Robert Dawson photographing the Main Library, Detroit, Mich. (courtesy of Dawson)
Photographer Robert Dawson, a lecturer in the Department of Art and Art History, published The Public Library – A Photographic Essay (Princeton Architectural Press). Over the past 18 years, he has traveled the country, photographing libraries large (the New York Public Library) and small (Tulare County’s one-room library, built by former slaves) to compile the most comprehensive visual survey of American libraries ever published. Accompanying Dawson’s photographs are essays, letters and poetry extolling libraries by Amy Tan, Bill Moyers, Barbara Kingsolver and others.
San Jose State Precision Flight Team (courtesy of the team)
Department of English Lecturer Kelly Harrison, who also serves as coach and faculty advisor of the San Jose State Precision Flight Team, celebrated her flight team’s second-place finish in the National Intercollegiate Flight Association Regionals, held in Arizona in February. Teams compete in ground and flying events that range from computer accuracy to short field approach and landing. SJSU’s team is now eligible to compete in the NIFA Nationals Tournament to be held at Ohio State University in May.
School of Library and Information Science Lecturer Michelle Holschuh Simmons, Assistant Professor Michael T. Stephens and Lecturer Melba Tomeo received Excellence in Online Teaching awards from the Web-based Information Science Education (WISE) consortium. All three teach in the Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) program, which is delivered exclusively online. This is the fourth win for Simmons, who teaches courses in information literacy and information resources.
Claire Komives (Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering photo)
Professor of Chemical Engineering Claire Komives received a 2015 Fulbright Scholar research grant. She will spend the academic year working at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. Dr. Komives’ research will focus on developing a low-cost antidote for snake envenomation. The highly competitive Fulbright grants, one of the most prestigious awards programs worldwide, provide international educational opportunities for a select group of students, scholars, teachers, professionals, scientists and artists.
CommUniverCity San Jose, led by Executive Director and Department of Urban and Regional Planning Department Professor Dayana Salazar, received the Bold Steps for Children Award at the 2014 Santa Clara County Children’s Summit. The Children’s Summit is sponsored by Kids in Common, Santa Clara County’s child advocacy organization. Started in 2005, CommUniverCity engages SJSU students in local, service-learning initiatives that help to build community and solve neighborhood issues.
Susan Shillinglaw (Peter Caravalho photo)
Susan Shillinglaw and Assistant Professor Nicholas Taylor, Department of English, read and signed their latest books at Barnes and Noble in San Jose on March 19. Steinbeck scholar Shillinglaw’s On Reading The Grapes of Wrath (Penguin Books) is described by Bookpage as a “concise, penetrating study.” Kirkus Reviews calls Taylor’s The Setup Man, written under the pseudonym T.T. Monday, “a treat for readers of mystery or baseball novels.” Both authors also published books in 2013. Shillinglaw contributed the dual biography Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage (University of Nevada Press), and Taylor, under his own name, published a historical novel, Father Junipero’s Confessor (Heydey).
Assistant Professor Elizabeth (Elly) Walsh, Department of Meteorology and Science Education, published a peer-reviewed article in the April issue of Nature Climate Change, an interdisciplinary journal devoted to climate change and its impacts. In “Social Controversy Belongs in the Climate Science Classroom,” Walsh argues the importance of including social context and cultural values when teaching climate change in K-12 and college classrooms.