A study of the differences among African -American, Hispanic, and Anglo women on the perceived barriers and strategies to career advancement in public school administration

Women have been traditionally excluded from the ranks of principals and district administrators in public school systems throughout the country. Traditionally, Anglo women have been more successful than African American and Hispanic women in breaking down the barriers that impede their ascension to the top. The purpose of this study was to ascertain how African American, Hispanic, and Anglo higher-level female administrators perceive the barriers that hinder their progress, the effects of the barriers, and the strategies to overcome the barriers. ^ Two hundred, sixty female administrators employed with Miami-Dade County Public Schools and serving in the role of principal or higher were mailed a questionnaire consisting of 49 questions centering on personal and professional characteristics, perceptions of barriers, perceived effects of barriers, and strategies to overcome the barriers. One hundred, seventy-five questionnaires were returned. To analyze the respondents' personal and professional characteristics, cross tabulations were conducted on the demographic information and on the strategies. ANOVA was conducted on the barriers and the effects of the barriers by ethnic groups. Tukey's test for post-hoc comparisons was utilized to identify groups with means significantly divergent from those of other ethnicities. ^ The data revealed that Hispanic female higher-level administrators who returned the questionnaire were more likely to be married and have children as compared to Anglo and African American female administrators. When addressing the barriers to career success, African American females had a higher mean score on 14 of the 17 barriers to career success as compared to the other ethnic groups. Hispanic female administrators proved to be more successful in utilizing the strategies to overcome career barriers. The strategy, forming a “New Girl Network,” was the least utilized with 79 of the respondents reporting that they had never used it. ^ It is concluded that there is strong need for female administrators to network, mentor, and support one another. Also, it is imperative that the success of particular groups in certain areas is shared with others. ^

Perspective Transformation Theory and the Donald Woods Experience: From Racist to Anti-Apartheid Activist

This paper chronicles White South African journalist Donald Woods’ life (1933-2001) as he transformed from holding racist beliefs that Blacks were “people who were there to be your servants,” to becoming one of his country’s leading anti-apartheid activists. Adult learning and development via perspective transformation theory are explored.

The association of depression and perceived stress with beta cell function between African and Haitian Americans with and without type 2 diabetes

Background: Diabetes and diabetes-related complications are major causes of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Depressive symptoms and perceived stress have been identified as possible risk factors for beta cell dysfunction and diabetes. The purpose of this study was to assess associations between depression symptoms and perceived stress with beta cell function between African and Haitian Americans with and without type 2 diabetes. Participants and Methods: Informed consent and data were available for 462 participants (231 African Americans and 231 Haitian Americans) for this cross-sectional study. A demographic questionnaire developed by the Primary Investigator was used to collect information regarding age, gender, smoking, and ethnicity. Diabetes status was determined by self-report and confirmed by fasting blood glucose. Anthropometrics (weight, and height and waist circumference) and vital signs (blood pressure) were taken. Blood samples were drawn after 8 10 hours over-night fasting to measure lipid panel, fasting plasma glucose and serum insulin concentrations. The homeostatic model assessment, version 2 (HOMA2) computer model was used to calculate beta cell function. Depression was assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and stress levels were assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Results: Moderate to severe depressive symptoms were more likely for persons with diabetes (p = 0.030). There were no differences in perceived stress between ethnicity and diabetes status (p = 0.283). General linear models for participants with and without type 2 diabetes using beta cell function as the dependent variable showed no association with depressive symptoms and perceived stress; however, Haitian Americans had significantly lower beta cell function than African Americans both with and without diabetes and adjusting for age, gender, waist circumference and smoking. Further research is needed to compare these risk factors in other race/ethnic groups.

Beyond Swastika and Jim Crow - a Black-Jewish Dialogue

The Coral Gables Museum hosts a panel discussion on the subject of the challenges and struggles faced by both African American and Jewish communities in South Florida. Panelists include Rabbi Solomon Schiff, former Executive Director of the Greater Miami Rabbinical Association Ms. Bea Hines, religion columnist for the Miami Herald Rev. Gregory Pope, Instructor in Religious Studies at Florida International University Dr. Oren Stier, Associate Professor and Director of Holocaust Studies at Florida Internationa University and moderator Dr Nathan Katz, Distinguished Professor and Director of Jewish Studies at Florida International University

The Use of Hyphenated Spectrometric Techniques for the Environmental Forensic Assessment of Non-Traditional Pollutants and Degradates in the Greater Florida Everglades

