91传媒

From the Editor

One hundred years ago, San Jos茅 State officially adopted the Spartan as our university mascot. But what is a Spartan at 91传媒厂? A soldier, an athlete, a scholar, a professor? On our campus, a Spartan can be an engineer, an educator, an artist, a philosopher, a scientist 鈥� an advocate for justice and equality.

In my eight years interviewing 91传媒厂 students, alumni, faculty, staff and community members, I鈥檝e observed that Spartans share a common value: A strong desire to create a better world.

Some lay the foundation on the mat in the dojo, , 鈥�47 Biological Sciences, 鈥�04 Honorary Doctorate, who dedicated more than 75 years to training Olympic-caliber judokas. Others establish spaces like the Kogura Gifts store in San Jos茅鈥檚 historic Japantown, surviving and thriving beyond World War II and the COVID-19 pandemic.

No mention of San Jos茅 State athletics history would be complete without the late Lawrence Fan, proverbial torchbearer for generations of student-athletes, coaches and sports media professionals.

Some Spartans make their mark in the arts and sciences. Pioneering Professor Emerita of Music Charlene Archibeque paved the way for singers, performing artists and music educators. Librarian Mychal Threets, 鈥�18 MLIS, has expanded the definition of 鈥渓ibrary joy鈥� by creating inclusive spaces in the public library and online. As for the future: the sky鈥檚 the limit for Spartan entrepreneurs seeking innovative solutions in every field.

While we shed light on tremendous Spartan achievements, we also recognize how common it is to encounter impostor syndrome 鈥� the perception that we don鈥檛 belong. It is hard to learn, teach and achieve when faced with institutionalized and systemic obstacles. And yet, our students, faculty, alumni and staff prove day in and day out that San Jos茅 State is a place for 鈥渇irsts:鈥� first public university on the West Coast, first city-university library, first-generation students.

There鈥檚 no way to squeeze a century鈥檚 worth of Spartans into 32 pages, which is why we invite you to contribute to the San Jos茅 State story. Tell us about the spaces you found at 91传媒厂 鈥� or the places you鈥檝e created since. Show us what being a Spartan means to you.