Recent iSchool graduate Anthony Kwok (BS/IS '21) is an aspiring computerphile who now has a full-time position at Accenture LLC in Houston. Kwok's interest in cybersecurity consulting stemmed from his curiosity about information technology and passion for helping others, which includes fixing computers and devices for people alongside ensuring that their technology is safe from cyberattacks.

Associate Professor Yang Wang has received a one-year, $100,000 grant from Meta for his project, "Global South Citizens' Privacy Perceptions and Management of Targeted Ads on Social Media." His doctoral students Tanusree Sharma, Smirity Kaushik, and Yaman Yu will serve as co-investigators. The goal of the project is to learn from users in the Global South, with a focus on India and Bangladesh, about their experience with targeted ads.

Michael Torres, a senior from Chicago, has used the skills he gained from his iSchool courses in his internships and student organizations. Following his graduation this spring, he will work as an IT rotational analyst at the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago.

Eight iSchool master's students were named 2021-2022 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 Sheridan Cazarez earned his bachelor's degree in Spanish from California State University, Long Beach. He would like to make libraries more accessible and relevant to Latinxs and Spanish speakers through "targeted programming, multilingual collections, and the type of face-to-face service that engenders feelings of community and belonging."

After a few years in the workplace, it took a "leap of faith" for Callan Miranda to decide to return to school for an MS/LIS degree. A full-time employee at the Peoria Riverfront Museum, Miranda is happy with her choice to enroll in the iSchool's Leep (online) program and thankful to be the inaugural recipient of the Nancy and Dan Balz Scholarship. Nancy (BA LAS '70, MS/LIS '72) and her husband Dan (BS Media '68, MS Media '72) established the scholarship to help make education more affordable for returning students like Miranda.

When she isn't taking classes through the iSchool's Leep (online) program or working part time in the library at Hong Kong Academy, Lynn Lawrence-Brown is writing book reviews (including this review of a book by renowned children's poet Janet Wong) and blogging for We Need Diverse Books. Last month she completed a discussion guide for an upcoming middle-grade novel, The Not-So-Uniform Life of Holly-Mei by Christina Matula. Lawrence-Brown, a Taiwanese American who grew up in Maine but now lives in Hong Kong, wants to continue "doing work that helps promote diverse books and writers of color and help put diverse books in the hands of readers of all ages."

MS/IM student Aradhya Seth is enjoying his time at the U of I, exploring campus, attending Trivia Tuesdays and karaoke at the Illini Union, and doing stand-up comedy. As an iSchool Ambassador, he gets the opportunity to share his experiences of student life at the iSchool and Illinois with prospective students.

Members of Associate Professor Dong Wang's research group, the Social Sensing Lab, will present papers at the 2021 IEEE International Conference on Big Data (IEEE BigData 2021), which will be held virtually from December 15-18.

MS/LIS students Samantha Lynn and Savannah Adams are earning course credit while exploring their interests through the iSchool's apprenticeship program with The Urbana Free Library. In the two-semester program, apprentices work 15 hours per week at the library and earn up to six credits through both a practicum and an independent study. The apprentice has both a faculty supervisor and library supervisor, who meet to discuss the student's progress in the program. Each student receives tuition support in the fall and a fellowship in the spring to complete the independent study.

In the spring, MS/LIS student and school librarian licensure program graduate assistant G Trupp will graduate from the school librarian licensure program, having received their master's, an Illinois Professional Teaching License, and in-depth experience working among other library information specialists. Trupp enrolled in the iSchool with a focus on public libraries and archives but, after working at a school library as a library assistant, decided to switch to the school librarian licensure program. This program gave them the skills to serve young people in library spaces and helped them prepare for a future career as a middle school librarian.

Andres Perez is preparing for a career in cybersecurity through a combination of the iSchool's MS in information management (MS/IM) program and the Illinois Cyber Security Scholars Program (ICSSP), a CyberCorps Scholarship for Service program funded by the National Science Foundation. Perez applied for the ICSSP—which provides full tuition, a stipend, and development opportunities for students who want to specialize in cybersecurity and privacy—to "grow as a professional and contribute to a greater mission."

BS/IS student Hanyu (Zella) Zhao learned about pop culture and data analytics through her work on the undergraduate research project, Analysis on Rolling Stone Magazine Covers. Professor Michael Twidale mentored her during the project, in which a team of undergraduates created a database of celebrities who appeared on the magazine cover from 1967 to 2021.

iSchool researchers presented their work at the 19th annual Community Informatics Research Network (CIRN) Conference on November 8-12. The theme of this year's conference was "Communities, Technology and This Moment." CIRN 2021 explored how researchers and practitioners ethically collect information, including what happens when community information is deliberately not collected and how information systems can be designed "in harmony with communities."

Eight iSchool master's students were named 2021-2022 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 Cordiah Hayes earned her BS degree in communications studies with an emphasis in media studies from Northern Illinois University.

Assistant Professor Jessie Chin and PhD student Smit Desai will present their research at the Technology, Mind and Society (TMS) Conference, which will be held virtually November 3-5. Hosted by the American Psychological Association, TMS brings together scientists, industry leaders, practitioners, students, and policymakers to explore the critical role that psychology plays in the design, use, adoption, and impact of technology and the artificial intelligence that powers it.

iSchool faculty and students will participate in the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T) Annual Meeting, which will be held in a hybrid format—in Salt Lake City, Utah, and online—from October 30-November 2. The theme of this year's conference is "Information: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Justice, and Relevance." The meeting, now in its 84th year, is the premier international conference dedicated to the study of information, people, and technology in contemporary society.

Assistant Professor Yun Huang and students will present their research at the 24th ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2021), which will be held virtually on October 23-27. CSCW is the premier venue for experts from industry and academia to explore the technical, social, material, and theoretical challenges of designing technology to support collaborative work and life activities.

In this feature, MS/LIS student Jason Larsen discusses his practicum experience in the Stephen O. Murray and Keelung Hong Special Collections at Michigan State University.

Eight iSchool master's students were named 2021-2022 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 Ashley Bolger earned her BS degree in environmental studies from the University of Vermont, with a concentration in environmental justice, policy, and education.

Research conducted by Assistant Professor Jessie Chin's Adaptive Cognition and Interaction Design Lab (ACTION) provided the foundation for an article recently published in the high-impact Journal of Medical Internet Research. PhD student Tre Tomaszewski is the first author on the peer-reviewed article, "Identifying False Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine Information and Corresponding Risk Perceptions from Twitter: Advanced Predictive Models."