Hood College Student Works

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Impact of the Introduced Rainbow Darter, Etheostoma caeruleum on the Microhabitat Use of Native Darters
(2025-05-13) Kaplan, Austin; Dr. Eric Kindahl; Hood College Biology; Hood College Departmental Honors
The Rainbow darter, Etheostoma caeruleum is an introduced species that has spread rapidly in the Potomac River drainage. However, the reason for this rapid spread and the impact of E. caeruleum on other species of both native and nonnative darters has not been determined. This study examines how the abundance E. caeruleum affects the microhabitat use of E. blennioides, E. flabellare, and E. olmstedi within the Monocacy River drainage. Snorkeling was used as a method to observe and measure the microhabitat use of darters across eight locations. Sites where E. caeruleum were present had significantly low population levels of E. olmstedi. E. flabellare experienced a habitat shift towards habitats with larger substrates, increased depths, and slower bottom velocities with an increasing proportion of E. caeruleum. The microhabitat use of E. blennioides remained consistent across all sites, regardless of the relative abundance of E. caeruleum. This study suggests E. caeruleum are outcompeting native species, specifically E. flabellare, for their preferred habitat.
White Dwarfs as Dark Matter Collectors: A Study of Elemental Capture Rates
(2025-05-13) Schaber, Remi; Steven Clark; Ann Stewart; Hood College Mathematics; Hood College Departmental Honors
This paper investigates the capture of dark matter in white dwarfs, focusing on the interaction between dark matter particles and the ions within the white dwarf’s dense core. The study models the dark matter capture rate using an optically-thin approximation, where each dark matter particle undergoes a single scattering event before either being captured or escaping the white dwarf’s gravitational influence. Key assumptions in the model include a zero core temperature for the white dwarf, a uniform core composition, and the exclusion of multi-scattering events. The paper examines the equations governing the interaction between dark matter and ions within the white dwarf’s core. The results of the calculations indicate that an increase in the mass of the white dwarf, as well as a higher concentration of heavier elements in its core, enhances the dark matter capture rate. The work also highlights potential future refinements, aiming to provide an introduction to the ongoing research to model dark matter interactions in stellar remnants as a potential detection method.
A Mediated Regression Analysis Examining the Relationship Between Sexual Orientation, Sense of Belonging, Organizational Justice, and Employee Engagement
(2025-05) Prophet, Meagan; Anita Jose; Nisha Manikoth; Peggy Dufour; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
Employee engagement, and the competitive edge it is perceived to provide to organizations, is of considerable interest to the fields of business, human resource management (HRM), psychology, and human resource development (HRD). Yet, few scholars have chosen to focus on the identity- and relationally based factors that may impact LGBTQ+ experiences of employee engagement or disengagement. Leveraging the insights of stigma, shame, heteronormativity, queer, belongingness and spillover, organizational justice, and critical HRD and HRM theories, this dissertation represents the first quantitative, explanatory analysis that includes LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ perceptions of organizational belonging and organizational justice in the workplace to identify and provide awareness of where and how we fall short in promoting employee engagement. The study design consisted of a quantitative, cross-sectional survey with closed, Likert-scale questions supplemented with three qualitative, open-ended questions. Quantitative data from LGBTQ+ (258 responses) and non-LGBTQ+ (244 responses) employees in the United States was analyzed using mediated regression. Results showed Organizational Belonging (β = .29, p < .001), Procedural Justice (β = .29, p < .001), and Distributive Justice (β = .29, p < .001) had direct and indirect mediating effects on the relationship between sexual orientation and employee engagement. Qualitative themes reinforced the quantitative findings; progressive organizations whose policies and supportive relationship practices embody and enforce diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) by championing the voices of LGBTQ+ employees are perceived to advance organizational culture. This study offers implications for business, HRM, and HRD researchers, scholars, and practitioners to support erosion of gendered norms (e.g., heteronormativity, cisnormativity) within the employee engagement literature and practical applications through DEIB initiatives for including LGBTQ+ perspectives to advance employee engagement for all workplace identities.
