2020-2021 Board Members
Chair: Natasha Finnegan
Hello! I’m Natasha, blogging assistant for ALASC. I currently work in an academic library and used to work in tiny rural public libraries. I’m in my second year at SJSU’s iSchool and working towards a general/reference/management track. It is the long, slow track due to my young children. I love reading, hiking, playing guitar, and funny memes. My favorite foods are mangoes, avocados, and garlic bread.
Co-chair/Webmaster: Meghann Weldon
I’m Meghann Weldon and I am excited to be working and learning with all of my peers in ALASC. I’m inching my way through SJSU’s MLIS program two classes at a time while I work as the Resource Sharing Coordinator at Humboldt State University Library. In addition to all things Interlibrary loan my role there gives me the opportunity to work with great colleagues in the CSU and globally, explore data and support data informed decisions, connect with library users at Access Services, and engage in many collaborative projects. Through ALASC I hope to connect, learn, and collaborate with this community.
Treasurer: Liza Schlosser
Liza Schlosser (she/her) is thrilled to join the ALASC team! Born and raised in the SF Bay Area, Liza works full-time as the Academic Innovation Studio program coordinator at UC Berkeley, where she also studied PoliSci and Modern Standard Arabic as an undergrad. She is pursuing the Data Science career pathway in the MLIS program at San José State. Liza lives in Richmond, CA with her partner and two dogs and her free time enjoys cooking, reading, camping, crosswords, and photography. Thank you so much for welcoming me!
Secretary/Archivist: Gabrielle Bianca Visco
Gabrielle Bianca Visco is a first-generation master’s degree student and finished their first semester at the end of Spring 2020. *YAY* Gabrielle is excited to join the dynamic ALASC team and will be serving as Secretary/Archivist for the 2020-2021 school year. Currently, Gabrielle lives in a small rural mountain town in Northern California about 3 1/2 hours north of the Bay. She is pursuing a new career path and is bubbling with joy for the new opportunities that are brewing. If Gabrielle doesn’t have her nose in a book or working online for school, you can find her outside hiking, wildcrafting, gardening, and being a lizard by the river.
Social Media Manager: Violet McCrigler
Hello! I’m a third year iSchool student, following the Youth Services pathway. I have an undergraduate degree in Women’s Studies, and currently work as the User Accounts Coordinator for the library at Humboldt State University. My interests include early childhood literacy, information access, and lifelong learning. In addition to assisting with ALASC, I serve on the ASIS&T student chapter executive committee and am a member of Phi Kappa Phi. When I’m not working or studying, I enjoy crafting, reading, gardening, and spending time with my husband and our chihuahua mix, Barley.
Social Media Manager: Amelia Smith
Amelia is a first-year iSchool student, considering several career avenues as an academic librarian. She has a Bachelor’s in Writing & Rhetoric from Oakland University, and currently works in the Circulation Department at Ann Arbor District Library. Her interests include philosophy, history, and alternative medicine. In addition to assisting with ALASC, she serves as the Blog Editor for SJSU’s First Generation Student Group. When she’s not working or studying, she enjoys reading, writing, drawing, walking, and spending time with her highly active and social cat, Jake.
Events Coordinator: Elizabeth Wiest
Events Coordinator: Kelli Roisman
Hello! I’m in my final year in the MLIS program and expect to graduate in Fall 2021. I’m a Pacific Northwest native and earned my undergraduate degree in history from the University of Washington. I’ve worked as a teacher, and in grants, finance, and administration, at nonprofit organizations. I enjoy hiking, gardening, and watching British television, especially the Great British Baking Show. I live in LA with my husband, son, dog, and three cats.
Events Coordinator: Carlos Bugarin
Hi, my name is Carlos Bugarin and I am a first-generation master’s degree student, soon to be a second year!. I’m excited to serve as ALASC’s chair for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. I currently live in San Leandro, CA. I am originally from Spring Valley, CA with parents from Tijuana, Mexico. I am excited to learn about the public librarian field and hope to work as the head librarian in a rural community. My interests outside of Library and Information science include education, hiking and traditional Mexican folkloric dancing.
Events Coordinator: Carol Covarrubias
Blogging Assistant: Alyssa Key
Alyssa Key is currently a second-year, full-time student in SJSU’s MLIS program and she will be serving as a blogging assistant for SJSU ALASC for the 2020-2021 school year. A Southern California native, she is currently the associate editor of, as well as a content manager and contributing writer at, Hack Library School. Additionally, she is an active student leader in SJSU’s chapters of SAASC, ALASC, as well as SJSU’s First Generation Student Group. Lastly, she is currently pursuing public or academic librarianship in her studies and anticipates graduating from the program in Spring 2021.
Blogging Assistant: Tobias Bodine
Tobias Bodine is happy to serve iSchool students as a member of the ALASC team. He has been a fond supporter of libraries since an early age, when he tried to forge his parents’ signature in order to get a library card (the children’s librarian was not so easily fooled). He is on track to get a teacher-librarian credential and MLIS. He currently teaches English Language Development at an elementary school in Northern California, and has a particular interest in foreign languages and geoliteracy.
Blogging Assistant: Jen Rasmussen
Hey there! I’m Jen, a first-year MLIS student at SJSU. I’m interested in becoming a librarian because I support all the values of the industry—access, inclusion, empathy, and empowerment. This will be my second career, after more than a decade in tv news. In my free time, I love reading, playing piano, or getting lost in a good show. More often, I’m wrangling my kids while trying to keep my sanity. Looking forward to being a part of ALASC!
Blogging Assistant: Mary Harrison
I can’t wait to get started and help grow the SJSU ALASC and event participation. Previously I used WordPress alot as I worked for Pageant Planet, which is an online pageant coaching and resource website. I wrote a large portion of our content and everything from coaching advice to outfit suggestions from our advertisers to some fun, seasonal Buzzfeed style articles.
I also worked for Radio Disney back in the day and the University of Oklahoma’s Licensing and Athletics Marketing departments so creating a show/event/moment that people wanted to come to has been a task in the past. For Radio Disney and OU Softball, I was our MC/Live Mic, so I was hosting the event and making it fun.Right now, I teach 2nd grade and build-out Bitmoji classrooms in Google Slides for each subject for my kiddos to find and access information on the topic we are studying for the week. They come out super cute and the kids love them.
I look forward to working with you all and helping to make the hard work you put into this worth the energy and effort.
Faculty Advisor: Debbie Faires
Debbie Faires is the faculty advisor for ALASC. She serves as the Director of Online Learning at the School of Information. She earned her Master of Library and Information Science degree at SJSU and was a student member and officer in ALASC.