Gender, and other variables, affecting graduation outcomes and the future of science. Male vs. female students 1995-2003 Rochester Institute of Technology’s College of Science

This thesis focuses on the impact of retention of undergraduate students on the future of science. If there are insufficient numbers of science students pursuing and succeeding in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education and careers, it has been argued that the United States will lose its innovative, competitive, and technological edge. The focus is on the challenges of retaining students, both male and female, in the sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology from 1995-2003. This thesis will describe and analyze existing data in an effort to develop a case specific understanding of retention metrics, student retention dynamics, and consideration of possible strategies

Advising Assessment Practices of Advising Professionals at an Accredited United Kingdom Urban Career-Focused Higher Education Institution: A Replicated Quantitative, Descriptive Analysis

The Problem As the world has flattened, the globalization and quality education movement surrounding higher education worldwide has led to the accountability of all stakeholders regarding student success in and beyond the classroom. Student mobility continues to impact tertiary enrollments as families and students consider the proliferated traditional and non-traditional enrollment alternatives along with prospective lower tertiary debt options. Although assessment, an accountability tool, in co-curricular areas such as advising has been overlooked by leaders, advising is not impervious to accountability consequences. The problem is that assessment of advising, if performed, is oftentimes implemented informally, without a well-defined framework or the utilization of sophisticated measures, consequently advancing uninformed decisions that may have adverse effects on student success. This study examined the advising assessment practices (identify SLOs, determine assessment method(s) used, and utilize assessment data) of an accredited urban careerfocused university with a student body comprised of over 30% non-natives representing 65 countries and located in the United Kingdom; a country identified as the second most popular tertiary mobile student enrollment destination, in a time when tertiary student success is under intense scrutiny. Method An online, validated, cross-sectional National Survey on Assessment of Academic Advising instrument was slightly revised and used for this replicated study to gain a fundamental cross-cultural understanding of advising assessment practices from the viewpoint of advising professionals having responsibilities associated with undergraduate advising at one U.K. university. Three of the four research questions focused on advising assessment practices and included: 1. What are the advising student learning outcomes identified at the participating U.K. university? 2. What are the advising methods utilized to conduct assessment of advising SLOs at the participating U.K. university? and 3. How are the advising assessment data used for advising co-curricular improvement(s) at the participating U.K. university? The fourth question focused on the advising professional’s assessment perceptions and included: 4. What elements are viewed as supporting the assessment of advising at the participating U.K. university? All response data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The nominally measured independent variables included the three recognized assessment practices of: 1) identifying advising SLOs, 2) employing assessment method(s), and 3) utilizing advising assessment data. The 26 pre-defined advising student learning outcomes that articulate what students are expected to know (cognitive learning), do (behavioral learning), and value (affective learning) were the nominally measured dependent variables (Powers, 2012, p. 15). Findings The findings indicated that the European university informally assessed advising through the three observed advising assessment practices. The sample reporting described cognitive learning outcomes as the most identified advising learning outcomes; focused on what students should know as a result of advising (Powers, 2012, p. 40). The data also revealed that surveys/questionnaires were the advising assessment method identified with the highest frequency within all the advising student learning outcomes, and the main use for advising assessment data for both cognitive and behavioral advising student learning outcomes was to improve advising process/delivery, whereas the primary assessment data use for affective student learning outcomes was to improve advising curriculum. Furthermore, the results suggested the four main elements perceived as important in supporting advising assessment were: advisors needed to believe that advising assessment was a worthwhile endeavor, advisors need to know how to conduct assessment of advising, advisors need to feel confident in their abilities to properly conduct assessment of advising, and that advisors need more information about what similar universities are doing to assess advising. Whereas, respondents indicated the most neutral view of the element: advisors need to be rewarded for assessment of advising activities, and interestingly, revealed that advisors need to enjoy the assessment of advising process as unimportant in supporting the assessment of advising (Powers, 2012). Conclusions The research data suggests that the university informally exercised the steps identified as best practices in measuring the effect of advising on student learning. Moreover, with approximately 85% of respondents indicating the 7 cognitive, 11 behavioral and 8 affective learning outcomes were informally assessed implying an opportunity to formalize a culture of advising assessment. Additionally, the data suggests the leading perceptions of advisors needing to believe that advising assessment was a worthwhile endeavor, advisors needing to know how to conduct assessment of advising, advisors needing to feel confident in their abilities to properly conduct assessment of advising, and advisors needing more information about what similar universities are doing to assess advising as important factors in supporting advising assessment (Powers, 2012). This would involve a need for an internal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis of administration\u27s current support for advising assessment practices (Hladchenko, 2014). Furthermore, as the first study to examine the advising assessment practices of one European university, this study begins to addresses the current gap in published research regarding co-curricular assessment practices that creates a hindrance in replicating applicable cross-cultural advising assessment practices by seeking to establish commonalities between cultures yet also seeking to identify areas of difference within the global higher education community in support of student success (Newell, 1998, p. 359)

