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Students' Work >> |
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>> Jessica Carter |
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Research Title:
New Millennium Youth and the Negotiation of Black Identity. |
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Major: English |
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Mentor: Dr. Joan Weston |
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Abstract: The goal of this research is to examine the everyday social life of African American youth and the cultural resources that are used to construct a racial identity. Using Swindler’s notion of culture-in-action, I argue that African American youth are involved in a process of producing and interpreting cultural practices in an attempt to define what they believe to be a Black identity. I argue that increasingly middle-class African American youth are embracing a “ghetto culture-in-action,” a set of misguided acts of rebellion against the social system of the mainstream white middle class. The focus of this research is to understand the social forces shaping the logic of this movement towards a “ghetto” cultural orientation.
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>> Mallory Cervantes |
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Research Title:
A Critical Analysis of Homework in American Schools.
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Subject:
Integrated Mathematics
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Mentor:
Dr. Francis Godwyl
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Abstract:
Homework is most often applied in schools around America without thinking twice about the effects homework may have on the students. I am researching the different aspects of homework, including the history, positive and negative effects, differences in perception, and homework alternatives. Through researching these specific topics in various sources, I hope to find that homework is most often a burden, rather than a helpful learning tool. In finding the different aspects in which I am researching, I hope to persuade educators to take a more critical eye toward homework. Providing homework alternative should help educators see other ways that students can learn which may be more beneficial for them. | |
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>> Sharlene Cleveland |
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Research Title:
Cooperation or Division? Effect of Immigrant-Native Minority Perceptions on Political Coalition Building. |
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Major:
Political Science |
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Mentor:
Dr. Hector Perla |
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Abstract: Immigration and its effect on native underrepresented populations is an important topic of study for many scholars. Many times, immigrants and native populations fit into the same socio-economic category and must share available resources. In the United States, low-income African Americans and Latino immigrants have formed joint communities and political coalitions in some of the largest cities in the past but have been known to divide on several issues when one group stands to win over the other. In German, the low-income Turks and East Germans share communities but are in constant competition for economic resources. It has been debated that certain minority groups will form political coalitions if they feel they share similar interests or if one group’s gain works independently from another group’s interests. Group commonality has been theorized to be the linking factor in political coalitions. Groups will compete if one group seeks to gain at another group’s loss. Immigrant and native Minority political cooperation in both the United States could significantly change the way in which the underrepresented can transform public policy as we know it.
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>> Ayris Colvin
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Research Title:
Understanding the experiences of a majority African American public high school in academic emergency: Exploring underachievement for the progression of African American Schools. |
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Major:
Integrated Language Arts |
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Mentor:
Dr. Francis Godwyll |
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Abstract: |
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>> Ashely Diaz |
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Research Title:
A
Cultural Study on Latina Suicide Attempts |
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Major:
English/Pre-Law |
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Mentor:
Dr. Amanda Nolacea Harris |
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Abstract:
Latinas are not only one of the fastest growing populations
in the nation but they also have one of the highest suicide
attempt rates as well. The statistics are alarming. The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports
that “Nationally, one in five Hispanic girls attempt
suicide; this is a higher rate than for their non Hispanic
peers” (Zayas 275). Many have asked the question “Why?” This
work-in-progress study looks to cultural texts by and about
Latinas that directly address Latina subjectivity and
fragmentation of the self in relation to the multiple
factors of oppression particular to Western patriarchy –
race, class, and gender – to articulate an answer to the
question “Why Do So Many Latinas Attempt Suicide?” |
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>> David Ford
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Research Title:
An Analysis of Welfare Reform in Cuyahoga County |
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Subject: Political Science
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Mentor:
Hector Perla | |
Abstract:
This research will look at the impact of the act signed into law by President Clinton that changed the face of welfare. On august 22, 1996 the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) became the new welfare reform law succeeding Aid to Dependent Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). The PRWORA is providing temporary assistance to help people live on their own by integrating recipients of welfare into the workforce. This paper will explain the effects of welfare reform on recipients in Cuyahoga County while examining how this new legislation has affected poverty rates and look the average salaries of working past and current recipients of welfare. | |
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>> Naomi Drakeford
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Research Title:
An Analysis of Caucasian and African-American Young Women: The Effects of Social Comparison and Thin Media Standards on Self-Esteem. |
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Major: Psychology |
