Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Geography / Bimal K. Paul / According to the UNAIDS (2008) estimated, in 2005, that about 2.4 million Indians were living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). This makes India one of the most HIV vulnerable countries in Asia and thus this problem cannot be ignored. The main purpose of this study was to gain an in-depth understanding of the awareness about HIV/AIDS preventive measures of female college students (in the 18 to 24 age group) in Kolkata, India, who were widely believed to be members of the low risk group. Specifically, the study measured the willingness to comply with HIV/AIDS preventive measures of the female college students. Few studies have investigated the perception, knowledge and opinions of female students regarding the effectiveness of HIV preventive measures, this study will add a new dimension to HIV/ AIDS literature. In order to assess the information available to the students an attempt has been made to examine the knowledge of the respondents concerning the modes of transmission of HIV and HIV prevention methods. The study also identified the significant sources of information that the respondents used to derive pertinent information enabling them to protect themselves from the virus. A host of variables (e.g. socio-economic and behavioral) have been studied in order to identify the factors influencing the willingness to comply with the preventive measures of these college students. From the results it was evident that religion, income and age play a role in influencing the students’ willingness to comply. This study has important public health implications because the information collected can be used to design HIV prevention interventions that can reduce HIV transmission in West Bengal and other states of India.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Linda P. Thurston / This qualitative case study with multiple participants explored how the perception of campus climate and gender role expectations contributes to Latinas’ persistence at a two-year Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in the Midwest. Guided by the work of Hurtado and Carter (1997) and social support theory (Sarason & Sarason, 1985), various aspects of the college experience both inside and outside the classroom were examined. In-depth interviews were conducted in order to gain insight into those viewpoints that influenced the desire to enroll and persist in college and how these perspectives shaped commitment and sense of belonging to the institution. Prominent themes that emerged were: the significance of family support and the need to stay close, the impact of student identity and the importance of positive faculty-student interaction. The results indicated that immigration status, the desire to make family proud, and support from family and instructors that offered words of encouragement served to motivate students to persist and graduate. Additional prominent findings revealed that the perception regarding academic environment including the need for positive academic advising experiences, involvement in organizational memberships, particularly with the Hispanic American Leadership Organization (HALO) and activities that embrace the diverse student population and incorporate varying perspectives affect perceptions of campus climate and commitment to the institution. Participants identified those programs and services on campus that best serve the needs of Latinas and have the most impact on a positive college experience. The results contribute to the research addressing campus climate and sense of belonging for Latino/a students overall, and offers unique insights from the perspective of Latinas attending a two-year HSI that is lacking in the body of literature. Implications for practice and future research are identified.

Master of Science / Department of Journalism and Mass Communications / Todd F. Simon / This paper explores queer self-presentation on the social network site, Facebook, emphasizing gendered functionality, gender and queer politics and presentations of gendered identities. It provides a review of early critical cyberculture studies, identity performance and queer theoretical considerations. This study is based on hermeneutic analysis of public profile information and transformative changes of Facebook users as well as in-depth interviews of two queer Facebook users. Results indicate that queer users are always-already gendered, even in the seemingly liberal environment of a social network site, but some, aware of the restrictive structures of Facebook, manipulate presentation to negotiate adequate gender performance. With specific attention to heteronormative structures, this paper challenges former claims of the potential for social progress inherent in social network sites and calls for changes within.

Master of Arts / Communication Studies / Timothy R. Steffensmeier / This thesis explores the rhetorical function of creative writing being written by queer/two-spirit identified indigenous authors. The rhetorical function being the way these stories politicize the various ways gender and sexuality were foundational tools of settler colonialism in de-tribalizing and assimilating indigenous folks. The literary perspective often elides politics in favor of deconstructing aspects of creative writing such as genre, syntax, and themes instead of the socio-political potential such works produce. The three works I examine all have something to teach rhetorical scholars about the need to politicize the socio-sexual and gendered imaginaries of settler colonialism in discourses of the founding fathers, manifest destiny, westward expansion, land purchase. statehood, American exceptionalism, democracy promotion, and many more. They fundamentally challenge rhetorics that posit static notions of American identity and/or purpose that represses the historical and ongoing genocide of indigenous culture and life. In this way, they intervene in the very notion of communicability itself within the socio-symbolic economy of settler colonialism and its attendant hetero-patriarchal gendered and sexual imaginaries.