Professor and Director, School of Information
Sandra Hirsh, PhD, is professor and director of the School of Information at San José State University. Prior to joining the school as director, she worked in the Silicon Valley for more than a decade at major technology companies: Hewlett Packard, Microsoft, and LinkedIn. As an industry user experience researcher, leader, and manager, she contributed to R&D research projects and influenced the user experience of web, mobile, and TV consumer products resulting in two U.S. patents. She was previously an assistant professor at the University of Arizona, and has taught courses for San José State University and the University of Washington.
Hirsh's research and scholarship fall into three main areas: user/information-seeking behavior, especially in relation to technology use; global learning; and, online experiences and communities. This work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and has appeared in international conference proceedings. She also has edited a foundational library and information science textbook, Information Services Today: An Introduction. She has served in numerous leadership roles including as President of the Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T), as committee chair and member in ALA, IFLA, ASIS&T, and SLA, and as advisory board and editorial board member for several organizations. She also has actively participated in her local community, serving for many years on the Palo Alto Library Advisory Commission and Library Bond Oversight Committee. She is the co-founder and has served as co-chair of the global virtual Library 2.0 conference series since 2011. She is currently working on an IMLS grant with Dr. Sue Alman to explore possible applications of blockchain technology in libraries; this work will be published in a book in 2019.
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About Sandra Hirsh
Sandra Hirsh, PhD, is professor and director of the School of Information at San José State University. Prior to joining the school as director, she worked in the Silicon Valley for more than a decade at major technology companies: Hewlett Packard, Microsoft, and LinkedIn. As an industry user experience researcher, leader, and manager, she contributed to R&D research projects and influenced the user experience of web, mobile, and TV consumer products resulting in two U.S. patents. She was previously an assistant professor at the University of Arizona, and has taught courses for San José State University and the University of Washington.
Hirsh's research and scholarship fall into three main areas: user/information-seeking behavior, especially in relation to technology use; global learning; and, online experiences and communities. This work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and has appeared in international conference proceedings. She also has edited a foundational library and information science textbook, Information Services Today: An Introduction. She has served in numerous leadership roles including as President of the Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T), as committee chair and member in ALA, IFLA, ASIS&T, and SLA, and as advisory board and editorial board member for several organizations. She also has actively participated in her local community, serving for many years on the Palo Alto Library Advisory Commission and Library Bond Oversight Committee. She is the co-founder and has served as co-chair of the global virtual Library 2.0 conference series since 2011. She is currently working on an IMLS grant with Dr. Sue Alman to explore possible applications of blockchain technology in libraries; this work will be published in a book in 2019.
| 2010 - Present | Professor and Director, San Jose State University ‐ School of Information | |
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| 2002 | Adjunct Professor, University of Washington ‐ Information School | |
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| 1995 - 1998 | Assistant Professor, University of Arizona ‐ School of Information Resources and Library Science | |
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| 1992 - 1993 | Teaching Associate, University of California, Los Angeles ‐ Graduate School of Education & Information Studies | |
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| 1991 - 1993 | Adjunct Assistant Professor, California State University, Fullerton ‐ Library Science Program | |
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Disciplines
Research Interests
Grants
| 2011 - 2012 | Research Incentive Grant Proposal |
| CASA | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| 1999 - 2000 | Internal Grant |
| HP Labs | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| Colleague(s): Catherine Slater, Steve Joiner, SY Wang | |
| 1997 - 1998 | Small Grant Program |
| Office of the Vice President for Research, University of Arizona - 425756 | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| 1993 - 1994 | Travel grant |
| National Science Foundation and Department of Industry, Technology, and Commerce, Australia | |
| Role: Coinvestigator | |
| Colleague(s): John Hiller, Christine Borgman |
Professional Service and Affiliations
| 2019 - Present | President-Elect, Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) | 2018 - Present | Board Member, Congregation Beth Am Women | 2017 - Present | Committee Member, California Library Association (CLA) | 2016 - Present | Editorial Board Member, Information Processing & Management | 2015 - Present | Executive Board Member, IRRT, American Library Association | 2011 - Present | Co-Chair and Co-Founder, Library 2.0 Virtual Global Conference Series | 2010 - Present | Member, American Library Association (ALA) | 2010 - Present | Member, Special Libraries Association (SLA) | 2007 - Present | Member, Association for Computing Machinery, Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction (SIGCHI) | 2005 - Present | Member, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the ACM SIGCHI (BayCHI) | 1994 - Present | Member, Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T) | 2017 - 2021 | Member, University Strategic Planning Committee, a Special Agency of the Senate | 2016 - 2021 | Member, University Budget Advisory Committee, a Special Agency of the Senate | 2015 - 2021 | Councilor, IRRT, American Library Association | 2017 - 2019 | Co-Chair, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) | 2015 - 2019 | Chair, ALA Publishing Committee | 2015 | President, Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T) | 2014 - 2015 | Program Committee Member, Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (EBLIP) | 2009 - 2015 | Advisory Board Member, Library Bond Measure Oversight Advisory Board | 2011 - 2012 | Committee Member, Association for Information Science & Technology – Los Angeles Chapter (LACASIS&T) |
Honors and Awards
- 2017-2019 National Leadership Grants for Libraries, Institute of Museum and Library Services
- 2017-2020 Rikkyo University Special Fund for Research (Rikkyo SFR): For Research Collaborative Projects
- 2017-2020 Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program, Institute of Museum and Library Services
- 1997 Arizona Department of Library, Archives and Public Records. Award 431920
Courses
- INFO 298 – Special Studies
| 1996 | Ph.D., Library and Information Science, University of Los Angeles ‐ Department of Information Studies | |
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| 1990 | MLIS, Information and Library Science, University of Michigan ‐ School of Information | |
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| 1988 | BA, Political Science/International Relations (magna cum laude), University of California, Los Angeles ‐ Department of Information Studies | |
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Contact Information
Email: sandy.hirsh@sjsu.edu