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Capstone Collection

The Capstone Paper is written by students in the SIT Graduate Institute Master's Programs. Capstones reassess theoretical knowledge in light of professional experience in the form of a final research paper, incorporating both classroom knowledge and practicum based experience.

The full-text of papers written before July 2011 is limited to World Learning/SIT faculty, staff, students, and alumni. If you are not affiliated with World Learning and want access to these papers contact your local library and ask about requesting the hard copy on interlibrary loan. Papers written after July 2011 are all available full-text online with no restrictions

Submissions from 2011 2011

Paradise Lost, Found Or Created? Expectations Between Teachers And Vulnerable Children: Case Study On Peace House Secondary School, Northern Tanzania, Kelli Bee

Girls Club: The Gender Imbalance of Youth Programs, a Case Study, Shayne Bell

Summer Bridge Program at the University of San Francisco for Conditionally Admitted Chinese Students, Adrienne M. Bergenfeld

Toward A Praxis Of Revolutionary Solidarity, James Patrick Byrne

Intercultural Competency Training For Semester At Sea, Leah Charbonneau

Three Sisters Exchange: Building Alliances and Promoting Justice from The United States to Ecuador, Ariel Climer

A Framework for Monitoring Local and Regional Food Systems, Heather Victoria Davis

Building Community Food Security: An Evaluation Of A Market Basket Csa, Joshua Davis

Energy Management and Governance in Vermont: A Case Study, Nicole Davis

Analysis Of The Causes Of Migration From Gorno-Badakhshan To Moscow, Sharaf Davlatov

Racial Minorities in the Nonprofit Field: A Reflection on the Field and Personal Experience, Victoria Der

Ethnic Minorities and Food Security in Northern Thailand, Monalisa Diamond

English As A Foreign Language Professional Development Practicum: Placing Skilled Teachers Where They Can Grow A Program Proposal For The Schools Of Cañadilla, S.A. Santiago, Chile, Ellen Marie Dizzia

Latino/A Students In Study Abroad: Reasons For And Against Participation, Amy Dooley Bello

‘It’s Not Justice, It’s Economic’: The United States, Aid And The Neoliberalization Of The Occupation, Jora Ehrlich

Discovering The Potential Of Service Learning In Perugia, Italy: An Evaluation Of The Umbra Institute’s La Famiglia Italiana Project, Julie Falk

Emerging Youth Leaders: A Redesign Of A Two-Way Youth Exchange Between The US And Senegal, Aspen L. Felt

Organizing for Food Justice: Launching Oxfam America’s GROW Campaign, Will Fenton

Policy Analysis In Practice: Lessons From Researching And Writing A “Statenote” For Education Commission Of The States, Dinah J. Frey

Emigration’s Impact On Gender Roles And Citizen Participation In Rural Guatemala: Women Who Wait, María Alejandra García

Experiences With Peace Corps’ Third Goal: Perspectives Of Peace Corps Mali Volunteers, Elizabeth N. Gardiner

The Charter School Commercial: NYC’s Fight Against Public School Privatization, Keedra Gustava Gibba

“The Warm Heart Of Africa” Program Proposal For S.T.E.P Into The World, Adam Goldberg

Funding the Fundamentals: A Peace First Teacher’s Recommendations for Increased Quality Sixth Grade Curriculum to Effectively Engage and Educate an Increasing Quantity of Students., Pamela Gonzales

Perceptions of Access to Education: Inclusion and Exclusion for Non-Karen Refugees in Mae La Camp, Matthew Gross

Sustainability Series: Creating Student Sustainable Practices Within SFS and Beyond, Staci Hagen

Indigenous Perspectives: The Struggle For Land, Culture And Education In Rivas, Nicaragua, Jeremy Harrison-Smith

Creating Change Within Resistant Systems Through a Multi-Dimensional Training Approach: Exploring a Change in Thinking Around Images of Victims, and Re-framing How Culture Thinks about Criminals to Effectively Reduce Recidivism Rates, Rachel-Storm Heasley

Building a Global Village: Intercultural Communication for the International House at The College of New Jersey, Stephanie Holleran

Digital Storytelling: Enriching Reflection And Reentry For Princeton In Africa Fellowship Participants, Stephanie C. Hooper

Farmworkers In D_ County, California Define Their Labor Rights, Amanda Jordan

Knowledge vs. Understanding: An Assessment of Teachers’ Perceptions on Tracking in One School District in Southern California, Matthew Killian

Reciprocity and Reflection: Creating an Evaluation Plan for ProWorld Belize, Kelly Kocher

