Part 1:Unit 3 Discussion

Instructions

Think of a health issue that interests you. Then, go to the following government websites and explore each website to find information about the health topic you have chosen. 
(You may need to adjust your topic if you do not get results—that’s okay.)  Explore each website. 

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Links to an external site.)
• The National Institutes of Health (Links to an external site.)
• The World Health Organization (Links to an external site.)

In your initial post, fully compare and contrast your search results.

• What kind of information did each website have? 
• How was the information similar? How was it different? 
• What are you able to infer about the purpose or mission of each of these organizations? 
• What did you learn about the topic you did not previously know?
• What surprised you or seemed unexpected?

Please be sure to validate your opinions and ideas with citations and references in APA format.

Part 2: Instructions

Explore and Compare: Resources

Evaluation Title: Source Comparison

This assignment will give you the opportunity to carefully explore two different resource types to further your understanding of selecting the appropriate resource type for your information needs. There are three parts of this assignment. For Part 1, you’ll be reading an article posted on the web and answering questions about the article. For Part 2, you’ll be reading a scholarly article and answering questions about it. In the final part, Part 3, you are asked to sum up your experience and compare/contrast the two information sources.

Part 1

Take a look at the article 9 Lessons I’ve Learned About Feeding Kid download

Please respond to the following prompts:

1. Who do you believe is the intended audience for this article?
2. What is the purpose of this article?
3. Briefly summarize the article by describing the main points used by the author.
4. Provide an APA reference entry for this information source.

Part 2

Next, review the following scholarly journal article, Challenges and Facilitators to Promoting a Healthy Food Environment and Communicating Effectively with Parents to Improve Food Behaviors of School Children  

Please answer the following questions:

1. Who do you believe is the intended audience for this article?
2. What is the purpose of this article?
3. Examine the references at the end of the article. Please explain how these references contribute to your understanding of the credibility of the source.  
4. Provide an APA reference entry for this information source.

Part 3

Summary question: Compare and contrast the two information sources. How is the information found in the USNews.com article different from the information found in the scholarly journal article? What would you use each type of information for? Finally, describe what you feel is the most important thing you learned from this assignment.

Your assignment submission should be a Word document that fully adheres to the instructions listed above and meets all APA formatting requirements.  Be sure to proofread your assignment. 

 

Assignment 1: Internal and External Impacts

In this module you examined globalization and environmental changes and trends. You also learned that leaders need to stay current on both internal and external forces that impact organization in order to successfully lead/manage change. Therefore, in this discussion assignment, you will investigate how cultural diversity, technology, and communication play a role in impacting the organizational change.

Tasks:

Research the forces that impact organizations, such as globalization and cultural diversity, technological advancements, and communication channels, etc. Use resources from professional literature in your research. Professional literature may include the Argosy University online library resources; relevant textbooks; peer-reviewed journal articles; and websites created by professional organizations, agencies, or institutions (.edu, .org, or .gov).

On the basis of your research and experience, in a minimum of 400 words, respond to the following points:

• Describe the cultural diversity, level of technology, and communication channels at your current (or previous) organization or organizational unit (team). You may also consider within the context of an organization with which you are familiar.
• Reflect back on some of the past change initiatives. Based on the information you have accumulated in this course thus far and your understanding of the change process, assess and discuss to what extent these factors might have played in the level of success of change initiatives at your organization (or in your team). You may also consider within the context of an organization with which you are familiar.
• If more than one factor had an influence, identify the one that you believe had the greatest impact. Explain.

DUE MAY 22nd NO LATER  
 

Incidents of Inequality Part One 

Search the GCU Library for articles that describe incidents of gender, age, racial, and ethnic discrimination. 

Choose two incidents of discrimination. Be sure each is of a different type of discrimination (age, gender, race, and/or ethnicity, etc.). 

APA is not required, but solid academic writing is expected. 

QUESTIONS  

Evaluate the positive and negative effects of Affirmative Action in the United States. Target current issues, trends, and demographics. 

Discuss the concept of equality. Do you see equality happening in our society? Why or why not? Describe your personal observations of inequality. 

What global forces are affecting the U.S. economy and politics? How do those global forces affect your own life? Discuss. 

In the once popular television show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, did this show depict a typical American family? Why or why not? What is going on with the American family today? What historical events have played a role in shaping American family life? What do you see for the future of the U.S. family? How do religion and education impact the future of the U.S. family? 

How has technology affected your life? Be specific as to what changes, and in what ways. 

Do you believe the long-term consequences of increased technological dependence are going to be good or bad? Explain. How do you see technology’s effect on society 20 years from now? 

 

DUE MAY 22nd  No Later  

Incidents of Inequality Part Two 

Instructions: After researching the GCU library to find articles that describe incidents of gender, age, racial, and ethnic discrimination, please answer the questions for each scenario. Write your response as a full paragraph using a minimum of 200 words for each scenario.
 

Scenario #1: _______________ discrimination. 

Summarize the incident. 

How might this situation affect the victim? 

How might it affect the offending person or institution? 

How do situations like this affect society as a whole? 

Write your 200 word paragraph for scenario 1 below: 

Scenario # 2: __________________ discrimination. 

Summarize the incident. 

How might this situation affect the victim? 

How might it affect the offending person or institution? 

How do situations like this affect society as a whole? 

