Design in Planning: Reintegration through Shifting Values

Design is increasingly entering planning beyond the subfield of urban design. At a larger scale, designers are moving into the social sciences to apply design skills at intersections with the social sciences. This article offers an overview of research and practice at the forefront of both interpreting design fields and understanding their growing importance within planning. This transcends examinations of urban design to incorporate the potential of design more broadly in planning, with particular emphasis on community development and engagement. The article does this through a case study of an existing design-based nonprofit (bcWORKSHOP) which leverages techniques across design and planning to generate new forms of community planning practice in the State of Texas. Ultimately, this case study begins to ask whether planning can fully address a number of issues (like social/racial justice and climate change) without understanding these issues from both design and planning perspectives simultaneously. It also emphasizes the importance of training planners to both envision and build alternate possible worlds, a skillset fundamental to design that could reshape planning education and practice

Pregnant in Prison: Comparing National Standards to the Policies and Programs of State Prisons

The population in women’s prisons in the United States has been rapidly increasing. This increase has also brought attention to the number of pregnancies and births that occur in a prison setting each year. In the United States, national standards have been developed by experts in obstetrics and gynecology, but currently, state prisons have varying policies and programs for pregnant, birthing, and postpartum people which leads to a vast difference in experiences and a disparity in treatment. To better understand what the policies and programs for maternity in prison are and how they measure up to national standards, the present study aims to identify the policies and programs state prisons are adopting, in reference to pregnancy and compare them to the national and international standards. Data were collected from ten state prisons using their Department of Corrections’ websites and evaluated through qualitative coding to identify what United States prisons are doing to care for pregnant, birthing, and postpartum people in prison and compare to the national standards set by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. More than three-quarters of the data were missing from these websites and the recommendations of the ACOG that were not specifically about pregnancy had more data than the recommendations that were specific to pregnancy. Policies must be created that address the unique nuances of pregnancy in prison as the health and safety of prisoners is the responsibility of these facilities that house pregnant people

Questioning as We Walk: Case Analysis of Community Organizing in Rio Grande Valley Colonias

Why are United States (U.S.)/Mexico colonias assumed to lack the capacity to organize? Are they, in fact, capable of community organizing? This dissertation sought to resolve a major discrepancy between evidence of colonia organizing on the ground and theories of community organizing that obscure colonia-based practices. Deriving from recent critiques of the field, the research uses a relational theory of organizing to reframe historic and contemporary colonia organizing practices. Using a qualitative case analysis of the Rio Grande Valley (Valley) of Texas, twenty-one colonia organizations and networks embedded within the case were comparatively examined. Data collection included twenty open-ended interviews with colonia organizers and observations of fifteen organizations between 2014 and 2016. This data was then analyzed through a relational framework that emphasized the position of Valley colonia organizing within the “third country” of the U.S./Mexico border, a region that remains distinct from the United States and Mexico. Based on this analysis, the dissertation identifies four historic and four contemporary colonia organizing movements. The narratives of these eight movements subvert commonly held knowledge concerning colonia organizing by highlighting not only the existence of such organizing, but also its tenacity and breadth of scope. A common theme emerges regarding the role of self-help. However, this self-help implies a “do-it-yourself” attitude, not the government self-help housing programs that are frequently associated with colonia development. Contemporary colonia organizers are reappropriating the term “self-help” and, in a time of government austerity, are creating several regional colonia movements with the goal of supporting low-income, grassroots colonia leadership. Key to this goal is the creation of community-based civics education driven at a regional scale by the colonia residents. Ultimately, the dissertation not only upends a common assumption regarding colonia capacity to organize, but also provides insights into community organizing theory and its grasp on the connections between social context and practice. At an even higher level, there is a need to reassess theoretical definitions of “territory” and “sovereignty” to match the practices of the ultra-poor.PHDUrban and Regional PlanningUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137103/1/dzrivera_1.pd

