Texas Tech University

Outstanding Thesis Dissertation Historical Awardees

Historical Recipients

 

2023

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation
Dr. Mahsa Yavari Dr. Karishma Bisht
Major Advisor:
Dr. Naima Moustaid-Moussa
Major Advisor:
Dr. Catherine Wakeman
Department of Nutritional Sciences Department of Biological Sciences
Metabolic and Central Effects of High Fat Diet and Fish Oil in an AmyloidogenicMouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Response to Environmental Cues: Insights Into Physiological Adaptations in Biofilms and Potential Therapeutic Targets

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation
Dr. Uyen Nguyen Dr. Stephanie Millet
Major Advisor: 
Dr. John Ronald Milam
Major Advisor:
Dr. Julie Smit
Department of History Curriculum and Instruction
MATs (Mobile Advisory Teams) in a Mad War: The U.S. Army's Advisory Efforts Waging Peace in the Vietnam War Exploring Learned Resourcefulness as a Mitigator for Situational Writing Apprehension: A Post-intentional Phenomenological Journey
1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Md. Jakir Hossain Jamison Driskill
Major Advisor:
Dr. Hyo Jung (Julie) Chang
Major Advisor: Dr. William Gelber
Department of Hospitality and
Retail Management
School of Theatre and Dance
Clothing Fit and Self: An Empirical
Examination of Fit Factors and
Self Evaluation Related to the
Confident Clothing Decision and Psychological Well-Being
Strategic Planning for The Edge: A Company of Fine Artists

 

2022

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, and Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation
Dr. Christian Dieling Dr. Sevgi Arca
Major Advisor:
Dr. Mario Beruvides
Major Advisor:
Dr. Rattikorn Hewett
Department of Industrial, Manufacturing & Systems Engineering Department of Computer Science
Techniques for Calibration of Hailpad Material Protecting Data Privacy with
Anonymity: Quantifying Instinctive
Measures and Intelligent Effective Search for Optimal Anonymized Data
1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Owen Smith Jacob Young
Major Advisor:
Dr. Branimir Sevgic
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jacob Stephenson
Department of Geosciences Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Mineral Origin and Siderite Cementation Processes in the Missourian Clastic Rocks of the Anadarko Basin, OK An Experimental Apparatus and Diagnostics for the Study of Vacuum Surface Flashover

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation
Dr. Olamide Olajide Dr. Cari Carter 
Major Advisor:
Dr. Sarah Asebedo
Major Advisor:
Dr. Mellinee Lesley
Department of Personal Financial Planning Department of Curriculum & Instruction
Three Essays Examining the Financial Wellbeing of Older Americans "Fanfiction: Adult literacy impressions and the influence of fandom on educational practices"
1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Nathan Holtman Khirul B. Mim
Major Advisor:
Dr. Stephen Devadoss
Major Advisor:
Dr. Tun-Min Jai
Department of Agriculture & Applied Economics Department of Hospitality & Retail Economics
The Effects of Domestic and Trade Policy Interventions on Global Agricultural Trade Is Sustainable Positioning the New Path to Achieve Brand Loyalty? An Investigation on the Gen Z Market of the U.S. Apparel Brands

 

2021

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Kalhara Menikdiwela Dr. Armando Elizalde-Velazquez Kristen Heath Courtney Ramsey
Major Advisor:
Dr. Naima Moustaid-Moussa
Major Advisor: 
Dr. Jaclyn Canas
Major Advisor:
Dr. Warren Conway
Major Advisor:
Dr. Warren Conway
Departments of Nutritional Sciences Department of Environmental Toxicology Department of Wildlife, Aquatic, & Wildlands Science Management  Department of Wildlife, Aquatic, & Wildlands Science Management 
Mechanisms Linking the Adipocyte Renin Angiotensin System (RAS) to Obesity, Inflammation and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Sorption, Uptake, Trophic Transfer and Immunotoxicity of Microplastics and Nanoplastics in the Aquatic Environment Population Trends and Connectivity of Snowy Plovers on the Southern Great Plains of Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma Pronghorn Fawn Survival, Bed-Site Characteristics, and Adult Doe Habitat Selection in Southeastern New Mexico

