School of Public Administration | Capstone Presentations--Summer 2018

SCHOOL OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

SCHOOL OF PUBLIC

ADMINISTRATION

CAPSTONE PRESENTATIONS Summer 2018 | Thursday, August 9, 2018

Presenters

Panel 1 | Online Students Room: CPACS 208 Alumni Panelists: Gayle Malmquist, Patrick McDermott, Patrick Barrett Tune in online with Zoom using this link: https://unomaha.zoom.us/j/ 6036877455 1:00 PM: Ronald Scott Almasy Proposal for Improved Gang Prevention in Sacramento, California

Despite the City of Sacramento’s efforts at gang prevention, gangs remain prevalent and a major cause of illicit and violent activity in Sacramento, California. Sacramento’s Gang Prevention and Intervention Task Force (GPITF) is one of the city’s main gang prevention efforts that coordinates strategic investments in partnership with communitybased service providers to increase support for high-risk youth and families in the community. This paper takes a “best” practices approach to examine at risk factors (domains) and two well-established gang prevention programs, Gang Reduction and Youth Development (GRYD) and Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT), to propose recommendations to improve the GPITF program for a greater impact on the prevention and reduction of youth gang membership in Sacramento. This research paper utilized previous literature on at risk factors (domains), juvenile delinquency, gang membership, and gang prevention/intervention programs, among other topics. Findings from the literature review and qualitative telephone interviews point toward a need for a more well-rounded and robust program that takes a holistic approach, blending strengths offered by different prevention and intervention programs and techniques.

1:25 PM: Maureen Helm What are the Challenges to the Implementation of Tiny Home Villages for the Homeless?

The number of homeless throughout the United States remains high despite the many programs in place for intervention and rehousing. Vulnerable populations continue to face chronic homelessness and are still living and dying on the streets. In the last decade, cities and private organizations began developing new and innovative ways to address the problem in the form of Tiny Homes and Tiny Home Villages. These alternative dwellings and communities are bridging a gap that is helping hundreds of people stabilize and transition back into permanent housing. This research project examines the processes and challenges involved in building Tiny Home Villages for the homeless. A literature review examines issues and factors surrounding homelessness. The methodology uses qualitative data gathered through interviews with spokespersons from 6 organizations who have gone through the implementation process. The findings are organized into categories and presented to show commonalities and differences in their models, implementation processes and challenges. Finally, recommendations from the organizations and findings will be presented for others who are also considering building a Tiny Home Village for the homeless.

1:50 PM: Amber Lewis Determining the Best Budget Format for the City of Rollingwood, Texas

It’s widely accepted that citizen participation in the budget process is important and beneficial, especially in establishing public trust. In the past, the City of Rollingwood has provided for citizen participation in the budget process during the required public hearings. However, this is too late in the budget process to participate because many important decisions have already been made. Further, the population and the culture are significantly changing in Rollingwood, both of which are indicative of citizen participation rates and preferences. With the significant community change and low levels of citizen participation, this project attempts to research and determine which budget format would fit this community best. Qualitative methods are used to answer the research question, including a literature review and phone interviews with key officials, including City Managers/Administrators and a Finance Director from seven (7) neighboring cities. Research concluded that the primary challenge in citizen participation in the budget is an in-depth understanding of the operation and funding of the city. Planning processes and committees focused on planning and financial functions of the city provide citizen input in the budget process in a better, more-informed and strategic way.

2:15 PM: Michael Schulte Case Study Analysis of Planning, Building, & Operating a Municipal Pool: Takeaways for the City of Mountain Lake, Minnesota

The city of Mountain Lake, Minnesota, recently closed their indoor pool inside the public school due to high costs and limited access and now the city may entertain the idea of building a new outdoor pool or aquatic center to improve the quality of life for its citizens and attract visitors to the city. This research project involves a case study of another city’s process of planning, building, and operating an aquatic center and provides strategies and ideas on how to be innovative and creative to complete a large but valuable project. With any idea or dream for a city from a citizen, council member, or mayor, concrete steps and actions need to take place to move an idea to the next phase. This research project studies the role of leisure and recreation and how local government is involved in providing such services and studies how another city started and completed building a new aquatic center for its community. The takeaways from this studied city can be used for any city wishing to plan and build a new aquatic center.

