The goal of this project completed for the Greater Northfield Sustainability Collaborative (GNSC) was to understand how Northfield, Minnesota citizens are experiencing climate change. Thirty individuals were interviewed to find out what they know about climate change, what actions they are taking, what they think the solutions are to the problems, and what barriers they have to more fully engaging with climate change issues. The interview results are intended to promote and advance the community's discussion on climate change via social learning and community engagement activities such as town hall forums and community surveys. These activities encourage citizens in the community to have direct input into the development of the community's climate action plan (CAP). Analysis of the interviews showed that the interviewees are witnessing climate change, that most are taking at least some action such as recycling or lowering thermostats, that they can name barriers to their own inaction, that they say communication about climate change remains confusing and is not widespread in Northfield, and that they are able to provide numerous suggestions for what the local and broader leadership should be doing. The analysis also showed wide individual variation within the group. Interviewees who were less knowledgeable about …

This thesis examines the ways that African Americans in the mid-twentieth century thought about and practiced masculinity. Important contemporary events such as the struggle for civil rights and the Vietnam War influenced the ways that black Americans sought not only to construct masculine identities, but to use these identities to achieve a higher social purpose. The thesis argues that while mainstream American society had specific prescriptions for how men should behave, black Americans were able to select which of these prescriptions they valued and wanted to pursue while simultaneously rejecting those that they found untenable. Masculinity in the mid-century was not based on one thing, but rather was an amalgamation of different ideals that black men (and women) sought to utilize to achieve communal goals of equality, opportunity, and family.

This thesis presents qualitative research conducted in summer 2017 at the Finger Lakes Free Clinic, which provides free medical and holistic care to people without insurance in upstate New York. The primary goal of this research was to strengthen the relationship between a free clinic and its donors by gathering donor concerns and perceptions regarding federal healthcare policy. Data from 32 interviews with donors, staff, board members, and volunteers, along with 100 hours of participant observation revealed that donors to this clinic were concerned about the potential impact of Congressional healthcare reform yet did not consider federal policy a strong influence on their donations. Rather, donors cited dedication to local giving and personal connections with the clinic as their primary motivations. These motivations suggest the value of viewing the clinic-donor relationship as a relationship of reciprocity. From this framework, the research identifies opportunities for the clinic to reciprocate donor generosity while expanding services in response to a growing need. Insights from the research will guide the clinic's response to federal policy changes and support the clinic's vision of becoming a national model for integrative care.

Software as a service (SaaS) is a primary working pattern and a significant application model for next generation Internet application. Web GIS services are the new generation of the Software as a service that can provide the hosted spatial data and GIS functionalities to the practical customized applications. This study focused on developing a webGIS based application, Soil Moisture-Based Irrigation Scheduling Tool (SMIST), for predicting soil moisture in the next seven days using the soil moisture diagnostic equation (SMDE) and the upcoming seven precipitation forecasts made by the National Weather Service (NWS), and ultimately producing an accurate irrigation schedule based on the predicted soil moisture. The SMIST is expected to be capable of improving the irrigation efficiency to protect groundwater resources in the Texas High Plains and reducing the cost of energy for pumping groundwater for irrigation, as an essential public concern in this area. The SMIST comprised an integration of web-based programs, a Hydrometeorological model, GIS, and geodatabase. It integrates two main web systems, the soil moisture estimating web application for irrigation scheduling based on the soil moisture diagnostic equation (SMDE), and an agricultural field delineation webGIS application to prepare input data and the model parameters. The SMIST takes …

Language change is constant due to varied linguistic and sociolinguistic factors. Specifically, prolonged situations of language in contact have been observed to have a direct influence on language change and variation. Previous studies have documented several changes that may occur within bilingual speech communities in sustained circumstances of language in contact. This study examines the possibility of attrition of the simple present form of Spanish in bilingual speakers of Spanish and English due to prolonged interaction between the two languages. Specifically, it attempts to determine whether the value of the Spanish simple present tense diminishes, and the present progressive form gains prominence as a result of language transfer occurring where there is intensive contact between Spanish and English. In order to determine that this linguistic phenomenon has occurred in bilingual speech communities, data were collected and analyzed from bilingual Spanish and English speakers living in the United States. To demonstrate bilingual speakers' use of the simple and progressive present forms, participants were instructed to complete two tasks: 1) a background questionnaire designed to gather information regarding each participants' relationship with the Spanish language, and 2) a picture-narration task designed to reveal each bilingual's preference for the simple present or progressive …

This work addresses hurricane preparedness in Escambia County, Florida. It explores preparing for hurricanes as an informal learning process occurring within personal networks and embedded in beliefs, values, and attitudes. Findings reveal that participants learned to prepare from their parents in childhood and improved upon that knowledge through direct experience in adulthood. Later, they passed this knowledge on to their children as well as co-workers. These preparations are embedded in beliefs of self-determination and attitudes of endurance. However, this body of knowledge and their respective practices are not equally accessible to all. Recommendations are provided so local organizations can incorporate local knowledge and practices with preparedness improvement efforts and foster social cohesion as well.

