Alternative food systems (AFS) projects are designed to address issues of environmental justice, food security and insecurity, community health disparities between the affluent and the poor, and access to healthful foods in distressed urban areas. Past research has questioned the efficacy and long-term viability of such interventions, particularly in distressed primarily Black urban areas. The purpose of this intrinsic case study (ICS) was to understand the ways in which local governmental entities collaborated with each other and with nongovernmental partners to help develop an AFS in South Florida through the creation of a market garden called the PATCH. Critical race theory was the framework for addressing the challenges associated with community health, empowerment, and socioeconomic issues pertaining to AFS. A critical case sampling strategy was employed in order to study the selected site. Transcribed data from interviews with 6 key informants, observational notes, and publicly available document searches were coded using a thematic posteriori strategy and analyzed diagrammatically. Results revealed 4 primary drivers for the effective creation of AFS including collaboration and partnerships, community empowerment, community involvement, and the leadership role of government. The concept of transcommunality played an integral role in how these primary drivers could be applied between local governmental and nongovernmental partners. Knowledge gleaned from these results can inform the development of effective community and culturally specific AFS that can help address the disparities that race and socioeconomic status play in providing access to healthful foods in South Florida, thereby creating the basis for positive social change in distressed urban areas.

Legislation concerning California residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) requires recipients of services to be treated as independent individuals while emphasizing self-determination. At the same time, under regulatory procedures, recipients are considered dependent on the delivered services and not self-determinant. Neither the California Department of Developmental Services nor the trade associations representing community service providers have established a unified, systematic practice to support self-determination. This phenomenological study explored the experience of adults with ID/DD working toward self-determination. Specifically, it explored how medical and social models contribute to shaping and actualizing the independence of this population. Interviews with eight adults with ID/DD explored the perceived barriers to, and opportunities for, achieving independence through self-determination. Under the current statutory regulations, the study viewed two conceptual lenses. The first lens, social role valorization, is based on the study of normalization. The second lens, social reaction, emphasizes a response to the disparities that acknowledge the political, cultural, and social beliefs associated with theories of deviance and social role valorization. The findings demonstrated that self-determination requires collaboration between coordinated services, primary social systems, and theoretical services supporting social role value. The discovery of these key elements may help California's disability service system fulfill legislative requirements to increase opportunities for personal choice.

A federal Call to Action was mandated to reform community colleges across the nation, challenging college officials to enhance instructional methodology on college campuses towards increasing student completion rates. In addressing this mandate, college officials at the upstate NY community college identified a need for professional development that would increase student learning and enhance the instructional methodologies of facilitating faculty through improved alignment. Accordingly, this study investigated the alignment of faculty instructional effectiveness with the institution's core mission. The purpose of this study was to examine faculty perceptions of the instructional methodologies used to facilitate student learning. Informed by Knowles's theory of andragogy, the research questions examined instructional strategies and existing professional development of the faculty members to explore the problem of faculty alignment. The study employed a qualitative intrinsic case study design, with a purposeful sample of 6 part-time and 2 full-time faculty participants. The data were collected and analyzed through the use of a semi structured Likert-type survey and open-ended interview questions. Utilizing an open coding format, data revealed a lack of computer-based instructional strategies and a need for implementation of technological professional learning opportunities at the college. Faculty expressed desire for professional learning. These findings may inform college officials as to the importance of a professional development growth plan policy, and may contribute to positive social change by increasing student completion rates at the college level.

