Federal legislation known as the No Child Left Behind act has required states to close achievement gaps. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between special education spending by districts in the state of Tennessee and standardized achievement for students with disabilities. Secondary data were obtained from the Tennessee Department of Education’s website (www.tn.gov/education). Data from each local education association were collected for the years of 2010-2014 in the areas of special education spending, special education population, and TCAP proficiency percentages in reading and math grades 3-8. Data from each local education association were collected for the years of 2011-2014 for gap size percentages between students with and without disabilities for reading and math grades 3-8 and the percentage of economically disadvantaged students. The researcher performed 6 Pearson correlation coefficient tests for this analysis. The findings showed a positive correlation between spending and performance on standardized assessments in the areas of reading and mathematics for students with disabilities. The analysis indicated that per pupil expenditures in special education has not had a statistically significant impact on reducing the gap size between students with and without disabilities. However, the percentage of economically disadvantaged students in a local education association inversely impacted the gap size. Those local education agencies with a higher population of economically disadvantaged students were more likely to have smaller gap sizes between students with and without disabilities in reading and mathematics on standardized testing.

Long-span bridges are flexible and therefore are sensitive to wind induced effects. One way to improve the stability of long span bridges against flutter is to use cross-sections that involve twin side-by-side decks. However, this can amplify responses due to vortex induced oscillations. Wind tunnel testing is a well-established practice to evaluate the stability of bridges against wind loads. In order to study the response of the prototype in laboratory, dynamic similarity requirements should be satisfied. One of the parameters that is normally violated in wind tunnel testing is Reynolds number. In this dissertation, the effects of Reynolds number on the aerodynamics of a double deck bridge were evaluated by measuring fluctuating forces on a motionless sectional model of a bridge at different wind speeds representing different Reynolds regimes. Also, the efficacy of vortex mitigation devices was evaluated at different Reynolds number regimes. One other parameter that is frequently ignored in wind tunnel studies is the correct simulation of turbulence characteristics. Due to the difficulties in simulating flow with large turbulence length scale on a sectional model, wind tunnel tests are often performed in smooth flow as a conservative approach. The validity of simplifying assumptions in calculation of buffeting loads, as the direct impact of turbulence, needs to be verified for twin deck bridges. The effects of turbulence characteristics were investigated by testing sectional models of a twin deck bridge under two different turbulent flow conditions. Not only the flow properties play an important role on the aerodynamic response of the bridge, but also the geometry of the cross section shape is expected to have significant effects. In this dissertation, the effects of deck details, such as width of the gap between the twin decks, and traffic barriers on the aerodynamic characteristics of a twin deck bridge were investigated, particularly on the vortex shedding forces with the aim of clarifying how these shape details can alter the wind induced responses. Finally, a summary of the issues that are involved in designing a dynamic test rig for high Reynolds number tests is given, using the studied cross section as an example.