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Jonathan Verbeten Dr. Leah Heilig Alexander Claman
Major Advisor:
Dr. Christoopher Smith
Major Advisor:
Dr. Michael Faris
Major Advisor:
Dr. Christopher Witmore
Department of Music Department of English Department of Classical & Modern Languages & Literatures
"Trashy Music" in the Halls: A Cultural-Geographical History of Music Making in San Francisco During the Gold Rush Years (1849-1869) Ways to Move, Ways to Map: Neurodiversity in Interaction Design Toward a Morphic History of Landscape

 

2020

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Md Jasim Uddin Dr. Yeqin Wang Yves Tchatchoua
Major Advisor:
Dr. Harvinder Gill
Major Advisor:
Dr. Beibei Ren
Major Advisor:
Dr. Yu-Chun Donald Lie
Department of Chemical Engineering Department of Wind Science of Engineering Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Allergen-free Pollen Shell as a Novel Biomaterial for Oral Vaccine Delivery: Development, Characterization, In Vivo Efficacy, and Mechanistic Insight Control of Power Electronic Converters for Microgrids Software Defined Radio (SDR) based Non-Contact Vital Signs (NCVS) Sensor System

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Cary Oldhan Dr. Cara Lawson Ethan Sabala
Major Advisor:
Dr. Sylvia Niehuis
Major Advisor:
Dr. Courtney Meyers
Major Advisor:
Dr. Stephen Devadoss
Department of Human Development & Family Studies Department of Agricultural Education & Communication Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics
A Longitudinal Study of the Timing of First Sex in Romantic Relationships and Subsequent Relationship Quality The Media's Influence on Public Perceptions and Attitudes Toward the Rural Opioid Epidemic Essays in Trade Policy Analysis: Chinese Tariffs on US Agricultural Markets

 

2019

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Kembra Albracht-Schulte Dr. Vimal Kumar Balasubramanian Jasmine Neupane Kendall Blanchard
Major Advisor:
Dr. Naima Moustaid-Moussa
Major Advisor:
Dr. Venugopal Mendu
Major Advisor:
Dr. Wenxuan Guo
Major Advisor:
Dr. Ron Kendall
Department of Nutritional Sciences Department of Plant & Soil Science Department of Plant & Soil Science Department of Environmental Toxicology
Hepatoprotective Mechanisms of Eicosapentaenoic Acid in High-Fat Fed Mice and Identification of Biomarkers for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Humans Understanding the Genetic factors involved in Cell wall biosynthesis and Biomass production Cotton yield variability in relation to irrigation rates, soil physical properties and topography Regional Surveillance and Seasonal Variation of Eyeworm (Oxyspirura petrowi) and Caecal Worm (Aulonocephalus pennula) Infection in Northern Bobwhite Quail (Colinus virginianus) of Rolling Plains, TX

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Candice Holley Dr. Brian Larsen Heather Turbeville
Major Advisor:
Dr. Angela Mariani Smith
Major Advisor:
Dr. William Wenthe
Major Advisor:
Dr. Abigail Swingen
Department of Music Department of English Department of History
Marian Devotion in Music: Three Settings of the Ave Maris Stella by Selected Composers at the Santissima Annunziata, Florence (1700-1900 A.D.) Pilotage: Poems Spices, the East India Company, and the Origins of Anti-Dutch Sentiment in England in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries

 

2018

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation
Dr. Molla Hasan Dr. Sara Calandrini
Major Advisor:
Dr. Golden Kumar
Major Advisor:
Dr. Eugenio Aulisa
Department of Mechanical Engineering Department of Mathematics & Statistics
Decoupling the Effects of Surface Roughness and Chemistry on the wetting of Metallic Glasses Fluid-Structure Interaction Simulations for Medical Applications

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Raymond March Dr. Gail Alleyne Bayne Alyssa Bonorden
Major Advisor:
Dr. Adam Martin
Major Advisor:
Fethi Inan
Major Advisor:
Dr. Brett Houk
Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics Department of Instructional Technology Department of Anthropology
Self-Regulation in the U.S. Pharmaceutical Market Effects of Online Course Design Elements on Undergraduate Students' Mental Fatigue Comparing Colonial Experiences in Northwestern Belize: Archaeological Evidence from Qualm Hill Camp and Kaxil Uinic Village

