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Friday, April 30, 2010

Monday, May 3: Workshop on Career Prospects for American Studies PhD's

The workshop on career prospects for American Studies PhD's inside and outside of the academy is this Monday, May 3, 2010 from 3:30 - 5:00 p.m in Scott Hall room 4. Workshop participants include David Karjanen, Anne Phibbs (Director of the UMN GLBTA Programs Office) and DGS Kevin Murphy.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Dr. David Noble Presenting at Macalester College - May 7, 2010

Dr. David Noble will present to The Institute of Theological And Interdisciplinary Studies on May 7, 2010 at Macalester College at 7:30 p.m. The announced topic of the evening is: The Dangerous Orthodoxy of Two Worlds. This event is free and open to the public.

Dr. David Noble Presenting at Macalester College - May 7, 2010
David Noble has watched with a very keen eye the changes in our world for more than half a century and has illuminated these historic changes and developments for students at the University of Minnesota. His teaching has been synonymous with American Studies.
Dr. Noble will present to The Institute of Theological And Interdisciplinary Studies May 7, 2010 at the Board Room, Macalester College 7:30 p.m. Information reservation http://www.astonishme.org. Free and open to public.
The announced topic of the evening is: The Dangerous Orthodoxy of Two Worlds

Dissertation Retreat 2010

The Center for Writing and the Graduate School are co-sponsoring a 3-week on-campus Dissertation Retreat from May 25-June 10, 2010. Students are encouraged to apply for one of 12 seats in the retreat, which is a free opportunity for concentrated writing time in a supportive group setting. Application deadline: May 10, 2010.

Dissertation Retreat 2010
As you know, summer offers a unique opportunity for dissertation-writers to work on their
dissertations without having to divide their time between teaching and writing. The Graduate
School and the Center for Writing would like to offer you an opportunity to begin this summer
with three weeks of concentrated dissertation-writing time in a supportive group setting. We
invite you to submit a short application for one of twelve seats in the second annual on-campus
dissertation writing retreat. This year's retreat will be held during May term (May 25-June 10,
2010), and the deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Monday, May 10. Please see application
details later in this email.
Retreat Expectations and Activities
Participants in the retreat...
• do focused, sustained work on their dissertations in scheduled blocks of writing time
and in optional meetings with experienced graduate writing consultants (all of whom
are from fields in the Humanities) from the Center for Writing
• participate in brief warm-up activities designed to facilitate writing
• pledge not to use the internet or email during the hours of the retreat (and therefore
bring either laptops or flash drives with their dissertation files on them)
• participate in three Tuesday lunches in-house, during which consultants from the Center
for Writing or the Graduate School will lead a discussion of a topic about dissertationwriting
• participate in two 15-minute assessments of the program during the course of the retreat
(to help make the retreat as useful as possible for current and future participants)
• have no other teaching or research responsibilities during May Term
Writing Retreat Location and Schedule
If you are selected, you will gather with other retreat participants Mondays through Thursdays,
May 25-June 10, from 8:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in 15 Nicholson Hall, the location for Student
Writing Support, which also houses a computer lab. (Please note that May 24 is Memorial Day
and we will not be in session.) Coffee, tea, and healthy snacks will be available. We will break
for lunch from 12-1 each day. On Tuesdays, participants will be provided with a lunch in-house
during a discussion of dissertation writing issues and strategies.
How to Apply
If this program sounds appealing to you, we encourage you to apply. Applications must be
emailed and received by Katie Levin at kslevin@umn.edu no later than Monday, May 10 at
5:00 p.m. The application consists of the following three parts:
• From your advisor: a brief email recommending you for the retreat
• From you:
‚àí An abstract of your dissertation
‚àí A statement, no longer than one page, describing how this structured dissertation
retreat will help you make progress on your dissertation. In other words, what
would you gain from this dissertation retreat that you couldn't do on your own?

Why participate in a Dissertation Writing Retreat?

Last year's participants have told us that the retreat was "invaluable":
[The retreat] got me excited about my project again after I'd hit a real burn-out and got me back to planning step-by-step instead of randomly doing whatever work occurred to me. It will,
without question, give me the focus and energy to FINISH!
[This retreat] has changed my ideas about writing and demystified a lot of the process. It is also good to be reminded that my work benefits so much from talking it over with people (besides my advisor).
When asked if they would recommend the retreat to other dissertators, participants told us:
Yes! Great to connect with other dissertators, great to get some fresh perspective on how writing gets done. Great to have access to writing consultants, and to discuss my work with people
outside my field.
Absolutely 100%! I wish I could do it again. In just 11 writing days I completed a chapter draft.
Literally 1/5 of my dissertation was drafted here!
Absolutely--I accomplished more in these three weeks than I had in the previous three months.
The discipline and the encouragement and feelings of community made an enormous difference.
I wish that all grad students had access to this kind of structured and supportive writing
experience.

