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Let’s Get Digital: Retrospective Digitization of ETDs for an Institutional Repository
Get PDFFranklin University Library conducted a retrospective digitization project to make a collection of education master’s theses available in its institutional repository. Digitizing bound theses and dissertations to make them available in an institutional repository benefits the institutional repository, the university, the student authors of the works, and external researchers. When conducting a retrospective digitization project for theses or dissertations that are protected by copyright, a university library must consider how the students’ copyright in their work affects the library’s ability to digitize the theses or dissertations and make them available in an institutional repository. University libraries should also consider making the scanned theses and dissertations digitally accessible to reach the widest possible audience. For this project, the Franklin University Library decided to contact the student authors of the theses to request permission, gave the students the opportunity to select a Creative Commons license for their work, and then digitized the theses of those students who granted permission. As part of the digitization process, library staff remediated the scanned theses to meet Franklin University’s digital accessibility standards
“It Is Such a Hidden Curriculum Thing”: Graduate Students’ Perceptions of Publishing
Get PDFBecoming published authors presents a learning curve for graduate students. Publishing literacy is part of the hidden curriculum of graduate school because publishing is generally not taught consistently but more commonly through ad hoc conversations with advisors, advice from peers, and the occasional workshop. Our study surveyed graduate students at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) who had already published or were expecting to publish journal articles. Survey questions asked students about the publishing process, defined by us as the stage of the post-writing process when a manuscript is ready to publish. Our data demonstrate that publishing expectations are frequently unclear and that students often rely on guidance from their advisors as well as their networks of other graduate students, though this guidance does not add up to comprehensive training covering the full publishing process. The publishing process remains opaque for students, and the learn-as-you-go support model results in gaps in student understanding of the publication process, points to a lack of equity, and signals the need for greater investment in student publishing success
Career and Technical Education Classes and Time to Graduate for Special Education Students with Specific Learning Disabilities
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to examine whether special education students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) participating in Career and Technical Education (CTE) classes during high school demonstrate significantly different amounts of time to graduation compared to their peers who do not participate in CTE classes.
Data collection involved using pre-existing information from the district\u27s student information system. An Excel spreadsheet with relevant student demographic and academic information was utilized. The district data manager provided a spreadsheet with 3,567 student records to analyze differences between CTE and non-CTE participants. The results revealed that CTE participation significantly impacted graduation rates, particularly for both general education and special education (SPED) students. CTE participants were more likely to graduate, with this effect being especially notable for SPED students, including those who took longer than four years to finish high school. From the data analysis, three main themes emerged. First, CTE participation served as a strong support system for students, improving graduation rates for both general education and SPED populations. Second, while CTE did not shorten the time to graduate for general education students, it was particularly beneficial for SPED students who needed more than four years, helping them stay engaged and complete their education. Lastly, gender was a significant predictor of CTE credit accumulation, with males earning more credits than females, pointing to potential disparities in participation that may need to be addressed
How We Stopped Charging Students to Submit ETDs: Case Study of a Five-Year Odyssey
Get PDFIn 2019, the Graduate School at the University at Albany, State University of New York wrote to the University Libraries about the processing of archival copies of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs), hoping to reduce or eliminate deposit fees for authors. Interested library faculty and staff self-assembled into a project team and found that the university’s switch in 2008 to a born-digital submission workflow provided by an external vendor was deeply flawed as a service, and unnecessarily costly to student authors. Later, in 2013, the Libraries established an open access institutional repository (IR), which had the potential to support a much-improved ETD service to students and researchers; however, the Libraries did not initially consider using the IR to support the ETD service. This case study of the Libraries’ problematic ETD program, and the (eventually) successful path to addressing its issues using our IR, revealed longstanding issues with the Libraries’ organizational communication and resource environment that we continue to grapple with. We hope our example can help academic libraries improve their ETD services and workflows, and identify and mitigate similar organizational issues
Investigating the Role of the Hypocretin/Orexin System in a Novel Model of Polysubstance Dependence
No full textSubstance use disorders (SUD) in the United States are steadily increasing. Potent and dangerous substances such as methamphetamine (MA) and fentanyl (FEN) are often co-used as a polysubstance (POLY), either intentionally or unknowingly as FEN is a common adulterant. SUD is characterized by physiological and psychological dependence involving the negative reinforcement of anhedonia and withdrawal which drive hypermotivated drug-taking behaviors. Current theory suggests that recruitment of hypocretin/orexin (HCRT) neuropeptide in reward and stress associated brain regions contributes to drug dependence. Despite strong evidence for HCRT’s role in mono-drug dependence, a relevant model for POLY dependence has yet to be developed, leaving gaps in our understanding of HCRT with POLY use. While the relationship between drugs and HCRT, as well as drugs and neuroinflammation, are well-established, the dynamic between these three factors remains understudied.
