Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Ohio University, 2021, Business Administration

The purpose of this study is to understand differences in factors in selecting a college major for students studying business and non-business majors by gender. A survey was distributed to students at four-year undergraduate institutions in the United States. Ultimately, it was observed that significantly more business students were influenced by earning potential and college professor(s) in the selection of their major. Significantly more female business students were influenced by their father in their choice of major than were female non-business students. Some factors that influenced female non-business majors more than female business majors included teachers and exposure to major throughout high school. When examining how to increase female enrollment in business colleges, factors seen as more influential by non-business majors should be considered for recruiting women to business.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Economics

This dissertation consists of three chapters. In the first chapter, I estimate wage effects of double majors and double degrees among a sample of college graduates in their early career, using the 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97). I rely on selection on observables and control for individuals' test scores, family background, and school characteristics when estimating the wage effects. I further consider whether wage effects of a double major/degree can be explained by two mechanisms: the “skill-enhancing” effect (increase in the depth of knowledge accumulated in college) and the “job-matching” effect (increase in the chance of working in an occupation that is more closely related to one's college major). I examine whether estimated wage effects associated with a double major/degree (after controlling for confounding factors) decrease as a result of controlling for the depth of knowledge accumulated in college and the relatedness between college major and occupation. I find that having a double major does not make a significant difference in one's early-career post-college wages. A double degree is estimated to be associated with a 0.088 increase in log wages after controlling for confounding factors. About a third of this effect can be explained by a combination of both the “skill-enhancing” and “job-matching” effects. In the second chapter, I use the NLSY97 to study whether being mismatched in the first job (meaning the individual's occupation is not among the common occupations to which his/her college major typically leads) has a long-lasting effect on wages. I also investigate wage growth and job change patterns for different types of mismatched workers. I distinguish between demand-side mismatch due to job dissatisfaction and supply-side mismatch due to reasons other than reported job dissatisfaction. I find that both types of mismatched workers have significantly lower wages compared to matched workers, but that demand-side mismatched worker (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science (M.S.), University of Dayton, 2015, Biology

During the past decade, one of the most striking discoveries in the treatment of major depression was the clinical finding that a single infusion of a sub-anesthetic dose of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist ketamine produces a rapid (i.e. within a few hours) and long-lasting (i.e. up to two weeks) antidepressant effect in both treatment-resistant depressed patients and in animal models of depression. Notably, converging clinical and preclinical evidence support that responsiveness to antidepressant drugs is sex-differentiated. Strikingly, research regarding the antidepressant-like effects of ketamine has focused almost exclusively on the male sex. Herein we report that female C57BL/6J stress-naive mice are more sensitive to the rapid and the sustained antidepressant-like effects of ketamine in the forced swim test (FST). In particular, female mice responded to lower doses of ketamine (i.e. 3 mg/kg at 30 min and 5 mg/kg at 24h post-injection), doses that were not effective in their male counterparts. Moreover, tissue levels of the excitatory amino acids glutamate and aspartate, as well as serotonergic activity, were affected in a sex-dependent manner in the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus, at the same time-points. Most importantly, a single injection of ketamine (10 mg/kg) induced sex-dependent behavioral effects in mice subjected to the chronic mild stress (CMS) model of depression. Intriguingly, female mice were more reactive to the earlier effects of ketamine, as assessed in the open field and the FST (at 30 min and 24 h post-treatment, respectively) but the antidepressant potential of the drug proved to be longer-lasting in males, as assessed in the splash test and the FST (days 5 and 7 post-treatment, respectively). Taken together, present data revealed that ketamine treatment induces sex-dependent rapid and sustained neurochemical and behavioral antidepressant-like effects in stress-naive and CMS-exposed C57BL/6J mice.