Public Value of e-Government: Lived Experiences and Perceptions of Baltimore City Residents Seeking Public Benefit Entitlements
(2025-05-06) Bryant, LaTonya T.; Nisa Manikoth, Ed.D; Sherita Henry, DrPH, MPH; Shamekka Kuykendall, Ph.D., MSP, MPA; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
ABSTRACT e-Government, as defined by the United Nations Division for Public Economics and Public Administration, involves “utilizing the internet and the world wide web for delivering government information and services to citizens” (Al-Adawi, et al., 2005, p. 1). In Baltimore City, nearly four hundred thousand (400,000) receive services from one or more DHS programs (U.S. Census, 2021). The State of Maryland’s self-serve e-Government platform, MyMDThink, plays a crucial role. The primary purpose of this research was to explore how Baltimore City Department of Social Services (BCDSS) customers perceived and experienced the MyMDThink e-Government self-service user portal. The secondary purpose of my research was to explore how the MyMDThink self-service user portal can add greater or improved value for BCDSS customers as they attempt to access public benefit entitlements. Public value theory (Moore, 1995, 2003), new public service theory (Denhardt & Denhardt, 2000), and critical theory (Deetz, 1996, 2004) provided the theoretical framework for this study. The study used a mixed methods convergent parallel design. Quantitative data were collected using a survey developed from an adapted version of Li and Shang’s (2020) e-Government scale. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews. This study highlights system fallacies and systemic barriers—both internal and external to BCDSS—that hinder MyMDThink (and the public benefit entitlement award process) service quality, transparency, efficiency, accountability, and social and service equity (Li & Shang, 2020). It proposes actionable recommendations aimed at addressing shortcomings that include enhanced MyMDThink service function and technical function qualities to improve overall user satisfaction. This research also underscores the significance of integrating user feedback and enabling co-creation, as a means for building trust and ensuring more equitable access to public benefit entitlements. If operationalized, the system will be a more supportive and legitimate tool for accessing public benefits. This study has implications for examining power imbalances within the human service system and emphasizing inclusivity, equity, and the need for more responsive e-Government systems that more proportionately benefit and address the needs of marginalized communities.
Employee Engagement Among Government Employees: A Quantitative Study Exploring the Impact of Organizational and Job Factors
(2025-05-07) Pierre, Ann A.; Nisha Manikoth; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
ABSTRACT Employee engagement has been a topic of growing interest in the United States. Despite this, academic research examining employee engagement in the public sector appears to be lagging. Employee disengagement can have adverse effects on customer service, which may impact public trust in government. Therefore, understanding employee engagement in the public sector is important for building trust in government. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the impact of organizational and job factors on employee engagement among government employees in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. The research question was: What is the impact of perceived organizational support, supervisory leadership behavior, and job characteristics on employee engagement among government employees working in the Washington, D.C. area, after controlling for demographic variables of age, gender, and tenure? Data collected through an online survey was analyzed using multiple linear regression. Results indicate that job characteristics of contribution and challenge were strongly associated with employee engagement. The surprising finding was that neither organizational support nor supervisor behavior had a significant impact on employee engagement. This suggests that job design of public sector jobs requires attention. Findings from this study also suggest that engagement theory may need adaptation for the context of the public sector. Supervisors should be empowered to implement human resource management (HRM) practices that build employee skills with new challenging tasks and provide opportunities for contributing in meaningful ways. Public sector leadership can play a role in improving perceptions of trust in government by attending to insights from this study on what matters most to employees in government. The results of the study indicate the need for employee recognition and effective communication that demonstrate to employees that they are valuable to the mission of the agency. This study adds to the academic literature on engagement by emphasizing the importance of job characteristics on employee engagement in the public sector that can lead to organizational effectiveness and the ability of government to serve the needs of the public.
