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Counter Framing the Majoritarian Narrative: A Hermeneutical Analysis of the Media Coverage of the Lynching of Jesse Washington
No full textThis thesis examined articles from the white majoritarian and counter-storytelling Black press editorials, which were informed by and located based on prior research found in The First Waco Horror: The Lynching of Jesse Washington and the Rise of the NAACP, an extensive 2008 publication by author Patricia Bernstein. Building on that publication, this research applied lenses of critical race theory, narrative theory, and framing theory to examine the event central to media coverage mentioned in the 2008 publication. Analysis was guided by a rhetorical, textual, and historical approach with hermeneutical interpretation from the critical cultural role of the researcher, as this study sought to inform today’s journalism practices of the constant memory work that can produce more culturally aware journalists. Ultimately this work aimed to magnify critical cultural and race-related theories alongside the context of historical analysis, providing a platform and call to alter the reporting and framing practices of the present-day journalist
Chopin’s Innovation and Influence on the French Piano School: From his Predecessors to his Principal Students and Successors
No full textChopin’s Innovation and Influence on the French Piano School: From his Predecessors to his Principal Students and Successors Wenjun Xia
This research explores Frédéric Chopin\u27s (1810–1849) innovations in piano technique, pedagogy, composition, and interpretation, as well as Chopin’s subsequent influence on the French piano school. Before Chopin’s arrival in Paris, the French piano school was primarily influenced by Louis Adam (1758–1848) and Friedrich Kalkbrenner (1785–1849), whose approaches dominated piano pedagogy at the Paris Conservatoire. Early French piano pedagogy centered on finger precision, virtuosity, and clarity, but expressivity was somewhat limited. Chopin initiated Romantic trends that emphasized emotion and natural physical motion. This study focuses on how Chopin’s unique performance style and pedagogy reshaped French pianistic traditions. The shift in French piano pedagogy and performance from its early 19th-century tradition to late 19th-century Romanticism resulted in a more expressive, free, and nuanced approach introduced and embodied by Chopin and his followers.
Chopin’s students and contemporaries, Georges Mathias (1826–1910), Karol Mikuli (1821–1897), and Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813–1888), along with later French pianists including Isidor Philipp (1863–1958) and Alfred Cortot (1877–1962), carried Chopin’s pedagogical ideals to succeeding generations
Transforming Our Communities: Studying the Impact of the WVHUB Coaching program
Get PDFSince Fall 2024, the WVU Center for Resilient Communities and WV Community Development Hub (WVHUB) have worked in partnership to advance action research on their unique community coaching program in West Virginia. Now celebrating 15 years of operation, the Hub is the only statewide community economic development organization in West Virginia. Its purpose is to help communities locate and obtain local, regional, and federal funding resources for various projects. The Hub works with isolated, marginalized communities, especially in rural areas. The Hub seeks to evaluate its community coaching programs. During the past few months, countless organizations have seen financial cuts from the federal government, especially towards community development programming. We are working together to ensure the Hub’s mission and coaching program establishes a means of systematizing its learning and assessing its approach through time among its coaching team. We accomplished this through interviews, a story map, interactive GIS maps, and site visits. Through this work, we learned about the challenges faced in coaching and in community and economic development, but we also witnessed the resilience and perseverance of the communities involved
No Sweeter Sound: Musicking, Transformative Pedagogy, and Collaborative Social Justice in Choral Settings
No full textChoral music and its conductors occupy a tenuous space in the 21st century. In a new cultural atmosphere influenced by Gen Z’s expectation of welcomed diversity and intolerance for injustice, TikTok’s rapid global dissemination of information and entertainment, and society’s desire for authentic connection following the Covid-19 pandemic, the dichotomies present in choral music are no longer being glossed over. Difficult conversations about race, gender, ableism, social location, and other intersectional identifiers are at the forefront of academic writing and conference presentations. Evidence of transformative pedagogy and culturally responsive practices are beginning to appear in classroom syllabi and rehearsal techniques in choral settings. The practice of collaborative social justice through choral musicking is becoming an accepted and successful model in schools, communities, prisons, rehabilitation centers, and many other places where individuals gather and become a collective. For many choral music educators, however, there is a sense of overwhelm with engagement related to social justice based concepts or subject matter and a lack of familiarity with the work of applied ethnomusicologists in music education. This creates a hesitancy that is easily supported by the trope that making music is not political. Inspiring change and equity in the communities around us through choral musicking is dependent on the encouragement of choral music educators to practice informed engagement with eventful programming, social and emotional learning, and understanding the functionalities of social justice in choral settings.