Using ethnographic research in the form of an outcomes assessment, this project aims to unpack and evaluate the experiences of students and significance of the key concepts shared during the Live Algoma-Improvement Science course/and associated projects during the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 school years. Through the use of evaluative techniques such as interviews, focus groups, and a survey, I endeavor to both strengthen and inform the work Live Algoma is doing and highlight to the community and other stakeholders the valuable impact of this initiative on the students. As part of the Improvement Science course, students from the Algoma School District were trained on key concepts such as failing forward, PDSA, and ways of being to empower them to better handle individual project management, life challenges, and goal setting. While this project was expansive in overall scope, this outcome evaluation sought to understand the retention and internalization by program participants of key concepts imparted from the Improvement Science course and related projects. The findings provide strategic and targeted insights into the success of the course and opportunities for refinements in future Improvement Science courses and school and community projects with Live Algoma and the Algoma School District.

This study uses the predictive modeling program Sea-Levels Affecting Marshes Model (SLAMM) to evaluate sea-level rise hazards, such as erosion and inundation, on coastal archaeological sites with a vertical rise of sea level of .98 meters from 2006 to 2100. In total 177 archaeological site locations were collected and georeferenced over GIS outputs maps of wetlands, erosion presence, surface elevation, and accretion. Wetlands data can provide useful information about characteristics of the wetland classes, which make a difference in the ability for coastal archaeological sites to combat sea level rise. Additionally, the study evaluated predicted erosion of archaeological sites by presence or absence of active erosion on a cell-by-cell basis. Elevation map outputs relative to mean tide level allowed for a calculation of individual archaeological site datums to use NOAA tidal databases to identify the potential for their inundation. Accretion maps acquired from the SLAMM run determined the potential for the archaeological site locations to combat rising sea levels and potentially provide protection from wave effects. Results show that the most significant hazard predicted to affect coastal archaeological sites is inundation. Approximately 54% of the total archaeological sites are predicted to be inundated at least half the time by 2100. …

Embarking on a quest to uncover the shared experiences of Latinos with diabetes in the Central San Joaquin Valley is the principal issue discussed in this body of work. Diabetes is estimated to become a serious public health problem, with a current estimate of more than 30 million already afflicted. Engaging in participant-observation at a local clinic serving patients in a Diabetes Education Program and semi-structured interviews with Latinos attending the program, this research explores cultural experiences of diabetes. The primary aim of this research is to answer how health education information is accepted and interpreted based on cultural definitions of diabetes to inform diabetes management strategies.

Many senior citizens are surviving on minimal Social Security benefits and as a result, struggle with food security. Metrocrest Services in Farmers Branch, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, is a non-profit organization that provides several food programs to residents of the community including some programs that are specifically tailored to the needs of senior citizens. This project was to provide Metrocrest with an assessment of the food security of their senior clientele as well as other elderly residents of the Metrocrest service area and to evaluate the current senior focused programs. The project utilized qualitative research including both Metrocrest clients and residents who were not Metrocrest clients bot whose demographics were similar. The objectives were to determine the coping skills used by senior citizens in obtaining food, to assess seniors' awareness of the programs offered by Metrocrest, to discover barriers to accessing needed resources and to make recommendations of how programs could be improved or modified if needed. Through my research, I was able to present Metrocrest with a number of recommendations to improve their existing programs. I was also able to recommend some potential new programs that could be designed in conjunction with local senior centers to better serve …

Brand loyalty is a common theme throughout consumer and market research, yet it has not been a major topic among anthropologists. The research presented here is an anthropological exploration of the social and cultural influences on how a unique demographic - millennial males - view their own loyalty to brands. Through the use of qualitative interviews and online surveys, participants provided insight in to how they viewed their favorite brands and how those brands fit in to their lives. After analysis was done on these interviews a number of themes and degrees of attachment were identified and discussed.

