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  BEST PRACTICE RECOMMENDATIONS TO REDUCE COMMUNICATION DIFFICULTIES IN HEALTHCARE FOR DEAF PATIENTS

  Goldsmith, Melissa; Wesson, Stella (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  This thesis explores research on deaf patients and how they view their experiences in a hospital setting and proposes evidence based recommendations for interventions such as providing interpretation accommodations and education to healthcare professionals. Over 50 million people in the United States have a hearing disability where people are either hard of hearing or completely deaf (James et al., 2022). Evidence based recommendations enable healthcare professionals to provide patients with the highest quality of care. The recommendations for caring for deaf patients include providing proper interpretation accommodations upon admission to the hospital and throughout all aspects of care to ensure effective communication and understanding. Additional recommendations call for the implementation of an electronic order set to create a structured outline to follow during care and incentivizing the continuing education of providers and nurses to become familiar with American sign language. These interventions aim to increase patient satisfaction and understanding and decrease the communication gap deaf populations struggle with within the healthcare field. The final chapter includes the implementation proposal using the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle to evaluate and refine the intervention. Nurses should remain committed to continuing educational efforts by staying current on research to provide the greatest care for all patients.
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  A Review and Policy Analysis of the Causes and Impact of the Lack of Medical Research for Minority Groups

  Langley, D. Carrie; Weaver, Symone Olivia (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Medical practices are backed by research to guarantee that patients receive the best care possible to get better. This research is found through clinical trials and require human participants in many cases to see how to best treat patients. The majority of participants in clinical trials do not represent all skin tones and economic classes. This leads to inaccurate results and poor treatment of diverse patients. It is known that people who participate in clinical trials have better health outcomes because more is known about how to treat them. It is unfair to minority groups who do not feel comfortable participating in research and who are unable to due to external circumstances. There have been policies put in place to combat this problem by requiring clinical trials to include women and minority groups, but it does not rectify the issues that are prohibiting these groups from volunteering. A lack of trust in healthcare workers that has built up over time from past experiences needs to be addressed. There are also cultural and language barriers that may not be understood. A literature review and policy analysis has been conducted in order to better understand the barriers surrounding the lack of diversity in clinical trials as well as ways to improve diversity.
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  INFORMACIÓN SOBRE LA MENOPAUSIA

  Doran, Kristin; Vij, Vanshikha (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Menopause is a significant transitional period in a woman’s life, yet access to accurate and culturally relevant information remains limited, particularly for populations with limited English proficiency (LEP) in the United States. In Tucson, Arizona, a city with a substantial Spanish-speaking population, many individuals face barriers to understanding menopause, including the lack of health education resources in their primary language (CDC, 2024). This project examines the creation of patient education materials—guides, audio recordings, and videos—designed to provide accessible, evidence-based menopause information to Spanish-speaking populations. Existing research highlights that LEP patients often experience disparities in health literacy and outcomes due to insufficient linguistically and culturally tailored health information (CDC, 2024). Despite this, few resources like this exist, illustrating a gap in both public health and patient education literature. The project’s central aim is to increase health literacy and empower Spanish-speaking individuals to understand and manage menopause symptoms effectively. Through a creative process centered around English to Spanish translation and involving content development, scriptwriting, and multimedia production, the project transforms technical health information into formats that are easy to access, comprehend, and use. This work highlights the importance of culturally and linguistically appropriate health education, demonstrating how creative media can bridge gaps in health knowledge for underserved populations. By providing Spanish-speaking communities with practical, understandable resources on menopause, the project contributes to broader efforts in health equity, patient empowerment, and community education.
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  Sex Based Differences in Young Athletes Contributing to Musculoskeletal Injuries and Recovery