3D Heart Model for Mapping RF Ablation Sites

Electro-Cardiologists routinely insert radiofrequency probes into the heart and conduct targeted ablation procedures to correct irregular heartbeats. Current techniques are very experience and “touch” based, and require the novice cardiologist about 50 procedures to become proficient. There is a need for a functional heart model device that can be used to reduce the amount of procedures on human patients before cardiologist become proficient. Project constraints included limited software availability for segmenting accuracy, available 3D printing technology and materials, and cost to 3D print heart models due to the complex geometry. The team began with a CT scan, ITK SNAP and MIMICS segmenting software, but the heart models appeared inaccurate and were filled with holes after segmenting. The team then downloaded an accurate heart model from an open source site and printed the model in thermoplastic material using a fused deposition modeling 3D printer. Metal nodes were placed throughout the heart model, which act as points the cardiologists can practice navigating the catheter to. Attached to these nodes is a circuit board which uses LEDs to display when the cardiologist correctly touches the desired node. There is not a model currently on the market that would help cardiologists become proficient with RF ablation; therefore this model will increase the safety of human patients during a RF ablation procedure.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/capstone/1123/thumbnail.jp

Environmental Problem Solving: Aldea Coffee Composting Project

There is currently no system to compost or sustainably dispose of waste for businesses in Grand Haven, Michigan. Aldea Coffee is a local shop that is looking to find an environmentally-friendly, sustainable waste-management system for their used coffee grounds and other wastes they produce. We believe starting a waste composting program is the next step to reduce our impact on the environment. Potentially, this program can expand to more local businesses in Grand Haven

Working with Student Teachers: A Mixed Methods Study to Examine the Roles and Self-Identified Dispositions of Cooperating Teachers

A critical component of teacher education is the field experience during which candidates practice under the supervision of experienced teachers. Programs use the InTASC Standards to define the requisite knowledge, skills, and dispositions for teaching. Practicing teachers are familiar with the concepts of knowledge and skills, but they are less familiar with dispositions. Practicing teachers who mentor prospective teachers are underrepresented in the literature, but they are critical to teacher preparation. The research goals were to describe the self-identified dispositions of cooperating teachers, identify what cooperating teachers consider their role in preparing prospective teachers, and explain challenges that cooperating teachers face. Using a mixed methods design, I conducted a quantitative survey followed by a qualitative case study. When I compared survey and case study data, cooperating teachers report possessing InTASC critical dispositions described in Standard 2: Learning Differences, Standard 3: Learning Environments, and Standard 9: Professional Learning and Ethical Practice, but not Standard 6: Assessment and Standard 10: Leadership and Collaboration. Cooperating teachers assume the roles of modeler, mentor and advisor, and informal evaluator. They explain student teachers often lack skills and dispositions to assume full teaching responsibilities and recommend that universities better prepare candidates for classrooms. Cooperating teachers felt university evaluations were not relevant to teaching reality. I recommend modifying field experiences to increase the quantity and duration of classroom placements. I suggest further research to detail cooperating teacher dispositions, compare cooperating teachers who work with different universities, and determine if cooperating teacher dispositions influence student teacher dispositions

Conhecimento tradicional como instrumento para conservação e manejo do caranguejo uçá ucides cordatus (Linnaeus, 1763) na reserva extrativista marinha de São João Da Ponta - Pará