Black Women in Leadership at American Community Colleges: Exploring Systemic Barriers and Racial Microaggressions
(2025-05-07) Bailey, Erica; Manikoth, Nisha Ed.D.; Cuddapah, Jennifer Ed.D.; Simmons Graves, Denise Ed.D.; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
ABSTRACT Black women in leadership positions at American community colleges face persistent systemic barriers and racial microaggressions that impact their professional and personal well-being. This descriptive phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of Black women in leadership positions within American community colleges by examining their encounters with systemic barriers and racial microaggressions, the impact of these experiences on their mental and physical health, and the coping strategies that they employed to navigate these challenges and advance in their careers. Data were collected through an online survey of 25 participants, in-depth interviews with 12 Black women leaders holding positions ranging from faculty to president, and the Self-Anchoring Scale activity measuring their stress levels. The results of the interviews, the primary data source, revealed five major themes related to systemic barriers within the institution: institutional culture and climate, discrimination in hiring and promotion practices, institutional response to discriminatory practices, lack of representation of Blacks in leadership, and lack of institutional support and mentorship. Participants reported experiencing three types of racial microaggressions, namely, microassaults, microinsults, and microinvalidations, that resulted in significant physical and psychological impacts, including increased stress levels, hypervigilance, and changes in professional behavior. Despite these challenges, the participants demonstrated remarkable resilience through various coping strategies, including spirituality, professional documentation, self-advocacy, and support networks. The study concludes with recommendations for changes within the policy and practices of the institutions that include providing and implementing support networks and mentorship programs for Black women, all of which are aimed at addressing systemic barriers and racial microaggressions. These efforts are intended to foster more inclusive and equitable leadership environments within American community colleges. This research contributes to understanding how intersectionality and the intersecting identities of race, gender, and leadership roles shape the experiences of Black women in higher education and provides practical implications for institutional awareness and, ultimately, change.
Academic Success of High School Youth in the Juvenile Legal System: Examining the Impact of School Transitions
(2025-05-06) Tia William James Ross; Manikoth, Nisha Ed.D.; Barr, Tina Ph.D.; Howell, Keena Ed.D.; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
High school students who are adjudicated in juvenile courts transition from their schools to the juvenile legal system and back to their local schools. The experience of transitioning between multiple school settings may make it difficult for students to meet high school graduation requirements. The purpose of this study was to examine how high school students in the State of Maryland who are involved in the juvenile legal system experience transitions between public schools and juvenile facilities and how these experiences impacted school completion. Theories on trauma informed practice (Harris & Fallot, 2001), restorative justice (Zehr, 2014), and systems thinking (Senge, 2006) provided the theoretical framework for this study. I used a generic qualitative methodology, rooted within the social constructionism paradigm, to focus on the experiences of youth and the impact of transitions between schools and juvenile facilities on their high school completion. Data collection included in-depth interviews with eight individuals who were previously involved in Maryland’s juvenile legal system. Data analysis resulted in the emergence of three themes: (a) trauma was pervasive, (b) home, school and community presented stress, and (c) school completion was difficult. This study affirms the need for school districts and the juvenile legal system to support youth with trauma-informed practices and restorative justice practices. By working together and taking a systems approach, learning gaps created by the interruption of education during multiple school transitions can be eradicated, enabling school completion. Absent systemic changes in local school districts, juvenile detention centers, and the juvenile legal system, these youth will continue to suffer the negative academic effects of being detained. Successful integration back into the public school system after court adjudication is critical for high school students to be academically successful. This study contributes to the literature on the experiences of youth in the juvenile legal system and provides insight into systemic changes that can be made to public schools and the juvenile legal system to counter the school-to-prison pipeline
Navigating Misperceptions: How Intersectionality Shapes the Experiences of Black Women Executive Leaders in K-12 Education
(2025-05-06) Edwards, Dana; Cuddapah, Jennifer Locraft; Boddy, Troy; Harris, Keith; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
In K-12 public education, Black women serve in a variety of leadership roles in schools and central offices. Research is available and discusses the experiences of Black women leaders, teachers, principals, and superintendents; however, there is a gap in the literature about Black women in executive leadership within the school district’s central office, even more specifically as members of the superintendent’s cabinet. Research on school district central offices has centered on transforming organizational structures to impact student outcomes (Honig, 2014). There is a paucity of research that provides a deeper look at intersectionality (Crenshaw, 2019) concerning Black women executive leaders who are cabinet members. This qualitative dissertation explored the lived experiences of Black women executive leaders in K-12 school districts in the United States to learn how the intersectionality of race and gender influences their approach to leadership and the performance of their leadership responsibilities. Data sources included a survey, individual interviews, and a researcher’s journal. Twenty survey responses were gathered from self-selection, convenience, and snowball sampling. Six in-depth interviews were conducted with dedicated leaders from five school districts in the Northeast, Southeast, and Midwest regions of the United States. All had extensive leadership experience, with four of the six having held previous executive leadership roles. Their positions spanned the school system, including human resources, principal supervision, student services, and equity. Data were analyzed using a multi-layered coding approach, descriptive, in vivo, and theming, capturing exact key words, phrases, and experiences (Miles & Huberman, 2020) to better identify themes and patterns (Saldana, 2016) to ascertain the intersectional experience of Black women leaders. Findings revealed that intersectionality influenced participants’ approaches to leadership and work performance. Participants were conscious of the misperceptions people had of them and how bias influenced their interactions, preparation for work, and daily duties. This dissertation provides a forum for the voices of a population of Black women who exist but whose experiences have yet to be shared. Recommendations are provided for policy and workplace cultures to better support and create organizational culture changes for Black women executives in K-12 school districts.
