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The purpose of this study was to examine the trait emotional intelligence (Trait EI) levels of teachers who have implemented an SEL curriculum. In addition, the aim was to discover if there was any difference in teachers’ Trait EI levels depending on gender, years of experience, and level of education. Using a quantitative research design, the Trait EI levels of teachers who participate in an SEL curriculum with an adult component called RULER were compared to the Trait EI levels of teachers who teach an SEL curriculum without an adult component. This data was used to determine if there is a relationship between emotional intelligence levels and the type of program taught. Teachers were surveyed using the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire – Short Form (TEIQue-SF) developed by K.V. Petrides of University College of London to which demographic questions about gender, years of teaching experience, and level of education were appended. The data was analyzed using an ANOVA for years of experience and bootstrapped t-tests for the other categorical variables due to the small sample size. The results showed that there was no relationship between teachers’ Trait EI levels and the type of program they were implementing. Further, there was no significant relationship between years of experience and Trait EI levels or educational attainment and Trait EI levels. There was a significant relationship between gender and one factor of Trait EI, emotionality. Females demonstrated higher scores in that factor than males. In all other factors, including global trait EI scores, there was no significant difference between males and females. Implications of these findings are discussed.

While the advent of checkpoint blockade antibodies has provided a powerful means to reinvigorate pre-existing T cell responses in the treatment of cancer, therapies capable of priming or expanding endogenous antitumor immunity are notably lacking within the current clinical cancer immunotherapy “toolbox”. Neoantigen peptide vaccines, dendritic cell-based vaccines, small molecule adjuvants, oncolytic viruses, and GM-CSF secreting tumor cells have demonstrated striking efficacy in murine tumor models yet, thus far, have failed to broadly impact the clinical treatment of advanced cancer. Difficulties faced translating success from the lab to the clinic have highlighted the need for further development of strategies to ignite effective antitumor immunity in formats which are cheaper, more tumor agnostic, and readily available in off-the-shelf formulations. With this aim in mind, we engineered tAb-pManTLR7, comprised of tumor cell-binding antibodies (tAbs) covalently linked to our pManTLR7 agonist, to localize and sustain delivery of a powerful adjuvant to the tumor microenvironment while endowing existing anti-tumor antibodies with a heightened vaccinal effect. Upon intratumoral injection, pManTLR7-armed antibodies bind and opsonize tumor cells, increase the residence time of pManTLR7 in the tumor microenvironment, and functionally link the delivery of endogenous tumor antigens with strong TLR7 activation. Increased tumor-specific cellular responses and intratumoral T cell accumulation upon tAb-pManTLR treatment mirror the salient outcomes of a traditional subunit or peptide vaccine but here, the tumor itself provides an endogenous source of antigen. In aggressive ‘cold’ models of melanoma and triple-negative breast cancer, tAb-pManTLR treatment slowed or eradicated established tumors in a CD8+ T cell-dependent manner and generated antitumor memory which protected mice against subsequent abscopal tumor challenge. Our engineered approach exemplifies a modular, off-the-shelf immunotherapy capable of activating systemic antitumor immunity with the sufficient magnitude and functionality required for therapeutic efficacy. This work provides a strong proof-of-principle for the further development of tAb-pManTLR as a therapeutic platform to treat numerous malignancies.

Contact dependent inhibition (CDI) systems facilitate antagonistic toxin exchange between closely-related bacteria in a proximity-dependent manner. CDI+ bacteria use the large (~300 kDa) cell surface protein CdiA to intoxicate their neighbors by binding to an outer membrane (OM) receptor. Receptor binding occurs at a central 200-300 aminoacids (RBD) and initiates cleavage and translocation of the ~200 carboxy-terminal residues of CdiA (CdiA-CT). Delivery of CdiA-CT requires receptor proteins at each stage of membrane transport into the target cell. We have previously identified three OM receptors for CdiA in Enterobacteria: BamA, OmpC/F, and Tsx. Using the CDI locus from E. coli STEC_O31 as a model (cdiBCAI), in Chapter 2 I introduce a fourth class of CdiA (CdiA4) that exclusively binds to lipopolysaccharide to initiate CdiA-CT translocation. CdiA4 is also linked to an accessory gene, cdiC, which encodes a predicted lysine acyltransferase. Site-directed mutagenesis and HPLC-MS reveals CdiC and its close homologues form a subfamily of bacterial lysine acyltransferases within the toxin-activating acyltransferase (TAAT) family that modify their cognate CdiA proteins to promote LPS binding. In Chapter 3, I use this new CDI system to investigate the interaction between CdiA and O-antigen and find that O-antigen presents a barrier to toxin translocation at the outer membrane of target cells. Finally, in Ch. 4, I identify four new inner-membrane (IM) protein receptors that facilitate toxicity by two new members of the CDI ionophore family. I demonstrate that the native activity of these receptors is not required for CDI, but their presence in the IM is necessary for ionophore activity both from the periplasm or from the cytosol. Combined with a primary sequence analysis of these CdiA-CTs, the results in Chapter 4 offer a wealth of opportunities to explore the mechanism of CDI ionophore activity further. Together, the results of this work present a new physiological application for bacterial protein lipidation, introduce a new family of accessory acyltransferases, reveal that O-antigen can be a barrier to CdiA-CT delivery, and advance our understanding of the functional diversity of CDI toxins and how they exploit target cell proteins for activity.

