The Capstone Paper is written by students in the SIT Graduate Institute Master of Arts degree 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 prior to July 2011 in the Capstone Collection are limited to SIT and other World Learning faculty, staff, students, and alumni. If you are not affiliated with SIT or World Learning and want access to these papers contact your local library and ask about requesting the hard copy on interlibrary loan. Full-text papers written after July 2011 are openly accessible to the public.
Due to copyright restrictions some papers are not available full-text electronically. World Learning affiliated students and staff can check these papers out of the library or, if you are off-campus, request them via interlibrary loan
Submissions from 2024
Maine School of Wonder: Developing a School for Earth Skills and Sustainability in Maine, Leigha Hart
ANALYZING YOUTH EMPOWERMENT PROGRAMS AND THEIR IMPACT IN URBAN AND RURAL LIBERIA, Bartime Abel Learwellie and Bartime Abel Learwellie
Coffee in Brasil: Sustainability and the Role of Intermediaries, Livia Petzinger
Submissions from 2023
RESILIENCE THROUGH URBAN GREEN SPACES: COLLABORATIONS AND COLLECTIVE ACTION TOWARD EQUITABLE ACCESS AND CREATION OF GREEN SPACE IN ALBANY, NEW YORK, Frederick Bentley
SOCIAL AND CULTURAL VALUES IN ALASKAN SUBSISTENCE MANAGEMENT: RURALITY AND THE MEANING OF “MEANINGFUL” NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, Jarred Haynes
Responding to Disproportionate Skin Cancer Rates Affecting Adult Men Aged 18-60, Aaron Thompson
Submissions from 2022
Impact of Community Radio on Community Development in the United States, Jillian Hermansky
PERSPECTIVES ON SUSTAINABILITY IN SHORT-TERM FACULTY-LED PROGRAMS, Amanda Staton
Reinforcing A Women’s Group Project, Anna Williams
Navigating the Necessary Evils: Contemplating the Topic of Sustainability in Study Abroad, Megan Zacher
Submissions from 2021
Program Design Features Attracting Youth in Diepsloot to Urban Agriculture: Exploring Rhiza Babuyile's Tiny Farm Agri-Program, Nyasha Frank Chibanda
Black Lives Matter, Randal McKoy
Impact Of Mentoring Amongst Indigenous Young Adults In Sabah, Malaysia, Terence Ooi
INCORPORATING EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE INTO FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATION SERVICES AS A BETTER MEANS TO MANAGE HIV/AIDS IN SOUTHERN CAMEROON., Christine Pafe
IMPROVING PRE-DEPARTURE TRAINING FOR ENGLISH TEACHER VOLUNTEERS IN COSTA RICA: AN EXAMINATION OF ALIARSE AND RECOMMENDATIONS, Derek Schwartz
Exploring Accessible & Responsive Trauma-Informed Schools: A Regenerative Approach to Student & Educator Support, Kennidy Stood
Submissions from 2020
THE SUSTAINABILITY OF CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOSOVO, Shpetim Bylykbashi
What Does a "Just" Local Food System Look Like? Views from Worcester in a Changing Climate, Marguerite Cawley
The Politics of Seeds and Their Effects on Small-Scale Paraguayan Farmers, Maeve Mallozzi-Kelly
Exploring how social networks contribute to African immigrants’ ability to procure a sustainable livelihood in New York City, Richmond Opoku Donyina
Submissions from 2019
Political activists or violent fans? Understanding the Moroccan Ultras perspective through social media discourse analysis, Mamer Alomari
Transition Towns and the Transition Model: An Investigation into the Movement's Use of Strategic Planning, Richard Burbridge
A Case Study on the Conduct of a Nonviolence National Campaign for Political & Social Change in Sudan in 2020, Abdou Edris
My Photo, My Voice: Reducing Self-Stigma of Felons & Drug Addicts through the use of Storytelling and Photographs, Jordan Ferrick
Dual-Power and Direct Democracy in Fiji: An Analysis of the iTaukei Administration, Glenn Hall
Youth’s Decent Employment in Guinea: Enabling Factors and a Holistic Approach, Sekou Mansare SM
Grassroots-Initiated Policy Advocacy in a Transitional Democracy: A Case Study, Cho Myint Naing
The Okanogan Highlands: A Case Study on Economic Access, Food Security, and Local Development, Sarah Reaveley
Factors in Refugee Resilience Building during Humanitarian Response, Rachel Starner
An Inclusive Economic Paradigm Shift, Jonathan Talbot
Are Widows in Southern Cameroon Marginalized After the Death of their Husbands?, Constance Tamon
Using Principles of Inclusion and Sustainability for Designing and Facilitating Inclusive and Sustainable Development Workshops, Sai Aung Thein
Submissions from 2018
Towards An Agreed Definition Of Sustainability: Exploring The Concept Of Sustainability In Amherst, Massachusetts, Babatunde Ajao
Values Driven Strategic Thinking and Planning in Federated Non-Profits, Michael Baker
Bridge To Her Education (BTHERE): Black Girls and the School to Prison Pipeline, Otasha Clark
Sustainability at SIT: a Look at the Past, a Plan for the Future, Taliesin Haugh
Land As Power: Pathways for Closing the Gender Gap in Land Rights in India, Rachel Lubitz
Development of a Monitoring and Impact Evaluation Plan A Case Study on the Refugee Services Program of Islamic Relief USA, Ahmad Tariq Momeni
Changing Donor-NGO relations thorough Viable Alternatives to Conventional Grantmaking, Kio Okawa
Cacao Together: A Model for True Sustainability in the Chocolate Industry, Kerstin Roos
How Empowerment Processes Manifest for Afghan Women with Different Levels of Education, Fatima Sabri