 

2017

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Joy McMurrin Dr. Jeannie Bennett Garret McDonald Aaron Wood
Major Advisor:
Dr. Sam Dragga
Major Advisor:
Dr. Amy Koerber
Major Advisor:
Dr. Alan Barenberg
Major Advisor:
Dr. Dorothy Chansky
Department of English Department of Communication Studies Department of History Department of Theatre & Dance
Negotiating the Supermarket: A Critical Approach to Nutrition Literacy Among Low-income Consumers An Unhealthy Drama: A Burkean Analysis of Mental Illness Rhetorics  Prisoners at War: Soviet Forced Labor and the Second World War Performing Masculine Perfection: Eugen Sandow's American Male Ideal

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Mandana Pahlavani Dr. Amanda Cano Hannah Ashbaugh
Major Advisor:
Dr. Naima Moustaid-Moussa
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jaclyn Canas-Carrell
Major Advisor:
Dr. Warren Conway
Department of Nutritional Sciences Department of Environmental Toxicology Department of Natural Resources Management
Cellular and Molecular Basis for Omega 3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Regulation of Brown Adipose Tissue Determination of carbon-based nanomaterial distribution, toxicity, and trophic transfer in aquatic environments Environmental availability and potential influences of heavy metals on snowy plovers in the Southern Great Plains of Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma

 

2016

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Jie Ding Dr. Alaa Darabseh Travis Hall Travis Hall
Major Advisor:
Dr. Xinzhong Chen
Major Advisor:
Dr. Akbar Namin
Major Advisor:
Dr. Yu Chon Donald Lie
Major Advisor:
Dr. Kerry Griffis-Kyle
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering Department of Computer Science Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Department of Natural Resources Management
Extreme response and fatigue damage analysis of wind-excited structures considering non-Gaussian load effects Cyberspace Security Use Keystroke Dynamics The Design of a Robust and Intelligent Phased Array Non-Contact Vital Signs (NCVS) Sensor System The role of isolation in Sonoran Desert water site connectivity-based conservation strategies

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Sungwon Chung Dr. Paulina Velez-Gomez Girsea Martinez Kenna Neitch
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jongpil Cheon
Major Advisor:
Dr. Nancy Bell
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jennifer Dunn
Major Advisor:
Dr. Kerry Griffis-Kyle
Department of Educational Psychology & Learning Department of Human Development & Family Studies Department of Sociology, Anthropology & Social Work Department of English
An Investigation of the Effects of Emotional Visual Aids on Learning Performance and Mental Effort in Online Health Education Identity Negotiations of Colombian International Students Identity & Ambiguity: The Moral Career of Undocumented Young Adults from Mixed-Status Immigrant Families The Nature of Satire: Essentialism, Gender, and Purpose

 

2015

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Sana Shafian Dr. Matthew VanLandeghem Aakriti Sharma Cody Sultenfuss
Major Advisor:
Dr. Stephen Maas
Major Advisor:
Dr. Reynaldo Patino
Major Advisor:
Dr. David Weindorf
Major Advisor:
Dr. Samuel Prien
Department of Plant & Soil Science Department of Natural Resources Management Department of Plant & Soil Science Department of Animal & Food Sciences
Estimation of soil moisture status in the Texas High Plains using remote sensing Environmental Factors Regulating Toxic Blooms of Golden Algae (Prymnesium Parvum) and their Effects on Fisheries Resources Characterization of Soils via Portable X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer A Novel and Inexpensive Semen Thawing Device Designed to Improve Efficiency in a Production Agriculture Environment

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Michael Palmer Dr. Heath Wing Tiffany Gonzalez
Major Advisor:
Dr. Dennis Covington
Major Advisor:
Dr. John Beusterien
Major Advisor:
Dr. Julie Willett
Department of English Department of Classical & Modern Languages Department of History
Baptizing the Dead:  Creative Nonfiction Essays States of Exception on American Frontiers:  Biopolitics, Violence, and Nation in Martin Fierro, Os Sertaes, and Blood Meridian Chicana Politics:  Maria Cardenas and La Raza Unida Party, 1935-1993

