Digital Commons Network^™

Spartan Daily, September 9, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 08

Studying Extreme Weather Event Impacts For Transit-Reliant Unhoused Populations, Costanza Rampini, Serena Alexander, Jeff Wootton, Amruta Ashish Gandhi

Mineta Transportation Institute

No abstract provided.

Spartan Daily, September 3, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 07

Spartan Daily, September 2, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 06

We Cut To The Chase! Building Consensus For School Librarian Collaboration: A Delphi Study, Pam Harland, Susan D. Ballard, Rachel V. Small

Learning Hub

This study examines collaboration between school librarians and educators using a three-round Delphi study with 38 experts in school librarianship. The researchers developed a consensus definition and a seven-level model of collaboration, ranging from autonomy to schoolwide assurance. The study also identifies environmental, cultural, and dispositional conditions that support successful collaboration, including administrative support, shared planning time, trust, communication, and librarian leadership. The resulting model and rubrics are intended to help educators and school librarians assess and strengthen collaborative practice to support student learning.

An Enduring Mission, Expanding Responsibilities: Reexamining Educating Students To Think Forty Years Later, Victoria Therriault

Learning Hub

This article reexamines the role of school librarians forty years after the publication of Educating Students to Think. It argues that the central mission of school librarianship, helping students locate, evaluate, synthesize, and use information thoughtfully, has remained consistent while librarians’ responsibilities have expanded. The article connects this mission to contemporary practices including inquiry learning, instructional collaboration, digital and media literacy, AI literacy, digital citizenship, equitable access, and instructional leadership. It also presents an updated framework and practical strategies for applying these responsibilities in modern school library programs.

Spartan Daily, September 1, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 05

Reimagining The Crises Of Extractivism: Towards A Critical Cultural Political Economy Of Extractivism And Beyond, James Alejandro Artiga-Purcell

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Extractivism faces interlocking crises of its own making. Extractive governance has failed to foster democratic, socially just, and ecologically sustainable political economies. The expansion of extractive zones has provoked surging conflicts across the world over access to and control over life-giving resources like land, air, and water. The devastating socio-ecological ramifications inherent in extractivism have gone global, as exemplified by the climate crisis. Despite growing recognition of these crises of extractivism, ideologically diverse governments, corporations, and civil society organizations have consistently doubled down on extractivist solutions. This special issue interrogates the crises of, contradictory solutions for, and potential alternatives to …

Spartan Daily, August 27, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 04

Spartan Daily, August, 26, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 03

Advancing Clean Mobility: Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Bus Workforce Development For Transit Agencies, Manideep Tummalapudi, Shantanu Kumar, Jaskaran Singh

Mineta Transportation Institute

Hydrogen fuel cell electric buses (FCEBs) are rapidly transforming public transportation in the United States. However, while transit agencies are investing heavily in new zero-emission vehicles and fueling infrastructure, far less attention has been paid to the workforce needed to operate and maintain them. As agencies accelerate toward ambitious climate and fleet transition goals, they are also confronting a critical challenge: preparing workers for an entirely new set of technologies, safety requirements, and operational demands. This study addresses that gap by systematically identifying the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) required for FCEB vehicle operators and maintenance technicians, assessing current training …

Spartan Daily, August 25, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 02

Unlocking Multiple Intelligence Skills Among Medical Library Professionals: An Analysis Of Nigeria And Pakistan, Mariym Muhammad Ismail, Naweed-E-Sehar, 3. Kamaluddeen Isa El-Kalash

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Multiple Intelligence (MI) plays a crucial role in comprehending extensive intellectual abilities and aptitudes among individuals. The purpose of this study is to investigate the Multiple Intelligences in medical library professionals in Pakistan and Nigeria by incorporating Howard Gardener's Theory. Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences provided the foundation for the research method implemented in this study. The current study is explanatory in nature. The research employs a quantitative approach and survey as a research method, which involves collecting and analyzing numerical data. A questionnaire with five-point Likert scale, from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), was adopted to …

