In recent years, students have been excluded from school at consistently high rates, even as school crime rates have declined. Moreover, students of color are excluded at disproportionately high rates compared to their White peers. Although researchers have found these patterns across a variety of contexts, there has been little research that examines school-level mechanisms that may contribute to the high overall rates of exclusionary discipline and the attendant racial disparities. This dissertation focuses on two possible mechanisms that have been theoretically linked to increased rates of exclusionary discipline: school resource officers (SROs) and zero-tolerance approaches to discipline. Study 1 used 14 years of data from Tennessee high schools to model trends in suspension rates before and after the implementation of SROs using a latent growth curve modeling approach. The findings indicated that SRO implementation was associated with lower overall suspension rates and lower suspension rates for Black students, and no changes for White studentsâ suspension rates or racial disparities in suspension rates. Study 2 examined the relation between the combination of SROs and a high zero-tolerance approach and schoolsâ rates of exclusionary discipline using a nationally representative sample of public high schools. A series of three-way interaction models with an ordinary least squares regression framework indicated that schools that had SROs in combination with a high zero-tolerance approach to discipline had higher overall rates of exclusionary discipline in schools characterized by higher proportions of racial minority students and other indicators of disadvantage. Together, these studies suggest that SROs and zero-tolerance approaches to discipline may not be universally appropriate mechanisms for reducing rates of exclusionary discipline. Instead, school context is an important consideration when forming strategies to reduce student exclusions.

Peer multiple victimization (PMV) predicts a range of negative behavioral, psychosocial, and school-related sequela. The processes through which an adolescent who experiences PMV develops negative outcomes has received attention, but processes that mitigate the impact of these negative outcomes are largely unknown. A lack of school connectedness has been robust predictor of subsequent negative developmental outcomes, and has been demonstrated to be associated with victimization. However, competencies from the social and emotional learning framework have been linked with developing positive social connections for adolescents. This study uses a series of multilevel models to investigate whether PMV is associated with school connectedness, and whether social and emotional learning competencies affects this relation. Participants were 6,401 (47.3% Female; 36.2% White) 9th through 12th grade students from 15 schools across a large urban public school district in a southeastern state. Results suggest that PMV is associated with a lack of school connectedness and that although social and emotional competencies are particularly relevant for adolescents who experience PMV, they do not significantly buffer this relationship. Thus, adolescents who experience PMV may benefit from social and emotional competencies in spite of overwhelming evidence of associations with negative outcomes. Research, theoretical and applied implications for this vulnerable group are discussed.

Sexual minority women experience a number of physical and mental health disparities compared to their heterosexual peers. This three-paper dissertation addresses the ways in which stigma and access to care explain outcomes in sexual minority womenâs physical and mental health. The first study is a qualitative examination of sexual minority womenâs experiences of stigma, particularly related to healthcare settings. The second study is a close examination of demographic predictors of access to care among sexual minority women. The third study is an analysis of the relationship between access to care and physical and mental health outcomes among sexual minority women. Findings include in-depth information about the lived experiences of stigma within and related to healthcare settings that participants reported, identification of factors that predict access to care within this population, and models explaining a significant amount of variation in physical and mental health of sexual minority women. Together, these studies shed light on the ways in which stigma explains significant differences in wellbeing via access to adequate and effective healthcare. The findings from this dissertation can inform practice related to addressing healthcare needs of sexual minority women, policy related to health of sexual minority groups, and future research on stigma, health disparities, and access to care for sexual minority women.

