Community Profiles
Community Profiles
Get to know our students, alumni and instructors by reading about their backgrounds, interests, professional goals, favorite courses, accomplishments, careers, and more fascinating experiences. These stories cover a wide range of topics and showcase the talents of our vibrant global community.
Teacher-Librarian Gains the Formal Skills He Needs in Web Programming Through the San José State University School of Information
“All of my course work in the iSchool was challenging and relevant. The courses required the ability to learn programming languages and solve increasingly difficult problems with those languages. The teachers created learning experiences that required in-depth knowledge and the ability to solve problems in a systematic way.”
Al Walker
Post-Master’s Certificate Graduate 2018
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
San José State University School of Information Student Reaches Beyond the Classroom to Compound Her Professional Skillset
“The range of concentrations that SJSU offers was also extremely appealing. The scope of areas that are included within the field of librarianship alone is appealing. My work experience in librarianship thus far has been in a military community library and a public library. The courses available in general librarianship provided me with the accepted best practices relevant to collection development, collection management, cataloging, and research/reference needs.”
Kate Eminhizer
MLIS Student
Emporia, VA
Providing Accessibility and Connectivity Drives Global iSchool Student
“Being a global LIS professional means that we are respectful, refrain from isolating an individual or group, and appreciate different perspectives and cultures.”
Lingsze Wong
MLIS Student Graduating Winter 2018
Belgium
Visiting MLIS Student and Global LIS Professional Sees Value in a Truly Global Perspective
“For me, learning that libraries in other parts of the world have the same focus and goals as you do has been important to help me see the bigger picture and do better work; it has helped to widen my perspective beyond the minutia of everyday tasks, and beyond my own institution.”
Bronwyn Clarke
Visiting Student
Dunedin, New Zealand
MLIS Student and NASA/Caltech Employee Presents at CA Collaborative Conference 2018
“The thing that I love most about the LIS field is its practical application to just about every part of our society. Regardless of whether you are working in a library for an obscure, secluded monastery with no access to email or advanced technology or working for a high-tech company like I do at NASA and Caltech’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the skills are useful and practical.”
Jonathan Christensen
iSchool Student Graduating 2019
Pasadena, CA
Alumna and Former Student Assistant Values Connections Forged at the San José State University School of Information
“I use many of the skills that I learned during my time working with Dr. Bernier and my fellow student assistants in my current position. Including, running virtual meetings online and using project management tools to managing various projects through the committee work that I do. I also learned a lot about working collaboratively with people in different geographic areas.”
Joy Rodriguez
MLIS Graduate 2012
Fresno, CA
President of the CLA and iSchool Alumna Strongly Advocates for the LIS Profession
“It really helps you understand the bigger picture, keep an eye on the profession, and the issues that all types of libraries are facing. We’re in a field that is constantly being threatened, so it’s important to know when and where we need to advocate for our profession and how to communicate our relevancy in our communities.”
Dolly Goyal
MLIS Graduate ‘07
Sunnyvale, CA
Alumna and Former Student Assistant Strives to Empower the Public Every Day
“For me, I love being able to empower people the most. Many people who come in don’t realize the full range of services we offer or how to really find what it is that they are looking for. Being able to show local students how the databases work or helping a patron understand how to download a library e-book is a thrill for me.”
Julie Whitehead
MLIS Graduate 2013
Dumont, NJ
iSchool Alumna and Academic Law Librarian Continues to Evolve Her Career
“I selected SJSU because of its flexibility, because I wanted to be at a California school, and because once I made the decision to transition out of practicing law, I wanted to get started fast and jump on the next stage of my career. The convenience of online education – I could stay in LA, where I’d been living for quite a while, I could travel some, I could do internships where I wanted, etc. – was a big factor.”