Access And Use Of Agricultural Information Services For Sustainable Irish Potato Production And Socioeconomic Development Among Farmers In Plateau State, Nigeria, Olunusi Patience Abosede Mrs, Fwenshimwa Goyol Yarima Mrs, Oyetunde Adeduntan Olajumoke Adedokun, Olusola Funmilayo Babalola, Segilola Victoria Omowumi

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Spartan Daily, August 19, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 167, Issue 01

Promoting Digital Inclusion Through Mobile Learning In West African Educational Systems, Joshua Olaoluwa Jegede, Temitope Michael Jegede

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Mobile learning is the use of small and portable devices, such as laptops, tablets, and smartphones, for educational purposes. It influences where, how, what, and why students learn, as well as from whom they learn in the digital age. While the adoption of technology in education has brought a remarkable shift from traditional to digital learning, a global digital divide distinguishes developed and developing regions. However, mobile learning leverages the affordability and ubiquity of mobile devices to provide access to educational resources, bridging the digital divide in regions with limited educational infrastructure. This study is a systematic review of mobile …

Construction, Curation, And Customization Of Digital Collection For Lis Journals With Greenstone, Partha Sarathi Mandal, Sukumar Mandal

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The digital age has not just revolutionized but transformed academic publishing, fundamentally altering how information is stored, accessed, and shared. This seismic shift, far from leaving professional librarians uncertain, presents an urgent and exciting opportunity to redefine the operations and procedures required for proper functioning. This paper aims to provide step-by-step guidance for constructing digital libraries, including software installation processes. Library data becomes visible on the World Wide Web by using a combination of Apache, PERL, and GSDL software. Through Dublin Core Metadata, users can describe their resources for discovery within distributed systems. Combining these methods allows libraries to create …

Information Resources Utilization, Organisational Culture And Motivation As Determinants Of Quality Service Delivery Of Researchers In Nigerian Institute For Trypanosomiasis Research, Kaduna State, Nigeria., Alegbeleye Gabriel Olubunmi, Ibrahim Awodi, Yemisi Tomilola Babalola

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This study investigated the combined influence of information resources utilization, organizational culture, and motivation on quality service delivery in the Nigerian Institute for Trypanosomiasis Research (NITR), Kaduna State. The population comprised 206 researchers across the six research departments of NITR, and a total enumeration technique was employed to include all the researchers. Using a structured questionnaire, 172 valid responses were obtained representing an 83.5% response rate. Data were analyzed using descriptive and multiple regression statistics. Anchored on Uses and Gratification Theory of Information behavior, the Denison Organizational Culture Model, and Self-Determination Theory, the findings revealed that the independent variables jointly …

When Everyone Is A Librarian: Examining Job Titles And Responsibilities In California School Libraries, Mary Ann Harlan, Jeffrey Mattison, Jodi Hwang

Learning Hub

School libraries in California are staffed by a wide range of personnel, including credentialed Teacher Librarians (TLs) and paraprofessional staff working under a variety of job titles. Analysis of responses from the California School Library Survey revealed substantial variation in self-reported library staff titles, raising questions about the relationship between job titles, job descriptions, and professional responsibilities. This study examined the titles used by individuals working in California school libraries as paraprofessionals and analyzed corresponding job descriptions to determine whether distinctions exist between professional standards and descriptions and paraprofessional duties. Using survey data from the 2022–2023 California School Library Survey, …

Wildfire Risk & Preparedness For Urban Rail Operators Supporting Large Stadium Events, Karl Kim, Eric Yamashita, Daniele Spirandeli, David Rother

Mineta Transportation Institute

The project team, in collaboration with partners and stakeholders, developed a four-hour training course designed to build a foundational understanding of how wildfire hazards affect rail systems infrastructure operations and how this knowledge can help equip urban rail operators with tools and best practices for proactive risk management. Led by the University of Hawaiʻi and the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center, in partnership with Haley & Aldrich, Inc., this technical report presents an overview of the four modules and scenario planning exercise that together make up the four-hour Wildfire Risk & Preparedness for Urban Rail Operators Supporting Large Stadium Events …

