2004 Sample Capstone Projects

Gender-Specific Programs for Incarcerated Females
This project focuses on the lack of gender-specific programs for the female offenders and provides evidence that substantiates the need to have such programs available to female offenders while they are incarcerated.  I focus on information that relates directly to female offenders as well as those programs female offenders have available to them while incarcerated.

Mentor: Ann Loper

 

Dreams, Visions, and Voices: Manifestation of Spirit in the Iconography of the Native American Shaman
The ethnographic materials of indigenous cultures throughout the world have been collected for many reasons: for their aesthetic appeal as objects of curiosity, as souvenirs or trophies; and as artifacts for scientific and anthropological study. Ethnographic materials are classified by law and museum policy as human remains, funerary items, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony. Sacred objects have been collected for the same reasons as the ethnographic materials listed above, yet many sacred objects were removed and destroyed by political and religious agencies in the processes of colonization and religious conversion. For nearly two decades, repatriation legislation and museum policy dictates the return of ethnographic material to native peoples. My research focuses on sacred objects as part of the iconography of Native American shamans that informed or influenced traditional Native American art. It has led me to the conclude that the 'sense of the sacred' has been an integral part of the processes of collaboration and reconciliation of two American cultures.

Mentor: Edith Turner

 

Organic Foods: Profit and Stewardship
My project focuses on the agricultural revolution that is occurring in the organic and natural food industry.  My presentation will illustrate how purchasing organic products produces a butterfly effect around the world.

Mentor: Karen O’Brien

 

The Armenian Genocide in American History, Politics and Consciousness
An examination of the American handling of the Armenian Genocide from 1915 to the present.  Despite being a topic of great interest during the First World War and during the immediate post war period, the Armenian issue was swept beneath the rug of historical anonymity.  This project explores how American foreign policy has dictated how the Armenian Genocide has been handled in American history, politics and consciousness over the past century.

Mentor: Ann Marie Plunkett, BIS Program

 

Experience & Identity in the African-American Community, 1865 to 1930: The Cases of Pleasant Street District, Gainesville, Florida, Nicodemus, Kansas and the Proffit Historic District, Charlottesville, Virginia

Shared experiences of many communities often tend to mask unique expressions and distinct characters which, upon closer examination, tend to come to light.  I seek to understand the connection of backgrounds and cultures in defining the unique characteristics of African American communities in the US during the post Civil War and Reconstruction period.  The paper looks at the cases of Pleasant Street District, Gainesville, Florida, Nicodemus, Kansas and the Proffit Historic District, Charlottesville, Virginia. These places offer various styles of churches in the midst of an architectural landscape that will be examined and compared to understand their differences.

Mentor: Louis Nelson

 

Help Wanted: The Impact of Employer Bias When Hiring an Ex-Felon 
This Capstone answers two central questions. Is there a bias among employers which unnecessarily bars ex-felons from employment? What are the rewards and consequences attached to the employment (or unemployment) of this at-risk population?

 

Mentor: John Corlett
 
Parent Teacher Perceptions: Parental Involvement in Middle School Education
This project is about parent and teacher perceptions about parental participation in middle school education.  This study consisted of questionnaires that recorded parent and teachers perceptions of beneficial parental participation.  As a result of the study, several suggestions were made to improve parental involvement and the parent-teacher relationship.
 
Mentor:  Harold Burbach, Curry School of Education
 
The Bloody Foundation: Exporting Democracy
American Foreign Policy is the cornerstone on which relations with the community of nations is based.  Today, a key portion of that is the policy of Nation Building.  Is this in fact a policy the United States should have embarked upon?  Utilizing a historic perspective and events as they are today will allow the presentation of a well balanced answer to this important question.
 
Mentor:  Peter Ronayne, BIS Program
 
Standing Out While Standing In ? Youth Volunteering
Despite the overall decline in volunteering, the rate of volunteering is rising among youth.  Studies have shown that youth volunteer an average of 3.5 hours a week.  What is it that influences this civic engagement among teens?  Research in this area is beginning to suggest that religiosity plays a larger part than previously thought.
 
Mentor:  Brad Wilcox, College of Arts & Sciences
 

Bringing the War Crime of Rape Into the Twentieth Century,  an Examination of the Conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina
My project examines the organizations, Nongovernmental and media, that aided women sexual abused/raped in Bosna-Herzegovina. From this examination I plan to show that these organizations are vital toward the prosecution of rape under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 27 Crimes against Humanity 1949.

Mentor: Ann Marie Plunkett, BIS Program

Using the Environment to Improve Learning
This capstone project deals with the environment as a  valuable and effective tool for learning. The environment should be part of elementary education. After examining a fairly new reform model called EIC, Using the Environment as an Integrated Context for Learning, the reality of implementing this new school |reform in elementary education is not only necessary to improve learning but extremely challenging to achieve.

