Category: 13 Spring 2015

Miles Adkisson

9/11 Conspiracy Theories and the Narrative Paradigm

Following the attacks that took place on September 11, 2001, many conspiracy theories arose claiming that the original explanation that al-Qaeda was behind the violent attacks, in which thousands of Americans were killed, were falsified to cover up government involvement in the attacks. Since the attacks, a wide variety of conspiracy theories have been put forward in websites, books, and films. This study seeks to explain which argument has more coherence and fidelity, according to Walter Fisher’s narrative paradigm, and why such theories arise following traumatic historical events.

COMM 407, Special Topics: Narrative Paradigm

Doyle Srader

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Shaneesa Applegate, Michelle Giron, Devyn Iglehart & Xiao Xiao

Beavers vs. Ducks Analysis Project

In this project the performance statistics of the University of Oregon football team and the Oregon State football team the last two season were analyzed. Along with pulling factual statistics information, a survey was conducted and passed it out to students/athletes and professors at Northwest Christian University along with a few non students. The questions asked through the survey were geared to figure out why they preferred one to another based off demographics. The data gathered through the survey was that people tend to like the team based off location rather than performance because it’s a sense of home pride. 

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Denise Barrett, Jessica Hirte & Sharaya Moretti

Drinking Habits on College Campuses

Drinking on college campuses can be a widespread problem. NCU is a small liberal arts college, which is right next to a larger public university, U of O. U of O campus has fraternities and sororities that tend to have higher rates of drinking. NCU does not have those environments, so there is likely not as much drinking. NCU campus is a Christian environment, which could have an impact. A survey was given to students at both campuses in order to gather information on their drinking habits. That information was compared to see the differences in drinking habits between schools. 

MATH 430

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Tim Bergquist

The Role of Mission Landing in the White Settlement of the Willamette Valley of Oregon 

Mission Landing, also known as St. Paul Landing, is located on the Willamette River about one mile west of the town of St. Paul in Marion County in the state of Oregon. This paper provides background on the landing and traces its role in the white settlement of the Willamette Valley. The religious, economic, social, cultural, and political impacts will be investigated along with family ties to the area. The Landing has been in the author’s family since 1870. 

HIST 499, Senior Capstone

Steven Goetz

L203

9 – 9:30 AM

Mishayla Bertelsen

Learning Abilities and Memory in Typical and Atypical Children

Learning abilities have a major impact on memory, which combined, play a dominate role in a child’s development. Different learning abilities can affect memory in typically developing students as well as those with learning disabilities like dyslexia and autism. Dyslexic children have a phonological impairment which affects reading and comprehension, therefore making retaining information challenging. On the other hand, children with Autism Spectrum Disorder have basic memory processes, but show impairment of organizational and complex processes. Research on the interaction of learning abilities and memory are important for understanding typical and atypical development.

PSY 499, Senior Capstone

Nani Skaggs

P103

10:30 – 11 AM

Carly Bigby & Joceline Howard

Classroom Incentives

In this presentation we will identify whether using classroom incentives are beneficial or not. There will be 5 main questions we answer: What is the difference between a bribe and an incentive, what are different types of incentives, what are the pros and cons of using classroom incentives, when should they be used, and why are incentives important. Through exploring and researching these questions, we will gain a further understanding of how to educate and manage our classrooms in a beneficial and productive way. Incentives are all around us and they are unavoidable. Learning how to recognize the difference between incentives and bribes is crucial in becoming a proactive teacher.

EDUC 321

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Grace Bowling, Torie O’Keeffe, Shaquille Poston & Melyssa Weber

Team Baldwin

We are Baldwin; a multimillion dollar sensor manufacturing company. One major sensor manufacturer went bankrupt and was broken into six individual companies. We compete with three other student run producers and the remaining two are computer operated companies. Our strategy is a differentiator with a product lifecycle focus. This means Baldwin creates varied product lines and charges a premium price for the high quality products. At the same time Baldwin aims to meet the needs of all of its customers. We believe in putting others before ourselves, so as we conduct business the aim is to enrich the environment, uplift employees, and treat customers like family.

BUS 499, Senior Capstone

Dave Quirk

P114

9 – 11 AM

Joshua Bramlett, Adam Crossingham & Shelby Lundquist-Adams

The Wonderful World of Forensic Accounting

Whenever people think about accounting the CPA accreditation automatically comes to mind. However, there are several alternative routes that one may pursue. Among them is the Certified Forensic Accountant, or CR.FA. In comparison to the CPA licensure, advantages of holding the CR.FA include enhancement of professional reputation/personal accomplishment, demonstrating a high level of commitment to the field, and ability to earn more money. The career outlook is strong, as this vocation is slated to grow 16% in coming years, compared to the CPA’s 13% projected growth.

