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Community Perspectives on Savings and Internal Lending Communities Program: Insights from Rural Guatemala.
No full textIn rural Guatemala, where poverty, limited access to formal financial institutions, and economic inequality persist, community-based financial models like Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILCs) offer a promising alternative. SILCs have gained recognition for their potential to empower low-income individuals, especially women, by providing accessible savings mechanisms and small loans managed within the community. Grounded in Social Capital Theory, this qualitative case study explores the perceptions of Savings and Internal Lending Community [SILC] participants in two rural Guatemalan communities, focusing on their experiences, the influence of SILCs on their well-being, and their recommendations for program improvement. Employing focus group interviews, observations, document analysis, and a participatory group activity, the study engaged Field Technicians, women SILC members, and non-participating youth. Findings reveal that participants perceive SILCs as a crucial financial safety net and a more accessible alternative to traditional banking, fostering social cohesion and enhancing livelihoods through access to savings and low-interest loans. However, the study also highlights the critical role of trust, with instances of loan default and withdrawal posing challenges. Participants emphasized the need for accountability mechanisms like collateral to mitigate these risks and strengthen group cohesion. Recommendations for improvement include greater flexibility in participation, enhanced coordination and guidance, and the continuous building of trust through transparent practices to ensure program sustainability and community engagement
Cotinine Testing as a Component of Screening for Tobacco use in a Pediatric Hospital
Full text linkThe aim of this retrospective cohort study was to assess documented nicotine use history, withdrawal, and intervention with nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for patients admitted to a quaternary children’s hospital who tested positive for cotinine. Patients tested positive for cotinine during 26 of 220 (12%) admissions in which cotinine testing was done. The electronic medical records (EMRs) of these 26 admissions (25 eligible patients; one patient admitted twice) were reviewed for documentation of tobacco product use history, cotinine urine test results, nicotine-related withdrawal symptoms, and prescription of NRT. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Most patients were admitted for overdose or intentional ingestion. 25 of 26 (96%) had tobacco use history documented, and eight (32%) had incongruent documentation. Two patients (50%) with documented nicotine withdrawal were prescribed NRT. This study illustrates missed opportunities to engage patients in addressing tobacco use
The Influence of Digital Knowledge Exchange on Advancing Irish Students Knowledge and Adoption of Sustainable Grassland Management Innovations
Full text linkIreland’s researchers and agricultural advisors emphasize good grassland management as a hallmark of good farming. Formal structured agricultural education and training is a major model of agricultural extension that helps farmers become more innovative and adaptable. Our purpose was to explore the perspectives of Irish higher-level agricultural science and agri-business students who engaged in virtual discussion groups. We employed a co-facilitation approach to help students bridge the gap between theory and practical application in grassland management. Participants were undergraduate students enrolled in two Bachelor of Sciences programs. Third and fourth-year students (n=182) had the opportunity to join non-credit virtual discussion groups focusing on grass measuring and budgeting. Of the 59 expressions of interest, three discussion groups were formed: dairy, dairy and drystock, and drystock only. Group assignments were based on student motivations, farm interests, and grass measuring experience, ensuring the program was tailored to support student learning and innovation. The groups were designed to facilitate learning and behavior change around best practices in grassland management. Participants acknowledged the value associated with opportunities to collaborate with peers as well as experts in the field in terms of developing their knowledge and skillsets with respect to grassland management. Evidence of behavior change regarding grassland management practices at farm level are presented which suggests virtual discussion groups can support increased adoption of (complex) grassland innovations. Recommendations for future delivery are discussed
The Voices of Generation Z: Barriers and Supports to Success in Community College
Full text linkThis study examined Generation Z students enrolled in a California community college in 2021. The first generation to be born into an internet-connected world, this cohort of individuals, born between 1995 and 2010, is attending college now and will continue to enter colleges for the next decade. Data related to the educational barriers to their success and the supports and services needed by Generation Z students were collected to understand how community colleges can better serve this population and help them progress toward their educational goals. Using a qualitative case study research design to study Generation Z community college students, the focus group interview results presented here offer the perceptions and experiences of these students. Insights are included on how community colleges can best serve this latest population to enroll in our institutions
Storytelling in Health Behavior Research: An Adolescent Health Risk Data Collection Conundrum