Mentor: Robert Tai, Curry School of Education 
 

The Endless Truth About Custer and The Little Bighorn Disaster
A survey coverage analysis of written accounts on Custer's "Last Stand ". Come to an understanding of why the central controversial questions surrounding Custer's "Last Stand " are unanswerable. How historical events are shaped by different perspectives.

Mentor: Peter Ronayne, College of Arts & Sciences and BIS Program

 
Recorded Readings: Learning to Read By Listening
Research about the instructional technique of using Recorded Readings in the classroom to build fluency skills in beginning readers.
 
Mentor:  Frederick J. Brigham, Curry School of Education   

Applying the Cradle-to-Cradle Philosophy to the University of Virginia Food Services.
I am researching the economic and environmental feasibility of implementing a food-composting program at the University of Virginia food services. In conducting my research I have learned that the implementation of any such composting program affects numerous constituencies, including UVA Recycling, Aramark, Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, in addition to the University of Virginia itself.  
 
Mentor:  Richard Brownlee, Darden School of Business   

Product Information Management System (PIMS)
My research identifies the problems of product information flow from supplier to end user in the stone and tile industry.  The problems are examined within the context of communication channels, product identifications and subjective influences. Once defined, recommendations of effective PIMS systems are described.
 
Mentor:  Dan Bauer, School of Engineering and Applied Science
 
 
Explicating International Market‑Entry Strategies:  A Case Study emphasizing Wal-Mart in Asia
Mentor:  William J. Kehoe, McIntire School of Commerce and BIS Program   

Are You a Man or a Mouse?
A qualitative study of the costs and benefits associated with women “assuming” male personas in order to acquire and maintain leadership positions in the workforce.  Can they relinquish these roles at the “end of the work day;” do they feel isolated, demoralized? Will it ever end?
 
Mentor:  John G. Corlett, BIS Program
 
What Are the Attitudes of Salon Professionals Concerning Domestic Violence Training?
I have used a two-pronged approach to researching the above question.  The literature review examines the epidemic of domestic violence, the history of this initiative, and how other professionals feel about domestic violence training.  I also conducted original research by interviewing local salon professionals and asking them specific questions about their attitudes concerning domestic violence training.

Mentor:  Barbara J. Parker, School of Nursing   

Can You be a Pragmatic Anarchist?
Finding the connections between anarchist theory and pragmatism using original sources.  In order for anarchist theory to put their theory into praxis they need to embrace a new method of analysis and that is the pragmatic method.
 
Mentor:  Ann Marie Plunkett, BIS Program   

Rwanda : The Willful Indifference of the West?
An examination of the events surrounding the Rwandan genocide, the actions both taken and not taken by the United Nations, The United States, and other key western nations, in relation to the state-sponsored killings of the Tutsi minority. The aim of my research was to find out when the West knew of the genocide, and whether opportunities to save lives were overlooked and passed up.
 
Mentor:   Peter Ronayne, College of Arts & Sciences and BIS Program

 

The Impact of Education on Mental Models of the Individual:

Are Organizations Prepared?

My project is an attempt to describe and qualify the effect of education on adult learners and the integration of new learning and its associated personal change back into existing work structures.  It focuses on the concept of "Mental Models" posed by Peter Senge as a lens through which to describe personal changes associated with learning and is paired with studies in Organizational Behavior from a systems perspective.

 

Mentor: John G. Corlett, BIS Program

 
All Makes and Models
Understanding quality service, as perceived by the consumer, is critical to retaining customers.  Well informed managers can influence customer satisfaction by eliminating "gaps" that allow for loose interpretation of what constitutes quality.
 
Mentor:  John G. Corlett, BIS Program
 
Prescription Drugs for the Elderly:  A Hard Pill to Swallow?
With the dissatisfaction that Americans are increasingly voicing about our expensive, free-market healthcare system, we sought to uncover solutions to the inequities within the system - particularly those affecting senior citizens. It was our belief that there were policies being incorporated in the national healthcare systems of the United Kingdom, Canada and France that could improve availability, accessibility and financial equity in the US system.
 
Mentor:  William J. Kehoe, McIntire School of Commerce and BIS Program

Back to Marketing Basics for Corporate Restaurants
Research that looks at corporate owned restaurants' marketing strategies as compared to that of independently owned restaurants.  Finding under-utilized marketing attributes that could lower corporation's share of the projected $440.1 billion in sales for 2004 and future growth within the restaurant industry.
 
Mentor:   William J. Kehoe, McIntire School of Commerce and BIS Program
 
Poland and the European Union

Mentor: Ann Marie Plunkett, BIS Program
 
Implementing Paid Personnel Into A Volunteer System:  An Exploratory Study of Albemarle County Fire Departments
This study takes an in-depth look at the staffing structure of various fire departments in Albemarle County.  The focus of this research is based around the county government implementing career staff into several volunteer stations and what changes and reactions occurred. 
 
Mentor:  William J. Kehoe, McIntire School of Business and BIS Program
 
The School’s Role as a Support System for Fatherless Elementary School Children

Mentor: Joanne McNergney, Curry School of Education