News: Faculty
iSchool Announces New Coordinator for CA Teacher Librarian Services Credential Program
Starting in the fall 2023 semester, the San José State University School of Information will have a new coordinator at the helm of its California Teacher Librarian Services Credential program. Jonathan Hunt has accepted the position most recently held by Dr. Mary Ann Harlan.
iSchool Director and Two Alumni on Ballot for CLA Board of Directors
The California Library Association has announced the roster of candidates for the Board of Directors. Continuing a strong representation of leaders from the San José State University School of Information, the 2022 CLA ballot includes the iSchool’s director and two alumni.
Pushing Forward with Native American Literacy and Libraries
IMLS Awards $1.2 Million Grant to iSchool and Reading Nation Waterfall
Dr. Anthony Chow, director of the
San José State University School of Information, and Reading
Nation Waterfall have received a $1.2 million grant from the
Institute of Museum and Library Services to foster Native
American literacy, as well as a $150,000 grant entitled “Seeking
Immortality” alongside the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana to
preserve the Northern Cheyenne language and culture through
virtual reality.
Longtime iSchool Faculty Member Promoted to Full Professor
Congratulations to Professor Michael Stephens
Eleven years after his hiring, Dr.
Michael Stephens has been promoted to full professor at San José
State University. Stephens joined the SJSU School of Information
in 2011 as an assistant professor. He teaches courses in the
iSchool’s fully online Master of Library and
Information Science degree program.
Five New Tenure-track Faculty Members to Join the SJSU School of Information in Fall 2022
New faces will be on the San José State University School of Information’s full-time faculty roster in fall 2022 with the hiring of five assistant professors. Dr. José Aguiñaga, Dr. Jessica Bushey, Dr. Ulia Gosart, Dr. James Hodges and Dr. Norman Mooradian have all demonstrated “evidence of a commitment to equity and inclusion through their research, teaching, and/or service,” a requirement listed in the job posting. Their official start date is July 20.
Publication on Dementia Services Propels iSchool Instructor to Award Winner
Dr. Timothy Dickey Receives 2022 RUSA Award
Dr. Timothy Dickey was awarded the 2022 RUSA Margaret E. Monroe Award for Library Adult Services. On winning the award, Dickey stated, “I am deeply humbled and tremendously honored by the award, which recognizes so many aspects of my professional life as a librarian, a faculty member, an author, and as someone dedicated to professional service.”
Dr. Anthony Chow Appointed to the Little Free Library National Board
Dr. Anthony Chow has been elected to serve on the national board of the Little Free Library. His appointment began February 2, 2022.
Chow, who is the director of the San José State University School of Information, has helped the LFL in securing a 1.4 million dollar grant that he hopes will “address barriers to literacy and libraries for Native American children and families in five tribal communities nationally.”
YALSA Appoints Associate Professor Joni Bodart as Chair of the Margaret A. Edwards Award Committee
Dr. Bodart’s Experience in Young Adult Literature Made Her a Top Choice
Dr. Joni Bodart, associate professor at the San José State University School of Information, has been selected to serve as virtual chair of the Margaret A. Edwards 2023 Award Committee. The appointment is set to last one year, starting on February 1, 2022, and ending January 31, 2023.
iSchool Assistant Professor Michele Villagran Honored with REFORMA Award
One of two recipients of the 2021 Dr. Arnulfo D. Trejo Librarian of the Year Award, bestowed annually by REFORMA, is Dr. Michele Villagran, an assistant professor at the San José State University School of Information.
“The iSchool is so proud of and impressed with Dr. Villigran’s REFORMA’s Librarian of the Year Award,” commented iSchool Director Anthony Chow. “She is a true asset to the field and the iSchool, and we are so delighted that she continues to lead and flourish.”
iSchool Director Anthony Chow Elected to CLA Board of Directors
California Library Association
members elected Dr.
Anthony Chow, director of the School of Information at San
José State University, to the CLA Board of Directors on November
10, 2021.
