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.
Alumna Vanessa Holm Reaches New Heights, With Help From the MLIS
“iSchool taught me great skills that I can apply to work, and made me more confident in the work I do. I would recommend the iSchool to anyone.”
Vanessa Holm
Ontario, Canada
iSchool Alumna (MLIS, 2015)
Food for Thought
“I wasn’t sure I saw myself as a librarian. But having gone through [the MLIS program], I now understand the professionalism associated with this role. Now I have a larger view, and the values behind this role and why we do what we do.”
Sharon Tani
Pasadena, California
iSchool Alumna (MLIS, 2011)
Teen Services Librarian Amy Kirchofer Thrives in iSchool Open Classes
“I want to ensure that I have lots of options, since librarianship has so many possible applications.”
Amy Kirchofer
Lexington Park, Maryland
iSchool Open Classes Program Participant
Canadian Student Simon Lum Thinks Globally and Acts Locally
“My goal is to use my skills and knowledge to build on my past successes and experiences, and to play a vital role in supporting and affecting positive change in my communities—locally and globally.”
Simon Lum
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation Spring 2016
Talking TechSoup for Libraries with Alumna Ginny Mies
“I love doing the research and finding librarians who have done a really amazing project… I love finding them, giving them the platform to tell their story, supplementing libraries with all of the resources we can, and allowing other libraries to find their story and get help for themselves.”
Ginny Mies
San Francisco, California
iSchool Alumna (MLIS, 2013)
iSchool Lecturer Patty Wong Transforms Communities, One Grant at a Time
“I should call it community-engaged grant writing. That’s the critical difference between how I teach grant writing and how others do it. I really do want to have a positive impact on a whole community.”
Patty Wong
iSchool Lecturer
County Librarian and Chief Archivist for Yolo County, California
The Story of Paula Pereira: Immigrant, Teacher, Librarian and Self-Published Author
“The book I wrote is the book I wish I’d read when I was an ESL student.”
Paula Pereira
Norwalk, California
iSchool Alumna (MLIS, 2009)
Patty Mapes Turns Teacher-Librarian and Earns Post-Master’s Certificate
“I feel like I am officially a teacher-librarian… Having the Post-Master’s Certificate validates and qualifies me for my position.”
Patty Mapes
Atlanta, Georgia
iSchool Alumna (Post-Master’s Certificate, 2015)
Baby Steps: Librarians and Reading Readiness
“I’m passionate about this, and that makes all the difference. I love what I do, and it’s so important for children. It’s been a really good experience, and so worthwhile.”
R. Lynn Baker
Frankfort, Kentucky
iSchool Alumna (MLIS, 2015)
Scholarships, Internships and Conferences—Oh My!
“I just like information… Ever since I started reading, I wanted to know, and to share information. I enjoy helping other people find the information that they need.”
Emily Agunod
Chesterfield, Virginia
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation December 2015
Nilo Sarraf Takes Smart Data to the Next Level
“I see it as my responsibility, while I’m alive, to do something that can… contribute to the body of information science knowledge.”
Nilo Sarraf
San Francisco, California
San José Gateway PhD Student
Expected Degree Confirmation August 2016
Tom Schween Rocks Digital Storytime
“I wanted to make a difference and be of service. I wanted to promote things I valued and cared about, such as stories, the arts, reading and lifelong learning.”
Tom Schween
Walnut Creek, California
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation Spring 2017
Jill Klees Wants You to Land Your LIS Dream Job
“Career development is a passion of mine.”
Jill Klees
SJSU iSchool Career Counselor
San José, California
Melissa Solis Connects the Dots: Library, Literacy and Community
“Anyone in a library degree program would really benefit from volunteering in an adult literacy program in a local library. Understand the people in your neighborhood, and understand different educational experiences: not everyone gets the same opportunity.”
Melissa Solis
San Diego, California
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation 2016
All San José Libraries Are Mary Nino’s Libraries
“More and more, libraries—public as well as academic—are becoming places of community, places where people gather, where they display what they’ve created, where they work to create and collaborate. It’s really fascinating: it’s really about community.”
Mary Nino
Associate Dean, SJSU King Library
iSchool Alumna and International Advisory Council Member
Librarians Without Borders Takes iSchool Students on a Guatemalan Adventure
“If you’re interested in libraries, or nonprofits, community outreach—this is a great learning experience. What I took away from it is that it’s really important to know the community you’re working with.”
Kerry Purvis
Portland, Maine
iSchool Student, Expected Graduation Spring 2016
California’s State Librarian Gets an iSchool Education
“For me, being able to be in classes with folks who are going to be the next generation of librarians—it’s not just instructive, it makes me feel better about where libraries are going to go. I get jazzed about talking to other students.”
Greg Lucas, California State Librarian
Sacramento, California
iSchool International Advisory Council Member
MLIS Student
Sylvia Aguiñaga Brings Digital Literacy to the Masses
“Our world is increasingly run by software, and we need more diversity in the people who are building it.”
Sylvia Cecilia Aguiñaga
East Hollywood, California
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation May 2016
Intrepid Explorer Pursues Film Preservation
“The librarian degree will help me in my field. The [film preservation] certificate will say that, not only does this woman have the technical ability to handle these films, but she also knows how to catalog, she knows the procedures, has the information science background, knows metadata. The ‘Indiana Jones of Movies’ is what they call me.”
Sarah Smith
Long Beach, California
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation 2016
Future Selznick School of Film Preservation Certificate Student
In Times of Crisis, Student Naomi Fuhrman Deploys with the Standby Task Force
“There’s no better moment to look at all of humanity than a conflict, [which] brings out the best and worst in people. When it comes down to it, the idea that I’d get to work with people doing the best of things was a pretty nice idea.”
Naomi Fuhrman
Marin County, California
MLIS Student, Expected Graduation Winter 2015