Kenya and South Africa both face unique challenges in attempting to bridge the gap between those who have access to formal financial institutions and those who do not. The development of mobile banking and its broad accessibility and affordability, in both countries, has led to it being heralded as a great tool for increasing access to banking institutions. Kenya and South Africa have followed different regulatory paths. Kenya has taken an open regulatory approach, whilst South Africa has taken a closed regulatory approach. This thesis identifies the key regulatory differences between South Africa and Kenya by conducting secondary data analysis focusing on the periods when both countries liberalized their banking sectors and telecommunications sectors. This thesis also illustrates how these two paths have influenced the development of financial inclusion in both countries and explores whether any of these paths may be more advantageous for advancing mobile banking services.

In the United States (US), lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals are at an increased risk for contracting sexually transmitted infections, are less likely to receive recommended health screenings, are more likely to abuse alcohol and other substances, are at a higher risk for attempting suicide, and experience greater health disparities compared to their heterosexual counterparts. Compounding these health-related problems is a significant discrepancy whereby LGBTQ people have poor or no access to health care. One approach to correct the health disparities the LGBTQ community faces is through LGBTQ-specific health education for nursing students. A review of the literature revealed undergraduate-level nursing programs should employ competent faculty, incorporate increased instruction time, use updated textbooks, assign projects or entire modules specific to the health care needs of LGBTQ patients, employ simulations when available, and incorporate LGBTQ topics throughout the undergraduate nursing curriculum. These changes have the potential to make a positive impact on improving health care for LGBTQ patients in the US.

Magister Commercii - MCom / South Africa is ranked, by any measure, among the most unequal countries in the world. Despite having a relatively well-developed financial system, historic patterns of economic concentration continue to feed into the pattern of unequal and combined development (Kabakova & Plaksenkov, 2018). With record low saving rates and poor long-term financial planning, Financial Health (FH) has become an important issue for individuals and households. Individuals throughout the world endeavour to better their financial lives. They allocate funds to nondiscretionary expenses, save, take out loans and plan, etc., working towards growing their assets and growing their resources, in their quest for good FH. This study examined the relationship between FI and FH in South Africa, as well as whether and how individuals benefit from their relationship to the financial system. The study used a nationally representative demand-side survey, FinScope South Africa, for the periods 2011 and 2016. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was applied to derive a Financial Inclusion Index (FII) and a Financial Health Index (FHI) to measure the range of FI and FH in South Africa. Probit regressions were run to measure the likelihood of being financially included and having good FH. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) were run to identify the sort of the relationship between the dependant and independent variables. Lastly, bivariate regressions were run to test the relationship between FI and FH.

Financial inclusion remains a critical issue for developing economies such as Nigeria, where the focus of the government is to bring all economic units into the pool of the country's financial system. The rate of financial inclusion is an economic yardstick that cannot be discounted and one which remains a clear focal point of different inter-governmental efforts and policy. On one hand, there is the realisation that a low rate of financial inclusion means that a huge percentage of the population rarely has access to the kind of financial services that can take them out of poverty. As a contemporary discourse, this research seeks to assess the impact of financial inclusion on the development of the economy; arguing on the premise that proxy indicators in existing research have failed to provide a clear picture on the impact of financial inclusion on the economy, thereby failing to provide stakeholders with a strong motivation to pursue financial inclusiveness in the country. The focus of the study is to assess the effect of financial inclusion on income inequality and economic growth. To achieve this objective the study leverages on data spanning a period of 34 years (1981 to 2016), based on data generated from the Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin and the World Bank Development Indicators. Using the Error Correction Mechanism (ECM),Unit Root Analysis and the Co-Integration analytical framework, the findings indicated that the short and longrun relationship between financial inclusion and economic growth in Nigeria show that the current values of the variables were not significant. Regarding the relationship between financial inclusion and income inequality in Nigeria, the short-run result revealed that only the past values of loans to rural areas and number of commercial bank branches appears to be significant, while at the long-run, the lagged value of gross domestic product per capital, commercial bank deposits and loans to rural areas were found to be statistically significant. The study further notes that financial inclusiveness was a precursor for economic growth in Nigeria. It is on this basis that the study recommends among others that; there is the need to increase loans to the rural areas by at least 50% this can be done through moral suasion to boost the economic activities in the rural areas, improve their aggregate demand, and ultimately their standard of living. There is also the need to engage more workforce in the rural areas to close the inequality gap prevalent in the country.

