Bourbon, pork chops, and red peppers: Political immorality in Florida, 1945--1968

Weitz, Seth A The Florida State University 2007 해외공개박사

The end of Reconstruction ushered in a new era in Southern history. White supremacy returned to the region and the Republican Party was run back across the Mason-Dixon Line leaving the South with a virtual one party system. From 1877--1967 Florida was a member of the "solid south" where the winner of the Democratic primary was victorious in the general election. While Florida was tied to the Democratic Party, it also differed from its sister states in the South. The Sunshine State experienced a population boom like no other state in the nation except possibly California, transforming the peninsula from a backwater, poor, insignificant state into one of the largest state's in the United States by 1965. Many of the new Floridians brought with them political beliefs alien to the Deep South, and these principles threatened to undermine the deeply entrenched system that had been in place since the end of Reconstruction. At mid-century, Florida politics was dominated by the Pork Chop Gang, a group of conservative, states' rights, segregationist Democrats from rural Northern and Central Florida. The Pork Choppers held a stranglehold over the state Legislature due to the archaic apportioning of legislative districts which had been mandated by the Constitution of 1885. The Pork Choppers espoused "Old South" values and looked to maintain their power and control of the state in any way possible despite Florida's ever changing demographic and political landscape. Under the 1885 document, power in the state resided in the Legislature and the cabinet which was directly elected by the people. Because of the malapportioned political districts, 12.3% of the population could elect a majority in the state senate and 14.7% could do the same in the lower house. Florida's government in the first half of the twentieth century was highly suspicious of outsiders and most of the Pork Choppers viewed the state's political apparatus as a means of protecting their friends and advancing the interests of the Northern section of the state at the expense of the rapidly expanding population of South Florida. The Pork Chop Gang not only defended the Old South against the New South, but it also viewed itself as the last bastion of protection for the agrarian lifestyle of rural Florida which was being challenged by growing industry and big business from Orlando, and Tampa south. The Pork Choppers knew that in order to preserve their power over the state they would have to retain their control of the Legislature and to ensure this they needed to protect the 1885 Constitution which was coming under more scrutiny by South Floridians. The first assault on the "Old South" values of the Pork Chop Gang was the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Brown v Board of Education which in 1954 directly challenged segregated educational systems throughout the nation. Florida, like its Southern neighbors largely resisted this perceived affront to white supremacy and the Pork Choppers soon saw the court's decision as a means to rally support to their cause and hopefully maintain their power within the state. On the national level the Pork Choppers took their cue from Wisconsin Senator Joe McCarthy who, confronted by the perceived notion of the "Red Menace" infiltrating American society, emerged to lead systematic attacks against anyone and everyone deemed a threat. McCarthyism in Florida, commencing at the end of the junior senator's national reign of terror, proved a methodical and orderly assault on all opponents of the region, whether they be Communists, African-Americans, homosexuals or liberals. The perceived threats against morality, white supremacy and the concocted communist hazard were used as an excuse and disguise to purge Florida of its enemies and more importantly maintain the power of the Pork Chop Gang in the face of its growing political enemies. It was in the attacks on the Universities of Florida, South Florida and Florida State University where the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee (FLIC) employed ignominious tactics in assaulting homosexuals and others labeled immoral within the student body as well as the faculty. The FLIC demonized homosexuality in order to convince Floridians that an overhaul of the state universities was needed. The offensive against the state's flagship university was billed as a moral crucible aimed at protecting the state against unwanted intrusion by liberal academics and homosexuals. The FLIC, aptly called the Johns Committee, outlasted Senator Joe McCarthy on the national level, wreaking havoc in Florida until 1965. Despite the efforts of Johns, the Pork Chop Gang was unable to curtail the changing political and social atmosphere in Florida. The Pork Choppers aimed to resist change by employing reprehensible tactics but their strategy backfired helping to accelerate the disintegration of the one party political system in the state. Governor LeRoy Collins tried to drag Florida into the twentieth century in the 1950's but was blocked by the Pork Choppers. In the 1960's the election of Republican Claude Kirk to the Governor's mansion highlighted a glaring chink in their armor. As the population of South Florida grew in the 1960's so did the opposition to the Pork Chop Gang and their stranglehold on the Legislature. Kirk backed a change to the constitution, eventually resulting in the Constitution of 1968 which realigned the voting districts to represent the profound shift in population and draw power away from the rural counties. No longer would Liberty County (population 2,889 in 1960) and Lafayette County (3,138) hold as much political clout as Dade County (900,000). Ironically the final demise of the Pork Chop Gang can be attributed to the combined efforts of liberal Democrats who were recent immigrants to Florida from the North and the reemergence of the Republican Party under Kirk.

