculpture movement in Loveland, Colorado. In 1991, a group of passionate sculptors created the Loveland Sculpture Invitational as a forum for undiscovered artists to display and sell their work to the public and to introduce aspiring sculptors to sculptural stage. While in its organizational peak, LSI boasted of being the largest outdoor sculpture show in America in recent years, LSI has been in steady decline – a decline in lack of participating artists, a decline in the attending public, and a decline in board member cohesion. To discover the cause of the decline and provide insight as to what can be done to return to success, this thesis draws from Arts Management literature, Public Relations theory, and Social Marketing theory as theoretical foundation for the thesis research. Research methods of this thesis include in depth personal interviews with each member of the Loveland Sculpture Invitational Board of Directors and online surveys of key organizational stakeholder groups. This thesis conducted a thematic analysis of interview transcripts and survey data. As a result of finding a lack of organizational identity, this thesis presents an organizational strategic plan with aim to guide the Loveland Sculpture Invitational Board of Directors to a path of defining the organizational purpose and a plan to achieve measured organizational success

Rural Viability Index: A Tool for Assessing Rural Communities

This report describes, analyzes, and contains a tool designed to provide local leaders and citizens with a way to assess the status of a variety of elements within their community. The tool, named the Rural Viability Index, offers communities the opportunity to identify possible options for current and future community planning.This project is a partnership between the George Bush School of Government and Public Service and the Texas Office of Rural Community Affairs. For further information please contact ORCA at: P.O. Box 12877 Austin, TX 78711 (512) 936-6701 (800) 544-2042 www.orca.state.tx.u

Satellite and in situ observations for advancing global Earth surface modelling: a review

In this paper, we review the use of satellite-based remote sensing in combination with in situ data to inform Earth surface modelling. This involves verification and optimization methods that can handle both random and systematic errors and result in effective model improvement for both surface monitoring and prediction applications. The reasons for diverse remote sensing data and products include (i) their complementary areal and temporal coverage, (ii) their diverse and covariant information content, and (iii) their ability to complement in situ observations, which are often sparse and only locally representative. To improve our understanding of the complex behavior of the Earth system at the surface and sub-surface, we need large volumes of data from high-resolution modelling and remote sensing, since the Earth surface exhibits a high degree of heterogeneity and discontinuities in space and time. The spatial and temporal variability of the biosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere and anthroposphere calls for an increased use of Earth observation (EO) data attaining volumes previously considered prohibitive. We review data availability and discuss recent examples where satellite remote sensing is used to infer observable surface quantities directly or indirectly, with particular emphasis on key parameters necessary for weather and climate prediction. Coordinated high-resolution remote-sensing and modelling/assimilation capabilities for the Earth surface are required to support an international application-focused effort

MicroRNA-26a Regulates Pathological and Physiological Angiogenesis by Targeting BMP/SMAD1 Signaling

RATIONALE: The rapid induction and orchestration of new blood vessels are critical for tissue repair in response to injury, such as myocardial infarction, and for physiological angiogenic responses, such as embryonic development and exercise. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to identify and characterize microRNAs (miR) that regulate pathological and physiological angiogenesis. METHODS AND RESULTS: We show that miR-26a regulates pathological and physiological angiogenesis by targeting endothelial cell (EC) bone morphogenic protein/SMAD1 signaling in vitro and in vivo. MiR-26a expression is increased in a model of acute myocardial infarction in mice and in human subjects with acute coronary syndromes. Ectopic expression of miR-26a markedly induced EC cycle arrest and inhibited EC migration, sprouting angiogenesis, and network tube formation in matrigel, whereas blockade of miR-26a had the opposite effects. Mechanistic studies demonstrate that miR-26a inhibits the bone morphogenic protein/SMAD1 signaling pathway in ECs by binding to the SMAD1 3′-untranslated region, an effect that decreased expression of Id1 and increased p21(WAF/CIP) and p27. In zebrafish, miR-26a overexpression inhibited formation of the caudal vein plexus, a bone morphogenic protein-responsive process, an effect rescued by ectopic SMAD1 expression. In mice, miR-26a overexpression inhibited EC SMAD1 expression and exercise-induced angiogenesis. Furthermore, systemic intravenous administration of an miR-26a inhibitor, locked nucleic acid-anti–miR-26a, increased SMAD1 expression and rapidly induced robust angiogenesis within 2 days, an effect associated with reduced myocardial infarct size and improved heart function. CONCLUSIONS: These findings establish miR-26a as a regulator of bone morphogenic protein/SMAD1-mediated EC angiogenic responses, and that manipulating miR-26a expression could provide a new target for rapid angiogenic therapy in ischemic disease states

Parents' actions, challenges, and needs while enabling participation of children with a physical disability: a scoping review

Contains fulltext : 108967.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Pediatric rehabilitation considers Family-centered service (FCS) as a way to increase participation of children with a physical disability in daily life. An important principal is that parents greatly contribute to their child's participation at school, at home, and in the community. However, it is unclear what kind of information is available from literature about what parents actually do to support their child's participation and what problems and needs they experience? Hence, the aim of this study was to provide an overview of the actions, challenges, and needs of parents in enabling participation of their child with a physical disability that is neurological and non-progressive in nature. METHODS: Scoping review with extensive literature search (September 2011) and a thematic analysis to synthesize findings. RESULTS: Fourteen relevant articles revealed two major themes: 'parents enable and support performance of meaningful activities' and 'parents enable, change and use the environment'. Each theme holds a number of actions (e.g. choosing the right type of meaningful activities for facilitating social contacts) and challenges (e.g. negative attitudes of other people). Less information is available about the needs of parents. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that parents apply a broad range of strategies to support participation of their children. They experience many challenges, especially as a result of constraints in the social and physical environments. However, this review also shows that little is known about needs of parents in facilitating participation. As Family-centered service (FCS) philosophy is all about the needs of the child and the family, it is essential to further investigate the needs of the parents and to understand if and to what extent they wish to be supported in enabling their child's participation in daily life