Write your 200 word paragraph for scenario 2 below: 

DUE MAY 25 TH No LATER  

Globalization: A Closer Look 

Target a multinational corporation/international company and the practice of “outsourcing” to third world countries. Some examples of MNCs (multinational corporations) would be Nike, General Motors, Ford, Qwest, and Fender Music. Research its effects on local culture. Write a summary and analysis of 500-750 words and include the following: 

1. How does global stratification impact local culture? What are the positive and negative effects? 
2. How does global stratification impact the United States? What are the positive and negative effects? 
3. Who is the biggest “winner” in this situation? Explain. 

Use the GCU Library to locate two to three academic sources to support your content. 

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. 

 

 

M4 Assignment 2 Submission 

Assignment 2: The Cost of Capital

Assume that you are a member of an aerospace company’s newly formed executive committee that has been given the role of reviewing requests for major capital expenditures.  The committee chairman has laid the groundwork for approving requests that managers of various organizational units have submitted by reminding the group that their charge is to approve the investment opportunities that will best meet the company’s financial objective of maximizing shareholder wealth.

One of the more outspoken individuals on the committee vigorously pushed the concept that the best way to maximize shareholder wealth would be to accept all of the projects that promise a return that is higher than the long-term interest rates on bonds or bank loans. This same committee member is also insistent that  the company  turn to borrowed funds as needed to augment existing funds so that all of the projects that are attractive to the committee,  and that promise a return that is higher than the borrowing rate,  can be accepted.

Other committee members expressed concern about that approach but the time scheduled for adjourning the meeting arrived before the disagreement was resolved. You have been assigned to examine the issue and, in the spirit of taking advantage of a teaching moment, circulate a report that will bring all committee members to a common understanding of the decision criteria that should be adopted by the committee.  The chairman asked that your report address the following questions that seemed to be present during the committee meeting.

Why would the suggested approach of using the cost of new debt as the hurdle rate probably not result in maximizing the shareholders wealth?

What role does the cost of capital play in the committee’s work?

How might a company’s WACC be affected by changes in the size of its capital budget?

When and why would it be inappropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities? 

In what situations would it be appropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities? 

For the situations in which it would be inappropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities, what are the alternatives that might be used instead as the hurdle rate? 

Prepare a 3-4 page report in which you answer the questions as requested by the committee chairman.  Apply APA standards for writing style to your report.

By the due date assigned, deliver your assignment to the Submissions Area.

Assignment 2 Grading Criteria 

Maximum Points

Explained why using the cost of new debt as the hurdle rate probably would not result in maximizing the shareholders wealth. 20

Explained the role that the cost of capital should play in the committee’s work. 16

Described how a company’s WACC might be affected by changes in the size of its capital budget. 16

Explained when and why it would be inappropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities. 12

Identified the situations in which it would be appropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities. 12

Explained the alternatives that might be used as the hurdle rate for situations in which it would be inappropriate to use the firm’s cost of capital as calculated on its existing capital structure to evaluate new investment opportunities. 12

Writing Craftsmanship, APA and Ethical Scholarship. 12

Total: 100

Many of you have career plans that will necessitate advanced degrees and/or education beyond your B.A. or B.S. This means that at some point you will need to write a statement of purpose or personal statement. Admission to a graduate program of any kind is highly competitive–and is not based solely on G.P.A. When I applied to my Ph.D. program, almost 500 others did too, and we competed for 12 spots! Your application will include many things: transcripts, GRE/MCAT/other exam scores, letters of recommendation. The ONE part of your application that tells an admissions committee (and these are professors in the field) why you should be admitted is your statement of purpose.  In it, you need to address a number of things in a very limited space: what prompted your interest, what are your qualifications, how do you see yourself contributing to the graduate program and to the profession, why that specific program.

Even if you do not plan to go beyond your undergraduate degree, this is an opportunity for you to explore your career interest or, if you are still undecided, possible career interests. 

I’ve served on numerous admissions committees and helped dozens of students over the years get into med school, dental school, PT programs, various Ph.D. programs, law school, etc. This assignment asks you to really think about why you are passionate about the career you want to pursue or the major you are in.

As with assignment two, you must meet the expectations of a specific audience–in this case, an admissions committee. As such, do some research. If you are interested in specific programs (say, UCLA med school), you should follow their requirements.

As I said, if you do not have specific goals, use this opportunity to think hard about what you like about your major and the classes you have taken or look forward to taking. Take a look at your major department’s web site. Look at course descriptions. Especially look at your professors’ bios and CVS. What kinds of research interest them. What have they published? Read some of their articles. Most of you are transfer students, so this is a great opportunity for you to get to know the professors and the work they do.

This pdf contains some information about personal statements that I found on the Ohio State University website. It also include a sample statement that my niece, Kate, wrote. Kate has kindly given permission for me to do so. She went to Minnesota, not Ohio State, but you will notice that her statement includes much of what the OSU handouts suggest. Kate probably wrote more than 50 drafts of her statement before sending it with her application to Minnesota’s Ph.D. program in mathematics. Note the order and type of details she includes–typical for any kind of program. The one thing I do not like about her statement is the mention of the boyfriend. Someone on an application committee could read this two ways: 1.) that she is would be committed to Minnesota and not to another university, and this is good OR 2.) that the ONLY reason she wants to come to Minnesota is because her boyfriend is there, and this isn’t in her favor as far as an admissions committee is concerned. Leave such personal info out. As far as length goes: Kate’s is about right. You don’t want yours to be longer than hers, but not much shorter either.

One of the major flaws in most people’s writing is wordiness. For this assignment, especially, every word, every phrase, every paragraph, must contribute to your purpose.