The purpose of this study is to see why students, who attended receptions in Texas, decided to enroll at Louisiana State University and to decide if the receptions are an effective method to recruit students in Texas. These receptions are considered special programming. While normal programming is effective, LSU has looked for ways to go above and beyond these methods. Special programming is another way to, bring LSU to the student. These informational receptions for Junior and Senior high school students and their parents have proven to yield students. This reception format needed to be evaluated from the students perspective. It was necessary to evaluate all parts of the program to see what needs to be changed and to see if expansion of the program would be beneficial to the University. A questionnaire was emailed to 116 reception attendees from both Dallas and Houston, TX. These attendees are now current students at LSU. The response rate was 26%. The study found that 60% of the sample stated that the reception did influence their decision to attend LSU. They also gave insight into the receptions and entire recruitment process.

Previous researchers have reported that societal definitions of masculinity may act as a barrier to men entering the nursing profession, and that men who do enter nursing may hold a different view of masculinity. The purpose of this study was to describe the meaning of masculinity for recent male baccalaureate nursing program graduates. In addition, the study explored how the participants perceived meaning of masculinity shaped or influenced their nursing education experiences, and in turn how their nursing education experiences may have shaped or influenced their perceived meaning of masculinity. A phenomenological research design was used to study eight male baccalaureate nursing program graduates. Data analysis revealed five distinct themes: career trajectory, educational experiences, masculine image, masculine attitudes and masculine caring. It was concluded that the men in this study had an overall complicit meaning of masculinity, personally rejecting the oppressive and dominating normative standards of masculinity, but recognizing and benefiting from patriarchal practices. The men perceived that their meaning of masculinity had influenced their nursing education experiences and in turn their nursing education experiences had influenced their meaning of masculinity by helping them develop affective caring and integrating this type of caring into their meaning of masculinity.

The purpose of this study was to determine if youth voice affects the ownership and engagement experienced by youth in a county 4-H program. For the treatment group, a youth-led approach was used where "having a voice" included youth sharing decision-making power with the adults in the program. The comparison group consisted of 4-H members in three other clubs in the county. These youth experienced an adult-led approach where the decisions about the club programming were made strictly by the adults. The Youth Voice Survey instrument was developed to assess youths' perceptions of ownership, engagement, and relationship with adults at both a pre- and post-measurement. Interviews were conducted with six youth in the treatment group to determine if their lived experiences confirmed the factors that emerged from the Youth Voice Survey. Exploratory factor analysis was used to investigate the underlying latent constructs in the instrument. Analysis of covariance was utilized to determine if differences existed between youth participating in the treatment and comparison groups and if differences existed between youth based on race. Findings indicated statistically significant differences between the treatment and comparison groups on all three constructs of ownership, engagement, and relationship with adults. Findings also indicated statistically significant differences between white and non-white youth on all three constructs of ownership, engagement, and relationship with adults. It was concluded that, in programs incorporating voice, youth experience more ownership and engagement and have a more positive relationship with adults. An implication of this study is that adults who work with youth should receive training on the incorporation of youth voice and the support of youth as decision-makers.

Whether they are naturally occurring, caused by environmental forces, or generated by humans, disasters have placed extraordinary stresses on society. Following September 11, 2001, the Department of Homeland Security was created to protect the nation and coordinate responses to future emergencies at the federal, state, and local levels. However, Governmental agencies cant handle all aspects of mass casualty events. Healthcare professionals, such as nurses, who are knowledgeable and trained in mass casualty incidents (MCIs) are needed to provide competent care to the victims. Although others expect a knowledgeable nursing response, the majority of nurse educators have not received mass casualty preparation and they hesitate to incorporate disaster preparedness into nursing curricula. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that influence the importance of including educational competencies regarding MCIs into the existing curricula as perceived by faculty of baccalaureate degree nursing programs in Louisiana. A second purpose of this study was to describe the participants on selected personal and demographic characteristics. A census of 285 Louisiana baccalaureate nurse educators was selected to participate in the study. The data collection process culminated in a total of 166 returned questionnaires (58% response rate). The researcher-designed instrument collected information measuring the training and experience of nurse educators regarding preparation for MCIs, information regarding the self-perceived knowledge and perceived importance of core competencies regarding MCIs, and information on personal and professional characteristics of the participants. Findings revealed that Louisiana baccalaureate nursing educators are an older workforce with minimal training and/or life experiences regarding MCIs. Additional findings are that Louisiana baccalaureate nursing educators perceive themselves to have limited knowledge of MCI core competencies, but perceive these same competencies as highly important for inclusion into current nursing curricula. Another finding of this study is that a positive relationship exists between knowledge and importance of MCI preparation. Results from this study support the need for Louisiana baccalaureate nursing educators to receive immediate knowledge and training of MCI core competencies in order to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary to teach this information to students prior to graduation.

