Thesis (D.A.)--Illinois State University, 2003. / Title from title page screen, viewed November 10, 2005. Dissertation Committee: Walker D. Wyman, Jr. (chair), M. Paul Holsinger, Lawrence W. McBride. Includes bibliographical references and abstract Also available in print.

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Social media plays an important role during multiple phases of a disaster. While it is widely known that citizens turn to social media during disasters to gain information and send help requests, there is a significant gap in our knowledge of how, or if, first responders use social media to conduct disaster response operations. To help address this gap this study employed qualitative, semi-structured interviews with a sample of first responders (N = 20) who were deployed to Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The interviews sought to gain a better understanding of how social media was used to conduct response operations and identify both limitations and advantages of social media as perceived by first responders. Through a systematic coding process the analysis identified four themes related to social media usage among first responders to disasters: (1) more than just Twitter; (2) rumor has it; (3) one size does not fit all; and (4) timing is everything. The findings of this research highlight the importance of social media for both organizations and individuals involved in responding to disasters.

This dissertation analyzes how local governments adapt to the fiscal stress of major disasters. Unifying theories of fiscal stress with emergency management theories, the dissertation presents a model of what influences local governments coping strategy use following disasters. Using new survey data and secondary financial data on cities, counties, and school districts that experienced Hurricane Harvey, findings show that local governments adapt in a variety of ways; of 137 local governments that responded, 66 percent used some number of coping strategies, with only 5 of 62 possible strategies not being used by any local governments. For those which did adapt, they on average used 7.06 strategies, and tended to show a preference towards revenue increasing strategies and rebuilding the community through new capital projects, with less emphasis on expenditure cuts compared to some prior literature findings on fiscal stress. The results indicate that local governments step up and provide new services necessary during the recovery process, to serve their community, despite fiscal stress. A negative binomial model shows partial support for the hypotheses that local governments with lower prior fiscal condition and greater hazard exposure will use more coping strategies. The findings show mixed results on whether institutional rules that restrict financial structures lead school districts to use more coping strategies than cities during the recovery process.

The thesis examines post-event displacement of households in the year following Hurricane Harvey. Using data gathered from a three-page mail survey conducted approximately 1-year after the storm, this study examines two primary research objectives. First this thesis aims to identify variables that predict displacement or non-displacement after the disaster. Second, this study explores patterns in the destination and duration of displaced households following Hurricane Harvey. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the extent to which household composition characteristics and level of damage sustained during Hurricane Harvey predicted post-disaster displacement. Next, independent sample t-tests and descriptive statistical analyses were used to identify patterns in the destination of post-event relocations. Research findings indicate in the overall binary logistic regression model that after Hurricane Harvey, being White, level of home damage, wind damage, and number of days a member of the household returned home post-Harvey increased the likelihood of a household being displaced. Analysis of the survey responses also indicated that many households made multiple moves following Hurricane Harvey and specifically, displaced households were more likely to stay with a friend or relative. Additionally, this study found that with each additional relocation, the duration of stay at each destination increased while the distance from their pre-disaster home decreased. This thesis advances understanding of what predicts household displacement after a disaster and offers new insights into where people go during the short-term and beginning of the long-term recovery phases.

This thesis uses flooding driven by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and a history of inundation in Houston, Texas to critique the systems of floodplain mapping through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The role of Geographic Information Systems becomes a subject of interest in the context of U.S governance and the role of property as a driving force in urban development. The shortcomings of existing systems of mitigation are examined through mappings that bring measures of risk, damage, and recovery into contrast with each other. Racial and economic inequality are integrated into the analysis through a deeper consideration of the NFIP as the main form of federal protection against losses. Seeing that the NFIP has not protected the true status quo of urban life, it is argued that public perceptions of risk are formed contrary to the logic of home insurance, leading to observable inequalities in preparation and recovery

Situated in one of the wettest climates in America, Houston, TX has had a long history of heavy rains and unprecedented floods. Unfortunately, floods have become more common over the last few decades as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of hurricanes around the globe. To complicate matters further, Houston has quickly sprawled to accommodate over 2.5 billion people. Rapid urbanization has rendered the landscape even more susceptible to floods through excess concretization and watershed disturbance. This thesis traces the history of the Bayou City in relation to the damages caused by Hurricane Harvey. By mapping out the original neighborhoods and the current demographics of the city, I argue that low-income and minority groups have been systematically forced into higher-risk floodplains via prejudice housing practices. Furthermore, I explore the roles of the National Insurance Flood Program (NIFP) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the rebuilding of the city following Harvey, and I detail the sudden spike in unsheltered homeless people across the region. The thesis closes by critiquing projects that have been proposed for the future well-being of Houston (i.e. reservoir remediation, conveyance projects, coastal dykes, etc.). Evidently, local and outside experts across fields and organizations need to cooperate to determine the immediate and specific needs of neighborhoods and people across the city of Houston.