English education: A multi-case study of three university programs in Florida responsible for initial teacher preparation

Rentz, Pamela R The Florida State University 2013 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

This study explores the critical issue of teacher preparation in university-based English education programs in the state of Florida. Numerous training programs and certification avenues currently exist in response to the growing concentration on teacher training, teacher quality, induction and retention, and teacher shortages. This study, an exploration of Florida's State University System undergraduate programs of initial English teacher preparation, examines how Florida universities are preparing pre-service middle and high school English teachers for induction into the profession. Of specific interest is the incorporation of the state-mandated Florida Educator Accomplished Practices into the programs preparing novice teachers for the classroom. Following a collaborative case study design, data were collected from three university-based English education programs in Florida. Interviews and focus groups targeted stakeholders from each baccalaureate program including faculty and administration at the university, current students, and recent graduates. Textual analyses were used to determine trends in course offerings, sequencing, requirements, and standards infusion. Findings from this study address the issues of the Florida Educator Accomplished Practices, professional identity formation, field experience, induction support, and professional collaborations---all relevant components in the preparation of Florida's middle/secondary English language arts teacher preparation.

Internet use by graduate students in the Communication Department of Florida State University and its impact on the use of FSU academic libraries

Al-Harbi, Abdulmohsin Hasan The Florida State University 2002 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

This research study explicated a user oriented view to explore the use of the Internet as well as the use of FSU academic libraries by graduate students in the Communication Department at Florida State University. It also investigated the impact of Internet use on the overall use of FSU academic libraries. The study employed a combined theoretical framework of the use and gratification theory and the least effort principle. It surveyed all the graduate students in the Communication Department at Florida State University as its targeted population. Findings of the study suggested that although graduate students of the Communication Department at FSU considered the Internet to be equally important for their academic major field as FSU academic libraries, the majority of them (52%) depend on Internet resources and services more than FSU academic libraries. Furthermore, 26% of the respondents do not use FSU academic libraries for their academic information needs. From the graduate students' point of view, the Internet has slight effects on the overall use of FSU academic libraries (54%). Moreover, Kendall's tau_b and Spearman's rho nonparametric correlation tests indicated a strong relationship between the choice of using the Internet as a primary information resource and reduced FSU academic libraries use. Likewise, Pearson correlation coefficient test found that there is a statistically significance between graduate students who were at an advanced level in using the Internet and graduate students who used FSU academic libraries less frequently. In addition, FSU academic libraries were most used for academic work purposes and were least used for entertainment, whereas the Internet was mostly used for communication gratifications and was least used for employment (work) satisfactions. Among the other findings of this research study was the criteria of use preferences, which govern the selection and use of a particular information source over others. Among these criteria—convenience, cost, usefulness, reliability, satisfaction, ease of use, and the source that requires the least amount of effort. Finally, the study illustrated a basic information-seeking pattern of graduate students, where the Internet ranked first followed by FSU academic libraries and then teachers and professors labeled third.

The impacts of state growth management regulations on housing prices and housing affordability in Florida

Anthony, Jerry The Florida State University 2000 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

In the last few years, urban sprawl has captured the nation's attention. This in turn has renewed interest in land use planning and growth management. As a result, many states are considering adoption of state-wide growth management legislation, similar to those in place in some states such as Oregon and Florida. While state-wide growth management policies may improve the quality of urban environments and help preserve natural environments, housing advocates are concerned that such policies increase housing prices and decrease housing affordability. To date very little research has been conducted to examine the impacts of state growth management policies on housing prices and affordability. This research seeks to partly fill this void by examining the impacts of Florida's Growth Management Act on housing prices and housing affordability. The Growth Management Act, enacted in 1985, seeks to preserve the state's environmental resources and reduce urban sprawl. It contains measures to encourage compact urban development and availability of affordable housing. This research uses both quantitative and qualitative research methods for impact analysis. The quantitative component examines housing price and affordability trends from all 67 counties of the state over a 16 year period and, after controlling for alternate hypotheses, finds that the Act did raise housing prices and reduce housing affordability in a statistically significant manner. By reducing housing affordability, the Act reduces home-ownership opportunities for renters and reduces residential location choice. Detailed case studies of three counties highlight differences in implementation of the Act and how these result in differential impacts on housing affordability. The findings of this research can inform planners and policymakers in Florida, other states that have growth management legislation and those that are considering such policies.