  Kanady, John; Vasquez, Alexa (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Most athletes begin their sport(s) from a young age which is great for their emotional, mental, and physical development. The problem arises between male and female athletes when they reach the age of puberty because the mechanisms of their bodies change. Parents, coaches, and athletes alike need to be educated. Adolescent athletes need to be educated about how changes to their bodies affect their training. Males and females should be taught to train differently. For this literature, articles were found from search engines and databases such as Google Scholar, Google, and the University of Arizona online libraries.The key words searched for were: adolescent, athlete, sex, male, female, concussion, joints, puberty, hormones, recovery, biological/physiological differences. Adolescents in particular are more at risk for injury compared to older, more experienced adults. One factor is differences in neurotransmitters. Higher levels of dopamine lead to risk-taking. Risk-taking behavior can increase the chances of injury. This is common in both adolescent male and female athletes. The majority of biological differences between males and females can be attributed to hormone differences and their wide ranging physiological effects. Male bodies are dominated by testosterone. Female bodies experience hormone fluctuations of estrogen, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, and follicle-stimulating hormone. Estrogen and progesterone are the main female hormones. The physiological differences become noticeable once puberty begins. These musculoskeletal differences manifest as increased flexibility in females and greater speed and strength in males. Females experience more personal variation in musculoskeletal performance due to the menstrual cycle.
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  Aces and Kings – A Game Theory Analysis of a Reduced Poker Model

  Blume, Andreas; Vanukuri, Mohith Reddy (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  This thesis studies a simplified version of poker to understand the logic behind bluffing and decision making when players have private information. Instead of analyzing a full-scale complex poker system, this thesis aims to deconstruct the workings of poker using a reduced model with only two card types, Aces and Kings. The model builds on and extends the framework introduced in Reiley et al.’s “Stripped-Down Poker” (2008) by bringing in different player types and analyzing how their distribution affects optimal bluffing behavior. The players in this reduced model are of two types: Behavioral (players who always bet no matter what hand they have) and Rational (players who change their strategy based on their hand). This paper uses basic game theory concepts to study the equilibria of this reduced model. This thesis aims to connect the simplified model to real-world poker and related economic settings and discusses how behavioral biases further impact strategic decision-making under uncertainty. Future research of this topic could include additional rounds of betting, more complex card structures, and expanded player types to better reflect the multiple layers of actual poker gameplay.
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  INTERVENTIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA: A COST-BENEFIT EVALUATION

  Mailhot, Cameron; Sharvonova, Parvina (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  This thesis proposes a structured way to evaluate large-scale military interventions by placing cost–benefit analysis at the center of outcome assessment. Existing studies often judge interventions through varied criteria- military performance, regime durability or governance effects- which makes comparisons difficult. To address this, the thesis develops a four-phase model that traces how goals and effort shape the benefits and costs interventions ultimately produce, and how those outputs align with the political end states that interveners seek. The framework distinguishes between broad and narrow goals and between high and low levels of effort, suggesting that the relationship between these dimensions may influence the likelihood that gains will endure or outweigh losses. Four cases- U.S. interventions in Afghanistan and Syria, Russia’s involvement in Syria, and NATO’s 2011 operation in Libya- serve as comparative applications of the model. Each case is examined for its stated aims, resource commitments, observed effects, and the durability of its outcomes. Rather than offering definitive judgments, the thesis aims to provide a transparent and consistent method that may help scholars and policymakers think more systematically about how interventions produce results and how their costs and benefits might be evaluated.
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  The Role of Home Gardens in Understanding Plant Phenology and Climate Change

  Bledsoe, Ellen; Ornelas, Karen (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Plant phenology—the biological events within a plant in relation to season, climate, and temperature—gives a baseline for when one can expect an event such as first bloom to occur. Analyzing phenological data in conjunction with climate data can show long term trends over time of how plants are responding to a changing climate. Local home gardens offer a controlled microenvironment that facilitates the collection of phenological data, yet they are rarely considered in phenological analyses. From 1963-1993, Pennie Logemann recorded phenology data from her personal woodland garden in Concord, MA. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how home gardens can inform us about phenological change over time. We hypothesized that the timing of flowering would be earlier with warmer temperatures. Following the methods of Miller-Rushing & Primack (2008), we calculated a first flower date (FFD). We compared the change in the average annual FFD (compared to a benchmark year) against monthly average temperatures in Concord, MA, to assess the relationship between FFD and the temperature. Preliminary results suggest there are statistically significant relationships between when plants first flower and mean monthly temperatures.
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  REMEMBERING THE DIASPORA: HOW ASSYRIANS MEMORIALIZE THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH OPPRESSIVE AUTHORITIES TO CONSTRUCT THEIR COLLECTIVE IDENTITIES

