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Aligning Practice with Principle: Institutionalizing Equitable Public Engagement in Hampton Roads
Get PDFThis plan assesses the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC) and Transportation Planning Organization’s (HRTPO) current engagement processes through internal document reviews, national best-practice benchmarking, and key staff interviews. Among thee identified strengths of sound procedural compliance and deep staff commitment and agility, findings revealed three critical gaps: (1) limited decision-traceability, (2) inconsistent process evaluation, and (3) persistent constraints collectively impacting their geographic reach and efficacy of their Community Advisory Committee. To address these gaps, the study delivers the Community Engagement Compass—a five-dimension checklist (accessibility, quality, inclusivity, transparency, adaptability) that standardizes best principles such as equity metrics, real-time evaluations, and multi-stage follow-up protocols into every engagement process. Complemented by targeted recommendations to diversify the Community Advisory Committee, embed sub-regional engagement liaisons, and launch a centralized digital engagement platform, the Community Engagement Compass gives HRPDC/HRTPO a practical process framework for continuous, transparent, and accountable public involvement. By aligning practice with principle, this plan translates the commitments made in the organizations’ joint Public Engagement Plan (2024) into concrete, operational standards, positioning HRPDC/HRTPO as the region’s beacon for equitable engagement
Vascular and Autonomic Function in Young Adults with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): The Effects of Oxidative Stress
No full textPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex mental health condition with profound physiological implications, particularly affecting cardiovascular health. While extensive research has been conducted on its psychological effects, growing evidence links PTSD to significant disruptions in autonomic regulation, often characterized by an overactive sympathetic nervous system and diminished parasympathetic function. These autonomic disturbances raise the likelihood of CVD, such as hypertension and heart disease. The elevated CVD risk is further amplified by increased oxidative stress (OXS) in individuals with PTSD, as their chronic activation of the body’s stress response leads to excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). This excess production of ROS damages cellular structures, promotes inflammation, and impairs vascular function, thereby compounding the physiological burden imposed by PTSD and contributing to further deterioration in cardiovascular health. The main objective of this study is to enhance our understanding of how PTSD influences cardiovascular health, particularly examining its relationship with autonomic and vascular function, and exploring the distinct role of oxidative stress. Despite the well-documented link between PTSD and CVD, the precise mechanisms by which the mental health disorder leads to cardiovascular dysfunction are still unclear, particularly with regard to the role of oxidative stress in driving the observed autonomic dysfunction. We adopted a multifaceted approach which minimized confounding factors such as negative lifestyle behaviors and aging, by selecting a young cohort of adults with PTSD and comparing them to an age- and sex-matched control group to assess these gaps. This approach enables us to isolate the independent physiological effects of PTSD. To investigate the potential role of oxidative stress in these physiological processes, we introduced antioxidant supplementation and studied its effects on key autonomic and cardiovascular measures. By comparing responses under placebo and antioxidant conditions across the PTSD and CTRL groups, we aimed to unveil the intricate dynamics at play between cardiovascular regulation, autonomic function, and oxidative stress in the context of PTSD. The major findings of the study indicate that, compared to healthy controls, young adults with PTSD exhibited a baseline autonomic dysregulation, characterized by elevated heart rate and blood pressure, which was unaffected by antioxidant supplementation. This suggests that any maladaptations observed in PTSD may not be directly driven by oxidative stress. Additionally, alterations in baroreflex sensitivity and vascular function highlight a complex interaction between PTSD and cardiovascular mechanisms. These findings imply that PTSD may disrupt normal cardiovascular responses, leading to a range of adaptive and potentially maladaptive changes in heart rate control and vascular regulation. This study contributes to a growing body of research on the physiological impacts of PTSD, providing new insights into how autonomic and vascular function are altered in this population. This opens avenues for further research into potential therapeutic interventions targeting specific pathways to mitigate CVD risk in those with PTSD
