Without women: Masculinities, gay male sexual culture and sexual behaviors in Miami, Florida

Recent studies have reported alarmingly high rates of HIV infection and risky sexual behaviors among gay men in Miami, Florida. Previous research has suggested that the risky sexual behaviors of many gay men reflect the pursuit of intimacy and love, and that barriers to intimate relationships among gay men may stem from traditional masculinity norms. This dissertation examines the meanings which gay men ascribe to their sexual behaviors, as well as the intersections of those meanings with both traditional masculinity constructions and Miami's gay male sexual culture. ^ The study is based upon participant observation, print media content analysis, surveys and ethnographic interviews of a purposive snowball sample of 30 Cuban American, Puerto Rican, African American and Anglo gay men who reside in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Analysis of research questions was accomplished through grounded theory methods and descriptive and non-parametric statistics, including Pearson chi-square, Fisher's Exact and Mann-Whitney U tests. ^ The study shows that culturally-specified masculinity norms vary in the relative importance ascribed to heterosexual prowess, economic providership and competitiveness. These cultural differences appear important not only to the timing of sexual awareness and to the strength of homosexual stereotyping as effeminacy, but also to men's strategies in coming out as gay. The meanings men attributed to their sexual behaviors were, however, constructed in response to both inherited masculinity norms and the hypermasculine structure of Miami's gay male sexual culture. In addition to providing an ethnographic account of this subculture, the study elaborates men's issues relative to casual sex and committed relationships. Unprotected anal intercourse with casual partners during the previous twelve months was associated with growing up without one's father in the home, having been teased for effeminacy during childhood, being defensive about one's masculinity, not trusting men, having been cheated on by boyfriends, and believing that long-term gay male relationships are problematic. ^ It is concluded that the continuing epidemic of HIV infections among local gay men, as well as the hypermasculine form of the gay sexual subculture itself, are nihilistic symptoms embedded in the masculinist gender structure of the larger society. ^

The effect of a reform on a school organizational culture after receiving a failing Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test rating

The purpose of this research was to explore the effects of a reform that took place in an elementary school during 2000/2001 as a result of a failure rating on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test on the structure and the personnel of the organization. ^ The exploration took place over a period of 10 months starting in August 2000 until June 2001. It focused on the effect of the failure rating on the: (a) structure and operation of the school; (b) morale, beliefs, behaviors, and daily lives of teachers and the principal; and (c) the effect of the reform effort on the leadership style of the principal, whether she became a transactional or a transformative leader. ^ The researcher assumed the role of a participant observer. Data sources were her personal recollections of major events that took place during the year of the reform, interviews, observations, and school documents. The sample included 15 teachers present during the time of the reform. Ten taught second through fifth grade. The remaining five participants were the music teacher, the counselor, and the writing, reading and technology specialists. Together they represented the instructional team or represented special education areas. ^ The findings indicated that the reform effort had an effect on the structure and the operation of the school. The changes included reorganization of the physical set up, changes in curriculum and instruction, changes in the means of communication among the staff, and the addition of new staff members including an official agent of change. The reform had a greater effect on the daily lives of teachers and their morale than on their beliefs and behaviors. Teachers reported that during the effort their daily lives were stressful and their morale very low due to the enormous expectations that they had to meet. On the other hand, the reform effort had a positive effect on the daily life, morale, beliefs, and behaviors of the principal. It energized her. She spoke positively about the change. She functioned as an effective, positive, resilient transactional leader who did what was necessary in order to enable the teachers to cope with the complex situation. ^

Organizational culture, organizational climate, and collaborative capacity for planning

The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship of organizational culture and organizational climate on participant perceptions of collaborative capacity for planning, within the context of the Florida School Readiness Coalitions (FSRCs). Three hypotheses were proposed for study: First, that organizational culture would be correlated to organizational climate; second, that organizational culture would be correlated to collaborative capacity for planning; and the third that organizational climate would be correlated to collaborative capacity for planning. ^ A cross-sectional survey research design was used to obtain data from participants in 25 Florida School Readiness Coalitions. Pearson product-moment correlations were used to examine the association between the dependent variable, collaborative capacity for planning, and the independent variables, organizational culture and climate. Bivariate analyses revealed a significant level of association for five culture indicators to collaborative capacity for planning: motivation, interpersonal, service, supportive and individualistic indicators, and four climate indicators: cooperation, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and role clarity. Findings suggest (a) a constructive culture and positive climate were present within the FSRCs during the period of study and (b) participants perceived that the collaborative capacity for planning existed. Hierarchical multiple regression, controlling for effects of participant demographics, were used to examine the degree to which organizational culture and climate predict collaborative capacity. The culture indicators, supportive and individualistic, and the climate indicator job satisfaction accounted for 46% of the variance in collaborative capacity for planning. No other indicators of the independent variables demonstrated significance. The findings suggests that (a) culture and climate should be studied together, (b) culture and climate are two constructs that may provide knowledge about the way community groups work together, and (c) the collaborative capacity of groups planning services such as the FSRCs may benefit through consideration of how culture and climate affect service planners' relationships, communication, and ability to achieve a mission or goal. Culture and climate may offer social workers new information about internal factors affecting the collaborative process. Further investigation of these constructs with other types of groups is warranted. ^

