Educational Content Development

In addition to the work listed here, Paula was a manager of content and curriculum for Kaplan Test Prep for 4 years (2017–2021), where she led the development of courses (in-person and online, synchronous and on-demand), practice resources, and textbooks to help students prepare for various standardized tests.

Anthropology

Write and review instructor manuals, test bank questions, and PowerPoint slides to support anthropology textbooks:

  • James Peoples and Garrick Bailey, Humanity: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology (11th ed.), Cengage Learning (2017).

Business

Cengage Learning

Write and review student-facing content for Aplia/MindTap platform to support college business textbooks:

  • Daft and Marcic, Understanding Management (10th edition, 2017)
  • Griffin, Fundamentals of Management (8th edition, 2016)
  • Griffin, Fundamentals of Management (10th edition, 2022)
  • Griffin, Management (13th edition, 2022)
  • Gulati, Mayo, and Nohria, Management (2nd edition, 2016)
  • Griffin and Phillips, Organizational Behavior: Managing People and Organizations (12th edition, 2017)
  • Griffin and Phillips, Organizational Behavior: Managing People and Organizations (14th edition, 2023)
  • Nelson and Quick, ORGB: Organizational behavior (7th edition, 2024)

O’Reilly Media

Edit and apply sound assessment design to course companion quizzes.

  • Das, S. (2023, July). Leading Remote Teams [course]. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media. Edited student assessment items.
  • Hunner, T. (2023). Python Essentials [course]. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media. Edited student assessment items.
  • Sullivan, J. (2023, September). Hedera Hashgraph Developer [course]. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media. Edited student assessment items.
  • Kane, S. P. (2023, November). Terraform Fundamentals [course]. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media. Edited student assessment items.

Rothstein Publishing

Wrote instructor guides, test bank questions, and PowerPoint slides to support business continuity/disaster recovery textbooks:

  • Bruce Blythe, Blindsided (2nd edition)
  • Jim Burtles, Emergency Evaluation Planning for Your Workplace
  • Jim Burtles, Principles and Practice of Business Continuity: Tools and Techniques (2nd edition)
  • Andrew Hiles, Business Continuity Management (4th edition)
  • James Lukaszewski, Crisis Communication

SAGE Publishing

Write and review student-facing content to support business management textbooks.

  • Hatten, Small business management: Creating a sustainable competitive advantage (8th edition, 2023)

Portfolio Management Research

Doug McNair writes practical applications (PA) articles and assessment items based on work published in academic journals in the area of investments (Portfolio Management Research).