Liner Notes on Black Trans Girlhood: Afrofuturist Affect & Black Popular Music as a Praxis of Self-Fashioning
Get PDFLiner Notes on Black Trans Girlhood: Afrofuturist Affect & Black Popular Music as a Praxis of Self-Fashioning interprets Black musical performance in identity-making, with a focus on how music and Black trans identity intersect and informs Black trans girlhood. As such, Black trans girls render ourselves legible, i.e. understood without shame or judgment, by constructing our identities through the music by Black women we listen and dance to, or watch and sing. These musical connections affirm the possibilities of Black femme expression. This expression of Black femininity is due to what I call an Afrofuturist affect, by which I refer to the transfer of emotions, sensations, and embodied knowledge from Black musical cultural productions to Black trans girl subjects who use these tools and resources to (re)formulate our identities and (re)orient them to promote a sense of pride, pleasure, and satisfaction in mind, body, and spirit. Through this process, Black trans girls create a unique sense of girlhood that transcends adolescence and challenges the definitions and constructs of “Black,” “trans,” “girl,” and “woman” simultaneously. As a Black transgender scholar, I seek to intervene within Black transfeminist scholarship to advocate for an affective understanding of Black trans realities that moves beyond a call for empathy, as empathy does not prioritize the subject of harm. Instead, having an affective understanding of Black trans realities acknowledges the power imbalances and oppressive structures within our white cis-hetero patriarchal society. Therefore, championing the Black trans girls’ visibility and creating safe spaces for Black trans girls to embrace our future as Black women
Clarinet Studio Recital
Get PDFstudio recitalClarinet Studio RecitalThursday April 3, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.Sonia Vlahcevic Concert HallW.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts922 Park Avenue | Richmond, VirginiaStudents from the studios of Dr. Tabatha Easley, flute; Ms. Alyssa McKeithen, oboe;Dr. George Stoffan, clarinet; Dr. Bruce Hammel, bassoon; and Dr. Patrick Smith, hor
Witnessing Intellectual Humility: How a Peer’s Humble Introduction Affects Feedback Receptivity and Social Perception
Get PDFMight intellectual humility (IH) be contagious? Across two studies, we examined how individuals respond to constructive criticism depending on whether the feedback-giver demonstrated IH—defined as acknowledging one’s limitations and valuing learning. We focused on outcomes related to intellectual (or epistemic) openness in the context of writing, including self-focused state IH (acknowledging one’s own knowledge limitations), other-focused IH (valuing the insights of a peer expert), corrigibility (comfort with being corrected), feedback engagement, and attitudes toward future academic help-seeking in writing (AHS).
In Experiment 1, participants received feedback from a peer who conveyed IH through a brief self-descriptive statement. This subtle manipulation did not produce significant differences in perceived IH or primary outcomes, though moderation analyses revealed that peer humility influenced the relationship between select traits and AHS attitudes.
Experiment 2 addressed these limitations with a more salient, video-based manipulation in which a peer recounted a tutoring experience that either demonstrated IH “in action” or did not. This approach was more effective: participants in the humility condition perceived greater IH in the intended direction, and it was the only observer-rated trait that significantly differed between conditions. While the manipulation did not directly impact the primary outcomes, a small but significant interaction was observed between peer humility and trait narcissism—replicating the pattern from Experiment 1. Specifically, receiving feedback from a humble peer weakened the association between narcissism and perceiving AHS as a threat. Post hoc exploratory analyses further revealed that the manipulation’s effect on feedback engagement, corrigibility, and AHS attitudes (though not self- or other-focused IH) was moderated by how much IH participants detected in their peer.
Together, these studies offer valuable insight into the effects and boundaries of humility contagion—highlighting how, when, and to what extent witnessing IH in others may shape our own epistemic openness in a specific context
Characteristics of Permanent Teeth Undergoing Surgical Endodontic Evaluation: A Retrospective Study
No full textObjective: This study examines the pre-surgical clinical and radiographic characteristics that may influence the choice of apicoectomy over nonsurgical retreatment in a more detailed approach, focusing on the clinical factors that come into the evaluation phase. We hypothesize that there are certain patterns observed through a pre-operative CBCT that may impact the decision for surgical intervention. The study aims to assess patterns in the decision-making in surgical treatment planning.
