Middle-Level Leaders Perceptions of Accountability

The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of middle-level principals personal and school accountability, their perceptions of beliefs and competencies that influence improvement in student achievement and accomplishment of accountability, and their perceptions regarding the adequacy of professional development and preparation for middle-level principals that affect their ability to improve student achievement and perform their leadership role in an increased accountability environment. This study specifically examined differences in the perceptions of middle-level principals\u27 accountability based on the socioeconomics of the school, the number of years of administrative experience, and previous middle-school teaching experience

Characterization of Silicon Phosphorus Alloy for Device Applications

A new material of highly-phosphorus doped silicon for device applications was characterized and analyzed for new material properties. Devices such as NMOS transistors and other CMOS compatible devices may benefit from new materials that reduce external resistances and increase drive currents. Material characterization requires numerous techniques and technologies to determine electrical, optical, and physical characteristics. For this work, Hall measurement, X-ray Diffraction, Raman Spectroscopy, Photoluminescence Characterization, and Spectroscopic Ellipsometry were used to better understand this new material. The results may lead to new models for silicon phosphorus alloys

Educate and Advocate: Dental Providers Promote HPV Vaccination as Oropharyngeal Cancer Prevention in Interprofessional Collaboration

PURPOSE Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the US and the oropharynx is the most common site of HPV-associated cancer. The FDA’s approval for the nonavalent HPV vaccine expanded in 2020 to include prevention of oral cancers. Oral health practitioners (OHPs) are uniquely situated to recommend HPV vaccination as a primary preventive measure for OPC. METHODS Following a synchronous training, OHPs at two community health clinics, one urban and one rural, in North Carolina educated patients about the HPV-OPC link and recommended HPV vaccination to patients ages 12-26-years during a 3-month quality improvement (QI) pilot intervention. An interprofessional dental-medical team enabled patients to attain HPV vaccination immediately after an OHP’s recommendation. Descriptive statistics were used to capture practice change. RESULTS Patients ages 12-26-years accounted for 15.6% (323/2,066) of the appointments scheduled at two dental clinics staffed by five dentists. Prior to the pilot, 66.7% (6/9) of dental providers never educated patients about the HPV-OPC link and 88.9% (8/9) never recommended HPV vaccination. At the rural clinic, 25.5% (52/204) of 12-26-year-olds were overdue for HPV vaccination, OHPs educated and recommended vaccination to 59.0% of the targeted group, and seven patients were vaccinated during the pilot. At the urban clinic 44.5% of patients (53/119) were overdue for vaccination, 97.0% of targeted patients received the intervention, and three patients actualized same-day vaccination. CONCLUSIONS The QI pilot equipped OHPs with the knowledge and confidence to educate patients about the HPV-OPC link and recommend HPV vaccination. These recommendations were associated with vaccine uptake. Success of the pilot was facilitated by strong interprofessional collaboration including pre-existing systems to deliver vaccines at little or no cost to adolescents. The prohibitive cost ($248/dose) prevented willing 19-26-year-old uninsured patients from actualizing vaccination. Successful implementation of the practice change at two pilot sites suggests that dental providers across the organization should promote HPV vaccination as a cancer-prevention intervention.Doctor of Nursing Practic

Morphological evaluation of experimental autologous rectus fascia sheath vascular grafts used for arterial replacement in a dog model

Although experimental autologous patch or tubular conduit vascular grafts made from the internal rectus fascia sheath (IRFS) have been reported in the literature, thorough morphological evaluation and verification of the histological arterialisation of such grafts are lacking. Four purpose-bred Beagle dogs were utilised to create eight arterial internal rectus fascia sheath (ARFS) grafts implanted between bisected ends of the external iliac arteries. Four out of the eight ARFS grafts were patent after three months. Haematoxylin-eosin and Azan staining verified that the grafts gained a vessel-like layered structure with the presence of large amounts of collagen fibres. Although the inner surface of the intact IRFS was originally covered with claudin-5-negative and pancytokeratin-positive mesothelial cells in control samples, the internal cells of the ARFS grafts became claudin-5 positive and pancytokeratin negative like in intact arteries. Spindle-shaped cells of the wall of ARFS grafts were α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) positive just like the smooth muscle cells of intact arteries, but α-SMA immunoreactivity was negative in the intact IRFS. According to these findings, the fibroblast cells of the ARFS graft have changed into myofibroblast cells. The study has proved that ARFS grafts may be used as an alternative in arterial replacement, since the graft becomes morphologically and functionally similar to the host vessel via arterialisation

A multivariate control solution to the mixed species/diameter class thinning and final rotation problem

The algorithm RLS-PLUS was developed to yield solutions to the multivariate control problem of diameter and species optimization for mixed conifer and hardwood stands. The problem is specified with twenty-five state variables consisting of five species groups with four merchantable diameter classes and one unmerchantable class. This gives twenty diameter species group control variables. The large state vector allows the algorithm to account for competitive interactions among species in the optimization process. RLS-PLUS is an extension of the RLS-PATH algorithm. Specific extensions in the application of RLS-PLUS are the differentiation of species through expansion of the controls, and greater detail of the economic parameters. RLS-PLUS and RLS-PATH both limit their search to a single state space per iteration. RLS-PLUS also relies on the assumption of a monotonically increasing production function, in accordance with the PATH algorithm. RLS-PLUS was applied to the single tree, distance independent growth model ORGANON version 3.0 (Hann, 1983). Optimal thinning trajectories prioritized the removal of the relatively slow growing, highly competitive species when stumpage values are constant across all species. Altering the stumpage values of different species groups predictably alters the prioritization of species removal. Optimal soil expectation values (SEV) determined in the twenty control variable problem ranged from seven to sixteen percent greater than if the problem state space was reduced to four diameter class controls

The Future Is AweSIM - Montgomery College

Montgomery College, Takoma Park/Silver Spring campus, borders Washington D.C. and boasts a state of the art seven-room simulation suite representative of the diverse student body, faculty and population served in the greater metropolitan area. The college is home to an open access, internationally recognized simulation library referenced as a resource in the NCSBN Simulation Guidelines for Prelicensure Nursing Programs (Alexander et al., 2015). The Maryland Clinical Simulation Resource Consortium is housed at Montgomery College - a statewide initiative created to increase the quality and quantity of simulation used in nursing education throughout Maryland. Come tour our facility to experience a day of learning and collaboration as we discover a future which looks aweSIM. Interactive educational sessions include simulation in the classroom using standardized patients, transforming a technophobe into a technophile, student friendly electronic medical records, unfolding multi-patient simulations and evaluation of student performance during simulation