Boiling Down: An Introduction to the Eureka Iron Works Collection at The Humboldt Room

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

This project investigates the Eureka Boiler Works Collection housed at Humboldt State University’s Humboldt Room by presenting the collection within a historical context, including how it arrived at the Humboldt Room. The social and economic context of the Humboldt Boiler Works will be addressed as well as the company’s impact on Humboldt County and the surrounding Pacific Northwest. The collection includes documents ranging from the late 1800s to the 1940s, incorporating employee records, product designs, correspondence and general company records. The project provides an overview of the contents of the collection.

Environmental Education through STEAM

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) programs for children is a well known concept to encourage more students to pursue education and careers in such fields, but what is missing from this? Art! The Arcata Afterschool Program in Humboldt County has taken the initiative to implement STEAM activities into their program to show that art and creative forms of expression is just as important of a field as STEM. As a part of our Service Learning project, we felt that environmental education with art was something we wanted to gain more experience with and decided to create our own lesson plans to develop our skills and teach a new kind of pedagogy to children in our community.

"A Feminist Interpretation Of Women's Work With Koloa In The Tongan Community"

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

This research involves studying the Tongan culture in the San Francisco Bay Area with a feminist perspective focused on Tongan women and Tongan cultural materials known as koloa. Koloa is a major component of keeping with Tongan traditions and customs. Koloa is used for all cultural, religious, and social events. Those with proprietary entitlement are women. Women create, collect, and sell koloa. Studying women and their dominant role as cultural providers will shed light on their valuable assets and talents within the community. The Tonga Islands are located in the deep South Pacific. The study was conducted from interviews with the women, observations, and a focus group.

"O’er the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave!" The Power of Our Official and Unofficial National Anthems

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

This study explores the historical origins and contemporary views of “The Star Spangled Banner” as the national anthem and three “unofficial anthems” in the United States. We define music as rhetoric and describe its role in promoting patriotism and fashioning identities. We conduct a rhetorical analysis of “The Star Spangled Banner” and discuss how it has become a rallying point - figuratively and literally - for first amendment rights by examining the wide array of actions and reactions to it. We describe the backstories of three unofficial national anthems and analyze how they have been transformed and appropriated by different groups and movements in the United States.

501(c)(3) development for local equine assisted growth and learning (EAGL) organization

College of Professional Studies

This project involved work with Flying Changes, a local EAGL (or horse therapy) organization. EAGL is an experiential therapy shown to be a powerful modality in treating all sorts of trauma and emotional issues, especially with those who do not benefit from, or are resistant to, traditional talk therapy. I worked to develop grant application and fundraising strategies, build lasting relationships with collaborating partners and inform the organization on existing research and education opportunities. I hope to have assisted in receiving sustainable funding, and in building a sustainable organization, providing EAGL to populations in Humboldt County who could benefit from its power.

A Multi-Cultural Approach to Lesson Study

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Through the collaboration between Humboldt State and the university HEP in Switzerland, we developed lesson study practices for English Language Learners at l'Élysée, a Swiss high school. Specifically, our main areas of interest involved assessing student engagement and learning. Our lesson was taught four times, and after each lesson, it was adapted to better match the needs of our students.

A New Look at Factors Influencing Iron Limitation of Phytoplankton along the California Coastline

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

While the ocean's upwelling regions bring nitrogen-rich water to the surface, evidence shows that the micronutrient, iron, can be limiting. In areas of low iron, the biological utilization of nitrogen is inhibited, preventing phytoplankton from fulfilling their productivity potential. It is thought that iron concentration of coastally upwelled water is tied to the coast’s geology , but there are more factors involved. To investigate this, we analyzed samples of California’s upwelling coast from published data that were deemed iron replete or limited. By studying the location's sea surface temperature and altimetry, plumes of water were proven an additional factor that influences iron.

A Search for Triggered Star Formation in the Compact Group of Galaxies NGC 5851, NGC 5852 and CGCG 077-007

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Galaxy interactions provide ideal conditions for triggering star formation, and impact galaxy evolution and the structure of the universe. I present analysis of one compact group of interacting galaxies. Areas of increased star formation are classified by the identification of the most UV bright regions within the galaxies. In order to gain deeper insight into how mergers drive galaxy evolution, star formation histories are determined by fitting ultraviolet to mid-infrared photometry to Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) models.

Advocacy for the Holistic Development of the Gut Microbiota in Young Children

Other

As a plethora of continuing research emerges from projects such as The Human Microbiome Project (NIH, 2008), there is more evidence than ever before on how the health of our "forgotten organ", known as the Gut Microbiota (GM), is linked to our lifelong holistic health. Between birth and 3 years of age, our GM will develop between 40-60% of the 100 trillion microbes that will coexist in balance with our bodies as adults; That is over three times the number of human calls in our bodies. That makes this short window critical to the physiological and mental health of our children. Spreading education while also providing resources for families is the primary goal of this collection of research.

Alcohol and Drug Resource List

College of Professional Studies

Social Workers commonly share that there is a lack of resources related to alcohol and drug treatment programs to refer clients to. Based on a review of alcohol and drug services available in the Northern CA region, I created a resource list on how to refer clients to a variety of alcohol and drug services including substance testing, assessment, and treatment in the region for Child Welfare Services. This resource list was developed to improve service delivery, identify services in the region, and to assist social workers in referring people who have court mandated alcohol and drug service requirements.