Category Archives: Faculty Notes

Faculty Notes for January 2019: Publications, Quotes and more

African American Studies Chair Theodorea Regina Berry took part in a panel discussion on “Family Roots and Personal Identity” at the Los Altos History Museum in November. Her most recent book, States of Grace: Counterstories of a Black Woman in the Academy, was published by Peter Lang Publishing in 2018.

Emeritus Professor of Sociology Robert Gliner’s documentary on climate change, One Carbon Footprint at a Time, aired January 2 and January 3 on PBS station KQED. The documentary features students from SJSU’s Global Climate Change class, SJSU alumni and faculty, and students from two San Jose middle schools.

BioSpace.com interviewed College of Science Program Director Tonja Green about her role as an “influencer” in the biopharma industry and about the university’s Medical Product Development Management program. An SJSU alumna, Green was a research assistant at Stanford University School of Medicine before entering the field of biopharma. Prior to returning to her alma mater, she worked at Syntex, Abbott Diabetes Care, and Arete Therapeutics, among other companies. Read more at: https://www.biospace.com/article/biopharma-industry-influencer-san-jose-state-university-s-tonja-green/

The Mercury News interviewed Department of Political Science Associate Professor Garrick Percival on several Bay Area cities’ shift to district elections and the “quiet revolution” underway to provide minorities a larger voice in local government. Read more at: https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/11/09/where-power-is-shifting-as-cities-move-to-district-elections/

KTVU Fox News interviewed Management Professor and Lucas College of Business Interim Associate Dean Meg Virick about the gender pay gap in Santa Clara County. According to recent U.S. Census Bureau figures, women in Santa Clara County earn 62 cents for every dollar earned by a man, a decline of five cents since 2015. Read more at: http://www.ktvu.com/news/santa-clara-co-has-widest-gender-pay-gap-in-bay-area

The Mercury News interviewed Department of Justice Studies Lecturer Greg Woods about the rise in violent crime in San Jose in 2018 and about whether increasing the number of police officers in the SJPD will effectively combat that trend. Read more at: https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/01/02/san-jose-violent-crime-continues-rise-as-chief-calls-for-reinforcements

Faculty Notes November 2018: Publications, Quotes and More

Professor Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, was guest speaker at the Leonard Transportation Center’s November Dialogue Series in San Bernardino. Along with other panelists, she discussed the future of transportation funding in the state of California. Agrawal also directs Mineta Transportation Institute’s National Transportation Finance Center.

Professor Anuradha Basu, Department of Global Innovation and Leadership, took part in an October symposium, “Social Networks in a Transnational World: Chinese and Indian Entrepreneurs in the United States,” held at UCLA’s Asia Pacific Center.

Former SJSU Associate Professor Natalie Batalha, Department of Physics and Astronomy, joined UCSC’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics this fall. Named one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” in 2017 for her work at NASA on the Kepler Mission, Batalha received her doctorate in astrophysics from UCSC and received that university’s Alumni Achievement Award in October.

Former SJSU Department of Educational Leadership Lecturer Kristyn Klei Borrero published Every Student, Every Day: A No-Nonsense Nurturer Approach to Reaching All Learners (Solution Tree Press) last month. Superintendent of Jackson (Miss.) Schools Errick L. Greene described the book as “a powerful road map for educators to build strong, productive relationships with students and their families.” Borrero currently serves as CEO of San Francisco-based CT3, a teacher training organization.

NBCBayArea.com interviewed Associate Professor Craig Clements, Department of Meteorology and Climate Science, about PG&E’s decision to shut off electricity to reduce life and property loss when weather conditions create severe fire hazards. Read more at: https://www.nbcbayarea.com/multimedia/Cutting-Power-Before-Wildfires-Can-Save-Lives-But-PGE-Says-Its-Complicated-495999451.html

Rewirenews.com interviewed Associate Professor Rachel French, Department of Biological Sciences, about President Donald Trump’s memo erasing legal protections for the transgender population. French was one of more than 1,600 scientists who signed an open letter of protest, stating that Trump’s claims were not “grounded in science.” Read more at: https://rewire.news/article/2018/11/02/scientists-blast-trumps-absurd-anti-trans-memo/

Associate Professor Nidhi Mahendra, Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, was one of five palliative care researchers who received funding from the Gary and Mary West Foundation last month. Mahendra’s project, “Investigating Communicative Access in Advance Directive Planning for Persons with Aphasia,” received a $10,000 grant.

