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Introduction
No full textIntroduction to the book Making Values-Based Decisions in the Academic Library
Free Speech at Colleges and Universities in the Mountain West, 2025
No full textThis fact sheet presents data on free speech at 16 colleges and universities across the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The data are sourced from “The 2026 College Free Speech Rankings,” as originally published by The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), and reflect 2025 data. The FIRE report presents free speech ranks, scores, grades, and data on speech controversies for 257 colleges and universities across 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. This fact sheet highlights the average free speech scores for each Mountain West state, as well as the free speech scores for the 16 Mountain West colleges and universities included in the rankings
Practical Intelligence: Generative AI Toolkit for Nurse Education
No full textThis toolkit delivers a structured introduction to generative AI tailored for nurse educators, offering practical guidance across six domains: foundational concepts; course and lesson design; assignment development; scholarly applications; simulation integration; and strategies for facilitating student engagement with AI. Beginning with an accessible overview of how generative models function and where they fail. It presents frameworks for critical evaluation and transparent use. Subsequent sections demonstrate how to leverage AI for organizing curricula, writing objectives, crafting assessments, and generating discussion prompts, all aligned with professional standards. Applications in scholarship cover literature search planning, peer‑review simulation, and evidence‑based question development. Simulation chapters guide co‑design of scenarios and pilot testing. Finally, the toolkit addresses ethical, legal, and pedagogical considerations for student use, ensuring educators maintain academic rigor and clinical accuracy
Adapting Publishing Principles and Best Practices for Repository-Hosted Journals: Sustainable Ideas for Enhancing Local Open Access Publishing
No full textThis poster addresses the question: How can librarians and administrators working with repository-hosted journal editors incorporate best practices into hosted journals without taking on the role of publisher and without overextending themselves?
The Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing (COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, WAME, 2022) provides foundational guidance for journal publishing. The guidelines cover a robust suite of topics such as authorship, peer review, funding sources, author cost transparency, and licensing and copyright. Publishers with staff who support a suite of journals (whether 10 or 1000) may be able to evaluate and adopt such guidance relatively quickly and uniformly across their brand. However, journals hosted on repositories often operate under a more distributed system of management and without a central publisher. The relationship between libraries and journal editors reflects collaboration and service provision, rather than oversight
Diaper Insecurity in Nevada and the Mountain West, 2024
No full textThis fact sheet presents data on diaper insecurity in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. It also presents data on the diaper gaps faced by fifteen Nevada counties: Carson City, Churchill, Clark, Douglas, Elko, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine. Esmeralda County and Eureka County are not included due to a lack of data. The 2025 Urban Institute report, “Mapping Diaper Insecurity in the US,” highlights 2024 data on diaper insecurity across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia
Piloting the Inclusion of Dollar Stores in the Modified Retail Food Environment Index (Mrfei) in Urban Clark County, Nevada
No full textFood insecurity is the condition of having limited or uncertain access to adequate food. It contributes to poor diet-related health outcomes which are in turn influenced by the food environment. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) developed the Modified Retail Food Environment Index (mRFEI) to characterize food environments by measuring the proportion of healthy and non-healthy retailers. The CDC mRFEI considers a variety of establishments but fails to include dollar stores, which contribute to the food environment by offering food and, in some cases, fresh produce. This study proposed an “expanded mRFEI” that modified the CDC mRFEI methodology to include dollar stores. Both indices were compared to assess whether the expanded mRFEI significantly changed the proportion of food environment classifications (food deserts, food swamps, and healthful tracts) among urban Clark County census tracts. There were 1,356 food retailers included in the CDC mRFEI and 76 dollar stores (10 healthy and 66 less healthy), added to the expanded mRFEI. Urban Clark County’s median mRFEI score of 13.33 remained unaltered after including dollar stores. The generalized McNemar’s test showed that the expanded mRFEI did not significantly change the number of food deserts (mRFEI = 133, expanded mRFEI = 128), swamps (mRFEI = 119, expanded mRFEI = 124), or healthful census tracts (mRFEI = 254, expanded mRFEI = 254). The findings suggest that the measurement of food environments is complex, and efforts to do so require a more comprehensive and systemic approach
The “Asian”-Ness of Women Influencing the Romance Plot in Contemporary YA Literature
No full textContemporary young adult literature (YAL) is a growing genre that features a diverse range of stories, allowing young readers to see themselves reflected in realistic stories. One of its prominent subgenres, contemporary young adult romance focuses on a modern love story between two individuals. Historically, Asian American female characters were often depicted as the “model minority” stereotype or represented as exoticized figures who held traits such as mysterious, submissive, or seductive creatures. These portrayals often treated the Asian American experience as monolithic. However, the genre now explores an intersection of identity and romance, addressing themes commonly found in contemporary realism that have moved past historical tropes and themes of trauma and assimilation. In contemporary YA romance, by analyzing the four YA contemporary romance novels: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (2014) by Jenny Han, Not Here to Be Liked (2021) by Michelle Quach, A Pho Love Story (2021) by Loan Le, and Emergency Contact (2018) by Mary H.K. Choi, I argue that the Asian female protagonist uses love as a catalyst for self-discovery, while their cultural heritage serves as a driving force to intertwine narratives of cultural negotiation and personal growth.. This raises the question: how have harmful stereotypes evolved from their historical narratives into modern stories, and what do they reveal in terms of racial hierarchies and identities of the self
Lower Limb Loss Related Physical Therapy Outcome Measures: A Scoping Review