Determinants of Self-Care Practices among Black Women in Helping Professions: An Empirical Study
(2025-05-06) McCray, Kisha; Anita Jose, PhD; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
The field of human resource management is paying greater attention to self-care as a strategy to address employee stress and burnout. Women in helping professions, such as social work, nursing, and education, have received scholarly attention about their health and wellness. However, there is a paucity of empirical research about the self-care practices of Black women in helping professions. This quantitative study aimed to address this research gap. More specifically, this study examined the impact of mentoring, social support, role overload, and satisfaction with compensation policies on the self-care practices of Black women in the helping professions. Data were collected using a survey of 224 Black women from organizations such as the North American Association of Christians in Social Work, Black Nurses Network, and Black Women Education Leaders. After validating the self-care scale using exploratory factor analysis, a multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the determinants of self-care practices. Results showed that social support and satisfaction with compensation and benefit policies were positive predictors of self-care practices, and role overload was a negative predictor. A thematic analysis of the open-ended responses reinforced the quantitative findings. Compensation policies that provide work-life balance, flexibility, competitive wages, and various types of insurance are essential in promoting self-care practices. The lived experiences of Black women in this study indicated that their intersectional lives require not only the absence of structural and systemic barriers but also the necessity of time and the presence of equitable, safe, and inclusive spaces for them to thrive in all aspects of life.
The Impact of Organizational Trauma on School Leaders: An Exploratory Quantitative Study
(2025-03-20) Pettis-Jones, Tracy; Manikoth, Nisha; Esworthy, David; Rogers, Myriam; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
In an era characterized by unprecedented challenges, organizations are frequently exposed to traumatic events and crises, necessitating adaptation for sustainability. This study investigates how organizational trauma impacts the well-being of school leaders. Organizational trauma refers to physical and emotional distress caused by a traumatic event experienced collectively by employees in an organization. Organizational trauma can cause significant dysfunction in organizations, with critical short-term or long-term implications for the organization’s stability and effectiveness. School organizations, as a caring organization, may be a repository for trauma. The purpose of this exploratory quantitative study using survey research methods was to explore how school leaders are responding to different types of organizational trauma. This study seeks to identify if organizational trauma impacts school leaders negatively, resulting in burnout, or positively resulting in post-traumatic growth. This study also seeks to explore the effects of a trauma-informed climate in schools to assess if it has a negative correlation with burnout of school leaders or a positive correlation with post-traumatic growth. The population for this study was school leaders of public schools from the Mid-Atlantic region. A sample of 33 school leaders, comprised of principals and assistant principals, participated in this study. Descriptive statistics and correlational analyses were conducted to answer the research questions. Findings from this study are critical to the understanding of how school leaders are impacted by organizational trauma. School leaders may experience negative consequences such as burnout. However, there is also the possibility for positive outcomes such as post-traumatic growth. The significant negative correlation between trauma-informed climate and burnout highlights the protective role that school environments can play. Schools that implement trauma-informed policies and foster open communication reduce the emotional toll. Findings from this study indicate an absence of a significant relationship between trauma-informed care and post-traumatic growth. This suggests that while a supportive environment may buffer against burnout, other factors need to be considered to understand post-traumatic growth. This study offers suggestions for fostering a trauma-informed climate to protect employees in caring organizations from experiencing burnout as a result of organizational trauma. .