Methods: Retrospective review analyzing 142 cases treated or planned for apicoectomy by VCU endodontic residents. Data collected from CBCT and PA radiographs included: restorations, quality of prior root canal treatment, presence and size of periapical lesions, posts, separated instruments, untreated canals, root curvature, cortical plate integrity, crestal bone status, resorption, and proximity to anatomical structures.
Results: Large periapical lesions and cases with cortical plate perforations were significantly associated with apicoectomies. Majority of cases had PAI scores of 4 or 5 with 76% of cases involving buccal cortical plate perforations. There was marginal significance associated between the quality of the root canal treatment and PAI scores (p=0.0847). Separated instruments was found in 4% of cases and not associated with larger lesion sizes.
Conclusion: Larger lesions, cortical plate perforations (specifically the buccal) were significant indicators that were common in cases treatment planned for apicoectomies. The presence of a post was seen in over one-third of cases. Separated instruments, untreated canals, vertical defects, approximation to IAN or mental foramen, resorption and moderate-severe root curvatures were not commonly associated with cases treatment planed for apicoectomies
Hyperreality Ain’t Really Real: Postmodernity, Social Media, & Blackness
Get PDFThis qualitative study examines the interplay between postmodernity, social media, and African American identity formation through focus group analysis and Grounded Theory methodology. The research investigates how social media’s postmodern features—fragmentation, hyperreality, commodification, and context collapse—shape identity development among African Americans, who historically navigate cultural disruption and systemic racism. Data from semi-structured interviews with two generational focus groups revealed that participants engaged in sophisticated identity curation to balance authenticity and protection in racially charged digital spaces. Key findings highlight the tension between empowerment and marginalization, as social media served as both a platform for racial affirmation and a source of hypervisibility, requiring constant negotiation of self-presentation across audiences. Participants demonstrated accelerated recognition of identity’s constructed nature, aligning with theories of postmodern consciousness while uniquely addressing racialized experiences. The study challenges linear models of identity development, proposing instead a fluid, context-dependent framework that reflects African Americans’ historical resilience and adaptation to digital postmodernity. Practical implications for counseling psychology emphasize culturally responsive approaches to digital literacy, addressing social comparisons, and supporting clients’ navigation of online racial representation. By bridging historical patterns of cultural displacement with contemporary digital practices, this research advances understanding of how African Americans reconcile dual legacies of resistance and adaptation within postmodern media ecosystems, offering critical insights for fostering healthy identity development in an increasingly digitized world
DEVELOPMENT OF TWO NOVEL CHIMERIC ANTIGEN LYME DIAGNOSTICS AND ASSESSMENT OF TEMPORAL ANTIBODY RESPONSE IN RHESUS MACAQUE MONKEYS INFECTED WITH Borreliella burgdorferi
No full textLyme Disease (LD) is a tick-transmitted infection caused by spirochetes of the genus Borreliella. It is the most prevalent tick-borne infection in North America and Europe, with approximately 476,000 cases diagnosed yearly in the United States alone. Serologic testing for LD presents challenges, including low sensitivity, complexity, and subjective result interpretation. The advancement of diagnostic methods is further hindered by factors such as differential gene expression, antigenic diversity among LD species, and antibody cross-reactivity with other spirochetal diseases. To address or circumvent many of these issues, the Marconi lab has developed two next-generation chimeric diagnostic antigens that can be used in the modified two-tiered test (MTTT), eliminating the need for time-consuming immunoblots in the standard two-tiered test (STTT). The two most promising diagnostic constructs are HDFL4 and DCFL4. They contain multiple full-length proteins that elicit an antibody response at different stages of infection. There are highlighted differences in host antibody response, where HDFL4 has been shown to be an effective diagnostic in humans and DCFL4 in canines. Neither has been tested in a non-human primate model. This study aims to determine the diagnostic efficacy of these chimeric proteins and their individual antigens by assessing their immunogenicity over a 9-week course of infection via IgG and IgM enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
The Accuracy of Tooth Movement with Artificial Intelligence-Based Clear Aligners
No full textBackground: Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) may offer innovative solutions for the virtual planning of clear aligner therapy, enhancing precision and efficiency in orthodontic treatment. The purpose of this study is to assess the accuracy and reliability of an AI-based clear aligner system\u27s virtual treatment simulations (predictions).