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Mentor: Dr. Emily Balceti |
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Abstract: This research explores how exposure to the thin ideal body size as perpetuated by popular media influences African-American and Caucasian women’s psychological and physical views of their own bodies. Given that the media offers women a salient but unattainable standard of comparison and people in general display automatic tendencies towards social comparison, we predict that women exposed to the media’s portrayal of the thin ideal will exhibit lower body esteem, lower general self-esteem, and greater error in identifying the actual shape of their own body. We explore two moderators of these effects. First, relevance of the standard of comparison as determined by race of the comparison target is expected to moderate this pattern. Participants will demonstrate increased body dissatisfaction after viewing photographs reflecting the thin ideal of their respective race as these comparisons are relatively more relevant than comparisons of a different race. Second, individual differences in the tendency to socially compare will act as a moderator. Participants who tend not to socially compare will be less affected by media exposure. These results will benefit future research on the effects of the thin ideal perpetuated by the media on women’s self-views. |
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>> Janine El-Amin |
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Research Title:
The Problem with Unsatisfied and Under Qualified Teachers in Urban and Suburban Schools: What can be done? |
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Major: Middle Childhood Language Arts and Mathematics |
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Mentor: Dr. Edward Morris
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Abstract: The focus of this paper is teacher satisfaction and quality. Teachers are highly unsatisfied with their careers. Some of this dissatisfaction stems from administrative support, salary, the working environment, and many more. There are more unsatisfied educators in urban districts than in suburban. More than likely a stressed teacher is an unsatisfied teacher and that may affect the quality of the educator. Quality teaching is linked to student success and retaining quality teachers is a problem in the urban schools. Most teachers migrate or leave the field within the first 5 years. My study will examine this issue through interviews of teachers in urban and suburban elementary schools. | |
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>> Dominique Ellison |
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Research Title: If This Trend Continues: The Declining Black Classroom Educational Force What Does It Mean for Black People? |
| Major: Middle Childhood Language Arts and Mathematics |
| Mentor: Dr. Najee Muhammad |
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Abstract: The research examines the historical and present contributions Black educators have made to the education of Black children. Statistics show that the Black classroom educational force has declined drastically, largely due to the effects of the Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954. Consequently, Blacks have relinquished the education of Black children into the hands of White educators, which have birthed negative results concerning the educational progress and overall wellbeing of Black children. This research vividly explains why there is a need for Black classroom educators who care and will work to validate the authentic education of Black children. |
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>> Deon Guillory |
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Research Title:
A Critical Analysis of School Funding. |
| Major: History |
| Mentor:
Dr. Francis Godwyll |
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Abstract:
The purpose of this research is to analyze the issues surrounding the problems with school funding in Ohio. This research contains information such as how Ohio public schools are funded, the current condition of the school system, and the proposed solutions to fixing the current condition.
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>> Velma Lopez
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| Research Title: "The Human Cytomegalovirus: Viral Replication and Gene UL34"
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| Subject:
Biological Sciences |
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Mentor
: Dr. Bonita Biegalke |
Abstract: The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infects approximately eighty percent of the world’s adult population. Characterized as a ubiquitous infection by many scholars, HCMV infection poses little threat to the general population. However, for the immunodeficient patients, HCMV infection can lead to potentially fatal HCMV diseases. HCMV is the most common infection of the fetus and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in transplant and AIDS patients. An understanding of HCMV replication is critical for the creation of drugs to prevent infection, disease, and death.
There are a relatively small number of genes that are essential for HCMV replication, which are studied in hopes of discovering targets for antiviral treatments. One such gene is UL34.Very little is known about the HCMV gene UL34; its role in viral replication is not fully understood. In order to understand more about the UL34 gene and viral replication, the encoded protein pUL34 must be further examined. Finding the amino acid sequence of the nuclear localization signal on pUL34 can potentially allow scientists to stop viral replication and thus infection. pUL43 presents exciting possibilities to learning more about the mechanisms behind HCMV replication, providing the opportunity to create an antiviral treatment to stop an infection that affects the majority of the world’s adult population. |
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>> Candice Montgomery
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Research Title:
Technological Discrepancies: The differences among Ohio ’s Urban, Suburban, and
Rural Public
Middle schools |
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Subject:
Computer Science
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Mentor:
Dr. Teresa Franklin | |
Abstract:
Technological differences among Ohio ’s urban, suburban, and rural public middle schools foster inequality and do not allow equal opportunity for students to reach their full potential. These differences vary on four levels: hardware and software equipment, usage and application of the equipment, teacher preparation and/ or training, and administration or government support. The dissimilarities do not provide equal preparation for standardized tests or for the pursuit of higher education. The discrepancies hinder students from acquiring necessary workforce skills for a techno logically driven society.