The association between neighborhood-level racial segregation and low birth weight among Black infants was systematically reviewed and meta-analyzed. Seven major databases (e.g., PubMed, PsycINFO) were searched, and ten additional search strategies were performed. After scanning and coding search results, a random effects meta-analysis using the log odds ratio metric was performed for studies with comparable effects sizes, and a systematic review comparing articles addressing this association was written. Heterogeneity, moderators, publication bias, and sensitivity were assessed. Quality indicators for each article were discussed in the narrative review. A total of 6,212 articles were retrieved yielding seven articles included in the systematic review. Three articles featuring eight independent studies were eligible and included in the meta-analysis. The mean effect size was statistically significant (OR = 1.13, 95% CI [1.07, 1.19], p = 0.00) and represented a positive association between low birth weight and Black isolation. These results lacked heterogeneity (Q=8.34, df = 7, p = 0.30, I2 = 16.1%; Ï2 = 0.00) and thus no moderator analysis was conducted. There was no evidence of publication bias, and results from sensitivity analyses substantiated the robustness of the findings. Racial isolation appears not only to be statistically significantly associated with low birth weight after individual and neighborhood-level adjustments but also may explain racial differences in low birth weight at the neighborhood level. Results suggest Black isolation is positively associated with low birth weight for Black infants. Future research must endeavor to understand racial isolation as a process and how it shapes health.

To what extent does a Soviet legacy shape the experiences of former Soviet (FS) immigrants living in the U.S.? This historically grounded question is relevant in a post-Soviet reality as the number of immigrants from FS republics living in the U.S. has increased by almost 200% since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Using semi-structured interviews, surveys and a snowball/quota sampling technique, I inquired among adults of multiple ethnicities and multiple countries of origin within the former Soviet Union who were living in two communities in the United States: Nashville, Tennessee (survey n=46; interview n=10) and Brooklyn, New York (survey n=131; interview n=16). The main foci of research were hypothesis testing about three organizing categories of immigrant status (refugee, titularity, and ethnicity) and theory exploration (social capital and migration theories). In general, I discovered that titularity (a match between ethnicity and country of origin) matters and should be considered in any migration research. To continue to call all persons from former Soviet republics Russian despite their ethnicity and/or country of origin is problematic. More specifically, I found that non-refugees were not likely to engage formal (e.g. government, non-profit) institutions for financial or other forms of help. Non-titular immigrants were more likely than titular immigrants to report experiences of discrimination as a reason for leaving their countries of origin. Titular immigrants were more likely to be temporary immigrants, intending to return home to live. Titular immigrants were more likely to send remittances to their countries of origin and more frequently did so. Central Asian and European non-Jewish ethnic groups were more likely to experience discrimination in Nashville than in Brooklyn. Central Asian and Transcaucasian ethnic groups were more likely to consider their countries of origin as home. I offer an ecology of immigration model as a helpful tool to better understand the immigrant experience. Limitations, implications, and future research ideas are also discussed.

Attending and graduating from college has become an essential tool for social mobility over the last several decades. However, despite efforts to expand opportunities to increase college access for all students, there is ongoing evidence of meaningful disparities in the rates of postsecondary enrollment among students from traditionally underserved college-going populations, including low income, minority, and first generation college-going students. The present dissertation examines the core assumptions of college for all, which may inadvertently replicate inequality. The dissertation is presented in three parts. The first paper examines the foundational theoretical literature that frames college access scholarship and identifies the strengths and limitations of existing theoretical frameworks used to investigate college access. I rely upon the empirical literature to develop an alternative model: The Ecological Model of College Access. The second paper, draws on data from 54 interviews with college-going seniors from two college for all high schools. It examines how students leverage relationships within and across settings (e.g., home, school, and community) to access multiple dimensions of support throughout the college access process. The results highlight studentsâ ecological experience of support, as well as the scaffolded experiences with support. For example, findings suggest, during the aspiration and expectations phases, emotional, motivational, and informational support emerge as the most critical dimensions; in contrast, during the dual search, emotional, motivational, and instrumental support manifest most powerfully. Additionally, the data highlight characteristics of relationships students leveraged strategically for support. Finally, the third paper employs Tseng and Seidmanâs (2007) theoretical framework of settings to explore how setting-level factors mediate studentsâ experiences. An in-depth assessment of the social processes germane to college access reveals key similarities and differences between the two schools. The findings highlight a number of settings-level factors (e.g., relationships, participation, and norms) that dictated the quality of studentsâ experiences throughout the college access process. Cumulatively, these three papers highlight the complexity of the college access process and the requisite sources of support required to ensure that studentsâ experiences are provided in a way that maximizes their potential for successful enrollment in a postsecondary institution matched to their social, academic, and financial needs.

