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| Call for Papers | ||||||||||||
| AJS 42nd
Annual Conference December 19-21, 2010 • Boston The Westin Copley Place |
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| The deadline for proposals has now passed. | ||||||||||||
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Dear Colleagues: As Vice President for Program, I am delighted to issue the Call for Papers for the 42nd Annual Conference of the Association for Jewish Studies, to be held December 19-21, 2010. We will convene at the The Westin Copley Place in Boston, Massachusetts. We welcome proposals for panels, seminars, roundtables, meetings, individual papers, and alternative media presentations. The deadline for submission of proposals is to Thursday, May 13, 2010. All proposals must be submitted electronically via the AJS website. This site will be available for submissions from Tuesday, March 23, 2010 through Thursday, May 13, 2010. As part of the submission process, you will be asked to select the division, or subject area, in which you would like your proposal considered. Your proposal will then be forwarded to the appropriate Division Coordinator. You will find detailed instructions for submission below. You will also find more detailed information about the conference (FAQs, travel information, the proposal evaluation process) on the AJS website. If you have any questions about the program that are not covered in this Call for Papers, please feel free to be in touch with me. Our Executive Director, Rona Sheramy (ajs@ajs.cjh.org), will be happy to respond to any questions regarding membership, payment, and other organizational matters. The AJS has arranged for extraordinary rates at the The Westin Copley Place and is currently raising funds to offer an extensive Conference Travel Grant Program. Please check the AJS website regularly for up to date information to assist you in your travel plans. I am looking forward to an exciting and intellectually stimulating conference in Boston. Sincerely,
General Considerations We invite proposals for focused analyses of themes, topics, problems, or issues arising from scholarly research. There are two ways to submit a proposal: as part of a pre-formed session (panel, roundtable, meeting, seminar) or individually (to be placed in a panel by the Division Coordinator or, if a poster or media presentation, in the Digital Media and Poster Session). Priority in acceptance will be given to high-quality proposals that are submitted as part of pre-organized sessions. The next order of priority will be given to individual paper or poster/media proposals that are submitted independently. AJS members who are interested in organizing a session, or joining a session that others are forming, should post announcements to the Sessions Seeking Participants page on the AJS website. A list of suggested themes and topics for select subject areas appears in Part VII, under the heading “Division Coordinators and Suggested Themes.” Prospective presenters and session organizers are encouraged to consider these suggestions in crafting their proposals. The Program Committee strongly encourages session organizers to create institutionally diverse panels (i.e., no more than two participants from the same institution) as well as sessions that include at least one senior scholar in a presentation role (i.e., no all student panels); graduate students organizing sessions should invite at least one senior scholar to present in their session, as well as ask senior scholars to serve as session chair and/or respondent. For further information, see section “Graduate Student Presentations.” Paper and session proposals that will not be considered for presentation include: papers that have been published or presented in whole or in part elsewhere and sessions that summarize the proceedings of another conference. Sessions that are devoted solely to a recently published book must be critical and analytical in nature. In order to give as many members as possible the opportunity to participate in the conference, no one may submit or present more than one paper, nor chair the session in which they are presenting. Likewise, scholars should not agree to serve as chair, respondent, or discussant in more than one session. Individuals can, however, serve multiple roles in two sessions (e.g. give a paper, act as respondent on another panel, etc.). Scholars whose papers or sessions were accepted for presentation at the 41st Annual Conference in Los Angeles but who were not able to make the conference due to the weather may re-submit their proposals for the 42nd Annual Conference. The Program Committee will make every effort to place these proposals. The re-submission process will be the same as for new submissions (e.g., submission of abstract, pre-payment of dues and conference registration, etc.); re-submitters will just be asked to identify themselves as such in the submission form. This policy applies only to those scholars who informed the AJS that they had to cancel because of the weather. This policy does not apply to anyone who had to cancel for non-weather related reasons, or to anyone who presented their paper at another conference subsequent to the AJS