Restructuring In The Hospitality Industry

In her dialogue entitled - Restructuring in the Hospitality Industry - Elisa S. Moncarz, Associate Professor, the School of Hospitality Management at Florida International University, intends for you to know the following: “Recent years have seen a proliferation of restructurings of major American corporations creating an extremely important issue that has affected U.S. business. This article discusses restructuring issues in the hospitality industry, focusing attention on its causes and motivations, as well as on its benefits and perils. The author considers the impact of restructuring on investors and management while examining recent restructurings involving hospitality firms.” In defining the concept of restructuring, Associate Professor Moncarz informs you, “Restructuring entails the implementation of fundamental and comprehensive modification of a company's operational and/or financial structure.” “It has, indeed, become fashionable to take a company apart and put it back together in a different form,” the author says. Additionally, Moncarz refers to a Wall Street Journal study, dated August 1985, which reveals that nearly half the large American corporations were, or were soon to be restructured in the 1984/85 time frame. There are several distinct types of restructurings and the author wants you to be aware of some of them. “…threats of takeover attempts, the larger part of all restructuring have been initiated willingly in order to expand or divest a company's line of business (i.e., operational restructurings) or redirect its finances (i.e., financial restructurings),” the author reveals. “Two principal types of operational restructurings are mergers and acquisitions [M&A], and divestitures [disposing of unwanted units or assets],” Moncarz further defines the concepts of expansion and divestiture. The author explains several types of financial restructuring sketches used in the hospitality industry, including stock re-purchasing, debt issuances and redemptions, swapping debt for equity, and effective theories of realigning debt through extending loans and/or revising terms. To expand their businesses, Moncarz makes anecdotal reference to several major food and beverage corporations that have successfully employed operational restructuring principles. The author wades into the shallow end of the hostile takeover pool by explaining some of the corporate restructuring concepts used to repel that aggressive technique. Walt Disney Company completely redesigned their entire upper level management structure in a successful effort to thwart a hostile takeover bid by corporate raider Saul P. Steinberg, Moncarz informs. To close, the author touches on leveraged buyouts [LBOs], and stock repurchases to divest unwanted divisions and immobilize hostile takeover attempts. A lengthy table of - Selected Restructurings in the Hospitality Industry [1982 to date of article] – is also included.

Achievement of generic baccalaureate student nurses using computer -assisted instruction simulations during a nursing review course

The use of computer assisted instruction (CAI) simulations as an instructional strategy provides nursing students with a critical thinking approach for evaluating risks and benefits and choosing correct alternatives in "safe" patient care situations. It was hypothesized that using CAI simulations during an upper level nursing review course would have a positive effect on the students' posttest scores. Subjects (n = 36) were senior nursing students enrolled in a nursing review course in an undergraduate baccalaureate program. A limitation of the study was the small sample size. The study employed a modified group experimental design using the t test for independent samples. The group who received the CAI simulations during the physiological system review demonstrated a significant increase (p $<$.01) in the posttest score mean when compared to the lecture-discussion group score mean. There was no significant difference between high and low clinical grade point average (GPA) students in the CAI and lecture-discussion groups and their score means on the posttest. However, score mean differences of the low clinical GPA students showed a greater increase for the CAI group than the lecture-discussion group. There was no significant difference between the groups in their system content subscore means on the exit examination completed three weeks later. It was concluded that CAI simulations are as effective as lecture-discussion in assisting upper level students to process information for clinical decision making. CAI simulations can be considered as an instructional strategy to supplement or replace lecture content during a review course, allowing more efficient use of faculty time. It is recommended that the study be repeated using a larger sample size. Further investigations are recommended in comparing the effectiveness of computer software formats and various instructional strategies for other learning situations and student populations. ^

Sediment accretion and organic carbon burial relative to sea-level rise and storm events in two mangrove forests in Everglades National Park

The goal of this investigation was to examine how sediment accretion and organic carbon (OC) burial rates in mangrove forests respond to climate change. Specifically, will the accretion rates keep pace with sea-level rise, and what is the source and fate of OC in the system? Mass accumulation, accretion and OC burial rates were determined via 210Pb dating (i.e. 100 year time scale) on sediment cores collected from two mangrove forest sites within Everglades National Park, Florida (USA). Enhanced mass accumulation, accretion and OC burial rates were found in an upper layer that corresponded to a well-documented storm surge deposit. Accretion rates were 5.9 and 6.5 mm yr− 1 within the storm deposit compared to overall rates of 2.5 and 3.6 mm yr− 1. These rates were found to be matching or exceeding average sea-level rise reported for Key West, Florida. Organic carbon burial rates were 260 and 393 g m− 2 yr− 1 within the storm deposit compared to 151 and 168 g m− 2 yr− 1 overall burial rates. The overall rates are similar to global estimates for OC burial in marine wetlands. With tropical storms being a frequent occurrence in this region the resulting storm surge deposits are an important mechanism for maintaining both overall accretion and OC burial rates. Enhanced OC burial rates within the storm deposit could be due to an increase in productivity created from higher concentrations of phosphorus within storm-delivered sediments and/or from the deposition of allochthonous OC. Climate change-amplified storms and sea-level rise could damage mangrove forests, exposing previously buried OC to oxidation and contribute to increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations. However, the processes described here provide a mechanism whereby oxidation of OC would be limited and the overall OC reservoir maintained within the mangrove forest sediments.

