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If You Charge Them, Will They Come? The Effect of Levying Tuition Fees in International Students
No full textIn 2017, Finland began levying tuition fees on non-European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) international students. Using data from multiple Finnish government sources, we study the impact of tuition fee reform at various stages of the higher education enrollment selection process. Outcomes examined include how the policy change affects student application behavior, admissions and acceptances by institutions, and student enrollments. To identify the effects of the policy change, we employ a difference-in-differences approach using national register data and program-level tuition variations. Our findings led to three key findings: (1) the implementation of fees did not decrease the number of applications of international students subject to fees to Finnish higher education institutions, but it did induce a decrease in the admitted, accepted, and enrolled international student populations; (2) there was an increase in the proportion of fee-paying international students from the wealthiest countries and a decrease from the less wealthy countries; (3) less wealthy students were incentivized to earn more credits in their first year of study after the introduction of tuition fees. We provide a discussions of the implications for policy and practice and recommendations for future research
Addressing Anti-Black Racism in Library and Information Science Curriculum: A Canadian-Centric Learning Model
No full textCanadian communities are facing a crisis of inequity, and library service providers must do more to respond to the causal conditions of anti-Black and other forms of systemic racism (Black & Mehra, 2023). Beginning in 2022, the first known Canadian MLIS course, Anti-Racism in Library and Information Science, was piloted at Western University. It aimed to allow students to engage with transformative and collaborative anti-racism frameworks relevant to the Canadian library sector and MLIS curriculum. The one-semester (13-week) course was offered once each summer in 2022 and 2023. The multi-faceted course aimed to equip students with community-based approaches to learning in partnership with local Black communities. As exemplars, the course approach and learnings also allow LIS scholars and practitioners to explore and evaluate their understanding of community-based and anti-racist frameworks. This paper provides evidence-based research and Black-centred resources that can begin to address anti-Black and other forms of systemic racism impacting Canadian library communities. The Canadian-centric and LIS-tailored approach can further benefit both library and community organizations by supporting anti-racism efforts to uncover covert practices of anti-Black racism in personal and professional practices and worldviews
Drone Medical Package Delivery for Improved Transportation and Better Patient Outcomes Final Implementation Report
No full textThe Drone Medical Package Delivery for Improved Transportation and Better Patient Outcomes planning and prototyping grant involves five partners, including Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission (A-NPDC), Riverside Health System, Old Dominion University (ODU), Virginia Institute for Spaceflight & Autonomy (VISA), Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC), and DroneUp. The partners worked together to address access, safety, reliability and sustainability for medical and emergency response package delivery via drone, specifically, where the use of aerial drones could lead to better patient outcomes and improved safety and emergency response.
The goal of the project was to develop an operational prototype that woul evolve into a self-sustaining delivery service, significantly improving health care outcomes for vulnerable populations, and ensuring direct access for underserved populations. This includes people living in the rural Eastern Shore of Virginia, as well as Tangier Island, which is located in the Chesapeake Bay, 17 miles from the closest hospital. The structure of this report is comprised of two parts with the first half focusing on Stage 1 prototype results and findings and the second half focuses on data supported benefits of at-scale implementation, operational lessons learned and deployment readiness for Stage 2.
In Stage 1, the project achieved significant milestones in management, implementation, workforce development, and public outreach. The team successfully launched the project with clear goals, metrics, and concept of operations. Collaboration with the FAA secured necessary approvals for drone operations, and demonstration flights were conducted to showcase drone technology in real-world scenarios. Data collection supported a comprehensive business case analysis, ensuring technical feasibility and economic sustainability. Additionally, workforce development was initiated using the Talent Training and Development program at Eastern Shore Community College (ESCC) to prepare a skilled workforce for uncrewed autonomous systems (UAS) operations. Public outreach played a crucial role and included media coverage and engaging local stakeholders through public meetings and demonstration events. These efforts helped to build community support and an understanding of the project\u27s objectives among pilots, health care providers, and the general public.