Full text linkStorytelling is as old as humankind predating any other form of oral history. Instructional methodologies used by teachers include fables, parables, legends, myths, and real-life stories conveying important instructional cognition and affect. This paper briefly discusses the scientific foundations and use of storytelling for, effective instruction and shares a real-world story of conflict involving adolescent psychosocial and biological data collection, a principal investigator and a church youth director. A review of literature synthesized storytelling from a variety of scientific perspectives. This health behavior research story is framed via the essential elements of a story and told via the perspective of the principal investigator. Storytelling is effective at the higher levels of the cognitive and affective domains of Bloom & Krathwohl’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives and rooted in neuroscience, psychology and educational psychology. Personal stories are a relevant strategy connecting learning material with situations outside the classroom. The human brain responds to hearing, reading or viewing a story, similar to real life processing as a genuine life experience. This story is anchored to NIH study protocol, a data collection incident at an African American church and a perplexed PI and research team. The problem-solving process and resolution of the story conflict are described. Implications for instruction in health behavior research, community-based participatory research and program evaluation are discussed. Overall, storytelling increases learner interest, and interaction, making content personally relevant and easier to remember. Storytelling is the bedrock of the learning process and the foundation of the teaching process and profession
The American Academy of Health Behavior 2025 Annual Scientific Meeting: “Bridging the Gap: Advancing Health Behavior Research through Implementation Science
Full text linkThe American Academy of Health Behavior (AAHB) hosted its 25th Annual Scientific Meeting at The Hyatt Regency Mission Bay Hotel in San Diego, California on March 16-19, 2025. The meeting\u27s theme was “Bridging the Gap: Advancing Health Behavior Research through Implementation Science . This publication describes the meeting theme and includes the refereed abstracts presented at the 2025 Annual Scientific Meeting
Effects of Supplementing Corn Silage to Fall-Calving Heifers and Cows Grazing Tall Fescue on Cow Performance
Full text linkThe objective was to test the effect of fescue cultivars and supplemental feeding of cows grazing fescue pastures on cow performance and pasture management. Primiparous and multiparous Angus-based crossed cows (n = 48) averaging 140 ± 0.5 days of gestation at turnout, were randomly allocated and stratified to pasture treatment by parity. Each pasture contained three cows of different ages, consisting of a young (first-calf heifer), middle-aged (3-5 yrs.), and old (≥ 6 yrs.) cow. Treatment was a 2 by 2 factorial design with two types of pasture (toxin producing: TOXIC or non-toxin producing fescue: NONTOXIC) and two levels of supplemental feeding (non-supplemented: NON or supplemented at 1% of body weight on a dry matter basis of corn silage: SUPP). Toxic fescue pastures consisted of K-31 endophyte infected tall fescue (n = 8) tested at 1709 ppm ± 0.36 for ergot alkaloids with an 89.1% infection rate. Non-toxic pastures consisted of novel (MaxQ) and endophyte free varieties (n = 8). Cows were fed silage (32-42% dry matter and 7.83% crude protein) daily in fence-line bunks, with feeding amount being adjusted at each weigh date. Cows were weighed on 2 consecutive days prior to turnout (~middle of the second trimester), beginning of the third trimester, ~2 weeks prior to the estimated calving date for herd, and at peak lactation (~60 days after calving). Body weight (BW), body condition score (BCS), hair score (based on a 1-5 scale; HS), hair length measured over the 3rd rib (HL), and rump fat (RF) measurements were taken at each weigh date during gestation. Calves were weighed at birth and used in weigh-suckle-weigh to estimate milk output. Forage accumulation (FA) and forage mass (FM) were estimated every 28 days using the paired-cage method. There were no grass type x supplementation interactions (P \u3e 0.19) for any measurement, other than HS and HL. Prior to calving, there was a tendency for cows grazing NONTOXIC to have heavier weights (P = 0.10); this continued through peak lactation (P = 0.10). Supplementation did not affect BW (P \u3e 0.32), BCS (P \u3e 0.22), or RF (P \u3e 0.21) during gestation; but during lactation SUPP increased BCS (P = 0.007) over NON. Hair length and HS were greater for cows grazing TOXIC pastures at the beginning of third trimester (P = 0.06) and immediately prior to calving (P = 0.04). NONTOXIC-NON cows had a greater reduction in HL than those grazing TOXIC-NON with supplementation on both grass types being intermediate (P = 0.05). Calf birth weight and estimates of milk output were not different for grass type or supplementation (P \u3e 0.23). Forage mass tended to be 11% greater in TOXIC pastures than NONTOXIC (P = 0.06) and SUPP pastures tended to have 6% greater FM than NON (P = 0.09). Non-toxic pastures, overall, result in greater cattle performance. Supplementation did not offset toxicity but did result in greater available forage
Hard Red and Soft Red Winter Wheat Variety Testing – 2024
Full text linkThis is a summary of the winter wheat production conditions in Kansas, with particular emphasis on the variety trial results from southeast Kansas in 2024. The fall of 2023 was dry, slightly impacting wheat establishment, but overall yields were above average of previous variety trials. Overall yields in the variety tests were much higher than the state averages at Parsons for both hard and soft wheat varieties. Above average rainfall in the spring did not result in significant disease pressure
Urban hassles and navigating education: Perceptions of urban high schoolers from a school-wide needs assessment
Full text linkA wealth of scholarly research examines the impact of school environments and climates on students, but far less attention is paid to how the school environment’s positioning within its larger community influences student experiences. While there is an understanding that outside environment influences what happens within the school, little study has been done to examine this from a student perspective. The purpose of this paper is to examine how the perceptions of urban high school students influence their navigation of the school environment, sense of empowerment, and future thinking. This study uses a dataset developed from a school-wide needs assessment conducted at an urban Midwestern high school. Findings include students from higher hassle environments perceived the school environment and their futures lower than their low-hassle experiencing peers. Study results posit schools may increasingly need to consider the impact of the proximal external environment when developing and implementing various policies and interventions to improve student outcomes in schools
Upskilling and the HRD Tripartite Domains for Adult Workers:Using Spiral Dynamic Theory (SDT)
Full text linkSDT is used to upskill adult workers. This complexity-focused framework for the evolving delivery of AI-facilitated HRD helps assess change dynamics. Its application on three key levels guides adult education