Tag Archives: College of Applied Sciences and Arts

Dr. Alice Hines and SWEEP Team Receive Prestigious Awards from the Government of Vietnam

Dr. Alice Hines speaking at the final annual summit in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Dr. Alice Hines speaking at the final annual summit in Hanoi, Vietnam

The Social Work Education Enhancement Project (SWEEP) in Vietnam held its final annual summit of Vietnam Social Work Educators, Ministry representatives, and other stakeholders in Hanoi on September 21-22.

One notable highlight of the Summit was a ceremony on day one to recognize Dr. Alice Hines’ outstanding contributions to social work education in Vietnam. Two awards were presented. Dr. Hines was presented with a prestigious award and medal from the Director of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA) for her outstanding work and for the SWEEP project valued contributions to the cause of MOLISA. Officials at the summit said that Dr. Alice Hines, SWEEP Director, was the first American citizen to be offered this award from MOLISA. Past recipients have included United Nations representatives and Ambassadors to Vietnam.

Dr. Alice Hines receives the MOLISA award from Mr. Doan Mau Diep

Dr. Alice Hines receives the MOLISA award from Mr. Doan Mau Diep

Dr. Alice Hines receiving the MOLISA medal from Mr. Doan Mau Diep

Dr. Alice Hines receiving the MOLISA medal from Mr. Doan Mau Diep

Dr. Hines was also presented with an award from the Vietnam Vocational Training Association (VVTA) for “enhancing the quality of education at the Bachelor of Arts level in social work according to international standards and enhancing the capacity of leaders and faculty in collaboration with the Association in research, competency development, and BASW level training in Vietnam.” SWEEP partner universities and SWEEP team members were moved by the recognition of the project success and echoed appreciation for Dr. Hines leadership.

Mme Nguyen Thi Hang (right) presenting the VVTA award to Dr. Alice Hines (left)

Mme Nguyen Thi Hang (right) presenting the VVTA award to Dr. Alice Hines (left)

In this final summit, Dr. Hines reported SWEEP activities and achievement during the last three years, in terms of leadership development, fellowship development, competency based curriculum development, research, and communication/networking.

Panels of leaders and faculty from eight partner universities provided overviews of collective progress and future plans in key areas including the development of competency based education in social work; leadership development and the use of technology for national collaboration; faculty development; and efforts to extend SWEEP advances in social work education to other non-SWEEP universities. Dr. Nguyen Hai Huu of the School of Social Work Association presented the final draft of the competency standards for social work education in Vietnam, which represented a milestone in progress toward institutionalizing new standards for social work education.

Among VIP guests at the Summit were Mr. Le Nhu Tien, Vice Chairperson of the National Assembly Committee on Culture, Education, and Youth; Mr. Doan Mau Diep, Vice Minister, MOLISA; Mme Nguyen Thi Hang, former MOLISA Minister, Vietnam Vocational Training Association (VVTA) President; and Joakim Parker Mission Director, Vietnam USAID.

SWEEP team members and partner universities

SWEEP team members and partner universities

Mark Your Calendar: Silicon Valley Innovation Challenge

Silicon Valley Innovation Challenge

Silicon Valley Innovation Challenge

The Silicon Valley Innovation Challenge (SVIC) is taking place all-day on Monday, November 16 in the new Student Union Ballroom. We encourage CASA students to enter the competition. It is a great way to showcase the innovations conceived by our creative, talented students and celebrate at this year’s event.

The new “Best Sport-Tech” award, sponsored by University Advancement, will be made available this year in addition to the Best Overall Innovation, Best Elevator Pitch, and Best Social Innovation award categories. Each winner will receive a cash prize.

SVIC is a fantastic networking and career building opportunity for students. Judges include faculty and industry professionals from leading Silicon Valley companies such as Cisco Systems, Applied Materials, AT&T, LinkedIn, Citrix, Ericsson, WMware, NetApp, and more.

Cisco Systems in particular plans to use SVIC as a talent recruitment platform. Eligible students with a GPA of 3.2 or higher should visit the Career Center to improve resume writing and interviewing skills prior to the event.

KEY DATES

  • October 5: Submission opens for students, alumni, faculty, etc.
  • October 26: Submission closes at midnight
  • October 28: Online judging begins
  • November 9: Finalists Notified
  • November 16: SVIC Finalist Showcase, Student Union Ballroom, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Visit SVIC to learn more.