ACTG 499, Senior Capstone

Stacey Lewis

P103

1 – 2 PM

Brittany Breeding-Ferrell, Nicholas Lopez, Travis Pacos & Rachel Stanton

Team Digby

This presentation will examine group Digby’s success, failures, and growth in using the Capsim computer simulation to practice strategic management in the marketplace as business decision makers.

BUS 499, Senior Capstone

Dave Quirk

P114

9 – 11 AM

Tianna Bushman

Competing Narratives: Is this systemic racism?

Fisher wrote that all people are storytellers, and that narrative rationality is determined by coherence and fidelity. Could Fisher’s paradigm prove useful in real world controversies? Brown, Baucham, and Anyabwile from the Gospel Coalition each offered a response to the Ferguson trial debates. Each of these individuals developed compelling arguments for the perspectives in which their narratives take place. In this study Fisher’s theories of narrative rationality and of the ideal audience were applied to these three narratives in order to show whether Fisher’s narrative paradigm could prove useful in assessing competing narratives in real world situations. 

COMM 407, Special Topics: Narrative Paradigm

Doyle Srader

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Tianna Bushman

Does dressing more masculine or feminine affect whether a woman will get hired or not? 

Dress plays a huge role in first impressions, especially in an interview setting. There are many studies on how masculine dress could portray confidence and thus help one in an interview setting. However, with gender roles and expectations changing, will dressing more feminine or masculine actually affect a woman’s chances of getting hired? 

COMM 499, Senior Capstone

Doyle Srader

A201

10 – 10:30 AM

Deborah Clark & Mindy McLeod

What Keeps People From Attending Church

We decided to do a survey to see if what Christians believe were the same reasons why non-Christians and people who identify as being Christian, but don’t attend church. The survey listed 10 reasons why people don’t attend church, with one of them being an open-ended. It also asked what can be done to get people to attend church. The project showed that there were some differences in what Christians believe about non-church attenders. 

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Chloe Davis & Colleen Walsh

Physical Activity in the Classroom

For our research project and ACE Day presentation we will be looking at how incorporating physical activity into a classroom’s daily routine affects students. Our research will contain four main points

1. Advantages of physical activity

2. Disadvantages of physical activity

3. What affect physical activity has on the brain

Our research will be based on first hand classroom experiences and previous research done by Fred Jones, Rick Wormeli, J. David Cooper and Dr. Harry Wong.

EDUC 321

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Amber Dellsite & Nathanael Gepford

Emotional Math

By adding daily bell work as instructional assistance in moving the class into an environment of learning, we are exploring the question, “Does it assist in classroom relations veered towards trust and cooperation and does it increase overall test scores?”

EDUC 321

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Trevyn DuBois, Emily Scotton & Skyler Waterman

Exploring Response Time of Various Domesticated Dogs

The goal of this study is to find the correlational relationships between different breeds, ages, and heights of various members of the Canis Familiaris (Domesticated dog) family in relation to the speed of learning a previously unknown behavior. It was hypothesized that at least the top 10 breeds would match the AKC standard. It was also hypothesized that the age of individual dogs would have a strong influence on this correlation. 

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Allison Duvenez

Ethnomathematics

The goal of this presentation is to broaden the scope of how mathematics can be used. Historically the information has been presented from a narrow frame of western culture. As an example of how there is meaning for mathematics within other cultures I will focus on the history of Native American and African tribes. It is the attempt to challenge the assumption that our western culture’s use of mathematics is more sophisticated or shows greater intelligence. Mathematics merely reflects the cultural need of a society. It is continually adapted through time by the culture at hand.

MATH 499, Senior Capstone

Connie Wilmarth

A201

10:30 – 11 AM

Jessa Fricke & Megan Temple

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Various Homework and Extra Credit Strategies

This research project is looking at the homework, extra credit and late work policies of our two classrooms and cooperating teachers and looking at the benefits and disadvantages of these varying strategies.

EDUC 321

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Patrick Fritter, Jonathan Jury, Barry Sommer & Hunter Tyler

Politics, Peace and Palestine.

Are political parties in Israel and Palestine promoters or obstacles in the peace process? What issues need to be addressed in the quest for an enduring peace? Special attention will focus on coalitions associated with Fatah, Hamas, Likud and Labor parties. 

HIST 410

Ron Palmer

L203

9:30 – 10:30 AM

Chandler Gabrio

Work Sample

I will be doing my ACE Day presentation on assessments and the data I have gathered from my work sample. The focus will be on 3 main students and how they were able to improve their work throughout my time in the classroom. There will be pre and post test data as well as other assessments I have made. I will also discuss how the affected my teaching.