Our laboratory developed a preclinical model of POLY (MA + FEN) dependence to further investigate HCRT modulation of POLY-taking behavior and POLY-induced neuroinflammation. We first validated the POLY self-administration model, demonstrating faster acquisition and accelerated escalation in POLY-taking compared to mono-drug models. We also observed consistent upregulation of HCRT peptide and receptors in the central amygdala (CeA), a stress-sensitive node contributing to drug dependence, in each model. We investigated the role of HCRT during POLY dependence via systemic HCRT-receptor antagonism, which attenuated POLY-taking and stress-induced reinstatement, evidencing HCRT signaling as an important component of POLY-dependence. A site of action for HCRT modulation of POLY dependence was further investigated by chemogenetic inhibition of HCRT signaling to the CeA. Silencing of HCRT-CeA signaling reduced POLY-taking and stress-induced reinstatement behavior, supporting our hypothesis that HCRT signaling in the CeA drives dependent behaviors. Finally, we examined the relationship between POLY, HCRT, and neuroinflammation by administering HCRT-1, POLY, and/or a HCRT-receptor antagonist and measured markers of neuroinflammation (TNF-a and IL1-b). We observed a modest trend for HCRT as a neuroprotective element in a model of passive POLY exposure. Together, these studies validate our model of POLY dependence, enhance our understanding of the HCRT system and the CeA during POLY dependence, and elucidate dynamic relationships between dependence, HCRT, and neuroinflammation
Development of a Portable Electroencephalogram with Display
Get PDFIn this experiment, the goal was to design, build, and test an Electroencephalogram (EEG) circuit that would then be paired with a touchscreen display as a portable unit for use in Schizophrenic research at East Tennessee State University at the Quillen College of Medicine. The requirements for this prototype denoted that the device had to be able to obtain a signal from two electrodes placed on the head of an individual with a third attached to the ankle as a ground, amplify and filter the signal, and display the results on a touchscreen display for recording and analyzing. The circuit design was approached using a basic three stage breakdown structure: Acquire, Amplify, Filter. This experiment outlines various lowpass and bandpass active filters used in conjunction with instrumentation amplifiers for signal acquisition and amplification. The final design is a 5th-order 25Hz Lowpass Filter EEG Circuit with variable Gain and Quality Factor
Inner Bonds
Get PDFThe artist, Cait Maltbie, discusses their Master of Fine Arts exhibition, Inner Bonds, which was installed at Slocumb Galleries in Johnson City, TN, from March 24, 2025, through April 4, 2025, with a public reception held on March 27, 2025. The exhibition consisted of multi-disciplinary work: zines, screenprints, and a sculptural installation mimicking the scenery and emotional environment of the imaginary Inner Bonds world. Inner Bonds refers to their comic series about feelings and how they are handled, from which all the content for this exhibition is derived. The work is focused on deconstructing the artist’s feelings so that they can become a tool for growth for both the artist and the viewer. The exhibition provided a space for reflection and connection with others in the space and context of Inner Bonds