meeting. Conference Standards In order to maintain a professional and comfortable environment for its members, conference registrants, and staff, the Association requires certain standards of behavior. These standards include, without limitation, courtesy of discourse, respect for the diversity of AJS members and conference attendees, and the ability to conduct business and participate in the AJS conference in a non-threatening, collegial atmosphere. AJS members and conference participants who do not uphold these standards may jeopardize their membership or conference participation. Session Formats A. Panels. In the traditional panel format, three or four participants present papers of a maximum of 20 minutes in length. Alternatively, panels may also consist of three papers and a respondent. A question and answer period generally will follow all of the papers, but an 8–10 minute question and answer period may follow each paper at the session chair’s discretion. All panel proposals must include a chairperson (who may also serve as respondent); paper presenters may not chair the session in which they are presenting. In composing your abstract please bear in mind the time allotted for your presentation. Those submitting panel proposals are asked to submit a session abstract that describes the overall questions and goals of the session, as well as abstracts for each paper to be included in the session. Sample abstracts can be found on the AJS website. B. Seminars. Seminars are built around discussion of a single paper or group of papers distributed in advance, or of a major work in a field read in advance. Paper authors will usually begin the session with comments about their work, followed by responses from prepared discussants and discussion with the audience. All seminar proposals must include a chairperson, discussant(s), as well as an abstract of the paper(s) to be discussed. Completed paper(s) must be available for posting on the AJS website by November 15, 2010. C. Digital Media and Poster Session. The Digital Media and Poster Session provides an excellent opportunity for scholars to utilize electronic, digital, and visual displays to share their research, and to interact with scholars on an individual basis. Scholars working on topics that lend themselves to visual and electronic presentation (e.g. a poster, video presentation, or laptop display) are especially encouraged to utilize this format. The Digital Media and Poster Session can be particularly beneficial for those with works-in-progress, as it provides the opportunity for detailed feedback and one-on-one conversations. Media presentations will be on display throughout the day of Monday, December 20, and presenters will be available during a special 2-hour session on Monday, December 20, to answer questions about their project. Digital Media and Poster presentation proposals will follow the format of those for other individual presentations, i.e.: a 350-word abstract describing the purpose of the presentation, its specific contribution to scholarship, and the usefulness of the proposed medium. Groups of scholars may also submit proposals for a thematic collection of posters (e.g., on a collaborative project). Click here for more information on the Digital Media and Poster Session. D. Roundtables. Roundtables are structured around a particular question, theme, or issue and consist of three to five discussants and a chair. This format is ideally suited for topics that will benefit from back and forth discussion among participants, as well as the audience. Roundtable participants usually begin by presenting brief prepared comments and then engage in dialogue with the other discussants and the audience. Those submitting a roundtable proposal must submit a session abstract that describes the overall questions and goals of the session and the perspective that will be represented by each discussant (i.e., a three-five sentence description of each participant’s role). Roundtable proposals must include a substantial and well-developed explanation of the questions and themes that each participant will explore. Roundtable proposals that do not adequately detail each participant’s role and intended contribution will not be accepted. All roundtable proposals must include a chairperson. Individual discussants are required to register for the conference and pay 2010-11 AJS membership dues. E. Meetings. A limited number of meetings or workshops grouped around a variety of purposes—for example, exploring issues in the field or discussing an ongoing project—are meant to provide a more informal setting for conversations. Such meetings, which usually take place during a breakfast or lunch time spot, might feature a short opening presentation, followed by attendee discussion. Members may contact the Vice President for Program (Derek Penlsar at derek.penslar@utoronto.ca) or AJS Executive Director (Rona Sheramy at ajs@ajs.cjh.org) to discuss ideas for such gatherings. Online Submission of Proposals A. Submission. All proposals must be submitted online via the AJS website no later than Thursday, May 13, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. There are no exceptions to this procedure, and it applies to both individual paper proposals