This study examines the 1916 Report on Social Studies in order to determine how it has been interpreted and regarded over time. The underlying question involved is "Which interpretation, or interpretations, most embodies the intent, goals, and purpose of the 1916 Committee"? Key members of the 1916 committee have been identified for extended research and analysis. One additional individual frequently quoted throughout the Report, John Dewey, has been included in this research on the 1916 committee. The design, format, and content of the 1916 Report on Social Studies was closely examined. This study dissected the three individual reports by time, intent, topic, and authority. The wide variety of interpretations offered by the scholars identified for this study was examined within an organizational framework utilized to discuss and analyze the broad spectrum of interpretations that exist. This examination of the report encompassed the existing theories, the meaning and intent of the 1916 committee, as well as the social and political aspects and impacts of the era. The overarching intent of this study was to make sense of the various scholarly interpretations and offer insights as to whether or not a consensus of opinion among scholars existed. This study explored if, in fact, there was one dominant interpretation, or whether or not different interpretations were possible for the 1916 Report on Social Studies. That is, was there an opportunity for this study to employ a new lens through which to view the 1916 Report on Social Studies?

The Tea Party’s influence in the recent 2010 elections suggests that the group is making an impact within American politics. This project seeks to identify the cultural forces at work and ground them within Antonio Gramsci’s framework of hegemony. Taking a cue from Michael Bérubé’s recent book The Left at War, I perform a close analysis of the Tea Party’s project for hegemony. I focus on the media discourses of the Tea Party movement, performing a close reading of two key Tea Party websites and unpacking two important televised moments relating to the Tea Party’s rise as a grassroots movement. I argue that the Tea Party uses the practice of articulation to persuade the American public that Tea Party members are the rightful heirs to the project of “America” that the Founding Fathers began centuries ago by using the theories of Bérubé, Stuart Hall, Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe as reference points. Finally, I use my analysis of the Tea Party’s articulatory practices to begin exploring a way forward for the American Left, building on the groundbreaking cultural work of Bérubé, Hall, and Laclau and Mouffe. / text

Building on Donald and Patricia Stewarts' The Life and Legacy of Fred Newton Scott (1997), this dissertation addresses aspects of Scott's life which have been ignored or left underdeveloped in the work of composition historians, including Scott's early education at the Indiana State Normal School and at Battle Creek College, along with his personal, academic and professional relationships with Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, John Dewey, and Joseph Villiers Denney. This examination, providing a more precise knowledge of Scott's academic and professional life, clarifies the significance and originality of Scott's contributions to the discipline.At the Indiana State Normal School, Scott was exposed to an innovative adaptation of Pestalozzian and Herbartian educational philosophies. The philosophy and methodologies employed at the school likely influenced Scott's thinking about teacher training, while encouraging his adaptation of psychology in the teaching of English.Scott again was exposed to a reform-minded educational agenda at Battle Creek College. There, Scott encountered an holistic educational program that sought to improve the intellectual, physical, and spiritual components of students' lives.Through his long friendship with Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, Scott gained an intimate knowledge of the medical profession, an awareness Scott utilized in his own writing about understanding student errors in composition. Scott's academic and professional relationship with John Dewey at the University of Michigan demonstrates their multiple shared interests and activities. The Thought News newspaper project illustrates their attempt to implement philosophy into practical arenas. Their working relationship, as well as Scott's educational background at the Indiana State Normal School and at Battle Creek College, suggests that Dewey has been erroneously viewed as the source of Scott's innovative approach to composition.Finally, Scott's collaborative relationship with Joseph Villiers Denney, the writer with whom Scott wrote his most popular textbooks, illustrates the importance Scott placed on collaboration as well as the competence of those with whom he collaborated. Denney's own scholarly work in composition demonstrates his originality and resourcefulness as an equal partner in their collaborations. / Department of English