Forging Their Legacy: Cooperation and Accommodation in the Lower Rio Grande Valley is an examination of the relationships created during the mid-nineteenth century between Anglo and Tejano elites in the five counties that make up the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Conducted through a quantitative lens, the five-chapter study seeks to demonstrate that, although the period between 1848 and 1870 was fraught with conflict and violence, the Anglo and Tejano elite of the Lower Rio Grande Valley came together in cooperation in order not only to survive these troubling times but to prosper. The thesis begins by identifying and analyzing the economic and political elite in the Lower Rio Grande Valley during the 1850s. A new crop of Anglo immigrants arrived with the Mexican-American War, but only a small number willing to assimilate to local Tejano culture were able to leave their mark on the Lower Valley. Chapter 4 relates the effect of the Civil War on the elite of the Lower Valley. It explores the profitable cotton trade during the war and the struggle that both Anglo and Tejano elites faced during Reconstruction. The thesis concludes with a macro-analysis of the twenty-two-year period from 1848-1870. It summarizes overall trends found …

Upward Bound is a federally funded program designed to help low-income and first-generation high school students become college graduates by providing them with academic enrichment, financial aid information, and relevant educational experiences. Many Upward Bound programs throughout the country include a 6-week summer program when participants stay in residence halls on a university campus. The Upward Bound program at the University of North Texas is one such program. The goals of this research project are to understand how the residential component of the summer program affects the experience of participants in Upward Bound and the possible benefits it may have towards meeting the overall goals of the program. Participant observation during the 2016 UNT Upward Bound summer program and interviews with participants, RAs, program alumni, and organizational leaders uncovered the ways in which the residential component benefits and enriches the experience of participation in Upward Bound.

Disabled veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) exist in a category separate from many civilians and soldiers. Their experiences land them in a category distinctly marked as atypical. The standard protocol to manage this atypical subject position is prescription drugs- a mark of the ill. In a distorted, post-war American society, what happens when veterans with PTSD refuse to be labeled as ‘sick,' ‘different,' or even ‘disabled'? This thesis explores the actions and intricacies of a community of veterans who advocate for medical cannabis to manage associated symptoms of PTSD. This group of veterans campaigns for individuality, both in medical treatment and in personal experience. Collaboratively, their experiential evidence indicates that none can be treated in the same fashion. After a year of participant observation and field work, it becomes apparent that their work both individualizes and unifies the veterans. This thesis details their experiences and the results of their activist campaign to demarcate themselves.

Hauntology Man, a 48-minute documentary, follows former UNT Professor, Dr. Shaun Treat, as he leads a walking ghost tour of downtown Denton, Texas. As the expedition moves from storefront to storefront, each stop elicits a new tale. But, as Dr. Treat points out, the uncertainties of history are the real ghosts. That is, rather than simply presenting a "haunted history" of Denton, it's more accurate to say this movie's center resides at the precipice of a "haunting history." Not all ghost stories need spectres. Sometimes not knowing is ghost enough.

Her Name Was is an examination of the oppression of transgender people in a society that is built on the nominalization of cisgender people, those who gender matchers their sex assigned at birth, and how this oppression lends itself to violence. In the summer of 2015, the body of Shade Schuler, an African American transgender woman, was found in a field outside of Dallas, Texas. Ms. Shade is part of an alarming epidemic of escalating levels of targeted violence against the transgender community. This documentary pulls back the curtain as it captures the feelings and struggles of the transgender community as they attempt to navigate and survive in a cis dominating society.

A collection of creative non-fiction essays that document the life of an Indian American immigrant.

The purpose of this study was to explore athletic identity, identity foreclosure, and career maturity in a sample of undergraduate college students currently enrolled in kinesiology and physical education classes at a university in the southern United States. Students were provided with an internet link that requested them to complete a demographic survey, the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS), the foreclosure subscale of the Extended Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status, and the Attitude Scale (Form A-2) of the Career Maturity Inventory. Examination of the Pearson moment correlations indicated that the higher the sport participation during high school, the greater the athletic identity and identity foreclosure, and lower the career maturity attitudes. ANOVAs were performed to examine differences between males (n = 123) and females (n = 183), kinesiology (n = 181) and non-kinesiology majors (n = 125), and white (n = 144) and non-white students (n = 162) on athletic identity, identity foreclosure, and career maturity. Results showed that males scored significantly higher on athletic identity and identity foreclosure, and significantly lower on career maturity than females. Kinesiology students had scores significantly higher on athletic identity and identity foreclosure, and lower on career maturity. Finally, individuals that identified their …

This thesis analyzes the training and perceptions on mental health of a particular population. Through the use of previous research and literature, a survey was generated and distributed to the population. The findings were used to generate policy implications for the specific population that was analyzed.

