Stevenson Center students and faculty serve communities around the world. The Center supports three graduate programs: the Peace Corps Fellows Program, the Applied Community & Economic Development Fellows Program, and the Peace Corps Master’s International Program. Students earn master’s degrees in anthropology, applied economics, kinesiology and recreation, political science, or sociology, each with an interdisciplinary sequence in applied community/economic development. Students employ their research skills through a capstone project or a thesis, often related to their required field experience. Students also investigate important community issues during their year on campus.
Launched in 2013, this collection is a work in progress, with new students adding their latest research while staff members gradually fill in alumni contributions. If you would like to be included in the Stevenson Center collection, please contact ISUReD@ilstu.edu.
Submissions from 2024
Hit Unmute and Press Record: Developing a Young Adult Mental Health Podcast, Arielle Hernandez Lyons
The Philosophy of Incarceration and Punishment and Its Evolvement. Is it Enough?, Katherine Sebok
Submissions from 2023
Developing Qualitative Research Questions for Illinois Post-Release Prison Analysis, Kiera Eckhardt
No Refuge From The Fields Vol. 2: Revitalization of Farmworker Housing Research, Manda LaPorte
Idle Hands are the Devil's Workshop? Exploring the Connections between Prison-Work Release Programming, Post-release Employment and Recidivism, Ryan Maranville
Citizenship Starts Here: A Community Engaged Approach to Civic Education, Grace Northern
Inclusionary Zoning in Illinois: A Case Study Analysis, Maxwell Seeley
Submissions from 2022
Quantifying the Problem and Risks of Poorly Abandoned Oil and Gas Wells in Ventura County, California, Haley Ehlers
Minimum Wage as a Tool for Combatting Renter Burdens, Jack Hanson
Emergency Response to Mental Health Crises: A Case Study of Bloomington, Illinois, Genevieve Rappold
Listening to the Unheard: Perceptions, Goals, and Challenges of Latinx Small Business Owners in Suburban Cook County, Kendra Shaw
Envisioning Telehealth Beyond the Pandemic: A Federally Qualified Health Center’s Inquiry Toward Sustainable Telehealth Programs, Krista Zampacorta
Submissions from 2021
Bridging the Divide: Community Centers as a Catalyst of Socioeconomic Opportunity Cultivation for At-Risk Youth, Grayson Bourke
Creating a Culture Change: Sector Trainings for Dementia Friendly Communities for East Central Illinois Area Agency on Aging, Genesis Marie Buendia
“Never Again Is Now ” Use of Cultural Frames in a Social Movement Organization, Erik Paul Carlson
Local Matters! Community-Based Organizations, Changemaking, and the Food System, Tessa Lance
Aid Worker Burnout as Injury: Policy Implications for the Aid Sector, Melissa Lynn Quimby
Community Development, Health, and Wellness: The City of Bloomington Township’s Wellness Lifestyle Series, Jack White
Submissions from 2020
Autism McLean: Housing for Adults with ASD, Grayson Bourke, Mike Brown, Genesis Marie Buendia, Zach Fabos, Melissa Quimby, and Kendra Shaw
Stevenson Center Report for the School Street Food Pantry, Erik Carlson, Tessa Lance, Jose Molina, Tobi Oladejo, and Jack White
The Effects of Admission to Jail on Crime Rate in McLean County, Illinois, Derek Conley
Experiences from City Year: a Glimpse into the Complex Roles of Racially Diverse Americorps Members and What That Means for the Nonprofit Field, Orsolya Ficsor
As Good as Woke? : Mutuality and Third Spaces in a Guatemalan Volunteer Tourism Organization, Hannah Gdalman
Divergent Paths: An Analysis of the Autonomous Future in McLean County, casey peterson
Negotiating Informal and Formal Supportive Services Among Older Adults: An Analysis of a Caring Culture at Hope Meadows, Derek Ruszkowski
Narratives of Successful Refugee Resettlement in Houston, Ward Westray
Evaluating College Access Programs: The Emerging Leaders Program Impact on College Enrollment for Hispanic and Immigrant Youth, Juan Zamarripa
Submissions from 2019
Pathways, Not Punishment: An Annotated SNAP Employment and Training Advocacy Toolkit for Policy Newbies, Angela Eastlund