Living positive: Life in community among Puerto Rican men living with HIV in Boston

Negative experiences of stigmatization, discrimination, and rejection are common among people living with HIV in the United States, and particularly when they are also members of a minority group. Some three decades after the first cases of AIDS were identified, people infected with HIV continue to be perceived and characterized negatively. While an HIV/AIDS diagnosis is typically associated with negativity, this study investigates the extent to which collective experiences among HIV-positive people result in healthy responses and positive social adjustment. This study is focused on the ways in which HIV-positive Puerto Rican men in Boston live positive despite being diagnosed with HIV. Rather than wrapping themselves in the social stigma of HIV and the isolation that entails, they participate in processes that affirm themselves and their peers. In so doing, they help generate both healthy and meaningful lives for themselves and others. The study examines the process in which Puerto Rican men living with HIV in Boston participate, promote, and reaffirm an HIV community, la comunidad, as a social entity with a unique culture and identity. This study also investigates how this community influences, supports, and encourages the adoption of positive transformations for living long term with HIV. On the basis of nine months of field research, this qualitative study employed both focus groups and interviews with fifty HIV-positive Puerto Rican men in Boston. These men were recruited, using convenience sampling, from different community-based organizations (CBOs) that provide HIV/AIDS services in Boston. The study finds that HIV-positive Puerto Rican men in Boston build community, not in response to social exclusion, but built on shared positive practices and strategies for living healthy with HIV. These men come together to negotiate and form a unique cultural community expressed in norms, beliefs, and practices that, although centered on HIV, are designed for living healthy. These expressions reaffirm a sense of community in everyday settings and transform the lives of these men with positive behaviors and healthy lifestyles. The findings reveal that this transformation takes place in the context of a community, with the support, encouragement, and at times, policing of others. La comunidad is where the lives of these men are transformed as they learn, adopt, and experience living positive with HIV.

Goma curriculum, a character education paradigm: Composing a text for shaping classroom character culture

The written text, and approaches to reading it, serves well as an analogy for the classroom space as a "text" that teachers are able to compose; and students are able to read, interpret meaning(s) of, and make responses to and about (Rosenblatt, 1988). Researchers point to ways in which the classroom can be conceptualized as a text to be evoked, experienced, and read (Freire & Macedo, 1987; Powell, 2009; Rosenblatt, 1988; Spears-Bunton & Powell, 2009).^ The present study analyzed secondary data including: 10 transcripts of teacher talks and six self-reports retrieved from the program evaluation archives of DOR Foundation. The data described six teachers' classroom experiences subsequent to professional development centered on Goma character education curriculum that was used during a summer youth program located in South Georgia. Goma, an acronym that stands for Goal, Objective, Method, and Attitude, is a character education paradigm derived from The Inclusive Community Building Ellison Model, the theoretical framework used for this study. The Model identifies conflict resolution as one of its five foci (Hunt, Howard, & Rice, 1998). Hunt (2006) conceived Goma as part of a 7-Step unitary process, also named the 7-Step pathway, to demonstrate how conflict resolution is accomplished within a variety of contexts.^ Analysis of the data involved: (a) a priori coding of teacher talks transcripts using the components of the Goma 7-Step pathway as coding categories, (b) emergent coding of teacher talks transcripts for the types of experiences teachers evidenced, and (c) emergent coding of teachers' self-reports for categories of teachers' instructional activities. Results of the study showed positive influence of Goma curriculum on participating teachers and their instructional practices. Teachers were shown to have had cognitive, instructional, emotional, and social experiences that were most evident when they reported changes in their attitudes toward their students, themselves, and their instructional practices. The present study provided implications for classroom teachers wherein all aspects of teachers' instructional practices can be guided by principles of positive character; and can be used to help compose the kinds of "texts" that may likely contribute to a classroom character culture.^