and full session proposals. You must use the self-contained, complete, and secure process directly linked to the AJS website. Proposals submitted by any other means or emailed directly to Division Coordinators will not be evaluated. The first step in the submission process is payment of dues for the 2010–2011 membership year (September 1, 2010 to August 31, 2011) together with the appropriate conference registration fee via our online secure server. Please see the AJS website for other payment options. The AJS is unable to consider individual or session proposals submitted without these fees, and proposals submitted without the appropriate fees will not be passed on to the Division Coordinator for evaluation. Detailed directions on the AJS website will guide you through the remainder of the process. B. Divisions. In submitting your online proposal, you will need to identify the subject area division (see part VII, “Division Coordinators and Suggested Themes”) in which you choose to have your proposal considered. You may submit your proposal to one division only. However, Division Coordinators will work to place worthy proposals in more appropriate divisions if such proposals cannot be placed in the division to which they were submitted. Please contact Division Coordinators or the Vice President for Program with any preliminary questions regarding the best placement of your proposal. C. Abstract. The core of the proposal is a 350-word abstract that is to be entered directly on the web. Please exercise great care in formulating and editing your abstract, following the University of Chicago Manual of Style or MLA Style Sheet guidelines. Sample abstracts are available on the AJS website. See sections D and E below for specific information about abstracts for session and individual proposals. All abstracts of accepted proposals will be made available online. Submitters may not change the paper title or abstract after the submission deadline. D. Session Proposals. For those proposing full panels, roundtables, seminars, and meetings, the organizer must create a session proposal with a 350-word abstract that explains the session’s rationale and scholarly significance, and also lists the names and, in brief, contributions of each participant. Session organizers are responsible for submitting all other relevant information—contact information, paper titles, abstracts, a.v. requests, payment codes, etc.—for each session participant. The abstract for each paper in a session, written by the individual scholar but submitted by the session organizer, should explain the presentation’s purpose, methodology, sources, argument and specific contribution to scholarship in the field. Session organizers must make sure that each participant has paid his/her respective membership dues and conference registration fee, so that the payment confirmation code may be included in the session proposal. Session organizers should be aware that the Program Committee reserves the right to make adjustments to pre-arranged sessions (i.e., add or remove a paper, change the chair, discussant, or respondent position) in response to program needs. The Committee will make every effort to notify the session organizer regarding such changes. E. Individual Proposals (Papers or Alternative Media Presentations). Those who are submitting a paper or poster proposal individually (not as part of pre-formed sessions) are required to submit a 350-word abstract, in addition to their contact information, payment information, division, and a.v. request. The abstract for an individual paper or poster should explain the presentation’s purpose, methodology, sources, argument and specific contribution to scholarship in the field. The Division Coordinators and the Program Committee will assign accepted proposals to a session. F. Audio-Visual Equipment. The AJS is able to provide one of the following pieces of equipment per presenter: CD player, overhead projector, slide projector, TV/DVD, and a limited number of LCD projectors. A maximum of three pieces of equipment will be provided to pre-formed sessions. The online proposal form will ask you to specify your audio-visual needs and to explain how the requested equipment will be used in your presentation or session. Given the high cost of audio-visual equipment rental (e.g., $800/LCD projector; $400 DVD player/monitor), the AJS cannot guarantee that all audio-visual requests will be accommodated. The best way to ensure accommodation of your request is to provide a detailed and compelling need for its use (e.g., why the material cannot be shared by handout). Outlines of talks or simple text displays do not constitute a compelling need. Those using LCD projectors must provide their own laptops. The AJS cannot accept audio-visual requests after May 13, 2010. Do not request a piece of equipment unless it is essential for your presentation; unnecessary equipment adds significantly to the cost of the conference and registration fees. G. Confirmation. You must complete the entire online sequence in order for the AJS office to receive your proposal. Confirmation of your proposal’s receipt will be sent to your email address (this is different from the email confirming online payment). If you do