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Universities are perceived as non-judgmental because of their tolerant environments and emphasis on producing well-rounded students. Despite transformative initiatives to create an inclusive culture, transgender and gender diverse students may still feel that they are treated unfairly due to stigmatisation or poorly implemented diversity policies. Studies have focused mainly on the gender binary practice of transgender individuals assimilating to cisnormativity. Yet, relatively little work has considered the implications of campus life where transgender students may experience discrimination because of gender-exclusive policies and practices (residence halls, bathrooms, public inclusion, training, and support). This study sought to address this gap. Data from a thematic analysis of qualitative semi-structured interviews were utilised to understand trans* students' perceptions and lived experiences at a South African university. Most of the participants revealed that a hostile climate for transgender students prevailed on campus and that the institution lacks resources and education on transgender issues. Findings reported three major themes: (1) Navigating the power of privilege and institutional systemic oppression; (2) Misalignment and invalidation of one's gender identity on campus; (3) The importance of understanding transgender health from a gender minority experience. Recommendations for creating greater inclusion for transgender students on university campuses are presented.

Research consistently shows that students from historically marginalized populations have difficulty accessing texts that represent the realities of their lives. Concerned that such might be the case for my students, I conducted an inventory of my classroom library and sought out award-winning texts that could make my library more diverse and inclusive. I then analyzed these award-winning texts using Bishop's (1992) categories of multicultural literature in order to better understand the picturebooks' underlying messages and ideologies. My examinations showed that the majority of the texts fit into the same category (culturally specific), though I was able to identify award-winning texts that were culturally generic and culturally neutral as well. Additionally, each category yielded salient themes--ranging from acceptance of one's complex identities to America's racialized and politicized tensions--and activist educators will wish to carefully consider said themes as they select texts and engage in critical conversations with young readers.

Thesis advisor: Raquel Muñiz / Educational leaders are being called as activists to achieve equity in schools and transform inequities through social justice initiatives. Whereas research exists in support of social justice leadership in education, research that intersects the work of current DEI leadership and the relevance of trust to pursue DEI initiatives is wanting. Trust in this context is important because relationship-building is a large component to implementing DEI work, which needs the support, buy-in, and active engagement from the entire community, requiring stakeholders' trust in the process. In this study, I take a deep dive into the role of DEI leadership by exploring the practices and perspectives that are common in the role and the work two decades into the 21st century. I conducted four semi-structured interviews with DEI leaders, during which participants reflected on many collective practices central to their daily work. These practices fell into three different categories encompassing similar characteristics: support, development, and resource. Through further analysis, I found that DEI leadership served four separate areas: families, students, adult staff, and the institution. Above all, a core practice of building relationships was found to be essential to achieving all said practices. In addition, the analysis revealed three common perspectives that impact DEI leadership work: the role is larger than a single person, the role must have trust and support from power positions, and the leader must have a deep connection with the work through experience and/or training. Finally, I found that benevolence, reliability, and openness are essential facets of trust impacting DEI work, as is the importance of time. The study’s results are valuable for the development of DEI leadership and achieving equitable access and inclusive environments in schools. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

Yes / This chapter examines the conceptual and measurement issues involving financial inclusion. Rest of the chapter is organised as follows. Section 2 defines the concept of financial inclusion. Section 3 briefly discusses the barriers to financial inclusion. The next section outlines measurement issues and data sources involving financial inclusion. Finally, the last section of the study concludes.

Thesis advisor: Vincent Cho / This individual case study is part of a larger group study examining how principals benefit from and shape professional capital to improve schools. Specifically, this study sought to understand what organizational and individual factors contributed to principals’ decision-making about implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in a large, urban school district in Massachusetts. The research team interviewed a total of 21 participants, including central office leaders, principals, and educators. The study found that principals use a variety of factors to make sense of DEI policies. In particular, they were responsive to organizational changes instituted by the central office, notably the creation of an executive team to lead the district’s DEI initiatives and the first ever district-wide professional development day dedicated to DEI. While most principals indicated that they believed in the work of the DEI office, there was less evidence that they were self-reflective about their role in how to implement DEI policies. Further, the data suggested that principals made few individual decisions to take action with regard to the DEI policy implementation. However, coupling organizational learning with research on policy implementation shows that self-reflection and individual learning stem from individual sense-making of organizational changes, and that these changes become cyclical and ongoing, leading to greater implementation. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.