The National Domestic Violence Hotline (2025) states one in ten high school students experiences some form of violence from an intimate partner. Domestic violence and relationship abuse in adolescence is often overlooked but has become a crisis in need of new prevention approaches. 

By uplifting and working with young people in our communities, we can work toward ending domestic violence before it occurs. Young people are often overlooked in conversations about change, yet they are crucial to creating a better future society. I am working with the organization Safe Passage, a nonprofit which supports survivors of domestic violence and relationship abuse. Their goal is to create a world free of relationship abuse and domestic violence. Safe Passage believes empowerment of individuals is crucial in ending domestic violence, and through empowerment, we can change society.

This service learning project empowers young people to make change in their community. The project includes ten after-school sessions working with a group of 7th and 8th graders from Hilltown Cooperative Charter School to promote healthy relationships, community building, strong communication, and conflict resolution skills. Focusing on the issues students identified, they are taught how to work with their administration to make change in their own school. The students learn they are capable of creating change in their own lives and community. Students learn the important role they play in creating positive social change.

Libraries aim to provide free access to books, information, digital media, and other resources to all community patrons. However, traditional physical books are disproportionately available and displayed compared to alternative book formats. Not only does this practice reflect and reinforce societal ideas about which book formats kids can “count” as reading, but it is a glaring example of how the access needs of patrons with disabilities are not being met in a public institution that strives to provide equitable access to knowledge. 

In collaboration with Youth Services at Jones Library in Amherst, Massachusetts, I am working to curate a list of the books and resources that are designed to support reading accessibility available for browsing on the Jones Library catalog. I am also creating a resource pamphlet version for patrons to use while exploring the in-person library collection. My ultimate goal for this critical civic engagement project is to increase community awareness of the alternative reading materials geared towards all different types of readers that are available at the library. Furthermore, public library collections depend greatly on the input and interests of community members. When more patrons know about accessible book formats that exist and how they work, they are able to make purchase requests to obtain additional accessible materials. 

As an Amherst community member and future Special Educator, it is important to me that this project helps more kids benefit from the library by accessing reading in the ways that work for them. 

The recent rise of large language models (LLMs) and generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has presented formidable challenges for educators, sparking extensive debates on how LLMs can be integrated into classrooms. Despite varying opinions, AI in education is unavoidable, and educators must act to prepare for the effects of GenAI on academic writing. Previous literature has studied either student or faculty perceptions of AI in college writing, but fewer studies observe student/faculty perceptions side-by-side. Students and faculty alike may hold uncertainties about AI use, including the ways and reasons individuals choose to use AI, and the discussions that the opposite groups are having about AI. One of the greatest obstacles to achieving more efficient adaptations of AI in writing education is the gap between student understandings of the technology and those of educators. This survey study records and observes both college student and faculty perceptions of AI use in college writing. Findings on students include the various ways students use LLMs, the reasons behind decisions to use LLMs, and student attitudes toward this usage. Findings on faculty consist of concerns about the potential effects of LLMs in writing education, understandings of how students use AI for writing assignments, and ideas of why students turn to LLMs. This study aims to bridge the conceptual gaps between students and educators regarding the application of LLMs in writing education. Doing so will allow educators to gain a better understanding of how to integrate this rapidly pervasive technology into their classrooms and curriculums. 

This study examines Pre-Service Teachers (PSTs)’ implicit preassumptions about elementary students’ capabilities in science classroom settings. Within a responsive teaching framework (Robertson et al., 2016), teachers are encouraged to attend to and build on students’ developing ideas rather than evaluating them solely against predetermined expectations. When PSTs hold strong assumptions about what students of a particular age should or should not understand, those assumptions may influence what they notice in classroom interactions and how they interpret students’ contributions.

The data were drawn from Spring 2024 course assignments both at the beginning of the semester and the end in which PSTs wrote reflective essays after viewing a classroom video of elementary students collaboratively making sense of how electrical circuits work. Using qualitative analysis informed by both inductive and deductive coding approaches, patterns were identified in PSTs’ written reflections. 

The analysis revealed that PSTs frequently expressed expectations about children’s cognitive abilities and science understanding when interpreting the classroom interaction. Three prominent themes emerged: (1) PSTs referencing their own prior learning experiences as a point of comparison, (2) assumptions tied to students’ age and perceived developmental limitations, and (3) expressions of surprise or admiration regarding students’ scientific reasoning capabilities.

These findings highlight how preservice teachers’ expectations can shape how they notice and interpret students’ ideas in science discussions. Examining these expectations is therefore important for teacher education programs seeking to support PSTs in developing more responsive approaches to instruction that recognize and leverage elementary students’ emerging scientific thinking.

In comparison to their non-first generation or higher-income peers, first generation college students, especially those from low-income households, face extensive challenges regarding financial aid, whether that be throughout the college application process or student debt in the aftermath. Colleges, advisors, parents, and first-generation students themselves, should all be aware of the financial implications of attending college, remaining conscious on the matter.

As a general consensus, although it so happens that first-generation college students are more likely than non-first generation college students to receive financial aid, they are also more likely to be financially illiterate. As a result, they are prone to incurring more student debt and earning less income than their peers post-college. Generally speaking, their graduation rates are also lower than their peers, with financial aid or lack thereof playing a role in that as well. 

This research aims to spread awareness about the critical nature of financial aid for first generation students in college, open pathways to vital advice during the application process, and increase graduation rates for first-generation college students to combat the decreasing rates that are currently in place. It also aims to increase financial literacy for first generation college students overall. By broadening awareness and creating or strengthening programs implemented to help first generation college students financially, we can create a better educational environment for them overall.