not receive the submission confirmation, your proposal may not have reached the AJS office. In this case, please follow up with the AJS office to confirm receipt. Please submit your proposal in a timely fashion as the website for submitting proposals will close at 5:00 p.m., on Thursday, May 13, 2010. Notification. The AJS office will notify you of decisions by email in July. Other than the email acknowledgment at the end of the online proposal process, there will be no other acknowledgment of receipt before July. If your proposal is not accepted, the AJS will refund your conference registration fee upon request until October 31, 2010. Membership dues are not refundable. Graduate Student Presentations The AJS welcomes graduate students to submit proposals for papers, sessions, and poster presentations. In order to submit proposals, graduate students must meet the following criteria by the submission due date: 1) they must have completed their coursework and comprehensive/qualifying exams; 2) their dissertation prospectus must be approved; 3) they must be at the stage of writing their dissertation; and 4) the proposal must reflect their doctoral research. Graduate students must arrange for their primary advisor to submit an Advisor Evaluation Form available on the AJS website; this form must reach the AJS office by * May 13, 2010*. Graduate student proposals will not be evaluated if the AJS does not receive the Advisor Evaluation Form by the deadline. The Program Committee will not accept all-student sessions; graduate students organizing sessions should invite at least one senior scholar to present in their session, and ask a senior scholar to serve as session chair and/or respondent. Several special travel grants are available to graduate students on a competitive basis (see part VI, “Travel Grants”). Proposals from Scholars Outside of Jewish Studies The AJS would appreciate your help in identifying scholars whose primary affiliations or fields do not lie within Jewish studies but whose work has a direct impact on Jewish Studies and whose participation would enhance the annual meeting. The AJS welcomes proposals from such individuals. A reminder: in order to submit a proposal and present at the conference, scholars outside the field must be or become AJS members. Session Chairs The AJS seeks volunteers to serve as chairs of panels in their fields. If you are interested in serving as a session chair, please register yourself as a chair volunteer in the online conference submission site. You will be contacted should an appropriate spot be available. If you require a chair position for institutional funding, make sure to identify yourself as a volunteer by the submission deadline. Graduate students may not serve as session chairs. Further chair guidelines are available on the AJS website. Film Series The AJS is pleased to announce the Fourth Annual AJS Film Series. The film series will run throughout the conference and will include an array of short and feature-length films of interest to Jewish Studies teachers and scholars. If you are interested in suggesting a film for the series or submitting a film for consideration, please contact the AJS at ajs@ajs.cjh.org.
For presenters, chairs, discussants, and respondents, full payment of both membership dues and the advance conference registration fee is part of the submission process. Other attendees may pre-register until 5:00 p.m., November 15, 2010 via the AJS website. Thereafter registration will take place on-site at The Westin Copley Place. Attendees must display badges at all times for admission to conference sessions and the book exhibit. Program books will be distributed on site at the conference hotel to all participants. A downloadable pdf of the program book will be available on the AJS website in early November. Those wishing to have the program book mailed to them first-class in advance of the conference may order one for $10.00 on the AJS website.
The Westin Copley Place located at 10 Huntington Avenue in Boston, MA, has extended the AJS an extraordinary rate of $119.00 per room, single and double occupancy, not including taxes, with a limited number of rooms for students at $109.00. Reservations can be made by calling the Westin reservations line 1-888-627-7216; please ask for the Association for Jewish Studies rate. To make reservations online, please click here for the AJS rate. Students only: please click here for the student room rate. Kosher meals will be catered by Catering by Andrew, under the supervision of the VAAD Harabonim of Massachusetts. We look forward to having many attendees dining together throughout the conference, and especially at the Gala Banquet on Sunday, December 21, 2010. All meal reservations must be made by November 15, 2010. The Parents Childcare Co-op will be organizing affordable childcare during conference meeting hours. The program is sponsored by the Center for Cultural Judaism. Pre-registration is required. Please contact Professor Andrea Lieber (717-245-1482; lieber@dickinson.edu) if you have any questions. Please note: the Parents Childcare Co-op is an independent initiative and is not sponsored by nor affiliated with the Association for Jewish Studies. The Association for Jewish Studies