#SocialJustice: Combatting Implicit Bias in an Age of Millennials, Colorblindness, & Microaggressions

Law schools, in an effort to produce practice-ready graduates, are in an opportune position to take the lead in confronting social justice. Many schools are shifting from traditional classroom instruction to more experiential learning environments which place students early in their academic pursuits in contact with clients and legal problems. While academic support originally focused on racial integration in law schools, today’s Academic Support professionals support students who are diverse in various ways. As professionals, we cannot assume that our diverse students do not carry bias. Implicit bias, a bias one is not consciously aware of, has the ability to derail relationships with clients and peers. Complicating matters is the general assumption that Millennials, the “colorblind” generation, are the most tolerant of all previous generations. Yet, studies have found Millennials just as susceptible to bias as previous generations. Thus, law schools have the responsibility to train their students to become lawyers who are capable of working with diverse groups of people and do so with the ability to mitigate their biases, which could potentially bring a fairer administration of justice. This training must go beyond informing students about implicit bias but also teach them mechanisms to combat such bias

Going Mad: A Comprehensive Study of the Mad Scene in Gaetano Donizetti\u27s Opera, Lucia di Lammermoor

A study of the Mad Scene from Gaetano Donizetti\u27s (1797-1848) opera Lucia di Lammermoor

Paradox of the Abject: Postcolonial Subjectivity in Jamaica Kincaid’s The Autobiography of My Mother and Cristina García’s Dreaming in Cuban

In Powers of Horror, Julia Kristeva defines abjection as the seductive and destructive remainder of the process of entering the symbolic space of the father and leaving the pre-symbolic space of the mother, resulting in a desire to return to the jouissance of the pre-symbolic space. In this project, I read Jamaica Kincaid’s The Autobiography of My Mother as an attempt to link Xuela’s psychic abjection with the postcolonial identity. Xuela exists on the boundaries of the colonial dichotomy, embracing the space of the abject because she is haunted by her dead mother. She cannot return to her mother, so she inhabits the space of the abject, creating an abject lineage and symbolically writing the history of the Carib people. I use this novel as a stepping off point for a reading of Cristina García’s Dreaming in Cuban. Celia and Jorge are abjected as their bodies are tied to the nation; therefore, they produce abject children. Each of Celia’s children tries to return to the psychic, pre-symbolic space linked to the mother but cannot; therefore, they inhabit the space of the abject in a manner similar to how Xuela inhabits it, and their abjection is represented through their relationship to sugar. Only Pilar, as an artist, is able to move past abjection – the negative space of loss – to hybridity – the positive space of creation – to end the cycle. The significance of this reading of abjection in postcolonial literary studies is that these two postcolonial women’s texts both illustrate and attempt to resolve the problem of postcolonial female subjectivity, although to different degrees of success

Video performance of “Parade”

Video performance of “Parade”by Alysia Harri

Stakeholders\u27 Perspectives on the Implementation of a Promise Academy

This case study addressed the factors that enhanced or constrained the success of one Promise Academy at an elementary school in the northeastern United States. A large number of schools in an urban district have continuously failed to make adequate yearly progress (AYP). The study school implemented the Promise Academy model in September 2010, to dramatically improve and transform the learning environment in this underperforming school. Promise Academies, the district turnaround model, was implemented in 11 schools, all of which have failed to produce increases in student outcomes. The theoretical framework supporting this study was Michael Fullan\u27s theory of educational change. Using a qualitative goals based program evaluation, the research questions explored the stakeholders\u27 perspectives on the implementation of one Promise Academy. For this qualitative study, interview data were collected and analyzed by using open coding and analytical coding. The common themes identified helped to examine and understand the factors that participants\u27 reported as having constrained and enhanced the implementation of the Promise Academy model and student achievement. The key stakeholders in this case study included 10 teachers, 3 parents and 2 administrators. The results included in the evaluation report reflected that the implementation of the Promise Academy had a positive impact on student learning during the first 2 years of the model, however, this was followed by a decline in student achievement during the third year and beyond. The recommendations included a continued plan of action throughout the intended duration of the reform model. Positive school turnaround can lead to higher graduation rates which can positively affect the quality of the community, which will ultimately lead to positive social change

Finite Element Modeling and Analysis Applications in Osteogenesis Imperfecta

Understanding the biomechanics of bones in persons with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a key component to further understanding the disease, optimizing treatment and quality of life, as well as injury prevention. However, it is not feasible to study bone biomechanics in vivo. Thus, modeling may play a key role in understanding how OI bones respond to the loading experienced during various activities, especially ambulation. Biomechanical modeling can provide insight into bone fracture risks, such as type and location, from single applied loads or repetitive loading. One method for obtaining this information is via a finite element analysis (FEA). FEA is a general technique for mathematically approximating solutions to boundary-value problems.1 It is a powerful computational tool with numerous applications. These numerical methods are used to obtain an output from a system of differential equations in response to boundary condition inputs in many scenarios. FEA allows for the discretization of a structure into numerous subparts (elements) for analysis. Elements represent regular strait-side geometric 2-D or 3-D shapes that enclose a finite area or volume.2 Field output variables (stress, strain, etc.) are explicitly calculated at each vertex (node) of every element.3 These outputs provide information that corresponds to bone strength and, therefore, location and risk for potential fractures

DEMAND FOR DIFFERENTIATED VEGETABLES

To obtain a healthier diet, Americans need to consume not only more vegetables, but also a healthier mix of vegetables. Household demands for eight categories of vegetables are investigated, using ACNielsen's Homescan data. A maximum simulated likelihood estimation procedure results in elasticity estimates which are somewhat larger than those obtained from both time-series and cross-section data in the literature. Even these larger elasticities are not large enough to bridge the dietary consumption gap without, and possibly even with, substantial price or food expenditure subsidies. Furthermore, Homescan data do indicate some significant differences in preferences for types of vegetables by household characteristics, such as race and ethnicity. This information could be used in designing more effective public interventions for boosting vegetable consumption in the United States.Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,