Looking further ahead, the awareness and acceptance of drone delivery service will be a key driver of adoption for at-scale implementation of this project. Comprehensive evaluation of the future value of the program has been performed and addresses this critical factor within the feasibility evaluations. Utilizing the DOT\u27s BCA spreadsheet template for Discretionary Grant Programs to analyze this proposal, the Benefit to Cost Ratio for this program is greater than 3.6, with a net present value of more than $8.6 million, which indicates the operational sustainability of the proposed project. Additional project information and data can be found online at: https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataverse/DroneDOTSMART and https://visaatodu.org/elevating-health-care-access-project
Landslide at River\u27s Edge: Alum Bluff, Apalachicola River, Florida
No full textWhen rivers impinge on the steep bluffs of valley walls, dynamic changes stem from a combination of fluvial and mass wasting processes. This study identifies the geomorphic changes, drivers, and timing of a landslide adjacent to the Apalachicola River at Alum Bluff, the tallest natural geological exposure in Florida at similar to 40 m, comprising horizontal sediments of mixed lithology. We used hydrographic surveys from 1960 and 2010, two sets of LiDAR from 2007 and 2018, historical aerial, drone, and ground photography, and satellite imagery to interpret changes at this bluff and river bottom. Evidence of slope failure includes a recessed upper section with concave scarps and debris fans in the lower section with subaqueous features including two occlusions and a small island exposed from the channel bottom at lower water levels. Aerial photos and satellite images indicate that the failure occurred in at least two phases in early 2013 and 2015. The loss in volume in the 11-year interval, dominantly from the upper portion of the bluff, was similar to 72,750 m³ and was offset by gains of similar to 14,760 m³ at the lower portion of the bluff, suggesting that nearly 80% of the material traveled into the river, causing changes in riverbed morphology from the runout. Despite being along a cutbank and next to the scour pool of a large meandering river, this failure was not driven by floods and the associated lateral erosion, but instead by rainfall in noncohesive sediments at the upper portion of the bluff. This medium-magnitude landslide is now the second documented landslide in Florida
Understanding Hispanic Cultural Strengths Through Parents\u27 Voices: Insights for Interdisciplinary School Personnel
No full textExamining the strengths of Hispanic cultural values among K-12 school students is a generally understudied concept, and from their parents’ perspective specifically. This study sought to take a qualitative approach toward the exploration of Hispanic parents’ perspectives on how their cultural values promote strengths within their school-aged children. Hispanic parents (N = 8) participated in bilingual (i.e., Spanish and English) focus groups, with the results providing content that can inform culturally responsive prevention and intervention strategies to support the roles of interdisciplinary school personnel who regularly interact with the children. Findings pointed to (a) interaction with peers and school staff, (b) location of family, (c) community homogeneity and discrimination, and (d) religious community support. Practical implications for interdisciplinary school personnel and directions for future research promoting Hispanic cultural strengths are discussed
Attributes of Artificial Wetlands Colonized by \u3ci\u3eAmbystoma maculatum\u3c/i\u3e on a Virginia Surface Mine
No full textLandscapes impacted by surface mineral extraction present a range of artificial wetland habitats potentially useable by pool-breeding amphibians, although little information exists in the literature detailing which attributes influence breeding site selection by wetland amphibian specialists in post-mined landscapes. We compared attributes of artificial wetlands consistently used and unused as oviposition sites by Spotted Salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) over a six-year period on a 120-ha former surface mine in Wise County, Virginia, USA. Salamanders non-randomly selected wetlands as oviposition sites, with one-third of available wetlands within the study area showing evidence of ovipositioning. Wetlands used as breeding sites were smaller, shallower, and located farther from roadways than those not selected as breeding sites. Breeding sites also largely lacked fish and impacts from acid mine drainage. Our results provide important information for land managers charged with managing or restoring wetlands associated with surface mining for pool-breeding amphibians and shed light on how native wildlife species select embedded habitat features when recolonizing landscapes impacted by surface mineral extraction
Human Activity Recognition and Identification Driven Automated Deep Learning for Time-Series Classification
No full textThe growing emphasis on Digital Engineering (DE) within the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) demands advanced methods for leveraging vast time-series data generated by sensor-rich environments. Deep learning models offer promising solutions for complex timeseries classification tasks, however their design and optimization remain highly resource intensive, requiring specialized expertise. This dissertation addresses this challenge by developing and evaluating an Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) framework specifically tailored for the time-series classification task of Human Activity Recognition and Identification (HARI).
A systematic investigation was conducted using the Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM) comparing traditional search strategies of grid search and random search with advanced automated Neural Architecture Search (NAS) strategies employing Optuna and a novel configurable gamma strategy. Over 800,00 one-dimensional Convolutional Neural Network (1D-CNN) architectures were generated, trained, and evaluated based on model performance for participant identification and activity recognition using the MotionSense dataset. The results demonstrate that automated search methods outperform traditional approaches, consistently yielding higher F1-scores and more efficient exploration of the architectural search space.
