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Manitoba has the highest prevalence of ESRD in Canada. Northern Manitoba is a very sparsely settled area with a high proportion of aboriginal ESRD patients. Relocating to urban areas for dialysis is psychosocially and culturally stressful to patients. Delivering dialysis care in a home setting has demonstrated advantages in both clinical, economic, and health related quality of life domains. Establishing home hemodialysis in very remote communities has significant challenges, including poor and inadequate housing, unreliable water supply, limited community medical backup, and poor road access to communities especially for delivery of supplies. These challenges necessitate the development of strong community partnerships, and well documented processes for contingencies. A dedicated interdisciplinary support and training team at the urban hub is essential.

Illinois education policymakers have adopted the completion agenda that emphasizes increasing postsecondary credential attainment. Meeting completion agenda goals necessitates addressing the achievement gap. To aid in developing policy to support improved completion, this study analyzes a comprehensive statewide dataset of the 2003 Illinois high school graduating class attending 4-year institutions using Cox regression survival analysis. Study findings indicate that African American (0.768 odds ratio) and Hispanic students (0.746) were significantly less likely to complete a baccalaureate degree within 7 years of graduating from high school when compared with their White peers. Furthermore, significance held regardless of income level. Several factors significantly related to improved likelihood of baccalaureate completion were identified including high school composite American College Testing (ACT) score, dual credit and advanced placement (AP) course taking, type of curriculum, ACT English and mathematics scores, and completing the ACT core curriculum. Analysis was conducted by race and income to compare the differences in significance across these groups.

Recent experiments have indicated that a torque transducer can be constructed based on local bands of naturally stabilized remanent circumferential magnetization within a hollow steel shaft. A strong coercive force along with the crystalline anisotropy combine to stabilize the circumferential magnetization of the sensing area of the shaft. A torqued shaft has its magnetic axis tilted into a helical orientation, which generates an axial field signal linearly proportional to the applied torque that can be sensed externally to the shaft. Our research has shown that the transducer function can be improved by appropriate sequential heat treatments in a helium atmosphere. Subsequent to all heat treatment steps, the test shafts were measured to determine the changes in axial and circumferential magnetic hysteresis properties and to track the development of the magnetic sensing area to applied torque ͑sensitivity͒. Although little change was produced in the originally narrow axial hysteresis loops, a 10%-20% decrease was observed in both axial coercive force and remanent magnetization, and correspondingly, a 50% increase was observed in sensitivity, accompanied by a higher linear saturation limit. Additionally, the heat treatment cycle significantly widened the originally broad circumferential hysteresis loops, resulting in a substantial increase in circumferential coercive force, which improves the stability of the sensory region.

Objective: This study seeks to determine the nature of current program evaluation practices for learning assistance centers (LACs), the practices being used for program evaluation, and whether LAC directors believe their practices are appropriate for evaluating program effectiveness. Method: We conducted a survey (n = 61) of community college LAC directors to determine the pervasiveness of program evaluation and use of evaluation practices. In addition to rating the level of use of these practices, we asked directors to rate their agreement as to whether these practices were currently being used and whether these should be used at their institutions. We provide both a descriptive analysis of the responses and an analysis using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test (WSRT). Results: The study yielded several findings. Evaluation of LACs is common at 70.5%. LACs are often small with limited capacity to carry out program evaluation. LACs rely on many part-time and student employees to provide services. Centers lack data on special populations served such as developmental and underrepresented students. LAC directors would appreciate greater faculty involvement in program evaluation. LAC directors have limited control over program evaluation and the measures used in evaluation. Many evaluation best practices are being employed, although LAC directors believed improvements could be made. Survey results include a list of commonly employed data collection measures. Contributions: Despite crucial services provided by LACs at community colleges, little is known about how these centers are evaluated. To address this gap, this study surveys LAC directors about their program evaluation practices and needs.

Magnetostriction effects were investigated for three different materials by using a simple, reproducible, and cost-effective method recently developed in our laboratory. The magnetostriction effects were generated by a large oscillating magnetic field produced by a high current 60 Hz ac welder power supply, capable of reaching saturation levels for the material, and then detected by a change in capacitance between a hollow cylindrical sample and a concentric brass ring. This capacitance change was continuously monitored at a high frequency rate by a standard laboratory capacitance bridge meter. The output voltage of the bridge was fed into a storage cathode-ray oscilloscope and its voltage versus time signals were then analyzed by a computer program. Two ferromagnetic rings, constructed of high-speed steels 4620 and 4340, which have proven applicability for use in magnetoelastic torque sensing, were used as the samples for investigating the magnetostriction effects, while a paramagnetic aluminum ring was used for the control sample. Our study showed that the 4340 ring, which had higher nickel, cobalt, and chromium content than that of the 4620 ring, had the largest magnetostriction effect, and that the aluminum ring displayed no magnetostriction effect, as was expected. We have found this experimental method to be both reproducible and sufficient to rank different ferromagnetic materials by their magnetostriction level, which is a significant consideration in producing effective magnetoelastic torque sensors.

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