Measuring College Student Satisfaction: A Multi-Year Study of the Factors Leading to Persistence

Using Tinto's (1987) social integration theory as a framework, this study measured student satisfaction in six transformative areas: educational experience, skills development, faculty interaction, personal growth, sense of community, and overall expectations. Emerging as a strategic planning process priority, this project sought to identify those areas where students succeeded or were at risk. Employing a three-phase mixed methods approach, this descriptive, longitudinal study was conducted from 1990-2004 at a highly selective specialized college and assisted college administrators in developing or modifying programs that would enhance student satisfaction to ensure degree completion.

Factors Related to Mental Health of Native Americans in Eastern Tribes

This paper is part of a five-year research project funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) that addresses the health, disability and service needs of Native Americans in eastern tribes. The Participatory Action Research model with a community-based approach was used to facilitate collaboration among the participating tribes. Native American research technicians conducted individual interviews with members of their tribes. Demographics, prevalence of disabilities, and various factors associated with health and mental health are presented. Of the 858 tribal members who responded to survey questions, the third most prominent health problem reported was mental illness.

The Cell Agglutination Agent, Phytohemagglutinin-L, Improves the Efficiency of Somatic Nuclear Transfer Cloning in Cattle (Bos taurus)

One of the several factors that contribute to the low efficiency of mammalian somatic cloning is poor fusion between the small somatic donor cell and the large recipient oocyte. This study was designed to test phytohemagglutinin (PHA) agglutination activity on fusion rate, and subsequent developmental potential of cloned bovine embryos. The toxicity of PHA was established by examining its effects on the development of parthenogenetic bovine oocytes treated with different doses (Experiment 1), and for different durations (Experiment 2). The effective dose and duration of PHA treatment (150 microg/mL, 20 min incubation) was selected and used to compare membrane fusion efficiency and embryo development following somatic cell nuclear transfer (Experiment 3). Cloning with somatic donor fibroblasts versus cumulus cells was also compared, both with and without PHA treatment (150 microg/mL, 20 min). Fusion rate of nuclear donor fibroblasts, after phytohemagglutinin treatment, was increased from 33 to 61% (P < 0.05), and from 59 to 88% (P < 0.05) with cumulus cell nuclear donors. The nuclear transfer (NT) efficiency per oocyte used was improved following PHA treatment, for both fibroblast (13% versus 22%) as well as cumulus cells (17% versus 34%; P < 0.05). The cloned embryos, both with and without PHA treatment, were subjected to vitrification and embryo transfer testing, and resulted in similar survival (approximately 90% hatching) and pregnancy rates (17-25%). Three calves were born following vitrification and embryo transfer of these embryos; two from the PHA-treated group, and one from non-PHA control group. We concluded that PHA treatment significantly improved the fusion efficiency of somatic NT in cattle, and therefore, increased the development of cloned blastocysts. Furthermore, within a determined range of dose and duration, PHA had no detrimental effect on embryo survival post-vitrification, nor on pregnancy or calving rates following embryo transfer.