Positive Discomfort: Structured Student Reflection in International Service-Based Programs: A Social Justice Curriculum, Stephanie K. Kraemer

Safe Power Vermont: A Look Into The Campaign To Retire The Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station., Dylan M. Kreis

Building A Bridge: Customized Programs And First-Year Undergraduate Students, Deborah Lake

Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program: Toward a Critical Framework of Community Peacebuilding; Individual and Community Transformation Through Service and Discourse, Benjamin Valentine Leiker

Forgotten Foods: The Impact Of Western Development On Eating Habits Among Women In Dehradun, India, Stephanie L. Leite

HMGT 610: French Hospitality January-Term Abroad, Bradi Lenentine

Social Media In International Exchange Programs: Investigation Into The New Programs And Practices At World Learning, Pamela Lowenstein

Peace Corps Paraguay’s Diversity Day: A Reflection On Diversity In The Context Of Peace Corps Service, Laara Manler

Exploring The Concept Of Sustainability In A Fragile State’s Health System: The Case Study Of Liberia, Seema Manohar

REWRITING THE UPSIDE DOWN WORLD: A Reflective Curriculum to Provoke Perspective Transformation And Personal Development among EcuaExplora Participants, Katerine A. McConnell

Child Sexual Abuse Prevention: In Search Of The Best Program Model, Melissa McCrory

Strategic Planning In A Nonprofit Organization: The Process And Its Perceived Impact On Effectiveness, Welansa Akalu Mekonnen

Faith In Action: A Snapshot Of Fair Trade Program Initiatives By Catholic Churches In The Brooklyn And Queens Dioceses, Yvette Mendes

The Effects Of Training – Based Development Intervention In Makeni, Sierra Leone, Stephanie Meyer

Examining The Relationship Between Higher Education Institutions In The United States And Commercial Recruiting Agents In Accordance With Lessons Learned From The Australian Experience, Cara Miller

Collaboration As Social Change: The Impact Of Schools As Community Centers, Maggie Morales

Internationalization of Higher Education in Azerbaijan: Transforming Post-Soviet Legacies Through Higher Education Development, Ramina Murshudova

Rethinking Communications & Nonprofit Management, Christopher Nichols

Immigrant Women Organize For Justice: A Listening Project, Sandra Catalina Nieto

The Campaign For Bias-Free Policing In Vermont: One State’s Resistance To The Localization Of Federal Immigration Agency, Amanda L. Park

The Water Project: A short-term study abroad program design for Alfred University, Caitlin Paul

The Insecurity of “Secure Communities”: A Case Study of an Advocacy Campaign To Protect Immigrant Rights in Santa Barbara, CA, Tina Pia Peirano

Is Mine Risk Education (Mre) Having A Significant Effect And Long-Lasting Impact On Attitudes Towards Uxos At The Community Level?, Phounsy Phasavaeng

Brain Drain Out Of Hungary And Its Inhibitors, Eliza Plous

Engaging At-Risk Youth in the Green Movement: A Study of an Interdisciplinary Environmental Education Program’s Impact on Eco-Literacy and Interest in the Green Economy, Kirstin Kweilin Powell

Evaluation and Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes for the Presbyterian College Semester in Cuba Program, Dianne Pritchard

Education For The Excluded: Alternative Education In Bolivia, Martha Rath

Experiences In Coexistence and Anti-Normalization Phenomenological Case Study: Arab Alumni Of The Arava, Lauren Rauch

A Case Study On Conflict Over Fresh Water Resources In A Development Context: Water’s Role In Interreligious Violence In Jos, Nigeria, Ericka E. Reagor

Addressing Food Insecurity Through Community Sponsored Agriculture: Lessons from Riverhill Farm CSA, Vanessa Reed

Male Student-Athletes: What Happens When An Entire NCAA Division III Varsity Team From A Small Private Liberal Arts Institution Participates In A Trip Abroad Together?, Jacob Renze

A Case Study of a Project Entitled Community Skills for a Complex Situation: Managing Mining in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, Arash Shane Robinson

Englishization Of European Higher Education: An Analysis Of The Rationale For Offering English-Medium Classes In Non-English Speaking European Universities, Sarah Rood

Vaya Pues: A Case Study Exploring Sustainability, Intercultural Management, And Recycling In Honduras, Chad Ryerson

As The Americans Do: The Effects Of A Semester Abroad On Students’ Academic And Career Goals Two To Six Years After Completion Of A Semester At The American University Of Rome, Maria Sandone