Despite the overwhelming research that suggests visual artmaking experiences can produce positive outcomes for individuals, many state art education policies fail to implement and integrate the arts into core academic curriculums. Specifically in the state of West Virginia, kindergarten through twelfth grade students often lack the access to a quality and consistent art education. With high teacher-pupil ratios and inclusive learning environments, educators face the difficult task of meeting all the individual needs of their students’ in the classroom. This not only affects whole student populations, but also poses risks for children who have been exposed to trauma. Traumatic experiences in early childhood can cause a range of severe negative outcomes. West Virginia has seen a rise in child victims and the occurrence of traumatic childhood e since 2015, making it more apparent than ever that children need resources to help them heal and mitigate the impact trauma can have on their lives. School communities are increasingly implementing trauma-informed programs that provide students with the proper interventions they need. Although these programs already have invaluable benefits, there seems to be a gap in research between the interventions of currently established programs and the possibilities artmaking experiences can provide for trauma exposed students. This exploratory case study investigates how to design art lessons that promote the development of students in the kindergarten through second grade classroom who have been identified with exposure to trauma. This research particularly focuses on understanding how art lessons can promote cognitive and fine motor development for these students in the art room. Finally, this research examines the role an art education can play in supporting these students within trauma-informed school communities.

Student intellectual stimulation, interest, and engagement within the college classroom is of great importance when attempting to heighten learning, both cognitively and affectively. Although scholars have examined predictors of student interest and engagement within the classroom setting, it has yet to be examined in correlation with an instructor’s use of humor. More specifically, student intellectual stimulation is rarely studied on its own, especially in relation to an instructor’s humor orientation. This study seeks to determine if an instructors humor orientation acts a predictor of student intellectual stimulation, engagement, and interest within the college classroom setting. This study obtained data from a sample of 337 full-time college students at two Northern California Universities. Data was collected through a self-administered paper and pencil questionnaire. Six sections of the questionnaire subsequently measured students’ perceptions of an instructor’s humor orientation, student intellectual stimulation, student interest, student engagement, demographic information on the participant, as well as the instructor that they were reporting on. The Humor Orientation scale was used to measure the dimensions of the instructor’s humor use within the classroom. The Student Intellectual Stimulation Scale (SISS) was used to examine the instructors use of intellectual stimulation within the classroom. Last, the student Interest and Engagement scales were utilized to measure the how interested and engaged students were within the reported course. This study found a statistically significant positive relationship amongst an instructors use of humor orientation and their ability to intellectually stimulate, engage, and interest students within the course. More specifically, an instructors use of humor within the classroom acted as a predictor to students being more intellectually stimulated, interested, and engaged within that given course. Furthermore, this study is of significance because it suggests that an instructor that uses humor within the classroom setting, will not only help intellectually stimulate their students, but they will also help enhance their interest, and engagement within the course, which can possibly lead to heightened cognitive and affective learning. Thus, instructors that are perceived to be funny within their respective course, are more likely to have students that are intellectually stimulated, interested, and engaged which enhances learning.

The purpose of this study is to also establish effectiveness and negative impacts of current Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) trainings pre and postdeployment, and identify recommendations of future education and interventions for soldiers of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). This research aims to find ways to strengthen the soldier, family, and military readiness. It is hypothesized that soldiers' insight of what is effective tactics used to educate those with symptoms will increase the reported likelihood that they will be more open and seek treatment options in the future. Furthermore, by surveying soldiers using mixed-method self-reported survey will solicit information of how PTSD educational programs have a reported negative impact on soldiers' perception and willingness to seek mental health treatment. The researcher also hypothesizes that role of culture and family involvement will increase the successfulness of educational programs according to the participating soldiers.

