Civic and Community Engagement Commons^™

Our Obsession With Serial Killers: A Jeffrey Dahmer Media Analysis, Aysia Jo Hall

Honors Thesis

Social media platforms have developed a new form of true crime media. This paper aims to discuss media portrayals of Jeffrey Dahmer on the Netflix series “Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” YouTube, and other forms of new true crime media, while specifically analyzing videos from TikTok. The goal is to demonstrate why this type of media is created, explain why society chooses to view this type of media, and signify what changes have been made across true crime media to satisfy society’s needs of entertainment. By viewing TikTok’s about Dahmer and his case, three portrayal elements are found …

Social, Civic, And Institutional Trust: Necessary Conditions For A Pluralistic Democracy, Bruce L. Mallory

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this perspectives brief, author Bruce Mallory discusses how trust in social, civic, and institutional structures is a necessary ingredient for a healthy democratic society. Erosion of trust in democratic societies has negative effects for individuals, communities, and public participation in political and civic matters. Data from surveys of New Hampshire residents as well as national samples over the past decade show declining levels of trust in social and political institutions. This has been exacerbated in recent years by the global pandemic as well as increasingly stark political and social divisions.

Drawing on resources such as the 2020 New Hampshire …

Curbing The Campus Mental Health Crisis: The Role Of Extracurricular Activity Participation, Rosanne Villemaire-Krajden, Erin Barker

Journal of Youth Development

Worldwide trends suggest we are witnessing a global “campus mental health crisis” (Andersen, Holm, & Côté, 2021). According to the most recent US National College Health Assessment, over the course of a typical month, 29% of students chronically experience high levels of stress, 42% experience stress that negatively impacts their performance or progress towards their degree, and 66% feel hopeless (National College Health Assessment, 2022a). Study reviews in various countries indicate that the prevalence of students meeting criteria for a mental health disorder is alarmingly high (e.g., 25% depressive disorder, Sheldon et al., 2021). Accordingly, students’ demand for mental health …

Volunteer Training, Tenure, And Facilitation Of Essential Elements In 4-H: Examining Conditions That Promote Positive Youth Development Practices, Kimber Sarver, Kate Fogarty, Tracy Johns, Sarah Thomas Hensley, Dale W. Pracht

Journal of Youth Development

The 4-H program relies on trained volunteers to facilitate youths’ acquisition of life skills in relevant subject matter areas (STEM, Healthy Living). A large part of the 4-H professionals’ objective is to undergird their volunteers in program delivery. The content of volunteers’ training emphasizes the 4 essential elements for youth development programming, namely: 1. Creating an atmosphere of belonging for diverse youth; 2. Promoting generosity through service to their families and communities; 3. Supporting youth mastery of globally applicable life skills and specific skills within subject matter areas of expertise; and 4. Facilitating youths’ sense of independence by self-selecting topics …

A Comparative Evaluation Of Two Youth Mental Health Trainings For Volunteers, Monica M. Lobenstein, Shannon Sparks, Jennifer Park-Mroch, Danette Hopke, Jayna Hintz, Megan Suehring, Kea Norrell-Aitch, Karla Gearing, Michelle Gobert, Sheila Michels

Journal of Youth Development

Adolescence is a critical period for developing social and emotional habits important for mental well-being (Kessler et al., 2005). Half of all mental health conditions start by age 14, and the average delay between onset of symptoms and intervention is eight to ten years (Wang et al., 2007). Youth with mental health conditions are particularly vulnerable to social exclusion, discrimination, stigma, educational difficulties, risk-taking behaviors, and worsening physical health. Youth often do not get the help they need due to ongoing stigma and barriers in accessing mental health treatment. For example, in Wisconsin, 30% of the population live in a …

Impact Of Organized Activity Participation On Emotional Distress For Adolescents With Disabilities, Adam Langenfeld, Rebekah Hudock, Rebecca J. Dosch Brown, Marla Eisenberg

Journal of Youth Development

Adolescents who have been diagnosed with disabilities constitute a significant portion of the school population in the United States. For example, the National Survey of Children’s Health identified one in four children ages 12 to 17 as having special healthcare needs in 2019 (Data Resource Center for Child and Adolescent Health, n.d.). These adolescents are often diagnosed with a wide range of conditions, ranging from specific learning difficulties to more global delays across developmental domains. In the school setting, adolescents with disabilities often have an individualized educational program (IEP). Mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Educational Act (IDEA) of 2004, …

Table Of Contents

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Report On Findings From Household Needs Study, Paulin T. Straughan, Mathew Mathews