A comprehensive investigation of sensitive ecosystems in South Florida with the main goal of determining the identity, spatial distribution, and sources of both organic biocides and trace elements in different environmental compartments is reported. This study presents the development and validation of a fractionation and isolation method of twelve polar acidic herbicides commonly applied in the vicinity of the study areas, including e.g. 2,4-D, MCPA, dichlorprop, mecroprop, picloram in surface water. Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used to isolate the analytes from abiotic matrices containing large amounts of dissolved organic material. Atmospheric-pressure ionization (API) with electrospray ionization in negative mode (ESP-) in a Quadrupole Ion Trap mass spectrometer was used to perform the characterization of the herbicides of interest. The application of Laser Ablation-ICP-MS methodology in the analysis of soils and sediments is reported in this study. The analytical performance of the method was evaluated on certified standards and real soil and sediment samples. Residential soils were analyzed to evaluate feasibility of using the powerful technique as a routine and rapid method to monitor potential contaminated sites. Forty eight sediments were also collected from semi pristine areas in South Florida to conduct screening of baseline levels of bioavailable elements in support of risk evaluation. The LA-ICP-MS data were used to perform a statistical evaluation of the elemental composition as a tool for environmental forensics. A LA-ICP-MS protocol was also developed and optimized for the elemental analysis of a wide range of elements in polymeric filters containing atmospheric dust. A quantitative strategy based on internal and external standards allowed for a rapid determination of airborne trace elements in filters containing both contemporary African dust and local dust emissions. These distributions were used to qualitative and quantitative assess differences of composition and to establish provenance and fluxes to protected regional ecosystems such as coral reefs and national parks.

Hafnium and neodymium in surface waters of the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean

Radiogenic isotopes of hafnium (Hf) and neodymium (Nd) are powerful tracers for water mass transport and trace metal cycling in the present and past oceans. However, due to the scarcity of available data the processes governing their distribution are not well understood. Here we present the first combined dissolved Hf and Nd isotope and concentration data from surface waters of the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean. The samples were collected along the Zero Meridian, in the Weddell Sea and in the Drake Passage during RV Polarstern expeditions ANT-XXIV/3 and ANT-XXIII/3 in the frame of the International Polar Year (IPY) and the GEOTRACES program. The general distribution of Hf and Nd concentrations in the region is similar. However, at the northernmost station located 200 km southwest of Cape Town a pronounced increase of the Nd concentration is observed, whereas the Hf concentration is minimal, suggesting much less Hf than Nd is released by the weathering of the South African Archean cratonic rocks. From the southern part of the Subtropical Front (STF) to the Polar Front (PF) Hf and Nd show the lowest concentrations (<0.12 pmol/kg and 10 pmol/kg, respectively), most probably due to the low terrigenous flux in this area and efficient scavenging of Hf and Nd by biogenic opal. In the vicinity of landmasses the dissolved Hf and Nd isotope compositions are clearly labelled by terrigenous inputs. Near South Africa Nd isotope values as low as epsilon-Nd = -18.9 indicate unradiogenic inputs supplied via the Agulhas Current. Further south the isotopic data show significant increases to epsilon-Hf = 6.1 and epsilon-Nd = -4.0 documenting exchange of seawater Nd and Hf with the Antarctic Peninsula. In the open Southern Ocean the Nd isotope compositions are relatively homogeneous (epsilon-Nd ~ -8 to -8.5) towards the STF, within the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, in the Weddell Gyre, and the Drake Pasage. The Hf isotope compositions in the entire study area only show a small range between epsilon-Hf = +6.1 and +2.8 support Hf to be more readily released from young mafic rocks compared to old continental ones. The Nd isotope composition ranges from epsilon-Nd = -18.9 to -4.0 showing Nd isotopes to be a sensitive tracer for the provenance of weathering inputs into surface waters of the Southern Ocean.