Enhancing Wildfire Resilience In The Rail Industry: Developing A Community Resilience Extreme Events Portal (Creep), Karl Kim, Eric Yamashita, Daniele Spirandeli, David Rother, Chris Chiesa, Greg Hampe, Michele Toner

Mineta Transportation Institute

The Community Resilience Extreme Events Portal (CREEP) provides a centralized platform for accessing wildfire danger indices, critical asset locations, and vulnerability scores for rail segments. The project team developed a data-driven, indicator-based vulnerability assessment framework that defines vulnerability as a function of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. To build this framework, the team selected publicly available datasets, prioritizing national datasets whenever possible to ensure transparency, reproducibility, and scalability. The portal allows users to analyze and visualize vulnerability across 1-kilometer segments of Class I freight and passenger rail lines in California, supporting planning and mitigation prioritization to help reduce rail-related fatalities, …

Helically Flexible Boron-Dipyrromethenes For Solution-Processed Isotropic Films With Preserved Chiral Exciton Coupling, Carolina Díaz-Norambuena, Juan Manuel Moreno-Naranjo, David Reger, Giuliano Siligardi, César Ray, Jessica Colligan, Florencio Moreno, Beatriz L. Maroto, Gilles Muller, Jorge Bañuelos, Matthew J. Fuchter, Santiago De La Moya

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Chiral organic thin films are emerging as key materials in advanced optoelectronic and chiroptical technologies, where the straightforward, solution-processed fabrication of chiroptically active neat films from small π-conjugated helical molecules is highly desirable for sustainable and scalable device integration. However, in such densely packed systems, the intrinsic chiroptical response is often compromised by macroscopic anisotropies (e.g., linear dichroism and birefringence) and aggregation-induced effects, which obscure genuine molecular signatures and induce or alter chiral exciton coupling. Here, we demonstrate that a readily accessible and conformationally flexible helically chiral boron-dipyrromethene dimer (helicoBODIPY) platform enables the reproducible fabrication of robust solution-processed neat thin …

Decentring Philosophical Education In African Tertiary Education: Integrating Global Perspectives In The Classroom, Isaac Mutelo

Comparative Philosophy

The philosophical discourse has been dominated by Western perspectives, an approach that continues to influence curriculum design and delivery in higher education. The historical dominance of the Western philosophical canon in university curricula has contributed to the marginalisation of other equally significant philosophical traditions from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Indigenous cultures. This approach has contributed significantly to the narrow and limited scope and relevance of philosophy as an academic field globally. Rather than advocating for the dominance and superiority of the Western-centred curriculum, this paper acknowledges the centrality of integrating global philosophical perspectives in the philosophy curriculum and discourse …

Engaging Intercultural Philosophy In The Classroom: A Methodological Proposal, Gloria Luque Moya

Comparative Philosophy

The exclusion of non-Western philosophies from university curricula has been a persistent feature of academic philosophy, both in the United States and Europe. This marginalization reflects an enduring assumption that philosophy is a uniquely Western enterprise, originating in ancient Greece and developed exclusively within European traditions. This article challenges that assumption by arguing that the teaching of intercultural philosophy is not merely a pedagogical issue, but an urgent necessity in the context of globalization and cross-cultural exchange. Focusing on the limited presence of non-Western philosophical traditions in Spanish university programs, the article first analyzes the structural asymmetry in the historiography …

Teaching China Beyond Eurocentrism: Intercultural Pedagogy And The Case Of The República Del Reino De La China By Jerónimo Román Zamora, Miriam Diaz Belizon