  Dovi, Suzanne; Kolia, Adina (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Assyrians use various media to store and process their memories of genocide and of the subsequent diaspora. Specifically, the three media used to convey and elicit memories are documentaries, storytelling, and exhibitions. Understanding the memories of the traumatic events of Assyrians allows us not only to bear witness to what happened but to also preserve their real-life stories and the impact of changing cultures in history. In particular, my thesis explores four main questions: ● How do individual Assyrians remember and make sense of their cultural identity? ● How does the ways of remembering genocide and diaspora shape the collective identity of Assyrians? ● How do oppressive authorities shape the preferences and collective identities of Assyrians? ● How does artwork provide alternative sources for remembering diaspora and thereby constructing collective identities?? Answers to all of these questions are complicated by what has been forgotten, silenced, and suppressed. To be sure, this thesis does not examine all of the ways Assyrian collective identities are remembered and constituted; rather, it opens up a way to piece together the remnants of memories found in media. For this reason, stories are excavated and put together from these various media. Just because we are nearly forgotten does not mean we cease to exist.
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  THE IMPACTS OF MENOPAUSE ON BONE HEALTH AND SKELETAL PHYSIOLOGY

  Kanady, John; Gallo, Leah Camila (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a prevalent yet often overlooked condition that significantly impacts the health and well-being of women after menopause. This research examines the physiological, psychological, and social implications of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, focusing on the changes in bone density due to decreased estrogen levels. The study highlights the stage of menopause, also known as perimenopause, and the stage after, also known as postmenopause. It also highlights early menopause, postmenopausal osteoporosis, the economic burden, quality of life, prevention, treatment, awareness, and solutions. Additionally, the research addresses the barriers to seeking medical attention, including insufficient education, societal stereotypes, and the stigma surrounding menopause. The findings suggest that early detection, preventative measures, and comprehensive education are crucial in reducing the incidence of fractures and improving the quality of life for affected individuals. Through a review of current treatments, including hormone replacement therapy, bisphosphonates, and lifestyle interventions, this paper provides insights into effective management strategies and properly understanding the mechanisms behind menopause. By increasing awareness and access to appropriate care, we can mitigate the long-term impacts of postmenopausal osteoporosis and enhance the overall health of women in this stage of life.
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  RABIES IN ARIZONA: A REVIEW OF CURRENT TRENDS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGEMENT

  Combrink, Leigh; Ford, Madison Brooke (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  The rabies virus (RABV) is one of the oldest and deadliest zoonotic diseases in the world. With urbanization as an ever growing factor, overlap between humans and wildlife is increasing the chances for transmission. With increases in positive rabies cases within the state of Arizona, specifically in Pima and Santa Cruz Counties, it is crucial now more than ever to understand transmission dynamics and trends to implement management strategies. In this paper, I conducted a comprehensive literature review combined with plotting positive animal RABV case data from the Arizona Department of Health Services, to investigate the current trends and transmission dynamics of RABV in Arizona. Specifically, I aimed to answer the following questions (1) What effect did the domestic dog rabies vaccination program have on rabies incidence in wildlife?, (2) Do certain wildlife species drive the prevalence of rabies in the state of Arizona?, and (3) Do different counties have different RABV prevalences? I then suggested several key actions that can be taken to both further our understanding of rabies transmission and create better management strategies to aid in this increasing issue based on my findings of RABV trends.
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  INTERLEUKIN-6 MODULATION OF RENAL AFFERENT DRG NEURON ACTIVITY AND ITS ENHANCED EFFECT IN HYPERTENSION

