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This thesis examines how ethnic boundaries are constructed among, and understood by, different groups of first generation Sudanese-Canadians in Kitchener, Ontario. In particular, it seeks to examine how historical factors related to Sudanese history, contemporary events in Sudan and South Sudan, and conditions of exit from Sudan shaped boundary processes within the Sudanese diaspora in Kitchener. In this connection, this thesis examines the effect of secession/independence of South Sudan on the dynamics of this boundary and relationship between Southern and Northern Sudanese Canadians. Thus, the thesis aims to fill a gap in the literature. It also hopes to inspire further studies on Sudanese Canadians, who tend to be understudied in Canada. The research builds on the growing research tradition and theories of ethnic boundaries, identity, nationalism, and transnationalism. Qualitative approaches were used for collecting and analyzing data. Participant observation at community events, and thirty-seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with key informants in Kitchener, Ontario. The thesis emphasizes that ethnic boundaries, identities, and relations between Southern and Northern Sudanese Canadians are dynamic and ever changing, in the sense that they are sometimes undermined and broken down, and yet other times they are enforced and reinforced quite strictly. It also finds that the concept of ‘Northern’ is no longer geographic, as my respondents have limited its meaning to the riverine/Arab people. This concept contrasts with the concept of ‘black’ which includes many Northern Sudanese sub-national groups, in the geographic sense, along with Southern Sudanese. This indicates that the boundaries among the Southerners and riverine people have become stronger than between these Southerners and other Northerner groups. The thesis also shows that the relationships between Southern and Northern Sudanese Canadians’ have been significantly affected by the referendum and independence/secession of South Sudan insofar as the social gap between them has by and large become wider. Joint activities organized in collaboration between both groups before secession have since ceased. Also, the degree of general interaction between them has significantly decreased. They now tend to treat each other as strangers and avoid interaction. Even simple greetings are lacking and when interactions do happen, they are characterized by harshness, and the exchange of accusations. Moreover, instances of mutual support have also diminished. Invitations to, and attendance at private, and public events has noticeably decreased. Despite this increase in social distance at a community level some close friendships remain intact, especially among those who came to Canada from Egypt. Interestingly, Southern and Northern Sudanese continue to come together for attending death ceremonies and soccer games, and seating orders continue to be mixed at soccer games. The dynamics of intergroup relations in Canada have mainly followed their relations in Sudan. This means that transnational ties in this case tend to be unidirectional. This implies that living in the Canadian context has had a minor and indirect effect on these groups’ relations. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

No / A new casting of diasporas, exiles and returnees as potentially transformative agents in post-conflict polities is the topic of this article. ‘Return of Qualified Expatriates’ programmes have recently been launched by international agencies in a number of post-conflict countries in an attempt to promote better capacity-building within post-conflict states institutions. This article argues that the ostensible technical orientation of these programmes is misleading, and they have a political significance which is noted and contested locally. In political terms, they represent attempts to smuggle Western hierarchies of knowledge into post-conflict reconstruction efforts under the cover of ethnic solidarity, to the detriment of local participation and empowerment. The article argues further that this is always contested by interested parties locally, often by mobilising alternative capacities, labelled ‘authentic’, in opposition. As such, strategies that attempt to use ethnic ties to overcome this local contestation are placing a significant burden on ethnic categories that are slippery, malleable and contested in post-conflict contexts. These points are demonstrated with reference to the cases of Cambodia and Timor-Leste.

