There is a growing emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at colleges and universities across the United States. Previous research has corroborated the need and positive benefits of these programs on undergraduate students and their sense of belonging. We conducted a survey of 70 students at Miami University in a scholars program to gather […]
B24: Supporting Community Based Organizations Serving Historically Marginalized Youth
This participatory action research project explored the role of community-based organizations (CBOs) in their efforts to empower and prevent historically marginalized youth from being caught in the funnel of the school-to-prison pipeline. Drawing from an asset-based community development model, my research investigated successful approaches and barriers encountered by two CBOs in the Cincinnati metro area. […]
C66: Rediscovering Oxford: The 2023 Anthropology Department Campus Archaeology Field Season
In Fall 2023, students in Anthropology 416: Applying Archaeology conducted field and lab research, including excavation, on a historical site on the Oxford campus of Miami University. Continuing from previous field seasons (2018, 2021), these excavations focused on an area 30 meters south of the McGuffey House Museum. Previous research suggested a later household than […]
A01: Anxiety Sensitivity and Blackouts: Exploring the Impact of Drinking Motives and Gender Experiences in College-Aged Students
Anxiety sensitivity is the fear that anxiety symptoms are indicative of greater harm, and is a risk factor for heavy alcohol use and substance use disorders. In existing research, there are gaps on the exact alcohol-related consequences and how anxiety sensitivity may be related to those consequences. One important gap is the link between anxiety […]
A14: Racial and Ethnic Disparities Regarding Food Stamp Usage in United States Households
In 2021, 10.2% of US households and 12.5% of US households with children were deemed food insecure with specific racial and ethnic groups having higher rates of food insecurity. Indeed, the risk of experiencing food insecurity is significantly higher for Black and Hispanic households. The objective of this study is to better understand how race […]
A24: Evaluation of Sustainability within the Construction Industry in Cincinnati, OH
This research is an overview of the sustainability and wood waste management practices of the construction industry with a focus on Cincinnati, Ohio. Waste reduction at the source and wood recycling are solutions to overfilling landfills and wasting construction materials, while also providing a best practice example for sustainable management within the construction industry. Interviews […]
C12: The Effects of Sucrose on Chat-MOR Knockout Mice in an Operant Conditioning Chamber
The mesolimbic dopamine pathway is important for reward and motivation. However, neurobiological mechanisms behind these behaviors are complicated. This animal study gives us insight about how such mechanisms work. Here, we test how mu opioid receptors (MORs) expressed on cholinergic interneurons mediate the reward seeking behaviors for a natural reward (sucrose) to investigate the possible […]
C11: Testing a Novel Ligand for Non-dreadd Mediated Effects
The aim of this study is to lay the foundation for the development of a novel paradigm to study the effects of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) released from the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) on fear and anxiety responses in rodents. The BNST is a stress-responsive, sexually dimorphic brain region and repeated, low-level activation […]
C06: Bridging The Gap: The Importance of Innovation Specific and General Capacities in After-School Programming
This project is a result of my global health immersion experience that I completed in the after-school program at the Oyler School in Cincinnati. After School programs are developed in the early 1900s as a result of social concerns for the safety and care of children living in unsafe neighborhoods, and as a result of […]
B57: Respect Native Sovereignty in Social Work Practice
As a social work major and global and intercultural studies co-major, I chose to focus my independent study on Native American intergenerational trauma. I have read and now written on its structural causes throughout history, and more adequate ways of healing from a professional standpoint. Lasting disparities in Native American communities call great urgency to […]