Master of Music (MM), Bowling Green State University, 2000, Music Education/Comprehensive Music Education

The purpose of this study was to develop a music education methods course component which could serve as an introduction to collaborative and integrative procedures for preservice education and music education majors. The design for the course component was two-fold: to provide preservice teachers with strategies for (a) the development of collaborative partnerships to facilitate the integration process, and (b) the development of interdisciplinary units. Four categories of teacher participants were designated: (a) the methods course instructor, (b) the preservice elementary education major, (c) the preservice music education major, and (d) the inservice elementary general music teacher. Preservice education and music education majors participate in heterogeneous teams. Each team includes one music education major and three elementary education majors from a variety of disciplines. methods course. Visual models and guidelines to facilitate collaboration and critical thinking are included. Implications and suggestions for implementation of this action thesis are discussed in Chapter Four.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2008, Political Science

The story about the flow of issue ideas between the American major and minor political parties is very incomplete. Most scholars assume that the minor parties provide ideas to the major political parties, who periodically co-opt their platform planks for incorporation into their own platforms. However, because of the minor parties' lack of electoral success, they are rarely studied in a systematic fashion, and the subject of issue co-optations has been woefully neglected. This dissertation systematically studies the flow of policy positions and ideas between major and minor political parties over the course of American history from 1840 to 2004 through an extensive content analysis of party platform positions. It documents the co-optation of minor party policy ideas by the major political parties and using multivariate analysis, accounts for variations in co-optations by employing such theoretically-relevant variables as the specific major and minor political parties, the major parties' competitive position, the time period (especially before and after the Progressive reforms of the early 1900s), and the stage of the electoral cycle.

PHD, Kent State University, 0, College of Public Health

The objective of this work was to describe and understand modern drug use behaviors among US adults with current or past depression using grounded in the self-medication hypothesis (SMH). Additionally this work estimated the effect of healthcare interaction, symptom severity and specific medical intervention on the prevalence of non-medical drug use (NMU). I described the prevalence and distribution of depressive symptoms within the general adult population. I produced externally valid estimates grounded in a well measured descriptive framework. Out of the estimated 42 million US adults experiencing current depression, only an estimated 22.4% had a lifetime diagnosis. The largest overall association with having a lifetime diagnosis was seen for comorbid physical and mental health conditions and the largest associations of demographic characteristics were seen among characteristics independently associated with healthcare access. I explored the effect of diagnosis and symptom management on the rates of NMU considering 8 separate drug classes. For all drug classes, the highest prevalence of past week NMU was among those with unmanaged depression, although the prevalence among those with managed depression was still higher than among those without depression. these results suggest that symptom management does reduce to prevalence of drug use significantly and that the effect is consistent across drug groups. Finally, I used a causal framework to estimate the impact attributable to medical use of a prescribed antidepressant on the odds of drug NMU. Propensity weights were calculated to balance the sample on the exposure. After adjustment for selection bias and confounding, among US adults with a history of depression, those who medically used a prescription antidepressant in the past year had reduced odds of past week NMU for all drug groups as compared to those with a history of depression who did not use a prescription antidepressant. The magnitude and significance o (open full item for complete abstract)

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Ohio University, 2025, Business Administration

Utilizing data from the Department of Education's College Scorecard website, this study consists of two parts, which are calculating program-specific net present values (NPV) for 2019 and 2021 graduates and using linear regression to predict future college costs for each included institution.  A paired t-test conducted on the differences in NPV between 2019 and 2021 shows that the majors with the most significant differences in values were in healthcare, engineering, and business fields, which supports broader trends in salary growth, hiring, and industry performance.  The second part of the study, predicting future college costs, finds future annual academic year costs for each institution included through the 2027-28 academic year.  These costs were analyzed by control type, geographic region, and urban versus rural designation.  This data indicates an increasing gap between the costs of public and private universities. Additionally, the study shows that colleges in the Northeast are more expensive than in other regions, and schools in urban areas are more costly than those in rural areas.  Overall, this study sets the stage for future research to be done on degree program values and the predictability of them once more data is available, which was the original intention of this undergraduate thesis.

