2024 Faculty and Student Research Poster Session and Research Fair

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Enhancing Business Students' Learning Experiences Through a Hands-On Research Project Using Wharton Research Data Services (WRDS)
(2024-03-07) McKee, Eric; Macy, Anne; Solis, Oscar
Wharton Research Data Services (WRDS) is a widely used database by researchers in finance, economics, and many other areas, and it also offers materials suitable for the classroom. In the fall 2022 semester, we implemented a WRDS research project in four FIN 3320 Business Finance sections. Students gathered financial statements for a publicly traded company using the WRDS database, calculated and analyzed financial ratios for the company and industry, and wrote a 3- to 5-page report. The finance project supports the Amarillo National Bank School of Accounting, Economics, and Finance's initiative to engage students with hands-on research activities by utilizing a professional national dataset. We developed the Student Perception of WRDS Research in Finance Courses online survey to examine business students' perceptions toward using WRDS and the research project. In addition to student perceptions, we examined students' knowledge of financial ratios, a first step in financial data analysis, and developed a pre and post-test to measure business majors' aptitude levels using and analyzing financial ratios. We address students' benefits and challenges of utilizing the WRDS platform and a hands-on research project in F2F and online introductory finance courses. The results show that online and face-to-face (F2F) students' general perceptions of using WRDS and hands-on projects were positive. Both groups of students substantially improved their performance on the post-test relative to their results on the pre-test. The poster also provides implications for business school administrators and faculty teaching undergraduate courses and working with business students.
Housing Voucher Discrimination and Deaths of Despair
(2024-03-07) Meredith, Neil R.; Brooks, Christopher A.; Meredith, Amy A.
Housing policy relating to the opioid epidemic is receiving increased scrutiny. Concerns have arisen that rejecting housing vouchers is harming public health. We estimate the relationship between legalizing housing discrimination of Section 8 housing vouchers (VDA) and deaths of despair using state level mortality data on U.S. adults from the Centers for Disease and Control database. Leveraging 2015 legislation in Texas and Indiana that legalizes Section 8 housing voucher discrimination, results suggest the policy increased the prescription opioid mortality rate by 2.438 deaths per 100,000 people. The findings imply that legalizing Section 8 housing discrimination may worsen public health in the ongoing opioid crisis.
Examining Factors that Explain the Cyberbullying of University Faculty During the COVID-19 Pandemic
(2024-03-07) Ramos Salazar, Leslie; Weiss, Adam; Yarbrough, Jillian; Sell, Katelynn
During the COVID-19 pandemic faculty were forced to transition their classes from face-to-face to virtual modalities. As a result, faculty spend an increased amount of time communicating using technologies in order to perform their academic jobs. Because of this transition faculty became more vulnerable to become cybervictimized in the academic workplace. This study obtained the perceptions of 179 faculty victims in higher education using Qualtrics. Findings revealed that faculty failed to adequately address cyberbullying incidents across relationship types (i.e., peer, administrative). Females were also more likely to be cyberbullied in comparison to males. Personality traits also played a role in being more likely to become victimized. Implications are also offered to prevent future cyberbullying victimization rates in higher education.
An Investigation of the Generation Cohort, Self-Efficacy, and Innovation of Faculty Teaching with ChatGPT in Texas Higher Education Institutions
(2024-03-07) Ramos Salazar, Leslie; Peeples, Shanna
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT is challenging the status quo of higher education institutions. In this study, the frameworks of diffusions of innovation, self-efficacy, and technological pedagogical content knowledge provide insights in the investigation of the use of ChatGPT in the classroom. The purpose of this study was to examine the generational cohort and faculty rank differences based on the types of generative AI used, learning approaches, and the integration of course assignments. Further, we examine the predictors of the use of ChatGPT in the classroom. Findings reveal generation differences in the use of ChatGPT. Further, both self-efficacy and innovation were significant predictors of the use of ChatGPT in the classroom.
