Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2008, Mass Communication (Communication)

Children's Television in Ghana: History, Policy, Diversity, and Prospects in a Changing Media Environment examines children's television in Ghana with the aim of exploring the different factors influencing the diversity and market structure of the industry. In order to better understand the diversity of children's television in Ghana Bryant's (2007) children's television community; Industrial Organization Model (Scherer and Ross, 1990); and government and market failure theory (Weisbrod, 1975, 1977) are adapted as the theoretical foundations needed to navigate the answers to the research questions the dissertation sets out to answer. The three theoretical frameworks provide a direction for exploring the political and economic factors influencing the diversity of television programs forchildren in Ghana. The dissertation utilizes three methods to obtain and analyze information and data for the dissertation. Content analysis was used to obtain children's television data from television schedules for the three largest television stations in the capital of Ghana. The schedules for the three television stations are published in Radio & TV Guide which is a monthly entertainment magazine published in Ghana. One-on-one semi-structured interviews with a number of core open-ended questions based on the functions of interviewees were used with station managers, media professionals, government organization officials, content creators and non-government organization officials. Finally secondary sources such as relevant industry documents from broadcasting stations,nongovernmental organizations, and government sources were reviewed to gain data on the provision of children's television programs and to corroborate information gained from the interviewees and content analysis data. In order to obtain both an objective and subjective determination of the diversity of children's television in Ghana it was important to use multiple methods. Findings from the dissertation showed that t (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Doctor of Ministry , Ashland University, 2021, Doctor of Ministry Program

The purpose of this project was to impact the understanding of select members and attendees of the First Baptist Church of Bradford, Ohio, concerning the place of children within the church's corporate worship by means of a four-week applied instruction. The design of the project was a pre-assessment followed by four weeks of classroom interaction, adjusted Sunday worship services, and a post-assessment. The topic of the project centered on the need to welcome children into corporate worship inviting their participation. The most prominent finding was that participants understood the need for worship to be a participatory event.

Master of Arts in Rhetoric and Writing​, University of Findlay, 2020, English

ABSTRACT According to reports released by the U.S. Census Bureau, by the year 2042 majority of the U.S. population will be non-white, and as of 2008 almost half of the children under five claimed at least one non-white identity. Yet, the American literature market notably continues to underrepresent people of color in children's books for all ages, leaving a gap in providing much needed mirrors and windows of identity for all children. This gap has attracted the attention of parents and guardians of multicultural children, who have taken it upon themselves to create and distribute the literature they wish they saw in bookstores. This project reviews data collected through open format interviews with three published parent-authors, and reveals the rhetorical strategies the participants utilized throughout all stages of the writing process, as well as challenges they have faced as newcomers to the writing and publishing spaces. Through the lens of feminist methodology, the project aims to answer the question of what drives three very different individuals to pursue storytelling with no prior experience, and to assume the role of an author, even when they might hesitate to claim authorship as an identity. Over the past few years, an increasing number of parent-authors have inserted themselves into the writing, producing, and publishing spaces in order to provide voices for the children existing in the land between identities, the space named La Frontera, or the Borderlands, by scholar and activist Gloria Anzaldua. Through this rhetorical act the parent-authors, like the three participants, have extended their own identities into the Borderlands, engaging in pursuit of rhetorical activism that remains largely unrecognized, but will undoubtedly continue to grow in scope and influence.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1992, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2007, Elementary Education (Education)

This dissertation research explores the process of authoring and publishing children's literature, in particular children's picture books. The dissertation offers an overview of what an author might expect to encounter between the inspirational moment an idea occurs to her to the day her manuscript arrives at a publishing house. The dissertation research is supported with examples of practical application. The authoring process begins with market research. For this one needs to know her audience-the young child. The dissertation explains the importance of studying child psychology and understanding the developmental stages of childhood. Writing a board book for a one-year old is different from writing a poem for a four-year old. The young child is a keen observer and a vicious critic. If an author is ignorant as to the needs of her audience, no ideas will ever become books. Agents and publishers are professionals at spotting an author who has not done her homework, who is an amateur. Another aspect of market research is to be aware of what is currently being published. Books you see in libraries and bookstores are manuscripts publishers have accepted. Not only does an author want to know what is currently on shelves, but to study the classics. Studying the classics provides a foundation for writing. Understanding what has been written for children in the past that has been considered the finest in writing and illustrating is a prerequisite for any serious author of children's literature. The classics reveal the finest in storytelling. This dissertation examines the scholarly work of Joseph Campbell on the theme of the monomyth-the one story told by all humans through all the ages. Understanding the roots of storytelling offers the author a platform from which she may begin to weave her own creative stories for her young audience knowing that the elements of heroes and quests and happy returns are all integral to the child's life. In this manner this research examine (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1984, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2022, History