Silicon Valley Innovation Challenge Poster

School of Journalism and Mass Communications Partners with Adobe

True to San José State University’s (SJSU) reputation as the best place in Silicon Valley to learn how to prosper in the 21st century economy, SJSU’s School of Journalism and Mass Communications (JMC) faculty and student staff members from SHiFT Magazine and South Bay Pulse are pushing the limits of digital technology. Like so many successful Silicon Valley start-ups, seed money came from experienced players and visionaries. Early contributors to the magazine program included SJSU’s Lucas College of Business and Hewlett-Packard (HP) Labs in Palo Alto, California.

“HP Labs helped us overcome the cost and distribution challenges,” says SJSU professor Tom Ulrich, magazine sequence advisor and digital publication program manager. “Our beautifully rendered magazines are available to a worldwide audience via HP’s print-on-demand service for about fifteen cents per page.”

Students create new digital magazine "The South Bay Pulse"

Journalism students create new digital magazine “The South Bay Pulse” to cover 25th Annual Cinequest Film Festival (photo: Christina Olivas)

With cost of printing and world-wide distribution in hand, Ulrich and engineers at Adobe Systems agreed to explore the most sophisticated tools for producing groundbreaking print and digital publications.

Last February, the staff produced the red carpet event at Cinequest. Staff members streamed the event live to subscribers across the world with Adobe software and $6,000 worth of off-the-shelf electronic equipment. They replaced the million dollar transmission trucks parked in front of the California Theater with portable electronic gear that every department on campus can afford.

“While still in its infancy,” Ulrich says, “we are convinced that these digital tools allow our students to rewrite the rules of broadcast journalism.”

As part of our ongoing experiment, the journalism program added South Bay Pulse, a digital weekly entertainment guide, to its stable of publications. In the summer of 2015 as part of the Adobe Challenge, staff members tested the December 2015 release of Adobe’s Digital Publishing Suite (DPS) software.

“With SHiFT magazine and South Bay Pulse, we are performing primary research in the undergraduate classroom,” says Ulrich. “In addition to contributing our ideas to Adobe’s next product release, we are the only group on campus to own an Apple developer’s ID.”

Adobe Systems professionals train South Bay Pulse students

Adobe Systems professionals train South Bay Pulse students

While Adobe created DPS in 2010 to clear the path for a prominent magazine publisher to move from print to the digital world, students from JMC are now helping to move the new industry standard forward.

“Staff members were chosen over students from other Bay Area universities to join seasoned programmers at Adobe to help develop the next generation of digital publication software,” Ulrich says. “Our students graduate not just knowing how to use these visionary tools. They are prepared to lead the industry.”

SLA Silicon Valley Hosts Dr. Sandra Hirsh for Inaugural Book Club Meeting

Information Services Today: An Introduction

Information Services Today: An Introduction

The Silicon Valley Chapter of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) hosted its inaugural book club gathering with a very special book and guest: Dr. Sandra Hirsh, professor and director of San José State University’s College of Applied Sciences and Arts School of Information and editor of Information Services Today: An Introduction. SLA is an association of information professionals with chapters in more than 80 countries.

An SLA Silicon Valley chapter member, Hirsh was invited to join the lively discussion of her textbook, which includes the perspectives of many iSchool instructors such as Wayne T. Disher, Dr. Mary Ann Harlan, Dr. Cheryl Stenstrom and Dr. Michael Stephens. Since its release in March 2015, the book has been adopted by a number of library and information science instructors around the country.

“It was really an honor to speak about my new book with the Silicon Valley SLA Chapter,” Hirsh says, describing the text as “a valuable foundational textbook for Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) students as well as current information professionals who want to learn new areas, brush up on topics which have evolved since they were in school, and learn from the leading thought leaders (both from academia and practice) in the field.”

Over dinner at Billy Burke’s in San José, Hirsh shared the goals and key themes of the book, special features like webcasts, discussion questions, and an online supplement. The group discussed everything from reference services to managing technology and demonstrating value through assessment, to issues like open access and information licensing.

Chrystelle Browman, SLA director-at-large and programs chair, notes that one topic of particular interest to the group fostered a discussion on “leadership vs. management, and the limitations on the words ‘library’ and ‘librarian’.” In response, Hirsh shared her own background in the LIS field, and the role that played in the perspectives represented in the textbook, such as the use of the terms “information professionals” and “information organizations.” “We also talked about the importance of continuing to learn—even after getting the master’s degree,” Hirsh adds.