Decoding the Wonders of Nanomachines
(2024-03-07) Ozmaian, Mona
Transducing chemical activity into motion serves as a pivotal element in the nanomachine mechanism. The enhanced molecular mobility has sparked controversy within the scientific community. Some studies indicate a substantial increase in mobility post-reaction, while others report no observable changes. In this investigation, we delve into the diffusion amplification following an exothermal reaction between two interacting species in an explicit solvent, employing extensive Langevin dynamics simulations. Our examination explores the impact of various parameters, including reactants' geometry and reaction energy. Our findings reveal no significant boost in the products of the exothermal reaction. However, when a polar solvent is introduced, a subtle increase in diffusion becomes apparent.
Comparing Automobile Accident Rates in Counties from the Texan Panhandle
(2024-03-07) Li, Wenhao; Ramos Salazar, Leslie
The purpose of this study was to investigate the accident rates of counties in the Texan Panhandle. Given the high percentage rates of fatalities and crashes reported, it is important to examine accident rates in order to prevent future fatalities. A comparison analysis was conducted using Tableu using Texan Panhandle data. Results provide the factors that contributed to vehicle accidents. Additionally, Potter County had more accidents in comparison to Randall County. Findings have implications for the safety of Texan Panhandle automobile drivers.
Flexible Foams and Elastomers from Castor Oil
(2024-03-07) Shrestha, Maha L.
Self-transesterification of castor oil was employed to prepare higher molar mass polyols possessing interesting properties. Detailed structures of the polyols were studied using various standard techniques along with spectrometric analysis such as MALDI-TOF/MS. Polyurethane elastomers prepared from these polyols provided soft material with low Shore A hardness. These polyols were also tested in molded polyurethane foams and their polyurethane properties were compared with that of the commercial bio-polyols.
The Impact of Financial Literacy and Estate Planning on American Households
(2024-03-07) Solis, Oscar; Gallardo, Juan
Estate planning has been an emerging research area in financial planning, as it recognizes the importance of distributing assets and minimizing estate settlement costs at the time of a person's death. Individuals and families use estate planning as a financial tool to transfer wealth and provide for loved ones after a death in the family, which often prompts a loss of financial resources for those left behind. Financial planners and advisors who create estate plans for individuals and families should address the difficulties that often occur when an estate is settled. Dancy and Loe (2021) reported that the most vital estate planning documents for financial professionals to draft for a client are revocable trusts, powers of attorney, and wills. A will, in particular, can be absolutely critical, because it outlines an individual's wishes for the way that their estate should be managed after their death. The awareness about wills may have increased in the minds of many during the COVID-19 pandemic, underscoring the urgent need for estate planning. However, although research has highlighted the importance of wills, Kim and Stebbins (2021) noted that 63 percent of adults do not have a will. Given the heightened awareness of wills, this research seeks to understand the role that financial literacy plays in an individual's decision to establish a will and thus be prepared better for uncertain times. This poster provides an overview of how financial literacy and financial knowledge, and the application of both, contribute to individuals' estate planning practices, as seen in the 2021 National Financial Capability Study (NFCS) dataset. Further, the poster highlights the link between a person's level of financial literacy and whether or not they have established a will. As such, the poster offers important findings for financial services professionals who engage in estate planning with their clients.
Financial Socialization and Behavior of Young Adults: Objective and Subjective Financial Knowledge as Mediators
(2024-03-07) Ramos Salazar, Leslie; Solis, Oscar
College students in the U.S. have faced severe financial challenges, throughout the pandemic and remain a highly researched demographic for investigating financial behaviors and decision-making (Robb & Chy, 2023). From a societal context, college-aged adults have sought financial guidance from their families and peers to learn about financial matters to make informed financial decisions. Using financial socialization theory and the theory of household consumption behavior, we examined the antecedents of financial behavior and the mediating role of financial knowledge on financial socialization and financial behavior. Students also face different financial socialization in their upbringings about financial matters that explain their financial behaviors (Antoni et al., 2019). Family and social factors such as income, financial attitudes, and financial behaviors may influence college students' attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors about financial matters (Serido et al., 2015). Using a cross-sectional survey in a public, state institution from the Texas Panhandle in the U.S., we analyzed data from 207 participants using a Qualtrics survey shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic. Results provide evidence that financial socialization and subjective financial knowledge are related to financial behavior. Findings supported the mediating effect of objective and subjective financial knowledge on the relationship between financial socialization and financial behavior. Additionally, household spending had a moderator effect on the relationship between objective knowledge and financial behavior. The current study also provides implications for education and financial stakeholders working with college students.
