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Last Updated: Apr 09, 2025, 02:10 PM

Jennifer Schultze – Master's Thesis for M.S. in Forestry
Title: Efficacy of Predator Control as a Management Method for Northern Illinois Raccoons
Major Professor: Clay Nielsen
Committee Members: Brent Pease, Elizabeth Bach
Date: April 28, 2025
Location: Agriculture Bldg Room 209 and Virtual on Teams 

Abstract: Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are opportunistic and highly adaptable mesopredators that negatively impact several vulnerable avian and reptilian species. While predator removal has been used for decades, wildlife managers require more information about the efficacy and long-term feasibility of using predator removal to control raccoon populations. I determined the efficacy of raccoon removal within an urban-rural gradient by placing 109 camera traps (n=204 unique camera trap placements) across 6 study sites during February-August 2022-2024 to monitor raccoon occupancy before, during, and after trapping efforts were performed. During April-June 2022-2024, collaborators removed raccoons (n=771). Based on pre-removal abundance estimates, collaborators removed 81-100%, 38-100%, and 57-100% of raccoons from each study site from 2022 to 2024, respectively. Each year, 4 out of the 5 removal sites exhibited a decrease in raccoon detections directly after removal and remained below the estimates observed before removal for the rest of each camera trapping season (i.e., for 2-3 months). However, each subsequent year displayed abundance and raccoon detection estimates that returned closer to pre-removal levels for each study site (i.e., 10 to 12 months following removal). Each year, single-season occupancy models indicated detection and occupancy probabilities were highest before removal and decreased after removal for the following 2 to 3 months. From 2023 to 2024, multi-season occupancy models indicated colonization rates decreased across all removal sites from 49 to 8%, and extinction rates increased by 9%. In 2023 and 2024, the control site had extinction rates close to zero and colonization rates that increased to 80% by 2024. My results were generally similar across all removal sites for all years, suggesting that the observed results were not influenced by site-specific factors and thus generalizable across larger landscapes. These findings demonstrated a successful short-term population reduction and provided evidence for long-term feasibility, as indicated by a decrease in colonization and an increase in extinction at the removal sites. Establishing a long-term trapping program (i.e., 5 to 10 years) with bi-annual or multiple trapping

Sarah Willes - Art Exhibition for M.F.A. in Art-Ceramics
Title: Thereafter, We Became
Major Professor: Pattie Chalmers
Committee Members: Alex Lopez, Carey Netherton
Date: April 1, 2025
Location: Surplus Gallery at the Glove Factory
Time: 4:00 p.m.

Abstract: The thesis exhibition by Sarah Willes addresses connections between humans and plants and animals. Thereafter We Became presents a series of ceramic sculptures that are hybridizations between nature and objects. Starting with a realistic vision of nature and the objects, the show twists reality and adds surreal elements to merge subjects to be one individual. Flora and fauna magically grow into the shape of an object. By distorting logic, I explore a world where the lines between humans and nature blur to draw parallels.

Paul Utsler-Master's Research Paper for M.S. in Professional Media and Media Management
Title: Special Forces Portrayal in Video Games
Major Professor: William Freivogel
Date: April 7, 2025
Location: Virtual (Contact William Freivogel for the virtual link.)
Time: 11:00 a.m.

Ashleigh Spence - Master's Research Paper for M.S. in Professional Media and Media Management
Title: Planned Parenthood Generation Action: An Advertising and Marketing Plan
Major Professor: Bridget Lescelius
Date: April 8, 2025
Location: Communications Building 1214
Time: 10:00 a.m.

Noah Mardian - Master's Thesis for M.S. in Forestry
Title: Long-term effects of cover crops and tillage on nutrient loss in southern Illinois corn-soybean rotations
Major Professor: Karl Williard
Committee Members: Jon Schoonover, Jackie Gillespie
Date: April 23, 2025
Location: Morris Library, Guyon Auditorium, and Virtual on Teams https://msteams.link/7K4W
Time: 11:00 a.m.

