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The BorderlandersRodriguez, Marcel Bernard 22 September 2010 (has links)
The following report describes the pre-production, production, and post-production of the short film, The Borderlanders, set and shot in South Texas. Its story centers on an immigrant youth who tries to escape the tensions that arise in one family coming together after many years of forced separation because of current immigration policies. It is a meditation on family dynamics and the intimate politics of the border. The report discusses the thought process behind creating images of Latinos in film, the writing of the film, and analyzes the creative choices that gave shape to the film. The original screenplay is included as well as the credits. / text
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Perceptions of Campus Administrators, Teachers, and Students on Use of Interactive Videoconferencing for the Delivery of High School Algebra in Selected Rural Public HIgh Schools in South TexasAbrego, Patricia C. 2009 December 1900 (has links)
Campus administrators from rural public school districts are continuously
looking for creative innovative ways to respond to the educational challenges placed
upon them by federal and state-legislated accountability requirements. Advances in
interactive videoconferencing (ITVC) technologies provide a way to address these
challenges. However, these advancements sometimes lack needed resources to make a
network of this magnitude work. The Mid-Rio Collaborative was established to share
educational resources and knowledge between Texas A&M International University in
Laredo, Texas, and surrounding rural public school districts in South Texas. The
established collaborative provided the backdrop for the study while meeting the
educational needs of this region.
The purpose of this study was to examine the use of interactive
videoconferencing as a viable alternative for the delivery of high school Algebra. A
mixed methods case study of four campuses explored the perceptions of administrators teachers, and students in the use of interactive videoconferencing. The sampled
population included 4 administrators, 4 teachers, 35 students (12 experimental and 23
control) from selected rural districts. Qualitative and quantitative research
methodologies were utilized in identifying perceptions of participating principals,
teachers, and students.
Major findings of this study included (a) campus administrators’ values and
beliefs influence teacher use of interactive videoconferencing; (b) a difference exists in
experienced and novice teacher perceptions regarding the impact of ITVC, (c)
perceptions are dependent upon the Teacher Partner role in the teaching and learning
process; (d) increased interaction between students, teacher, content, other learners, and
technology exists with instruction delivered through ITVC; (e) perceptions of cognitive
and classroom conditions differed between students receiving instruction via face-to-face
and interactive videoconferencing; finally, (f) students receiving instruction through
ITVC did not demonstrate academic gains in state-mandated tests (TAKS). Study results
support the current body of research that contends there is no significant difference
between instruction delivered face-to-face and instruction being delivered via interactive
videoconferencing.
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Quantification of potential arsenic bioavailability in spatially varying Geologic Environments at the Watershed Scale Using Chelating ResinsLake, Graciela Esther 30 September 2004 (has links)
Potential arsenic toxicity in different geologic environments is dependent on total arsenic concentration and arsenic bioavailability. It is important to identify the geologic environments that may sequester arsenic because these systems can act as long-term sources for arsenic as well as retard transport and limit toxicity.
Bioavailability is defined as the readiness of a compound or element to be taken up by organisms (Gregorich et al., 2001), while potential bioavailability is possible uptake of a compound or element by organisms. The objective of this research is to quantify the potential bioavailability of arsenic in laboratory microcosms and in different geologic environments in the Nueces and San Antonio River Watersheds, Texas, using a chelating resin as an infinite sink.
To assess the applicability of chelating resins to estimate potential arsenic bioavailability in the field, iron-loaded DOWEX M4195 resin was used to extract arsenic from solutions and sediments (pond sediment, river sediment, and ephemeral stream sediment). The average percentage of arsenic sorbed from solution was 66% ± 0.16. Competition studies between arsenate, phosphate, and vanadate suggest there is moderate competition, reducing overall arsenic sorption to the resin in the presence of competing ions. Iron-loaded resin was then exposed to sediment samples spiked with increasing amounts of arsenic over 15, 30, 60 and 90 days. Results of the sediment study showed 1) increased arsenic sorption to the resin over time, 2) small variations of potential bioavailable arsenic among geologically different sediments, and 3) evidence of arsenic sequestration.