Graduate Nursing Student Success Modules
(2024-03-07) Phillips, Angela; Smoot, Teresa; Neely, Shaina; Rausch, Mary; Klaehn, Daniel; Mueggenborg, Lacy; Dowd, Whitney
Graduate Nursing Student Success Modules Abstract Writing is hard for every student. Strong academic writing is essential for graduate students. Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) graduate student writing is expected to stretch and grow critical thinking skills and therefore contribute productively to their area of interest within nursing. Faculty have expectations for students in writing as they enter into graduate programs. Effective instruction from faculty directly impacts student success; thus it is essential for faculty to lead students to develop their writing ability. At West Texas A&M University (WTAMU), in the Graduate nursing programs, faculty noticed that students do indeed struggle with writing. Analysis of the topics students most struggle with include paraphrasing, quotes, APA citations, and plagiarism. Students also lacked the skills necessary to utilize scholarly resources. In 2021, Graduate nursing faculty began working with library staff to formulate specific writing resources for students. An information guide began to be offered to students in the fall semester of 2021. Students can access writing modules directly through a library link. Beginning fall semester of 2022, MSN students recently admitted were required to complete modules before beginning graduate courses. The goal of this poster is to report ongoing use of writing modules within Graduate nursing at WTAMU.
Accuracy of VO2 Testing Using Apple Watches
(2024-03-07) Doernte, Lee; Phipps, Riley; Gamon, Jesus; Stout, Kara; Vance, Jodi
This study assesses the accuracy of VO2max estimations provided by the Apple Watch Series 5, comparing them with measurements obtained from the VO2MasterPro analyzer. Conducted on sixteen healthy volunteers, the study employed a crossover design with participants undergoing tests on both devices under different conditions. The VO2MasterPro analyzer's results averaged 39.9 ml/kg/min, while the Apple Watch estimated an average of 37.7 ml/kg/min. A paired t-test showed no significant difference between the mean values of both methods, but a weak Pearson correlation coefficient (0.2) indicated considerable variance in individual measurements. Notably, the Apple Watch demonstrated a gender disparity in accuracy, with underestimations more prevalent in female participants. These findings highlight the potential and limitations of wearable technology for cardiovascular fitness monitoring, suggesting the need for cautious interpretation of data, especially in clinical or research settings. Future research should explore larger, diverse populations and investigate the algorithms behind wearable device measurements to enhance their reliability and accuracy across different demographic groups.
Understanding the Texas Farmworkers, 1966-1982
(2024-03-07) Bowman, Tim
My research centered on the UFW-Texas Records at the Walter P. Reuther Library at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. My aim was to uncover the nature of a dispute that took place between César Estrada Chàvez, head of the United Farm Workers, and Antonio Orendain, his top representative in Texas from 1966-1975. Orendain split with Chàvez in 1975, dividing the farmworkers' movement in Texas for approximately the next decade.
Flee the State Fantasy
(2024-03-07) Biery, Piper
When individuals are confronted with encroaching state power in their lives they have historically had three general choices. They can: assimilate, fight, or flee the state. However, in the modern state system opportunities to flee the state have largely disappeared alongside frontiers' states administer over most spaces and technology makes individuals increasingly legible to state apparatus. Yet, there are some individuals who still look for this third strategy. In this paper I use the Sovereign Citizens Movement (SCM), an extremist movement grounded in conspiracy theories that individuals can become sovereign entities themselves, to illustrate the ways that some citizens have reinvented a flee the state strategy in an international system with no stateless spaces.