Abstract: Cover crops can sequester nutrients in the winter and spring fallow seasons, thereby reducing nutrient loss. However, short-term studies cannot adequately capture cover crop benefits because their impacts are expected to accrue over many years. In 2015, a long-term study was initiated to determine cover cropping and tillage practices' effects on nutrient loss at Southern Illinois University’s Research Farms. Six treatments comprising the interaction of three cover crop rotations (hairy vetch, an oats and radish mix, and no cover crop) and two tillage practices (reduced-tillage and no-tillage) were applied to corn and soybean rotations. Treatments with cover crops were planted with cereal rye following corn harvests and hairy vetch and oats and radish following soybean harvests. Soil leachate samples from each treatment were taken within 24-48 hours following each significant rain event (>12.7mm) via gravity-drained lysimeters installed below the undisturbed A horizon. Throughout the five seasons when cereal rye was planted, no cover crop plots leached on average 0.33 kg nitrate-N ha-1 or 15.36% more than cover crop plots (p≤0.080). Treatments had no effect on nitrate-N leaching during hairy vetch/oats and radish seasons (p≥0.164), though there was a weak increase in nitrate-N leaching under the oats and radish rotation compared to the no cover crop rotation (p=0.142). Treatments had no effect on dissolved reactive phosphorus leaching in either cereal rye or hairy vetch/oats and radish seasons (p≥0.299). Soil phosphorus stratification was evident in all treatments, but the greatest differences between 0-5 cm and deeper soil depths occurred in the NCxNT treatment. Treatments had an inconsistent effect on dissolved nutrients in plant-available micropore soil water. HV and OR rotations significantly reduced nitrate-N concentrations in all soybean and cereal rye seasons (p

Cereal rye minimized nitrate-N leaching compared to no cover crop rotations by scavenging nitrate-N from the soil water but did so at rates less than other long-term studies. It’s suspected that hairy vetch’s capacity to fix nitrogen and the rapid mineralization of the low C:N biomass supplied the soil water with nitrogen at rates higher than it assimilates, leading to similar nitrate-N losses between hairy vetch and no cover crop plots.

Prashant Adhikari - Master's Thesis for M.S. in Civil Engineering
Title: Prediction of Horizontal and Vertical Components of Earthquake Response Spectrum using Support Vector Machine
Major Professor: Jale Tezcan
Committee Members: Debarshi Sen, Prabir Kolay
Date: April 10, 2025
Location: Virtual on Microsoft Teams- Meeting ID: 238 257 556 372
Time: 9:00 a.m.

Marlon Mike Toro-Alvarez - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice
Title: Integrated Approach to Explaining Digital Violence Victimization Experiences in School Milieus
Major Professor: Dr. Tammy Kochel
Committee Members: Daryl G. Kroner, Breanne Pleggenkuhle, Raymund Narag, Kyung-shick Choi
Date: April 23, 2025
Location: Faner 4235 SJPS Conference Room
Time: 12:00 p.m.

Abstract: This study investigates digital violence in schools by examining cyberbullying victimization among students in the St. Louis Public Schools system across three distinct periods: pre-pandemic, during the pandemic, and post-pandemic. Grounded in Flag Theory as a key integrative framework, the research incorporates elements from well-established criminological perspectives, including the General Theory of Crime and Routine Activities Theory. This theoretical integration enables a multidimensional analysis of both the stability and transformation of cyberbullying dynamics amid changing social and digital environments. Findings reveal that cyberbullying victimization remained largely stable across all three waves. However, the influence of key predictors shifted over time. Parental supervision consistently emerged as a protective factor, significantly reducing victimization across all periods, although it declined notably in the post-pandemic phase. Time spent online increased sharply during the pandemic and remained elevated afterward, yet its impact on victimization diminished over time, challenging traditional assumptions and suggesting a need for reinterpretation in light of post-pandemic digital behavior. Engagement with delinquent peers decreased across the waves but showed a modest positive effect on victimization in the post-pandemic period. Although the study did not reveal significant indirect effects, the findings underscore the enduring influence of direct social and familial factors on online victimization within school environments. Notably, the research identifies a potential post-pandemic increase in self-control, which aligns with the emerging theoretical notion of new global turning points, where critical events, such as terrorist attacks or public health crises, can reshape stable social behaviors, routines, and individual self-regulation. By mapping these changing patterns, the study deepens our understanding of cyberbullying in an increasingly digital world. It also provides valuable insights for shaping targeted policies and intervention strategies within educational settings in the post-pandemic era.

