Some quirkiness: Forum Display issues in certain areas

[cliff p.]

I've been working on this issue for some time now, and I'm completely confused at this point...

1. Global hooks disabled in config.php.
2. Uninstalled/disabled all 3.8.x mods on test site before upgrade to 4.2
3. Followed all upgrade guidelines to the letter.
4. Debug mode is now enabled in config.php
5. Default style created with no changes to display.

Problem: See attached. Issue is that "post new thread" text does not display in certain forums (those with restricted access to staff/admin). Attempted to determine if permissions is an issue by resetting those forums to default permissions, and no change. Noticed that they also don't show in the forum classifieds sections either.

Also, the footer section of the forumdisplay is all borked up.

Any advice is appreciated. I'd really like to get this sorted out.