Tuning the Crystallization Properties of Advanced Phase Change Materials
(2024-03-07) Bithi, Swastika; Aria, Saman; Larson, William
Petroleum-based paraffin waxes are versatile phase change materials (PCMs) with attractive benefits such as high latent heat, chemical inertness, low vapor pressure, and good thermal stability. Nevertheless, a significant drawback of paraffin waxes is low thermal conductivity, making heat storage and release slow. Nanomaterials with high thermal conductivity can be used as dopants in paraffin waxes. However, the PCMs must undergo many heating and cooling cycles (>1000) in a PCM-based energy storage system. The stability and dispersion characteristic of nanomaterials after several thermal cycles also change the phase transition properties of PCMs. Due to the repetitive thermal cycle, little fundamental understanding exists of phase change behavior. We propose to exploit the effect of thermal cycles on the phase transition behavior of carbon nanotube (CNT) doped commercial paraffin. In this study, we take two approaches: 1) a bulk phase measurement of the phase change behavior mechanism (dispersion of nanomaterial, heat of fusion, crystallinity, and weight loss) using SEM-EDS, DSC, XRD, and TGA, respectively, and 2) parallel a phase contrast microscopy methods to directly visualize the stochastic nature of the onset of crystallization and melting of microcapsules of CNT-doped paraffin.
Engineering of a Microfluidic Platform for Investigation of Immersion Freezing in the Atmosphere
(2024-03-07) Bithi, Swastika; Das, Pronab; Aria, Saman; Devadoss, Timothy; Bhattacharia, Sanjoy; Hiranuma, Naruki
The West Texas A&M University Microfluidic Static Droplet Array (WT-MFSDA) platform was developed for studying atmospheric ice nucleation, specifically immersion freezing. It combines a microfluidic device with interconnected droplet parking traps and a unique hand pipetting method to create an array of nanoliter-sized droplets containing ice-nucleating particles (INPs). A commercialized cooling unit facilitates the visualization and characterization of freezing events in individual droplets. Each droplet is carefully isolated and covered with a thin mineral oil film, enhancing measurement reliability by eliminating artifacts due to surface contact, mass transfer, and evaporation. The WT-MFSDA platform allows simulation and investigation of immersion freezing in water and INP-involved suspensions at temperatures below -35 Â°C, with cooling rates relevant to atmospheric cloud updraft velocities. Temperature uncertainty is controlled within Â± 0.3 Â°C. Platform performance is verified using well-known bulk powder INP surrogates, such as illite NX, Snomax, and microcrystalline cellulose. The results from nanoliter freezing assays in WT-MFSDA are compared and validated against other freezing assays and published data. A calorimetry analysis of single droplet freezing is conducted to understand thermodynamics, kinetics, and exothermic energy release during the liquid-to-solid phase transition. Future plans include testing freezing properties of high-latitude soil dust samples from the North Slope of Alaska region using WT-MFSDA and integrating research and teaching activities by training students, and expanding laboratory exercises to classrooms. The advanced ice nucleation capabilities of WT-MFSDA enable enhanced science teaching in atmospheric ice nucleation research.
Of Flesh and the Feminine
(2024-03-07) Gamble, Misty
This research study led to the creation and production of a new body of work that exhibited at the National Council on the Education for the Ceramic Arts Conference (Cincinnati, Ohio), Louis Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts (Lubbock, Texas), and then will travel on to other national exhibition spaces and museums. The discovery of new knowledge leading to exhibition is the foundation of my creative arts research. I am currently looking at the overlap of feminist and vegan critical theory, the intersection of feminism and environmentalism and the relationships between human animals and non-human animals. I consider myself an animal rights activist that uses art activism to foster dialogue about the animals, earth, and interspecies relationships. With the help of the Kilgore grant, I completed a series of eight life size figurative ceramic sculptures each comprised of fifty individual ceramic slip cast parts. These ceramic sculpted torsos of women hold up gigantic heads of hair. Atop the head of hair sits metal soldered and woven "cages" or upside down French revolutionary era hoop skirt holdingÂ cornucopias of tassels, horns, synthetic hair, faux flora, faux fruit, and ceramic chicken feet, legs, and wings.
