CAROLINA MOUNTAIN HOME: PLACE, TRADITION, MIGRATION, AND AN APPALACHIAN MUSICAL FAMILY

This thesis examines musical community in southwestern North Carolina and seeks to establish the region as one of the most influential areas of mountain music. Too often do scholars focus their attentions on other regions of Appalachia as being the center of gravity for mountain music while neglecting the under appreciated coves of the southwestern counties of North Carolina. The Queen family of Jackson County serve as a vehicle to demonstrate the rich musical communities of southwestern North Carolina. Through the Queens, this thesis details important events and people in mountain music from 1900 to the present. The Queen family and their relatives began the century much like other rural southern Appalachian musical families. Music served as entertainment, prayer, and a community builder. In the late 1970s the Queens were increasingly recognized for their contributions to mountain culture, specifically music. This recognition eventually gained a national stage, thus demonstrating the region's important contributions to mountain music. Transplanted mountain musical communities in the Pacific Northwest further substantiate the claim that southwestern North Carolina and its families played major roles in the perpetuation of mountain music. Beginning around 1900 and continuing through the 1970s,large numbers of people from western North Carolina, including some of the Queens, migrated to Washington state. Most migrants followed the logging industry and settled along the Skagit and Sauk River valleys. Tarheels remained close and developed mountain musical communities similar to the ones they had known in southern Appalachia. Today the Darrington Bluegrass Festival and the Queen family in Skagit County are testaments to the mountain musical influences North Carolinians transmitted to the Pacific Northwest

The Relationship between Mountaintop Coal Removal and Adolescent and Young Adult Risk Behaviors in Rural, Urban, and Appalachian Areas of Kentucky

In Appalachia, coal mining remains a major source of industry, yet it is associated with significant environmental and health consequences, including increases in rates of depression, cancer, cardiac and respiratory diseases, birth defects, low birth weight, stress, and overall poor physical health. There is a dearth of research on the effect of mountaintop coal removal (MTR) mining on Appalachian mental health. In the current study, a statewide emergency department dataset (SEDD) was used to compare, adolescents and emerging adult cases. It was hypothesized that both location in Appalachia and the presence of MTR would be associated with higher odds of risky behaviors (e.g. self-harm, substance use, and sexually transmitted infections). Cases from SEDD were separated in to groups from rural and non-rural, Appalachian and non-Appalachian, with and without MTR. These groups were compared through a series of binary logistic regressions. Adolescents and emerging adult ins Appalachia, rural Appalachia, and rural Appalachia with MTR had relatively higher odds of diagnosis of polysubstance use disorder. Cases experienced increased odds of diagnosis with an alcohol use disorder in rural Appalachia with and without MTR. This suggests that MTR may play an influencing role in rural Appalachian substance use

Mysticism and ritual : a processual framework for dance as social transformation

This dissertation was concerned with the role of dance in personal and social transformation. The analysis of traditional ritual and mystical forms and the elements of the creative process in the arts, were used as a conceptual framework for this study. The theoretical basis for this dissertation, came from Matthew Fox, who uses art and the creative process as an integral part of his vision of transformation for social change. Part One includes an analysis of the current global problems, as well as an analysis of how the creative process can effect transformation. Part Two analyzes the structure of ritual in effecting transformation, with particular focus on the work of anthropologist Victor Turner. Descriptions of the structure and intent of current rituals from the Wiccan and Native American traditions provide instances of the transformative process and the role of ritual in effecting social change

The Impact of Tribal Gaming in Rural Communities: A Case Study of the Mashantucket Pequot in New London County and the Prospect of Tribal Gaming in Robeson County

In the quietness of a small Connecticut town, a surprise to those unaware, one can find the world’s largest casino. Ledyard, Connecticut, with a population of approximately 15,600, lists the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation as the top employer in the community. There are endless questions that have surfaced as to the effects of a tribal casino on a rural community. Are these small towns equipped to handle the masses of patrons that visit these casinos twenty-four hours per day, seven days each week, three hundred and sixty-five days each year? What are the social issues related to making gambling so easily accessible in a rural community? In the case of Robeson County, specifically Lumberton and the surrounding area, what temptation would gambling foster in such an economically impoverished community? The National Indian Gaming Association has just released a study on the economic impact of Indian gaming that even in the title states “Tribal Government Gaming: The Native American Success Story.” Is tribal gaming a true success story or do we gauge success by disregarding the failures? This paper will explore tribal gaming and the impact on rural communities such as Ledyard and the Robeson County area

