2022 Database of Faculty Summer Research Projects
Projects by Category
- Humanities: Literature, arts, civics, ethics, social systems, politics
- Sciences: Biological, physical, social, behavioral, mathematics
- Education: Teaching & learning approaches
- Business and Technology
- Health-related: Physical, emotional, psychological
Humanities Science Education
Business and Technology Health-Related
Scroll down to see all projects
Humanities
Building Coping Skills and Strengthening Self-Efficacy Among Individuals Returning to the Community from Incarceration
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Brittany Ripper |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Behavioral and Social Sciences |
| Contact Information | bripper@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Criminal Justice, Psychology, Sociology |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | Self-efficacy, or one’s confidence in his or her ability to accomplish a task (Bandura, 1997), is associated with successful reentry after incarceration (Liem, 2016). The purpose of this project is to explore coping skills acquisition and self-efficacy strengthening among returning citizens. The student will assist with collecting and exploring literature on coping mechanisms and self-efficacy among returning citizens, as well as individuals, generally. The student will also assist with analyzing qualitative data from interviews with returning citizens. This project will address the following research questions: 1) What mechanisms are effective in helping returning citizens acquire coping skills?, and 2) How can returning citizens increase their coping self-efficacy? Project findings will be disseminated in academic journals, and may also form the basis of a coping self-efficacy course for returning citizens. This particular project does not need IRB approval. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation: Understanding the Culture, History, and Reclamation Projects of Indigenous Peoples in the DC Metro Area
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Camille Buckner |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Contact Information | cbuckner@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Any |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (On-campus.) |
| Description | This summer research project is part of Marymount’s Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) work. One guiding TRHT principle is that we cannot create a racially equitable and just community without first acknowledging the racial harms in our past. This research project will thus be used to further the Recover the Past goal of the TRHT work, specifically focusing on understanding the culture, history, and reclamation projects of the Indigenous peoples of the DC metropolitan area. In addition to researching the history and culture of native peoples in this area (making use of the rich resources at the National Museum of the American Indian), the project will involve fostering connections and partnerships with people in the local native communities to see how MU could work to further their goals and mission. The project findings will be summarized and presented to the wider MU community upon completion of the project. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Uncovering Layers of History at Marymount
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Cassandra Good |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Humanities |
| Contact Information | cgood@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | History; English; Politics; Sociology; TRS; others considered |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (On-campus.) |
| Description | This research project will use both local and institutional history records to uncover diverse histories of both Marymount University and the land on which it sits. The student researcher will search the university archives for stories and policies relating to race and racism at the university, using both digitized and physical archival sources. The student will also use local archives and consult with relevant experts on the history of slavery and native people in Arlington. The final product will be a research report documenting findings as well as a compilation of digital images for use in future visual representations of this research. Professor Good, who has expertise in both early American and Arlington history, will guide the student’s research and connect the student with resources. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Drivers of Miranda Warnings in the US
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Erik Alda |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Contact Information | ealda@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Criminal Justice |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | Miranda warnings given by police to criminal suspects before they are questioned vary significantly in their language, length, and content. Past research has focused mostly on individual Miranda warnings and this limits generalizations. This project will employ the National Survey of Miranda Warnings and merge it with state-level administrative data to examine differences in the application of Miranda Warnings across the US. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Analysis of Data on Animal Cruelty from the National Incident-Based Reported System (NIBRS)
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Holly Hargreaves-Cormany |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Contact Information | hhargrea@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Forensic and Legal Psychology |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | The student will assist Dr. Hargreaves-Cormany with analysis of animal cruelty data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) and work on a literature review examining biosocial factors and their influence on crime as well as desistance focusing upon brain development, specifically frontal lobe development in youth and young adults. NIBRS is the primary database utilized to collect and archive crime data in the United States of America. Animal Cruelty is currently classified as a “Crime Against Society” and is categorized within the NIBRS database into the following four types of animal cruelty: 1- Simple/Gross Neglect; 2- Intentional Abuse and Torture; 3-Organized Abuse/Animal Fighting and 4- Animal Sexual Abuse. The initial focus of the analysis for the study is an examination of the data on animal cruelty crimes committed by youth and young adults in the NIBRS animal cruelty database to assess for trends amongst the different age groups. The literature review will also examine how the extant neuroscience research on brain development can better inform policies for youth and young adults (18-24 years of age) in the United States Criminal Justice System. Results from the study will be submitted for presentation at the American Psychological Association Conference and in a professional publication. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Analyzing the Intersection of Police Officers’ Gender, Race, and (Un)ethical Decision Making on Television Crime Dramas