Corporations are finding it challenging to attract and retain the top talented Millennials. Their frequent job-hopping is costing the U.S. economy $30.5 billion annually despite corporations' best efforts to retain them. The central research question concerns the decision-making process that Millennials use to decide whether to job-hop or stay with an organization. The purpose of this qualitative study was to develop a theory that explains the Millennials' process for deciding whether to job-hop or stay with an organization. The conceptual framework for this grounded theory research is generational theory, Herzberg's hygiene and motivational factors, and psychological contract theory. The data collection was by means of a purposive sampling strategy implemented through the semistructured interviews of 13 participants. The grounded theory data analysis method used consisted of an abridged version of Glaser's data analysis method as developed by Charmaz, which entailed a systematic comparative coding process (initial, focused, and theoretical). The study findings included 7 factors that affect Millennial job-hopping: competitive compensation, job enjoyment, opportunities for professional growth, supportive work environment, reasonable free/flex time, finding their niche, and excellent benefits. Based on these factors, the Millennials job-hopping theory explains their decision-making process and why they job-hop. Positive social change may occur when Millennials achieve job satisfaction. Job satisfaction increases loyalty and organizational commitment and reduces stress, thus decreasing turnover and creating economic stability for the Millennials and their organizations.

Novice teachers do not have sufficient opportunities to troubleshoot real-world teaching situations prior to having their own classrooms. Antiquated professional development (PD) models lack the collaboration element that provides authentic application of concepts. This qualitative case study was conducted to fill a gap in research on novice teachers' voluntary participation in an online community of practice. The study explored how the situated learning in this virtual community addressed the cognitive and social needs of early career teachers as they made the theory to practice connections. The community of practice framework and the social learning theories supported socialization as essential in early career teachers' growth. Research questions in the study examined five teachers' beliefs about collaboration- in promoting community engagement, the influence of voluntary participation on the quality of teacher engagement, and teachers' perceptions of the use of Web 2.0 technology to build community. A priori codes were created using the theoretical frame and research questions to guide the analysis of audio, transcriptions, observations, and other coded artifacts to find themes and patterns promoting internal validity. Findings revealed teachers' belief in collaboration impacted their level of engagement virtually. While voluntary participation motivates teacher participation, it does not guarantee high quality engagement without accountability. Since attrition is a continual threat to the teaching workforce, study results validate recommending the use of virtual resources to facilitate CoPs to remedy the mentoring and coaching void for early career teachers. Also, innovative use of Web 2.0 tools should be used to expose new teachers to diverse experiences that bridge theory to practice gaps and encourage teacher leadership, which promotes retention.

The incidence of gonorrhea had declined since the HIV epidemic in the late 1980s, but is now increasing globally due to the emergence of antibiotic-resistant forms of this disease. In South Africa, the incidence of gonorrhea is highest among Black women due to their high co-infection rates with HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). This study examined the psychosocial determinants of gonorrhea among Black women aged 18 - 35 in the Langa township in Cape Town, South Africa. All participants had reported at least one sexual experience and at least one positive test for gonorrhea in the past two years. Participant recruitment involved flyer distribution at LoveLife, the community partner to the research study. After an initial screening call, 12 women were considered eligible and participated in the study. Interview data were gathered, transcribed, then hand-coded for emergent themes, guided by the tenets of the information-motivation-behavioral (IMB) skills conceptual framework. The findings of the study identified that the women did not have extensive knowledge of gonorrhea but believed that factors such as a sense of vulnerability, stress in relationships, and social/environmental factors increased their risk of contracting gonorrhea disease. These findings have global implications, as they lay the foundation for follow-up quantitative studies and outline policy recommendations for addressing gonorrhea.

Approximately every 20 years, a new generation is born and eventually dominates the workforce; although changes occur with each new generation, the importance of job satisfaction remains constant. Research within the U.S. Intelligence Community is lacking with regard to changing trends of job satisfaction levels. The purpose of this study was to explore job satisfaction levels between Generation X and Generation Y workforce employees at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). The central research question addressed how job satisfaction differed by generational differences in the workforce. A quantitative method was used to assess survey data. A structural equation modeling technique was used to simultaneously test the plausibility of variable relationships to include the following: independent variables—compensation, environment, advancement, performance, training, supervision, motivation, demographics, leadership; and the dependent variable, job satisfaction. Regarding theoretical construct, the McGregor theories X and Y was used to address 2 fundamental approaches that affected job satisfaction levels exclusive to Generation X and Y. Full time NGA employees from the Analysis and Production Directorate completed a survey to assess whether generational differences affected employees’ job satisfaction. Key findings indicated that Generation X employees associated job satisfaction as a measure of respect for their positions within NGA and Generation Y employees viewed job satisfaction as a measure of advancement and performance. The implications for positive social change include combating generational policy biases in the U.S.