Despite decades of research, it is still not understood why some individuals are vulnerable to drug addiction while others are resilient. Susceptibility to use and abuse drugs appears to arise from a complex set of interacting variables. It is known that environmental (e.g. stress exposure), trait (e.g. impulsiveness) and genetic factors all contribute to substance abuse risk, however, the biological mechanisms that underlie this risk are not well understood. Though some research has indicated abnormalities in dopaminergic and opioidergic activity in current and former drug addicts, such as lower D2 receptor availability and higher mu-opioid receptor availability within the ventral striatum, it cannot be determined whether such abnormalities represented predisposing factors to drug use or were a consequence of drug consumption or addiction processes. Studying non-drug using individuals who carry factors that have historically been shown to place them at higher risk for substance use and abuse represents a preferable alternative to studying drug addicts. In these studies, we examined the relationships between several susceptibility factors, specifically exposure to recent life stress, genetic variation at the oxytocin gene (OXT), and trait impulsiveness with measures of dopaminergic and opioidergic functioning in healthy, non-drug using subjects utilizing positron emission tomography (PET). The results of these studies are as follows: First, utilizing mu-opioid receptor agonist radiotracer [11C]carfentanil we observed significantly higher regional mu-opioid receptor concentrations and greater stress-induced endogenous opioid system activation in individuals exhibiting high levels of trait impulsiveness. Second, in scans using the D2/D3 dopamine receptor antagonist radiotracer [11C]raclopride, we observed significant differences in stress-induced dopaminergic activity between men and women throughout the striatum. In addition, we noted a significant interaction between sex and environmental stress in the nucleus accumbens. Finally, we observed that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located on chromosome 20 upstream of OXT were associated with dopaminergic and behavioral responses to a stressor, but only in women. The data obtained from these studies are broadly relevant for addiction research and provides original information regarding the mechanisms which may underlie individual risk to use and abuse drugs.

With the rise of the internet, researchers have begun to examine how this new medium is used and how it changes our lives. There has been particular interest (as well as concern), both in academic circles and in popular culture and media, in the linguistic forms found online, such as emoticons and specialized abbreviations (e.g. 'LOL' for 'laughing out loud'). However, while there are many studies to be found on emoticons, these well-known forms are only a very small subset of the wide variety of specialized forms found online, and studies examining other types of online forms are few and far between. Many of these forms, like emoticons, can convey facial expressions, but they can also communicate sounds and other actions, forms of expression that, in face-to-face interactions, are usually the domain of studies in nonverbal communication. Because of the correlation between these two areas, I suggest that the vast store of literature on traditional nonverbal communication can help us to understand online correlates of nonverbal behavior by providing a starting point for future studies into the intricacies of online forms.

The provisioning of food in America has become a commodity which has been supported by large-scale, industrial agriculture. However, research has shown that industrial agriculture is not sustainable because of its detriments to society, the economy, and the environment. This thesis presents locally grown food as a sustainable alternative to industrial agriculture and explains that the consumer is an integral part of the success of the movement. It examines consumer behavior from several different points of view and hypothesizes that local food consumers are middle-aged, highly educated, and liberal. Through surveys at farmers’ markets,this thesis develops answers as to why people are buying local food, what discourages them from buying local food, and who they are. It finds that local food consumers are presumably middle-aged,highly educated, and liberal. It also finds that people buy local food for its freshness and the chance to support local farmers. Finally, it analyzes how different demographic groups value different benefits of local food. This data is used to make several marketing implications for promoting farmers’ markets and the consumption of local food.

The Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000 (BEACH Act) requires states to monitor bacteria levels in recreational coastal waters. Increased levels of bacteria increase the potential for many illnesses to beach goers, so coastal towns are forced to post advisories or close beaches after many rainfall events, which potentially negatively impacts tourism. Stormwater outfalls, common in many coastal towns, discharge stormwater and associated bacteria and other pollutants into the ocean or estuaries. The NC Department of Transportation and the Town of Kure Beach wanted to reduce the amount of stormwater discharging on Kure Beach's recreational beach. Two stormwater Dune Infiltration Systems were designed to divert a portion of the flow into the beach dunes. Sand filters have historically been successful in bacterial removal. The infiltration systems were constructed using commercially-available open-bottomed infiltration chambers. Due to limited land area, the systems were designed to infiltrate 1.3 cm storms, which comprise approximately 80% of the rainfall events at the site. The watersheds of both sites (L and M) were small (1.9 ha and 3.2 ha respectively) and of mixed urban and residential land use. Water table measurements indicated a tidal influence, but approximately 2 m of sand was available for infiltration in the vertical direction. Data were collected from twenty-five storms during the months of March through October 2006 to determine the Dune Infiltration System's viability as a BMP. From those 25 storms, Site L's Dune Infiltration System captured total volume of 645 m3 of stormwater runoff. Site M's Dune Infiltration System capacity was exceeded during 20 percent of the storms, capturing a total stormwater runoff volume of 2313 m3 of the total 2412 m3. At both sites, the Dune Infiltration Systems significantly (p < 0.01) reduced runoff volume and peak flow discharging directly onto the beach. Routing the stormwater runoff through the dune's soil and into groundwater below did not cause noticeable fluctuations in the groundwater. Bacteria concentrations in the stormwater runoff flowing into the Dune Infiltration System ranged from 181 CFU⁄100ml to 19400 CFU⁄100ml with a median of 8600 CFU⁄100ml for fecal coliform concentrations and from 2005 CFU⁄100ml with a median of 1298 CFU⁄100ml for enterococcus. The groundwater bacteria concentrations were significantly (p