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Sarah Fischer |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Contact Information | sfischer@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Criminal Justice, Psychology, Communications, Sociology, Political Science, Forensic and Legal Psychology, English |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | This research utilizes content analysis to uncover how police officers’ gender, race, and (un) ethical decision making are portrayed in crime dramas set in urban as compared to suburban areas through analyzing episodes of Law and Order: SVU’s 22nd season and Mare of Easttown’s 1st season, both of which aired during 2021. Research demonstrates that the public learns about police procedures primarily through television. Viewers often conflate what happens on television dramas with real-life. But most research on television’s depiction of the criminal justice system has analyzed television shows’ portrayal of criminals–rather than how television portrays police. Portrayals of police are especially important given 1) the increased scrutiny police are under after many instances of violating the use of force protocols against Black and Brown individuals and 2) claims that television dramas act as recruiting mechanisms for police officers. This means that it is important to understand how officers are portrayed on television because it ultimately affects why people want to become police officers. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Science
Project 1: Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Physical Card Game);
Project 2: Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Virtual Card Game)
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Deana Jaber |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics |
| Contact Information | djaber@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Science, Education, and IT |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Physical Card Game) |
| Description Project 1 |
Game-based instructional design is well established in the literature as a creative teaching supplement. Games have been used for teaching purposes and have yielded successful pedagogical results. In this research project, the student researcher will design a card game for a chemistry concept that students struggle to understand. The student will get to choose the topic they want to work on! Our research group has developed two card games that have been published in the Journal of Chemical Education in 2017 and 2019. This project would be a perfect fit for a student looking to work on a research project where chemistry and education intersect. |
| Title Project 2 |
Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Virtual Card Game) |
| Description Project 2 |
Gamification has emerged as an excellent tool for improving educational outcomes. At the turn of the 21st century, online teaching became increasingly popular in higher education. Unsurprisingly, the continuing advancement of technology is an important reason why online teaching continues to expand in higher education. Although the growing presence of online teaching is telling of its significance, the 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has solidified its importance. To address the academic concerns that emerged during the ongoing health crisis, educators sought pedagogical tools that could potentially enhance the online teaching experience to ultimately foster a more engaging and socially connected online learning environment. To that effect, we want to develop an online version of the card games we have created to allow educators to use these tools in an online environment. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Virtual Reality/AI/Machine Learning Applied to Rehabilitation Technology;
Project 2: Assistive Technology Development with 3D Printing and Microcontroller Electronics;
Project 3: Research and Educational Applications of Bioprinting
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Eric Bubar |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics |
| Contact Information | ebubar@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | All majors but interest and experience with technology are needed. |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 Project 1 and Project 2 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) Project 3 (On Campus) |
| Title Project 1 |
Virtual Reality/AI/Machine Learning Applied to Rehabilitation Technology |
| Description Project 1 |
How can virtual reality and machine-learning/AI be leveraged to improve rehabilitation exercise programs? The goal of this project is to create a Virtual Reality exercise game for the Oculus Quest 2 that interfaces with a machine-learning pose recognition algorithm to provide players with an adaptive exercise program that can be used at home to guide users on a robust rehabilitation regimen. |
| Title Project 2 |
Assistive Technology Development with 3D Printing and Microcontroller Electronics |
| Description Project 2 |
How can 3D printing be applied to solving problems in the developing world? Students will learn the basics of 3D printing towards the goal of creating assistive tools and technologies for a variety of clients throughout the world. Projects will include designing and 3d printing of mechanical and electronic upper limb prosthetic hands/devices (e.g. bionics), testing these devices, and coordinating with/identifying potential clients in additional areas of interest, particularly animal prosthetics |
| Title Project 3 |
Research and Educational Applications of Bioprinting |
| Description Project 3 |
Bioprinting is an exciting new technology, but how does it work and can anyone do it? Students will work with the University’s new bioprinters to create educational and research-related content. Participants will test and develop new biocompatible printing materials and create educational content that will guide future users into how to operate bioprinters |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Investigations of Companion Planting in the MU Plot Against Hunger Garden and its Implications for Increasing Pollinators;
Project 2: Investigations of Companion Planting on the Prevention of Insect Pests in the MU Plot against Hunger Garden;
Project 3: Study of Heat Map of Arlington County and Importance to Arlington Urban Agriculture
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Susan Agolini |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics |
| Contact Information | sagolini@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Biology/Biochemistry |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 Project 1 and project 2 (On-campus) Project 3 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Investigations of Companion Planting in the MU Plot Against Hunger Garden and its Implications for Increasing Pollinators
|
| Description Project 1 |
This project will investigate the impact of companion planting high pollinator plants in the MU Plot Against Hunger garden. In this study, students will work closely with the faculty mentor to identify appropriate companion plants to place in the MU Plot Against Hunger garden that could attract an increase in pollinators to the vegetable garden. Students will measure the impact of the companion plant by taking daily measurements of the number of pollinator visits of both the pollinator plant and the vegetable plant. Comparisons will be made with the same vegetable plants grown in beds without the companion plants.