Thriving at Work Among Healthcare Administrators: Does Organizational Politics Matter?
(2025-03-06) Bamforth, Gloria L.; Nisha Manikoth, Ed.D.; Anita Jose, Ph.D.; Peggy Dufour, DBA; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
The American College of Healthcare Executives acknowledges that the healthcare industry needs to sustain a highly qualified and skilled workforce to meet the complex demands for healthcare services. Healthcare administrators play a pivotal role in driving operational results and organizational performance, yet they have not been the subject of research studies, with most of the research in healthcare being directed at nurses and physicians. Focusing on how healthcare administrators can thrive at work can be important for the healthcare industry. The purpose of this study was to examine to what extent the constructs of organizational support, supervisory support, organizational politics, and political skill impact an employee’s self-report of their thriving at work among healthcare administrators in the United States. The study’s theoretical framework included the Socially Embedded Model of Thriving at Work (Nix et al., 1999; Spreitzer et al., 2005) and Power in Organizations (Pfeffer, 1992, 2013). Data was collected via survey research methods using scales with high psychometric validity. Data from 126 healthcare administrators was analyzed using multiple regression. Results show that Organizational Support independently has a strong influence on Thriving at Work (β = 0.60, t = 8.16, p < .001). The multiple regression model that calculated the impact of Supervisor Support, Organizational Politics, and Political Skill on Thriving at Work showed that Political Skill had the strongest impact (β = 0.30, t = 3.90, p < .001), followed by Organizational Politics (β = - 0.24, t = - 2.61, p = 0.01), and then Supervisor Support (β = 0.23, t = 2.56, p = .012). This has implications for organizations to invest in the development of political skills for employees. When healthcare administrators thrive at work and are able to navigate complex political situations, the healthcare organization will be more successful. This study also highlights the primacy of organizational support for thriving at work. Supervisor support has long been considered the key factor in employee turnover. Findings from this study suggest that for employees to thrive, organizational support is more critical. This study adds to the current body of knowledge on thriving at work. This study will help healthcare organizations understand how organizational and individual factors impact thriving at work for healthcare administrators.
Race, Space, and American Identity in the 20th and 21st Centuries
(2025-04-29) Dawes, Eli; Huard, Mallory; Powell, Barbara; Verzosa, Noel; Hood College Arts and Humanities; Humanities
This portfolio project synthesizes three final papers in the Humanities Masters program that share themes of race, space, and American Identity, arguing that a true and inclusive understanding of the nation requires the recognition of African American identity as centreal to its formation. Through critical analyses of Jacob Lawrence's Migration Series, James Baldwin's existential thought, and the spatial history of Baltimore, the project demonstrates how African American cultural production and lived experience contest dominant national narratives. Drawing on historiography, spatial theory, literary analysis, and exploration of narrative authority, the thesis asserts that American identity remains a fundamentally contested and imagined construct--one that must reckon with its exclusions to become whole.
A Multiple-Case Study Examining Public Health Leadership and Innovation to Address the COVID-19 Pandemic
(2025-05-05) Richmond, Alicia D; Manikoth, Nisha; Esworthy, David G.; Henry, Sherita; Hood College Education; Organizational Leadership
The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented health crisis with a plethora of environmental, political, and societal events and issues that added to its complexity. Traditional emergency preparedness methods of addressing a crisis were insufficient, challenging public health leaders. Although there is substantial evidence of innovation as a response to crisis in the general leadership literature, there is limited research on the adoption of innovative practices by public health leaders and when there is a significant disruption to public health care systems. The purpose of this multiple-case study was to examine how public health leaders adopted innovation in response to a significant public health crisis. Specifically, this research focused on how public health leaders from state governments adopted innovation to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, this study explored the formal and informal networks that public health leaders facilitated for the generation and adoption of innovative solutions. Four theories provided the theoretical framework for this study: punctuated equilibrium, complexity leadership, innovation, and the socio-ecological model. Public health leaders from three state governments were interviewed and fifteen key stakeholders who worked with them to implement innovative solutions. Additionally, publicly available documents related to innovative initiatives led by these public health leaders were reviewed. Findings from this study suggest that public health leaders adapted to the disruption by staying focused on the mission, fostering communication for information-gathering, and maintaining trust and engagement with stakeholders. Tensions had to be managed by listening, communicating, and collaborating, requiring high emotional resilience. Paradigm shifts were made out of necessity to adapt to the environmental disturbance. Innovations were adopted through a blend of top-down, bottom-up, and adaptive collaborative efforts, embracing a decentralized approach to decision-making. Sometimes, it was necessary to augment existing evidence-based strategies, recognizing the social and cultural contexts to address the root causes of inefficiencies. Public health leaders leveraged formal and informal networks, capitalizing on pre-existing relationships and building new partnerships to create a unified response. The findings of this study contribute valuable insights on leadership for innovation and how public health leaders can be prepared for innovation during a significant crisis.