A psbA phylogeny for selected rhodophyceae

Oligonucleotide primers for PCR amplifying and sequencing the plastid-encoded psbA gene, which encodes the D1 protein of photosystem II, were developed for red algae. Using these primers psbA sequences were determined for 18 different species representing 10 phylogenetically diverse red algal orders. The third codon position of the psbA gene is too variable (= homoplasious, mutationally saturated) to be used to estimate phylogenetic relationships among the orders investigated here, whereas amino acid sequences are too conserved. In contrast, analyses including only first and second codon positions yielded trees for red algae that are, with exceptions, congruent with those obtained for other genes. Comparisons of sequence divergence values and phylogenetic measures imply that psbA sequences are best suited for use at the rank of family and below

Governance of women's intercollegiate athletics : an historical perspective

It was the purpose of this study to trace the conditions and circumstances which led to the formation of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women and to study the inception of that organization. The development of semi-governance bodies was investigated to determine how such development influenced the establishment of the AIAW. Critical issues which influenced the AIAW and its precedent organizations were explored. Viable patterns for the future were suggested in reference to the historical perspective. Data were gathered through personal interviews with selected knowledgeable persons. Structured interview questions were taped. The archives of the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport were thoroughly examined and pertinent information was photocopied

An analytical study of the evaluation processes of student teachers and their use as instruments of instruction

An analytical study of the evaluation processes of student teachers and their use as instruments of instruction is timely. In recent years there has been an increasing and urgent demand for evaluation in educational circles. Until recently unconcern for the tensions that arise from inconsistency and lack of knowledge in student teachers and staff members have resulted, time and again, in the failure of an evaluation program to achieve its most important purposes to make education more effective. Because evaluation has a purpose, therefore the way it is carried out becomes important. For this reason, it should be the function of the teacher training institution to help every student teacher to discover, develop and understand evaluation processes, cultivate the habit of self-evaluation, appreciate and desire worthwhile activities of evaluation, gain command of the common instruments of evaluation, practice their use as instruments of instruction, seek and like evaluation, and realize the need for continuous evaluation

An inquiry into the attitudes of a selected group of African Americans towards the portrayal of African Americans in contemporary children's literature

This study investigated the attitudes of a selected group of African Americans towards the portrayal of African Americans in contemporary children's literature. A qualitative research design, using in-depth interviewing, autobiographical statements, and a Likert-type evaluation scale, enabled the researcher to gain insights and understandings into the world of children's literature from a minority perspective. Five participants were selected for this study. One of the five individuals served as a practice participant; she helped design and develop the questions for the interviews. The other four participants represented one of the following categories: parent, grandparent, teacher, and minister. Each participant was an important member of the educational community in a small, predominantly African American, elementary school. The participants represented various age, gender, and socio-ecomonic backgrounds

Food for Success: Promoting Summer Feeding Programs for School Children in Robeson County, NC

Robeson County is ranked #1 in poverty in North Carolina, with 1 in 2 children living below the poverty line (Census Bureau, 2014). Thirty-four percent of children are living in food insecure homes (Feeding America, 2014). Food insecurity presents negative consequences for children’s health, behavior, and academic performance in school. Free and reduced lunch programs provide meals for low-income children during the school year, but not during summer months. Summer feeding programs aim to fill the gap, providing children with nutritious food over the summer. With such high child poverty and food insecurity rates in Robeson County, are current summer feeding programs meeting children’s needs? What barriers and obstacles do current and potential feeding sites face in their efforts to effectively feed children in Robeson County? To answer these questions, I conducted 12 semi-structured interviews with the Board of Education, Public Schools of Robeson County, current feeding sites, potential feeding sites, and NC House Officials. Findings revealed there are not enough summer feeding sites in the county to meet children’s needs. Barriers and challenges included food allergies, picky eaters, while some children asked for extra food to take home, parental involvement, promotion, and transportation. Possible solutions on how to resolve problems of access to summer feeding sites to help feed the children in Robeson County are addressed

Use of LiDAR data in defining the urban-rural transition zone in stream cross-section morphology

Stream channel geometries have been found to enlarge with urbanization of the upland drainage basin. Although enlargement has been documented in a variety of climatic and urban regimes, little is known about how the geomorphic effects of urbanization translate into rural areas downstream. Models derived from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data from the North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program were used in conjunction with field surveys to explore the urban-rural transition for North Buffalo Creek in Greensboro, NC. Although the model did not accurately represent at-a-point channel geometries, it was able to represent the prevailing geometric relationships between contributing drainage area and averaged channel capacity for channel reaches of approximately 140m. The urban-rural transition for North Buffalo Creek was found to be linear, with decreases in enlargement beginning well within the current urban boundary. Using linear regression, a truly “rural” state was predicted to be achieved when the channel reaches a contributing drainage area of between 400 - 450km2. Local increases in enlargement were found to be directly influenced by the junction of major tributaries