|
| Title Project 2 |
Investigations of Companion Planting on the Prevention of Insect Pests in the MU Plot against Hunger Garden |
| Description Project 2 | This project will investigate the impact of companion planting in the MU Plot Against Hunger garden to decrease the appearance of insect pests. In this study, students will work closely with the faculty mentor to identify appropriate companion plants to place in the MU Plot Against Hunger garden that could decrease the number of pests that are present in the vegetable garden. Students will measure the impact of the companion plant by taking daily measurements of the number of pests seen on or near the vegetable plant. Comparisons will be made with the same vegetable plants grown in beds without the companion plants. |
| Title Project 3 |
Study of Heat Map of Arlington County and Importance to Arlington Urban Agriculture |
| Description Project 3 | This study will be using the GIS data captured in last summer’s heat-mapping project of Arlington County and use that data to help identify areas of the county where the addition of community garden space will have the highest impact. The student will coordinate with the faculty mentor as well as various county officials to document critical sites and compare the heat watch data with various other demographics in the county. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Education
Project 1: What is different about creating a WEB page with picture books for English Learning compared to just books for just learning to read?
Project 2: What are the key differentiating variables in planning literacy for students with a wide range of English and reading levels?
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Ana Lado |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Education |
| Contact Information | ana.lado@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Education, liberal arts, English, psychology |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
What is different about creating a WEB page with picture books for English Learning compared to just books for just learning to read? |
| Description Project 1 |
This project researches the question, “What is different when creating a WEB page with picture books for English Learning compared to one for teaching English speakers to read? In 2021, we began a research project related to our School of Education’s piloting of a Literacy Lab for English Learners (ELs). We researched the literature about what works, why and how it works, and what does not work with ELs. We determined that there was a need for a professional WEB-based resource for teaching ELs with picture books. The School of Education began developing such a WEB page. But, we are still exploring the question of what is different in selecting books for English Learners and what ways can the page reflect these differences. Although this is a complex subject, we are determined to make it accessible to current teachers and our MU students interested in teaching. In the summer of 2022, we are focusing on launching the WEB page. We want a student researcher to contribute to our research on the different criteria for books for English Learners. Together you will continue, update and add to what is being planned for the WEB page including different pages for English Learners who are at different levels of English, different ages, and for the different teaching strategies. You will be examining picture books and determining the features related to each of the categories of different characteristics of English Learners. |
| Title Project 2 |
What are the key differentiating variables in planning literacy for students with a wide range of English and reading levels? |
| Description Project 2 |
Since 2016 Marymount’s School of Education has run a 2-week summer camp in July called 3E: Explore, Enrich, Enjoy. We daily explore science, enrich academics, and enjoy socializing. Last summer we piloted adding a Literacy Lab with both children who were bused to MU from a south Arlington school as well as paying students. Faculty and graduate students have begun to institutionalize the Literacy Lab pilot project. Our summer research scholar would conduct research with us to answer the questions, What are the key differentiation factors in planning literacy materials for students with a wide range of English and reading levels? The work involves researching the topic of differentiated instructional materials and analyzing ways to report the findings into a manual to be used for future summer Literacy Lab and camps. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: 200+ doctoral students and counting – where are they all from?