Gaps exist in the literature on knowledge of how founder behavior affects volunteers and employees in nonprofit organizations. Through exploration of founder relationships with volunteers and employees, this study fills some of those gaps and adds to the body of knowledge of how those relationships are perceived by founders, volunteers, and employees. The purpose of this narrative study was to address the question of the impact of founder behavior on founders, employees and volunteers in nonprofit women's organizations founded by African American and Caucasian women. The theory of psychological ownership was used as the framework to understand founder behavior. The qualitative narrative inquiry design consisted of interviews with 12 participants who work for nonprofit organizations that provide empowerment services to women. Themes such as control, lack of strategy and support, and silenced voices emerged as responses to the question of the impact of founder behavior on the organization. The results indicate that founders, employees, and volunteers report a need for clear policies, role assignments, procedures, and organizational goals. Founders are oblivious to the impact of their behavior on the organization and are not aware of the available resources that may exist in their communities. Implications include state level nonprofit policy that funds training for nonprofit organizations around the themes examined in this study. Recommendations for future research include examination of internal issues and structures related to an organization's growth. The result of this study may lead to increased understanding of perceptions of the operations of nonprofit organizations which may impact nonprofit organizations' abilities to meet the goals of their mission.

Billions of mental health care dollars for millions of children and adolescents in need has garnered significant attention within the behavioral health industry to reduce costs while improving treatment efficacy through the identification and implementation of evidence based practices with youth populations requiring therapeutic services. This hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative research approach in the field of psychology is a consumer driven one in the world of business. Line by line context and discourse analyses, which included both a prior and inductive coding, of the verbiage and phraseology of 10 boys and 10 girls, aged 8-12, actively engaged in outpatient psychotherapy, formed the foundation for 31 themes that captured a shared experience or a consumer driven “view inside the therapist’s office.” These results are represented through 6 main themes indicating that a) “knowledge fosters investment” upon entry into and initiation of mental health services when therapists and parents recognize that b) “words have power to facilitate success,” only if, guided by childhood development but chosen thoughtfully for each child. Further, c) “therapy is therapy across the lifespan,” such that therapeutic care for minors deemed legally dependent reflected treatment for legally independent persons with implementation methods influenced by age. Lastly, age, as a definitive factor, impacted the means by which the youth in my study experienced d) “autonomy… and developed e) “therapeutic rapport…” in references to e) “boundaries…” that mitigate the entire treatment experience. The outcomes of this study offer the research and practice community opportunity to move children from the “object” of the treatment to “agents” in their treatment by respecting the ideas expressed by youth themselves.

Perceptual differences in how citizens and police view police-initiated contacts can result in individual and communal tension, mistrust, and social strife, which complicate the relationships needed in order to thrive and promote safe environments. To examine how police officers interpret these contacts, this case study sought to explore the nature of citizen-police relations from the perspective of police officers in a city in the northwest part of the United States. Social contract and procedural justice theories were used to examine the circumstances that officers cited for taking enforcement actions, including operational definitions of police fairness and legitimacy from the Queensland Community Engagement Trial. Data were collected from interviews with 10 officers during police ride-alongs and from departmental data related to officer performance. These data were inductively coded and then analyzed using a naturalistic inquiry approach. Findings suggest that police officers were amenable to creating formal, quasi-contractual agreements between police and citizens based on a shared understanding of how police exercised power and discretion to guide the citizen-police interaction. Participants perceived that, under certain circumstances, explaining police discretion to citizens may decrease the level of community tension police officers experience. These findings support the theoretical constructs of procedural justice and have implications for social contract theory. This type of arrangement encourages positive social change by strengthening the ties with community members, which in turn promotes officer and public safety.