Analyzing the Effectiveness of the McLean County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Using Design Sociology, Jalisa Holifield
Impact or Impasse: How to Measure University Student Effect on Community Organizations, Joel McReynolds
Politics and Government
Impact or Impasse: How to Measure University Student Effect on Community Organizations, Joel McReynolds
Need Fulfillment and Happiness in Botswana, Carolyn Moe
Navigating Cultures and Development: An account of a female Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco, Renee Palecek
The Natality Effect of State Administered Earned Income Tax Credits, Jerome Sader
Reform and Democratization in Ukraine: My Service as a Peace Corps Volunteer with an Ukrainian Local Government Organization, Danielle Stevens
Submissions from 2018
What do Renters Want: Renter Priorities and Neighborhood Organizations’ Ability to Address those Issues, Jordan Backstrom
An Auto-Ethnographic Examination of Adapting to Life and Teaching in Rural Ukraine, Amanda Breitenstein
The Social Construction of Understanding & Neoliberal Multiculturalism: Analysis and Critique of the Peruvian Moratorium GMOs, T. W. Dondanville
You Have Seventy-Two Hours: How the City Complaint System Enables Criminalization of the Unsheltered Population, Lindsey Grace Earl
Pretrial Release and Failure-To-Appear in McLean County, IL, Jonathan Monsma
Determinants of USAID Spending, Austin J. Moser
Submissions from 2017
Documenting ---- in Bloomington-Normal: A Community Report on Intolerance, Segregation, Accessibility, Inclusion, and Progress, and Improvement, Brittany Ashmore, Molly Cook, Alyssa Cooper, Teddy Dondanville, Ryan Duncan, Lindsey Earl, Justin Estima, Jake Fredericks, Mary Frey, Diamond Frison, Doug Gass, Myer Hursey, Kathryn Jones, Alesha Klein, Megan Koch, Kathryn McGee, Taylor Messamore, Jonathan Mansma, Jaresa Morrison, Jake Murray, Renee Palecek, Rainee Sibley, Chaney Skadsen, Vanessa Soto, Emily Spencer, Danielle Stevens, Corinna Strawn, Patricia Longwood, and Frank D. Beck
And That's The Word: Effects of The Colbert Report on Political Knowledge and Participation, Nicholas Canfield
US Aid in the Arab World Fact Checking US Democratization Rhetoric Against Reality, Nicholas Canfield
School Resources and Student Outcomes: Evidence from the State of Illinois, Alyssa Cooper
Learning a Language: the Gateway to Cosmopolitanism, Caleb Griffin
The Impacts of Commercialization on Depth, Breadth, Scope, and Quality of Outreach in Mozambique: A Case-Study, Courtney Johnson
Community Land Trusts: A Help or Hindrance to Community Development in the United States, Andrew Kuka
Talking the Walk: An Autoethnography of Pedestrianism in Chicagoland, Andrew Kuka
Self-Confidence in Moroccan Women: Understanding and Implications, Bethan Owen
Marketing the Mountain State: A large N study of user engagement on Twitter, Kirk Richardson
Fertility and Female Labor Force Participation: The Role of Legal Access to Contraceptives, Chaney Skadsen
The Griz in the Zoo: Evaluating the Relationship between the City of Missoula and the University of Montana, Eliud Uresti
Submissions from 2016
Peace Meal: A Senior Citizen's Right to Food in East Central Illinois, Jessica Aceves and Chris Wellin
Feeding Peace: An Investigation of the Relationship between Food Insecurity and Violence, Emily Blankenberger
Strategic Housing and Vacant Land Development Plan for a More Viable Detroit, Ryan W. Hebert
Measuring the Impact of 21st Century Community Learning Centers, Melissa Johnston-Gross
A Case Study on Establishing a Community Advisory Board: What Are the Main Challenges?, Erika Perez
A Quantitative Analysis of Sex Trafficking Law on the Decriminalization of Youth Involved in Commercialized Sex, Nay Petrucelli
A Formative Evaluation of the Bloomington-Normal Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, Emily Rego
Disparities in Moldovan Place-Identity a Product of Systemic Stratification, Robyn Savacool
Worker Cooperatives as an Innovative Strategy to Address Income Inequality?, Bryan Titzler
Inter-Organizational Knowledge Transfer: A Case Study of Peace Corps Macedonia and YMCA Bitola, Dave Warren