State and local institutions and environmental policy: A transaction cost analysis

Tavares, Antonio Fernando Freitas The Florida State University 2003 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

This project focuses on the intergovernmental relationship between states and their local communities in environmental policy in the United States. The dissertation examines both state and local policy tool choices using a single theoretical framework recently developed by Avinash Dixit---a neoinstitutional transaction cost politics framework. Transaction cost politics (TCP) is a positive analytic approach to the study of public policy that combines elements of organizational economics and public choice. The dissertation addresses two subjects within the environmental policy area: solid waste management and growth management. The first question I attempt to answer is: "To what extent do transaction costs of intergovernmental relations determine the degree to which states attempt to constrain and direct the behavior of local governments in environmental policy making?" The results of the empirical analysis of the 50 U.S. states indicate that state legislators share the risks of policy choices and decisions with local level officials and consider past and present local government practices when adopting specific legislation. In addition, the degree of professionalism of state legislatures seems to be an important factor in the approval of state environmental policy. Finally, the political transaction costs arguments are confirmed by the results regarding the influence of local institutions in state level policy making. The empirical findings indicate that, when one considers the effect of local institutions in the aggregate, the impact on state environmental policy is important, affecting the expectations and monitoring costs of state legislators. The second major question this project attempts to answer is: "To what extent do transaction costs of local politics affect environmental policy instrument choices made by local governments?" I employ the concept of policy instrument/policy tool to convey the idea that local government officials have goals that are pursued by using certain means ("tools"). The preferences of local officials for one or several instruments depends on a series of factors: economic efficiency, political transaction costs, and influences or constraints imposed by local institutions (form of government, system of election, and home rule status) as well as state level constrains (state grants to local governments). The empirical findings reveal that none of these factors can be ignored in explaining local environmental policy options. Both local level analyses of the 67 Florida counties indicate a pattern in terms of community characteristics which favors both recycling and growth management programs. In general, wealthier, more educated and racially homogeneous communities are more likely to engage in environmental policy programs, because the concern of local officials is to maintain a high quality of living for their constituents and this can be best accomplished using specific policy tools.

Florida's unique constitutional experiment: Cabinet elections, 1888--1932

Phillippy, George Duncan The Florida State University 2000 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

“Florida's Unique Constitutional Experiment: Cabinet Elections, 1888–1932” explores the political history of Florida's state government from the populist revolt through the Progressive Era and continues up to the Great Depression. The major focus is on elections to the state's plural executive board, the Cabinet, beginning with the implementation of the 1885 Constitution. A secondary focus concentrates on the rapid growth and development of the central and southern region of the peninsular state. This dissertation traces the transformation of a frontier-like, sparsely populated area into a vibrant urban region over the course of a few decades. By the time of the Banking Crisis of 1926 and the Great Depression, this area held the reins of political power in Florida.

The relationship between performing in a "sophisticated" band program and the ability to judge "sophisticated" wind band literature

Fleming, Ricky Lynn The Florida State University 2001 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

The purpose of this study was to investigate empirically the relationship between playing sophisticated literature within school ensembles and students' preferences for sophisticated literature. Subjects (N = 120) were middle school students (n = 40), high schools (n = 40), and university music majors (n = 40). The middle school subjects were chosen from a premier middle school in the state of Florida. High school subjects were also chosen from an outstanding program in Florida. University subjects were all senior and junior music education majors at a large comprehensive state university located in the southeastern United States. A panel of expert music educators and conductors ranked the following Hungarian wind band compositions: László Dubrovay's <italic> Triple Concerto</italic>, Kamilló Lendvay's <italic>The Last Message from Maestro Tchaikovsky</italic>, Farkas Antal's <italic>Uvestánc </italic>, and Frigyes Hidas' <italic>Folksongs of Békés County </italic>. These compositions have never been performed in the United States nor are they published. Each subject to an excerpt presented in one of four randomized orders and rated each piece according to the following criteria: (1) Not Sophisticated, (2) Less Sophisticated, (3) Neutral, (4) Sophisticated, and (5) Very Sophisticated. Data were gathered using two different conditions: half of the subjects in each group used a pencil/paper Likert type scale while the other half used the <italic>Continuous Response Digital Interface</italic> (CRDI). The mean scores of the groups for each excerpt were compared to find if there were differences among the middle school, high school, and university subjects. Each group of subjects was then compared to the expert panel's rankings. There were no significant difference among groups, condition, and order of presentation in the Antal excerpt. However, results for the Hidas excerpt did indicate a significant difference between age groups. The middle school mean for Hidas (4.10) was significantly higher than the high school (3.30) and the university (3.42) means. Significant differences were found between age and presentation order in the Lendvay excerpt. While the university mean (4.03) was significantly higher than the middle school (3.47) and the high school (3.87) means, the mean in orders 2 (3.55) and 1 (3.50) were significantly different from the mean in order 4(4.17), indicating that presentation order did make a difference. Results for Dubrovay's <italic>Triple Concerto</italic> indicated a significant difference between groups and conditions (CRDI versus Paper/Pencil Likert scale). The middle school mean (2.80) was significantly lower than the university subjects' mean (3.45). There was also a large difference between the pencil/paper and CRDI conditions for the Dubrovay excerpt. This difference is particularly large between the middle school and high school subjects. The study suggests that merely performing sophisticated literature does not necessarily increase a student's ability to recognize or judge sophisticated literature.