Project 2: Peer Coaching – grow, learn and have fun doing it!;
Project 3: Evaluating online teaching and learning
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Lisa Turissini |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Education |
| Contact Information | lturissi@maqrymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Any interested major |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
200+ doctoral students and counting – where are they all from? |
| Description Project 1 |
The online doctorate program in Educational Leadership & Organizational Innovation has enrolled over 230 students in two short years. Where are all of these professional students from? What US states are/are not represented? What are the most common undergraduate degrees? graduate degrees? What are all of their current occupations? What is the gender breakdown? Racial breakdown? Age ranges? The students’ dissertation topics could be especially interesting to categorize based upon their literature review topics. Let’s see if you can sort these demographics of our EdD students. How interesting to determine and classify trends, similarities/differences, and themes of these 230+ students. Develop a matrix, graphics, or other visual means to display this data. Research Question: With diversity, equity, and inclusion being such an important part of the workplace, is this EdD program’s students representative of today’s diverse classrooms? How? Research is of no use unless it gets to the people who need to use it. Dissemination will be University-wide via a presentation with an accompanying visual (PPT, CANVA). This information would be interesting to present at the Student Research Conference as well. The entire University community would benefit from understanding how this data affects the recruitment/retention of a diverse program. |
| Title Project 2 |
Peer Coaching – grow, learn and have fun doing it! |
| Description Project 2 |
How do we improve our instructional practices? We ask, and are asked, how we can improve our schools and our teaching practice, and how we can better prepare students to participate as global citizens in a changing marketplace. Peer coaching is a process through which colleagues work together to reflect on current practices; build new skills; share ideas; teach one another, and share challenges and successes. Many educators hold tight to past practices, individuality, and teaching in isolation. Yet, the practice of peer coaching is purported to be a cornerstone of changing instruction. Peer coaching may be a practice that can change the course of our own teaching, of our students’ learning, and of our own professional development as educators. The purpose of this research is to examine the impact that a peer coaching relationship among educators has on professional practice. In what areas are the changes in professional practice most likely to occur? Instructional? Management? Professional behavior? Content knowledge? Can you determine the gaps in the research on peer coaching? How much and what type of peer coaching is done at the college level? Research is of no use unless it gets to the people who need to use it. Dissemination will be University-wide via a presentation with an accompanying visual (PPT, CANVA). Each College and School faculty would benefit from improving instructional practices. |
| Title Project 3 |
Evaluating online teaching and learning |
| Description Project 3 | While the use of technology for teaching and learning isn’t new, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen organizations and individuals move courses and teaching to a fully online format at an unprecedented speed. For some, implementation has been so quick that it’s not evidence-informed. Technology-enhanced learning and online teaching skills are more in-demand than ever before. The ability to determine the effectiveness of online courses and teaching practices is a new but essential skill for educators. The evaluation of online teaching raises unique questions that administrators, faculty, and IT leaders often don’t have guidance or experience in resolving. So, how effective are our online courses? As effective as a face-to-face course? How do we know? How can we evaluate these online courses and the faculty who teach them? Research is of no use unless it gets to the people who need to use it. Dissemination will be University-wide via a presentation with an accompanying visual (PPT, CANVA). This information would be interesting to present at the Student Research Conference as well. Social media, blogs, and conferences could be avenues. The entire University community would benefit from understanding how this research can be used to support the best online teaching and learning practices. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
The Syllabus Challenge: Creating an Inclusive Syllabus
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Marcia Baldanza and Dr. Nicci Dowd |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Education |
| Contact Information | mbaldanz@marymount.edu and ndowd@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Any and all |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | When considering issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion and how they manifest in higher education, some groups, including, students of color, non-traditional students, first-generation students, working students, and older students, are often marginalized. We believe an inclusive classroom begins with an inclusive syllabus. To that end, we believe that by applying a DEI lens to our course syllabi, we can: • further discourse and collaboration about diversity, equity, and inclusion in teaching, • identify strong points as well as weaknesses and gaps, and • improve course syllabi and make our courses more inclusive to all students. The Syllabus Challenge project has two primary goals: 1. To examine and revise our own course syllabi through the lens of DEI by applying the work of Kim Case, Shari Saunders, and Diana Kardia, including their work on inclusive college classrooms. 2. To create an online toolkit for faculty who want to create more inclusive syllabi by consolidating and extending existing resources to create an easy-to-use tool for self-evaluation. We plan to present our work at our College of Health and Education’s Research Meeting in the fall, post our work and curated tools to the School of Education website and will consider writing a paper for publication. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Teacherpreneurs: Education leaders or just another influencer
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Paula Cristina R. Azevedo |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Education |
| Contact Information | pazevedo@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Any major |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | Do you love scrolling through your Instagram feed to get the latest updates from and engage with your favorite celebrities and influencers? Then this is the project for you! Instagram is a popular social media platform for classroom teachers and especially teacherpreneurs (PK-12 classroom teachers who are also entrepreneurs publishing education material). This project involves analyzing the images, texts, and hashtags of the Instagram feeds of popular teacherpreneurs based in the United States. We’ll be analyzing the content and messaging shared on Instagram by teacherpreneurs; exploring if their posts perpetuate historical portrayals and narratives of teachers in the United States; and if teacherpreneurs are at the forefront of teacher leadership. This project is perfect for a student who is curious, eager to learn, and detail-oriented. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Business & Technology
Covid-19 Pandemic and Income Inequality in the United States
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Amel Ben Abdesslem |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Business |
| Contact Information | abenabde@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Economics |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | Several sectors have been severely disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic since 2020, while other economic activities remained resilient throughout the lockdown restrictions. Household incomes were affected by unemployment, spending reductions and substitutions, as well as government relief plans. The objective of this research is to assess how household wealth evolved over the Covid-19 pandemic and to determine if income inequalities were exacerbated during this period. The student fellow will conduct a review of the literature and collect data. This project requires a student with attention to detail and a willingness to learn about quantitative methods. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Parental Monitoring and Control of their Pre-teen / Teen internet Usage;
Project 2: Are pre-teens on social media?;
Project 3: How much do parents know?