Lauren Pinson - Art Exhibition for M.F.A. in Ceramics
Title: Bitter Sweet Home
Major Professor: Pattie Chalmers
Committee Members: Alex Lopez, Carolina Alarcon
Date: March 2, 2025
Location: Artspace 304
Time: 11:00 a.m.

Abstract: Bitter Sweet Home is an exhibition that explores the expectation and subsequent judgment I feel I may face in my future in relation to objects and tasks within the home. Through themes of domesticity, surrealism, and femininity, I have created everyday objects out of clay that are gestural and reference the cartoon nature of Walt Disney's "Fantasia". Through this, my work begins to feel these objects have shifted from our everyday reality in the vignettes of the home that they are placed into.

Seth Tanner - Music Recital for M.M. in Music
Title: Songs of Love and Loss
Major Professor: David Dillard
Committee Members: Carissa Scroggins, Christopher Walczak
Date: March 1, 2025
Location: Old Baptist Foundation Recital Hall
Time:  3:00 pm

Abstract: The recital repertoire includes operatic arias from the Baroque and late Romantic periods, and art songs from the late Romantic period, early and mid Twentieth-Century. the repertoire is representative of a diverse sampling of composers, including Germany, Italy, Russia, Ukraine, France, and the United Kingdom. Program notes for each piece include a brief biography of the composer and their style, background details of the piece, and a musical or poetic analysis of each song with examples from the score.

Luke Poston - Music Recital for M.M. in Music
Title: Master's Recital - "Songs 'til the End"
Major Professor: David Dillard
Committee Members: Susan Davenport, Carissa Scroggins
Date: March 1, 2025
Location: Old Baptist Foundation Recital Hall
Time:  6:00 pm

Abstract: The repertoire list includes operatic arias from the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic periods, as well as art songs from the Romantic period and Twentieth Century. The repertoire showcases many composers from across Europe, including Germany, Italy, and Ukraine, as well as some modern composers from the United States of America. Program notes for each piece include a brief biography of the composer, background details of the piece, and a musical or poetic analysis of each song with examples from the score.

Liucija Balciunaite- Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Political Science
Title: The Surge of the Populist Radical Right: How Transnationalism and Party Systems Influence Populist Radical Right Success and Decline
Major Professor: Stephen Bloom
Committee Members: Benjamin Bricker, Tobin Grant, Kenneth Mulligan, Theodore Weeks
Date: March 19, 2025
Location: Faner 3324
Time: 3:00 p.m.

Hargrave Abby Lyn - Master's Research Paper for M.S. in Professional Media and Media Management
Title: From Expository to Participatory: The Reconceptualization of a Documentary about Dancing Grandmas
Major Professors: Jan Thompson
Date: March 24, 2025
Location: Communications Building 1032 (Dean's Conference Room)
Time: 11:00 a.m.

Abstract: The term 'participatory documentary' was first coined by Bill Nichols, a documentary theorist. He describes it as a mode of documentary where the observer interacts with the observed, and the filmmaker becomes a subject of the film. What started as a little documentary about a minor league baseball team's line dance group comprised of women over the age of 65, shifted when tragedy hit the 'observer. ' It turned out these ladies were now in the right place at the right time to help guide the documentary maker out of her grief. What resulted was a new documentary with a participatory mode.

Yifan Yang - Art Exhibition for M.F.A. in Art - Glass
Title: Live on the Surface
Major Professors: Jiyong Lee
Committee Members: Laurel Fredrickson, Pattie Chalmers
Date: March 24, 2025
Location: Surplus Gallery, 432 S Washington St, Carbondale, IL 62901
Time: 10:30 a.m.