Panel 2 | Online and On-Campus Students Room: CPACS 109A Alumni Panelists: Wendy Kaiser, Sharon Angelina Ramos, Jennifer Dreibelbis Tune in online with Zoom using this link: https://unomaha.zoom.us/j/9883523914 1:00 PM: Melissa Desai Challenges to Leadership Transition from Western Founder to Local Leaders in Social Business

Social businesses are for profit businesses dedicated to a social mission. While there is significant research on nonprofit organizational structures, and on leadership transition in business, social businesses do not entirely fit in either of these fields. This study uses a dual case study methodology to better understand the challenges of leadership transition in social businesses. Interviews were conducted with two organizations that operate in India who were founded by Western leaders and are transitioning to Indian leadership. This study finds that the social businesses double bottom line of profit and social good creates challenges in leadership development and transition. Further, the financial status of the organizations impacts their ability to expand services, grow market share, develop new leaders, and transition to local leadership. Lastly, the study shows that the make up of the board of directors for the organization has a significant impact in financial management, strategic planning, and leadership transition. Other significant findings include the importance of participating in networks, and the specific challenges of leadership transition in relation to organizational founders.

1:25 PM: Skyler May Promoting Self-Sufficiency Through Extended Case Management: A Program Evaluation of the International Center of the Heartland

Lutheran Family Services’ program, the International Center of the Heartland (ICH), is a United Way initiative that seeks to help refugees and immigrants reach self-sufficiency. The ICH is one of the only post-90 days assistance programs for refugees living in Nebraska. The program offers comprehensive case management services including immigration legal services, job search support, acculturation classes, as well as navigation of health, education, and housing systems.

This study sets out to analyze the program’s alignment with its mission of assisting clients in reaching self-sufficiency.

This quantitative analysis utilized self-sufficiency scores assigned to clients at intake and subsequently every 90 days for active cases to better understand the influence of ICH services on self-sufficiency. The self-sufficiency scores over time were also compared to the frequency of client appointments. Overall, the findings reinforce the need for post-90 day extensive case management services and support for this vulnerable population.

1:50 PM: Amelia Rosser Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), Intimate Partner Violence, and Household Homelessness in the Omaha Metropolitan Community

The purpose of this research is to study the intersection of intimate partner violence (IPV) with the independent variables, homelessness and utilization of federal welfare services, in comparison to the respondents’ Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) score. The original Adverse Childhood Experiences was published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine in 1998. Medical researchers Felitti et al. studied the relationship of adult health risk behaviors, health status, and disease states to childhood abuse and household dysfunction; the Kaiser Permanente’s San Diageo Health Appraisal Clinic in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveyed 17,000 middle class Americans. The survey for this current study was administered at Catholic Charities Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Program (Catholic Charities DVSAP) in Council Bluffs, IA on three separate occasions. The major findings were that the average ACE score is 5.125, on average the respondents utilized 1.8 of the four surveyed federal welfare services, and those who identified as homeless had higher ACEs scores than those who did not.

2:15 PM: Daniel Taylor Social Capital and Connections and Their Role in Faith-based Nonprofit Programs

As all nonprofits are taking a careful look at outcomes and successes of clients they serve, this study seeks to look more closely at the degree to which social capital and connections are gained and utilized for improving individuals’ lives at Love INC. A key assumption for Love INC and other faith-based nonprofits is that exposure to new social structures, particularly with church volunteers that are specifically invested relationally with program clients will have a transformative effect on many areas of life for program participants. This qualitative study relies on data from interviews of participants of the Loving Help program in northwest Iowa to help inform the organization, and other similar faith-based social services agencies, about how one core assumption plays out in an actual program setting, and the extent to which a faith element plays a part in the creation of useful social capital.