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Dalal Alarayed |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Technology and Innovation |
| Contact Information | dalaraye@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | IT majors (any discipline in IT) |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Parental Monitoring and Control of their Pre-teen / Teen internet Usage |
| Description Project 1 |
Investigate parental monitoring and control of their Pre-teen / Teen Internet Usage. Are parents actively monitoring and limiting their children’s technology usage. Do they employ tools to monitor their children’s usage? |
| Title Project 2 |
Are pre-teens on social media? |
| Description Project 2 | Are pre-teens on social media? Most social media sites require users to be 13 to subscribe to an account. Given the rules, are preteens breaking them and going on social media? |
| Title Project 3 |
How much do parents know? |
| Description Project 3 | How much do parents know? Investigate what parents know regarding their children’s internet(social media activity). Is there a discrepancy between children’s actual usage and what their parents think? Are preteens/teens more tech-savvy than their parents? Looking at socioeconomic and other demographic factors and if they affect the knowledge gap between parents and children. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 3: Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Smart Application);
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Deana Jaber |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics |
| Contact Information | djaber@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Science, Education, and IT |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 3 |
Developing Pedagogical Chemistry Tools (Smart Application) |
| Description Project 3 | Our research group develops pedagogical tools for chemistry education in different formats: physical, virtual, and smart applications. To enable learning processes to occur inside and outside the classroom, we would like to convert these educational tools to a smart application to allow for learning to occur via mobile applications. This research project will be focused on converting the physical and virtual games to a smart application that students can access anytime and anywhere from the devices they spend the most time using. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Big Data and Imaging Content;
Project 2: Fragile States and Cybersecurity;
Project 3: Crowdsourcing, Ethics and Cybersecurity Issues
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Donna M. Schaeffer |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Technology and Innovation |
| Contact Information | donna.schaeffer@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Cybersecurity, Information Technology |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Big Data and Imaging Content |
| Description Project 1 | Emerging technologies create the need to consider several dimensions of ethics, i.e., research ethics, data ethics, and professional codes of conduct, as well as yield new considerations that may result from the combination of technologies, new types of data, disciplines, and societal expectations. An example is the use of nanotechnology in bioimaging. This is an exploratory attempt to identify the ethical issues for which researchers, practitioners, and subjects must be accountable. Bioimaging is any imaging used in biology. Nanotechnology is the branch of technology that deals with dimensions and tolerances of less than 100 nanometers, especially the manipulation of individual atoms and molecules. When bioimaging is performed with nanotechnology sensors, large amounts of data will be obtained. This data must be protected in its transport across networks and its use, often in international jurisdictions. |
| Title Project 2 |
Fragile States and Cybersecurity |
| Description Project 2 | Each year, Foreign Policy publishes the Fragile States Index, which ranks nation-states’ sustainability in terms of political, economic, and social systems, as well as internal cohesion and the existence of external intervention. In our global society, cybersecurity is an increasing concern. Our study correlates the countries on the Fragile States Index with various reports from cybersecurity organizations and agencies regarding countries that are ranked most and least cyber secure. We explain how various indicators on the Fragile States relate to cybersecurity capacity building. The Fragile States Index also highlights countries with the largest changes in their fragility in both positive and negative directions. For example, in 2021, the United States saw the largest year-to-year worsening in its fragility. Analysts speculate police violence, election insecurity, and the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic were major contributors to the decrease. We discuss the role an important cybersecurity topic – misinformation, had on the rankings. |
| Title Project 3 |
Crowdsourcing, Ethics and Cybersecurity Issues |
| Description Project 3 | As crowdsourced environmental projects become more widespread and global, we must pay attention to ethical issues that can emerge. Sharing data is fundamental to crowdsourcing, and that requires attention to protecting privacy. This issue is exacerbated if participants use common technologies, e.g., cell phones, that are used for other purposes and may be subject to data and privacy violations. Ethical issues can arise during recruitment, by which social media is a prevalent tool, to projects in that bad actors can solicit input into malicious and false projects. Furthermore, the results of crowdsourced environmental projects may provide foundations for policy and legislation; thus, integrity must be maintained and bad actors prevented from manipulating data and/or results. Governance of crowdsourced projects must include attention to ethical issues, regardless of their scope and scale. Vulnerabilities often result from ethical lapses. Just as scientists respect research ethics, so must citizens who participate in gathering data. In this paper, we will share a taxonomy that describes the role of research ethics in popular crowdsourced environmental initiatives, based on examples from the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF), CrowdsourcingSustainability.org, and others. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Analyzing the Data Collection of Cyber-Physical Systems with Data Mining Tools;
Project 2: The impact of COVID-19 on students’ online performance;
Project 3: Credit card anomaly detection using data mining tools
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Faleh Alshameri |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Technology and Innovation |