This dissertation examines the rehabilitation and education of Polish Jewish children after the Holocaust. It argues that schools, summer camps, and children's homes in Poland were national and international sites for the rehabilitation of child survivors; therefore, they served as laboratories and arenas for debates regarding Polish Jewry's future. By comparing Zionist and non-Zionist institutions of child care, I illustrate how educators and caregivers engaged with competing ideologies to create normalcy in the best interests of the children. Rehabilitation was not just physical or mental; it required Jewish children to develop skills that would make them independent and good citizens. What did they study? What did they read? Did they learn Yiddish or Hebrew in school? Did they speak Polish in the classroom? The answers to these questions have broader implications regarding the reconstruction of Jewish communities in Poland after the Holocaust. While Jewish communists and Bundists in the Central Committee of Jews in Poland (Centralny Komitet Zydow w Polsce, CKZP) desperately fought to keep Jewish children in Poland, Zionist organizations saw no future for Jews in Poland. Through an analysis of correspondences, meeting minutes, educator conference programs, lesson plans, children's own writing, memoirs, and interviews gathered through multi-sited archival research, this dissertation exposes tension between organizations and traces how the educational and ideological goals of the CKZP Department of Education drastically evolved under the growing influence of Poland's communist government. Ultimately, studying education as a form of rehabilitation and nation-building enhances our understanding of the delicate nature of rebuilding Jewish life after war and genocide.

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2022, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences

Abstract Background: Children in low-income households (CLIH) frequently consume calorically dense snacks, increasing their risk of developing obesity. Few studies have examined snacking behavior in CLIH as a means of understanding what snacks are offered by parents and the determinants and context of snacking behavior. Objectives: (1) To identify how low-income parents of 3–5-year-old children define snacks. (2) To describe the types of snacks that low-income parents offer their 3–5-year-old children. (3) To describe the determinants and context in which low-income parents offer snacks to children 3-5 years old.    Methods: Participants were recruited via ResearchMatch.com, Facebook advertisements, and community events. Two virtual interviews were conducted. Interview one: a 24-hour dietary recall and demographic questionnaire. Interview two: semi-structured interview questions. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyze data. Verbatim transcripts were coded by both investigators and compared to ensure maximum accuracy. Codes were grouped together to identify emerging themes. Results: Respondents were female (n=10), mostly African American (n=8) and completed some college (n=6). An average of 3.7 (SD=2.1) snacking events occurred per child, with 45.9% of snacks consumed in the afternoon (1:00pm-6:00 pm). Most participants defined a snack as something smaller than a meal and that keeps the child full in between meals. Most snacks were provided by parents (n=9) grandparents (n=6) in school (n=5) and by other family members. Mainly carbohydrate rich snacks (n=8) and fruits were given (n=7). Parents offered snacks based on the child's request, preference, and in the amounts the child wanted. Most parents viewed vegetables as healthy (n=7) but did not offer vegetables as snacks. Other influencing factors seemed to have included the cost of healthy foods and parents not limiting the frequency and quantity of snacks. Conclusi (open full item for complete abstract)

MA, Kent State University, 2017, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences

The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the instrumental support received by parents of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) throughout the life course. The study sample included 489 parents of CSHCN obtained from the Wave III sample and the Refresher sample of the Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) survey. The study provided a description of the sources of unpaid assistance for the parents of CSHCN and yielded significant findings regarding variations in support receipt associated with life course variables. Parents receive significantly more instrumental support from informal sources than from formal sources at each stage of the family life cycle. Additionally, a significant positive relationship exists between the amount of support received from formal sources and the amount of support received from informal sources. The receipt of support from various specific sources also demonstrates a relationship with the receipt of support from other specific sources. Finally, life course variables including religious participation and gender were associated with the receipt of support from formal sources, whereas family life cycle stage was associated with the receipt of support from informal sources. Parents from families with young children reported receiving significantly more unpaid assistance from informal sources than parents from families at all other life cycle stages. These findings help inform service providers as to parents who may potentially need assistance securing instrumental support as well as point to potential areas for future research.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1987, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1987, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1987, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1985, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1984, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1973, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1971, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1971, Graduate School