As chapter president Cory Laurence explained in her invitation to join the book club, “there’s a lot of reading to be done as a librarian, and it’s the kind of reading that is really enhanced with discussion.” Information Services Today highlights current issues and trends, and provides expert insight into the emerging challenges and opportunities of the future, identifying career management strategies and leadership opportunities in the information profession. Hirsh was inspired to create this new textbook because “the underlying principles of our field are valuable, no matter what.”

With Hirsh and Information Services Today, the book club event was a bona fide success!

SLA Silicon Valley members take a photo during the Inaugural Book Club Meeting at Billy Burke's in San José, CA.

SLA Silicon Valley members take a photo during the Inaugural Book Club Meeting at Billy Burke’s in San José, CA.

New Vietnamese Fellows Complete 3-Week Social Work Academy

The Social Work Education Enhancement Project (SWEEP) completed its third Fellows Academy on July 11, with eight Vietnamese faculty members participating in a three-week training session at San José State University (SJSU).

The members of the SJSU SWEEP Fellows Academy III gather for a group photo with College of Applied Sciences and Arts staff and faculty.

The members of the SJSU SWEEP Fellows Academy III gather for a group photo with College of Applied Sciences and Arts staff and faculty.

The eight Fellows were:

Tung Nguyen, of Vietnam National University/HCM, University of Social Sciences and Humanities

Thao Do, of Dong Thap University

Sy Pham, of Hue University, College of Sciences

Cam Ly Vo, of Vinh University

Minh Bui, of Vietnam Natioinal University/Hanoi, University of Social Sciences and Humanities

Bich Do, of University of Labor and Social Affairs

Hien Nguyen, of DaLat University

Trang Nguyen, of Hanoi University of Education

SWEEP is an international consortium which includes the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), SJSU, eight universities in Vietnam, Vietnamese government Ministries, Cisco Systems, Inc., and community agencies and stakeholders. The purpose of SWEEP is to assist eight universities in Vietnam with improving their undergraduate social work educational programs. The project, which is funded with a grant from USAID and support from CISCO through September, 2015, aims to improve:

  • The administration of social work programs
  • Faculty capabilities in teaching and research
  • Social work curriculum, and
  • Network communication among the universities through the use of improved technology

Fast-emerging social problems in Vietnam are creating a high demand for professionally-trained social workers. Bich Do emphasized how important it is for young faculty members to gain knowledge in order to effectively improve social work in Vietnamese higher education. She was appointed by the SWEEP coordinator from her university.

Social Work Education Enhancement Program, eight Vietnamese faculty members were presented with certificates on the last day of the Fellows Academy.

Social Work Education Enhancement Program, eight Vietnamese faculty members were presented with certificates on the last day of the Fellows Academy.

“I learned how to design a syllabus for assignments and assessments through the competency-based curriculum training,” Do said during a short break from a workshop. She explained the importance of building a foundation to teach social work. “I will apply the training and use of technology I learned here to the way I teach.”

Throughout the three weeks, the Fellows were able to use Cisco telepresence equipment for workshops and meetings. The use of improved technology promotes easier access of communication among the universities.

Hien Nguyen expressed how this technology could be used to keep a connection with SJSU and for her own teaching approach. “I will look for ways to include technology to my teaching methods and network with colleagues and social services in Vietnam.”

In addition to workshops on campus, the Fellows were able to visit various social service agencies in the Bay Area, including the Santa Clara County Child Protective Services, Mekong Community Center, Gardner Family Care Mental Health Services and the California Social Work Education Center in Berkeley.

Sy Pham said he likes to learn new things and the site visits gave him an opportunity to study how these social services operate. “The field of social work is new and limited in Vietnam, so I will share the practices of social work we observed here which is very useful to help create a foundation” said Pham.

The Fellows gained much knowledge from the program and were pleased with how hospitable SJSU faculty and staff were. Do said she enjoyed the “spirit of collaboration and openness.”

Hien Nguyen said she would like to “continue the connection with SJSU faculty for support and hopefully bring Vietnamese social workers from the U.S. to Vietnam to share knowledge.”

“The faculty and staff were very informative and showed me an integrated way to apply the competency-based training where I will provide a seminar on it back home,” said Pham.

The Fellows were the third and final group to participate in SWEEP.

SJSU SWEEP Fellows Academy III gather for a group photo on the last day of the program

SJSU SWEEP Fellows Academy III gather for a group photo on the last day of the program