Surrealism and the Reimagining of the Female Image
(2025-05-04) Stang, Laura; Noel Verzosa, Ph.D., Thesis Advisor; Kimberly Morse-Jones, Ph.D., Committee Member; Didier Course, Ph.D., Committee Member; Hood College Arts and Humanities; Humanities
Focusing on the female form and the concept of identity construction and its fluidity as reflected in works of surrealist art, this paper analyzes visual images, including painting, works of collage, sculpture and photography. As the surrealist movement migrated and transformed over the past one hundred years, so too has the image and meaning of the female form. This focus on the female image and the role of women in surrealism deals with notions of identity and gender norms, reframing the concept of the “ideal” woman, ideas of embodiment/disembodiment, existential tensions, and the various ways these concepts are portrayed. This paper touches on the theoretical Freudian influences of surrealism, investigates the ways artists over time have redefined the ideological grounds for the movement, and how it inspired interrelated transcultural exchanges. By looking at the influence and legacy of surrealism from a global scope, not confined to a time period, and not confined to those artists who attempted to lay claim to the label, its definition, and its membership, my research starts with and then moves away from a historically hegemonic Paris-centered viewpoint—instead as something dynamic and dislocated. The method of my research is influenced by Mark Miller Graham’s critique of art historical discourses in terms of canonicity, chronology, closure, and subjectivity, leading me to look at surrealism beyond traditional narratives and to apply that method to questions about the representation of the female body in surrealist art.
Connections Between Abstract Algebra and Polynomial Equations: The Legacy of Lagrange
(2025-05-02) Porter, Elizabeth; Parson, James; Hood College Mathematics; Hood College Departmental Honors
This paper investigates the evolution and theory of polynomial factorization, tracing a path from classical solutions of quadratics to modern techniques for analyzing quintic polynomials. We begin with foundational methods for factoring quadratics and cubics, including Cardano’s formula and its algebraic extensions. Moving into quartic equations, we compare the approaches of Ferrari and Descartes, and introduce Lagrange’s revolutionary perspective on root symmetries. This sets the stage for a deeper exploration into the structure of polynomials through Group Theory and Gröbner bases. While traditional methods fail to provide general solutions for the quintic, we demonstrate how modern algebraic tools and computational techniques allow us to investigate its structure through the lens of the symmetry.
THE MOTHER-WHORE DICHOTOMY IN WOMEN’S REPRESENTATION
(2025-04) Ocharan, Helena Centeno; Hoffman, Karen; Hood College Arts and Humanities; Hood College Humanities, M.A.
This portfolio examines the problematic presence and impact of the Mother–Whore dichotomy in the understanding and the representation of women across literature, philosophy, and visual art. It illustrates the persistent dissonance between the nurturing and passive roles that have been traditionally expected of women and the ways their bodies have been imagined and represented—often sexualized, objectified, and dehumanized. Through the flirtatious, ornamental depictions of women in Rococo art, the emotional and existential fragmentation of the self in Simone de Beauvoir’s "The Woman Destroyed," and a critical reflection on contemporary feminist perspectives of visual representations of the female body, this portfolio exemplifies the double-standards that society puts on women and their bodies—which ultimately undermines the complexity of their lived experience and strips them of their subjectivity.