Neodymium isotopic characterization of Ross Sea Bottom Water and its advection through the southern South Pacific, POLARSTERN cruise ANT-XXVI/2

Since the inception of the international GEOTRACES program, studies investigating the distribution of trace elements and their isotopes in the global ocean have significantly increased. In spite of this large-scale effort, the distribution of neodymium isotopes (143Nd/144Nd) and concentrations ([Nd]) in the high latitude south Pacific is still understudied. Here we report dissolved Nd isotopes and concentrations from 11 vertical water column profiles from the south Pacific between South America and New Zealand. Results suggest that Ross Sea Bottom Water (RSBW) is represented by an epsilon-Nd value of ~ -7, and is thus more radiogenic than Circumpolar Deep Water (epsilon-Nd ~ -8). RSBW and its characteristic epsilon-Nd signature can be traced far into the SE Pacific until progressive mixing with ambient Lower Circumpolar Deep water (LCDW) dilutes this signal north of the Antarctic Polar Front (APF). The SW-NE trending Pacific-Antarctic Ridge restricts the advection of RSBW into the SW Pacific, where bottom water density, salinity, and epsilon-Nd values of -9 indicate the presence of bottom waters of an origin different from the Ross Sea. Neodymium concentrations show low surface concentrations and a linear increase with depth north of the Polar Front. South of the APF, surface [Nd] is high and increases with depth but remains almost constant below ~1000 m. This vertical and spatial [Nd] pattern follows the southward shoaling density surfaces of the Southern Ocean frontal system and hence suggests supply of Nd to the upper ocean through upwelling of Nd-rich deep water. Low particle abundance dominated by reduced opal production and seasonal sea ice cover likely contributes to the maintenance of the high upper ocean [Nd] south of the APF. The reported data highlights the use of Nd isotopes as a water mass tracer in the Southern Ocean, with the potential for paleocenaographic reconstructions, and contributes to an improved understanding of Nd biogeochemistry.

Nd, Sr and Pb isotopes and clay minerals in sediment cores from the Gulf of Cadiz and the Portuguese margin

The assemblages of marine sediments on the SW Iberian shelf have been controlled by contributions from distinct sources, which have varied in response to environmental changes since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The rapid, decadal scale Mediterranean overturning circulation permits mixing of suspended particles from the entire Mediterranean Sea. They are entrained into the suspended particulate matter (SPM) carried by Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW), which enters the eastern North Atlantic through the Strait of Gibraltar and spreads at intermediate depths in the Gulf of Cadiz and along the Portuguese continental margin. Other major sediment sources that have contributed to the characteristics and budget of SPM along the flow path of MOW on the SW Iberian shelf are North African dust and river-transported particles from the Iberian Peninsula. To reconstruct climate- and circulation-driven changes in the supply of sediments over the past ~23000 cal yr B.P., radiogenic Nd, Sr and Pb isotope records of the clay-size sediment fraction were obtained from one gravity core in the Gulf of Cadiz (577 m water depth) and from two gravity cores on the Portuguese shelf (1745 m, 1974 m water depth). These records are supplemented by time series analyses of clay mineral abundances from the same set of samples. Contrary to expectations, the transition from the LGM to the Holocene was not accompanied by strong changes in sediment provenance or transport, whereas Heinrich Event 1 (H1) and the African Humid Period (AHP) were marked by significantly different isotopic signatures reflecting changes in source contributions caused by supply of ice rafted material originating from the North American craton during H1 and diminished supply of Saharan dust during the AHP. The data also reveal that the timing of variations in the clay mineral abundances was decoupled from that of the radiogenic isotope signatures.

Relative abundance of dinoflagellate cysts in surface sediments and dinoflagellate counts from three sediment cores from the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean

In this study we investigate the potential of organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts (dinocysts) as tools for quantifying past sea-surface temperatures (SST) in the Southern Ocean. For this purpose, a dinocyst reference dataset has been formed, based on 138 surface sediment samples from different circum-Antarctic environments. The dinocyst assemblages of these samples are composed of phototrophic (gonyaulacoid) and heterotrophic (protoperidinioid) species that provide a broad spectrum of palaeoenvironmental information. The relationship between the environmental parameters in the upper water column and the dinocyst distribution patterns of individual species has been established using the statistical method of Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA). Among the variables tested, summer SST appeared to correspond to the maximum variance represented in the dataset. To establish quantitative summer SST reconstructions, a Modern Analogue Technique (MAT) has been performed on data from three Late Quaternary dinocyst records recovered from locations adjacent to prominent oceanic fronts in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean. These dinocyst time series exhibit periodic changes in the dinocyst assemblage during the last two glacial/interglacial-cycles. During glacial conditions the relative abundance of protoperidinioid cysts was highest, whereas interglacial conditions are characterised by generally lower cyst concentrations and increased relative abundance of gonyaulacoid cysts. The MAT palaeotemperature estimates show trends in summer SST changes following the global oxygen isotope signal and a strong correlation with past temperatures of the last 140,000 years based on other proxies. However, by comparing the dinocyst results to quantitative estimates of summer SSTs based on diatoms, radiolarians and foraminifer-derived stable isotope records it can be shown that in several core intervals the dinocyst-based summer SSTs appeared to be extremely high. In these intervals the dinocyst record seems to be highly influenced by selective degradation, leading to unusual temperature ranges and to unrealistic palaeotemperatures. We used the selective degradation index (kt-index) to determine those intervals that have been biased by selective degradation in order to correct the palaeotemperature estimates. We show that after correction the dinocyst based SSTs correspond reasonably well with other palaeotemperature estimates for this region, supporting the great potential of dinoflagellate cysts as a basis for quantitative palaeoenvironmental studies.