This study examined a mediational model of mental illness stigma, parent-child communication about mental health concerns, and help seeking attitudes/behaviors among young adults with at least one immigrant parent while considering the possible moderating effect of acculturation gap. The primary goal of this study was to examine whether the acculturation gap changed the relation between mental illness stigma and communication about personal mental health concerns with immigrant parents, which in turn could become a significant predictor of their help-seeking attitudes, as well as a barrier to seeking professional mental health services. Findings provided support to the direct and indirect effects of mental illness stigma through communication about mental health concerns on attitudes about help-seeking. The acculturation gap hypothesized to be a possible moderator for the stigma-communication about mental health concerns relationship among young adult ABCI was found to be significant for ABCI with a low mainstream culture acculturation gap. Discussion on the findings, limitations of the study, future research directions, and counseling implications are addressed.

This thesis provides an overview of the various ways in which select marginalized identities are represented within the twenty-first century American musical film. The first intention of this thesis is to identify, define, and organize the different subgenres that appear within the twenty-first century iterations of the musical film. The second, and principal, intention of this thesis is to explore contemporary representations of African-Americans, women, and queerness throughout the defined subgenres. Within this thesis, key films are analyzed from within each subgenre to understand these textual representations.

A population survey was conducted on the mosquito species recorded in Denton, Texas for the years of 2005 to 2015. Data used in this project were obtained from an ongoing, long-term surveillance program led by the City of Denton and conducted through the University of North Texas. Research focused on the population dynamics and community structure of mosquitoes collected within urban areas of Denton, Texas in relation to certain environmental variables. A total of 80,837 female mosquitoes were captured and represented 38 species found under the following genera: Aedes, Anopheles, Coquillettidia, Culex, Culiseta, Mansonia, Orthopodomyia, Psorophora, Toxorhynchites, and Uranotaenia. Culex quinquefasciatus was the most abundant species followed by Aedes vexans. Seasonal patterns of the most abundant species revealed high variability throughout the study. Container breeders were most abundant in August and those that breed in floodwaters were most abundant in the months of May and September. Samples were tested for arbovirus presence through the Texas Department of State Health Services in Austin, Texas and multiple pools tested positive for West Nile virus throughout the study. Stepwise multiple regression and Spearman's rank correlation analyses were performed to examine the relationship between the mosquito community and environmental variables. Data revealed that temperature, …

The number of public markets in the United States increased from more than 300 in the 1970s to more than 8,600 by 2016. This increase in markets is related to changes in food production, localism and the local food systems movement, socioeconomic changes, cultural changes, and perceptions of embeddedness. Research on the underlying conditions for the success of public markets is scant in the United States, and especially in the USDA Southwest Region. This study provides analysis of public market locations as compared with non-market locations by drive-time trade areas during a 20-year period, 1996 and 2016, to gain further insights into factors leading to their success. The results from logit regression analyses and simulations of socioeconomic, college-town status, and climate-grid classifications find an increased likelihood of public markets with population, education, college town status, and some climate-grid locations. Median income, surprisingly, has an inverse relationship with public market success. Qualitative data and a literature review point to three types of embeddedness that motivate customers to attend public markets. This study concludes that "local nontradable consumer goods" tied to place are offered at these "nontradable consumption amenities." These amenities are "third places" that promote social interaction and become important places …

Coaching efficacy is largely influenced by mastery experiences such as formal education, coaching experience, and sport participation. Further examining specific experiences, such as exposure to sport psychology, may prove helpful in advancing our understanding of coaching efficacy. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore male high school coaches' coaching experience to determine whether sport psychology education and interactions with sport psychology consultants relate to coaches' coaching efficacy. Participants, 585 males (Mage = 43.89 + 10.02), completed an online survey measuring coaching efficacy and coaching and sport psychology experience. A hierarchical regression analysis revealed that after controlling for years of coaching experience and school size, sport psychology education and interactions with sport psychology consultants were associated with higher overall coaching efficacy scores (p < .001). Additionally, analysis of covariance revealed that those with extensive sport psychology education had statistically higher coaching efficacy scores than those reporting no sport psychology education (p < .05). Knowledge of these phenomena may be relevant for sport psychology consultants, coach educators, and researchers.