Scholars for decades have studied the achievement gap and attempted to explain it in regards to race and class. Throughout the existing literature regarding the achievement gap between black and white students, however, there is a dearth of research exploring why the gap exists for upper-class black students; this population is largely ignored. This research seeks to explain why an achievement gap exists between white and black students who come from households of similar incomes. Ten students (five white and five black gradates) of a private, non-parochial school in Washington DC are interviewed about high school and post-high school experiences. Using cultural capital and labeling theory frameworks, this study follows the work of Billings (2011), Pattillo-McCoy (2000), Lacy (2007), and Khan (2011) in their focus on black students, cultural capital, and embodied privilege, and builds on that of Lensmire (2012), Dixon-Roman 2014, Orr (2003) Adams (2010) and Tyson et al. (2005). Results uncover the uniquely complex configuration of class and race. Latent issues as a result of race can arise, and the research illustrates how they affect the achievement ideology and attainment of both black and white students. This study’s findings suggest that two mechanisms shape the achievement gap: academic support and social interactions and interpretations, with the former rooted largely in class differences and the latter rooted in racial differences. This study aims to improve our understanding of the distinct role race and class play in influencing educational and professional outcomes from upper-class backgrounds.

The purpose of this study is to identify, analyze, and describe the social outcomes that may be affected by the environmental risks generated by infrastructure projects; to examine the ways in which vulnerability and exposure to hazards may increase risk in neighborhoods over time; and to examine the implications of addressing the exacerbation of exposure to natural hazards within the traditional environmental justice framework. The Industrial Canal and Lower Ninth Ward were selected as the subjects of this case study because the canal has existed on the perimeter of the neighborhood for nearly one century, isolating Lower Ninth Ward residents from the rest of New Orleans and significantly contributing to two catastrophic flood events. The findings of the study are as follows: (1) the environmental risks associated with infrastructure projects can be magnified when imposed on an already vulnerable neighborhood, and may ultimately result in hazard events which cause displacement and disinvestment. Such consequences can have an impact on micro-level (individual and household) and macro-level (neighborhood) social outcomes; (2) vulnerability and exposure to hazards can initiate a pattern of increased risk that intensifies vulnerability to subsequent hazard events; and, finally, (3) the parallels between the causes and consequences of traditional environmental justice issues and the exacerbation of exposure to natural hazards implies that framing issues relative to natural hazards as matters of justice and articulating the social consequences of not mitigating such hazards can be an excellent way of educating stakeholders and lobbying for resources.

The aim of this dissertation is to expand upon current understandings of the emergent global phenomenon that is private authority. Private authority is a process wherein private actors create, implement, and enforce rules aimed at managing global problems. As private authority is becoming increasingly important in the conduct of global governance, broadening our understanding of it will serve the field of International Relations. In this dissertation I argue that private actors are not simply outgrowths of structures or certain material conditions, rather they are purposive actors strategically pursuing an agenda. As such, explaining private authority requires an examination of the constitutive elements that underlie this social phenomenon––to which I apply an innovative conceptual and analytical framework that combines social network theory with discourse analysis. I applied these tools to two cases taken from the environmental sector––forests and fisheries. I found that as a result of the development of a greater networked character to environmental politics, the actors that were best able to generate and wield private authority were those that were able to construct discursive nodal points around which other competing actors could converge––at the level of identity. The construction of nodal points placed these private actors in privileged positions in-between competing networks––making them network connectors. In this position they are able to facilitate the flow of power across networks and convert such into private authority, at a rate greater than that of their competitors. As related to the cases, I found that in forests and fisheries sectors it was the Forest Stewardship Council and Marine Stewardship Council that emerged as the most prominent and expansive private authorities. They did so as a result of their ability to construct a nodal point around their tailored definition of what sustainable development meant, and looked like in practice. This placed them in-between two powerful networks (the environmental NGO network and the industrial network), facilitating the flow of power between them, and leveraging such to expand their programs beyond that of competing programs. Thus, social position plays a crucial role in determining the success of private authority programs.

This thesis explores the process of integrating cycling infrastructure into transportation networks in major cities. It starts by contextualizing the process in Copenhagen, Denmark (often called the best bike city in the world) during its cycling movement in the mid-20th Century. The findings from Copenhagen show that cycling is both viewed as a legitimate and respected mode of transportation and that the city layout, density, and topography is conducive to cycling. In the United States, this thesis explores the federal policies that have been created in support of the Complete Streets movement and makes the case that Complete Streets generally yield many benefits. In the final section, this thesis contextualizes these studies with a case study of Seattle and explores the challenges that have been associated with implementing Seattle’s Bicycle Master Plan. Although the city has made some small-scale cycling infrastructure, the number of cyclists in the city remains low and the bike network remains disconnected. There has been tremendous citizen pushback against lanes for fear of increased traffic and gentrification, and Seattle’s layout and topography presents additional challenges. While the author is in support of bicycling and cycle networks, she believes it is important to consider the opposition to implementing this infrastructure so that we can be more deliberate, sensitive, and inclusive with creating cycle networks in the future. The author proposes that cycling infrastructure may need to be done in smaller pockets before a citywide network can be successfully developed.