delta Deuterium of alkenone and BIT index of sediment core 64PE304-80 samples

Reconstructing past ocean salinity is important for assessing paleoceanographic change and therefore past climatic dynamics. Commonly, sea water salinity reconstruction is based on foraminifera oxygen isotope ratio values combined with sea surface temperature reconstruction. However, the approach relies on multiple proxies, resulting in relatively large uncertainty and, consequently, relatively low accuracy of salinity estimates. An alternative tool for past ocean salinity reconstruction is the hydrogen isotope composition of long chain (C37) alkenones (dDalkenone). Here, we applied dDalkenone to a 39 ka long coastal sediment record from the Eastern South African continental shelf in the Mozambique Channel, close to the Zambezi River mouth. Despite changes in global sea water dD related to glacial - interglacial ice volume effects, no clear changes were observed in the dDalkenone record throughout the entire 39 ka. The BIT index record from the same core showed high BIT values during the glacial and low values during the Holocene. This indicates a more pronounced freshwater influence at the core location during the glacial, resulting in alkenones depleted in deuterium during that time and, thereby, explains the lack of a clear glacial-interglacial alkenone dD shift. Correlation between the BIT index and dDalkenone during the glacial period suggests that increased continental runoff potentially changed the growth conditions of the alkenone producing haptophytes, promoting coastal haptophyte species with generally more enriched dDalkenone values. We therefore suggest that the application of dDalkenone for reconstructing past salinity in coastal settings may be complicated by changes in the alkenone producing haptophyte community.

Organic carbon accumulation in the South Atlantic Ocean

A compilation of 1118 surface sediment samples from the South Atlantic was used to map modern seafloor distribution of organic carbon content in this ocean basin. Using new data on Holocene sedimentation rates, we estimated the annual organic carbon accumulation in the pelagic realm (>3000 m water depth) to be approximately 1.8*10**12 g C/year. In the sediments underlying the divergence zone in the Eastern Equatorial Atlantic (EEA), only small amounts of organic carbon accumulate in spite of the high surface water productivity observed in that area. This implies that in the Eastern Equatorial Atlantic, organic carbon accumulation is strongly reduced by efficient degradation of organic matter prior to its burial. During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), accumulation of organic carbon was higher than during the mid-Holocene along the continental margins of Africa and South America (Brazil) as well as in the equatorial region. In the Eastern Equatorial Atlantic in particular, large relative differences between LGM and mid-Holocene accumulation rates are found. This is probably to a great extent due to better preservation of organic matter related to changes in bottom water circulation and not just a result of strongly enhanced export productivity during the glacial period. On average, a two- to three-fold increase in organic carbon accumulation during the LGM compared to mid-Holocene conditions can be deduced from our cores. However, for the deep-sea sediments this cannot be solely attributed to a glacial productivity increase, as changes in South Atlantic deep-water circulation seem to result in better organic carbon preservation during the LGM.

Multivariate statistical analysis on the kaolinite/chlorite ratios from 20 South Atlantic sediment cores

Multivariate statistical analysis on the kaolinite/chlorite ratios from 20 South Atlantic sediment cores allowed for the extraction of two processes controlling the fluctuations of the kaolinite/chlorite ratio during the last 130,000 yrs, (1) the relative strength of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) inflow into the South Atlantic Ocean and (2) the influx of aeolian sediments from the south African continent. The NADW fluctuation can be traced in the entire deep South Atlantic while the dust signal is restricted to the vicinity of South Africa. Our data indicate that NADW formation underwent significant changes in response to glacial/interglacial climate changes with enhanced export to the Southern Hemisphere during interglacials. The most pronounced phases with Enhanced South African Dust Export (ESADE) occurred during cold Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5d and across the Late Glacial/Holocene transition from 16 ka to 4 ka (MIS 2 to 1). This particular pattern is attributed to the interaction of Antarctic Sea Ice extent, the position of the westerlies and the South African monsoon system.