Amicus Brief in Obergefell v. Hodges

Supreme Court precedent establishes that the government may not punish children for matters beyond their control. Same-sex marriage bans and non-recognition laws (“marriage bans”) do precisely this. The states argue that marriage is good for children, yet marriage bans categorically exclude an entire class of children – children of same-sex couples – from the legal, economic and social benefits of marriage. This amicus brief recounts a powerful body of equal protection jurisprudence that prohibits punishing children to reflect moral disapproval of parental conduct or to incentivize adult behavior. We then explain that marriage bans punish children of same-sex couples because they: 1) foreclose their central legal route to family formation; 2) categorically void their existing legal parent-child relationships incident to out-of-state marriages; 3) deny them economic rights and benefits; and 4) inflict psychological and stigmatic harm. States cannot justify marriage bans as good for children and then exclude children of same-sex couples based on moral disapproval of their same-sex parents’ relationships or to incentivize opposite-sex couples to “procreate” within the bounds of marriage. To do so, severs the connection between legal burdens and individual responsibility and creates a permanent class or caste distinction

Brief of Amici Curiae Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children in Support of Petitioners in Obergefell v. Hodges

Supreme Court precedent establishes that the government may not punish children for matters beyond their control. Same-sex marriage bans and non-recognition laws (“marriage bans”) do precisely this. The states argue that marriage is good for children, yet marriage bans categorically exclude an entire class of children – children of same-sex couples – from the legal, economic and social benefits of marriage. This amicus brief recounts a powerful body of equal protection jurisprudence that prohibits punishing children to reflect moral disapproval of parental conduct or to incentivize adult behavior. We then explain that marriage bans punish children of same-sex couples because they: 1) foreclose their central legal route to family formation; 2) categorically void their existing legal parent-child relationships incident to out-of-state marriages; 3) deny them economic rights and benefits; and 4) inflict psychological and stigmatic harm. States cannot justify marriage bans as good for children and then exclude children of same-sex couples based on moral disapproval of their same-sex parents’ relationships or to incentivize opposite-sex couples to “procreate” within the bounds of marriage. To do so, severs the connection between legal burdens and individual responsibility and creates a permanent class or caste distinction

Brief of Amici Curiae Scholars of The Constitutional Rights and Interests Of Children in Support of Respondents in Masterpiece Cakeshop LTD, et al v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission

Masterpiece Cakeshop LTD, et al v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission is about much more than a wedding cake. It is about the rightful place of LGBT people and their families in the commercial and public sphere. In fact, children are already bearing the brunt of exclusionary practices in the public marketplace because of their relationship to or association with their LGBT parents. In Michigan, a pediatrician refused to treat an infant based solely on the fact that the child had lesbian mothers. In Kentucky, a judge refused to hear adoption cases of children involving LGBT adoptive-parents-to-be. In Tennessee, a nondenominational private school rejected enrollment for a pre-kindergartener and his 8-month-old sister after discovering that the children had two dads. In this brief, we argue that an expressive or religious exemption to sexual orientation discrimination prohibitions will deny children of LGBT parents equal access to the public sphere, inflict upon them psychological harm, and interfere with the “integrity and closeness” of their families — contrary to the aims of public accommodation and anti-discrimination law, and LGBT equality principles advanced in United States v. Windsor and Obergefell v. Hodges

Brief for Amici Curiae Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children in Support of Respondent Edith Windsor Addressing the Merits and Supporting Affirmance

This amicus brief filed by Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children turns the spotlight on children in same-sex families. The brief enumerates the ways Section 3 of DOMA impairs children\u27s interests by denying federal recognition of their parents\u27 marriages

The effect of liner design and materials selection on prosthesis interface heat dissipation

Background and aim: Thermal discomfort often affects prosthesis wearers and could be addressed by increasing liner thermal conductivity. This note explores a liner made from thermally conductive silicone and two additional alternative liner designs. Technique: Thermally conductive silicone was used to create a conductive liner and a hybrid liner. Additionally, one with open elements was made. These were compared with a plain silicone liner and a no liner scenario. Scaled down liner prototypes were used due to the high-cost of the thermally conductive silicone. Temperature decay profiles were collected by attaching thermistors to a heated liner phantom and used to evaluate scenarios. Discussion: No scenario performed much better than the plain silicone liner. Implementation of passive solutions may be easier, but alternative liner materials are unlikely to affect dissipation enough to address thermal discomfort. Based on this work, future research efforts may be better spent developing active thermal discomfort solutions. Clinical relevance Thermal discomfort can increase the probability of skin damage, reduce prosthesis satisfaction and, ultimately, the quality of life. The prosthesis-wearing experience could be improved if thermal discomfort can be addressed by technological improvements