No full textThis scoping review aims to explore the use of performance-based outcome measures (PBOMs) and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in assessing the function of individuals with lower limb loss (LLL). The review identified common PBOMs, such as the 6- and 2-minute walk tests, Timed Up and Go (TUG), and Amputee Mobility Predictor (AMP), which evaluate mobility and overall physical function. PROMs, like the Prosthesis Evaluation Questionnaire (PEQ), focus on the prosthetic experience, including comfort, satisfaction, and quality of life. Both PBOMs and PROMs assess patient function, yet with differing emphases; PBOMs primarily evaluate physical performance while PROMs capture broader health attributes, including psychological factors and the patient’s perception of their well-being. While PBOMs are more responsive to acute changes in function, they can be influenced by psychological factors, and are less effective in assessing long-term outcomes. PROMs, although valuable for long-term tracking, are susceptible to inaccuracies in self-assessment. The integration of both PBOMs and PROMs offers a comprehensive approach to evaluating functional status, providing complementary insights into physical and psychological function. This review also highlights gaps in the literature, particularly in the integration of physical therapy in post-amputation rehabilitation. The findings support the development of a Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) to optimize outcome measure use in LLL rehabilitation, emphasizing the need for personalized interventions. Future research should focus on the use of these measures to refine and personalize rehabilitation protocols for individuals with LLL, ultimately enhancing patient outcomes
Accelerating Initial Cardiac Arrest Response in Medical-Surgical Nurses Through Virtual Reality Training
No full textBackground: Through their limited exposure, non-critical care nurses may feel unprepared to respond when faced with a sudden emergency such as cardiac arrest. This Quality Improvement (QI) project employed virtual reality (VR) technology to improve nurse confidence, adherence to the American Heart Association (AHA) basic life support (BLS) algorithm, and documentation accuracy among medical-surgical nurses in a Veterans Affairs hospital in Nevada. The project addressed their ability to react promptly and effectively during these high-stakes emergencies. Methods: Following a scoping literature review from the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Medline, and PubMed databases, this Evidence Based Practice (EBP) project implemented virtual reality simulations via the VR platform tailored to the needs of medical-surgical nurses. The VR training protocol was designed to improve recognition of patient deterioration and the initiation of Basic Life Support (BLS) using the American Heart Association (AHA) BLS algorithm. Statistical analyses evaluated improvements in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performance metrics, specifically focusing on nurses\u27 confidence, adherence to the American Heart Association\u27s (AHA) Basic Life Support (BLS) algorithm and code documentation. Pre- and post-intervention surveys assessed changes in staff confidence regarding their ability to recognize cardiac arrest, activate code blue responses, and correctly follow the AHA BLS algorithm and document cardiac arrest events. Results: Post-intervention analysis demonstrated substantial improvements: Nurse confidence scores increased by 29.6%, adherence to the AHA BLS algorithm rose by 24.2%, and documentation accuracy improved by 48%. Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with 97.4% indicating interest in future VR sessions during post-training qualitative survey feedback, praising its realism and effectiveness. Conclusion: This project demonstrates the transformative potential of VR in professional development and emergency preparedness. By improving nurse confidence, BLS adherence, and documentation accuracy, VR training advances clinical excellence and fosters innovation in nursing education. The findings support the broader adoption of VR technology as an efficient, scalable, and impactful training solution
Assessing the Effects of Streptozotocin-Induced Hyperglycemia on Amyloid Beta Accumulation and Cognitive Behavior in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Pathology
No full textAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is an irreversible and devastating neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive synaptic, dendritic, glial, and neuronal loss, collectively leading to impairments in learning, memory, and deterioration of cognitive and behavioral functions. AD is the most common form of dementia accounting for 60-80% of all cases. AD affects approximately 7 million Americans and is the 6th leading cause of death in the US. Furthermore, by 2050, the US is projected to spend over $1.1 trillion on AD-related treatments. Pathological hallmarks of AD include beta-amyloid (Aβ) plaques, intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), and chronic neuroinflammation, which can promote and exacerbate both Aβ and NFTs levels and lead to synaptic and neuronal loss. AD is classified as either early onset (EOAD) or late onset (LOAD). EOAD is associated with genetic mutations and accounts for 3-5% of all AD cases. In contrast, LOAD accounts for 95-97% of all AD cases with no genetic etiology; however, several genetic and/or other comorbidities confer increased risk for LOAD. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a major risk factor for AD. DM confers up to a 4-fold increased risk for developing AD, and approximately 81% of individuals with AD have type II diabetes (T2DM) or are glucose intolerant. Hyperglycemia – abnormal elevated blood glucose levels – is the primary characteristic of DM. We have previously shown that chronic hyperglycemia can initiate and promote neuroinflammation, resulting in significant increases in hyperphosphorylated tau protein (pTau), learning and memory impairments, and other AD-related targets that are consistent with other AD models. However, the mechanisms by which chronic hyperglycemia increases Aβ levels are still being elucidated. We administered low and staggered dosages of streptozotocin (STZ), a diabetogenic drug that selectively targets and destroys insulin producing β-cells, to induce hyperglycemia in a well-established male mouse model of human Aβ progression ( APP/PS1). The project aim was to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which chronic hyperglycemia increases Aβ levels. Briefly, our data indicate altered fasting blood glucose levels (BGLs), dysfunctional metabolic metrics, behavioral learning and memory deficits, increased Aβ load, and AD- and DM-related protein targets in the hippocampus, a region that is first affected by AD. These findings provide critical insight into the molecular pathways by which DM exacerbates AD pathogenesis, which may guide the development and/or amelioration of novel therapeutic strategies for individuals affected by both DM and/or AD