The evolutionary relationships and age of Homo naledi : an assessment using dated Bayesian phylogenetic methods

Acknowledgements We wish to express our gratitude to the National Geographic Society and the National Research Foundation of South Africa for funding the discovery, recovery, and analysis of the H. naledi material. The study reported here was also made possible by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the British Columbia Knowledge Development Fund, the Canada Research Chairs Program, Simon Fraser University, the DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences (COE-Pal), as well as by a Discovery Grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, a Young Scientist Development Grant from the Paleontological Scientific Trust (PAST), a Baldwin Fellowship from the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation, and a Seed Grant and a Cornerstone Faculty Fellowship from the Texas A&M University College of Liberal Arts. We would like to thank the South African Heritage Resource Agency for the permits necessary to work on the Rising Star site; the Jacobs family for granting access; Wilma Lawrence, Bonita De Klerk, Merrill Van der Walt, and Justin Mukanku for their assistance during all phases of the project; Lucas Delezene for valuable discussion on the dental characters of H. naledi. We would also like to thank Peter Schmid for the preparation of the Dinaledi fossil material; Yoel Rak for explaining in detail some of the characters used in previous studies; William Kimbel for drawing our attention to the possibility that there might be a problem with Dembo et al.’s (2015) codes for the two characters related to the articular eminence; Will Stein for helpful discussion about the Bayesian analyses; Mike Lee for his comments on this manuscript; John Hawks for his support in organizing the Rising Star workshop; and the associate editor and three anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments. We are grateful to S. Potze and the Ditsong Museum, B. Billings and the School of Anatomical Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, and B. Zipfel and the Evolutionary Studies Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand for providing access to the specimens in their care; the University of the Witwatersrand, the Evolutionary Studies Institute, and the South African National Centre of Excellence in PalaeoSciences for hosting a number of the authors while studying the material; and the Western Canada Research Grid for providing access to the high-performance computing facilities for the Bayesian analyses. Last but definitely not least, we thank the head of the Rising Star project, Lee Berger, for his leadership and support, and for encouraging us to pursue the study reported here.

A Qualitative Study of Contextual Factors’ Impact on the Adaptation of a Caregiver-mediated Early Autism Intervention in South Africa

Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a major global health challenge as the majority of individuals with ASD live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and receive little to no services or support from health or social care systems. Despite this global crisis, the development and validation of ASD interventions has almost exclusively occurred in high-income countries, leaving many unanswered questions regarding what contextual factors would need to be considered to ensure the effectiveness of interventions in LMICs. This study sought to conduct explorative research on the contextual adaptation of a caregiver-mediated early ASD intervention for use in a low-resource setting in South Africa.

Methods: Participants included 22 caregivers of children with autism, including mothers (n=16), fathers (n=4), and grandmothers (n=2). Four focus groups discussions were conducted in Cape Town, South Africa with caregivers and lasted between 1.5-3.5 hours in length. Data was recorded, translated, and transcribed by research personnel. Data was then coded for emerging themes and analyzed using the NVivo qualitative data analysis software package.

Results: Nine contextual factors were reported to be important for the adaptation process including culture, language, location of treatment, cost of treatment, type of service provider, familial needs, length of treatment, support, and parenting practices. One contextual factor, evidence-based treatment, was reported to be both important and not important for adaptation by caregivers. The contextual factor of stigma was identified as an emerging theme and a specifically relevant challenge when developing an ASD intervention for use in a South African context.

Conclusions: Eleven contextual factors were discussed in detail by caregivers and examples were given regarding the challenges, sources, and preferences related to the contextual adaptation of a parent-mediated early ASD intervention in South Africa. Caregivers reported a preference for an affordable, in-home, individualized early ASD intervention, where they have an active voice in shaping treatment goals. Distrust of community-based nurses and health workers to deliver an early ASD intervention and challenges associated with ASD-based stigma were two unanticipated findings from this data set. Implications for practice and further research are discussed.

Women in the Global Clothing and Textile Industry

This paper examines the current role of women in the clothing and textile industry through oral history of South African union members. I argue that the industry’s particularly exploitative environment is directly related to both gender and globalization, acting together to worsen conditions in factories. Additionally, I argue that the more recent addition of an increasingly consumer-driven industry structure also impacts its abusive environment. Unionization, along with public and private regulation, have the potential to be catalysts for change in the industry. To be most effective, these organizations need to take into account both gender and globalization, and recognize the equal impacts both have when making decisions.