Thesis (Ph.D.)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2009. / Prepared for: Dept. of Information Systems. Title from title-page of electronic thesis. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität St. Gallen, 2000.

Thesis (Ph.D)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2009. / Prepared for: Dept. of Accounting. Title from title-page of electronic thesis. Bibliography: leaves 95-98.

Originally presented as the author's thesis, Zürich. / Bibliography: p. 159-162.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität St. Gallen, 1997.

Thesis (M.S. in Meteorology and Physical Oceanography)--Naval Postgraduate School, September 2003. / Thesis advisor(s): Peter C. Chu, Steve Haeger. Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-77). Also available online.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business, August 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

This study examined the validity evidence of a standards-based teacher evaluation system implemented at seven Title I schools in a central Texas school district with financial support from the federal Teacher Incentive Fund. The researcher attempted to determine whether the evaluation system accurately identified the level of teacher performance by correlating the system’s metrics with a criterion, which was a value added estimation of student achievement. Teacher data included 2012-2013 classroom observation scores, multiple portfolio ratings, and demographic characteristics. Student level data included 2012-2013 mathematics and reading scale scores on the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR). Prior achievement from 2011-2012 and student demographic data from 2012-2013 were also used during the calculation of the value added estimations. When the correlations were combined by subject across grade levels, several metrics showed positive and statistically significant relationships in mathematics. These correlations suggest that these measures are valid. At the same time, the study identified a number of statistically significant negative correlations that call for further research on the evaluation system. The relationships identified in reading are especially concerning because almost all of the evaluation metrics were negatively correlated with student achievement. / text

In this dissertation, we study a free boundary problem obtained as a limit as [epsilon omplies 0] to the following regularizing family of semilinear equations [Delta]u = [Beta subscript epsilon](u)F([gradient]u), where [Beta subscript epsilon] approximates the Dirac delta in the origin and F is a Lipschitz function bounded away from 0 and infinity. The least supersolution approach is used to construct solutions satisfying geometric properties of the level surfaces that are uniform. This allows to prove that the free boundary of the limit has the "right" weak geometry, in the measure theoretical sense. By the construction of some barriers with curvature, the classification of global profiles for the blow-up analysis is carried out and the limit function is proven to be a viscosity and pointwise solution (a.e) to a free boundary problem. Finally, the free boundary is proven to be a C[superscript 1, alpha] surface around H[superscript n-1] a.e. point.