Submissions from 2017
Culture, Inner-city Education and Improving Economic Growth In Birmingham, Alabama, Leroy Abrahams
Bridging Training Gaps in Leadership Capacity: A Critical Approach to Assessment and Evaluation for Program Improvement and Development, Alysia Ballinger
LOOKING WITHIN WHILE WORKING ABROAD: EXPERIENCES FROM AN IHP TRUSTEES FELLOW IN THE FIELD, Caitlyn Clark
Missing the Message: Advocating for Action in Human Rights, Alyssa Dinsmore
Is Restorative Justice Doing Enough To Address The Power Imbalances Caused By Systems of Privilege and Oppression, Matthew Furnell
Addressing Racism in Urban Agriculture: The Case for an Urban Agriculture Land Trust in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Chelsea Gazillo
OneWorld Coffee: Social Venture Plan, Cory Gilman
Increasing Equity through B Corp Certification in the Coffee Commodity Supply Chain, Emily Hlavka
Women, Peace, and Security in Sudan.The Taskforce Achievements in the National Dialogue, Rowa H. Kodi
Enhancing Accountability And Learning: An Organizational Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Capacity Assessment Tool (MELCAT), Grace Longwe
How Anti-Racist Participatory Policy Advocacy Can Change Delaware’s Education System, Shyanne Miller
How Anti-Racist Participatory Policy Advocacy Can Change Delaware’s Education System, Shyanne E. Miller
Adaptive Social Protection: A justification for enhancing social protection effectiveness in Lesotho, Daison Panganai Ngirazi Mr
Implications in the Evaluation of SDG 4: What the Numbers Really Tell Us, Ellen Noe
Evaluation Framework for effective HIV/public health programming in Nigeria, saheed ottun
Barriers to Empowerment: How can gender equality training reduce the barriers that women farmers face in Nicaragua?, Krista Pelletier
Home-Grown Development: Reconceptualising Cannabis Policy in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Samantha Phillips
The Impact of Civil Society Movements on Conflcit, Nicholas Rinehart
The Dynamics of Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation (PM&E) in Traditional Pakistan., Aamer Shams
Reframing Homelessness in Vermont: A Systemic Approach to Homelessness Policy Advocacy in Windham County Vermont, Scott Sharland
Local Perspectives of Sustainable Development, Ryan J. Stefani
#NowAreYouStartingToGetIt?: A Case Study of 'Stop Charters in KY' Advocacy Campaign, Rachel Trontz
Seno Banjonki Lower Basic School Vision Care Pilot Project: A Monitoring and Evaluation Course Linked Capstone Thesis, Stephen M. Weiland
ENVIRONMENTALLY-INDUCED MIGRATION AND SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP, Nora J. Worthington
Submissions from 2016
Integrating Evaluative Thinking into Organisational Practice: a Case Study of Lutino Adunu in Uganda, Shilla Adyero
B.E.I.B. and Financial Inclusion in NorthWest Cameroon, Kareen Ngendape Atchala
Ecotourism Social Enterprise: Learning From the Global South, Jessica Bailey
A National Bilingual Education Policy for the Economic and Academic Empowerment of Youth in St. Lucia, West Indies, Gabriella Bellegarde
Rapid Evidence Maps as Decision Tools for Evidence-based Policy, Mark Engelbert
Changing Advocacy Practices in a Changing World: an Evaluation of Oxfam America’s Influencing Work in a Shifting International NGO Culture, Emily Sloe Goodman
A Dollar a Day: Child Sponsorship and the Marketization of Human Development, Taylor Hallett
Program Evaluation Frameowrk for Enhancing Performnce and Quality, Abu B. Koroma
Monitoring and Evaluation for Humanitarian & Emergency Aid M&E Framework for SHIFA’A Program – SAMS Foundation, Ahmed Mostafa
The Impact of Lack of Mother Tongue - Based Schooling on Kurds in Turkey, Ceto Ozel
Communalism and Its Impact on Human Development Future Civil Society Initiatives for Inter-Communal Peace in Gujarat, Atiya Pathan
An exploration of a culture of inclusivity and community development within a special education learning environment., Farid Quraishi
Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) for Sudden onset Humanitarian Emergencies (Eops), Rebecca Rushford
Vasudhara Lodge: A Social Venture Plan for Women’s Empowerment Through Community Based Eco-Tourism, Sonya Salanti
Argument for Internationally-Focused Curricula in US Primary Education Reform, Hector Santiago
A Systems Approach to Evaluation Metrics: A Case Study of Salvation Farms, Julia D. Scheier
Dynamic Media: A need for the dynamic use of media to meet organizational goals, Alexander J. Scott
Producing Knowledge: The Social Made Visible in the Division of Environmental Biology of the National Science Foundation, Patrick Southern
A Sustainable Approach to Health Systems Strengthening in Developing Countries: Lessons from the Ebola Crisis, Prince Tarnah
Got Inclusion? How Inclusive is your Organization? Assessing Inclusion through the iCAT: Inclusion Capacity Assessment Tool for Organizational Capacity, Charlotte Taylor Westfall
Black Gentrification Twice Removed: A Study of Migration and Community Involvement in Washington, DC, Janwin A. Zeegar-Holman
Submissions from 2015
From Financial Vulnerability to Financial Capability: How Can Decision Making Be Improved? A Case Study, Hye M. Ahn
An Organizational Development Assessment Tool for the Jordanian Civil Society Context, Murad H. Al-Quraan