Comparative Philosophy

Interdisciplinary approaches to teaching China in Western academic contexts often reproduce Eurocentric frameworks that reduce Chinese philosophical and cultural traditions to subordinate objects of analysis. This article proposes an alternative model grounded in intercultural philosophy and the Filosofías del Sur, arguing that China should be approached not as a distant object of representation, but as an epistemic interlocutor capable of transforming philosophical education. The article develops this argument through the recovery of the República del Reino de la China, included in the 1595 edition of Repúblicas del Mundo, as a key example of early intercultural mediation from the European South. …

Tracing The Philosophy Of Toleration Through An Intercultural Lens: Theory, Challenges, And Educational Implications, Xianzhe Hui

Comparative Philosophy

Toleration is usually defined as a permissive attitude toward disagreement or dislike concerning diverse beliefs and practices. In philosophical education, toleration is emphasized both theoretically and in the way teachers and students practice it. Scholars and philosophers are familiar with the connotations and justifications of toleration attributed to Enlightenment philosophers. Toleration has often been regarded as a uniquely Western idea or virtue, rooted in the European Enlightenment values of individual rights and freedom of thought. Recently, however, this viewpoint has been challenged by scholars, who argue that the approaches to diversity in non-Western intellectual traditions should be taken into consideration. …

Intercultural Questioning: Teaching Report On A Question-Oriented Pedagogy In Teaching Chinese Philosophy, Sai Hang Kwok

Comparative Philosophy

Language and cultural barriers pose major obstacles to teaching Chinese philosophy to Western philosophy students. Without a cultural and linguistic background, students often struggle to read the original Chinese philosophical texts. Translation also involves issues of interpretation that are difficult to be settled in undergraduate-level courses. To address this situation, this paper introduces a question-oriented pedagogy called “intercultural questioning”. Instead of aiming at a comprehensive understanding of the entire Chinese philosophical tradition, the question-oriented pedagogy reveals the implicit assumptions in one’s conceptual frameworks and unexamined questions in Western philosophy through the East-West dialogue. Students can obtain philosophical insights from Chinese …

The Limits Of Universal Logic: A Cross-Cultural Archaeology Of Logical Critique, Murat Kelikli

Comparative Philosophy

This study examines critiques of logic articulated across diverse historical and cultural traditions within a comparative framework. The critiques developed in Islamic, Buddhist, Chinese, Indian, Zen, and modern Western philosophy do not, in the main, reject logic or reasoning as such; rather, they target the conceptualization of logic as a universal, context-independent, and singular normative standard. The analysis shows that objections raised at ontological, epistemic, linguistic, methodological, and political levels converge on a set of shared concerns rooted in the structural features of logic itself, most notably categorical determinacy, universalist assumptions, and claims of context-independence. At the same time, these …

A Constructive Engagement With Confucian Gender Ethics: Reinterpreting The Three Obediences And Four Virtues In Contemporary Vietnam, Vo Van Dung

Comparative Philosophy

This paper examines the influence of the doctrines of the Three Obediences and Four Virtues on the moral thought of Vietnamese women in contemporary society. The study addresses the central question of whether and how these doctrines remain relevant within current social and cultural contexts. It traces the historical introduction and transformation of these doctrines in Vietnam. It analyses their dual impact on women’s moral values, highlighting both their enduring ethical contributions and their role in sustaining gendered constraints. The findings suggest that while certain elements of the Four Virtues have been reinterpreted and selectively integrated into modern ethical frameworks, …

Leventhal, Alan, San Jose State University

Emeritus and Retired Faculty Biographies

San Jose State University, Anthropology, MA 1993

(MA Thesis Title: A Reinterpretation of Some San Francisco Bay Mound Sites: A View from the Mortuary Complex from Prehistoric Site CA-ALA-329, The Ryan Mound): https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/694/

City College of New York, Major: Anthropology; Minor: Education and Geology, BA 1973

Archaeological Field Schools

University of Nevada: Nevada State Museum Archaeological Field School, Dr. Robert Elston, Director, June - August 1972

City College of New York Archaeological Field School, Dr. Robert Schuyler, Director, June - August 1971

See CV for Awards/Scholarships, 1972-2013.