Purpose: The primary objective of this observational clinical study is to assess the accuracy of a virtual treatment plan utilizing ML algorithms by comparing the predicted tooth movements with the actual clinical movements at three and six months. The secondary objective is to determine whether the use of cone beam computed tomography and machine learning algorithms accurately predicts alveolar bone defects at six months of treatment.
Methods: The models of the actual Crown-Only positions at three months and the Crown-Only and Crown-Root positions at six months were superimposed on the digital images of predicted tooth positions using Geomagic Control X Software. The mean absolute difference (MAD), root mean square (RMS), and percent within tolerance between the models was calculated to examine how well the software predicted tooth movements. Descriptive analysis was used to estimate the presence of bone defects.
Results: Nine patients were recruited for this study, but only six completed and were included in the analyses, yielding a total of 12 arches. The mean absolute difference and root mean square were significantly higher for 6m Crown-Only than Crown-Root models. The percent within tolerance was higher at three months than six months for the Crown-Only models (71% vs. 63%), and higher for the Crown-Only models compared to the Crown-Root models at 6m (63% vs. 57%). The ML software predicted 14 instances of bone defects (8%) out of 168 sites. ML software predicted defects in 11 sites where none were present clinically (7%) and failed to predict defects in 3 sites where they were observed clinically (2%).
Conclusions: AI-based clear aligners predicted tooth movements with a slight improvement in accuracy when compared to traditional clear aligners that do not utilize this technology when developing a virtual treatment plan. The predictions using Crown-Root model superimpositions were less accurate than those using the Crown-Only model superimpositions at six months. ML software demonstrated a tendency to overestimate the presence of bone defects
Men\u27s Perceptions of Autonomous Reproductive Choices
No full textINTRODUCTION: Reproductive coercion (RC) impacts approximately 10.1 million women in he U.S. It is a specific form of intimate partner violence (IPV) that refers to behaviors from a partner through the use of fear or control that undermines the ability to make autonomous decisions regarding reproductive health. Because homicide is the leading cause of death among pregnant women in the U.S., the consequences of leaving RC unaddressed underscore the need for additional research to focus on obtaining a clearer definition of RC and correlates of this form of violence. Moreover, despite being frequently cited as a necessary research direction, studies have seldom assessed men’s perceptions of RC.
METHODS: This study developed a vignette-based measure of perceptions of RC through expert panels and cognitive interviews. Once the measure was developed, a national sample of heterosexual men ages 18-40 using the online market research platform, Prime Panels (n=323) was used to examine men’s perceptions of RC and how those perceptions may differ by known predictors of other forms of sexual violence via a cross-sectional survey.
RESULTS: The developed vignette measure showed strong psychometric properties as evidenced by an Exploratory Factor Analysis and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. Two multiple linear regressions were used to examine relationships between variables and how changes in values of rape myth acceptance, sexual double standards, gender role norms and hostile sexism collectively explain the change in men’s perceptions of reproductive coercion while accounting for relevant control variables. Rape myth acceptance and rigid gender role norms were significantly associated with men’s perceptions of pregnancy coercion. Rape myth acceptance and rigid gender role norms were also significantly associated with men’s perceptions of condom manipulation.
CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that condom manipulation and pregnancy coercion are distinct constructs, although they both fall under reproductive coercion. Men’s adherence to rape myths and rigid gender roles should be qualitatively explored further to gain a deeper understanding of how this may shape their perceptions of this specific form of violence