My research will define transformative pedagogy, discuss the practice of musicking, and examine various concepts with their roots in social justice and applied ethnomusicology. I will offer two case studies at the collegiate level for consideration of different applications of similar methodology. The result of each is collaborative social justice through choral musicking and transformative pedagogy. The term transformative pedagogy refers to both the action of the conductor to renovate their approach to choral music education and performance, and to the transforming experience for ensemble and audience members involved in the process. My practice of looking at the choral rehearsal and performance process as musicking is further informed by my understanding of decentering, decolonizing, anti-racism, and culturally relevant teaching. The methodology of the case studies selected aim to illustrate attainable means of bringing this practice of social justice engagement to choral music educators. By discussing concepts of decentering, collaborative social justice, social and emotional learning, and transformative pedagogy, this document offers knowledge I hope others can turn into understanding through their own experience
Development of Fast and Comprehensive Approaches for Gunshot Residue Interpretation Using Ambient Ionization, Mass Spectrometry, and Microparticle Sampling Studies
No full textThe information derived from the forensic examination of gunshot residue (GSR) can be critical during the investigative and trial stages in the criminal justice system. However, the complexity of the GSR deposition, transfer, and persistence mechanisms calls for meticulous handling and identification processes. Novel advances in evidence interpretation and analysis via instrumental methods are current areas of growing interest that must be pushed along the chain from research to practice in a timely manner. Therefore, this research focuses on developing both rapid and comprehensive methods for detecting gunshot residue evidence and effectively communicating its significance to the investigators or trier of fact. This dissertation accomplishes this goal through three primary objectives: the investigation of 1) a rapid screening technique for organic gunshot residues by direct analysis in real-time mass spectrometry (DART-MS), 2) an in-depth examination of the behavior of gunshot residues before, during, and after the deposition process, as well as risks associated with potential involvement in firearm-related scenarios and 3) the classification of manufacturer-grade ammunitions using statistical analysis and machine learning techniques.
First, this research investigates the feasibility and capabilities of DART-MS over 330 authentic OGSR samples as a rapid, straightforward technique for analyzing OGSR specimens, ranging from low complexity items (smokeless powder) to the highest complexity (residues from a shooter’s hands). Other sample types of immense evidentiary value, such as residues recovered from fired clothing and spent cartridge cases demonstrate promising performance rates (73% to 100% true positive rate, depending on sample type and classification criteria). Detection limits range from 0.075 to 12 ng depending on analyte and analysis mode, with inter-day reproducibility of 0.0012% CV. The method allows for isomeric differentiation due to collection of mass spectra at multiple in-source collision induced dissociation levels. These capabilities provide the groundwork for rapid adoption of DART-MS for OGSR screening into forensic laboratories, custom borders, or areas of interest for homeland security surveillance.
Second, this work uses a combined multi-sensor and visualization approach to perform a novel analysis of airborne GSR in real-time, immediately following firing and up to three hours after the firing event. Atmospheric particulate monitoring methods including custom-made particle counters, aerodynamic particle sizing, and laser sheet scattering are used to provide foundational knowledge of GSR flow, while spectrometry techniques including SEM-EDS and LC-MS/MS are used for complementary analysis of resultant GSR deposition. Among the factors of interest are the flow dynamics and duration of airborne particulates in various environmental conditions and the assessment of direct versus indirect deposition risks on a person of interest. This study brings to light the dichotomy of GSR deposition depending on chemical characteristics, finding that individuals are more likely exposed to indirect IGSR deposition than OGSR.
Finally, this research performs comprehensive characterization and classification of organic gunshot residues by LC-MS/MS and chemometric techniques including linear discriminant analysis (LDA), quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA), k-nearest neighbors (KNN) and support vector machines (SVM) to classify and correlate smokeless powders, cartridge cases, and shooter’s hand samples based on their manufacturer. Classification by discriminant analysis methods is powerful for smokeless powders, reaching correct classification rates as high as 83.7%. More challenging residues, such as those recovered from a shooter’s hands, show lower correct classification rates up to 62.7%. Results from this study demonstrate that the incorporation of OGSR analysis can provide key insight into the classification of multiple types of samples, being particularly applicable in situations where evidence is limited.
The range of knowledge uncovered throughout this research is expected to increase confidence and effectiveness in the use of OGSR evidence, provide rapid analysis solutions, and aid investigators in determining important characteristics of evidence when traditional methods may fall short
Facilitating Independence: Developing a Hands-on Life Skills Program for Youth in Residential Treatment
No full textLife skills competency in adolescence can be an important predictor of success in adulthood. Educational and training programs focused on life skills can help youth develop the skills that they need to live independently. Though occupational therapy literature surrounding these types of programs is limited, occupational therapy practitioners are qualified to provide intervention in life skills based on the profession’s scope of practice.
This capstone project focused on the development and evaluation of a new life skills program, the Life Skills Practice Program, at a residential treatment facility for youth with substance use and behavioral diagnoses. Stakeholders at the facility identified hands-on life skills education as a need at the site that could be fulfilled with the Doctoral Capstone Experience (DCE). The program was designed from an occupational therapy perspective with an emphasis on experiential learning. The Occupational Therapy Doctorate student facilitated two sessions a week with three groups for a total of 10 weeks. Quantitative and qualitative data sets were collected from youth and staff at the site to evaluate program design, implementation, and effectiveness.
The results of the program evaluation show that the Life Skills Practice Program was an effective and engaging way for youth to learn life skills. Teacher/Counselor staff at the site indicated that they have the ability to implement the program in the future using the resources developed during the DCE. This capstone project demonstrates that the program can be successfully carried out at this site with this client population