Leadership
Dean's Office
Inaugural Dean
College of Information, Data and Society
A passionate advocate for the transformative power of education, Dr. Mehrdad Aliasgari’s
life is a testament to the social mobility that accessible, quality learning can provide.
As a first-generation college graduate raised by a single mother in a low-income family,
he is dedicated to creating educational opportunities that change lives.
This commitment drives his work as the inaugural Dean of the College of Information,
Data and Society at San José State University (SJSU). Previously, at California State
University, Long Beach (CSULB), he served as Chair of the Department of Computer Engineering
and Computer Science. His leadership has been recognized through his selection as
a CSULB President and Provost Leadership Fellow, a senator to the Academic Senate
of the California State University, and a member of the prestigious 2023 cohort of
the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) at the American Association of State Colleges and
Universities (AASCU).
Dr. Aliasgari holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University
of Notre Dame. His expertise in cybersecurity and machine learning has led to 34 peer-reviewed
publications and over $1.1 million in external funding. A significant portion of this
research has been dedicated to broadening participation in computing for marginalized
and historically underserved communities, reflecting his lifelong mission to build
a more inclusive future.
Associate Dean, Academics
College of Information, Data and Society
Dr. Sandra Hirsh is Associate Dean for Academics in the College of Information, Data
and Society at San José State University (SJSU). In this role, she engages in strategic
planning and implements programs aligned with the mission and vision of the college
and university, collaborating with department chairs and directors to promote faculty
and student success and academic excellence. Dr. Hirsh holds a Ph.D. and a bachelor's
degree from UCLA and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University
of Michigan.
Dr. Hirsh has a diverse professional background, having served as Professor and Director
of the School of Information (iSchool) at SJSU for ten years. Before her tenure at
SJSU, she worked in Silicon Valley for over a decade in R&D and consumer product development
at Hewlett Packard Labs, Microsoft and LinkedIn. She co-founded and co-chairs the
global virtual Library 2.0 conference series and has held leadership roles such as
the 2015 President of the Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T)
and the 2020-2021 President of the Association for Library and Information Science
Education (ALISE). She is also involved in the American Library Association (ALA)
as Chair-Elect of the International Relations Round Table (IRRT) and is a member of
the Section on Education and Training in the International Federation of Library Associations
and Institutions (IFLA).
An active scholar and researcher, Dr. Hirsh published a book entitled Blockchain,
as book 3 in the ALA Library Futures Series (2020) and an introductory textbook entitled
Information Services Today: An Introduction (3rd edition, 2022). Her new book, Library
2035: Imagining the Next Generation of Libraries, was published by Rowman & Littlefield
in 2024; accompanying the book, Hirsh conducted a series of interviews with the authors
which can be accessed on the Library 2035 Webcast Site or YouTube.
Scott Broberg
Senior Director, Resources and Operations
The Senior Director for Resources and Operations (DRO) is a key college administrator
with responsibility and oversight of budget and fiscal management, operations, human
resources and facilities.
Department of Applied Data Science
Chair and Professor
Department of Applied Data Science
Simon Shim is a professor and chair of the Applied Data Science Department at San
José State University. He was on the editorial board of IEEE Computer for 10 years
and the area editor of Internet Computing at Computer for 5 years. He worked as a
Director at SAP Labs, Palo Alto, CA, USA. He was a guest editor for three special
issues of IEEE Computer: High Speed Security (2004), Next Generation Memory (2013)
and The CAP Theorems' Growing Impact (2012). In addition to holding several patents,
he has more than fifty papers published in conferences and journals, including IEEE
Computer, IEEE Transaction on Knowledge and Data Engineering, IEEE Concurrency, ACM
MONET and Journal of Multimedia Tools and Applications (Kluwer Academic Publishers).
He has co-authored two published technical books. He received a PhD in computer science
from the University of Minnesota. Along with organizing several conferences and workshops,
he served as co-chair of IEEE Big Data Services and was a member of the technical
committee for many international conferences and workshops.
School of Information
Director and Professor
School of Information
I am married with three children and have a PhD in instructional systems design (my
major professor was Dr. Marcy Driscoll) and MS in educational psychology (my advisor
was Dr. Bruce Tuckman) from Florida State University and a BS in developmental psychology
from San Francisco State University. After a few years working in training for the
Florida Department of Revenue and an Internet company, I became a non-tenured track
faculty member at Florida State's School of Information Studies where I headed up
their online learning program, usability lab and their information technology department.
I began teaching courses in leadership, usability and technology, conducting research
and consulting in the LIS field (6 years at FSU and 15 years at UNCG) before joining
the iSchool. As a consultant, I am the CEO of Strategic Performance Systems, where
I develop strategic plans for libraries as well as conduct evaluations and needs assessments
for a wide array of organizations across the nation.
My academic career spans 21 years during which time I have worked as a faculty member;
served as coordinator/director of online learning; published two books and two book
chapters and 141 peer-reviewed publications, proceedings, presentations and posters;
and received over $3 million in grants and contracts to fund research projects. I
have a steep record of service and leadership at all levels of academia and the library
and information science field and take deep pride in contributing to any team or group
I am part of. Academic leadership positions I have held include serving as Secretary
for the UNC System Faculty Assembly, the founding co-editor of the UNC System Journal
of Digital Learning Innovations, UNCG’s Faculty Senate Chair, Chair of UNCG’s P&T
Committee, Chair of UNCG’s Internal Grants Committee, and School of Education Faculty
Assembly Chair.
Associate Director
School of Information
Linda Main received her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign). She
also holds Masters degrees from the University of Wales (Aberystwyth) and the University
of Dublin, Trinity College (Ireland).
She spent many years working in the library of Trinity College Dublin rotating through
many different departments including rare books and manuscripts. She was also a Project
Coordinator for CELDS (US Army Corps of Engineers) and a Database Coordinator for
the Recidivism Database (US Dept. Justice).
Main has written three books and published many articles. Her research interests are
in designing information products for a global audience, Web programming languages
delivered online and digitization of medieval manuscripts.
Main has been involved in many consultancy projects including projects for the British
Library, the Bibliotheque National, the Benito Juarez Autonomous University (Oaxaca,
Mexico), the State Technical Library (Prague), Udaras na Gaeltachta, the National
Library of Malta and the Highlands and Islands Enterprise Board. She also works with
a small Eastern European consultancy business that develops Web sites and digitizes
manuscripts.