ABC7news.com interviewed Professor Scott Myers-Lipton, Department of Sociology, about the city of San Jose’s new pilot program to employ the homeless. “We need these types of programs,” Myers-Lipton said. “Public work for people who don’t have jobs that pay a living wage.” The program will start by employing 25 participants at $15 per hour to clean trash off the streets. Read more at: https://abc7news.com/society/sj-launches-pilot-program-to-employ-the-homeless-/4556787/

TBW Books published former SJSU Department of Art and Art History Lecturer Mimi Plumb’s collection of photographs, Landfall, this month. Plumb signed copies of the volume, featuring images of California in the 1980s, at Paris Photo, the world’s largest international photography art fair, held at the Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées each November.

Wellandgood.com interviewed Lecturer Mary Poffenroth, Department of Biological Sciences, regarding the mental health advantages of watching “spooky” movies. “The horror genre gives us a safe space to express our fears, to talk about our fears, to say ‘I was scared!’ without having…to say you are a fearful person,” Poffenroth explained. Read more at: https://www.wellandgood.com/good-advice/why-do-people-like-horror-movies-mental-health/

The San Jose Mercury News interviewed Interim Associate Dean Meghna Virick, College of Business, about the walkout of thousands of Google employees over the company’s handling of sexual misconduct in the workplace. “The landscape has changed,” Virick said. “Companies have to come to the realization that you can no longer assume that you can keep things under wraps.” The protests followed revelations of a $90-million golden parachute payout to Andy Rubin, who resigned because of sexual misconduct allegations. Read more at: https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/11/01/google-employees-walk-out-over-handling-of-sexual-harassment/

Faculty Notes October 2018: Publications, Quotes and More

In its review of Native Gardens, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s production of Karen Zacarías’s play, the Mercury News singled out for praise Department of Film and Theatre Assistant Professor Andrea Bechert’s set design. Bechert’s “stunning” set “makes a big impression when you enter Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts,” noted the reviewer. The play, which explores racism and cultural privilege among four neighbors, finished its run at Mountain View Center on September 16. Bechert was also profiled by the newspaper earlier this month about her work on the currently running Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, also at Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. “With a tough coming-out story of her own…Andrea Bechert found more than just work as she designed the sets for Fun Home.” Read more at: https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/10/04/fun-home-set-designer-brings-her-own-memories-to-memory-play/

KTVU interviewed Department of Economics Lecturer Fred Foldvary about recent seller-to-buyer real estate markets shifts in the Bay Area. “Real estate has been in an 18-year cycle for 200 years,” Foldvary said. Read more at: http://www.ktvu.com/news/real-estate-sellers-market-shifts-to-buyers-in-south-bay

iSchool Professor Patricia Franks published a second, expanded edition of her bestselling Records and Information Management (Facet, 2018). The new edition, which examines emerging technologies, such as the Internet of Things platform and blockchain technologies, includes chapters contributed by iSchool Lecturers Lisa Daulby and Lori Lindberg.

Department of Political Science Lecturer Robert Ovetz, a resident of Lagunitas, is one of six candidates running for three seats on the College of Marin Board of Trustees in the November 6 election. Ovetz, who has also taught at the College of Marin, told the press the board “needs the perspective of a recent faculty member” and proposes “to make College of Marin the first tuition-free community college in California.”

Booklist awarded a starred review to iSchool Assistant Professor Virginia Tucker’s updated Finding the Answers to Legal Questions (ALA Neal-Schuman, 2018), co-authored with Marc Lampson. A comprehensive guide to the U.S. legal system and resources, the text is recommended to librarians, paralegals and students preparing for library careers. The second edition also has a companion website: www.getlaw.net.

Faculty News and Notes for September 2018: Publications, Quotes and More

Department of Film and Theatre Lecturer Kirsten Brandt directed the African-American Shakespeare Company’s production of Richard III in July at the Taube Atrium Theatre in San Francisco. Before becoming a freelance director, she served as artistic director of San Diego’s Sledgehammer Theatre for seven years.