I conducted a mixed method study to explore how gender and diversity are being taught and defined at accredited marriage and family therapy programs. This research approach was explored through a feminist lens and within a systems theory framework, using both qualitative and content analysis methods. I examined course syllabi and interviewed faculty members that taught gender and diversity topics in their courses. I examined findings by program (masters and doctoral) and type of training (those that taught specific gender and culture courses and those that attempted to infuse gender and culture throughout the curriculum). The sample population consisted of syllabi from 21 masters and 18 doctoral training programs (ten each that taught specific courses in gender and diversity and eleven masters and eight doctoral courses that stated that they infuse gender and diversity throughout the curriculum). That is that there was variation in the topic areas that were explored when the specific courses content and infused course content were compared. There was a significant difference in the degree to which these topics were taught between the two program levels (Masters vs. Doctoral). However, the qualitative data reflected similarities in the teaching methods of both types of programs. Additionally, Twenty faculty members were interviewed, ten from a master's and ten from doctoral programs. These faculty members were equally split between those representing infusion and specific courses. I constructed course summary tables of books, articles, course objectives and illustrative learning activities from each syllabus. The major implications of this study were that the experiences of the professors were explored and the student's perspectives had been excluded. There was also little variation in the racial and gender characteristics of the professors / Ph. D.

The ethnic demographic composition of the United States is changing (NCES, 2014). The increase in diversity in the country, has changed the ethnic demographic composition in public schools. In the 1980s the United States saw an increase in minority educators in public schools (Ingersoll and May, 2016) that continued to rise over the next two decades. Currently, the percentage of minority students in public schools exceeds the percentage of White students. Specifically, in the Commonwealth of Virginia 49% of public school students are ethnic minorities (TDVEP, 2017). The increase in diversity in both students and teachers did not create proportional representation between the two groups. The hypothesis that a school division with a proportionate ethnic demographic representation of teachers and students will increase student academic performance can be measured by determining whether a disparity between licensed minority teachers and minority students exist. This study investigated the status of student academic performance based on the ethnic demographic representation of public middle school teachers and students in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The ethnicities of teachers and students in all comprehensive middle school students were collected and reported by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE). The Reading and Mathematics Standards of Learning Pass rates data were also collected and reported by the VDOE. There were seven key findings collected from this study. The first finding was when reviewing for disproportionality of targeted subgroups, the teacher student ratio indicated an overrepresentation of White teachers to White students. The second finding was five of the eight middle schools with the highest Hispanic disproportionality rates when considering the ratio of Hispanic teachers to Hispanic students were in the Commonwealth of Virginia's, Superintendent's Region 4. Finding three indicates that Asian students, even in schools with high disproportionality rates, exceeded state benchmarks for SOL pass rates in Reading and Mathematics. Finding 4 revealed seven of the eight middle schools (88%) with the highest disproportionality rates for Black students had reading SOL pass rates below the state benchmark. Finding 5 indicates that when reviewing the number of schools with disproportionate representation for any of the subgroups, disproportional representation of Hispanic teachers to students was the most frequently identified. The sixth finding was When reviewing the number of schools with disproportionate representation for any of the subgroups, disproportional representation of Black teachers to students was the second most frequently identified. Finally, finding seven displays Hispanic students in all eight schools with the highest disproportionality rates of Hispanic teachers to Hispanic students fell below the state benchmarks in SOL pass rates. / Doctor of Education / For the first time in decades, the percentage of minority students in public education has exceeded the percentage of White students in the United States public schools. The increase in the number of minority students in public schools changes the demographic makeup of schools across the country. While research has cited an increase in minority teachers in public schools, there has also been research to show the disparity between student and teacher demographics. Specifically, in the Commonwealth of Virginia, there is a greater disparity between teacher and student ethnic representation than its regional counterparts. The demographic gap between teachers and students in public schools has been connected to the achievement gap between minority students and White students. It is argued that schools that have a teaching staff whose ethnic demographics match the ethnicities of their student population show positive trends in student academic performance. This argument can only be measured by finding whether a disparity between licensed minority teachers and students exists. This study investigated the status of student academic performance based on the ethnic demographic representation of public middle school teachers and students in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The ethnicities of the teachers and students in Grades 6-8 each in each comprehensive middle school were gathered by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE). The Reading and Mathematics Standards of Learning Assessment data were also gathered by the VDOE. This study found that there is an overrepresentation of White teachers and students. The most frequently identified disproportional representation teachers to student was Hispanic, followed by Black.

