Theses and Dissertations from UMD
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2
New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item Reimagining Black Carceral Masculinities and Community Care Work: A Study of Credible Messengers in the Nation’s Capital(2024) Martinez, Rod; Ray, Rashawn; Sociology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The following dissertation examines a group of community workers known as credible messengers in Washington, D.C. Credible messengers have lived experience surviving carceral systems such as prisons and environments and have transformed their lives to guide, relate to, and support others who share their backgrounds. Their credibility stems directly from their intimate knowledge of the communities they serve. This dissertation project draws on qualitative interviews with male credible messengers from a more considerable multi-year evaluation of a newly implemented credible messenger program housed in a youth agency. Sociologically, the project explores Black carceral masculinities and mentoring as civic engagement. The findings reveal how men resist and challenge prevailing notions around hegemonic and carceral masculinities through their racially gendered experiences, which shape how they approach their work with youth. The study also suggests that the men engage in credible messenger work for motivations other than redemption and in service of a larger mission to Black youth and their local communities. The dissertation project also includes a conversation with a formerly incarcerated public figure from Washington, D.C., as a call to action to researchers and others to uplift the experience of impacted people and communities. The dissertation project concludes with a set of recommendations aimed at policy and practice as it relates to criminalized Black men and boys.Item DESIGNING FOR THE PEOPLE: A PARTICIPATORY DESIGN APPROACH FOR DUANE AVENUE PARK(2022) Stokes, Bridget Allison; Kweon, Byoung-Suk; Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Health disparities in physical, psychological, and social well-being are known to exist among underserved and marginalized populations, and although it is widely accepted that public parks and greenspaces can provide these physical, mental and social benefits, underserved and minority communities are more likely to have an unequitable distribution of quality parks. Quality and maintenance of parks are important because neglect of existing parks can cause parks to be dangerous and unwelcoming spaces that diminish the value and benefits that these greenspaces can provide for residents. Underserved communities cannot typically afford landscape architecture services and historically, residents of these communities have been left out of the decision-making process when funding for parks have been distributed. One way that these distributional and procedural environmental injustices can be solved is through the work of non-profit community development organizations that utilize community engagement tools. Using a participatory design approach, this thesis explores how to redesign Duane Avenue Park, a neglected park located in south Baltimore, Maryland. The park design will be used by a local non-profit, the Greater Baybrook Alliance, to write proposals for grant funding for the future implementation of the Park. By researching literature related to this topic, performing site inventory and analysis, and conducting thorough stakeholder and community engagement through surveys, in-person events, and one-on-one interactions, I created a proposed site plan that addressed the following design goals: Goal 1: Improve Perception of Safety & Discourage Negative Uses Goal 2: Design an Adventure Park that Encourages Play and Connections with Nature Goal 3: Create Spaces for Gathering and other Activity Generators Goal 4: Incorporate Public Art While this is not meant to provide evidence that one park can resolve all the issues a community faces, it can show that parks can be part of a larger community strategy that can help to address some issues such as health disparities, safety, and environmental justice.Item COMMUNITY BASED APPROACHES TO STORMWATER DESIGN IN A BALTIMORE NEIGHBORHOOD(2012) Clarkwest, Jennifer Zoe; Chanse, Victoria; Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This interdisciplinary research-design thesis explores the role of resident engagement in developing a design criteria for urban stormwater runoff design solutions, urban greening, and activating public spaces in the urbanized McElderry Park neighborhood of Baltimore. Drawing upon stakeholder and resident interviews, community workshops, resident working groups, and site observations and analysis the designer developed design criteria for site interventions as well as neighborhood-wide programming elements. Residents identify jobs, safety and health as primary concerns. Beyond harvesting stormwater, site interventions must provide safety, education, entrepreneurial opportunities, exercise, etc. Building on community input, the design interventions proposed by the designer are site specific, but the intervention types are readily adaptable. The overall design process and programming strategies apply to a variety of urban sites. Given the amount of stormwater managed by the interventions, the potential jobs created by the interventions, and other benefits provided to residents, the model merits field testing at the neighborhood scale.Item THE EASE PROGRAM: THE DEVELOPMENT OF A DISTRESS TOLERANCE INTERVENTION FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS(2012) La Touche-Howard, Sylvette Antonia; Daughters, Stacey B.; Public and Community Health; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Although many middle school adolescents consider the middle school grades to be an exhilarating time of momentous change in their lives, others struggle not only with academic challenges but also with the inability to handle negative emotional states. Middle school adolescents often seek ways to cope with the distress they experience. Evidence indicates that adolescents are rarely adequately equipped with the necessary skills to deal with these stressful situations. Moreover, studies indicate that their distress tolerance, defined as the ability to persist in goal directed activity while experiencing emotional distress, is associated with increased risk behavior. Given preliminary evidence that low distress tolerance is associated with risky health behavior amongst adolescents, the overall goal of this study was to develop an adolescent appropriate intervention for improving distress tolerance skills, drawing on techniques from Dialectical Behavior therapy, with four main objectives: (1) to enable adolescents to understand the relationship between their emotions and behavior; (2) to educate adolescents on how to identify and label their emotions; (3) to teach skills to adolescents that will enable them to cope with their difficult emotions; and (4) to provide adolescents with skills that will enable them to avoid engaging in later risk behavior. To aide in the development of this intervention, a multi-method approach was employed using focus groups (n=20), in depth interviews (n=15) and a 3 round Delphi method (n=12). Results from this study were used to develop, modify and finalize a distress tolerance intervention (EASE- Empowering Adolescents to deal with Stress and Emotions) for middle school adolescents.