assumes no liability for use of these services. Once a paper or session is submitted, it is expected that the author(s) will present their paper if accepted. Participation in the conference is highly competitive, and a cancelled presentation wastes a spot that could have accommodated another scholar. As a courtesy to AJS members, conference presenters, and attendees, the AJS strongly discourages presenters from canceling their participation in the conference. Please notify the AJS directly if you are scheduled to participate in the conference program in any capacity and need to cancel. No-shows (those who cancel without prior notification) will not be allowed to submit a proposal for the 2011 conference. The refund policy is as follows: For program participants (chairs, presenters, discussants, etc.): requests for refunds of conference registration fees and meal payments must be received by September 15, 2010. No refunds will be issued after that date. For non-participants, requests for refunds of conference registration fees and meal payments must be received by October 31, 2010. No refunds will be issued after that date. All refunds will be charged a $20.00 processing fee ($10.00 for students), with the exception of refunds requested by those whose papers were not accepted. The AJS is committed to supporting wide participation in the conference. In particular, the AJS seeks to support untenured faculty, graduate students, unemployed scholars, and scholars from Eastern Europe who receive little to no institutional support for conference travel. Below please find information about several travel grant opportunities. Click here for a travel grant application. The AJS must receive applications by September 7, 2010. If you wish to contribute to the AJS Conference Travel Grant Fund, please click here. A. Travel Grants for Faculty, Graduate Students, and Independent Scholars The common application form for travel grants is available here. Applicants should submit the common application form so it reaches the AJS no later than Sept. 7, 2010, unless otherwise noted, and will be notified by the end of October of their status. Applicants may apply to more than one grant program, but will be awarded at most one grant. Please review eligibility requirements carefully before submitting an application. 1. AJS Graduate Student Travel Grants. The AJS will offer a limited number of travel grants to graduate students presenting papers, digital media presentations, or posters at the conference. Priority will go to graduate students receiving little to no institutional support for conference travel. Grant recipients may be awarded up to $400 in travel support. 2. Center for Jewish History Travel Grants Center for Jewish History Travel Grants, awarded on a competitive basis, will fund travel stipends up to $500 to scholars presenting work based upon research conducted at the Center for Jewish History in Manhattan. Only scholars who have been accepted to present a paper or poster, or serve as a discussant or respondent, and who receive little to no institutional support for conference travel are eligible to apply. Priority will go to untenured faculty (tenure-track or adjunct), independent scholars without full-time employment, and graduate students; next in priority are tenured faculty and retired faculty. Applicants should complete the common application form and submit so received no later than Sept. 7, 2010. Applicants will be notified by late October. Funded by the Center for Jewish History, a partnership of the American Jewish Historical Society, the American Sephardi Federation, the Leo Baeck Institute, the Yeshiva University Museum, and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. 3. Eastern European Scholar Travel Grants The AJS will offer a limited number of travel grants to Jewish studies scholars at Eastern European institutions. Grant recipients must be full-time professors or scholars at an Eastern European university or research institute, whose scholarship focuses on an area of Jewish studies. Application deadline: May 13, 2010. Applicants will be notified of decisions by August 2010. Scholars interested in applying for the grant should contact AJS office at ajs@ajs.cjh.org. Click here for the application form. 4. Lucius N. Littauer Foundation Travel Grants These travel grants will fund provide travel stipends up to $400 to untenured faculty (tenure-track or adjunct) and independent scholars without full-time employment whose proposals have been accepted for presentation and who do not have institutional travel support. Only scholars who have been accepted to present papers, digital media presentations, or posters at the conference, or serve as a discussant or respondent, and who receive little to no institutional support for conference travel are eligible to apply. Applicants should complete the common application form and submit so received no later than Sept. 7, 2010. Applicants will be notified by late October. 