Elyse Meyers
MLIS Graduate 2013
Los Angeles, CA
Global Educator and MLIS Student Values the iSchool’s Diverse Course Offerings and Flexibility
“I took the storytelling course partly because I do some storytelling in Korean schools and libraries. It seemed like a good class for me as a teacher and librarian. I think the class is useful for librarians who want to more effectively perform stories in the library (or other) settings. It had a lot of wonderful techniques to improve storytelling, and the workshopping format with lots of feedback is a great way to sharpen your own performing skills.”
Lewis West
MLIS Student Graduating 2019
Daejon, Korea
iSchool Student Finds a New Path and Understanding in her Studies at SJSU and a Trip Abroad
“There is no way I could have done this without an online program. I needed to keep working and needed something flexible, so [the iSchool] was just the ticket.”
Gayle O’Hara
MLIS Student Graduating 2018
Nevada
Passion for records and digital preservation led MLIS graduate Jennifer Mundy to work as a records officer and electronic records management analyst
“I found what would work best for me was working full time at a library or archives while attending an online MLIS program, and the MLIS program at SJSU came highly recommended.”
Jennifer Mundy
MLIS Graduate 2008
Multnomah County, OR
iSchool Student Builds a Global and Community-based Perspective on Librarianship
“I know that a lot of people think that libraries are becoming irrelevant, but I strongly disagree. The library where I work is always incredibly busy. It’s true that there are a lot of ways for people to access information themselves these days, but it can become information overload and people often need a little help navigating through it.”
Terra Emerson
MLIS Student Graduating 2018
Sonoma County, CA
Diligent MLIS Grad Serves as Regional Director for Network of Regional Medical Libraries
“I found every one of the instructors [at SJSU] to be intelligent, knowledgeable and excited about the field. I especially found many of the adjunct professors who were actively working in the field helped to share the “real world” of librarianship and added to the experience.”
Eve Melton
MLIS Graduate 2001
Stockton, CA
Recent MARA Alumna Fast-Tracks the Certified Records Manager Exam with Her iSchool Studies
“Reflecting on my testing experience, I recognized that the courses I had taken during the MARA program at the iSchool had prepared me with broad AND specific knowledge – keys to success on the [CRM] exam but also in working in the records and information management field in general.”
Lauren Aiko Kelly
MARA Graduate 2016
Multnomah County, OR
iSchool Experiences Help Another MLIS Alumna find Dream Job
“Perhaps the most significant lesson I learned was that being my authentic self is the most important aspect of professional growth and development.”
Jessica Gilbert Redman
MLIS Graduate 2016
Grand Forks, ND
iSchool Alumnus Climbs His Way to a CEO Position at a Sizable British Columbia Library
“The MLIS program seemed the perfect program for transitioning into more senior leadership positions given its focus on leadership and management oriented coursework. The fact that I could do it part time and remotely was also a factor, as I kept working full time in my then current job as Director of Information Technology and Support Services at Fraser Valley Regional Library.”
Scott Hargrove
MLIS Graduate 2010
British Columbia, Canada
MLIS Graduate Helping to Archive the Immortal Work of Charles M. Schulz
“My love of history led me down the archives pathway of classes. I chose SJSU’s iSchool because it is ALA accredited, and having an online program was important for me since I was working full time and needed to ‘attend classes’ at odd hours.”
Jennifer Pickens
MLIS Graduate 2014
Santa Rosa, CA
MARA Graduate Uses New Partnership Between SJSU and ICRM to Quickly Obtain CRA Certification
“SJSU’s MARA program curriculum covered every area of records management and I particularly like that the curriculum is continually evaluated and updated to align with the job market and emerging trends in the records profession. The program also really helped me to embrace the changes brought about [in my career] as a result of emerging technologies. The program offered tools to develop solutions that can be used in any industry.”
Ossie Thomas
MARA Alumna Graduated 2016
Memphis, TN
iSchool Alumnus Ready to Navigate the Vast Archival Field
“I love the fact that all of my professors have experience in the field, whether it’s records administration or the archival field. They help me understand what experiences they bring to the program and how I could eventually apply it to my future career.”
Nikolay Zherebnenkov
MARA Alumnus Graduated 2017
Castro Valley, California