Topics in the economics of education: Quasi-experimental studies on Florida's educational system

Partridge, Mark Allen The Florida State University 2013 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

In this dissertation I conduct three quasi-experimental studies relating to the K-12 and postsecondary educational system in Florida. Each of these three studies are entirely separate and are only related to one another in that they exploit similar econometric techniques and generally concern the economics of education. These studies employ estimation methods such as differences -in-differences, panel data techniques, and dynamic ordinary least squares, instrumental variables, and first differences. The first study examines the efficacy of elected versus appointed officials in the state of Florida. For over 40 years researchers have attempted to test the relative efficiency of governments run by elected versus appointed officials with conflicting results. The focus of prior research has been the expenditure levels of municipal and county governments. This paper considers the achievement of students in public schools. Using data from Florida's 67 school districts, this study compares academic outcomes of students in districts run by elected and appointed superintendents. To overcome selection bias, this study utilizes both instrumental variable methods and panel data techniques. This study finds no consistent differences in the performance of elected and appointed superintendents. The second study attempts to measure the impact of the Florida Bright Futures merit-based scholarship program on student persistence in the first two years of college. Since Georgia's initiation of the HOPE scholarship program in 1993, numerous studies have examined the impact of merit-aid programs on college enrollment and educational attainment in higher education. Using data of the entering cohort of first-time in college students in 1996-97 and 2004-05 from Florida's K-20 Data Warehouse, this paper examines the impacts of Bright Futures program on persistence by estimating difference-in-differences models. The paper shows some positive impacts of the Bright Futures program on early persistence rates, but negative impacts for longer persistence. Results also show that the program has different impacts across different racial/ethnic and institution subgroups. The final paper models the impacts of changes to the length of the school year caused by hurricanes in Florida. The notion that there is an optimal length of a school year and amount of time that should be spent each day in the classroom was first introduced nearly 30 years ago with the release of A Nation at Risk where policy researchers urged the American populous to move toward a longer (220 day) school year in order to improve student outcomes. Some quantitative research has been performed since then to indicate the efficacy of such a practice, but there is not yet a clear understanding of how changes to the length of the school year impacts achievement. I address part of this question using longitudinal data from the state of Florida and exploiting the impact of hurricanes and school closures on student achievement. I employ econometric methods to estimate the impact of changes in the length of the school year on achievement in core subjects including reading and mathematics for middle school students. I find that for mathematics, there is a positive impact of additional school days on student achievement for districts hardest hit by hurricanes in 2004, but no significant impacts for models that include hardest hit counties and nearby counties and models that include all of Florida. For reading, I find that longer school years caused positive impacts for hardest hit counties and nearby counties, but inconclusive results for models that include all of Florida. Despite these impacts, none were substantial, with the most impact being an increase of about two one hundredths of a standard deviation on mathematics standardized tests given an increase of one school day.

Adjustment of local service rates and universal service: An empirical study of Florida local telephone customers

Yu, Yiwen The Florida State University 2001 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

The universal service policy has generated some contradictory issues in the current debate of deregulation in the telecommunications industry. While it has relied on a cross-subsidization mechanism to provide affordable local telephone service to all users, the on-going deregulation will release a market force to correct such artificial distortion. Regulators and universal service advocates have shown concerns that in a deregulated market, the penetration rate of local telephone service will be hurt. There is an ample literature on demand for local telephone service. However, most of the studies were done in the 1970's and 1980's. The telecommunications market and technologies have changed rapidly in recent years. Updated data and studies are needed to provide answers to universal service questions in today's deregulated environment. The Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) survey on residential customers' willingness to pay for local telephone service presents us a timely opportunity to study the demand for local telephone service in Florida. In an appropriate theoretical framework set forth by Mitchell (1976), an aggregate demand curve for local telephone service in Florida is simulated based upon the FPSC survey data. In addition, an econometric model called ordered probit is structured to fit the FPSC survey data. Two sets of price elasticities of demand are calculated by using both simulated and econometric results and are compared with ones estimated by many other studies. It is found that the demand for local telephone service in the current Florida market is more elastic than two decades ago. Furthermore, the theoretical model has also been simulated for people at low income levels and in a simple welfare framework, the simulated results are used to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of universal service programs such as Lifeline in Florida. This welfare analysis demonstrates that the existing Lifeline program in Florida is ineffective and inefficient. The overall results of this study presents insightful understanding of the characteristics of the aggregate demand in the current Florida local telephone market. They contribute useful and timely information and answers regarding universal service issues in the current deregulation debate. Regulators and telecommunications policy-makers shall find important policy implications in this study.