Panel 3 | On-Campus Students Room: CEC 128 Marian Ivers Board Room Alumni Panelists: Steve Jerrina, Esmerelda Bravo-Ramos, and Jim Temme 1:00 PM: Maria Anderson Services for Individuals with Disabilities: Assessing the Difference Between Medicaid and Medicaid Through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Across Nebraska and Iowa

The United States estimates that nearly $14 billion will have been disbursed to over 10 million individuals with disabilities in 2018. Funded by the federal government and administered by the state, Medicaid provides individuals with disabilities health care coverage, and the support and services needed to live independently in their home and within their community. Medicaid (Title XIX of the Social Security Act of 1965) has evolved, with its largest transformation occurring after the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010. With intentions to federally mandate states to expand their Medicaid programs to provide health care coverage to more individuals, nearly 80 percent of the states adopted the expansion. There is little research available on the impact the expansion has had on individuals with disabilities, specifically on the services they receive through Medicaid. This case study examines the variance in services for individuals with disabilities between two neighboring states, Nebraska and Iowa, where one has adopted the expansion and one has not. With a thorough analysis of its records related to their Medicaid program, and in-depth perceptions of representatives who work with individuals with disabilities, this study will help to determine those differences.

1:25 PM: Angela Batson Caring for Hurting Communities: Serious Illness & Injury Support at Griefs Journey

Grief’s Journey is an Omaha based nonprofit that has been providing grief services for seventeen years. Until 2015, their work had been dedicated to bereavement services for families. However, they had been receiving many requests over the years for services that catered to different types of grief, the continuous and anticipatory grief accompanying illness or injury. They answered the call from the community by developing and implementing the Serious Illness and Injury Program, a monthly support group for families coping with or learning to cope with grief that occurs when a loved one is diagnosed with chronic illness or is the victim of an injury. The Serious Illness and Injury Program has been in effect for three years. As it grows and needs to support other types of grief are suggested, Grief’s Journey asked for a program evaluation of Serious Illness and Injury, feeling that the three-year mark was a good point to stop and think about how the program was doing and whether they had succeeded in creating the program they proposed in 2015. Through document review, non-participant direct observation, and one focus group, the resounding conclusion is the Serious Illness and Injury Program is successful and should have other programs modeled after it.

1:50 PM: Tova Hettinger Secondary Trauma: An Unseen Epidemic in Healthcare Settings

Recent research in the medical field has shown an increasing need to address secondary trauma experienced by employees in healthcare settings. Secondary trauma can manifest in the form of physical or mental health issues, which can add to the levels of stress, burnout, and overall dissatisfaction employees may experience on the job.

Employees within level 4 hospital facilities may be likely to experience symptoms of secondary trauma related to the intensity of their work with medically complex patients. This project seeks to support a local level 4 hospital facility by further exploring the prevalence of secondary trauma through a series of interviews with employees. Findings and recommendations resulting from this research will be provided to the hospital as it works to create internal programming to better support employees and the organization’s mission to provide exceptional care to patients and families.

2:15 PM: Meghan E. Perrin Generosity of Place: A Comparative Analysis

This capstone project explores the comparison of generosity in individual, private philanthropy in metropolitan areas of Nebraska with the same characteristics in metropolitan areas of the Northern Central Region of the United States. Theoretical research focused on generosity, individual giving motivation, and individual donor characteristics informed further analysis. The 2015 Panel Study on Philanthropy provided robust quantitative data to study generous philanthropic individual giving in multiple metropolitan area locations. In examining this data, descriptive analysis was conducted to assess whether relative to other American metropolitan areas, are Nebraskan metropolitan areas extraordinarily generous in financial giving? Further analysis compared specific socio-demographic indicators of giving between metropolitan areas and consistency with the examined literature. Multiple regression on numerous giving variables provided rigorous comparative analysis to fully understand generosity in individual, private philanthropy in metropolitan areas of Nebraska and the Northern Central Region of the United States.

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