A Message from President Mary Papazian
On October 18, President Papazian welcomed alumni and friends to the Inspiration to Innovation gala, SJSU’s signature annual event that celebrates the paths of those who shape our communities. Proceeds from this year’s event benefited the SJSU Student Hunger Fund. (Photo by Jim Gensheimer)
It has been 200 years since Mary Shelley published her novel Frankenstein, and her literary masterpiece is still relevant today—particularly in Silicon Valley.
This fall, I had the opportunity to participate in a panel discussion that kicked off a series of Frankenstein Bicentennial events. San Jose State, in partnership with Santa Clara University and University of San Francisco, leveraged the bicentennial to explore the limits of science, and the ethics of technological advancement and human innovation.
You, too, can join that exploration in this issue of Washington Square, and you don’t need to be a scholar of literature to enjoy the story of Victor Frankenstein’s experiments. SJSU’s Lucas College and Graduate School of Business is helping students from across the university experiment with their ideas, instilling an entrepreneurial mindset that prepares them for work and life.
Learn about the teamwork and collaboration underlying the winning spirit of this year’s SJSU Sports Hall of Fame inductees. Three other alumni are using storytelling in unique ways to shed new light on Silicon Valley culture, the relevance of Japanese-American history, and the pathway to careers in the region and beyond.
We are witnessing the continued transformation of both San Jose State and the city of San Jose, and the growing and reciprocal relationship between the two. As a uniquely positioned urban campus that offers extraordinary value to this region, San Jose State proudly embraces its role as the anchor institution that brings vibrancy, diversity and energy to our downtown community.
We look forward to being engaged in every meaningful conversation that takes place in this region. And we encourage our many alumni in the community to remind others that we are a resource, a pipeline for talent, a reservoir of creativity, a diverse community of innovators and game-changers, and a driver of the region’s culture of change. Spartans are this city’s biggest asset, perhaps Silicon Valley’s biggest asset. Are you with us?
Sincerely,
Mary A. Papazian, Ph.D.
I look forward to hearing from you. Please share your thoughts by emailing sjsupres@sjsu.edu or on Twitter at @PrezPapazian. You may also subscribe to my blog.