Heterogeneity of the HIV epidemic in the general population of Karnataka state, south India

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In the context of <it>AVAHAN</it>, the India AIDS Initiative of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, general population surveys (GPS) were carried out between 2006 and 2008 in Belgaum (northern), Bellary (mid-state) and Mysore (southern) districts of Karnataka state, south India. Data from these three surveys were analysed to understand heterogeneity in HIV risk.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Outcome variables were the prevalence of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Independent variables included age, district, place of residence, along with socio-demographic, medical and behavioural characteristics. Multivariate logistic regression was undertaken to identify characteristics associated with HIV and differences between districts, incorporating survey statistics to consider weights and cluster effects.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The participation rate was 79.0% for the interview and 72.5% for providing a blood or urine sample that was tested for HIV. Belgaum had the highest overall HIV (1.43%) and <it>Herpes simplex</it> type-2 (HSV-2) (16.93%) prevalence, and the lowest prevalence of curable STIs. In Belgaum, the HIV epidemic is predominantly rural, and among women. In Bellary, the epidemic is predominantly in urban areas and among men, and HIV prevalence was 1.18%. Mysore had the lowest prevalence of HIV (0.80%) and HSV-2 (10.89%) and the highest prevalence of curable STIs. Higher HIV prevalence among men was associated with increasing age (p<0.001), and with history of STIs (AOR=2.44,95%CI:1.15-5.17). Male circumcision was associated with lower HIV prevalence (AOR=0.33,95%CI:0.13-0.81). Higher HIV prevalence among women was associated with age (AOR_25-29years=11.22,95%CI:1.42-88.74, AOR_30-34years=13.13,95%CI:1.67-103.19 and AOR_35-39years=11.33,95%CI:1.32-96.83), having more than one lifetime sexual partner (AOR=4.61,95%CI:1.26-16.91) and having ever used a condom (AOR=3.32,95%CI:1.38-7.99). Having a dissolved marriage (being widowed/divorced/separated) was the strongest predictor (AOR=10.98,95%CI: 5.35-22.57) of HIV among women. Being a muslim woman was associated with lower HIV prevalence (AOR=0.27,95%CI:0.08-0.87).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The HIV epidemic in Karnataka shows considerable heterogeneity, and there appears to be an increasing gradient in HIV prevalence from south to north. The sex work structure in the northern districts may explain the higher prevalence of HIV in northern Karnataka. The higher prevalence of HIV and HSV-2 and lower prevalence of curable STIs in Belgaum suggests a later epidemic phase. Similarly, higher prevalence of curable STIs and lower HIV and HSV-2 prevalence in Mysore suggests an early phase epidemic.</p

Interim modelling analysis to validate reported increases in condom use and assess HIV infections averted among female sex workers and clients in southern India following a targeted HIV prevention programme.

OBJECTIVES: This study assesses whether the observed declines in HIV prevalence since the beginning of the 'Avahan' India HIV/AIDS prevention initiative are consistent with self-reported increases in condom use by female sex workers (FSWs) in two districts of southern India, and provides estimates of the fraction of new infections averted among FSWs and clients due to increases in condom use in commercial sex after 2004. METHODS: A deterministic compartmental model of HIV/sexually transmitted infection (STI) transmission incorporating heterogeneous sexual behaviour was developed, parameterised and fitted using data from two districts in Karnataka, India. Three hypotheses of condom use among FSWs were tested: (H(0)), that condom use increased in line with reported FSW survey data prior to the Avahan initiative but remained constant afterwards; (H(1)) that condom use increased following the Avahan initiative, in accordance with survey data; (H(2)) that condom use increased according to estimates derived from condom distribution data. The proportion of fits to HIV/STI prevalence data was examined to determine which hypothesis was most consistent. RESULTS: For Mysore 0/36/82.7 fits were identified per million parameter sets explored under hypothesis H(0)/H(1)/H(2), respectively, while for Belgaum 9.7/8.3/0 fits were identified. The HIV epidemics in Belgaum and Mysore are both declining. In Mysore, increases in condom use during commercial sex between 2004 and 2009 may have averted 31.2% to 47.4% of new HIV infections in FSWs, while in Belgaum it may have averted 24.8% to 43.2%, if there was an increase in condom use. DISCUSSION: Increased condom use following the Avahan intervention is likely to have played a role in curbing the HIV epidemic in Mysore. In Belgaum, given the limitations in available data, this method cannot be used alone to decide if there has been an increase in condom use