  • Al-Abduljader, S. (2018). Returning to the Silk Road: Should global portfolios replace BRICS? Journal of Index Investing, 8(4).
  • Andersson, C., Broberg, C., Kaskal, K., & Sonesson, M. (2021). Portfolio construction and new energy infrastructure investing. Journal of Impact and ESG Investing, 2(2).
  • Arnott, R., Ko, A., & Wu, L. (2022). Where’s the beef? Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Baitinger, E., & Maier, T. (2019). The (mis)behavior of hedge fund strategies: A network-based analysis. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Belev, E., & DiBartolomeo, D. (2021). Private equity benchmarking for asset owners and investment managers. Journal of Index Investing, 12(2).
  • Berger, A. L. (2022). “An index isn’t a fiduciary” and what that means for active management. Journal of Index Investing, 11(4)–12(1).
  • Berkowitz, J. P., & DeLisle, J. (2018). Volatility as an asset class: Holding VIX in a portfolio. Journal of Alternative Investments, 21(2).
  • Berrada, T., Scaillet, O., & Zhang, Z. (2022, April 15). Asset allocation implications of illiquid assets. Journal of Investing. doi: 10.3905/joi.2022.1.229
  • Blanchett, D. (2020). The value of allocating to annuities. Journal of Retirement, 8(1).
  • Bonaparte, Y., Fabozzi, F. J., & Koslowsky, D. (2020). Can commodity price uncertainty indexes be improved by capturing media information? The case of oil price uncertainty. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(4).
  • Bruckner, C. L., & Forman, J. B. (2021). Shoring up shortfalls: Women, retirement, and the growing GigSupp economy. Journal of Retirement, 9(1).
  • Buetow Jr., G. W., & Hanke, B. (2020). How long is long enough? Journal of Retirement, 8(2).
  • Busack, M., Drobetz, W., & Tille, J. (2019). The predictability of alternative UCITS fund returns. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Chang, C. E., Krueger, T. M., & Witte, H. D. (2021). Importance of costs in target date fund selection using three Morningstar ratings. Journal of Retirement, 8(4).
  • Clare, A., Glover, S., Seaton, J., Smith, P. N., & Thomas S. (2020). Measuring sequence of returns risk. Journal of Retirement, 8(1).
  • Clare, A., Seaton, J., Smith, P. N., & Thomas, S. (2021). Perfect withdrawal in a noisy world: Investing lessons with and without annuities while in drawdown between 2000 and 2019. Journal of Retirement, 9(1).
  • Clark, R., Lusardi, A., Mitchell, O. S., & Davis, H. (2021). Factors contributing to financial well-being among Black and Hispanic women. Journal of Retirement, 9(2).
  • Cordell, L., Feldberg, G., & Sass, D. (2019). The role of ABS CDOs in the financial crisis. The Journal of Structured Finance, 25(2).
  • Crook, M. W. (2019). Liabilities matter: Improving target date glidepath construction through liability adaptive asset allocation. Journal of Retirement, 7(1).
  • Czasonis, M., Kritzman, M., & Turkington, D. (2019). Private equity valuations and public equity performance. Journal of Alternative Investments, 2(1).
  • Davis, J., Tiantian, G. Q., Ramirez, G., Guo, H., Li, D., & Yap, Z. (2022). Emerging market investing: A multi-asset, granular, and dynamic portfolio approach. Journal of Portfolio Management, 48(8).
  • de Groot, W., Swinkels, L., & Zhou, W. (2021). China A-shares: Strategic allocation to market and factor premiums. Journal of Portfolio Management, 47(7).
  • Ehlers, S., & Gauer, K. (2019). Beyond bitcoin: A statistical comparison of leading cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies and their impact on portfolio diversification. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Ennis, R. M.  (2022). Are endowment managers better than the rest? Journal of Investing, 31(6).
  • Ennis, R. M. (2022). The modern endowment story: A ubiquitous US equity factor. Journal of Portfolio Management, 48(11).
  • Ennis, R. M. (2022). A universal investment portfolio for public pension funds: Making the most of our herding ways. Journal of Investing, 32(1).
  • Estrada, J. (2020). Retirement planning : From Z to A. Journal of Retirement, 8(2).
  • Estrada, J. (2020). Target date funds, glidepaths, and risk aversion. Journal of Wealth Management, 23(3).
  • Finke, M., & Fichtner, J. J. (2021). Employee opinions about partial annuitization in a retirement plan. Journal of Retirement, 9(3).
  • Focardi, S., & Fabozzi, F. J. (2022). Why should asset management be interested in new economic thinking? Journal of Portfolio Management, 48(10).
  • Francis, J. C., & Ibbotson, R. G. (2020). Real estate returns. Journal of Alternative Investments, 23(2).
  • Ghilarducci, T., Papadopoulos, M., & Webb, A. (2022, February 21). The illusory benefit of working longer on retirement financial preparedness: Rethinking advice that working longer increases retirement income. Journal of Retirement, 9(3). doi: 10.3905/jor.2022.1.104
  • Glas, T. N. (2019). Investments in cryptocurrencies. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Gyura, G. (2020). Green bonds and green bond funds: The quest for the real impact. Journal of Alternative Investments, 23(1).
  • Hammond, D. R. (2020). Should endowments continue to commit to private investments? Journal of Investing, 30(1).
  • Harlow, W. V., Brown, K. C., & Jenks, S. E. (2019). The use and value of financial advice for retirement planning. Journal of Retirement, 7(3).
  • Harris, M. (2019). Should a retiree file for Social Security at 62 or 70? Journal of Retirement, 7(2).
  • Harrison, J. P., & Samaddar, S. (2020). Who is better at investment decisions: Man or machine? Journal of Wealth Management, 23(3).
  • Hartley, J. S. (2019). Liquid alternative mutual funds versus hedge funds: Returns, risk factors, and diversification. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Harvey, C. R. (2022). The term structure and world economic growth: A retrospective and 30 years of out-of-sample evidence. Journal of Fixed Income, 32(2).
  • Holub, M., & Johnson, J. (2019). Bitcoin price anomalies: Peer-to-peer (P2P) trading on LocalBitcoins. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Hooke, J., Park, C., & Yook, K. C. (2019). Alternative-asset fees, returns, and volatility of state pension funds: A case study of the New Jersey Pension Fund. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(3).
  • Horan, S. M., Dimson, E., Emery, C., Blay, K., & Yelton, G. (2022). The state of ESG investing: A portfolio management perspective. Journal of Impact and ESG Investing, 2(4).
