12244 research outputs found
Sort by
Uncharted Territories: COVID-19 and Other 2020 Events That Changed Lives Forever
Get PDFThe year 2020 rolled in with pomp and pageantry like any other year in human history. I assume that many like me had high hopes, possibly made new year resolutions. I looked forward to the new year with great expectations—planned trips, events, graduations, weddings, and even new writing goals and aspirations. But the year had its own plan, taking an unexpected turn. I am a science educator, wife, and mother of three black children; I walked into the uncharted territories of COVID-19 and other 2020 events that changed lives forever. I tell this story of my lived experience with a deep sense of reflection. I explain the emotional and psychological distress that accompanied a year that redefined and shaped the world differently
Bomb Calorimetry: A New Method of CEC Determination
Get PDFA new method of determining the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of clay minerals was examined. This method involved exchanging the smectite clay with organic cations and using bomb calorimetry to measure the energy of combustion of the material. Because the clay is noncombustible, the energy is completely dependent on the amount of organic present, which is dependent on the CEC of the clay. Two organic cations, tetrapentylammonium and octadecyltrimethylammonium , with similar size but much different shape were used. For clays with lower CECs, using the more symmetric ion yielded better accuracy (4.24%), while for clays with higher CEC, using the straight chain organic yielded better accuracy (1.16%). Overall, the results indicate that using bomb calorimetry presents a viable option in the determination of cation exchange capacity
The Impact of the Women\u27s Army Auxiliary Corps and WAAC Branch No. 1 During World War II
Get PDFWAACs benefited SFA, Nacogdoches, and women during WWII, for their station effectively supplemented local income as men left to fight in the war, set precedents for similar programs, and furthered acceptance of women in male dominated fields locally and nationally, the impacts of which are still relevan
Teacher Moonlighting: A Perceptional Study From Louisiana
Get PDFMoonlighting is a common practice for many teachers due to the need for supplemental income. This study was designed to narrate the effects moonlighting had on teachers in Northwest Louisiana. Through a series of online interviews, teachers shared their narrative regarding the effects moonlighting had on their personal and professional lives. The study took a constructivist phenomenological approach using primary data along with descriptive, non-experimental research to collect information about the participants’ lived experiences with teacher moonlighting. A narrative analysis was utilized to generate codes then organize them into themes, and to construct and compare the narrative findings. The results of the study demonstrated that while moonlighting educators do share similar experiences, there were also specific details that were unique to each individual. This study reported similarities, differences, and additions to existing literature
Leadership Through Budgeting: Controlling Taxes and Increasing Services
Get PDFLocal budgets are the key responsibility of elected and appointed leaders, as are ultimate control over how tax dollars are allocated, and which services are provided to the citizens. Nowhere else is leadership more important than during budget preparation. However, local budgeting is typically more an annual event than an ongoing efficient and effective process. By implementing a budgeting process and preparing a budget in accordance with the criteria required by the Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award Program and earning the award, local governments can create more efficient and effective operations, improve public trust, and have better control over taxes while increasing services. This article will show both a comparison of Chambers County’s budgeting process between the past and the present, and the advantages versus the disadvantages of a GFOA award winning budget. Advantages include improving the budgeting process, focusing more on priorities, providing a better understanding of operations for all stakeholders, and improving operational performance. Disadvantages discussed are staff commitment, cost, and the need for change. This article provides sufficient evidence to suggest that Chambers County and its stakeholders benefited from the county formally adopting the requirement to earn the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award as part of their annual budget policy. Other local governments should consider working toward the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award
Listen to the River: Dolores, Ophelia, and Female Resistance in Opera