Policy Dissemination: Public Administration Theory and International Organizations | A Case Study on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Kingdom of Morocco, Rachelle Ann Wilson
Submissions from 2015
The Determinants of the High School Graduation Rate in Mclean County, michael a. anstirman
“Building Louder”: An Assessment of Habitat for Humanity, International’s Government Relations and Advocacy Efforts, Joanna A. Bossi
Expect the Unexpected: an Autoethnography of Typhoon"Yolanda"( Haiyan ), Ashley Conrad
Factors Influencing Criminal Case Processing Time in McLean County Courts, Christina Davila
Foreign Aid and Economic Growth: A Post-Soviet Analysis of Emerging Markets, Brett Michaelson
Breaking the Cycle of Incarceration: Strategies for Successful Reentry Final Report for Labyrinth Outreach Services for Women, Carolyn Moe, Brian Titzler, Melissa Johnson-Gross, Darek Conley, Emily Blankenberger, Kirk Richardson, Bethan Owen, Caleb Griffen, Andrew Kuka, George Stanton, Lauren Troxtel, Eliud Uresti, John Thornburg, Nicholas Anthony Canfield, Patricia Longwood, Jessica Linder, and Amanda Britenstein
Road to Recovery: Recidivism and the McLean County Drug Court, Julia Neaves
A Formative Evaluation of Select Evidence-Based, Healthy Aging Programs for Seniors in East Central Illinois, Kathleen Raynor
Life Is Calling ... How Far Will You Go ... Back in the Closet? Identity Negotiation and Management among Queer, Peace Corps Volunteers, Kate Elizabeth Slisz
Building on Social Capital to Improve Health: The Interactional Approach to Community Development, Matthew Charles Tomlin Mr
Submissions from 2014
Water Your Opinions: A Social Assessment of the Lake Bloomington and Lake Evergreen Watersheds, Jessica Aceves, Michael Anstirman, Jordan Backstrom, Ryan Herbert, Courtney Johnson, Julia Neaves, Alicia O'Hare, Erika Perez, Emily Rego, and Mark Spurgis
A Call to Action: Examining the Experiences of American Red Cross Disaster Services Volunteers, Nichole M. Brants
Social Forms and Culture WIthin Miller Park, Andrew Griffin
Post-Development Theory and Food Security: A Case Study in Swaziland, Lauren Karplus
Balancing Preservation and Promotion of Natural Resources: A Case Study of Newaygo County, Michigan, Jeffrey Koch
Citizens Without a Nation: The Construction of Haitian Illegality and Deportability in The Dominican Republic, Saha Miranda
Infant Mortality: Cross Section study of the United State, with Emphasis on Education, Daniel C. Sheets-Poling
Positive Effects of Corporate Social Responsibility on Youth Development A Case Study of the Royal Swazi Sugar Corporation in Swaziland, Danielle V. Shtraus
Social Capital and Relational Work: Uncertainty, Distrust, and Support in Azerbaijan, Dustin S. Stoltz
El Salvador: The Case of CrediCampo, Alexandria J. Trimble
Politics of Environmental Policy: A Case Study of Alamor and the Yasuní National Park, Katie Weber
Submissions from 2013
The Past, Present and Future of Transnational Conflict in Jordan: A Study of Syrian Refugees in the Hashemite Kingdom, David F. Becker
An Assessment of the Human Right to Safe and Sanitary Housing for Transitional Age Youth in Mendocino County, Jamie Boban
Does a Weak Social Fabric Fuel the Predatory Lending Industry? The Link Between Payday Lending Activity and Community Trust, Alyssa H. Curran
Gender Transformation at the Grassroots: A Gender and Development Program from the Practitioners' Perspective, Tyler Curtis
Our town: a neighborhood assessment, Christina Davila, Ramya Kumaran, Calvin P. LeSueur, Brett Michaelson, Renee Petrucelli, Katie Raynor, Daniel Sheets-Poling, Katie Simpson, Matthew Tomlin, and Rachelle Ann Wilson
The Role of Children in a Mixed-Socioeconomic Community Development Model: A Quantitative Study of Grand Rapids, Michigan Housing Projects, Phillip R. Dawson
Building a Community-based Food System: Green Economic Development in Central Illinois, Tim Glaza
Results of the 2013 Good To Go Commuter Challenge Impact Survey, Mike McCurdy and Tyler Curtis
Come Together: Congregate Meal Participation in Illinois Planning and Service Area 05, Dane Myers
Best Practices and Barriers of Government Performance Measures: A Fire/EMS Case Study of the City of Bloomington Fire Department, Nancy Ouedraogo
Memory and Politics in El Salvador, Andrew Piotrowski