  • Hougaard Jensen, S. E., Lassila, J., Määtänen, N., Valkonen, T., & Westerhout, E. (2020). The top three pension systems: Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands. Journal of Retirement, 8(2).
  • Ilmanen, A., Swati, C., & McQuinn, N. (2019). Demystifying illiquid assets: Expected returns for private equity. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(3).
  • Jablecki, J. (2022). Doing well while doing good: The elusive quest for green bond returns. Journal of Impact and ESG Investing, 3(2).
  • Jacobsen, B., & Scheiber, M. (2022, March 16). Harvesting multi-asset carry, value, and momentum: Work smarter, not harder. Journal of Financial Data Science. doi 10.3905/jfds.2022.1.087
  • Kanuri, S. (2022). An empirical examination of lifestyle mutual funds. Journal of Retirement, 9(3).
  • Kanuri, S., & Malhotra, D. K. (2023). Evaluating the performance of world allocation funds. Journal of Wealth Management, 25(1).
  • Kanuri, S., Malm, J., & Malhotra, D. K. (2021). Is tactical allocation a winning strategy: Journal of Index Investing, 12(2).
  • Konstantinov, G. S. (2021). What portfolio in Europe makes sense? Journal of Portfolio Management, 47, 7.
  • Knutzen, E. (2022). Private markets—From alternative to mainstream: Evolution during the past 30 years and key trends and challenges for the decades to come. Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Kuenzi, D. E. (2020). Sources of return dispersion in alternative risk premia. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(4).
  • Lodgher, A., & Harun, S. (2022, March 18). Can a momentum strategy outperform the S&P 500 index in a retirement plan? Journal of Retirement. doi: 10.3905/jor.2022.1.108
  • Marchel, K., & Markarian, G. (2019). Why invest in private equity? A comparison of private equity and stock market returns. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(1).
  • Martellini, L., Milhau, V., & Mulvey, J. (2020). Securing replacement income with goal-based retirement investing strategies. Journal of Retirement, 7(4).
  • McCarthy, D. F., & Wong, B. M. (2020). A performance update—hedge funds versus hedged mutual funds: An examination of equity long–short funds. Journal of Alternative Investments, 23(2).
  • McMillan, B., Myers, J., Nguyen, A., Robinson, D., & Kennard, M. (2021). Analysis and comparison of natural language processing algorithms as applied to Bitcoin conversations on social media. The Journal of Investing, 31(2).
  • Minahan, J. R. (2022). Reflections on professional ethics in investment management and pension fund investment consulting. Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Nahmer, T. (2020). The diversification benefit of actual investing in fine wine. The Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(4).
  • Neville, H., Draaisma, T., Funnell, B., Harvey, C. R., & Hemert, O. V. (2021). The best strategies for inflationary times. Journal of Portfolio Management, 47(10).
  • Parker, F. J. (2020). Allocation of wealth both within and across goals. Journal of Wealth Management, 23(1).
  • Partridge, C., & Medda, F. R. (2020). Green bond pricing: The search for greenium. Journal of Alternative Investments, 23(1).
  • Peters, D. J. (2022). Thriving amid the ravages of creative destruction in the investment management industry. Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Phalippou, L. (2020). An inconvenient fact: Private equity returns and the billionaire factory. Journal of Investing, 30(1).
  • Rappaport, A., (2019). The unrealistic optimism that threatens retirement security. Journal of Retirement, 7(2).
  • Reichenstein, W., & Meyer, W. (2019). Medicare and tax planning for higher-income households. Journal of Wealth Management, 22(3).
  • Reichenstein, W., & Meyer, W. (2020). Investment implications of the rising and falling pattern of marginal tax rates for retirees. Journal of Retirement, 8(1).
  • Saha, A., & Roberts, H. (2019). Are actively managed mutual funds per se imprudent choices for 401(k) plans? Journal of Retirement, 7(1).
  • Scharfman, J. (2019). Analysis of three emerging trends in limited partnership operational due diligence. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(3).
  • Schultz, G. M., & Fabozzi, F. P. (2022). Primer on agency mortgage-backed securities specified pools and their convexity profiles. Journal of Fixed Income, 31(4).
  • Shibly, R., Subkoviak, A., & Bouchey, P. (2022). Catholic values and direct indexing: No performance penance needed. Journal of Beta Investment Strategies, 13(2).
  • Shoven, J. B., & Walton, D. B. (2021). An analysis of the performance of target date funds. Journal of Retirement, 8(4).
  • Siegel, L. B., & Sexauer, S. C. (2022). Debunking 7-1/2 myths of investing. Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Soni, A. (2020). Performance dispersion risk assessment in alternatives and active strategies. Journal of Alternative Investments, 22(4).
  • Speidell, L. S. (2022). A time of reckoning in emerging markets. Journal of Investing, 31(4).
  • Stamos, M. (2022). Portfolio risk mitigation without bonds. Journal of Portfolio Management, 48(4).
  • Thanki, H., Karani, A., & Kumar Goyal, A. (2020). Psychological antecedents of financial risk tolerance. Journal of Wealth Management, 23(2).
  • Thiagarajan, R., Han, J., Hurd, A., Im, H., & Malik, G. (2021). Financial globalization and its implications for diversification and portfolio risk. Journal of Investing, 30(6).
  • Tidmore, C., & Hon, A. (2021). Patience with active performance cyclicality: It’s harder than you think. Journal of Investing, 30(4).
  • Travis, D. H., & Dicle, M. F. (2022). Reluctant investors: A behavioral experiment. Journal of Wealth Management, 25(2).
  • Walker, R. L., Wingender Jr., J. R., Purcell III, T. J. (2021). Tax reform, company value, and Biden proposals. Journal of Investing, 31(1).
  • Warshawsky, M. J. (2022). The trouble with state government employee pension plans: The case of Connecticut. Journal of Retirement, 9(3).
  • Xu, G. (2018). Static and dynamic tax diversification of withdrawals from multiple individual retirement accounts. Journal of Retirement, 6(2).
  • Zhang, L. (2021). ESG rating divergence: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Journal of Index Investing, 12(3).
  • Zorina, I., & Corlett-Roy, L. (2022). The hunt for alpha is ESG fixed income: Fund evidence from around the world. Journal of Impact and ESG Investing, 3(1).