Abstract: This artistic practice interrogates modernity’s fragile illusions through the lens of decorative repetition. Employing traditional Chinese motifs and industrial patterns as symbolic language, the work materializes in glass to juxtapose cultural permanence with material ephemerality. By replicating, distorting, and fossilizing ornamental forms, it exposes the tension between surface splendor and existential void in globalized society. The interplay of handcrafted fragility and mechanical precision critiques modernity’s commodification of value and emotion, while sandy textures and gilded surfaces question distinctions between artifact and replica. Through this alchemy of cultural symbols and personal memory, the practice reveals decoration as a mirror of collective postmodern anxiety.

A.B. Art - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Communication Studies
Title: Slant: Leaning Into the Aesthetic Possibilities of Performative Writing
Major Professors: Rebecca Walker Anderson
Committee Members: Craig Gingrich-Philbrook, Jonathan Gray, Sandra Pensoneau-Conway, Jacob Juntunen
Date: March 24, 2025
Location: Comm 2005
Time: 10:00a.m

Abstract: This creative dissertation explores the aesthetic potential of the practice of performative writing. While most performative writing texts in the field of performance studies feature traditionally published formats, this projects offers three arts-based excursions into performative writing that push the aesthetic limits of the tradition through visual poetry, comics, and collage. Chapter two uses visual poetry to create an evocative, colorful zine with two performative exemplars. Specifically, this chapter asks and answers what can happen when we embrace the visuality of the language in performative writing texts. Chapter three takes the form of a comic. It take the complex relationships between images, texts, and words in comics and graphic novels to explore the dynamic written performances possible in an extended exemplar about living through the pandemic. Finally, the collage chapter features thirty-eight performative pages embedded with theoretical writing. This chapter adds materiality to the performative writing toolbox. Themes explored in the creative sections of the chapter include LGBTQ identity, feminism, trauma, performance pedagogy, and mental health. 

Adam J. Cross – Ed.D. Capstone Report for Ed.D. in Educational Administration
Title: Impact of Principal Leadership on Teacher Retention in Southern Illniois K-12 Schools
Major Professors: Brad Colwell
Committee Members: Gary Kelly, Jason Leahy, Brian Chapman
Date: March 24, 2025
Location: Wham 219
Time: 1:00p.m

Abstract: The purpose of the study is to determine what impact principal leadership has on teacher retention in southern Illinois K-12 public schools. The significance of the study is to contribute to existing research on principal leadership and its impact on teacher retention (both positive and negative) by determining what characteristics of leadership implemented by southern Illinois K-12 public school principals By studying the principal leadership impact on teacher retention in southern Illinois K-12 public schools and connecting them to the demographics of the principal and school, leadership in rural public schools may be better understood as well as increasing teacher retention. This study of leadership and teacher retention will have noticeable administrative as well as student-based impacts. Specifically, school administrators can use these concepts to increase teacher retention in their schools, which may impact school culture by increasing student achievement, lowering disciplinary infractions, and creating a vision for the school beyond solely one person’s ideas (Gultekin and Dougherty, 2021). It may also be utilized by universities and administrator preparation programs to better prepare future administrators in leadership effectiveness. The Illinois Principals Association, Illinois Association of School Administrations, and the Association of Illinois Rural and Small Schools may also develop a mentoring guide based on the research to create more cohesive mentor-mentee programs.

Joseph (JD) Tanner– Ed.D. Capstone Report for Ed.D. in Educational Leadership
Title: Effectiveness of the Online Leave No Trace 101 Course
Major Professors: Brad Colwell
Co-Chair: Gary Kelly
Committee Members: Charles Ruffner, Grant Miller
Date: March 24, 2025
Location: Wham 219 and Virtual on Zoom https://ltcillinois.zoom.us/j/81980228873
Time: 11:00a.m

Abstract: This study examined the effectiveness of the Leave No Trace 101 online course in improving participants’ knowledge of the seven Leave No Trace principles. Participants completed a pre-course survey assessing their self-perceived and actual knowledge of these principles, followed by the online course and a post-course assessment. Findings indicate that the course significantly enhanced participants' knowledge, with post-course scores showing measurable improvement compared to pre-course results. Additionally, the study explored demographic factors such as age, education level, outdoor experience, and prior Leave No Trace knowledge to assess their influence on learning outcomes.

