School Counseling Toward a Mission of “IB for All”

Although the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) recognizes the importance of school counselors, there is limited guidance about the expectations and roles of school counselors in serving the diverse needs of students in IB schools. With the IBO’s movement toward a mission of “IB for All” to address equitable access to academic rigor, this also aligns with school counselors’ ethical responsibilities as advocates, collaborators, and leaders to promote access and equity for all students. The authors (a) highlight the work of one school counseling program that developed and implemented initiatives, using the U.S.-based ASCA National Model (ASCA, 2019a) as a framework, to increase access to the IB program for diverse students and families; and (b) articulate the potential roles of school counselors in promoting students’ academic, social and emotional, and postsecondary development and trajectories from grades nine through 12 in the IB Middle Years and Diploma Programs

Skeletal myosin heavy chain function in cultured lung myofibroblasts

Myofibroblasts are unique contractile cells with both muscle and nonmuscle properties. Typically myofibroblasts are identified by the expression of α smooth muscle actin (ASMA); however some myofibroblasts also express sarcomeric proteins. In this study, we show that pulmonary myofibroblasts express three of the eight known sarcomeric myosin heavy chains (MyHCs) (IIa, IId, and embryonic) and that skeletal muscle myosin enzymatic activity is required for pulmonary myofibroblast contractility. Furthermore, inhibition of skeletal myosin activity and myofibroblast contraction results in a decrease in both ASMA and skeletal MyHC promoter activity and ASMA protein expression, suggesting a potential coupling of skeletal myosin activity and ASMA expression in myofibroblast differentiation. To understand the molecular mechanisms whereby skeletal muscle genes are regulated in myofibroblasts, we have found that members of the myogenic regulatory factor family of transcription factors and Ca2+-regulated pathways are involved in skeletal MyHC promoter activity. Interestingly, the regulation of skeletal myosin expression in myofibroblasts is distinct from that observed in muscle cells and suggests that cell context is important in its control

Baboon endogenous virus genome. I. Restriction enzyme map of the unintegrated DNA genome of a primate retrovirus

A detailed restriction map was deduced for the genome of an endogenous retrovirus of a higher primate, that of baboon. The cleavage sites for 12 restriction enzymes were mapped. The unintegrated linear viral DNA intermediate that is produced by infection of permissive cells with baboon endogenous virus was isolated. Hybridization with a strong-stop complementary DNA probe demonstrated presence of a terminal repetition in the linear viral DNA. The positions of restriction sites for two particular enzymes, SmaI and XhoI, near each end were consistent with this result and indicated that the length of the repetition is 0.55 +/- 0.01 kilobase. The linear viral DNA had a unique restriction map indicating that it is not a set of random circular permutations of the RNA genome. From hybridization with a 3'-specific probe, the DNA restriction map was aligned relative to the 5'-to-3' orientation of the viral RNA. We observed a minor heterogeneity in a BamHI recognition site 1.95 kilobases from the right end of the linear map

Beyond the IEP meeting: parents' perceptions of music education for individuals with exceptionalities

In this phenomenographical study I documented and analyzed the perspectives of six mothers whose sons attended a postsecondary music academy in the northeast to discern the essence of parental experience and the meanings they attributed to music education. Education for students with exceptionalities arose from parental advocacy and legal battles; however, a review of the literature indicated that research had not documented the essence of parental experience and the meanings parents made of music education. Public Law 94-142 (1975) mandated parental involvement in the education for children with exceptionalities in a system that required parents’ presences at Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings and, as amended, is still in effect today. This law protects educational rights of individuals with exceptionalities and is designed to enhance their education, while insuring the rights and involvement of parents in educational planning. I explored the relationships between perceived experience and social capital, and documented the actions six mothers took based upon the meanings they made of music education. Parents whose offspring with exceptionalities have pursued music education beyond the American public school system offered insights about their experience and the meanings they ascribed to music education for their children. Bracketing, intuiting, analyzing, and describing were used to document data collected from interviews, blogs, and journals. A theoretical relationship was considered between perceived experience and social capital