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2025, Speech-Language Pathology

This study examines the experiences of three individuals who earned an undergraduate degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) but ultimately pursued careers outside of speech-language pathology or audiology. Through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of semi-structured interviews, we explore their motivations for choosing CSD, the factors prompting their career shift, the challenges they faced, and their current reflections on their career journey. Findings indicate that participants selected the CSD major due to familiarity, stability, and alignment with personal interests. Over time, they reconsidered their path citing reasons such as disinterest, limitations within CSD, or emerging career opportunities. The participants expressed challenges in transitioning to their new career horizons including emotional turmoil, anxiety, indecision, and additional schooling requirements. Despite these challenges, all participants found themselves in a fulfilling career and recognized benefits from their CSD education. Our findings bring awareness to the diverse career trajectories of individuals with a background in CSD, a reality to which CSD higher education professionals should be responsive. Our results also highlight the importance of fostering career adaptability for CSD students through an emphasis on reflection, self-awareness, and other twenty-first century skills. Action steps toward these ends are offered for students, educators, and policymakers.

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2025, Neurosciences

Layer 1 (L1) of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) integrates long-range inputs and exerts pivotal control over deeper cortical layers, yet the specific roles of its GABAergic interneurons (L1INs) remain incompletely understood. Here, I combined morphological, electrophysiological, and behavioral approaches to elucidate the heterogeneity and function of mPFC L1INs in mice. Biocytin labeling identified three distinct morphological subtypes: neurogliaform cells (NGCs), elongated neurogliaform cells (eNGCs), and single-bouquet cell-like (SBC-like) cells, with divergent firing patterns. NGCs and eNGCs were predominantly late-spiking (LS) neurons, whereas SBC-like cells displayed non-late-spiking (NLS) firing more commonly. These L1INs formed interconnected electrical and chemical networks and exerted broad inhibitory effects on both pyramidal neurons and interneurons, highlighting their capacity to modulate deeper-layer neuronal activity. Functionally, in vivo calcium imaging during the tail suspension test (TST) revealed that L1INs displayed distinct calcium dynamics associated with active (escape/struggle) and inactive (immobility) behavioral states. Chronic restraint stress (CRS) induced behavioral despair and significantly altered L1IN activity: the fraction of L1INs active during immobility doubled (from 22.8% to 43.0%), while those active during escape/struggle decreased (from 50.6% to 32.9%). Subsequent circuit mapping indicated that following CRS, L1INs received enhanced excitatory input from the horizontal limb of the diagonal band (HDB) and diminished input from the ventromedial thalamus (vmTH). Moreover, optogenetic activation of HDB-to-mPFC L1 projections induced behavioral despair during the TST and triggered neuregulin-1 (NRG1) release from HDB terminals. This release shifted the firing pattern of mPFC ErbB4+ L1INs from LS to NLS, mirroring CRS effects. Notably, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of NRG1 in the HDB rescued the behavioral deficits, highlighting (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2024, Sociology

While a bachelor's degree generally remains an essential component of meritocratic process and is increasingly essential for attaining well-paying jobs, a growing body of research finds that choice of college major often has equal or greater impacts on post-graduate economic returns than does simply having a degree. Such work is limited, however, in considering the full range of occupational characteristics. Research using occupation-based social class analyses, specifically referred to in stratification scholarship as EGP, can be helpful in this regard given that such measurement captures relative status and returns. To address this knowledge gap, this study uses microdata from the American Community Survey (ACS) 2022 5-Year estimates (n=1,810,623) of individuals ages 22 to 65 to analyze class composition and comparisons for individuals holding bachelor's degrees across 15 broad majors. Multinomial logistic regression reveals significant disparities—disparities that largely favor those majoring in Architecture and Engineering, Computers, Statistics, and Mathematics, and Physical Sciences when it comes to mobility to the highest occupational and social class status. While generally constrained, the likelihood of upward movement increases for all majors with further work experience. These findings further reinforce the importance of investigating educational pathways on job returns, ultimately influencing broader patterns of social mobility and access to life chances within the labor market.