Paulo Vitor Mendes da Cunha - Master's Thesis for M.A. in Anthropology
Title: Beyond the Headstones: A Geophysical Study of Garrison Hill Cemetery Relocation
Major Professors: Mark Wagner
Committee Members: Ryan Campbell, Harvey Henson
Date: March 26, 2025
Location: Morris 480A
Time: 1:00 p.m.

Abstract: The historical nature and documented relocations of burials at Garrison Hill Cemetery at Fort Kaskaskia Historic Site in Randolph County, Illinois, motivate this thesis's exploration of the cemetery's underlying composition. Although official records state that all human remains were relocated from the town of Old Kaskaskia to the new site, evidence suggests that some may have been left behind, raising the question of whether the remains were truly moved or if only their headstones were relocated. The study collected and analyzed geophysical data from five grids within the Garrison Hill cemetery. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) data indicated subsurface anomalies associated with degraded and structured burials. Magnetometer data revealed further disturbances consistent with ferrous objects, possibly related to burial artifacts. These discoveries verified the presence of elements consistent with what is expected from a cemetery with interments, confirming that the remains were moved with the headstones. Socioeconomic and religious aspects of the cemetery's organization were also analyzed using data from the geophysical study. The findings suggest that graves associated with individuals of higher social standing tend to have greater durability and archaeological visibility. This study contributes to the field of historic cemetery studies by demonstrating the utility of combining geophysical techniques and historical information to investigate historical ii cemeteries non-invasively. The findings improve our understanding about the past of Garrison Hill Cemetery but also contribute to showcase how to conduct similar investigations worldwide.

Steven Kosco - Master's Research Paper for M.S. in Professional Media and Media Management
Title: Small Business Marketing and Advertising in Rural Communities: A Case Study of Southern Illinois Restaurants
Major Professors: Kavita Karan
Committee Members: Dong Han, Bridget Lescelius
Date: March 27, 2025
Location: Communications Building 1214
Time: 11:00 a.m.

Patrick Seick - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Communication Studies
Title: Disability and Personhood on Screen: An Autoethnographic Analysis of Million Dollar Baby, Gattaca, and Sound of Metal
Major Professors: Sandy Pensoneau-Conway
Committee Members: Randy Auxier, Jonny Gray, Dustin Greenwalt, Walter Metz
Date: March 28, 2025
Location:  Virtual. https://zoom.us/j/99838952021?pwd=5bjwNbWBTPHrDbb2nGrZQLbAvYX898.1
Time: 1:30 p.m

Abstract: The phrase “disabled person” is deceptive as it assumes the self-evidence and immutability of those with disabilities’ access to personhood. Due to legal changes, technological advances, and evolving sociocultural norms, disabled people find themselves in a constant struggle to articulate and defend their existence and humanity. This dissertation begins with this acknowledgement and utilizes the pervasiveness of popular cultural to explore attitudes and representations of disability.
In this dissertation, I explore how personhood and disability intersect. Specifically, I explore how texts of popular culture construct disability and then what those constructions mean for personhood. This analysis is responsive and contributive to extant, interdisciplinary scholarship that takes on these topics in a piecemeal and fractured way. This dissertation aims to bring together these two generative concepts – disability and personhood – to attend to the legal, social, and cultural landscapes that disabled people navigate and will navigate. To do so, I mobilize autoethnographic methods to analyze three cinematic texts: Million Dollar Baby, Gattaca, and Sound of Metal.
This dissertation explores various conclusions. First, it explores the various logics, visual rhetorics, and rationales offered for the deaths of disabled characters within these films, with particular attention paid to the deployment of a curative framework of disability. Second, it offers a unique perspective on the embodiment of disabled life. Temporality is a critical tool to understand the tension explored between the life and death of disabled characters. Finally, the ways that disabled people and their bodies are marked as fundamentally different are particularized and named. The past and future of disabled bodies are undoubtedly fraught; writing about those bodies that are rendered on the screen only reinforces the tremendous implications wrought for those bodies off the screen.