Field devices that housed iron-loaded resin were used to extract potentially bioavailable arsenic from sediment in six different geologic environments (i.e. lake, river, perennial stream, ephemeral stream, pond, and wetland) in the watersheds over a twenty-eight day period. The wetland (15.7 mmol As/g wet resin) and perennial stream sediments (11.0 mmol As/g wet resin) represented the maximal and minimal calculated potential bioavailability, respectively. However, the potentially bioavailable index calculated from mmol As/g wet resin extracted from field environments and mmol As/ g sediment in digested samples showed sequestration would be high in the wetland environment and high bioavailability in the perennial stream and river environments.
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"In the middle of an orange grove, across the street from the tortilla factory" the Science Academy of South Texas /Canter, Anna Rudolph, Davis, O. L. January 2004 (has links) (PDF)
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2004. / Supervisor: O. L. Davis, Jr. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.
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Understanding college readiness and the role of the community college in South Texas : listening to the voices of public school leaders and parents in three school districtsJohnson, Wallace Dodge 05 February 2010 (has links)
The researcher/writer of this treatise has used qualitatively based data to develop a
better understanding of the perceptions of college readiness initiatives in three public
school districts in the service area of a community college in South Texas. The researcher
has also used these methods to understand the perceptions of participants in a community
based parental outreach program about the subject of college readiness. More
specifically, through the use interviews with public school district superintendents, focus
groups with educational professionals in the corresponding school districts, and similar focus group interviews with the parent/facilitators in the outreach group; critical issues,
incidents, and events have been identified to improve and better inform the processes of
college readiness initiatives for the college. The end product of this treatise will help both
the researcher/practitioner and the leadership of the college improve their educational
service to the community, and add new voices to the character of this service. The
researcher as an outsider to the language and culture of the region, has also reflected on
his positionality and professional growth within this community through these processes. / text
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Examining the lives of five Mexican American female educators with more than 25 years of experience in South Texas border schoolsRamon-Reuthinger, GeorgeAnne 25 April 2007 (has links)
This study was a qualitative study that explored the lives of Mexican American
female educators with more than 25 years of experience teaching in South Texas
border schools. The purpose of the study was to explore the participants' views and
perceptions regarding their educational experiences, both formal and informal, within
the contexts of community, political climate, family, religious, and educational
institutions.
A nonrandom, purposeful sample of five classroom teachers was used. Data
were collected through extended interviews with participants. Data were unitized,
coded, categorized, and compared to yield emerging themes. The narrative data
yielded stories of overcoming barriers such as prejudice, classism, racism, and
segregation. The participants identified family members and teachers as persons who
most impacted their own lives as teachers.
Guided by the participants' constructions of educational experiences, the study
revealed stories of a collective struggle for educational equity. Through constant
comparison analysis, major constructs emerged, specifically, the participants' resiliency in the face of difficulties and barriers and protective factors in their lives.
This study concluded that the participants used resiliency traits to reach their education
goals. These traits included social competency, a sense of purpose, positive
expectations for the future, autonomy, and strong religious belief. The protective
factors were: (a) families' high expectations despite difficult economic situations, (b)
opportunity for responsible participation at home and at school, and (c)
autonomy/strong religious faith and evidence of a strong caring adult in their lives. The
participants' stories of struggle provided a backdrop upon which they voiced their
perceptions regarding education and educating Mexican American students.
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Ecotoxicological simulation modeling: effects of agricultural chemical exposure on wintering burrowing owlsEngelman, Catherine Allegra 10 October 2008 (has links)
The western burrowing owl, Athene cunicularia hypugaea, is a Federal Species
of Concern, whose numbers and range have been drastically reduced from historic levels
in Texas. Burrowing owls roost and forage in agricultural areas, and it has been
hypothesized that exposure to insecticides may be a factor in the decline of their
population. Burrowing owls wintering in southern Texas use agricultural culverts in
cotton fields as roost sites, which may increase their risk of exposure to agricultural
chemicals, either through ingestion of contaminated prey or through dermal exposure to
agricultural runoff.