  Banek, Christopher; Clinch, Deanna Lourdes (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  The contribution of afferent nerve activity to disease has been a popular topic in physiology in recent decades. Since dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons innervate the kidney, changes in their activity could contribute to disease progression. We hypothesized that inflammation may drive this increase in renal afferent nerve activity, particularly by pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6). To investigate this, renal afferent DRG neurons were labeled with the neuronal tracer 1,1′-dioctadecyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindocarbocyanine (DiI) and isolated from DRG from the spinal cords of both DOCA-salt hypertensive and control male rats. DRG neurons were enzymatically isolated from ganglia extracted from the spinal cord and exposed to pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6 (IL-6) in order to assess their activity in action potentials (AP) and whether this activity is modulated by IL-6. We used the method of whole-cell patch clamp recording in current-clamp mode. Three AP parameters were analyzed–frequency, amplitude, and duration–and compared in DOCA-salt hypertensive male rats and control rats. Baseline activity was increased in the DOCA-salt males in comparison to their controls. Additionally, neurons were organized into groups of either tonic (generated ≥5 AP at any of the injected current steps) or phasic (generated ≤ 4 AP at any applied current step). There was no difference in the proportion of phasic to tonic cells in both Control and DOCA animals. Two classifications of neurons were found: IL-6 activated and IL-6 inhibited cells. There was no difference in the proportion of IL-6 inhibited cells to IL-6 activated neurons in the control or DOCA-salt rat groups. These findings suggest that IL-6 modulates the basal activity of DRG neurons after inflammation, playing a role in the elevated renal afferent nerve activity observed in hypertension.
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  DRY NEEDLING THERAPY: PHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS AND CLINICAL EFFECTIVENESS IN MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN

  Keen, Douglas; Clairmont, Madison (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Musculoskeletal pain is a common, often debilitating, clinical problem, and dry needling is a quickly emerging treatment in sports medicine and physical therapy settings. This paper reviews the physiological mechanisms, clinical efficacy, and applications of dry needling. This treatment gives its therapeutic effects through the insertion of multiple filiform needles into myofascial trigger points and elicits a local twitch response, which normalizes endplate activity and improves local circulation. Recent randomized trials and clinical studies suggest that dry needling can reduce musculoskeletal pain and improve mobility, although the benefits may be comparable to other, less invasive treatments like manual therapy. The appropriate use of dry needling depends on present, palpable taut bands, patient preference, and absence of contraindications. Despite growing popularity, the literature lacks long-term studies and comparisons across multiple muscle groups and techniques. Overall, dry needling seems to be a valuable treatment option to decrease musculoskeletal pain and associated stiffness but is condition-dependent and most effective when used in an individualized rehabilitation plan.
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  The Keys to Stardom: Predicting Music Industry Breakouts in the Age of Algorithms

  Alexander, Kathryn; Castellanos-Mendoza, Carlos A. (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Social media and the internet has fundamentally changed the landscape of the contemporary music industry and ushered in a new era of globalized cultural moments. This landscape is characterized by an increased access to music across a variety of platforms, which enables listeners to curate their own experience through active engagement with the media rather than passive listening. In this context, listeners no longer rely on traditional forms of media, such as radio or television. Instead, they engage with music through social media which utilizes personalized algorithms and promotes user-generated playlists through social media communities. This form of participatory engagement can be utilized to the benefit of the artists to promote a song into mainstream pop culture – big or small. This environment within the contemporary music landscape has the power to spotlight an artist’s career and let them become overnight sensations. I will create a framework to analyze the contemporary factors that contribute to an artist’s propulsion into mainstream pop culture within these social media platforms. This project aims to contribute to the understanding of the contemporary music industry landscape with a conceptual framework and data science techniques to help explain this phenomena.
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  ALIGNMENT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) ATTITUDES: EXAMINING HR AND ENTRY-LEVEL APPLICANT PERSPECTIVES ON AI USAGE IN JOB APPLICATIONS

  Crawford, Brittney; Broskoff, Peyton Jane (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), specifically large language models capable of generating human language, has become increasingly accessible and integrated in a wide range of industries. The purpose of this thesis is to inquire and report on the alignment of Human Resources (HR) professionals’ attitudes and policies regarding AI with those of college students. This thesis specifically explores the context of the alignment of opinions about applicants using AI to support their application process in an ethical and practical sense. This attitudinal alignment is examined through interviews with college students and HR professionals within the retail industry. This thesis has the specific scope of looking at internship and entry-level applicants because of the convenience sampling methods used to identify participants from the author’s experience and connections within this industry. A short case study is also presented on an organization that has a robust AI policy already in place. This thesis is relevant because of the lack of data available at this frontier of increasing AI accessibility and the ambiguity of ethical AI guidelines across industry. The findings show an overall inflated belief of AI usage, an alignment in attitudes about lying about experiences as a clear unethical use of AI, ambiguity in defining other boundaries of unethical use, and how important transparency is in providing insight for future internship and entry-level job applicants who are considering using AI to assist in their applications. The addenda includes storytelling materials to guide students on how using AI may affect their application process, as well as inform HR recruiters about their applicant’s opinions and actions.
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  EVIDENCE BASED RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENHANCE END-OF-LIFE CARE PREPAREDNESS IN UNDERGRADUATE NURSING EDUCATION