Public housing authorities (PHAs) have enforced banishment since the late 1980s by granting police the authority to ban non-residents from public housing neighborhoods and arresting them for trespassing upon violating the ban. PHAs justify banishment by stating that issuing bans and arrests for trespassing aid in crime prevention by removing non-residents who may commit criminal acts if left unguarded. Nonetheless, there has been no scientific evidence to suggest that banishment works to reduce crime. Similarly, the role community policing can play in enforcing banishment is unclear and scarce research has considered the effects of banishment on racial and ethnic minorities at neighborhood and individual levels. To address these issues this three-part study examined the enforcement of banishment on Kings Housing Authority (KHA; Southeast, US) public housing property from 2004-2012. Collectively these studies address the following overarching research questions: Does banishment reduce crime in public housing neighborhoods? Does banishment disproportionately target racial and ethnic public housing neighborhoods? Does banishment prevent banned individuals from re-offending in public housing? Does banishment disproportionately ban racial and ethnic individuals? What are the residential perceptions of banishment and its effectiveness? How does race and ethnicity affect perceptions of banishment and its effectiveness? Results suggest that banishment is better at reducing property crime than violent crime, though the reductions are modest at best. Increases in bans predicted decreases in drug arrests the following year and predicted that drug offenders can be deterred. Despite these crime control benefits results also suggested that the enforcement of banishment comes at a cost. First, a significant amount of banned individuals are not deterred. Second, while trespass enforcement is used in communities other than public housing, the issuing of bans is concentrated only within public housing communities and bans are predominantly issued to African-American males. Finally, results found that residents are not likely to find them effective if they think they are policing too much or policing too little. Future directions and implications are discussed given the dynamic between the crime control benefits of banishment and its social consequences. / Ph. D.

The role of parenting variables in the etiology of child anxiety has received significant attention in recent years. Parental control, in particular, has emerged as a significant predictor of child anxiety. Parental rejection and one of its components, parental warmth, have also been linked to child anxiety. It has been suggested that the interaction of these two variables may be especially important, such that the combination of high parental control and high parental rejection of low parental warmth will result in particularly elevated risk for anxiety. Furthermore, some researchers propose that ethnicity should be investigated as a moderator of the relationship between parenting style and child anxiety. This is further supported by research that suggests that parenting styles are culturally-bound and that, within an authoritarian culture, authoritarian parenting may have only minor negative effects or perhaps even positive effects. Authoritarian parenting has been associated more so with black than white ethnicities. The present study examined whether parental warmth and/or parental rejection moderates the relationship between parental control and child anxiety in an ethnically diverse sample of black, white, and mixed-race children in South Africa. It was predicted that high parental control when paired with either low parental warmth or high parental rejection would be associated with varying degrees of anxiety in ethnically diverse children. In particular, under such conditions, it was predicted that black children would report the lowest levels of anxiety, mixed-race children would report intermediate levels of anxiety, and white children would report the highest levels of anxiety. / Master of Science

This study explores the potential differences in attitudes that Asian American ethnic groups, and men and women within those groups, have toward Affirmative Action policies in the United States. My research question was: How do ethnicity and gender effect Asian American attitudes toward Affirmative Action? Using the Pilot National Asian American Political Survey (PNAAPS), 2000-2001, as well as conducting semi-structured interviews, I found that there are differences in attitudes toward Affirmative Action between Asian ethnic groups. In comparison to Chinese respondents, Vietnamese respondents were consistently more favorable toward Affirmative Action policies than South Asian and Filipino respondents were. Gender was significant in a few regressions, particularly as a control variable — indicating the importance of considering gender when examining Asian American attitudes toward Affirmative Action. In conducting interviews, respondents suggested that Affirmative Action policies be amended to assist people of lower socioeconomic status as well as recent immigrants to the United States. An implication of this study is the importance of disaggregating Asian Americans by ethnic group. The consistent support for Affirmative Action policies by Vietnamese respondents, in comparison to Chinese respondents, supports this need. / Master of Science