This study identified the stakeholders of Louisiana plant commodity farmers and rated them in terms of importance. Findings of this study show that farmers/ranchers, LSU AgCenter Experiment Station Research personnel, family, consumers, farm labor and agriculture chemical, fertilizer and seed dealers are the most important stakeholders. The second aspect of this study was to discover the stakeholder perceptions of agricultural practices and their relationship to the environment. An environmental perceptions survey was conducted with two of the most important stakeholder groups identified Experiment Station Research Faculty associated with plant commodities and Louisiana consumers. LSU AgCenter Experiment Station Research Faculty have more positive perceptions of agriculture and the environmental practices of farmers than Louisiana consumers. However, both the research faculty and Louisiana consumers have positive perceptions of agriculture and the environmental practices of farmers. There were six separate scales in the agriculture environmental perceptions survey food safety, biotechnology, chemical use, chemical safety, conservation and water usage. With respect to food safety, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers perceived that all aspects of food production are safe. Similarly, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers perceived that the use of genetically modified plants in agriculture is beneficial and safe. With respect to chemical usage, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers perceived that the use of chemicals in agriculture is beneficial and necessary. In addition, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers perceived that farmers are safely using pesticides and fertilizers. With respect to conservation, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers perceived that farmers are incorporating conservation practices on their land. Finally, both research faculty and Louisiana consumers do not perceived that farmers are using too much water to irrigate their crops.

The purpose of this study was to assess the health literacy knowledge and experiences of senior level baccalaureate nursing students enrolled at state universities in Louisiana. Three hundred and sixty-one students from eight baccalaureate nursing programs agreed to participate in the study. The Health Literacy Knowledge and Experience Survey (HL-KES) was utilized to measure the health literacy knowledge and experiences of participants. Participants were able to identify low socioeconomic groups as high risk for low health literacy skills and were strongly aware of the consequences associated with low health literacy skills. Knowledge gaps were evident in the following areas: identifying the older adult as a high risk group, health literacy screening, and guidelines for written healthcare information. A nine-item likert-type scale was utilized to measure health literacy experiences. Responses suggest that participants' health literacy experiences are somewhat limited particularly with regards to assessing the reading level, appropriate use of illustrations, and cultural relevance of healthcare materials. A factor analysis revealed two factors labeled, "Core" and "Technology" that explained 57.15% of the variance in health literacy experiences. A negatively weak statistically significant relationship existed between health literacy experiences and health literacy knowledge. In addition, multiple regression analysis revealed that Technology Health Literacy Experiences, certification in an area of healthcare, grade point average, age, and ethnicity explained 11.6% of the variance in health literacy scores.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the developmental experiences of Louisiana high-school-aged 4-H youth who volunteer as counselors at Louisiana 4-H summer camps. A total of 288 counselors from 10 different camping sessions participated in the study from June through August of the summer of 2006. The Youth Experiences Survey 2.0 and Developmental Experience Survey were utilized to measure the personal characteristics and developmental experiences of 4-H camp counselors. The Youth Experiences Survey 2.0 was developed by Hansen and Larson of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and the Developmental Experience Survey was developed by the researcher. Results from the study showed that Louisiana 4-H summer camp counselors are active 4-H club participants, in 4-H leadership activities, at the club, parish, and state level. Counselors indicated that the highest-level of experiences occurred in the areas of Teamwork and Social Skills, Positive Relationships, Diverse Peer Relationships, Time Management, Leadership and Responsibility, Effort, Problem Solving, and Initiative Experiences. Results from the study showed that black counselors had higher-level experiences in all positive and negative aspects of the camping experience. Results showed participation in perceived 4-H leadership and lifeskill activities had a positive association with Positive Relationships and Prosocial Norms. As counselors attended more hours of camp counselor training, they reported higher-level experiences in problem solving areas. In addition, multiple regression analysis showed that ethnicity explained a small amount of the variance in all constructs measured by the Youth Experience Survey 2.0: black counselors had higher-level experiences in all constructs measured. Gender also explained a small amount of the variance in three constructs revealing that females had higher-level experiences in the areas of Positive Relationship and Teamwork and Social Skills and males had higher-level experiences in the areas relating to Negative Experiences. The findings from this study showed that serving as a 4-H camp counselor led to significant positive experiences in the areas of Teamwork and Social Skills, Positive Relationships, Diverse Peer Relationships, Leadership and Responsibility and Initiative Experiences. These finding may enhance counselors' ability to develop positive leadership and life skills that will be valuable tools in their futures.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there is a difference in the development of spatial abilities of ninth grade Technology Discovery students in Mississippi as measured by the Purdue Visualization of Rotations Test. Students experienced one of three differing instructional methods utilizing Pro/Desktop® 3-D CADD solid modeling software. Participants were students in Mississippi schools operating on a 4 x 4 block schedule during either fall or spring semesters during the 2005-2006 school year, and a control group of students whose schools did not offer CADD. Instructional material designed by the researcher was used for two instructional treatment methods, with existing instructional materials available for the software were used in the third instructional method. Demographic information was collected for students from 14 schools in the study. The primary research question asked if differences existed by instructional treatment method when spatial ability pretest scores, gender, ethnicity, co-registration in art, and co-registration in geometry were controlled. Analysis of Covariance was conducted to analyze the data for this research question, using the pretest as the covariate and instructional method as the fixed factor. The dependent variable was the posttest score. The other independent variables of gender, ethnicity, and co-enrollment in art and/or geometry were included in analysis. No affects concerning these additional variables was found. A statistically significant difference existed concerning the method used to instruct students on the use of 3-D CADD modeling software. The instructional consisting of method of teacher-lead instruction using the software in a design lesson, followed by student-directed modular instruction, was found to be effective. These lessons included 3-D physical models manipulated by the teacher and students. The group of students taught using this method had higher mean posttest scores than students instructed with other methods. The other instructional methods did not significantly affect student achievement on the test of spatial ability.