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2024, Kinesiology

Background: Nutritional ketosis achieved by the consumption of a well-formulated ketogenic diet (WFKD) may benefit individuals diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) but limited ketogenic intervention trials have been conducted, and none in college students. We examined if a WFKD can be implemented in a university counseling treatment program as an adjunctive therapy for MDD, and whether such a program improves symptoms of depression and metabolic health. Methods: Students (n=19) with MDD receiving standard of care counseling and/or medication treatment participated in a 10-12 week WFKD intervention. Food and dietary counseling was provided, and daily tracking of ketones were used to personalize the diet formulation and assess adherence. Participants completed a series of assessments including the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), body composition, cognitive performance, and blood metabolic, hormonal, and inflammatory markers. Results: Completers (n=13) had a mean capillary ketone (R-beta-hydroxybutyrate) 0.6 mM. There were significant improvements in PHQ-9 at week 2 (a mean score of 15.6 + 5.1 at BL and a mean score of 9.5 + 3.6 at week 2) that continued to improve through the end of the trial (mean of 4.5 + 3.5) (p<0.001). Similarly, HRSD decreased at week 6 from a mean score of 13.9 + 4.9 to a mean of 5.2 + 3.1 and remained lower at the end of the intervention (mean of 3.6 + 2.8 at post) (p<0.001). Participants lost body mass (-6.6%; p=0.004) and fat mass (-12.1%; p=0.004). Insulin and leptin significantly decreased compared to BL (p=0.01 and 0.04 respectively). Participant performance in one cognitive tests, pattern comparison, improved after the intervention (p = 0.002). Conclusion: These pilot data indicate that implementation of a WFKD for 10-12 weeks is a feasible adjunctive therapy for students undergoing standard of care treatment for MDD. The intervention was associated with rapid, consistent, and (open full item for complete abstract)

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Medicine: Systems Biology and Physiology

This dissertation investigates the dynamic behavior of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in response to stress and its implications for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). The primary aim is to determine whether HPA axis activity can serve as an objective biomarker for MDD diagnosis by combining mechanistic and data-driven modeling approaches. Chapter 1 introduces MDD and the HPA axis, emphasizing the need for accurate and objective diagnostic tools beyond subjective patient reporting. The HPA axis, a critical regulator of the stress response, is highlighted as a potential source of biomarkers. Statistical analyses of our Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) data and background related to mathematical modeling methods are provided. Chapter 2 details the development of VeVaPy, a Python platform designed to facilitate the verification and validation (V&V) of systems biology models. VeVaPy addresses current V&V process shortfalls for HPA axis models, ensuring they meet systems biology and pharmacology community standards. The framework includes four functional modules and is publicly available on GitHub, demonstrating its utility through the V&V of five selected HPA axis models. This chapter underscores the importance of robust V&V for credible model contributions and proposes best practices for model publication and usage. Chapter 3 explores Neural Ordinary Differential Equations (NODEs) for analyzing hormone dynamics during TSST. The NODE models replicated hormone changes in healthy individuals and MDD patients without prior knowledge of the stressor. Dynamic analysis revealed that stress effects are embedded in non-autonomous vector fields derived from the NODE model. These learned vector fields were then used as inputs to Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for classification. The results show the potential of combining NODEs and CNNs to classify patients based on disease state, offering a preliminary step toward clinical applications using HPA axi (open full item for complete abstract)

Bachelor of Arts, Ohio University, 2024, Political Science

This thesis examines the consequences of executive agencies' response to the increasing use of the major questions doctrine in the U.S. court system. To do so, it examines how the Environmental Protection Agency responded to the Supreme Court's rulings in Whitman v. American Trucking Associations Inc. and Michigan v. EPA. After assessing their compliance with the major questions doctrine in these cases, the thesis discusses how the continued use of the doctrine throughout the federal judiciary could impact executive branch policymaking and expand the power of the courts in the policymaking process.