| Contact Information | falshame@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Information Technology, Data Science |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Analyzing the Data Collection of Cyber-Physical Systems with Data Mining Tools |
| Description Project 1 | Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) are comprised of networked computers that interact with the physical world. These systems are implemented to optimize efficiency, sustainability, and to make routine tasks in our daily lives more convenient. CPS are abundant throughout a wide range of industries, such as agriculture, energy, defense, healthcare, and automobile technologies. The paper discusses the main aspects of CPS and the corresponding applications, technologies, and standards. In addition, CPS security vulnerabilities, threats, and attacks will be reviewed. Cyber-physical systems data will be collected. Comparative analysis methods will be conducted using different data mining tools to analyze all these features. Suggestions and recommendations will be proposed. |
| Title Project 2 |
The impact of COVID-19 on students’ online performance |
| Description Project 2 | The COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine enforce universities in the United States in particular, and elsewhere around the world, in general, to adopt a strategy of online learning in lieu of, or in combination with, the traditional in-class, on-campus education. Adapting new technologies and new environmental conditions have an impact on the students’ performance. The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of online learning on students’ performance during the pandemic period of COVID-19. The study discusses the students’ challenges and identifies the factors affecting students’ satisfaction and performance. It investigates students’ perceptions toward online learning versus traditional face-to-face learning. The methodology for this study is a quantitative methodology; an online questionnaire will be designed to extract students’ experience with online learning, skills gained, and difficulties encountered. |
| Title Project 3 |
Credit card anomaly detection using data mining tools |
| Description Project 3 | As financial transactions have come to rely more heavily on infrastructures created using mobile technologies, an increase in patterns of fraud has been evident in the finance industry and beyond. Data mining maintains to play a key position within the detection of credit score card fraud in online transactions. Numerous techniques and algorithms are advanced and implemented for credit score card fraud detection along with genetic algorithms, artificial neural networks, machine learning algorithms, Support Vector Machine (SVM), decision tree, and random forest. The main objective of this paper is to analyze ways in which machine learning methods and network analysis capabilities can be successful in detecting financial fraud in transactions. In this study, different classification techniques will be used to generate models to study financial fraud detection. The classification algorithms we used to generate our models are Naïve Bayes (NB), Support Vector Machines (SVM), kth Nearest Neighbor (kNN), and Decision Trees (J48). |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-21 |
Project 1: What privacy protections do Companies omit for US citizens yet provide for EU citizens;
Project 2: Do you know your cookies?
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Susan Conrad |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Technology and Innovation |
| Contact Information | Susan Conrad |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Information Technology, Business Administration, |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
What privacy protections do Companies omit for US citizens yet provide for EU citizens |
| Description Project 1 | This research will look at privacy notices from a variety of companies and organizations operating within the United States. The research will begin by creating a scorecard of privacy protections based upon a literature review. Using this scorecard, the researchers will analyze policy notices from a sampling of organizations. The researchers will also examine these same privacy notices for California, Colorado, and EU citizens (as California. Colorado, and EU citizens have additional privacy rights). The purpose of the research is to identify the disparity of privacy statements and identify what gaps in privacy protections exist based upon these privacy statements. One secondary research question is to identify what protections must be added to existing privacy laws to be compliant in Virginia. Research Question: 1. What is the privacy protections difference between privacy notices? 2. How do privacy protections differ EU, California, Colorado, and “other”? 3. How will privacy notices be impacted by the newly passed VA privacy law? |
| Title Project 2 |
Do you know your cookies? |
| Description Project 2 | This research will examine a sampling of websites to compare the data privacy notifications with the data collected by the cookies in each website. It will examine what data is collected by the website’s cookies and compare it to what the privacy notifications state will be collected by cookies. It will identify the types of cookies being used to collect information, identify the types of data being collected, and review the consent documents users must agree to before cookies collect PII. The research questions are 1. Do user consent statements explain what data is being collected in the cookies? 2. Do user consent statements identify who data collected through cookies will be shared with? 3. Do the user consent statements identify how the data collected by the cookies will be stored? 4. Do user consent statements specify explain the purpose of why the data is being collected through the cookies 5. Do consent statements differ depending upon the user’s location? |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Security and Privacy Considerations on Healthcare Teleinterpreting During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Michelle Liu |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Technology and Innovation |
