CIRI Faculty Grant Projects

CIRCLE: Cross-campus Interdisciplinary Responsible Computing Learning Experiences

Co-PIs: Dr. Darra Hofman, Dr. Michele A. L. Villagran, and Dr.Souvick Ghosh
Funding Agency: Responsible Computing Challenge Award from Mozilla
Funding Period: 2024-2026

Summary: The project team will create an interdisciplinary working group to develop “responsible datasets in context” and revised courses in humanistic critical computing and data studies.

Legally, Algorithmically, and Culturally Aware Systems of Accountability (LACASA)

Co-PIs: Dr. Michele A. L. Villagran, Dr. Darra Hofman and Dr.Souvick Ghosh
Funding Agency: SJSU VPRI Team Award
Funding Amount: $25,000
Funding Period: 2024-2026

Summary: The funding application aims to support the interdisciplinary team from the School of Information and Department of Computer Science in preliminary work for the Legally, Algorithmically, and Culturally Aware Systems of Accountability (LACASA) project. This project will lay the foundation for an NSF ExpandAI proposal, focusing on diversifying AI research, education, and workforce development. LACASA builds on existing collaborations, addressing the need for legally compliant, socially, and culturally aware digital privacy systems. The project will conduct stakeholder surveys, develop accountable algorithms, create fair and explainable prototypes, and focus on the digital privacy of marginalized groups, enhancing context-based data annotation.

BIPOC Community College Librarians

PI: Dr. José Aguiñaga
Funding Agency: SJSU RSCA Seed Grant
Funding Amount: $7176.80
Funding Period: 2024-2025

Summary: The project’s scope is to explore the potential for recruiting, training, developing, and retaining Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) as community college librarians in California. Additionally, a graduate research assistant will assist in creating an online survey and assist with a peer-reviewed publication based on the project’s research. Despite years of librarian diversity programs, the percentage of BIPOC community college librarians does not represent the communities they serve. Based on recent literature findings, incremental improvements in BIPOC academic librarians have occurred, but enhanced efforts must continue. 

iLead: Preparing Tomorrow’s Library Leaders

Co-PI: Dr. Anthony Chow
Funding Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
Funding Amount: $ 146,770
Funding Period: 2024

Summary: San José State University (SJSU) School of Information and Simmons University School of Library Information Science will collaborate on a one-year planning grant entitled iLead: Preparing Tomorrow’s Library Leaders. In collaboration with national, state, and local partners, iLead will help inform future LIS leaders by defining a leadership program with an equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) focus that identifies required core competencies for workforce development. Harnessing the expertise of library leaders, organizations, and LIS practitioners, iLead will be designed by professional LIS educators, developed by online learning experts and instructional designers, and prepared for future implementation as a free, online professional development opportunity for LIS workers, leaders, and libraries, especially those who do not have or plan to pursue an MLIS degree.

Seeking Immortality: The Northern Cheyenne Preservation Project

Partner: Dr. Anthony Chow and Dr. Darra Hofman
Funding Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
Funding Amount: $148,662
Funding Period: 2022-2024 

Summary: The Northern Cheyenne Tribe will partner with San Jose State University to develop a model and toolkit to showcase the use of virtual reality (VR) technology to preserve and share the tribe’s cultural heritage. The VR platform will host recordings of Native language speakers and digitized artifacts. The project team will conduct user interviews, focus groups, and surveys with community members. They will disseminate a toolkit with procedures and practices for designing VR archives focused on preserving language and cultural heritage traditions. This project will benefit more than 12,000 tribal citizens, in addition to serving as a model for other communities and the library field. As a subrecipient, San Jose State University will lead the implementation of the research design, data collection, analysis, and scholarly dissemination; oversee the archival process; and lead the digitization and VR development process.

BIPOC Become Librarians (BBL)

Partner: Dr. Michele A. L. Villagran
Funding Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
Funding Amount: $150,000
Funding Period: 2022-2024 

Summary: San Jose State University’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library and School of Information, in partnership with San Jose Public Library, will establish a pilot mentorship and internship program to introduce undergraduate students who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) to careers in Library and Information Science. Project activities will include recruiting BIPOC undergraduates, conducting focus groups, identifying and recruiting mentors, mentees, and trainers, and identifying internship partners; evaluating the project throughout each phase; and finalizing the curriculum and shareable resources and disseminating project results. Project outcomes will include an internship and mentorship program ready to introduce BIPOC undergraduate students to careers in librarianship and a toolkit shared with faculty in other library and information science programs featuring shareable resources from lessons learned and best practices gained during the pilot project. 

Archives 4.0: Artificial Intelligence for Trust in Records and Archives

Partner: Dr. Pat Franks and Dr. Darra Hofman
Funding Agency: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Canada
Funding Amount: $2,489,577 (CAD)
Funding Period: 2021-2026

Summary: InterPARES Trust AI (2021-2026) is a multi-national interdisciplinary project aiming to design, develop, and leverage Artificial Intelligence to support the ongoing availability and accessibility of trustworthy public records by forming a sustainable, ongoing partnership producing original research, training students and other highly qualified personnel (HQP), and generating a virtuous circle between academia, archival institutions, government records professionals, and industry, a feedback loop reinforcing the knowledge and capabilities of each party.

Curriculum Design and Instruction for Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL) Online

Partner: Dr. Lili Luo
Funding Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services
Funding Amount: $248,299
Funding Period: 2021-2024

Summary: The Loyola Marymount University Library, in collaboration with the San José State University School of Information and the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium, will expand the availability of the successful research training and mentoring program for novice librarian-researchers, the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL). Transitioning the proven in-person training experience to a sustainable synchronous online format will provide access to a wider base of participants at a lower cost per participant. To further cultivate the growing community of practice of librarian-researchers, IRDL Online proposes to develop the IRDL Scholars’ Speaker Series and IRDL Online Research Conference as part of the program. Scholars will have free access to IRDL Online and it will provide research training and mentorship to 90 librarians over three years.

Bridging Knowledge: Supporting Indigenous Scholars in the Field of Librarianship

Partner: Sheila Gurtu
Funding Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services
Funding Amount: $700,000 
Funding Period: 2021-2024

Summary:  The San José State University School of Information, American Indian Library Association, the Alaska State Library are partners on a Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian grant worth over $700,000 awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to the Alaska Library Network. The grant will fund a three-year project titled Bridging Knowledge: Supporting Indigenous Scholars in the Field of Librarianship. The project will provide financial, professional and peer support to 15 American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian students as they pursue their Master of Library and Information Science degree in the iSchool’s exclusively online program. The students will also have the opportunity to concurrently earn an Advanced Certificate in Strategic Management of Digital Assets and Services.