Gemstone Team Research

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/9070

The Gemstone Program at the University of Maryland is a unique multidisciplinary four-year research program for selected undergraduate honors students of all majors. Under guidance of faculty mentors and Gemstone staff, teams of students design, direct and conduct significant research, often but not exclusively exploring the interdependence of science and technology with society. Gemstone students are members of a living-learning community comprised of fellow students, faculty and staff who work together to enrich the undergraduate experience. This community challenges and supports the students in the development of their research, teamwork, communication and leadership skills. In the fourth year, each team of students presents its research in the form of a thesis to experts, and the students complete the program with a citation and a tangible sense of accomplishment.

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Author: search.filters.author.Alvarado, CamilaSubject: search.filters.subject.attitudes

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    Crime in College Park: understanding crime levels, perceptions, and environmental design in an off-campus student-occupied neighborhood
    (2011) Alvarado, Camila; Burton, Cal; Chen, Vivey; Cutler, Jessica; Debenedetti, Luciana; Derkacheva, Aleksandra; Lopez, Valentina; von Numers, Stephanie; Wellford, Charles
    Despite recently decreasing crime rates in College Park, fear of crime remains high. Additionally, while the crime rate on the University of Maryland campus is relatively low compared to the national average, crime in off-campus areas continues to be a problem. Crime mapping using spatial analysis techniques allowed the researchers to identify Old Town College Park as a student-occupied, off-campus residential area with a relatively high rate of larcenies, burglaries, and robberies. Through a longitudinal case study, quantitative and qualitative data about crime and students' perceptions of crime in the target were collected. These data were used to identify trends in how the rate of crime and perception changed in response to the implementation of CCTV cameras in Old Town. These data were also used to identify the correlation between crime level and the existing environmental design of the neighborhood's housing properties.