Chow, who will serve a three-year term as a member-at-large, was first proposed for the position in September as part of the CLA nominating committee’s slate of candidates. Seven candidates vied for the three open member-at-large positions.
Two iSchool Instructors Promoted to Full-time Faculty Positions
The San José State University School of Information has promoted two of its knowledgeable instructors to full-time, non-tenure track status. The iSchool welcomed Dr. Renée Jefferson to the full-time faculty in January of 2021, while Dr. Lei Zhang began her new role in August of 2021.
Two Faculty Members Receive Full Tenure and Promotions
Two faculty members at the San José State University School of Information, Dr. Virginia Tucker and Dr. Mary Ann Harlan, will start the fall 2021 semester with full tenure and new titles of associate professor. Tucker has been teaching at the iSchool for more than 15 years, while Harlan joined the faculty in 2010.
New Director Appointed for SJSU School of Information
Dr. Anthony Chow to Lead the iSchool
With deep roots in the Bay Area, Dr. Anthony Chow is eager to bring his leadership, academic, professional, and personal experience and background to the San José State University School of Information as its new director. Chow makes his way to the #1 Most Transformative University from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he was an associate professor in the Department of Library and Information Science. His appointment as the iSchool’s director officially begins July 20, 2021, filling the open position previously held by Dr.
‘Transformational Learning Space’ Project Wins Grant Funding
New Digital Humanities Center in King Library Set to Open in 2026
Two alumnae of the School of Information at San José State University, who are also current faculty members, helped win the university a major grant to fund a Digital Humanities Center at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library. Ann Agee, interim dean for the King Library, and Christina Mune, associate dean of innovation and resource management for the King Library, are co-directors of the project with Shannon Miller, dean of the College of Humanities.
iSchool Faculty Members Win Three ALISE Awards
The Association for Library and Information Science Education honored two San José State University School of Information faculty members with three of the organization’s 2021 slate of awards.
2021 iSchool Staff and Faculty Awards Highlight Outstanding Contributions
The San José State University School of Information conferred its 2021 slate of awards recognizing faculty and staff members for outstanding contributions on March 16 of this year. Candidates were nominated by fellow iSchool staff and faculty members and by self-nomination and selected by Interim Director Linda Main.
Retiring Faculty Reflect on iSchool’s Embrace of New Technologies
Dr. Patricia Franks and Debbie Faires, both longtime faculty members of the School of Information at San José State University, will retire at the end of the spring 2021 semester. The two have spent a combined three and a half decades of their professional lives at SJSU, making significant contributions to the iSchool’s transition to 100% online learning.
iSchool Faculty Members Debbie Faires and Dr. Patricia Franks Will Deliver Dual Convocation Addresses This May
The School of Information at San José State University will celebrate graduates of its fully online programs in a virtual convocation May 20, at 5 p.m. PDT. Debbie Faires and Dr. Patricia Franks, two pillars of the iSchool faculty, both of whom are retiring at the end of the spring semester, will deliver convocation addresses. Attendees can expect rich reflections on the iSchool’s past and inspiration for graduates entering the field.
Discussion Assignments Become Case Studies in iSchool Instructor’s New Book
Textbook Explores Contemporary Library Management Issues
Textbook and scholarly publisher Rowman and Littlefield will release Wayne Disher’s new book, Library Management Problems Today: Case Studies in March, 2021. Disher, an instructor at the San José State University School of Information, has edited a library management textbook that is unique in using fictionalized versions of real scenarios that have taken place at the library, in order to explore contemporary library management issues.
iSchool Instructor Nancy Friedland Lauded for Theatre Arts Librarianship
The Theatre Library Association
honored Nancy Friedland, an instructor at the San José State
University School of Information, with the Louis
Rachow Distinguished Service Award for her outstanding
commitment to performing arts librarianship. Friedland’s
achievement was celebrated on December 17, 2020, at the TLA’s
virtual membership meeting and awards event.