  Goldsmith, Melissa; Clark, Kelly; Brack, Emma Ivy (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  Death anxiety is a significant psychological factor among undergraduate nursing students and shapes their self-efficacy, emotional readiness, and willingness to provide end-of-life care. Despite national guidelines from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and the End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium, research shows persistent gaps in undergraduate preparation for death and postmortem care. This thesis examines how fear, avoidance, and anxiety influence students’ preparedness to care for dying patients and evaluates evidence-based strategies to strengthen end-of-life education. A review of literature from 2019-2024 shows that nursing students commonly report moderate to high death anxiety, low end-of-life care self-efficacy, and reluctance to pursue specialties such as hospice and geriatrics. Contributing factors include limited clinical exposure to death, minimal opportunities for emotional processing, lack of spiritual care training, inconsistent competency expectations, and insufficient faculty support. Effective interventions identified in the literature include simulation, resilience-building, spiritual care instruction, and reflective practice, all shown to reduce anxiety and improve professional confidence. Guided by the Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice model, this thesis synthesizes findings into five best-practice recommendations and outlines an implementation and evaluation plan for nursing programs aimed at creating a supportive, competency-based approach to end-of-life education that enhances student learning and clinical readiness.
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  POPULISM IN RESPONSE: THE RISE OF THE AfD AND THE POLITICAL EFFECTS OF REFUGEE WAVES IN GERMANY (2013–2024)

  Braithwaite, Alex; Beck, Amira Blue Clifford (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  The AfD has gained significant popularity from its founding in 2013 to 2025. As a far right populist party it has gained major attention in Germany and abroad. The rise of the AfD coincided with a massive demographic shift. Two years before the AfD made its debut into the Bundestag as the 3rd largest party, over one million refugees came to Germany, making it the largest refugee hosting country in Europe. How has the influx of refugees affected the AfD’s popularity and what populations support the AfD? Are migrants and refugees a key political stance that the AfD is able to capitalize on with its voter base? To answer these questions the study examines statistics and polling data that show a clear increase in the popularity of the AfD, Literature analyzed provided the background for how populism grows in nations experiencing political turmoil, and cultural threats to explain the German political shift. Examining the voting patterns of native born Germans, diaspora populations, and the regional differences between East and West Germany, I examine what led to the rise of the AfD and how refugees have reshaped the German political sphere since 2013. This thesis argues that the rise of the AfD cannot solely be rooted to one factor but rather a complex combination of regional inequality, demographic changes and cultural fears.
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  THE POWER IN PATIENT STORIES: TRACING WOMEN’S HEALTH HISTORY THROUGH NARRATIVE MEDICINE

  Swanberg, Susan E.; Anderson, Allyson Marie (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  This honors thesis explores narrative medicine and narrative journalism through research, a book review and historical analysis. It highlights the pioneering work of Dr. Rita Charon, a physician and literary scholar who founded the Division of Narrative Medicine at Columbia University. Narrative medicine, a field that emphasizes the importance of storytelling in healthcare, seeks to foster more empathetic and personalized interactions between patients and medical professionals by encouraging an understanding of the broader context behind the reasons patients seek care. Dr. Charon's approach to patient care serves as the foundation for this exploration. This thesis examines the role of narrative medicine in enhancing doctor-patient relationships and medical education. The honors thesis also draws connections between narrative medicine and narrative journalism. Narrative journalism, a genre of literature that combines factual reporting with storytelling techniques, offers a more immersive and emotive way of reporting. By exploring Charon’s application of narrative techniques to healthcare and comparing them with narrative journalism practices, the thesis investigates how both disciplines rely on the art of storytelling. By including a review of All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women’s Bodies and Why It Matters Today, this thesis highlights both the power of patient stories in healthcare and how delving deeper into patient stories can help the medical community provide higher quality care. By focusing on the way in which storytelling fosters empathy, understanding, and connection, I seek to illustrate how narrative practices can improve patient care and the way patient stories are told and received.
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  IDENTIFICATION OF AN ERG-BOUND ENDOTHELIAL CELL RESTRICTED ENHANCER FOR IL1Α AND IL1Β

