Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2023, History

Education remains one of the most polarized areas in American society. However, this is not a new phenomenon. From the 1950s to 1980, Congress, the executive branch, and judicial branch significantly increased their funding and oversight in public education. 1965 marked the year Congress passed legislation with the hopes of creating a more equitable system for all socioeconomic classes. However, conservatives also began to coalesce in the 1970s over segregation, helping spur the 1980 Reagan Revolution. 1981 marked the first year in over two decades where Congress cut the education budget for integrative services and changed how the federal government funded programs for low-income students. These changes were integral to the Reagan administration and conservative Congress's goals to reduce social services in an effort to reduce the budget and expand the economy while simultaneously preserving tax loopholes and cuts for the wealthy. Federal funding for social services like education saw cuts that hurt many of the gains that low-income school districts had seen over the previous two decades. One often overlooked piece of legislation–the 1981 Education Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA)–caused many of these changes. This act removed the protective language and funding that had helped lower income, bilingual, and segregated communities receive federal aid for the previous fifteen years. While creator John Ashbrook's initial intent for the ECIA was to give more power to local and state governments over education– something that conservatives thought was an important goal–the ECIA also ended integration programs and removed barriers to ensure funding went to high needs schools. These changes have affected education to this day.

Committee: Peter Shulman (Committee Chair); Renee Sentilles (Committee Member); John Flores (Committee Member); Timothy Black (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; Education; Education History; History; Public Policy

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2013, Urban Studies and Public Affairs

This study asks: Can the Cobb and Elder model (1972) of agenda setting be applied to policy making in the United States: If so, does the Reagan presidency provide a case study sufficient for studying this theory: This study takes an empirical look at Reagan's tax policy and drug policy and draws conclusions based on Reagan's attempts to shape the agenda for these two policies. The Cobb and Elder model focuses on the ability of a political actor to set the agenda. This study draws on their theory by focusing on two of Reagan's policies, tax policy and drug policy. The study finds that Reagan uses six themes to address both taxes and drugs but finds it difficult to reinforce the dominant narrative. The study also finds that complexity and concreteness are large factors in the policy discussion.

Committee: Raymond Cox III Dr. (Advisor); Daniel Coffey Dr. (Committee Member); Michael Spicer Dr. (Committee Member); Ghazi-Walid Falah Dr. (Committee Member); Namkyung Oh Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Public Administration

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2010, Latin American Studies (International Studies)

The purpose of my study is to understand why the United States intervened in Nicaragua in the early 1980s to overthrow the Sandinista government. I will be looking at declassified documents, radio transcripts, campaign papers, and presidential speeches to determine why officials in the Reagan administration believed that American involvement in Central America was crucial to U.S. national security. This thesis argues that the Reagan administration's decision to overthrow the Sandinista government was shaped by the preconceived notion of Ronald Reagan, the administration's inability to distinguish from perception and reality of the events occurring in Nicaragua, and to undermine the Nicaraguan revolution as a model for other guerrilla organizations in Central America that could have potentially challenged American hegemony in the region.

Committee: Patricia Weitsman PhD (Committee Chair); Thomas Walker PhD (Committee Member); Brad Jokisch PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Hispanic Americans; International Relations; Latin American History; Political Science