Musical Matrons: Women and the Early History of the Amarillo Symphony
(2024-03-07) Hieb, Kimberly
Founded in 1924, the Amarillo Symphony was first a pet project of the Amarillo Philharmonic Club, a vibrant and active group of women who regularly produced concerts and performed music at teas, luncheons, and other events locally. The first conductor of the Amarillo Philharmonic, as it was first called, was local piano teacher, Grace Hamilton, and the group's first performers were all women drawn from club membership. In fact, women have graced the stage as performers with the Amarillo Symphony since its very inception both as orchestra members and guest artists. Women composers, especially Texas Panhandle native Radie Britain, championed and were celebrated by the Amarillo Symphony. Women's activities with the Amarillo symphony did not stop there: the key benefactors of the institution over its one-hundred year long history were women. May Peterson Thompson, a metropolitan opera star who married Amarillo hotel businessman E.O. Thompson, was a key supporter of the institution in its early days, it was the women of the Amarillo Symphony Guild who rescued the institution from financial failing in the 1970s with a heroic fundraiser, and it was Sybil B. Harrington who established the endowment that gives the symphony relative financial peace of mind today. The Amarillo Symphony, unlike many other American symphonies, was formed and fueled by the work of women in the opening decades of the twentieth century. The organization was born out of a women's music club, women served as the organization's earliest performers, both in the orchestra and as guest artists, and key women were responsible for financially supporting the organization throughout its early history. The research presented in this poster charts this particularly rich facet of the history of the orchestra, which remains a bastion of culture on the High Plains. This poster introduces the integral role that women played in the establishment and early activities of the Amarillo Symphony. The poster highlights four categories of women who were involved in the Symphony from its earliest days including the clubwomen who founded the orchestra, as well as female performers, composers, and benefactors, and briefly summarizes their contributions and involvement with the Amarillo Symphony in its earliest days.
Rural Young Adults' Perceptions of Cannabis: A Survey Study
(2024-03-07) Chen, Li; Xie, Ming
This project examines rural young adults' perceptions of cannabis (marijuana). The results of a paper-and-pencil and an online survey yielded four major findings. The research findings show the associations between exposure to social media messages about cannabis, moral foundations, perceived risks of cannabis, attitudes toward cannabis legalization, and word of mouth intentions to talk about cannabis in person and online. Data analysis suggests that young adults' attitudes toward recreational cannabis and cannabis legalization are not predicted by time spent on social media, but are associated with specific moral foundations. The research findings show that health educators may consider embedding latent moral values in their drug-prevention campaigns that target rural young adults.
The Dalhousie Manuscripts Project: Navigating the Ethics of Digital Editing
(2024-03-07) Sprouse, Sarah J.; Valles, Sarah Banschbach
The objectives of this project are to produce a digital edition of a pair of manuscripts held at Texas Tech University's Special Collections collectively called the Dalhousie Manuscripts. This edition features high-resolution images of the manuscripts in a IIIF viewer, TEI-coded diplomatic editions of the text, bibliographies, and critical apparatus.
Texas Panhandle Schools as Sites of Opportunity and Exclusion for LGBTQ+ Youth
(2024-03-07) Peeples, Shanna; Kraus, Nicole Butkovich
Recent work has drawn attention to the relative gap in the study of LGBTQ life in the South and Midwest as well as "ordinary cities" and rural areas (Stone 2018, Robinson 2006). This study seeks to contribute to closing that gap while exploring the critical role of schools and the experience of secondary education for rural LGBTQ youth. As a social institution, schools play a critical role in the socialization of young people into future citizens, whether inside or outside the classroom. Increasingly, schools have become responsible for more and more of the work previously done by families, religious and social organizations, and the state. Relying on in-depth interviews with 20 individuals who graduated from small, rural high schools between 1987-2022, this study explores the educational experiences of LGBTQ+ students in the Texas panhandle, a notably religious and politically conservative part of the state despite the oft-ignored diversity of the region. Preliminary results expose a few significant themes for positive experiences including the importance of specific ally educators and using other high-status identities like academic achievement or athletics to mask sexuality. Respondents largely employ avoidance strategies and detailed awareness of safe/dangerous groups within their respective schools, and few report openly identifying as gay while in high school. Male respondents in particular noted the ways in which male gender expression was officially and unofficially policed. We conclude the article with suggestions for how rural schools might continue to acknowledge and incorporate diversities of all kinds into their educational repertoires.

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