  Romanoski, Casey; Kadimova, Evilina (The University of Arizona., 2022)

  The progression of atherosclerosis is characterized by plaque formation within the arterial walls that could manifest into coronary artery disease (CAD) leading to myocardial infarction or stroke. Our objective in this study is to identify regulatory elements in human aortic endothelial cells that are responsible for controlling the inflammatory environment. To do so we evaluated ERG’s binding landscape, an important transcription factor that suppresses inflammation, and among the topmost ERG-bound enhancer-like elements was a putative enhancer located between IL1α/β, genes. After deleting this candidate with CRISPR we found a reduction in the magnitude of the IL1α/β RNA upon TNFa treatment (p<0.05). We, therefore, concluded that this region functions as an enhancer for the transcription of the IL1-α and IL1-β genes. Deleting this genomic region also reduced leukocyte adhesion to endothelial cells demonstrating the inflammatory functional consequence of the enhancer. Next, we evaluated ERG’s function at the IL1αβ enhancer by knocking down and overexpressing ERG with siRNA transfections and lentiviral transduction, respectively. Findings suggested that ERG’s inflammatory function in regulating IL1-α and IL1-β is in combination with the enhancer element and that greater transcriptional regulation of the genes comes from the enhancer versus ERG alone. Within this region, we also identified an ERG motif and NFkB motif as being the source of the majority of regulation surrounding enhancer activity. By identifying the role performed by this IL1αβ enhancer and its regulatory network, new advanced strategies can be formulated to better target CAD such as those with therapeutic and preventative measures.
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  THE EFFECTS OF UNITED STATES INTERVENTION IN HONDURAS: WHAT CAN THE U.S. LEARN FROM THE AFTERMATH OF THE 2009 COUP?

  O'Brien , Katie; Ziegler, Tori Sophia (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  This thesis analyzes the long-term consequences of United States intervention in Honduras, arguing that U.S. foreign policy contributed to widespread political and economic instability that led to the 2009 coup d'etat. Drawing from historical context dating back to the late 19th century, this research highlights the evolution of U.S. influence through capitalist interests, militarization of domestic institutions, and neoliberal policy. The analysis explores how the United States continuously prioritized geopolitical and economic interests over human rights, often supporting corrupt regimes in Honduras. Key patterns are identified through scholarly sources, historical parallels, and media analysis. The thesis highlights the ways in which silence and a lack of true media representation perpetuated harm. It offers recommendations for future foreign policy that surround accountability and transparency. Understanding the history of U.S. intervention in Honduras is necessary in order to avoid the repetition of it, and to form a path forward that protects human rights across Latin America.
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  SPEECH, SPENDING, AND THE STATE: REFORMING CAMPAIGN FINANCE IN AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

  Westerland, Chad; Zelms, Jaden Alysse (The University of Arizona., 2025)

  The influence of money in American politics, particularly through campaign contributions, has steadily increased over the past decade, even as official contribution limits have remained largely unchanged. For decades, the Supreme Court has wrestled with campaign finance cases, continually seeking to balance First Amendment protections with the government's interest in preventing corruption. Today, limits are placed on direct contributions to candidates from individuals, political parties, and political action committees (PACs). However, super PACs stand apart from these rules by being permitted to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, so long as they do not coordinate directly with candidates or campaigns. While lawmakers and justices have accepted this distinction as a legal foundation for campaign finance, the regulations governing super PACs have created a significant legal exception that allows an effectively unlimited flow of money to influence elections. This situation raises serious concerns about the integrity of democratic processes and the disproportionate influence of wealthy donors. Although political donations are an important form of free expression, a better framework must be developed to protect both democratic integrity and constitutional rights. A revised approach would continue to allow citizens to express political preferences through financial support, but would impose meaningful limits on super PAC contributions. Such reform would strike a more appropriate balance between free speech and the need to limit corruption, ensuring that political power is not concentrated in the hands of a few wealthy interests.

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