Every Body Humboldt

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Becoming a 501(c)(3) under the Ink Peoples Dream Makers project, Every Body Humboldt aims to create accessible safer spaces for participants to learn skills and tools for regulating stress, healing trauma, making healthy social connections and creating new patterns. We’re currently working to eliminate economic, physical ability, and social barriers to learning these tools. Every Body Humboldt is working with folks at Humboldt County Correctional Facilities, with the general public at Om Shala Yoga, and Synapsis Nova, with intentions to work with drug courts here as well. I will be sharing some tools and literature for folks, while showing what is currently going on, our mission, and goals.

Examining the role of the ADCY5 point mutation p.R418W on cellular cAMP levels and how cAMP affects neuronal differentiation of murine stem cells

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

ADCY5-related Dyskinesia is a rare movement disorder, with early onset in childhood and adolescence. Previous studies have linked this disease to various point mutations in the ADCY5 gene. One study has demonstrated two of these mutations cause an increase in cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). However, the molecular basis of this disease phenotype has yet to be fully understood. Our study seeks to characterize the effects of one specific point mutation, p.R418W, on cellular cAMP levels using HEK293T cells, and to determine if increased cAMP levels affect neuronal differentiation using mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs).

Exploring Environmental Justice with Girl Scouts

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

For my service-learning project, I've teamed up with the Girl Scouts of Northern California to teach about environmental justice and the connections between social and environmental issues. The project aims to empower these brilliant young girls to take action locally and advocate for environmental justice. My presentation will summarize my experience working with girl scouts among different age groups, as the girls connect with each other to create community outlets for activism.

Farmworkers unions in CA

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

The poster will be on a research project I am currently working on involving the legacy of farmwork in California and their lack of support in regards to forming labor unions.

Fixed and Growth Mindset Shift Through Primed Short-Term Interventions

College of Professional Studies

There is more that differentiates students who succeed in school from those who do not, and focusing on differences in IQ will yield little to no knowledge about why some succeed and others fall behind. Research on growth and fixed mindset has shown that the way students perceive their intelligence, skills, and/or abilities has the potential to impact their academic performance (Dweck, 2006) . This study investigates the immediate impact of being presented with fixed or growth mindset information and uses time spent on problem questions as a measure of mindset.

Fluidity of Fragility: Modeling the Effect of Climate Change on State Fragility

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Summary of a mathematical modeling contest submission investigating the impact that climate change bears upon state fragility index, as defined by the Fund for Peace. Parameters used in this model include total annual precipitation and percentage of water made available to rural populations over a span of 24 years. From our model, we find that states that are fragile and vulnerable will be affected by climate change.

Food Insecurity Impacts Multiple Domains of Students’ Life

College of Professional Studies

Research suggests associations between food insecurity and poor mental health outcomes such as anxiety, depression, stress, and disruptions in social and emotional development (e.g., Knowles et al., 2015). The current study examined relationships between food security and mental health outcomes among 1,415 college students. We hypothesized that greater food insecurity would be related to more personal problems, academic concerns, lower GPA, and greater instances of poor mental health. The present study found that food insecurity related to negative impacts across students personal and academic lives. These results suggest that food insecurity may be a barrier to academic success.

Forest Education and Upkeep

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

I have been helping Redwood State Parks with trail maintenance, removal of invasive species, and interpretive hikes through Patrick's Point's native plant garden. The goal of this work is to help maintain forests and trails, and educate the public about the botanical features of the region. I have also helped a biologist map plant diversity in various parts of Little River State Beach. The goal was to detect differences in areas that were both disturbed and undisturbed. I hope to contribute to the upkeep of Redwood State Parks in a meaningful way, as well as inspire others to see the importance and beauty of the natural world.

Fortuna Firefighting

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

For my research project, I engaged in volunteer work for the Fortuna Firefighting Department. To fully engage myself into the lens of a firefighter, I signed up for the full academy and will earn fire fighter I status. This entails firefighter ethics and expectations, safety, communications, tools and equipment, water supply and hose lays, fire behavior, building construction, ventilation, loss control, rescue and extrication, and wildland fires. The firefighter code is to save lives, protect the environment, and protect property. With doing so, firefighters continuously adjust to diversity, personal characteristics, personal responsibility, and resistance to change.

Fostering Preparedness: Service Learning with the Red Cross

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Community preparedness for extreme geophysical events (floods, wildfires, etc.) is essential, especially since such events are projected to increase in terms of frequency and intensity due to climate change. For my spring 2018 capstone project I have partnered with the Red Cross to engage with their local preparedness programs. Our collaboration has allowed me to apply my GIS skills and participate in mapping their supply trailers and shelter locations, which I will overlay with additional data such as flood zones, wildfire prone areas, etc. The maps I will complete throughout the semester will provide insight regarding possible emergency scenarios and contribute to their effective planning.