A People’s Journey, A Nation’s Past: The National Museum of African American History and Culture

On September 24, 2016, the National Museum of African American History and Culture was opened to the public after almost two decades of planning and more than a century of fighting for a memorial for African Americans. Starting in 1915, when a group of United States Colored Troops sought a memorial for their fallen soldiers, African Americans have worked to have their history remembered on a national scale. A congressional commission for a museum dedicated to African Americans was signed in 1929 by Calvin Coolidge, but the stock market crash in October prevented the museum from being built. The memorial was pushed to the back burner until the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s galvanized the need for a museum again. In 1986, a joint resolution proposed by Representatives Mickey Leland of Texas and John Lewis of Georgia as well as Senator Paul Simon of Illinois marked the beginning of the modern fight for a museum dedicated solely to African Americans. [excerpt

Science, Signals, and Service: The Smithsonian Institution’s Role During the Civil War

Today, the Smithsonian is known for its world-famous exhibits, massive collections of American and natural history artifacts, and its contributions to research around the world. But many people don’t know the role the Smithsonian played during the Civil War. The Smithsonian Castle was finished in 1855 and would become the first home of the research center, the library, and the US Museum. The government recognized the importance of the Institution and, after war was declared, the US Secretary of War ordered Joseph Henry, the Smithsonian Secretary, be issued twelve muskets and 240 rounds of ammunition “for the protection of the Institute against lawless attacks.” The building was in a vulnerable position because it was situated in between the Capitol Building and the White House, and cut off from the rest of the city by the Washington Canal . The Institution was witness to soldiers on parade, as well as to the thousands of wounded soldiers sent back to the city after the First Battle of Bull Run. It suffered no war damage, but suffered from financial woes because Congress was more focused on paying for the war than paying the interest on the Smithson bequest. The inflation and currency devaluation of the era also affected finances

The Unknown Legacy of the 13th Amendment

On January 31, 1865, Congress passed the 13th Amendment, declaring slavery illegal in the United States. Or so it seemed. The second line of the Amendment, and the most oft unknown, states that slavery can still be used as a form of punishment for crimes, and this practice became widely used as a part of southern backlash to Reconstruction Era policies. After the end of the Civil War, many southern states struggled with rebuilding their infrastructures and government systems. In order to avoid falling into more debt, many of these states turned towards the convict lease system, which claimed that the state prison could lease out its convicts to local companies, usually in industries such as mining, lumbering, and railroad building, to not only house prisoners inexpensively but also regain the means of labor they had with slavery before the Civil War. By adopting the convict lease system, southern states were able to earn revenue and control the suddenly free black population of the South, and with the development of black codes, these states were able to legally disenfranchise African Americans up until the 1930s when Alabama became the last state to abolish the convict lease program. [excerpt

2002 Coastal Municipal Stormwater Infrastructure Mapping Project

This final report describes the grant program funded by NHEP and administered by DES. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between NHEP and DES created a grant program to provide assistance to coastal communities to develop storm sewer infrastructure maps. DES issued a request for proposals (RFP), chose grant recipients, and managed the grant agreements. This report provides details on the grant projects completed by Portsmouth and Seabrook. The deadline for completion of all grant projects was December 31, 2003

The Conflicting Conflict: Memorialization and Memory of the Great War

July 1st through 3rd, 2013 marked the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. There were an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 visitors to the national park, including as many as 10,000 reenactors. The Civil War sesquicentennial was commemorated from the very beginning, and ended with a reenactment in Appomattox that saw over 6,000 people visit to re-live the end of the American Civil War. On April 9th, bells across the nation, including at Gettysburg College, tolled for 4 minutes to honor the four years the war raged on. Plans were started for the anniversary almost a decade in advance and millions of Americans in commemorating of the war that cost 600,000 Americans their lives. A collective narrative of the war began forming before the surrender was even signed, and while each side had a different memory directly after Appomattox, the settled upon collective narrative still exists today

Shaping nursing praxis : some registered nurses' perceptions and beliefs of theory practice : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Administration at Massey University

This thesis investigates the beliefs and perceptions of registered nurses in relation to the theory practice gap. In order to discover these perceptions and beliefs, this qualitative study used critical ethnography, a framework and process in which the paiticipants share in the journey of discovery which sets out to explore, describe and transform these beliefs and perceptions of theory-practice. The theory-practice debate has been highlighted in nursing for some time and is interpreted in many ways. This multiple interpretation causes confusion and has an impact on the development of the discipline of nursing. The participants were six nurse clinicians and six nurse educators from a large metropolitan hospital and a School of Nursing and Midwifery within a tertiary educational institution. Within the critical framework, the research methods used were interviews, observation, paiticipants' personal logs and triangulation between methods and within methods. Data analysis was through content analysis using themes, patterns, and categories arising from the data. The analysis of data indicated that through reciprocal dialogue, the paiticipants' theory-practice perceptions and beliefs had been transformed. This transformation was being premised on an assumption of the existence of a theory-practice gap to an acceptance of the theory-practice relationship as an integrated concept where nursing praxis is shaped by an ongoing development process. Empowering strategies and recommendations for the development of nursing praxis include coaching, clinical supervision, mentoring, case management, ongoing education, research, faculty practice, joint appointments and reciprocal advisory groups. These strategies provide opportunities for nurses to come together, and reflect on practice in that by becoming aware of their beliefs and perceptions, they gain the confidence and knowledge to begin transforming conditions of power and control, thereby promoting change which results in praxis and professional autonomy

R&D project announcements and the impact of ownership structure

This paper examines the stock market reaction to research and development (R&D) announcements made by listed UK companies. R&D projects on average are found to be associated with significant positive abnormal returns. However, the level of these abnormal returns varies significantly with the ownership structure of the firm. In particular, it is found that the level of abnormal returns are significantly lower for companies with large institutional investors. This negative relationship may be associated with short-term pressures on the performance of institutional investors