School of Management Associate Professor Gretchen Vogelgesang Lester published “Autocratic Leaders and Authoritarian Followers Revisited: a Review and Agenda for the Future” in The Leadership Quarterly, an article that discusses why people elect leaders who restrict freedom.

An August article in The Guardian about “skim reading” in the digital age and the profound societal effects of that trend referenced the research of iSchool Professor Ziming Liu.

Department of Physics and Astronomy Assistant Professor Thomas Madura spearheaded a STEM camp in Kalamazoo, Mich., for blind and visually impaired students from around the state. The camp was sponsored by the Bureau of Services for Blind Persons (BSBP), a program that helps students transition from high school to postsecondary education or employment.

Department of Economics Assistant Professor Raymond March posted an article on The Independent Institute’s blog titled “If Telemedicine Is Underachieving, Government Is to Blame.” “An unfortunate consequence of any regulation is that it restricts the number of alternative products and services available to consumers,” March wrote.

Communications Studies Professor Matthew Spangler was interviewed about SJSU’s Communications Studies program by MastersinCommunications.com in August. The site’s mission is to help students make informed decisions when planning their academic and professional goals.

The Atlantic Monthly interviewed Department of Sociology Assistant Professor Elizabeth Sweet on the culture of “stifling” masculinity. Sweet, who studies gender in 20th-century children’s toys, reported that American gender categories “are more rigid now than at any time in history.”

Department of Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging Chair Ashwini Wagle gave the keynote address at Silicon Valley’s Rise Against Hunger event in July. An international hunger relief organization, Rise Against Hunger aims to end hunger by 2030 and operates meal packaging locations in 25 cities throughout the U.S. and at five international locations. “When you package a meal with Rise Against Hunger, you are simultaneously empowering people to become nourished and live a healthy life,” Wagle said.

KTVU interviewed School of Management Professor Robert Chapman Wood about the announced closing of all Orchard Supply Hardware stores. “Somebody decided that OSH was a small problem in a company with really big problems. And so they gotta close it,” Wood said.

Faculty News and Notes for March 2018: Publications, Quotes and More

The Mercury News interviewed Department of Journalism and Mass Communications Associate Professor Richard Craig and Department of Engineering Lecturer Ahmed Banafa about how “internet giants” are “scrambling to contain” the “misinformation and abuse” appearing on their platforms in the wake of the Florida school shooting. Tech companies are increasingly “having to make editorial judgments, although they prefer to stay out of it,” said Craig. Read more.

Led by Associate Professor Duane Michael Cheers, Department of Journalism and Mass Communications, 45 students, educators and activists spent four days in New York’s Harlem neighborhood, photographing the changes being brought about by gentrification. The result, a 100-image exhibit titled “Harlem Reimagined,” is on display at the King Library until March 31, when it will move to NYC.

Grammy-winning saxophonist and Department of Music and Dance Professor Aaron Lington performed with the Southern Utah University Jazz Ensemble on February 17 at the Heritage Center Theatre in Cedar City, Utah. Lington also taught a jazz improvisation session following the afternoon concert.

Department of Economics Professor Lydia Ortega, a Republican, announced her candidacy for lieutenant governor of California last month, pledging to make college affordable and to “restore dignity to the halls of our state Capitol.” The announcement was covered by multiple news outlets, including the San Francisco Chronicle and the Mercury News. “It’s time for an academic, an economist, to be in the state government,” Ortega said. A member of SJSU’s faculty for 29 years, Ortega chaired the Department of Economics for 15 years.

Professor Matthew Spangler, Department of Communication Studies, delivered the inaugural Mary Power Lecture in Irish Studies at the University of New Mexico on February 22. An acclaimed playwright and director, Spangler has published extensively on Irish and intercultural theatre. His lecture, “Between the Idealized and the Undeserving: Representing Refugees in Irish and American Theatre,” focused on recent initiatives in the performing arts that represent refugee and asylum seeker experiences in Ireland and the United States.

Department of Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging Chair Ashwini Wagle was interviewed by the Mercury News about the recent Stanford study that compared low-carbohydrate and low-fat diets. The findings—each of the two groups lost roughly the same amount of weight—came as a surprise to many. But people who practice “mindful eating and eat more healthfully” often lose more weight than those who merely “follow a trend,” Wagle said. The study, which focused on encouraging healthier food choices, received $8 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health along with other health- and wellness-focused organizations.