EDUC 615

Vivian Moen

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Garth Gant, Julia Shoemaker & Mindy Smith

Team Chester

Team Chester is a manufacturing company that produces sensors and sells them to other manufacturers. Team Chester was created when a monopoly was split into six identical companies. At Chester, we strive to create a product that is made efficiently and with lasting quality, while still maintaining affordable prices for our customers. Our products will be reliable and familiar as they continue to be practical and useful for consumers year after year. We will be discussing how our company performed over the past 16 years, how our products fared, our position within the market, and our means of measuring success.

BUS 499, Senior Capstone

Dave Quirk

P114

9 – 11 AM

Susan George, Gio Guzman & Sharaya Moretti

Team Andrews

The business life cycle is dependent on both internal and external factors. Such factors include the importance of accurate forecasting, informed marketing, correct production levels, and developing a product that will continuously stand the test of time. Investments and financing also determine the financial health and stability of the business. Our strategy was to sell both high and low tech products with the best quality for the lowest possible price. This presentation will explore a comprehensive breakdown of how such factors were applied to our business strategy in a realistic simulation against five other businesses selling very similar products. 

BUS 499, Senior Capstone

Dave Quirk

P114

9 – 11 AM

Gio Guzman, Ciara Wainwright & Remi White

The Effect of Weather on Wave Height in Hawaii

In our project we are studying the effect of the weather in Hawai’i & whether or not it affects the wave height in the ocean. Our hypothesis is that weather plays a huge part in this society. With the seasonal changes that Hawai’i sees it becomes a huge problem & people are really able to see the difference of the waves based upon the four seasons. We also decided to look at the four main islands of Hawai’i, such as Kaua’i, O’ahu, Mau’i, & the Big Island. Once we narrowed it down on how each of the islands can have their own difference in wave heights based upon the weather that that islands see. We also want to know how the two main seasons, summer & winter, effects the wave heights because of the different climate each island has. 

MATH 430

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Candis Hatfield & Joseph Piper

How Performance Affects Different Clubs’ Fan Attendance in the English Premier League

Using attendance and performance data from multiple years regarding numerous clubs in the English Premier League, we will analyze the data in an attempt to support our hypothesis. A lower attendance is expected from a team that is performing poorly, while a higher attendance is expected from teams on top of the table.

MATH 430

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Breanne Johnson, Karen Reynolds & Darcy Snyder

Feast or Famine? How Does a Person Prepare?

For our project we are conducting a survey looking at the relationship between Stress levels and eating habits of students one week prior to a major test. Specifically, we are considering whether the students consume additional food or a smaller amount, and of those who eat more food are they making healthier choices? Or preferring to go the junk food route. Our pool of subjects will come from NCU students who are enrolled in two different Psychology classes here at NCU. Both the Personality and Cognition classes that we chose have a random selection of students from all grade levels.

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Linda Johnson

Evaluating Student Progress

This ACE day presentation will display the evaluation of three third grade students based on a pre-test, a performance task, and a post-test. The assessments were created from an area, perimeter, and angels unit. The assessment results will be represented through graphs, student work, and an analysis of the three students performance.

EDUC 415

Vivian Moen

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Jared Keeth

To Nashville and Back

Learning here at the University has been great, but that experience was the stepping-stone to my time in Nashville. At the Contemporary Music Center we lived, breathed, and hardly slept music. From all aspect of live production, building foundations in the studio, to taking a live hologram on tour, we got our education’s worth in a matter of a little over a dozen weeks. Not only was the experience great, but so was the content and creativity that came out of it.

MUS 499, Senior Capstone

Karen De Young

A201

9 – 9:30 AM

Allie Kelsey

Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment.

Substance abuse has steadily increased among adolescents in recent years. Current research has focused on treatment methods and important factors for effective treatment of adolescents. Family-based treatment methods such as Multidimensional Family Therapy and evidence based family interventions are beneficial because of the focus on family. In addition, treatment methods focusing on adolescent strengths, motivational interviewing, and self-teaching workbooks can provide some advantages. The need for adolescents to be committed, disciplined, and focused to treatment is crucial. Research shows that families, friends, and schools play a significant role by offering support and empathy for youth.

PSY 499, Senior Capstone

Nani Skaggs

P103

10 – 10:30 AM

Vickie Long

How Humans View Their Animals

For thousands of years animals have been part of human households. In the past they have held work roles, been used in religious ceremonies, and for security. Animals kept for the single purpose of companionship is a newer concept. This paper is meant to look at how humans of the 21st Century view their animals. Are the roles strict as in the past, or are these animals incorporated as a member of the household who also has jobs. The Survey of Animals will gather the data that will allow a small sample comparison. 

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Nick Lopez, Chase Pearson & Nick Peloquin

Becoming a Certified Management Accountant

The purpose of this panel is to describe the requirements of becoming a Certified Management Accountant (CMA). A CMA is one of many directions that an accountant can take. The CMA, unlike the CPA, is a worldwide licensure. In order to become a CMA several requirements must be met as well as a two part test. CMA’s are focused on cost accounting and the financial analysis. A CMA on average will earn 32% more than someone who is not certified and, on average, will make $105,850. 