| Contact Information | xliu@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Master in IT and/or Cybersecurity |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | During the COVID-19 pandemic, communities with limited English proficiency (LEP) have been greatly impacted by healthcare disparities (Barwise et al., 2021). Many healthcare institutions struggled to provide sufficient on-site interpretation for languages such as Spanish during the pandemic. Teleinterpreting through video conferencing and mobile application software has been increasingly adopted as an alternative approach to alleviate the issue of limited budget and funding. However, it also imposed new challenges to the privacy and confidentiality of patient information. Some discussions took place regarding cybersecurity issues of virtual communications during the COVID-19 pandemic, but few indicated the underlying risks with the increasing demand for tele-interpretation, making the connection between these two fields worth looking into. This summer project will fill such a gap by employing qualitative data analysis on the secondary data from extant literature relevant to the research topic. The ultimate goal is to inform the healthcare teleinterpreting field with security and privacy policy frameworks or guidelines that can be implemented and carried on beyond the COVID-19 era. (166 words) Research Questions: 1. What major telehealth platforms, tools, and protocols have been used for storing and transferring electronic medical records during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are there any differences compared with the pre-COVID practices? 2. How has emerging technology been impacting teleinterpreting during the COVID-19 pandemic? 3. What are the risks and challenges imposed to the security and privacy of patient health data and records by teleinterpreting during the COVID-19 pandemic? 4. What are the major elements that should be included in a security and privacy policy or framework for teleinterpreting? |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Health-Related
Exploring Migration Experiences of Unaccompanied Adolescents Seeking Asylum in the United States with an Intersectionality Theoretical Framework
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Chanel Shahnami Rodriguez |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Counseling |
| Contact Information | crodrigu@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Counseling, Public Health Education & Promotion, Forensic & Legal Psychology |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project |
Exploring Migration Experiences of Unaccompanied Adolescents Seeking Asylum in the United States with an Intersectionality Theoretical Framework |
| Description Project | The need for the study is to provide counseling literature on unaccompanied asylum-seeking adolescents that have experienced the harsher policies that were placed in the previous administration (e.g., froze the “CAM parole” program, the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), & COVID-19). To seek asylum in the United States is a historical process with different consequences depending on the political time in the United States. The purpose of this current study is to explore overall migration experiences from when unaccompanied adolescents arrive in the United States until current experiences that are important for counselors to know by the time these clients show up at their doors. I need assistance in writing a literature review for this study. Experience in research writing is preferred. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Safe Falling with Kupuna Aikido: Does Kupuna Aikido Reduce Falls Risk and Risk of Injury from Falling?
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Jade Bender-Burnett |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Health Sciences |
| Contact Information | jbender@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Physical Therapy, Pre-Physical Therapy, Health Sciences, Public Health |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description Project |
Activity, specific mobility-related activities improve balance and reduce fall risk. Kupuna Aikido (KA) is a community-based falls preparedness program intended to reduce the harm associated with falling. This pre-/post-test study will allow for assessment of the effectiveness of KA in improving participant status related to mobility and balance and falls risk. Community-dwelling older adults in Hawaii will be recruited to participate in one of two established courses, each lasting 8 weeks, and meet once per week for 50 mins. The effectiveness of the intervention will be assessed using change scores in outcome measure scores over the course of the intervention with analysis of change in survey results additionally. Marymount’s role in this study is data analysis and interpretation with results dissemination in the form of manuscript submission and/or poster/platform presentation. Student engagement will be directed at literature review and background, data analysis and interpretation as well as developing dissemination materials including but not limited to abstract and manuscript development. Students with an interest in evidence-based fall prevention programming and/or working with geriatric populations are encouraged to participate. Research question: Does an 8-week course in Kupuna Aikido reduce falls risk in community-dwelling older adults? |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Empathy Competency Curriculum Development
Project 2: Media Portrayal of Mental Health Professionals
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Jamie Ho |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Counseling |
| Contact Information | cho@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Any major is welcome, preferably majors from the College of Health and Education |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Empathy Competency Curriculum Development |
| Description Project 1 | Counselor empathy plays a vital role in counseling outcomes. Since there is a lack of consistent definition and measurement of counselor empathy, I have developed a theoretical framework of empathy competence to address empathy learning in counselors-in-training (CITs). I also developed an empathy competence scale to measure counselors’ empathy competence. In this project, I aim to examine the effectiveness of an empathy competence curriculum in promoting CITs’ empathy. The purpose of this project is to develop an evidence-based training protocol that could be incorporated into counselor preparation programs. The study results will be disseminated in academic journal publications as well as conference presentations. For this project, I am looking for someone who is creative and can speak from a learner’s perspective. The student will help develop educational materials for the empathy competence curriculum. You will be able to incorporate creativity in developing educational content and activities. Depending on the student’s goals and interests, you may continue to assist me in activities like grant writing, data collection and analysis, conference presentation, and manuscript preparation. |
| Title Project 2 |