Get PDFThe music of female characters in the great masterpieces of opera often demonstrates resistance to and undermines the abuse they have historically received in opera plots. The Mexican folktale that my opera, The Tragedy of La Llorona, draws inspiration from plays on many of the same tropes historically found in female characters in opera including madness, sexuality, and lack of agency. This led to research into the portrayal of women in opera as part of my pre-compositional process and my desire to access this tale free from the traditional \u27marianismo\u27 and \u27machismo\u27 narratives it is associated with and which are found in many operas. This is demonstrated through a brief historical overview of the portrayal of women in opera including the scholarly work of influential musicologists on the subject such as Susan McClary. The primary justification for my claim, however, is direct musical analysis of excerpts from three operas with prominent female characters (Desdemona, Sieglinde/Brünnhilde, Mélisande) that were as well influential to the development of my opera. The central claim that the music of female characters resists being cast aside in opera plots was born out of the process of creating the characters for my own opera. The ultimate goal of this paper, therefore, is to give a more intimate understanding of my opera by surveying important musical and literary themes and influences before presenting the work as it currently stands
Parent Perspectives of Digital Learning Experiences: A Phenomenological Study
Get PDFDigital learning is a rising method of enhancing education for learners in the K-12 sector of learning. The growing approach to instruction has created a pathway for various backgrounds of learners to conveniently explore content from home. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to examine parent perspectives of K-12 digital learning programs in southeast Texas. More so, the study explored how parents’ perspectives of digital learning in relation to academic success influenced the selected mode of instruction for their child. Using a phenomenological approach, research questions were answered regarding parent perspectives of digital learning, as related to the quality of instruction, academic success, and the overall decision for the mode of instruction selected for their child. Findings revealed responsibility and accountability, proficiency, competency, and knowledge of how to assist children while learning contributed to parents’ perspective of digital learning and its influence on their child’s academic success. Furthermore, findings discovered teacher experience, skills, and interactions influenced parents’ perspectives of the quality of instruction received and their decision to select digital learning as the mode of instruction for their child. Results from this research can provide instructional leaders with insight into areas to strengthen training practices for teachers in the digital learning environment
Distribution and Soil Characteristics Associated with the Neches River Rose-Mallow (Hibiscus dasycalyx)
Get PDFThe Neches River rose-mallow, Hibiscus dasycalyx, is a rare herbaceous perennial endemic to East Texas. The threatened, obligate wetland species is currently at risk of being lost in the wild due to habitat loss, encroachment of nonnative and native plant species, and hybridization with two other Hibiscus congeners, Hibiscus laevis and Hibiscus moscheutos. Known locations of each of the three Hibiscus species were used to measure select soil characteristics and habitat variables associated with each of the rose-mallows. H. dasycalyx was concluded to be associated with more fertile soils and slightly more canopy coverage than H. laevis and H. moscheutos. H. dasycalyx was also strongly associated with a soil drainage class of moderately well drained to somewhat poorly drained. Soil-site properties associated with the presence and survivorship of H. dasycalyx can be utilized in the selection of sites for introduction and reintroduction projects in the future. The propagation and cultivation of H. dasycalyx, paired with the isolation and light management of all populations, will aid in ongoing conservation strategies
Investigaion of the Gamma Hurdle Model for a Single Population Mean
Get PDFA common issue in some statistical inference problems is dealing with a high frequency of zeroes in a sample of data. For many distributions such as the gamma, optimal inference procedures do not allow for zeroes to be present. In practice, however, it is natural to observe real data sets where nonnegative distributions would make sense to model but naturally zeroes will occur. One example of this is in the analysis of cost in insurance claim studies. One common approach to deal with the presence of zeroes is using a hurdle model. Most literary work on hurdle models will focus on modeling the frequency of zeros separate from the nonnegative values. While this approach has some advantages, it doesn’t typically provide an interval estimator for the global population mean of the variable of interest. In this work we developed a Wald interval for the population mean assuming the gamma hurdle model. Usingsimulation, we investigated our procedure along with traditional interval estimation strategies such as the t-interval and bootstrap techniques and provided some recommendations and insights. Currently, we recommend the bootstrap t-interval overall as it has better coverage properties across all scenarios we considered