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the importance of the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service (CES) as perceived by members of local governing bodies in Louisiana. The fundamental objective of the CES is the development of people by means of educational programs. Local governing body members (defined as Police Jury/Council Members) throughout the state of Louisiana were surveyed to determine their perceptions of the importance of the Cooperative Extension Service regarding awareness, attendance of programs/events, use of information and if the needs of local residents were being met by the LCES programs and services. Results of the study revealed that the local governing body members were more aware of 4-H than any other program or service offered by the LCES. Higher levels of awareness and effectiveness of programs and services correlated with higher levels of perceived importance. Also, the local governing body members thought 4-H was very important to the development of young people in Louisiana. Higher levels of awareness and effectiveness of programs and services correlated with higher levels of perceived importance. Local governing body members who perceive the importance of LCES programs and services also see the LCES as effectively meeting the needs of local residents. The perceived effectiveness in meeting the needs of parish residents of programs and services offered by the LCES was examined for a relationship with the perceived importance of the programs and services. The correlation between measures was (r = .58, p< .001). The nature of this association was such that local governing body members that reported higher levels of effectiveness of the programs in meeting the needs of parish residents tended to place higher levels of importance on the programs and services. The researcher recommends that 4-H agents could invite local governing body members to 4-H events more often in order to increase the role of the local governing body member concerning 4-H programming efforts. With more local governing body members having a positive perception of the 4-H program, this may very well have a positive effect on how local governing body members perceive the LCES as a whole.

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between level of social capital and the extent of participation in professional development activities for professional employees of a profit-based organization located in the Southeastern United States. The researcher used survey methodology to determine the extent of participation in professional development activities within a 12 month period and the level of social capital within an organizational setting. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine if a model exists to explain a significant portion of the variance in the extent of participation in professional development activities from selected demographic variables and level of social capital. One key conclusion is that the study participants engaged in more self-initiated activities than any other type of professional development activity. Self-initiated activities include such activities as searching the internet for work-related information and seeking work-related information from a mentor or colleague. A second conclusion is that social capital was found to be a significant predictor of participation in voluntary professional development activities that were in individual settings. This second conclusion addresses the recent emphasis on the need to study social networks in order to understand participation in learning activities (Hatala, 2006). In addressing this need, the conclusion helps to bridge a gap in human resource development literature by increasing the understanding of the role of social capital in participation in professional development activities. Given that individual activities include one-on-one collaborations with mentors/colleagues, it is recommended that human resource development professionals include mentoring and relationship building in employee development plans to encourage the use of one-on-one contacts to support the acquisition of work-related information.