DNP, Otterbein University, 2025, Nursing

Aortic stenosis (AS) is a common valvular disorder that causes left ventricular (LV) outflow obstruction. The prevalence of AS may increase with the aging population and the widespread availability of diagnostic capabilities like echocardiography. With the increasing patient population diagnosed with AS, the chance of encountering these patients during noncardiac surgery (NCS) increases. Performance of anesthesia is challenging in patients with AS due to the pathophysiological consequences of AS and the hemodynamic changes associated with anesthesia. The patient with AS presenting for NCS is at an increased risk of perioperative major adverse cardiac events (MACEs). This project aimed to determine the most up-to-date evidence for the perioperative management of patients with AS undergoing NCS. A literature search was conducted through the EBSCO Discovery Service and Google Scholar to find current evidence. The current evidence was used to create clinical guidelines for the pre and intraoperative management of patients with AS undergoing NCS using the Bayesian approach. The practice question, evidence, translation (PET), part of the Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice Model (JHEBPM), was used as the literature review's framework. An implementation plan to disseminate the guidelines into practice was formed and discussed. The outcome the project team aims to study is the incidence of MACEs in patients with AS undergoing NCS after the implementation of clinical guidelines.

Bachelor of Arts, Ohio University, 2024, Political Science

This thesis critically examines the fate of administrative governance, focusing on the Supreme Court's jurisprudence on legislative delegation to the executive branch. The strengthening Major Questions Doctrine (MQD) inspires this examination, a recent legal principle that negates delegations of economically or politically significant regulatory power when Congress does not speak clearly enough to satisfy the Court. The MQD exemplifies the tension between rigid adherence to the separation of powers and the practical governance demands of an ever-changing society.

MA, Kent State University, 2023, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

Major depressive disorder is ranked among the top leading causes of disability worldwide, impacting millions of individuals each year. Despite existing research implicating both distress tolerance and repetitive negative thinking (RNT) as influential factors in the exacerbation of depressive symptoms, there has been limited investigation into the relationships among these constructs within mediational and longitudinal frameworks. To address this gap, the present study examined the relationships between an individual's perceived ability to tolerate emotional distress, their patterns of negative and repetitive thinking, and changes in depressive symptoms over both a four-week and three-month period. As hypothesized, poorer distress tolerance was associated with greater engagement in patterns of repetitive negative thinking (i.e., worry and rumination) and greater depressive symptoms. Moreover, RNT was found to be a significant mediator in this relationship at both a four-week interval and three-month interval, even when accounting for the baseline depression. Theoretical and practical implications and limitations of the current study are discussed.

Master of Arts, Case Western Reserve University, 2023, Psychology

Depression is a powerful risk factor associated with suicidality, but determining who goes on to die by suicide remains unclear. Social support has been identified as a protective factor against suicidality, however the mechanisms involved are not well understood. The current study utilizes a new instrument to measure aspects of social support to determine how they impact the likelihood of dying by suicide. Clinical, diagnostic, and social support factors were measured utilizing psychological autopsy procedures to determine association with cause of death in 100 depressed adults. Results indicated suicide decedents were more likely to be male, experience thoughts of suicide, and experience interpersonal conflict than natural deaths. Natural deaths were more likely to be socially connected than suicide decedents. Socially isolated or conflicted individuals were more likely to experience alcohol abuse and endorse feeling guilty or worthless than socially connected individuals.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2023, Engineering Education

