Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
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The town of Guadalupe, Arizona has a long history of divided residents and high poverty rates. The high levels of poverty in the town can be attributed to numerous factors, most notably high rates of drug abuse, low high school graduation rates, and teen pregnancy. The town has named one of its most pressing issues of today to be youth disengagement. There are currently a handful of residents and community members passionate about finding a solution to this issue. After working with Guadalupe's Ending Hunger Task Force and resident youth, I set out to create a program design for a Guadalupe Youth Council. This council will contribute to combating youth disengagement. The program design will assist the task force in creating a standing youth council and deciding on the structure and role the council has in the town. I will offer learning outcomes and suggestions to the Task Force, youth council staff, and the youth of the youth council. This study contains an analysis of relevant literature, youth focus group results and data, and how the information gathered has contributed to the design of the youth council. The results of this study contain recommendations about four themes within the program design of a youth council: size, recruitment, activities and engagement, and adult support. The results also explore how the youth council will impact the power, policy, and behavior of Guadalupe youth.
ContributorsBalderas, Erica Theresa (Author) / Wang, Lili (Thesis director) / Avalos, Francisco (Committee member) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
There are many factors that influence the college decision process, but rural students face a unique set of challenges because of the environment in which they make the decision. This is a qualitative study that combines a review of previous literature on the subject with a survey of twelve students from the graduating class of 2011 in a rural area of Arizona. Results from the interviews found that the rural students consider the perception of importance of a college degree, parental influence, and self-discovery as important factors in the decision making process. In addition, not all non-college-going students felt that college was necessary for a better quality of living, but did express desire for more development opportunities while in high school. The findings resulted in the following recommendations for local educators to help students better navigate the college decision process: teach parents how to have more meaningful conversations, provide step-by-step assistance to students about the college application process, and provide more opportunities for self/educational/career development to students.
ContributorsCrow, Ellyse Diann (Author) / Wang, Lili (Thesis director) / Hollin, Michelle (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Division of Educational Leadership and Innovation (Contributor) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Department of Management (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
This thesis describes various steps in creation of Volunteer Meraki, an international volunteer organization. Continuing from the past findings from Nicholas Pfeiffer and Hunter Workman (Pfeiffer and Workman, 2016), a new study was held to examine the interest of students of Arizona State University in volunteering internationally and becoming involved with Volunteer Meraki as well as to investigate perceived successes and weaknesses of other nonprofit organizations focused on international volunteering. These findings of this studiesy guided guides the creation of the organization, the marketing plan, and the program design of Volunteer Meraki. The market research component of this program serves to help us decide the desirability of creating an ASU club, as well as helps us shape our organization to accommodate volunteers. Students were asked for their experience and interest in volunteering and clubs. The results of this study supported suggest the benefits of an ASU club, and inform on the major concerns volunteers have with volunteer projects and organizations. These results are addressed in Volunteer Meraki's marketing plan, internal functions plan and international volunteer program design. With findings on interests and barriers that students had in relation to international volunteering, Volunteer Meraki has been structured to address the concerns with organization administration, culturally competent programs, and contextually relevant impact on community development. With the guiding principles of mindfulness, sustainability, and integrity, Volunteer Meraki serves as an organization dedicated to building sustainable and successful partnerships that address the needs of marginalized and impoverished communities through mindful and culturally sensitive volunteer engagement.
ContributorsEusebio, Isabel (Co-author) / Bishop, Anna (Co-author) / Wang, Lili (Thesis director) / Steele, Benjamin (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
The purpose of this study is to assess the factors that motivate and influence 18-24-year-olds, compared to those of other age groups, to volunteer, specifically in local hospitals. Volunteers play an integral role towards sustaining nonprofit organizations (NPOs). For this reason, volunteers have the potential to impact the success and effectiveness of local NPOs including nonprofit hospitals such as Banner Health, Mayo Clinic, and HonorHealth. These hospitals rely on the services provided by volunteers to help facilitate their patient care and achieve their missions. An important component of the hospitals’ volunteer programs must focus on the recruitment and retention of volunteers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, volunteer rates are lowest among 20-24-year-olds. Since most college students encompass the 18-24 age range, understanding the factors that motivate and influence them could indicate why there is a low number of hospital volunteers in this age group. ASU students were surveyed regarding their volunteer history, volunteer motivations, and volunteer constraints. Their responses were compared to survey results from local hospital volunteers to look for significant differences or similarities which are highlighted in this study. A total of 183 ASU students between the ages of 18 and 24 completed the survey, and 58 of those students identified as a prior or current hospital volunteer. Three ASU students participated in a focus group. Out of the five Arizona nonprofit hospitals contacted, only one participated in the study. Banner Thunderbird Medical Center (BTMC) had 34 active hospital volunteers complete the survey. The BTMC volunteers who participated in the study were between 14 and 83 years old with the most common age being 69 years old.
ContributorsFasani, Sophia Maria (Author) / Wang, Lili (Thesis director) / Lyons-Mayer, Michelle (Committee member) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05