Despite myriad well-funded local and national initiatives to achieve health equity in the U.S., significant disparities in health between racial groups persist. Local health departments (LHDs) are one of the most salient organizations in efforts to eliminate racial health disparities. Organizational research has shown that characteristics of an organizations workforce can affect its performance. However, little research has been conducted on the relationship between LHD workforce characteristics and LHD engagement in health disparity elimination (HDE) activities. This study uses regression analyses to assess the extent to which one organizational characteristicracial diversity of the LHD workforceis predictive of HDE activity among county-level LHDs nationwide. Results suggest that workforce racial diversity is a strong predictor of HDE activity among county-level LHDs. Findings presented here indicate a need for further research on organizational factors associated with HDE activity and promotion of racial health equity. Implications for such research as well as practical implications are discussed.

Religion played an important role in the Rwandas 1994 genocide, but it is also playing a significant role in Rwandas recovery. Using a mixed methods approach, this dissertation inquires about the role of religious beliefs, religious social contacts, and religious organizations in promoting reconciliation after the genocide. Religious beliefs and values have laid the groundwork for hope and action for many people. Individuals rely on religious values, religious friends, and religious organizations for psychological support, vital economic assistance, and as means to reassert their personhood and membership in community. Religious organizations have developed religious understandings of peace as well as programs to respond to individual and community needs. These individual and organizational efforts are quantitatively and qualitatively linked to a variety of positive post-conflict outcomes. The role of religion in working toward peace in Rwanda is limited, however, as the countrys government has created a powerful state apparatus which discursively defines the genocide, peace, and reconciliation in ways which restrict the range of religious action.

This dissertation contains three articles on shared equity homeownership (SEH). SEH is resale-restricted, owner-occupied housing for lower income households that remains affordable in perpetuity. To examine the viability of SEH in a relatively affordable locality, the first article presents findings from focus groups with potential SEH beneficiaries in Nashville, TN. The study found that the majority of participants expressed an interest in SEH and perceived benefits of SEH relative to existing rental and homeownership options. The second article presents national performance data on SEH. Based upon data from a national survey of community land trusts (one form of SEH), the study found that owners of community land trust homes were substantially less likely to be seriously delinquent or in foreclosure proceedings than owners in the conventional market at the end of 2010. The final article reviews problems in the current landscape of SEH, which are hindering sector formation and growth; it puts forth recommendations to overcome these obstacles in order to take the sector to scale.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth are historically an under-studied subpopulation of youth. Over the past decade however, the subpopulation has garnered increased attention from scholars of education and youth development, primarily with regard to how experiences of stigma and victimization negatively influence school and family life. During this same time period, the transformative paradigm of positive youth development (PYD), which focuses on the positive or adaptive factors that support a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood (Durlak, 1998), has become increasingly prominent. Despite the potential value of this approach in offering a fuller picture of youth development inclusive of risk as well as positive supports, its application to LGBT youth thus far remains limited. A parallel growth in literature has attended to how new, Internet-based technologies affect adolescent development models, and how they may be especially useful for some socially marginalized groups. These new media, when viewed through a PYD framework, have the potential to re-energize civic participation and help create a more just society, particularly if they support development and assist in overcoming experiences of marginalization. This dissertation applies the PYD model to LGBT youth and examines a) the factors that influence access to PYD resources; b) how LGBT-related experiences of marginalization influence access to and use of positive resources and well-being; and c) whether LGBT-specific and Internet-based additions to the PYD framework facilitate well-being. Results show that online and LGBT-specific spaces and resourcesincluding resources related to LGBT identity development, social support, and participation in extracurricular and civic activitiescan contribute to well-being and thus, expand existing understandings of PYD for LGBT youth.