Lumban Arofah - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Anthropology
Title: Sensory Experience of Undocumented Indonesian Immigrants In Smallville
Major Professors: David Sutton
Committee Members: Jean-Pierre Reed, Mathew Greer, Ryan Campell, David Beriss
Date: March 28, 2025
Location: Morris 480A and on Zoom https://zoom.us/j/92722854131
Time: 2:00 p.m.

Yetunde Oni - Master's Thesis for M.A. in Philosophy
Title: Social Disparity Problems for Abortion Laws and Reproductive Rights in the United States of America
Major Professors: Randall Auxier
Committee Members: Douglas Anderson, Allison Hammer
Date: March 31, 2025
Location: Faner Hall, Room 3173
Time: 9:30 a.m.

Abstract: MA Thesis Defense

Monalisa Lamptey – Master’s Research Paper for M.A. in Communication Studies
Title: International Students and Cultural Adaptation: African Students’ Experiences at Southern Illinois University Carbondale    
Major Professors: Sandy Pensoneau-Conway
Committee Member: Craig Engstrom
Date: March 31, 2025
Location: Comm 2005
Time: 11:00a.m

Abstract: The increasing enrollment of international students in U.S. tertiary education institutions highlights the necessity for a deeper understanding of cultural adaptation experiences. This study aims to investigate the challenges and strategies African international students encounter while adapting to the cultural dynamics at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Using qualitative interviewing, this study explores how African students navigate cultural differences and respond to the social and academic demands of a new environment. The findings of this study revealed how faculty relationships and other resources from the university and surrounding community play a vital role in African international student’s adaptation process. This research contributes to the existing body of knowledge by offering insights into the specific cultural challenges faced by African international students, and by informing higher education institutions on how to enhance their experiences and facilitate smoother transitions into the U.S. educational system. Ultimately, this research recommends improvements in institutional support for (all) international students. 

Amin Asadollahi - Master's Thesis for M.S. in Civil Engineering
Title: Physiochemical Degradation of Microplastic Fibers from Synthetic Fabrics and Interactions between Nanoplastics and Natural Organic Matter in Aquatic Environments
Major Professors: Habibollah Fakhraei
Committee Members: Jia Liu, Sangmin Shin
Date: April 2, 2025
Location: Civil Engineering Conference Room, Engineering D, Room 23
Time: 4:00 p.m.

Delilah Presson – Art Exhibition for M.F.A. in Art
Title: Evanescent
Major Professors: Xuhong Shang
Committee Members: Erin Palmer, Najjar Abdul-Musawwir
Date: April 2, 2025
Location: Surplus Gallery, 432 South Washington, Carbondale, IL
Time: 1:00p.m

Abstract: Evanescent depicts endemic birds and flora found within the southern United States. The body of work is a series of mixed-media installation drawings on semi-transparent mylar. The work explores the disappearance of different bird species due to fragmentation, habitat loss, and over-hunting. These have been common pressures for many species we see in our day-to-day life.
Across history and across cultures, birds have been seen as omens. Various species have been associated with protection, success, disease, or even death. I utilize the imagery of birds as my own forewarning to our own demise. Perpetual production, consumption, and pollution, unstopped, will lead to humanity's own self-destruction.
These spacial drawings are intended to be experienced from both the front and back side of the mylar. The translucent quality of the mylar allows the picture plane to be manipulated by light, partially concealing the work from the front and revealing the imagery when viewed from the back.

Max Larreur - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Agricultural Sciences
Title: Spatial Distributions and Occupancy Dynamics of Carnivores in a Central Hardwood Forest
Major Professor: Clay Nielsen
Co-Chair: Guillaume Bastille-Rousseau
Committee Members: Eric Holzmueller, Brent Pease, Damon Lesmeister
Date:  April 4, 2025
Location: Agriculture Bldg. Room 209 and Virtual on Team https://tinyurl.com/39pez9fa
Time:  9:00 a.m.