The performance of high -ability Black upper elementary grade students in an International Baccalaureate program

The purpose of this study was to investigate the common factors and experiences that contribute to the success of high ability Black students enrolled in Frank C. Martin Elementary School, the first school in Florida authorized to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP). The study further sought to determine ways in which educators and stakeholders assisted in maintaining and in increasing Black students' achievement that motivated and encouraged them to pursue similar programs at the middle and high school levels. ^ Three sources of data were used: (a) individual interviews with fourth and fifth grade high ability Black students using a semi-structured format elicited discussion of their perceptions of the PYP and factors contributing to their success; (b) individual interviews with their fourth and fifth grade teachers elicited discussion of teacher expectations and effective instructional strategies; and (c) a questionnaire asked parents of the participating students their reasons for choosing the PYP, their perceptions of the program, and their own level of involvement in their child's learning. Three separate focus groups gathered further data. ^ The results revealed that the factors contributing to the success of high ability Black elementary school students are consistent with those of students in other racial groups. These are a challenging program, high teacher and parental expectations, strong parental involvement and support, a celebration of culture and diversity in a caring and nurturing environment, and the development and internalization of positive attitudes. ^ Implications for future studies might include a longitudinal study conducted over seven years to trace the achievements of Black students throughout the entire IB Program. ^

Sediment Accretion and Organic Carbon Burial Relative to Sea-Level Rise and Storm Events in Two Mangrove Forests in Everglades National Park

The goal of this investigation was to examine how sediment accretion and organic carbon (OC) burial rates in mangrove forests respond to climate change. Specifically, will the accretion rates keep pace with sea-level rise, and what is the source and fate of OC in the system? Mass accumulation, accretion and OC burial rates were determined via 210Pb dating (i.e. 100 year time scale) on sediment cores collected from two mangrove forest sites within Everglades National Park, Florida (USA). Enhanced mass accumulation, accretion and OC burial rates were found in an upper layer that corresponded to a well-documented storm surge deposit. Accretion rates were 5.9 and 6.5 mm yr− 1 within the storm deposit compared to overall rates of 2.5 and 3.6 mm yr− 1. These rates were found to be matching or exceeding average sea-level rise reported for Key West, Florida. Organic carbon burial rates were 260 and 393 g m− 2 yr− 1 within the storm deposit compared to 151 and 168 g m− 2 yr− 1 overall burial rates. The overall rates are similar to global estimates for OC burial in marine wetlands. With tropical storms being a frequent occurrence in this region the resulting storm surge deposits are an important mechanism for maintaining both overall accretion and OC burial rates. Enhanced OC burial rates within the storm deposit could be due to an increase in productivity created from higher concentrations of phosphorus within storm-delivered sediments and/or from the deposition of allochthonous OC. Climate change-amplified storms and sea-level rise could damage mangrove forests, exposing previously buried OC to oxidation and contribute to increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations. However, the processes described here provide a mechanism whereby oxidation of OC would be limited and the overall OC reservoir maintained within the mangrove forest sediments.

The vulnerability of aquatic systems of the Upper Napo River Basin (Ecuadorian Amazon) to human activities

Aquatic ecosystems exhibit different vulnerabilities to anthropogenic disturbances. I examined this problem in the Upper Napo River Basin (UNRB), Ecuador. I ranked from 1 to 5 aquatic ecosystem uniqueness, health and threats. I stratified the basin into five Ecological Drainage Units (EDU), 48 Aquatic Ecological Systems (AES), and 203 macrohabitats. I found main threats (habitat conversion/degradation, land development, mining, oil industries, and water diversion) cover 54% of the UNRB, but have different scores and extents in each EDU. I assessed the health of 111 AESs, under three land use treatments, by analyzing the streamside zone, physical forms, water quality, aquatic life, and hydrology. Overall, health of AESs varied from 5 to 2.58, with 5 being the highest level of health. Threats and health of AESs were inversely related (F=34.119, P