The relationships between elementary school principals' emotional intelligence, leadership style and school culture

The role of the principal in school settings and the principal's perceived effect on student achievement have frequently been considered vital factors in school reform. The relationships between emotional intelligence, leadership style and school culture have been widely studied. The literature reveals agreement among scholars regarding the principal's vital role in developing and fostering a positive school culture. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between elementary school principals' emotional intelligence, leadership style and school culture. ^ The researcher implemented a non-experimental ex post facto research design to investigate four specific research hypotheses. Utilizing the Qualtrics Survey Software, 57 elementary school principals within a large urban school district in southeast Florida completed the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), and 850 of their faculty members completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ Form 5X). Faculty responses to the school district's School Climate Survey retrieved from the district's web site were used as the measure of school culture. ^ Linear regression analyses revealed significant positive associations between emotional intelligence and the following leadership measures: Idealized Influence-Attributes (β = .23, p = < .05), Idealized Influence-Behaviors (β = .34, p = < .01), Inspirational Motivation (β = .39, p = < .01) and Contingent Reward (β = .33, p = < .01). Hierarchical regression analyses revealed positive associations between school culture and both transformational and transactional leadership measures, and negative associations between school culture and passive-avoidant leadership measures. Significant positive associations were found between school culture and the principals' emotional intelligence over and above leadership style. Hierarchical linear regressions to test the statistical hypothesis developed to account for alternative explanations revealed significant associations between leadership style and school culture over and above school grade. ^ These results suggest that emotional intelligence merits consideration in the development of leadership theory. Practical implications include suggestions that principals employ both transformational and transactional leadership strategies, and focus on developing their level of emotional intelligence. The associations between emotional intelligence, transformational leadership, Contingent Reward and school culture found in this study validate the role of the principal as the leader of school reform.^

The effect of a reform on a school organizational culture after receiving a failing Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test rating

The purpose of this research was to explore the effects of a reform that took place in an elementary school during 2000/2001 as a result of a failure rating on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test on the structure and the personnel of the organization. The exploration took place over a period of 10 months starting in August 2000 until June 2001. It focused on the effect of the failure rating on the: (a) structure and operation of the school; (b) morale, beliefs, behaviors, and daily lives of teachers and the principal; and (c) the effect of the reform effort on the leadership style of the principal, whether she became a transactional or a transformative leader. The researcher assumed the role of a participant observer. Data sources were her personal recollections of major events that took place during the year of the reform, interviews, observations, and school documents. The sample included 15 teachers present during the time of the reform. Ten taught second through fifth grade. The remaining five participants were the music teacher, the counselor, and the writing, reading and technology specialists. Together they represented the instructional team or represented special education areas. The findings indicated that the reform effort had an effect on the structure and the operation of the school. The changes included reorganization of the physical set up, changes in curriculum and instruction, changes in the means of communication among the staff, and the addition of new staff members including an official agent of change. The reform had a greater effect on the daily lives of teachers and their morale than on their beliefs and behaviors. Teachers reported that during the effort their daily lives were stressful and their morale very low due to the enormous expectations that they had to meet. On the other hand, the reform effort had a positive effect on the daily life, morale, beliefs, and behaviors of the principal. It energized her. She spoke positively about the change. She functioned as an effective, positive, resilient transactional leader who did what was necessary in order to enable the teachers to cope with the complex situation.

Screening for AmpR-Specific Inhibitors to Combat P. aeruginosa Infections

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a Gram-negative bacterium, an opportunistic pathogen that infects individuals suffering from reduced immunity or damaged tissue. The treatment of these infections has become a major problem due to its increasing antibiotic resistance. Many multi-drug resistant isolates of P. aeruginosa can thwart most antibiotic classes including ?- lactams, fluoroquinolones, and aminoglycosides. Its ability to combat ?-lactams is in part due to expression of AmpC, a major chromosomally encoded ?-lactamase. The expression of ampC is positively regulated by AmpR. Besides antibiotic resistance, AmpR is an important regulator of various factors that are required for establishing acute and chronic infections. Loss of ampR makes P. aeruginosa susceptible to ?-lactams and less virulent than the wild type. We hypothesize that AmpR is a potential therapeutic target. In the absence of new drugs in the pipeline, the aim of this study is to find an AmpR-specific inhibitor to assist and improve the use of currently available ?- lactam treatment. A small-molecule library from Torrey Pines Institute will be used in this study. Two reporter systems, lux and lacZ, fused to a PampC promotor will be used to assess AmpR activity. Positive hits will be those that inhibit 50% PampC activity in the presence of sub inhibitory concentration of imipenem, a ?- lactam. The top positive hits will be screened for their ability to cause human cell-cytotoxicity. The non-cytotoxic hits will be assessed for their ability to affect P. aeruginosa virulence and antibiotic resistance using various in vitro assays. Determination of potential AmpR inhibitors will prove to be useful in fighting off infections and may save countless patients suffering from these infections.