Abstract: Extirpation of apex predators, caused primarily by anthropogenic alterations to natural environments and persecution, has led to mesocarnivore release in these areas. Mesocarnivore release is an ecological phenomenon in which mesocarnivores thrive in the absence of apex predator dominance within the carnivore hierarchy. Mesopredators fill this dominant role on the landscape as de facto apex predators, however, this can lead to changes in inter-guild species space use, predator-prey dynamics, activity patterns, and interspecific competition. Understanding patterns in wildlife spatial distributions, which indicate variability in habitat space use across spatiotemporal scales, is critical for developing effective management and conservation plans and leads to a better understanding of ecological processes. I used 2 independent camera trap datasets gathered throughout 16,058 km2 of southern Illinois, USA: one collected between 2008 – 2010 across 357 camera clusters and the other collected between 2022 – 2024 across 409 camera clusters. Using multiple occupancy analysis techniques and kernel density estimation, I quantified the influences of habitat features and co-occurrence of competing species on the spatiotemporal dynamics of 6 mesocarnivore guild members: coyote (Canis latrans), bobcat (Lynx rufus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis), and raccoon (Procyon lotor). Naïve occupancy (i.e., ndetected/nsurveyed) of gray fox declined from 0.20 to 0.06 between 2008 – 2010 and 2022 – 2024. Predicted occupancy ranged from 0.01 – 0.47 using the past dataset while the contemporary model had predicted occupancy ranging from 0.02 – 0.10, a 4-fold decline in occupancy estimates across 99% of my study extent. Most habitat features had different directional effects on gray fox occupancy between the 2 temporal periods, illustrating the complexity of gray fox habitat preferences and a shift in their ecology. Intra-specific activity overlap was high (range = 0.79 - 0.95) for my focal species between decades, however, activity patterns of striped skunk, raccoon, and domestic dogs were significantly different. Intraspecific diel niche also changed for gray fox, striped skunk, and raccoon. There were 6 interspecific activity patterns amongst focal species that had experienced a change in their significance between decadal periods. Native large-bodied carnivores had consistent different activity patterns with smaller-bodied carnivores and domestic dogs between decades. Larger-bodied carnivore species may be altering activity patterns of smaller-bodied members in areas experiencing one-sided-ness from mesopredator release, thereby decreasing competition and negative interspecific interactions. Coyotes and bobcats exhibited stability in occupancy dynamics at both narrow (coyote: γ = 0.89 ± 0.13, ε = 0.11 ± 0.07; bobcat: γ = 1 ± 0.01, ε = 0.00 ± 0.05) and broad temporal (coyote: γ = 0.96 ± 0.06, ε = 0.09 ± 0.03; bobcat: γ = 0.87 ± 0.14, ε = 0.31 ± 0.09) scales, supporting the idea of established priority effects. The extinction rates of smaller-bodied mesocarnivores, red fox (narrow: ε = 0.19 ± 0.40, broad: ε = 0.605 ± 0.11), gray fox (narrow: ε = 0.59 ± 0.16, broad: ε = 0.90 ± 0.04), and striped skunks (narrow: ε = 0.24 ± 0.13, broad: ε = 0.76 ± 0.06) dramatically increased and were higher than colonization rates, another indication that the establishment and persistence of these species is waylaid by extreme competitive exclusion from larger-bodied mesocarnivores. Furthermore, exurban environments are potentially increasing the complexity of these interactions, providing access to human subsidized resources. Co-occurrence models suggested that native and non-native co-occurrence increased with the presence of anthropogenic landscape features, increasing the chances of interspecific competition, human persecution, and potential disease transmission.

Janine Armstrong - Ph.D. Dissertation for Ph.D. in Communication Studies
Title: Communicating Ourselves: Erasure and Counter Discourse of Queer Christians of Color
Major Professors: Sandy Pensoneau-Conway
Committee Members: Craig Engstrom, Christina Ivey, Al Frankowski, Chris Wienke
Date: April 7, 2025
Location: Virtual (Contact Sandy Pensoneau-Conway for the virtual link.)
Time: 2:30 p.m.