Communications

Wrote study and test bank questions:

  • West, R. L., & Turner, L. H. (2020). Interpersonal communication (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Wrote 140 questions for Chapter 2: Communication, Culture, and Identity (pretest, posttest, study quiz, and test bank).

History, Government, and Political Science

Doug McNair wrote and reviewed online test bank questions to support the learning of history, political science, and US government content in conformity with learning objectives and standards:

  • Kevin M. Schultz, HIST4 (4th ed.), Cengage Learning
  • LearnSmart for American Government, McGraw-Hill (2015)
  • LearnSmart for Franklin and Higginbotham, From Slavery to Freedom, McGraw-Hill (2016)
  • LearnSmart for Palmer, Colton, and Kramer, A History of Europe in the Modern World, McGraw-Hill (2016)
  • LearnSmart for Price and Feinman, Images of the Past, McGraw-Hill (2016)
  • LearnSmart for Stein, Physical Anthropology, McGraw-Hill (2016)
  • Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Course 1301: American Government, Organization (TCCNS: GOVT2305), 12 chapters
  • Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Course 2306: Texas Politics (TCCNS: GOVT2306) (9 chapters)

Test Preparation

ASVAB/AFQT

  • With team, wrote content for heavily revised 11th edition of Kaplan Test Prep’s ASVAB/AFQT preparation book and companion online videos (2014). The ASVAB is used by the US military in recruitment and job matching; topics include math, vocabulary, reading comprehension, and science.
  • Assisted with writing expanded practice sets for new edition of Kaplan’s ASVAB Premier book (2015).