Cultivating Cross-Cultural Competencies: A Curriculum Proposal For World Camp, Inc. Centered On Cultural Identities And Cross-Cultural Understandings, Ashley Sawyer

Developing Intercultural Sensitivity In Children And Adults: A Trainer’s Experiences In The Field, Laura E. Schairbaum

Growing Global Citizens: Shaping Perspective In An Interconnected World Through International Service Learning In A Gap Year, Nicole Sheldon-Desjardins

Elevating the Advocacy Impact Of The Global Partnership For Environment And Disaster Risk Reduction By Understanding The Motivations And Aspirations Of Its Members, Brittany Star Weiss Smith

Fighting Fire With Flame: Visual Storytelling As The Antidote To Negative Media Imagery, Léna Sulpovar

Beyond Heard: Young Adults in North Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic Of Congo, Their Resilience and Role in Peacebuilding., Cynthia Tarter

Narrating Women's Interfaith Agency: Stories of Faith, Transformation, and Vision, Audra Teague

Strategic Planning For A Multi-Organization Nonprofit Entity: A Case Study Of The Connecticut Boys & Girls Clubs’ 2007-2008 Strategic Planning Process, Jill Terrell-Ouazzani

International Student Orientation: Designing an On-Going Program for Soka University, Diana Ueda

Long-Term Food Security In Kenya: Opportunities And Challenges To Implementing The U.S. Feed The Future Program, Faustine Wabwire

Dream Big: An Intercultural Program for Underpriviledged Indian Girls, Jennifer Wahlquist

“From China to the US: Bridging the Gap between University of Indianapolis and Ningbo Institute of Technology”, Sarah Wann

The Global Citizen Revisited: Building Critical Conciousness In Youth Volunteering Abroad, Anna Welton

The Role of Youth in Post-Conflict Reconstruction (The Case of Liberia), Marit Woods

International Service-Learning Program in Guatemala On Mayan Education, Language Maintenance & Social Activism: A Program for The City College Of New York, CUNY, Kenneth Yanes

The Unheard Messages Of HIV&AIDS: A Look At Knowledge, Communication, and Programming Efforts in Ntcheu, Malawi, Lisa M. Yankowski

Managing Muliticultural and Diverse Teams Within an International Organization, Ahmed Ibrahim Yansaneh Mr

Submissions from 2010 2010

Building Food Secure Communities In The Southeastern United States: A Case Study Of “Local Food For Local Power”, Christopher Adams

The Forest Protection Fund: An Innovative Business Approach to Reconcile Conservation and Community Based Livelihoods: A Case Study and Interim Assessment of the Lebialem –Mone Forest Landscape Integrated Conservation and Development Project (ICDP)., Stella Ajabji

Women as Change Agents and the Influence of Education on Their Approach to Social Change: Illustration of Four Female SIT Graduates, Yetunde Oluyemisi Ajao

Board Effectiveness in Small Nonprofits: A Case Study of a Nonprofit with Three-Person Board, Modupe Kate Ajayi

Can Polio Promote Peace?: How the Eradication of Polio in the Internally Displaced People of Colombia Can Promote Positive Social Change, Rebecca Altneu

Empowering a Shift in Self-Awareness: An Inquiry into How Buddhism Benefits Westerners at Work, Kerry Leigh Ambrose

Japanese Visual Culture In Context: A Summer Faculty-Led Program At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Megan Anderson

Fine Tuning the Faculty-Led Consortium Program Model: An Administrative Proposal for Creating Stability and Sustainability for the New York State Independent College Consortium for Study in India (NYSICCSI) Program, Jonathan Andrew

Defining Diversity: Exploring the Role of “Diversity” in Major Organizations, Julianne Appleton

Constructing Confidence: Discovering the Benefits of Girls’ Empowerment Programming, Deborah L. Attewell

In Their Own Words: Perceptions of Unemployed Young Men in Mankassa About Crime in Their Community, Clint Ryan George Audette

Bridging the Gap: Strategic Framing and Budget Advocacy in Tanzania, Anthony Garett Baker

Increasing Intercultural Competence in Fort Wayne Communities: My Experience as a Change Agent, Mastora Bakhiet

Helping Do Gooders Do Better: An Exploration into the Compassion Fatigue, Vicarious Traumatization, and Burnout that Direct Service Providers Experience in the Fields of Domestic & Sexual Violence Advocacy, Becky S. Bangs

Assessing Students’ Learning: Have they learned what we had hoped?, CyBelle R. Barthelmess