Dr. John Sandstrom was born in Lawton, Oklahoma at the beginning of the transition from the Baby Boom to Generation X. He received at BA in History from the University of Tulsa in 1984, followed up by a Masters of Library and Information Studies from the University of Oklahoma in 1987. At that point he left school and focused on his career.

John started his professional life as the Head of Acquisitions and Collection Development at Saginaw Valley State University. From there he moved to Houston Public Library (TX) where he continued working in collection development and added public services. Next he moved to private industry by working for Baker and Taylor as a collection development specialist, then to Library Systems and Services, Inc. (LSSI), where he worked in collection development throughout their client libraries.

After being laid off by LSSI, he moved to El Paso Public Library (TX), still working in acquisitions and collection development. While in El Paso he completed his Master of Public Administration. Shortly thereafter he got his current position at NMSU as Head of Acquisitions. While here he has finished is EdD in Educational Leadership and Administration.

John has expertise in library materials budgeting, contract negotiation, electronic resource management, and serials management. He also has extensive experience in staff training and development, workflow design, project management, Native American education, and Navajo textiles.