Reconsidering Lease Impacts: A Spatial Ecology Analysis of Aquaculture–Habitat Interactions
(2025-04-29) Kenosky, Jason; Gurbisz, Dr. Cassie; Hood College Biology; Hood College Biomedical and Environmental Biology
Oyster aquaculture and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) are both critical components of coastal ecosystem function, yet their spatial and ecological interactions remain poorly understood at landscape scales. This study presents a multi-decadal, spatially explicit analysis of SAV structure in relation to oyster aquaculture leases in Maryland’s mid-Chesapeake Bay. Using GIS-based modeling and statistical approaches including generalized additive models, factorial linear models within a BACI (Before–After Control–Impact) design and Bayesian hierarchical modeling, I tested three hypotheses related to temporal alterations in SAV structure, the influence of lease proximity and the role of lease configuration. My findings reveal that while SAV area has increased over time, fragmentation and patch isolation have also intensified, particularly on the Eastern Shore, suggesting potential declines in ecosystem resilience. Surprisingly, SAV patches near active oyster leases exhibited greater cohesion and complexity post-activation in several cases, challenging the assumption that aquaculture infrastructure inherently degrades seagrass habitats. Lease configuration variables, including cage density and alignment, had weak and inconsistent effects compared to broader site-level environmental conditions. These results emphasize the need for long-term, spatially explicit monitoring and suggest that aquaculture and habitat restoration goals may be compatible under certain environmental contexts. Adaptive permitting frameworks that account for local biophysical settings, rather than rigid exclusion zones, may better support both sustainable aquaculture development and coastal ecosystem recovery.
Unspoken Emotions
(NA, 2025-04-28) Nations, Christina; Kormeluk, Natalia; Sherman, Tim; Kern, Bonnie; Hood College Art and Archeology; Hood College Master of Fine Arts Ceramics
In this thesis, the artist examines emotion in the context of art history, art creation, and personal experience. The wood-fired sculpture created for this body of work explores the ability to express emotions, utilizing the human female torso as a blank canvas. The choice of clay body, alteration of the form, firing process, and surface aesthetic treatments confront the emotions of love, grief, maternal joy, pain, the process of aging, emptiness, resilience, and rage. The creative process in each work is a metaphor for the unspoken emotions.
Poetry, Protest, and Politics: The Building Blocks of Social Justice
(2025-04-28) Story, Chelsea; Cozart, Daniel; Hood College History; Hood College Arts and Humanities
The following text is an examination of the pursuit of social and racial justice with emphasis on why such work is crucial for all people. Three analysis papers and a formal introduction project and amplify the voices of Black Americans and their allies at this critical period in United States history. Each paper examines one of three valuable and varied mediums used to create change: protest, poetry, and politics. The first paper zooms in on the poetic prose of Jason Reynolds’ novel "Long Way Down," written as a fictional but realistic and intimate portrait of how one Black American teenager wrestles with what justice on the street looks like following his brother’s murder and what it might look like should he break the cycle of relying on the rules of revenge he learned in his neighborhood. Reynolds’ work provides crucial context for the daily lives of many young Black men in America and the importance of examining how we define justice. The second paper examines how the outrage and heartache following George Floyd’s murder in 2020 was channeled into visual art as a form of protest and continues to impact interpretation and participation in current and historical events.The final paper adopts a wider lens again to examine the United States Congress where Jasmine Crockett is the representative for her district in Texas. Her voice, which has gone viral many times since her work in the House began, serves to emphasize how the past and present are colliding at this moment in United States politics and must be examined and disrupted to dismantle the dangerous resurgence of white supremacy in government and establish true justice in America.
The Final Reef
(NA, 2025-04-28) Anthony, Eden; Bachman, Craig; Muldowney, Jacob; Kormeluk, Natalia; Morse-Jones, Kimberly; Hood College Art and Archeology; Hood College Master of Fine Arts Ceramics
This thesis and exhibition are a tribute to the fragility and beauty of coral and to raise awareness of the impact reefs have on human life and marine ecosystems. The ceramic installation “The Final Reef” translates scientific research on living coral, coral bleaching, and marine degradation, into a tactile, visual language. The work explores the tension between beauty and loss, rendering coral forms in their living vibrancy and alternatively, when they are bleak and bleached. Assembled to function symbiotically within the exhibition space, the sculptures highlight the interconnectedness of reef systems while expressing their critical endangerment. Through sculpture and hand building with clay, this installation encapsulates and preserves the delicate essence of coral reefs, capturing their forms in both living and bleached states.

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