The study’s findings highlight the impact of neural architecture on model performance and demonstrate the feasibility of AutoML frameworks for time-series classification tasks in secure and resource-constrained environments, addressing limitations of current open-source and cloud-based AutoML solutions. The contributions advance the state of the art for AutoML for time-series data and supports the DoD’s DE transformation by enabling broader access to high performing deep learning models without requiring deep domain expertise
Towards Improving Computational Modeling of the Lumbar spine - Impact of Material properties and Laminotomy on Spinal Biomechanics
No full textSpinal ligaments play a crucial role in maintaining the mechanical stability of the lumbar spine. These dense, collagenous tissues not only resist excessive motion but also distribute loads between spinal components to protect neural structures. Traditionally, the mechanical response of ligaments has been modeled using linear elastic assumptions, which treat the tissue as having a constant stiffness regardless of loading history. While this simplifies analysis, it fails to capture the time-dependent behaviors, such as creep, stress relaxation, and hysteresis, that are characteristic of biological tissues.
Viscoelastic modeling may provide a more physiologically accurate representation by incorporating both elastic and viscous elements, enabling the ligament’s response to evolve with changes in strain rate, duration, and history. However, it is unknown how the inclusion of viscoelastic properties of impacts model validity.
This study integrates experimental testing of porcine lumbar ligaments with finite element (FE) simulations to assess the influence of linear elastic and viscoelastic ligament models on spinal biomechanics. Ligament specimens were subjected to tensile testing and stress relaxation protocols, with digital image correlation used to quantify strain. The data were fitted to a transversely isotropic Mooney-Rivlin material model to obtain the viscoelastic material parameters of each ligament and incorporated into an FE model of the lumbar spine.
A secondary focus of the investigation was laminotomy, a common decompression surgery involving partial removal of the vertebral lamina. The study simulated varying laminotomy widths and assessed their impact on spinal biomechanics. The results indicate that increasing the width of laminotomy results in increased stress on the remaining bony structures, particularly during axial rotation and flexion. This stress concentration may raise the risk of developing stress fractures, postoperative instability and spondylolysis. Conversely, minimizing the extent of bone removal helps reduce stress in critical areas of the spine, potentially improving patient outcomes and reducing the need for additional stabilization procedures. Findings offer valuable insight for surgeons in planning decompression procedures, counseling patients, and managing postoperative recovery
The Relationships Between Expectancy-Value Beliefs, Communal Value Beliefs, Family Identity, and Academic Persistence Among First- and Continuing-Generation College Students
No full textFirst-generation college students (students for whom neither parent has a 4-year college degree) have lower college graduation rates than their continuing-generation peers (Cahalan et al., 2021; Fry, 2021). First-generation students may experience barriers to higher education, leading to lower levels of academic achievement motivation for college. Two of these barriers may include 1) cultural mismatch (Stephens, Fryberg, et al., 2012) with colleges via communal value (a value set that emphasizes community and family over the self) and 2) a strong sense of family identity, which lends itself to perceived family obligations (Fuligni et al., 2007). To examine the relationships between communal value, family identity, and academic persistence within the framework of situated expectancy-value theory (SEVT; Eccles & Wigfield, 2020), I surveyed 125 (41 first-generation, 84 continuing-generation) undergraduates at a large, diversely populated, research university. The survey included items regarding participants’ SEVT beliefs, communal value beliefs, family identity, and persistence intentions at two time points in the fall 2024 semester. Institutional enrollment data for the participants were also collected to assess behavioral persistence. The results suggested that first- and continuing-generation students did not significantly differ on any measure, nor did generational status moderate the relationships between either communal value and persistence or family identity and persistence. Further, the survey measures did not relate significantly to persistence intention or behavioral persistence, with the exception of expectancies for success and attainment value relating to persistence intention at the first time point. The non-significant findings may have been the result of an underpowered sample that was too small to detect small-to-moderate effects, as well as short-term longitudinal persistence measures which lacked sufficient variability as a dependent measure
A Case of Interpretive Assistance and School Choice Counseling
No full textDrawing on notions of social capital, insider knowledge embedded in the grapevine , and the labor of choice , this study examines interpretive assistance in the context of families\u27 K-12 school decisions. It uses a qualitative case study of NGO navigator services, which provide school choice counselling primarily to low-income families of colour, to develop theoretical propositions related to the characteristics and potential benefits of interpretive assistance. As some researchers and conservative-leaning think tanks call for investing in navigator services, it is important to deepen our understanding of high-touch informational supports aimed at mitigating demand-side inequities in school choice