Goma Curriculum, A Character Education Paradigm: Composing a Text for Shaping Classroom Character Culture

The written text, and approaches to reading it, serves well as an analogy for the classroom space as a “text” that teachers are able to compose; and students are able to read, interpret meaning(s) of, and make responses to and about (Rosenblatt, 1988). Researchers point to ways in which the classroom can be conceptualized as a text to be evoked, experienced, and read (Freire & Macedo, 1987; Powell, 2009; Rosenblatt, 1988; Spears-Bunton & Powell, 2009). The present study analyzed secondary data including: 10 transcripts of teacher talks and six self-reports retrieved from the program evaluation archives of DOR Foundation. The data described six teachers’ classroom experiences subsequent to professional development centered on Goma character education curriculum that was used during a summer youth program located in South Georgia. Goma, an acronym that stands for Goal, Objective, Method, and Attitude, is a character education paradigm derived from The Inclusive Community Building Ellison Model, the theoretical framework used for this study. The Model identifies conflict resolution as one of its five foci (Hunt, Howard, & Rice, 1998). Hunt (2006) conceived Goma as part of a 7-Step unitary process, also named the 7-Step pathway, to demonstrate how conflict resolution is accomplished within a variety of contexts. Analysis of the data involved: (a) a priori coding of teacher talks transcripts using the components of the Goma 7-Step pathway as coding categories, (b) emergent coding of teacher talks transcripts for the types of experiences teachers evidenced, and (c) emergent coding of teachers’ self-reports for categories of teachers’ instructional activities. Results of the study showed positive influence of Goma curriculum on participating teachers and their instructional practices. Teachers were shown to have had cognitive, instructional, emotional, and social experiences that were most evident when they reported changes in their attitudes toward their students, themselves, and their instructional practices. The present study provided implications for classroom teachers wherein all aspects of teachers’ instructional practices can be guided by principles of positive character; and can be used to help compose the kinds of “texts” that may likely contribute to a classroom character culture.

The Relationships between Elementary School Principals' Emotional Intelligence, Leadership Style and School Culture

The role of the principal in school settings and the principal’s perceived effect on student achievement have frequently been considered vital factors in school reform. The relationships between emotional intelligence, leadership style and school culture have been widely studied. The literature reveals agreement among scholars regarding the principal’s vital role in developing and fostering a positive school culture. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between elementary school principals’ emotional intelligence, leadership style and school culture. The researcher implemented a non-experimental ex post facto research design to investigate four specific research hypotheses. Utilizing the Qualtrics Survey Software, 57 elementary school principals within a large urban school district in southeast Florida completed the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), and 850 of their faculty members completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ Form 5X). Faculty responses to the school district’s School Climate Survey retrieved from the district’s web site were used as the measure of school culture. Linear regression analyses revealed significant positive associations between emotional intelligence and the following leadership measures: Idealized Influence-Attributes (β = .23, p = < .05), Idealized Influence-Behaviors (β = .34, p = < .01), Inspirational Motivation (β = .39, p = < .01) and Contingent Reward (β = .33, p = < .01). Hierarchical regression analyses revealed positive associations between school culture and both transformational and transactional leadership measures, and negative associations between school culture and passive-avoidant leadership measures. Significant positive associations were found between school culture and the principals’ emotional intelligence over and above leadership style. Hierarchical linear regressions to test the statistical hypothesis developed to account for alternative explanations revealed significant associations between leadership style and school culture over and above school grade. These results suggest that emotional intelligence merits consideration in the development of leadership theory. Practical implications include suggestions that principals employ both transformational and transactional leadership strategies, and focus on developing their level of emotional intelligence. The associations between emotional intelligence, transformational leadership, Contingent Reward and school culture found in this study validate the role of the principal as the leader of school reform.