ROSA Research Briefs

The Household Needs Study (HNS) aimed to capture public perspectives on essential items and activities that are deemed necessary for a normal life in Singapore and to understand the extent to which Singaporeans are able to access these items and activities. To do so, the study adopted the Living Standards Approach (Saunders, Naidoo & Wong, 2022), which purports that individuals experience relative deprivation and/or social exclusion if they do not have access to items and activities that are deemed to be essential by society. In this study, a survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of around 4,000 respondents …

Community Development Through Summer Camps, Edgar Iglesias Vidal, Narcís Turon Pèlach, Pere Soler Masó, Lara Morcillo Sanchez

Journal of Youth Development

Summer camps are widespread in many countries and have a long history. Their contribution to children’s and young people’s leisure and recreation is widely acknowledged, as is their usefulness as an educational resource. That large numbers of children and young people across Europe attend summer camps is well-known; according to Eurofound (2020), most of the twenty-seven countries analyzed record student attendance at camps, and in twelve countries (including Spain) over 50% of young people take part. However, another study carried out in the member countries of the European Union (Plantenga & Remery, 2017) stated that when the availability, use, and …

Cameras For Girls: Nonprofit Spotlight, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Full Issue: Artificial Intelligence And Data For Nonprofit Organizations, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

A Blueprint For Future Achievements For Nonprofits, William B. Calder

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Nonprofit organizations hire strong leaders to articulate a vivid and persuasive picture of how the organization will be better, in a significant way, than what currently exists. Leaders should not underestimate the use of a powerful vision, as it is needed to help define the issues and challenges for stakeholders (inside and outside the organization). Leaders need to describe what success looks like and continue to task all stakeholders to assist in building the “dream.”

Operational and staffing challenges are more difficult for NPOs without an articulated, compelling, and concise vision statement. The resultant costs of not having this statement …

Revolutionising Nonprofit Verification With Ai Powered Intelligence, J Unsdorfer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

In an era where stakeholders increasingly demand clarity and honesty, the importance of corporate transparency has reached unprecedented levels. Both businesses and nonprofits are now faced with the challenge of effectively demonstrating their integrity and trustworthiness. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers promising solutions to these challenges by enabling deeper insights into corporate relationships. Venturefy, an Israel-based company, is at the forefront of this movement, using AI to decode complex data sets and verify corporate connections. This article explores how AI works, Venturefy’s unique approach to transparency, and its significant partnership with WikiCharities to enhance transparency in the nonprofit sector.

Research Summaries: Artificial Intelligence And Data For Nonprofits, Erica Jensen

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Enhancing Nonprofit Efficiency And Productivity Through Ai: Applications Of Chatgpt, Sam R. Calhoun, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

This article explores how nonprofit organizations can leverage AI to enhance efficiency and productivity. Key areas of impact include automating routine inquiries, supporting fundraising efforts, streamlining administrative tasks, aiding in program delivery, facilitating research and analysis, improving internal communication, and providing professional development. By integrating AI, nonprofits can optimize operations and focus more on their core mission, leading to greater social impact.

At-A-Glance Chart: How Nonprofits Can Use Ai/Chatgpt, Sam Calhoun, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Machine Learning For Nonprofit Organizations, Justin Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Nonprofit organizations are often looking for ways to increase efficiency while operating with limited resources. With data more readily available than in the recent past, machine learning provides powerful tools for unlocking valuable insights and enabling nonprofits to do more with limited resources. This paper explores various machine learning techniques to enhance nonprofit operations with an overview of machine learning approaches, including supervised, unsupervised, semi-supervised, and reinforcement learning, and their potential benefits for nonprofit organizations. A practical use-case of donor prediction for fundraising is presented to demonstrate how supervised learning can be employed to identify potential repeat donors. The neural …

Authorship In The Age Of Algorithms: Adapting Copyright Law For Ai-Generated Content, Sydney Thomas

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

In the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the relationship between technological advancement and legal protection for human creators has become increasingly critical. From Stephen Hawking's admonition of the potential risks of unregulated AI to Sam Altman's advocacy for proactive regulation, this paper navigates the evolving landscape of AI innovation and copyright law. By examining the challenges posed by AI-generated content, including issues of intellectual property infringement and privacy concerns, it highlights the need for adaptive legal frameworks. Strategic enhancements to copyright law must be developed, such as bolstering fair use doctrine and expanding creator rights, to ensure the protection of …

Why Courageous Cuentos?, Back Matter 05

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.

Author Bios, Back Matter 04

CouRaGeouS Cuentos: A Journal of Counternarratives

No abstract provided.