Abstract: Queer Christians of color are rendered invisible in dominant discourse. European colonization and the entanglement of Christianity, racism, and cisheteropatriarchy throughout the past can still be felt across the world. These intersecting power structures reinforce the erasure of queer Christians of color. Using an intracategorical intersectional approach, I interviewed queer Christians of color to better understand the ways that queer Christians of color are erased from cultural discourse, the effects of the erasure, and ways to counter that erasure through communication. I grounded my research in current literature from identity studies, paying specific attention to literature about identities of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and faith. Additionally, I used erasure, counter discourse, and intersectionality as conceptual frameworks. Furthermore, I shared how virtual interviewing functioned in this research, creating the opportunities for dialogue with participants. Using thematic analysis with coding informed by the phronetic iterative approach, I draw themes and implications to address how identity, power, and agency function in the lives of participants. The findings show that queer Christians of color struggle with the effects of erasure – questioning their existence, confronting the moral implications thereof, dealing with strained relationships, and discrimination. However, the participants reveal their resilience through finding and creating safe spaces, having hope for a better future, and engaging in social activism. This research presents real-world applications for scholars and activists working with identity, erasure, counter discourse, and intersectionality. Also, this research builds upon and extends scholarship in communication studies.

Yuhua Wang - Master's Thesis for M.S in Geography & Environmental Resources
Title: Improving Detection of Soybean SCN Infestation Using Multi-Scale Remote Sensing and a Novel Vegetation Index
Major Professor: Ruopu Li
Committee Members: Justin Schoof, Jason Bond
Date: April 9, 2025
Location: Geography Conference Room
Time: 2:00 pm

Hunter Christenson - Master's Thesis for M.S in Plant, Soil, and Agricultural Systems
Title: Influence of Water Management and Hydrogel Use on Annual and Perennial Herb Growth and Productivity in an Extensive Green Roof Environment
Major Professor: Rebecca Lee
Committee Members: Steven Still, Kaitlyn Lamaster
Date: April 28, 2025
Location: Agriculture Building, Room 107
Time:  2:00 pm

Abstract: Urban agriculture is becoming increasingly important to provide sources of local food for urban residents. Extensive green roofs can be used to provide spaces for local agriculture in these urban environments, although extreme moisture and temperature conditions typically found in these systems can often be challenging for urban crop production. Therefore, two experiments were conducted on the Southern Illinois University – Carbondale (SIUC) extensive green roof that is located on top of the agriculture building. The first experiment evaluated the effects of a polyacrylamide hydrogel at 3 rates (0, 28, and 85 g per experimental unit), mulch (none and pine bark mulch), and irrigation frequency (1 L water per week or every two weeks per experimental unit) on the growth and productivity of two basil (Ocimum basilicum) varieties (‘Compact’ and ‘Italian Large Leaf’). The second experiment evaluated the effects of a polyacrylamide hydrogel at 2 rates (0 and 85 g per experimental unit), mulch (none and pine bark mulch), and irrigation frequency (1 L water per week or every two weeks per experimental unit) on the vigor, growth, and overwintering ability of two perennial culinary herbs, sage (Salvia officinalis) and thyme (Thymus vulgaris). For the basil experiment, weekly irrigation increased late-season plant vigor by 16%, fresh weight by 37%, and dry weight by 47% compared to biweekly watering. The use of pine bark mulch improved basil fresh weight by 19% and plant vigor by up to 32% compared to no mulch. Hydrogel application rates of 28 g and 85 g improved basil plant height by 42% and 32%, respectively, compared to no hydrogel, although no other growth parameters were affected.

For perennial herbs, sage had greater vigor, overwinter survival, and overall suitability for extensive green roof environments compared to thyme. Sage exhibited a 96% overwinter survival rate, 15% higher than thyme, and 32% greater late-season plant vigor. Hydrogel application at 85 g reduced overwinter vigor by 22%, which was likely due to substrate heaving caused by hydrogel swelling, although survival rates were unaffected. Weekly irrigation increased late-season perennial herb vigor by 19% compared to biweekly watering, highlighting the importance of consistent water supply for growth and overwintering success. These results indicate that supplemental water is an important consideration for sustaining culinary herb production on extensive green roofs with the increasingly hot and dry conditions provided under the climate change scenarios projected for cities currently having temperate climates.