 

2014

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Yunzhe Ma Dr. Jared Gragg Jason Post
Major Advisor:
Dr. Harvinder Gill
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jingzhou Yang
Major Advisor:
Dr. Perry Carter
Department of Chemical Engineering Department of Mechanical Engineering Department of Geosciences
Microneedles for Drug Delivery into Oral Cavity Investigating the onset of slip in gait by employing probabilistic theory and optimization-based motion prediction Environmental Inequality in Lubbock Texas

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Leah Carruth Dr. Sungwon Jung Megan Ohlmann Nellie Hill
Major Advisor:
Dr. Carole Janisch
Major Advisor:
Dr. Todd Chambers
Major Advisor:
Dr. Stephanie Jones
Major Advisor:
Dr. David Doerfert
Department of Education Department of Education Department of Education, Psychology, & Leadership Department of Agricultural Education and Communications
Interactions in Kindergarten Writing Workshop:  Writing Development and Social Development Motivated cognition in video games: the influence of emotional video game content on cognitive processing of billboard advertisements embedded in first-person shooter games A Quantitative Analysis of Factors Affecting Undergraduate Business Students' Choice of Major: Testing a Proposed Model of Academic Major Choice Identity Development A Social Network Analysis of Texas Alliance for Water Conservation Producers

 

2013

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Song Tang Dr. Jose Thekkiniath Rebecca Perkins Komal Kunder
Major Advisor:
Dr. Greg Mayer
Major Advisor:
Dr. Michael San Francisco
Major Advisor:
Dr. Clint Boal
Major Advisor:
Dr. Susan San Francisco
Department of Environmental Toxicology Department of Biological Sciences Department of Natural Resource Management Graduate School
Toxicity of cadmium quantum dots compared to cadmium and zinc ions in zebrafish (Danio rerio) and water flea (Daphnia pulex) Molecular responses of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis
following exposure to thyroid hormone 
Anti-predatory Behavior of Northern Bobwhite in the Rolling Plains of Texas Molecular Landscape of Cotton Fibers in Early Elongation

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis
Dr. Henrietta Goodman Dr. Dorothy Maria O'Connell Justin Kirkland
Major Advisor:
Dr. Greg Mayer
Major Advisor:
Dr. Sara Spurgeon
Major Advisor:
Dr. Abigail Swingen
Department of English Department of English Department of History
Hungry Moon (Poems) Them Boys Just Ain't Right:  Masculinity, Myth, and Social Systemic Communication in Cormac McCarthy's Novels From Rite to Right: How Holy Days Became A Natural Right in Medieval England

 

2012

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Nicole Gilinsky Dr. Matthew Russell Shawn Brackett Josh Novak
Major Advisor:
Dr. Hansel Burley
Major Advisor:
Nancy Bell
Major Advisor:
Dr. Stacy Jacob
Major Advisor:
Dr. Douglas Smith
Department of Educational Psychology Department of Human Development and Family Studies Department of Higher Education Department of Marriage and Family Therapy
Physical Activity and Self-regulatory Capabilities: Examining Relationships with Academic Self-efficacy and Academic Outcomes Women's Counter Narratives of Redemption Advancing Women in Education: Colorado State Normal School and the University of Colorado, 1870-1920 The association between the experience of abuse in childhood and perceptions of safety in current adult intimate relationships

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Yingying Chen Dr. Brian Miller Kristine Seaman Valiantsina Laurushchyk
Major Advisor:
Dr. Karlene Hoo
Major Advisor:
Dr. Lourdes Juan
Major Advisor:
Dr. Mara Neusel
Major Advisor:
Dr. Mara Neusel
Department of Chemical Engineering Department of Mathematics and Statistics Department of Mathematics and Statistics Department of Mathematics and Statistics
An Analysis of Model Parameter Uncertainty on Online Model-based Applications On the Integration of Elementary Functions: Computing the Logarithmic Part Kryptos Orbit Chern Classes in Invariant Theory

 