One important step that engineering students take during their engineering journey is selecting a discipline of engineering to major in or specialize in. Some programs have students make this choice before entering the university, while others admit students to Colleges of Engineering and then choose their major after they arrive. While both the student and engineering program play a role in the student finding and entering a major after university admittance, sometimes the processes that programs use to help students enter a major can act as a barrier or potential instance where students may not feel the belong in engineering if they are not able to enter the major they selected. My research aimed to better understand how a major application processes can affect student motivation to persist in engineering. I employed a mixed methods design to study the different aspects of a major application processes used in the College of Engineering at The Ohio State University. First, I explored quantitative data on how students navigate this major application process by examining which majors they were selecting, if they were likely to switch pre-majors, and how these decisions related to their sensitivity to rejection. Next, I explored quantitative data on which students were getting into their first-choice major and which were not, as well as how strongly students' grades predicted the outcome of their applications. Then, I used qualitative data from interviews with students that did not get into their first-choice major to examine what they believe affected the outcome and their next steps, as well as integrating their quantitative sensitivity to rejection to explore how their experiences may differ related to this measure. Through this research, I was able to investigate how students decided whether to reapply to their first-choice major, accept a different major, or leave engineering. My research helped to identify what support these students used when making thes (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science in Criminal Justice, Tiffin University, 2022, Forensic Psychology

Major depressive disorder (MDD) along with chronic unipolar depression present as a substantial, ongoing health challenge of the United States. It is estimated that more than 8 percent of Americans will encounter a severe depressive episode each year. This pervasive level of illness creates consequences extending beyond mental health concerns and into areas of negative public health indicators, economic loss and societal costs to individuals, families, and communities. Treatment models for depression, originating within primary care include prescribed antidepressants with behavioral treatment for cases seemingly resistant to that medication course. Approximately one-half million dedicated professionals across the United States currently offer professional psychotherapy treatments to those seeking relief from depression. Much as with antidepressants, the prevalent behavioral treatments utilized by psychotherapists to treat depression are sometimes effective and sometimes not. What is remarkable is that mechanisms of efficacy for these treatments toward improvement and for preservation of remission states are poorly understood. Research in the psychological literature presents as inconclusive. Enhanced understanding of mediative factors for prevalent psychotherapeutic interventions such as CBT and ACT could greatly benefit continued research as well as the development of more efficient models in diagnosis and clinical care. The present study drew upon lessons learned from past research while employing qualitative analysis of the grounded theory type to assess the perceptions of psychotherapists to the prevalent treatment modalities that constitute their work processes. A codebook was developed as the genesis for a lexicon of behavioral treatment for depressive illness, and a theoretical model was devised capable of supporting the expression of this and other lexical data structures into the psychological research domain while in representation of (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Higher Education Administration

Multipotential students have multiple abilities, strengths, and interests, many of which could be developed to a high level. They can succeed in a wide range of careers, have many interests that they may wish to combine or decide amongst when considering their plans, often leading to indecision. Deciding on an academic major or career is a complex decision, particularly for multipotential students. The purpose of this general inductive inquiry was to understand how multipotential college students navigate the academic major and career choice processes. Rational choice theory was the theoretical framework for this study. I interviewed 12 current multipotential college students and four advisors who assisted students with academic and career decisions and plans. Advisors identified the student participants as multipotential, and the students confirmed their multipotentiality before participating in the study. Three themes emerged from the data about multipotential students' experiences with academic major and career choice processes: (a) Seeking Support and Validation; (b) Using Exploration, Reflection, and Connection to Learn; and (c) Using Growth and Self-Awareness to Help Students Navigate Their Choices. Three themes also emerged related to the challenges of multipotential students: (a) Searching for Options and Flexibility, (b) Delaying Having to Make a Choice, and (c) Finding Ways to Pull all the Pieces Together. Themes that related to the use of RCT included: (a) Helping People and Developing Community, (b) Focusing Beyond Salary, and (c) Using Values for Guidance. Six implications for practice are presented. First, advising staff who assist multipotential students can benefit from training about multipotential students and their needs. Second, values should be considered and used to assist multipotential students. Third, multipotential students can benefit from experiences, including encountering failure. Fourth, institutions should offer self-desi (open full item for complete abstract)