The Effects of Performance Budgeting and Funding Programs on Gradation Rate in Public Four-Year Colleges and Universities

신정철 The Florida State University 2003 해외박사

The purpose of this study is to determine whether states with performance budgeting and funding (PBX) programs had increased the effectiveness of their public institutions of higher education over the three years (1997 through 1999) considered in this study. To explore this question, two primary research questions, and six related secondary research questions are generated. The two primary research questions ask whether PBX programs had been effective in achieving their ultimate policy goalimproved institutional performance. The six secondary research questions seek to determine the differential effects of various program characteristics on improved institutional performance. To accomplish these purposes, First Time in College (TIC) graduation rate was used as the dependent variable and two types of independent variables, program variables and control independent variables, were considered. The program variables reflect PBX program characteristics of interest (mandated program or not, prescribed indicator or not, mission differences between institutions, and adequate program implementation experience or not). The control variables are the factors that correlated with graduation rate in relevant research. Or this study, the unit of analysis is institution level and the study population is limited to public four-or-more-year institutions in the United States. Private institutions, public community colleges, and public graduate-education-only institutions are excluded from the analysis. A descriptive analysis of trends is conducted to attain preliminary information on the research questions and the recently-developed Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HL) growth model analysis is applied to test PBX program effectiveness: 1) between institutions with different PBX histories; 2) between different categories of PBX program characteristics (e.g.., PBX program types, program mandate status, and indicator prescription status); 3) between institutions with different PBX program pre-experience status, 4) between research-oriented institutions and teaching-oriented institutions; and 5) the correlation between initial status (graduation rates in 1997) and the growth of graduation rates during the three years (1997 through 1999) under study. The following is a summary of the research findings: (1) During the three years under study, 19 states maintained continuously PBX programs and 16 states did not adopt the programs. In addition, 10 states newly adopted PBX programs in 1998 or 1999, while five states abandoned the programs in 1998 or 1999. The growth of graduation rates in PBX states was not greater than in non-PBX states and the growth in graduation rates in newly- adopted states was not greater than in the states that had abandoned their PBX programs. (2) Twelve states adopted either a performance budgeting (PBS) or performance funding (POX) program, but not both, while seven states adopted both PBS and POX programs at the same time. The growth in graduation rates in the states with both programs was higher than in the states with only the PBS or POX program. Thirteen states had state legislature-mandated programs and six had programs not mandated by the state legislature. Despite differences in their program mandate status, the growth of graduation rates in mandated and non-mandated PBX states was similar. State legislatures prescribed performance indicators in five states, while state agencies selected performance indicators in 14 states. The growth of graduation rates in states with prescribed indicators was greater than in non-prescribed states. (3) Six states had three or more years of PBX program experience, while 13 states had less than three years of experience prior to 1997. However, there was no difference in the growth of graduation rates in the states with three or more years of PBX program experience and states with less than three years of PBX program experience. (4) Sixty-seven institutions among 188 institutions are research-oriented institutions, while 121 institutions are teaching-oriented institutions. Interestingly, the growth of graduation rate at teaching-oriented institutions are not greater than that of research-oriented institutions. (5) One interesting finding concerned the relationship between the growth rate across the three years under study and the initial status in 1997. The graduation rates at institutions with low graduation rates in 1997 grew more than the graduation rates at institutions with high graduation rates in 1997, as the negative correlation demonstrates. The lack of growth in institutional graduation rates, however, does not mean that PBX programs failed to achieve their goals. More time may have been necessary for changes to become apparent, or changes might have appeared indirectly rather than directly. Concluding that PBX programs are not useful based simply on changes in graduation rate over a short period, then, is not advised. In consideration of the findings of this study and the evaluation issues discussed in this study, policy-makers are advised to sustain PBX programs long enough until such programs bear their fruits or are proven ineffective.