2011

Biological Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Adcharee Karnjanapiboonwong Dr. Colin Bell Eric Howell Shawna Nations
Major Advisor:
Dr. Todd Anderson
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jon Zak
Major Advisor:
Dr. Lou Densmore
Major Advisor:
Dr. George Cobb
Department of Environmental Toxicology Department of Biological Sciences Department of Biological Sciences Department of Environmental Toxicology
Long-Term Fate of Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment Soil Microbial Responses to Increased Precipitation in the Desert Grasslands of Big Bend National Park Chemotherapeutic Challenge of the Chernobyl Rodent Apodemus flavicollis Acute and Developmental Toxicity of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles (ZnO, TiO2, Fe203, and CuO) in Xenopus laevis

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Stephanie Eckroth Dr. John Southard Leslie (Micah) Branson Cody Lass
Major Advisor:
Dr. Ann Hawkins
Major Advisor:
Dr. Ron Milam
Major Advisor:
Dr. Dorothy Chansky
Major Advisor:
Dr. Ethan Schmidt
Department of English Department of History Department of Theatre & Dance Department of History
Anonymity, Celebrity and Authorship, 1780-1823 The Marine Corps Way:  Combined Action Platoons in the Vietnam War And Footlights Lit the Path of the Righteous:  Theatricality and Performance in the Second Great Awakening Read All About It:  Nationalism During the American Revolution

 

2010

Mathematics, Physical Sciences, & Engineering

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Dinesh Ekanayake Dr. Brett L. Moore Kathryn Brausch Peilin Cao
Major Advisor:
Dr. Ram Iyer
Major Advisor:
Dr. Larry Pyeatt
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jonathan Maul
Major Advisor:
Dr. Shameem Siddiqui
Department of Mathematics and Statistics Department of Computer Science Department of Environmental Toxicology Department of Petroleum Engineering
Robust Control of Saturating, Non-Monotone Hysteretic Systems with Non-Linear Frequency-Dependent Power Losses Reinforcement Learning for Closed-Loop Propofol Anesthesia: A Human Volunteer Study Effects of Fullerenes and Functionalized Fullerenes on Daphnia Magna: Behavioral Respomses and Interactions of Functionalized Fullerene with Hydrophobic Organic Contaminants Three-Phase Unsteady-State Relative Permeability Measurements in Consolidated Cores Using Three Immiscible Liquids

Social Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Kevin Gosselin Dr. Jose Antonio Lopez Andrea V. Roets Abigail McCulloch
Major Advisor:
Dr. Hansel Burley
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jaime Malaga
Major Advisor:
Dr. Anisa Zvonkovic
Major Advisor:
Dr. Scott Burris
Department of Educational Psychology and Leadership Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics Department of Human Development and Family Studies Department of Agricultural Education and Communications
Development and Psychometric Exploration of the Online Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale The Mexican Meat Market: An Econometric Analysis of Demand Properties and Trade Personality, Work Demand, and Romantic Relationships A Preassessment for Developing a Food Safety Training Program for Self Service Food Bars in Grocery Stores

 

2009

Biological and Life Sciences

1st Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Jennifer Huddleston Julie Weathers I-Huei Tsai
Major Advisor:
Dr. Randall Jeter
Major Advisor:
Dr. Samuel Prien
Major Advisor: 
Dr. Shange Blum
Department of Biological Sciences Department of Animal & Food Science Department of Nutritional Sciences
Natural Transformation in Aeromonas Species Early Indications of Breed Differences for Cryopreservation of Embryos in Cattle Cytotoxicity of Selenocyanobiotin Against MDA-MA-231 Breast Cancer Cells

Humanities/Fine Arts

1st Place Dissertation 2nd Place Dissertation 1st Place Thesis 2nd Place Thesis
Dr. Jordan Cofer Dr. Ian Rollins Kyle Conway Brian Yost
Major Advisor:
Dr. Jim Whitlark
Major Advisor:
Dr. Christopher Smith
Major Advisor:
Dr. Dorothy Chansky
Major Advisor:
Dr. Michael Borshuk
Department of English Department of Music Department of Fine Arts Department of English
Flannery's Bible:  Biblical Recapitulations in the Fiction of Flannery O'Conno Ritmo Caliente:  Cal Tjader, 1950s Dichotomies, and the Story of Latin Jazz Will Eno:  The Page, the Stage and the Word Globalization, Commercial Culture, and Contemporary U.S. Fiction