BMAT

  • Authored 100 Critical Thinking items for Medify’s practice resources for the BioMedical Admissions Test (BMAT). Also wrote dozens of explanations for Critical Thinking items from released BMAT exams. The BMAT is used primarily in the UK to help select applicants for medical, dental, biomedical, and veterinary degree programs.

DSST

  • Wrote 100-item practice test, including feedback and metadata, for DSST Personal Finance exam. The DSST Program offers more than 30 tests that students can take to be awarded college credit.

GAMSAT

  • Doug McNair wrote Reasoning in Humanities and Social Sciences questions for Medify’s Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) preparation materials. The GAMSAT is used to help select students for graduate health and medical programs in Australia, Ireland, and the UK.

GED

  • Led team to write additional mathematics and science content for Kaplan Test Prep’s GED Premier 2016 in response to third-party certification audit. Passed certification with no further changes requested.

GMAT

  • Helped review high-difficulty math questions and explanations for new edition of Kaplan’s GMAT Premier book (2015).
  • Helped review and rewrite practice test question feedback to ensure pedagogical soundness and consistent instructional voice (2016).
  • Worked on team to develop online and on-site course content and student resources as part of test preparation course revision (2016).

GRE

  • With team, reviewed and wrote content to support new GRE test preparation courseware for Kaplan Test Prep (2015).
  • Helped write two replacement chapters for new edition of Kaplan’s GRE Premier book (2016).

HESI Admission Assessment Exam

  • Wrote 275 questions, with feedback and metadata, in English Language (Grammar, Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary and General Knowledge), Math, and Science (Anatomy and Physiology, Biology, and Chemistry). The HESI A2 is Elsevier’s test for nursing program applicants to predict their eventual success on nursing board exams (e.g., NCLEX-RN). It gauges students’ academic readiness and identifies their learning and personality styles.

HiSET

  • With team, wrote content for new Kaplan Test Prep HiSET preparation book (2015–2016). The HiSET is a high school graduation equivalency exam based on the Common Core; topics include math, science, social studies, reading (literature and informational), and writing (grammar/style and producing an essay).

NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination for nurses)

Investigated student-reported errata in question banks and remediated items as needed:

  • Boyd, M. A. (2018). Psychiatric nursing: Contemporary practice (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Boyd, M. A., & Luebbert, R. (2020). Essentials of psychiatric nursing (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Hinkle, J. L., & Cheever, K. H. (2018) Brunner & Suddarth’s textbook of medical–surgical nursing (14th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Hogan–Quigley, B, Palm, M. L., & Bickley, L. (2017). Bates’ nursing guide to physical assessment and history taking (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Honan, L. (2019). Focus on adult health: Medical–surgical nursing (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Jensen, S. (2019). Nursing health assessment: A best practice approach (3rd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Lippincott’s NCLEX-RN/PN PassPoint (PREPU-PassPoint). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Timby, B. K., & Smith, N. E. (2014). Introductory medical–surgical nursing (12th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Videbeck, S. L. (2020). Psychiatric–mental health nursing (8th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  • Weber, J. R., & Kelley, J. H. (2018). Health assessment in nursing (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Reviewed and wrote NCLEX-style test questions, with metadata:

  • Wrote 250 questions to accompany Jeffrey S. Jones, Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, and Vickie L. Rogers’s Psychiatric–Mental Health Nursing: An Interpersonal Approach (New York: Springer, 2012).
  • Wrote 600 new questions and revised 600 existing NCLEX-style questions to accompany 2nd edition of Fundamentals of Nursing Care: Concepts, Connections, and Skills by Marti Burton and Linda Ludwig (Philadelphia: F. A. Davis, 2015).

Edited slides and videos that are part of courseware:

  • With team, edited slides, videos, and other teacher- and student-facing content to support 2016 revision of Kaplan Test Prep’s NCLEX course.

Nutrition

Reviewed items authored by vendor:

  • Dudek, S. G. (2022). Nutrition essentials for nursing practice (9th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluver.

TASC

With team, wrote content for heavily revised 2nd edition of Kaplan Test Prep’s TASC preparation book and wrote, narrated, and edited companion online videos (2014–2015). The TASC is a high school graduation equivalency exam based on the Common Core; topics include math, science, social studies, reading (literature and informational), and writing (grammar/style and producing an essay).