ACTG 499, Senior Capstone

Stacey Lewis

P103

1 – 2 PM

Sergio Maldonado, Adrian Palacios & Nicholas Sullivan

Shots All Around

There are two aspects to perfect when playing the game of basketball; these two aspects are offense and defense. In our project we will be focusing on offense and more specifically the shooting percentage from the three-point line, the free throw line and overall shooting percentage from the field. Statistics have long been a part of the game of basketball and more specifically the NBA. The current study took 5 of the top teams from each the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference to compare shooting percentage and to see if there is a direct correlation to winning games. Comparing the shooting percentages of teams will allow us to see if a high shooting percentage is vital to winning games or are other aspects of the game such as defense.

MATH 315

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Patricia Martinez

The Influence of High Neuroticism and Low Self-Esteem on Disordered Eating Behaviors

Research suggests that there are many different psychological traits that may influence disordered eating behaviors which include anger suppression, negative affectivity, obsessive compulsive disorder, high neuroticism, and low self-esteem. Research shows that there is a strong positive correlation between disordered eating behavior and high levels of neuroticism or low self-esteem. Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are each influenced by a combination of high neuroticism and low self-esteem. These risk factors in combination with social influences may lead certain individuals to gravitate toward a disordered eating lifestyle. 

PSY 499, Senior Capstone

Nani Skaggs

P103

9 – 9:30 AM

Kaeli Massetto & Taylor Medley

Why Routines Create a Productive Classroom

A functional classroom incorporates routines throughout the day. Routines are essential for a teacher to have a manageable class. In order for routines to work, teachers need to give the students time learn and practice the routines that are set in place. By giving practice time and making sure everyone does it correctly, the students will be able to master the routines. The classroom will be a safe and consistent environment for the students because there are routines.

EDUC 321

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Megan McKinney

Life of a Blue Eyed, Blonde Haired Korean Youth Pastor 

I will be talking about what it’s like to grow up in an American Presbyterian Church and then work in one and then what it’s like working in a Korean Presbyterian Church. I will also talk about the history of the Presbyterian Church in the US and in Korea. 

CM 499, Senior Capstone

Terry O’Casey

P114

1 – 1:30 PM

Nick Peloquin

Relational Maintenance with College Peers and Richness of Communication Channel 

This study was intended to compare relational maintenance amongst traditional college graduates who have been graduated for three to six years from a private Christian university located in Eugene, Oregon. This research attempts to answer if the use of a rich channel of communication will correlate with the level of relational satisfaction, level of perceived closeness and frequency of contact. With the data collected the results indicated there was no correlation.

COMM 499, Senior Capstone

Doyle Srader

A201

9:30 – 10 AM

Madison Reed

Competing Narratives of Alcohol Addiction

This study looked at the competing narratives and explanation for alcohol addiction imbedded within the story, evaluated the fidelity and coherence of the two narratives, and how each of the narratives reached their audiences. From the two narratives, a coexisting narrative was formed to better account for the multiple explanations regarding alcohol addiction. 

COMM 407, Special Topics: Narrative Paradigm

Doyle Srader

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM

Chelsea Roberts

Technology Education Standards in Teacher Education Programs

This research project considered strategies and methods to foster excellence among teacher education candidates. The research considered scholarly journals and field-based observation from the EDUC 230, Technology for Teaching and Learning course. The findings suggest that effectively implementing ISTE standards with efficient classroom technology integration practices is necessary to inspire America’s youth and promote academic achievement. Therefore, teacher education programs should consider practical ways to address and support ISTE standards in K-12 classrooms.

EDUC 230

Brian Kaelin

Banquet Room

9 – 11 AM

Rebekah Rossberg

The Correlation between Attachment Style and Approach to Conflict

People have many ways of approaching conflict and of attaching to one another. This study investigates four attachment styles and five conflict styles. Attachment styles are based on the levels of anxiety and avoidance one typically has in a relationship. Conflict styles are based on the level of concern one has for the good of self and others when solving interpersonal conflicts. It is predicted that those who are avoidant in attachments will be avoiding in conflicts and those who are secure in attachments will be integrating in conflicts.

PSY 499, Senior Capstone

Nani Skaggs

P103

9:30 – 10 AM

Nicholas Sammut

A Second Look at the Bible Reading Habits of the NCU Community: Motivations for Faith

For ACE Day this study will be a second look at the Bible Reading habits of the NCU community. The previous study used a survey to gather data of the same nature. However, the 2014 data analysis was conducted under the business Statistics Course (MTH 315) that limited the scope of the study. The present study looks deeper at several critical dynamics of the NCU community and Bible reading such as the motivations for faith and subsequent Bible reading.

MATH 430

Tim Bergquist

Banquet Room

1 – 3 PM