Simulation modeling was used to characterize the risks to individual burrowing
owls wintering in agricultural landscapes in southern Texas due to effects of exposure to
insecticides or other agricultural chemicals. The simulation model was created using
Stella® VII software (High Performance Systems, Inc., New Hampshire, USA). The
model is broken into four submodels simulating (1) foraging behavior of burrowing owls, (2) chemical applications to crops, (3) chemical transfer and fate in the crop soil
and prey items, and (4) chemical exposure in the burrowing owl.
This model was used to evaluate (1) which components of the model most affect
the endpoints, (2) the relationship between increased concentrations of agricultural
chemicals in culverts and subsequent lethal and sublethal effects from dermal exposure
to agricultural runoff, and (3) which agricultural chemicals have the greatest potential to
cause adverse effects in burrowing owls. Model results suggested (1) the half-lives of
agricultural chemicals in birds caused the most variation in the results, and data gaps
exist for several important model components (2), exposure to increased concentrations
of agricultural chemicals in culverts is unlikely to result in lethal effects, but is likely to
lead to sublethal effects in burrowing owls, and (3) the chemicals with the greatest
potential to negatively affect burrowing owls wintering in southern Texas are the OP
insecticides chlorpyrifos, dicrotophos, and disulfoton, the oxadiazine insecticide
indoxacarb, the herbicide trifluralin, and the defoliants tribufos and paraquat. The results
of this model demonstrate the usefulness of simulation modeling to guide future research
related to the conservation of burrowing owls.
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"History should be told as a fact": Elena Zamora O'Shea's reconstruction of the Texas pastPasternack, Natasha Miller 11 November 2010 (has links)
This report examines the life and works of Elena Zamora O'Shea, reading them as a form of resistance to the dominant narrative of Anglo conquest in south Texas. / text
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Strategies Rural Hospital Leaders Use to Implement Electronic Health RecordMejia, Susan 01 January 2018 (has links)
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued over 144,000 payments totaling $7.1 billion to medical facilities that have adopted and successfully demonstrated meaningful use of certified electronic health record (EHR). Hospital organizations can increase cost savings by using the electronic components of EHRs to improve medical coding and reduce medical errors and transcription costs. Despite the incentives, some rural health care facilities are failing to progress. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies rural hospital leaders used to implement an EHR. The target population consisted of rural hospital leaders who were involved in the successful implementation of an EHR in South Texas. The conceptual framework chosen for this study was the sociotechnical systems theory. Data were collected through telephone interviews using open-ended semistructured interviews with 5 participants from 4 rural hospitals who were involved in the EHR implementation. Data analysis occurred using Yin's 5-step process which includes compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting, and concluding. Data analysis included collecting information from government websites, company documents, and open-ended information to develop recurring themes. Several themes emerged including ongoing training, provider buy-in, constant communication, use of super users, and workflow maintenance. The findings could influence social change by making the delivery of health care more efficient and improving quality, safety, and access to health care services for patients.
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Development and Loss of Porosity in the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian) Sligo Formation Shelf Edge Reef, South TexasAina, Eyitayo David 09 December 2011 (has links)
Approximately 37 m (120 ft) of core was studied with the objective of evaluating and documenting the development and loss of porosity in the dry Mobil McElroy-1 well (Lower Cretaceous Aptian – Albian Sligo Formation). Core slabs were described and thin section samples, taken every 1.5 m (5 ft), were stained and analyzed under standard petrographic, cathode luminescence, confocal and scanning electron microscopes. The main conclusion is that average porosity significantly reduced with depth. Carbon and oxygen isotope values obtained for 20 samples show that the main pore-occluding diagenetic environment was meteoric with most samples having relatively low delta18O (-3.1%o to -6.7%o V- PDB) values. Early through late stage medium (1 mm – 3 mm) to large (> 3 mm) calcite and nonerroan dolomite jointly contributed to more than 10% of primary porosity loss. This study significantly contributes to the understanding of the Sligo Formation and promotes development of natural gas resources.
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