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>> Christina Myrick |
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Research Title: Psychological Distress Among College Women in Sexually, Physically or Verbally Abusive Relationships. |
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Major: Psychology |
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Mentor: Dr. Christine A. Gidycz |
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Abstract: The current study examines the psychological effects of sexual, physical and verbal intimate partner violence (IPV) on women. Out of the 244 undergraduate women, approximately 23% reported experiencing sexual aggression, 12.3% reported experiencing physical abuse and 72.3% reported experiencing verbal abuse perpetrated by their current partner. The results of this study suggested that sexual abuse by one’s current partner predicted participants’ dissociation and sexual problems. Physical abuse by one’s current partner predicted participants’ experiences of sexual problems. Verbal abuse by one’s current partner predicted participants’ feelings of dissociation, anxiety, depression, sexual problems and sleep disturbances. The findings from this study can help improve current treatment techniques for abused women. |
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>> Emma Ray
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Research Title: Food Security, Health, and Produce Intake and Behaviors of Native Americans Living on a Reservation in Arizona. |
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Major: Dietetics
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Mentor: Dr. David H. Holben |
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Abstract: Food security is prevalent in the United States. In fact, in 2005, 89% of households in the United States were faced with food insecurity (Nord, M., Andrews, M., & Carlson, S., 2006). To decrease food insecurity in the United States, there is a food security safety net that includes programs such as the Food Stamp Program, National School Program, and others. Since Native Americans are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity, specific food assistance programs have been developed for those living on reservation, such as the Food Distribution Programs on Indians Reservations (United States Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, 2007). This research will facilitate our understanding of rural Navajo women and their food access, dietary behaviors, and health. No studies have examined these factors to date, and, in view of the high prevalence of diabetes among Native Americans, this research is especially vital. Specifically, the purpose of this research project will be to assess the relationship between food access, fruit and vegetable intake and behaviors, and the health status, including incidence of and risk for diabetes, among the adult, females living on a Navajo reservation in Arizona. One hundred fifty questionnaires will be sent to Greasewood Community School, a rural community school located on a Navajo Reservation in Greasewood, Arizona, and will be distributed to students for the surveys to be completed by the female parent or caretaker and returned. Data will be analyzed using the Statistical Program for the Social Sciences (descriptive and inferential statistics). It is expected that food insecurity will be inversely related to intake of fruits and vegetables, health status, and diabetes risk.
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>> Clint Sheets
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Research Title:
Correlative indicators with concussive injuries an dehydration levels in an athlete |
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Subject:
Exercise Physiology
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Mentor:
Dr. Andrew Krause | |
Abstract:
Concussive injuries have a high level of prevalence inathletics. Recent research has elucidated this particular concept such as the hydration status who reported a 2.1%-2.6 % deficiency of body mass, correlated strongly with a change in ventricular volume (r=0.932, p=0.007). This correlation seems to suggest a predisposition for the inadequately hydratedathlete to be more susceptible to variable forms of concussion. Cerebral spinalfluid (CSF) acts as a liquid intermediate which encompasses the brain in the subarachnoid space and helps alleviate the brains weight and essentially protects the brain from making full impact inside the skull. During a 16 hours-time frame in which fluid intake was restricted, brain CSF decreased by 0.55% and upon allowing regular fluid consumption the total CSF volume increased by 0.72%. Hydration status is not ambiguous when used in the context of poor ambient conditions which could render severe and potentially fatal consequences to an athlete. Urine Specific Gravity (USG) is a measurement that could serve as salient indicator for an athlete who may be prone to substaining a concussion. USG measurements indicated that63% of NBA athletes were above the NATA threshold of 1.020, perpetuating amaladroit approach by even professional athletes in regard to hydration practices.
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>> Terrez Thomas |
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Research Title:
Ohio PublicSchools: Allocation of funds, Overreliance on Property Taxes and Improvements made Post DeRolph vs.
Ohio
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Subject: Education
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Mentor:
Rosalie Romano | |
Abstract:
This paper examines the distribution of state aid to Ohio Public Schools. I compare SF-3 reports across the state and look for the differences amongst districts state aid percentages. Data provided by DeRolphvs.
Ohio
concluded that the state has an over reliance on property tax and that the funding system was unconstitutional. Through studying the case it determined where the inequalities exist. This research evaluates the changes made post DeRolph and concluding with proposed solutions by various organizations that fight for equality in our schools.
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