The iSchool's Library Resources for Spanish Speakers (IS 563) course was featured in a session at Seguimos Creando Enlaces (Creating Connections), a virtual conference held on March 25. Adjunct Lecturers Pamela Espinosa de los Monteros and Anne Barnhart teach the course, in which students explore differences in U.S. Spanish-speaking populations and examine information resources for meeting their needs. At the session, moderated by Barnhart and Espinosa de los Monteros, MS students Kristin Greer Love, Lea Weatherall, and Sylvia Figueroa-Ortiz as well as recent graduates Eddie Kristan (MS '20) and Aldo Vasquez (MS '18) shared their experiences taking the course.

With the pandemic limiting in-person events, the iSchool Student Showcase moved to a virtual format. Instead of poster presentations and lightning talks, students prerecorded three-minute research talks, which were presented at the showcase on April 2 and 7. Students participated in a live Q&A with the audience after their videos were shown. Twenty-four MS students presented their work on a broad range of topics relating to information sciences, and the showcase also featured its first presentation from a student in the new BS program.

The California Library Association (CLA) has named MS/LIS online (Leep) student Luisa Leija the 2021 recipient of the Begun Scholarship. The scholarship recognizes a graduate student who shows a strong commitment to youth services librarianship in California public libraries. Leija will receive $3,000 and a one-year student membership to CLA.

PhD student Jamillah R. Gabriel will present her research at the Association of College & Research Libraries Conference (ACRL 2021), which will be held virtually from April 13-16. The theme of this year's conference is "Ascending into an Open Future."

Associate Professor Jana Diesner and her students have organized two tutorials for The Web Conference 2021. The conference, which will be held virtually from April 12-23, will address the evolution and current state of the Web through the lens of computer science, computational social science, economics, public policy, and Web-based applications.

iSchool researchers will present their work at The Web Conference 2021. The conference, which will be held virtually from April 12-23, will address the evolution and current state of the Web through the lens of computer science, computational social science, economics, public policy, and Web-based applications.

Doctoral candidate Yun Hao successfully defended her dissertation, "Towards a Better Understanding of Music Playlist Titles and Descriptions," on April 6. Her committee included Professor J. Stephen Downie (chair); Associate Professor Vetle Torvik; Assistant Professor Nigel Bosch; Xiao Hu, associate professor at The University of Hong Kong; and Andreas Ehmann, manager of research/data science at Pandora Inc.

Ever since she was a little girl, Hanna Dahlstrom has loved to play video games. Now she is learning how to preserve video games as a student in the MS in library and information sciences program.

MS student Jeremy Kearse is a future educator and data manager. His career goals are to work both in the corporate world, "helping a business make smarter and more efficient decisions," and as an adjunct professor in an MSI (minority serving institution), working with students in STEM and LIS. Kearse, who earned his BS in computer science from Morehouse College, became interested in the field of LIS after serving as a paraprofessional for a fourth-grade class through the UPS Community Scholars Program.

A record seventeen iSchool master's students were named 2020-2021 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This "Spectrum Scholar Spotlight" series highlights the School's scholars. MS/LIS student Mimosa Shah holds a BA in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and an MA in Humanities from the University of Chicago.