Faculty Experts
From the discovery of new planets to the work of noted criminologists, SF State offers a wide variety of scholars who are the most distinguished in their fields. This directory identifies academics who possess insight and knowledge of diverse subjects and who are willing to work with journalists whenever possible. The faculty experts directory is compiled by the Office of Strategic Marketing and Communications.
If you need immediate assistance finding an expert, please call (415) 338-1665 or email pubcom@sfsu.edu.
Ali Borjian
Professor of Secondary Education
Office Phone: (415) 338-1838
Email: borjian@sfsu.edu
Ali Borjian is expert on effective teaching for children who are English language learners.
Areas of Expertise:
Teacher education
School reform
Second-language acquisition
Highest Degree: Ph.D., Education, Stanford University
Scott Boswell
Assistant Professor of Cinema
Office Phone: (415) 338-6522
Email: sboswell@sfsu.edu
Scott Boswell is a filmmaker and film instructor who has completed numerous shorts and the award-winning feature film "The Stranger in Us" (2010). Previously, Boswell ran The Factory, an Oakland-based short film production collective for urban teenagers. Boswell currently acts as the Production Coordinator in the Cinema Department, where he teaches classes in film production, directing and screenwriting. In his spare time, Boswell runs a feature screenwriting group and directs plays with San Francisco theater companies.
Areas of Expertise:
Independent and fiction filmmaking
Screenwriting
LGBT cinema
Highest Degree: MFA, Cinema, San Francisco State University
Karen Olsen Bruhns
Professor Emerita of Anthropology
Office Phone: (415) 338-2046
Email: kbruhns@sfsu.edu
Karen Bruhns is an expert on the ancient cultures of Central and South America, and on the forgery of Precolumbian art and artifacts.
Areas of Expertise:
Archaeology of Mexico
Mesoamerica and South America
Archaeology of gender
Highest Degree: Ph.D., Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley
Gustavo Adolfo Calderon
Professor of Modern Languages & Literatures
Office Phone: (415) 338-7426
Email: gusto@sfsu.edu
Gustavo Calderon is an expert in pre-Hispanic cultures and the history of Colombia.
Areas of Expertise:
Spanish language and civilization
Highest Degree: Ph.D., University of Iowa
Melissa Camacho
Associate Professor of Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts
Office Phone: (415) 338-6526
Email: mcamacho@sfsu.edu
Melissa Camacho is an expert in mass media and depictions of women in mass media with an emphasis on television. Camacho has commented widely in national media about contemporary television.
Areas of Expertise:
Feminist issues
Cultural studies
Mass media with special expertise in television
Highest Degree: Ph.D., Mass Media, Michigan State University
Troi Carleton
Associate Dean of the College of Liberal and Creative Arts
Office Phone: (415) 338-3156
Email: troi@sfsu.edu
Troi Carleton is an expert on indigenous and endangered languages of the Americas and the history of the English language.
Areas of Expertise:
Disappearing languages
Social meaning in language
History of English
Highest Degree: Ph.D., Linguistics, University of Texas, Austin
Christopher Carrington
Associate Professor of Sociology and Sexuality Studies
Office Phone: (415) 338-1466
Email: ccarring@sfsu.edu
Dr. Carrington is a sociologist and sexologist focused on lesbian and gay family life and relationships, gay male friendship, gay male sexuality, sexual orientation(s), substance use and abuse among sexual minorities, and the relationship of work to family life for sexual minorities.
Areas of Expertise:
Gay and Lesbian Relationships
Marriage
Families and Children
Highest Degree: Ph.D., Sociology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Rick Castaldi
Professor Emeritus of Management
Office Phone: (415) 338-7482
Email: castaldi@sfsu.edu
Rick Castaldi is an expert on small businesses and has performed extensive research in the U.S. wind industry, including e-commerce, environmental sustainability, and international trade.
Areas of Expertise:
Environmental technology
Small business and import/export
U.S. wind industry
Highest Degree: Ph.D. Strategic Management, Virginia Tech University