Media Portrayal of Mental Health Professionals |
| Description Project 2 | Amid the pandemic, although there is an increased awareness of mental health and self-care, stigma related to mental health help-seeking is still prevalent. In this project, I aim to examine how mental health professionals (e.g., counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, etc.) are portrayed in TV shows and movies. Additionally, I plan to investigate how the portrayal may contribute to the stigma and stereotypes associated with mental health help-seeking. With a data-driven approach to identify the misconceptions about mental health professionals, the purpose of this study is to inform mental health professionals of their psychoeducation efforts in reducing the stigma associated with mental health help-seeking. The study results will be disseminated in academic journal publications as well as conference presentations. For this project, I am looking for someone who enjoys binge-watching and has great attention to detail. The student will help me with data collection, coding, and data analysis in this project. Depending on the student’s goals and interests, you may continue to assist me in activities like conference presentations and manuscript preparation. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Remote Administration of Balance Training Program for Older Adults with Dementia
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Julie Ries |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Health Sciences |
| Contact Information | jries@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | DPT or any health-related, science-related, education-related, tech-related, or other interested graduate or undergraduate student! |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Description | This research project will assess the feasibility of using a remote web-based delivery of a balance training program for people with dementia and their care partners. The Otago Exercise Program (OEP) is a publicly available program of strength and balance exercises that we will adapt to bring to individuals with dementia. Student researchers may participate in research activities including, but not limited to: assisting with literature review and annotating articles, creating comprehensive exercise class video from existing videos of exercises, creating/adapting recruitment materials for prospective participants, creating/adapting online forms for data collection, develop/organize online class using Canvas Learning Management System, and the possibility of participant interaction assisting in overseeing online administration of the balance intervention (timeline dependent). If the funded student is local, there may be the potential for participant interaction opportunities in the form of assisting with in-home data collection (timeline dependent). |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Language Development in Bilingual Toddlers;
Project 2: Play Development in Korean Immigrant Toddlers
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Linda Cote-Reilly |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Contact Information | lcote@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Psychology, Education, Nursing (students in other disciplines will also be considered) |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Language Development in Bilingual Toddlers |
| Description Project 1 |
Students will assist in data analysis, literature review, and write-up of a research report for publication. The data for this project has already been collected. This project will examine relations among toddlers’ vocalizations in infancy (as observed in interactions with their mothers) and their language development in toddlerhood (using vocabulary checklists and as observed in play interactions with their mothers). The student will learn how to use the SPSS data analysis program. |
| Title Project 2 |
Play Development in Korean Immigrant Toddlers |
| Description Project 2 |
This project will explore play development among Korean immigrant toddlers. Toddlers were observed playing alone and then with their mothers in the United States and in South Korea. The play was evaluated for level of complexity and will be compared among mothers and toddlers in different locations and developmentally from 13 to 20 months. The student will assist with data analysis (learn SPSS), literature review, and write up of research report. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
Project 1: Understanding palliative care availability and needs of patients – a qualitative analysis;
Project 2: Examining the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHAT)
| Faculty Mentor | Dr. Uma Kelekar |
|---|---|
| Academic School | School of Business |
| Contact Information | ukelekar@marymount.edu |
| Appropriate Majors/Programs | Healthcare Management, Business, Health sciences |
| Position Availability | Summer 2022 (May be held on campus or remotely, as mutually agreed with the faculty mentor.) |
| Title Project 1 |
Understanding palliative care availability and needs of patients – a qualitative analysis |
| Description Project 1 |
The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) defines palliative care as “specialized medical care for people with serious illnesses. Palliative care is focused on providing patients with relief of symptoms, pain, and stress of a serious illness”. As a part of the proposed project, the student will have an opportunity to research the different types of palliative care organizations in the United States, and prepare an interview guide for stakeholders with the aim of examining the available organizational infrastructure, including guiding policies, reimbursement strategies, and assess the needs and challenges faced by patients and their caregivers. |
| Title Project 2 |
Examining the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHAT) |
| Description Project 2 |
This fellowship will give the student an opportunity to gain an understanding of one of the widely used community-level National Health and Aging Trends Study” survey data made available through Michigan’s Center on the Demography of Aging (MiCDA). The student will complete a self-paced set of online learning modules on how to use the data, propose research questions based on a literature review and perform preliminary data analysis. Since the topics covered in this survey are specific to aging and administered to older adults over 65 years, I am seeking a student fellow who is passionate about topics on aging such as older adult falls and other chronic conditions. It is preferred that the student has experience working with statistical software such as STATA, or SAS to handle large data. |
| Date Posted | 04-Mar-22 |