This study aims to document the harvest of the uça or mangrove crab (Ucides cordatus) and identify actions of local fisherman that may contribute to the management and conservation of the species in the 3.203,24 ha São João da Ponta Marine Extractive Reserve in Pará state, Brazil. Research was carried out in the communities of Guarajuba, Deolândia, Porto Grande e São Francisco where the largest harvest activity in the reserve is concentrated. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaires were used to evaluate the socio-environmental and economic profile of the population, and to document the extractive activities and conservation status of crab stocks from the perspective of local people. Participatory mapping and participant observation were used to map the mangrove habitat, delineate routes and areas of current crab harvest and to identify local extractive strategies. Population interviewed ages (median 36.5; n=92) and men predominate in the crab harvest, and most are native to the region and have limited formal education. 64.1% of the overall population interviewed declared that they harvested uça crabs and yet most of these 33,7% said they did not understand the significance of the creation of the Extractive Reserve. And yet despite these limitations, research revealed detailed local knowledge about the mangrove habitat and the distribution and ecology of the crabs within it. Local knowledge needs to be leveraged to develop more effective management and conservation strategies for this sustainable development reserve.O objetivo deste estudo consistiu em conhecer as práticas extrativistas e identificar ações que contribuam para a conservação e o manejo do caranguejo-uçá (Ucides cordatus) na Reserva Extrativista Marinha de São João da Ponta, Pará. Mais especificamente, este estudo buscou: caracterizar a população extrativista que trabalha com a extração do caranguejo naquela unidade de conservação; identificar e mapear de forma participativa as áreas de uso atual e potencial do caranguejo-uçá; e identificar ações e estratégias tradicionais de explotação do caranguejo-uçá naquela área. A REM S.J.P. possui uma área de aproximadamente de 3.203,24 ha, e a pesquisa foi conduzida nas comunidades de Guarajuba, Deolândia, Porto Grande e São Francisco, que constituem os maiores produtores de caranguejo da reserva. Este trabalho foi desenvolvido de acordo com os princípios da pesquisa qualitativa, utilizando questionários semiestruturados a fim de caracterizar o perfil socioambiental, a atividade extrativista, a comercialização e avaliar a percepção local do estado de conservação dos estoques locais do caranguejo-uçá. A fim de complementar as informações obtidas nas entrevistas, utilizamos o método de observação participante para demarcar as rotas de uso do manguezal com auxílio de GPS e cronômetro, e para confecção de mapas de uso dos recursos. A população estudada mostrou predominância masculina nesta atividade, com origem no próprio município, baixa escolaridade e média de idade de 36,5 anos. A maioria dos entrevistados declarou ser caranguejeiro (64,1%), e não compreender o significado de Reserva Extrativista (33,7%). Além disso, os caranguejeiros detêm um profundo conhecimento sobre a distribuição do recurso explorado e sobre o ecossistema manguezal, e podem auxiliar de maneira mais efetiva na gestão daquela Unidade de Conservação de Uso Sustentável. Este estudo torna-se relevante por trazer subsídios para auxiliar na gestão e manejo da extração do caranguejo neste território protegido, bem como para construção do Plano de manejo desta unidade de conservação

Bridging the Gap for First Generation Students (BG4FGS): An Occupation-Based Peer Mentoring Program at Dominican University of California

Attending college is a major milestone in the lives of students. The transition to college can be a challenging process for new students, particularly first-generation students, impacting their ability to meet the more rigorous academic demands and to integrate socially into the campus community (Prospero & Vohra-Gupta, 2007; Ramos-Sanchez & Nichols, 2007). To ease the transition to college, peer mentoring programs can assist new college students by offering guidance, one-on-one and group sessions, providing information about campus life and resources, and referring them to support services (Ferrari, 2004; Lennox & Leonard, 2007). The project developers collaborated with Dominican University of California to create a peer mentoring program geared specifically for its first-generation student population called Bridging the Gap for First-Generation Students or BG4FGS. We used an occupational therapy lens to help these students succeed in college by addressing areas including academic performance, social participation, occupational balance, stress management, time management, and college finances. The first outcome of this project was the development of a peer mentor training manual. Mentors received their manuals during the training program in mid-August 2012. The second outcome was the creation of group modules that were implemented during one-hour monthly sessions with the mentors and mentees in September, October, and November 2012. Overall, the mentors reported that the training program and manuals were effective in helping them understand the objectives of BG4FGS and adequately prepare them for their roles. This project has demonstrated that occupational therapy plays a vital role in consultation and training to prepare peer mentors for implementing an effective peer mentoring program, in which first-generation students at Dominican University can benefit from