This thesis investigated the restoration of mauri (life-force) to Ōkahu Bay, Auckland New Zealand. Ōkahu Bay is part of the land and waters of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, a Māori hapū (sub-tribe). Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei has been driving the restoration, restoring Ōkahu Bay based on their worldview, visions, and concerns. This vision and control of the restoration process allows them to bring in the hapū in sustainable engagement and have the long-term vision and commitment necessary for self-determination. However, while there has been progress with projects and improved decision-making authority, hapū members are still not seeing their whānau (family) swimming in and caring for Ōkahu as much as they would like. Interviewees wanted to see an explicit focus on encouraging hapū members to use the bay, such as more educational programs and water-based activities, and continued efforts to improve water quality. Shellfish populations have also not recovered after a decade of monitoring due to structural aspects such as existing stormwater pipes. Changing these requires Auckland City Council to make stronger commitments to supporting Ngāti Whātua’s restoration. Overall, this investigation showed that in this restoration, a clean environment is essential to build community and a community is essential to build a clean environment. This community-driven restoration, while not perfect, has great potential to truly reconnect people with their environments, decolonize the land and the people, and create thriving ecosystems and people that benefit themselves, their communities, and the wider Auckland community.

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship between occupational burnout and the behavioral well-being of social workers. Burnout is a multidimensional syndrome where workers experience feelings of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment as a consequence of work related stress and overwhelming job demands. Burnout can negatively affect organizational functioning, work performance, and pose significant health risks to workers. There are a limited number of studies focusing on the impact of occupational burnout on the behavioral well-being of workers. The findings of this study indicated that there was a significant relationship between burnout and behavioral well-being. Emotional exhaustion was found to negatively impact exercise frequency, which was consistent with previous study findings. Depersonalization was positively correlated to the number of hours of sleep and the frequency of self-care activities participants engaged in. The effects of depersonalization on sleep and self-care activities suggest that workers may engage in these activities as a way to cope with feelings of depersonalization on the job.

During the 1890s, a series of extra-legal and illegal activities known as "whitecapping" occurred in Sevier County, Tennessee. While the early episodes were based on traditional responses to deviant behavior in rural communities, whitecapping reflected the loss of community within the county. This study examines the relationship of whitecapping and community in Sevier County and how it changed during the 1890s. The several, often contradictory, social conditions which affected the life of every Sevier Countian are also examined to show the decline of community consensus during this period. Finally, the events galavanizing public opinion against the whitecaps are analyzed to understand their enduring effect on community in Sevier County.

Rural communities have, for much of history, been left with inadequate or no water service. This is because the traditional state/private dichotomy of water provision is inadequate for addressing the unique needs of small, isolated communities. Drawing from the Common-Pool Resource literature, co-management arose in recent decades as a solution to address this pandemic of rural water exclusion. In Costa Rica, co-management takes the form of community water associations known as ASADAS. This thesis explores the successes and challenges of ASADAS through the use of three case study communities. Using interviews, surveys, water sampling and national legislation in addition to secondary sources, this thesis seeks to understand the possibilities and limits of employing co-management as a tool for achieving the human right to water in Costa Rica and around the globe.

Historically, autobiography has been used to perpetuate neo-liberal ideologies. Yet, when autobiography becomes social and is used to engage political communities of color, political transformation is possible. This project, through the collaborative visualization of Asian American social biography using pedagogical and relational methods as a means for engagement, seeks to destabilize dominant notions of time and space, and provide a mechanism for the retention of and documentation of institutional, and social histories using the Asian American Student Union at Scripps College as the site for political praxis.

To address the negative environmental, political, and social consequences of the dominant, industrialized global food system, communities around the world have developed goals and values underlying a sustainable food system. Conceptualizing food production, distribution, and consumption as systems helps clarify the ways food affects social and natural environments, with the distribution element as the critical juncture where the product reaches the consumer. Urban food systems are a particularly important environment in which to study movements toward sustainability. This paper focuses on the movement for a sustainable food system in Portland, Oregon, with particular focus on the city’s markets for food acquisition – food retail, farmers’ markets, community supported agriculture endeavors, restaurants, food service and distribution companies, institutional purchasing programs, and community gardens, as well as the organizations that support the work of these businesses and programs. Leaders in the field of sustainable food systems are now beginning to operate with a strategy for change that emphasizes incorporating sustainable food products and sustainable food system values into mainstream food markets instead of remaining in niche, alternative markets as has occurred in the past. This notion is supported by economic and social theories including the consumer information model, stakeholder theory, social movement theories of change, and network theories. This paper explores the extent to which Portland food distribution businesses, programs, and organizations attempt to fulfill the goals of a sustainable food system movement with moving from niche to mainstream in mind. The fact that the movement is in fact acting according to new strategies for change emphasizing the mainstream is indicated by the movement’s extensive consumer education and creative use of marketing, strong social and business networks, and organized local policy influences.