5. Tikvah Fund Travel Grants Tikvah Fund Travel Grants, awarded on a competitive basis, will fund travel stipends up to $500 to scholars presenting work on Jewish thought, philosophy, and theology. Only scholars who have been accepted to present a paper or poster, or serve as respondent or discussant, and who receive little to no institutional support for conference travel are eligible to apply. Priority will go to untenured faculty (tenure-track or adjunct), independent scholars without full-time employment, and graduate students; next in priority are tenured faculty and retired faculty. Applicants should complete the ccommon application form and submit so received no later than Sept. 7, 2010. Applicants will be notified by late October. Supported by the Tikvah Fund. 6. Posen Foundation Travel Grants Posen Travel Grants, awarded on a competitive basis, will fund travel stipends up to $500 to scholars presenting research on secular Jewish history and cultures at the AJS Conference. Only scholars who have been accepted to present a paper or poster, or serve as a discussant or respondent, and who receive little to no institutional support for conference travel are eligible to apply. Priority will go to untenured faculty (tenure-track or adjunct), independent scholars without full-time employment, and graduate students; next in priority are tenured faculty and retired faculty. Applicants should complete the common application form and submit so received no later than Sept. 7, 2010. Applicants will be notified by late October. Funded by the Posen Foundation, which supports research on Jewish secularism and secularization. 7. Maurice Amado Foundation Travel Grants 8. Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation Travel Grants 9. Rosalie Katchen Travel Grant sponsored by the HBI (Hadassah-Brandeis
Institute) B. Travel Grants and Research Awards in Gender and Jewish Studies 1. AJS Women’s Caucus Travel Grant. The AJS Women's Caucus awards travel grants to graduate students whose papers contribute to the study of women, feminism, and gender in Jewish studies and have been accepted for presentation at the 2010 conference. Graduate students in all areas of Jewish studies who have not previously received a Women's Caucus Travel Grant are encouraged to apply. The application consists of: the AJS abstract/paper proposal; a paragraph explicitly stating how the paper broadens the current understanding of Jews and gender; a copy of the letter of acceptance from the AJS; a CV; and a proposed budget that includes other potential sources of financial support. Application documents should be electronically submitted as email attachments by Sept. 7, 2010 to kerenm@umich.edu, attention Keren R. McGinity. Applicants will be notified by the Travel Grant Committee prior to the conference. Winners will also be announced at the Women's Caucus Breakfast, to which they are invited at no cost, and should therefore plan to attend. 2. Prize for Innovative Scholarship in Gender and Jewish Studies. What is the next step for Jewish feminist and gender studies? What is the next "post" for feminism? In what ways can recent theoretical trends in feminist, gender, queer, and trans-theory impact the various disciplines within Jewish studies? In recognition of the importance of these questions, the AJS Women's Caucus announces a prize for a paper presented at the AJS annual meeting within any discipline of Jewish studies that opens up new areas of inquiry or advances Jewish feminist or gender studies. The prize carries a cash award of $500. Papers must have been prepared especially for presentation at the 2010 AJS annual meeting. Papers should be submitted electronically in publishable form (with full citations and bibliography) by February 15, 2011. Submissions should be sent to lieber@dickinson.edu.
From those listed below, please identify the subject area in which you wish to have your proposal considered. Note: Several divisions include suggested themes for exploration. These suggestions do not preclude proposals on other topics.
1. Bible and the History of Biblical
Interpretation
2. Rabbinic Literature and Culture
azzan@rci.rutgers.edu | (732) 932-5773
3. Yiddish Studies
khellers@sas.upenn.edu | (215) 898-7103
4. Modern Jewish Literature and Culture
rochelso@fiu.edu 5. Modern
Hebrew Literature
bamann@jtsa.edu | (212) 678-8816
6. Medieval Jewish Philosophy
dfrank@purdue.edu | (765) 494-7564 7. Jewish
Mysticism
smagid@indiana.edu
8. Modern Jewish Thought and Theology
kkoltunf@haverford.edu | (610) 896-1026 9. Jewish
History and Culture in Antiquity
10. Medieval
and Early Modern Jewish History, Literature, and Culture
11.
Sephardi/Mizrahi Studies
mkligman@huc.edu | 212-824-2246 12. Modern
Jewish History in Europe, Asia, Israel, and Other
Communities
jveidlin@indiana.edu | (812) 856-6013 13. Modern
Jewish History in
the Americas
bwenger@sas.upenn.edu | (215) 898-5702 14. Israel
Studies
troen@brandeis.edu | (781) 736-6220 15.
Holocaust Studies
16. Jews and
the Arts
czemel@yorku.ca | (416) 736-2100 17. Social
Science, Anthropology, and
Folklore
sasson@middlebury.edu | (802) 443-5304 18. Gender
Studies
chava.weissler@lehigh.edu | (610) 868-6604 19.
Linguistics, Semiotics,
and Philology 20.
Special Topics, Interdisciplinary
andrea.most@utoronto.ca | (416) 946-0828 Derek Penslar, University of Toronto,
Chair
Shira Kohn, New York University, student representative Marsha Rozenblit, University of Maryland, ex
officio
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