This week’s discussion will pick up on the topic of organized crime.

• Some crime families have strict membership requirements, along ethnic lines. Is this something that is common among organized crime organizations, or is this just an Italian/Sicilian thing? Why would a criminal organization have such a strict rule about the ethnicity of its full members in the first place?
• It’s not uncommon that a legitimate business will also facilitate criminal activity. For instance, consider a motel that charges by the hour, or an adult “book store” with private booths in the back. Is there a place in society for these kinds of businesses, or should the government use tools like civil forfeiture to shut them down? Explain your reasoning.
• Undercover law enforcement officers investigating organized crime groups run the risk of being put in a position where they are expected to engage in illegal behavior in order to maintain their cover. Is there a problem with a law enforcement officer possibly breaking the law in order to maintain his or her cover? It would not be out of the ordinary for a motorcycle gang member to participate in a fight with a rival gang. Should an undercover officer jump into the fight and actually assault a member of the rival gang so that he is not suspected as an outsider? Discuss what limits, if any, you would impose.

 

As the school leader, you will want to initiate change by engaging and collaborating with faculty and staff. Professional development sessions can offer a useful opportunity to introduce new initiatives and create collaborative planning activities for implementation.

Part 1: Establishing a Professional Learning Community

This is a Collaborative Learning Community assignment.

You and your CLC members make up the team of administrators at a school. After assessing the professional development resources available, you all have determined that establishing a culture of collaboration and building trust is essential for your school. You would like to introduce and collaboratively establish professional learning communities to help create this culture. In your CLC group, develop a collective  presentation for this purpose using evidence-centered research.

In a 12-15 slide digital presentation, describe how you will explain the purpose and benefits of PLCs. Walk your faculty through designing and planning the implementation of a PLC culture at your school.

Design your presentation keeping with the perspective of leading with purpose as transformational, servant leaders.

Topics to include within your presentation include, but are not limited to:

• Definition of PLCs, including the value of PLCs for teachers and, ultimately, students. 
• A mission statement that describes the purpose of a PLC.
• The overall goal of a PLC, including how a successful goal will affect student outcomes.
• At least 2-4 examples of measurable outcomes for a PLC.
• An overall structure of the PLC, including member roles and expectations.
• A timeline to implement the PLC.
• How the PLC outcomes could be evaluated.
• Title slide, reference slide, and presenter’s notes.

Support your presentation with at least 3-5 scholarly resources .

For items 2-7, in the presenter’s notes, describe how you would involve the faculty in creating the output for each topic to collaboratively build your school’s PLC plan.

While APA style format is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and in-text citations and references should be presented using APA documentation guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the student success center.

** Review the “CLC Participant Evaluation Tool” to inform the topic assignment. **

 

Prompt:

Describe an example of a research question where dummy variables should be used. Describe the characteristics of the categorical variable and its usage in explaining the variance in the dependent variable.  Then, discuss whether you feel separate subset analysis is also warranted. Explain why (or why not) you feel separate linear regression analysis should be performed. What is the added benefit of the additional analysis In your two replies to classmates, provide insights for the similarities and dissimilarities between their example and yours.Please write at least 350 words in your primary post 

  INTEGRITY
Make sure to complete the Week 1 and Week 2 Literary Analysis Tools Modules before completing this assignment.  Part of your grade is based on selection, integration, and citation of quotations.Post responses to both prompts.  You must post on three different days to earn full credit for participation.Post 1: You learned the definition of the American Dream in Week 1. You also learned about the American identity. Traits often associated with the American identity include boldness, confidence, perseverance, and integrity. These traits are often demonstrated through a character’s words or actions. This week, we’ll focus on integrity.

  For this discussion, read  Robert Frost:   “Mending Wall,” Vol. 2 pp. 673-674 (poetry) and Langston Hughes:   “Mother to Son,” (Vol. 2 p. 1071 and describe how two of the characters display strong moral principles. 

\ Criteria:

• 300 words minimum (excluding quotations and citations)
• Include two properly and integrated quotations (one from each work) to support your claims. You may use either direct or paraphrased quotes. See the Literary Analysis Tools Modules in Weeks 1 and 2 for information about integrating and citing quotes.

Posts 2 and 3: Respond to a classmate. Do you agree with your classmate’s perspective? Why or why not? Be specific. What is the most convincing part of your classmate’s post and why?Criteria:

• 150 words minimum for each post (excluding quotations and citations)
• Include at least one properly integrated and cited quote for each peer response to support your claims. You may use either direct or paraphrased quotes. See the Literary Analysis Tools Modules in Weeks 1 and 2 for information about integrating and citing quotes.

There is a no-research policy in place for this class. Using any material other than the assigned readings and lectures, even if it is correctly quoted and cited, will result in a failing grade for this assignment. Contact your instructor if you have questions about this policy.