Interested? Questions?

If you have any questions or would like to learn more, please feel free to get in touch with me
(kslevin@umn.edu; 612.624.7720).

Spring 2010 NEW Grade Submission Policy

Spring 2010 Instructors: The policy for submitting grades has changed. Now all grades are due 72 hours after the last date of finals (previously 72 hours after your scheduled final). This means the deadline for submitting grades is May 19th. Next week we will provide more information about grade submission.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Final Critical Dialogues: May 4, 2010 - Susie Hatmaker & Waleed Mahdi

Please join Crossings for their final event of the semester, Cartographies of Power, on Tuesday, May 4, 2010 featuring American Studies graduate students Susie Hatmaker and Waleed Mahdi. This event will take place from 3:30-5:00 p.m. in 105 Scott Hall.

Final Critical Dialogues: May 4, 2010 - Susie Hatmaker & Waleed Mahdi
Critical Dialogues: Crossings in American Studies
Cartographies of Power
Tuesday, May 4th 3:30-5:00 pm
105 Scott Hall
Exchange and Forgetting in Appalachia:
A Meditation on Circulation, Power, and Value
Susie Hatmaker
Varied considerations of the abstract realm that produces value, both commodity and social, lies at the heart of much critical social theory. As discussions of power and its effects raise new questions about the role of modern and post-modern subject positions in the ongoing spread of social injustice, I will revive metaphysical thinking to strip from the individual some of the overdetermined power granted by scientific empiricism, from which the disciplinary divisions of the 20th century emerged. By viewing Appalachia as a terrain of power, exchange and value creation, I hope to invite an open discussion of the creation of progressive temporality, values, and the conditions of contemporary injustices.
"Why They Hate Us?"
Unpacking U.S.-Arab/Muslim Post-9/11 Responses
Waleed Mahdi
Ever since the tragic attacks of September 11, 2001, many Americans have wondered, "why they hate us?" The immediate and dominant response has been a polarizing contention that locates the terrorists' cultural and religious identity as the driving force for their extreme acts of violence. This theoretical beginning, I argue, does not offer an encompassing account of the complexity surrounding the tension that exists between the United States and the Arab and Muslim worlds. Hence, this paper seeks to present a more elaborate and contextualized reading of the interplay of many American, Arabic, and Islamic discursive formations; a reading that neither brands 9/11 as 'the' turning point in the history of the U.S. encounters with Arabs and Muslims, nor de-emphasizes the relevance of the event to U.S. policy-making and its impact on the lives of millions of Arabs and Muslims, including their diasporas in the United States.
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Sponsored by the Department of American Studies
Susie Hatmaker is a second year doctoral student in the department of American studies, and is also completing a minor in cultural anthropology. Her work studies ecologies of connection in Appalachia through theories of exchange, and this is her first public intellectual performance related to her dissertation project.
Waleed Mahdi is a PhD student in American Studies. He received his Master's Degree in Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies from the University of New Mexico. His research interests include Middle East studies, Arab American Studies, race and ethnicity, and pop culture.

WRIT 8505 "Professional Practice" - Summer 2010

WRIT 8505, "Professional Practice", will be taught Summer 2010 by Dr. Bernadette Longo, Mondays and Wednesdays, 6:00-8:30 p.m. This course is open to graduate students who are completing a research report or other writing project. Graduate students in any discipline are welcome in this class.

WRIT 8505 "Professional Practice" - Summer 2010
Please see course flyer below.
Summer 2010 Course.pdf

Rocky Mountain Interdisciplinary History Conference Extended Submission Deadline

The Department of History at the University of Colorado at Boulder has extended the call for papers for the annual Rocky Mountain Interdisciplinary History Conference on September 11, 2010 in Boulder, CO. Both individual and group proposals will be considered. The new extended submission deadline is June 20, 2010.

Rocky Mountain Interdisciplinary History Conference Extended Submission Deadline
RMIHC 2010 - Call for Papers (Deadline Extension)-1.doc

COMM 8210 "Studying Popular Culture"-Fall 2010

COMM 8210, "Studying Popular Culture", will be taught fall 2010 by Instructor Edward Schiappa on Thursdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m. in Ford B80. The objective of this course is to provide students with an overview of the purposes, theories, and methods of scholarly criticism of popular culture artifacts and practices.

COMM 8210 "Studying Popular Culture"-Fall 2010
The objective of this course is to provide students with an overview of the purposes, theories, and methods of scholarly criticism of popular culture artifacts and practices. The course will involve a combination of close reading and discussion of a number of academic works that perform popular culture criticism, augmented by occasional lectures by the instructor and guest visits by popular culture critics.
Each student will execute a research project during the semester aimed at producing a competitive conference paper or publication.
Some of the questions we will explore include: Why do we engage in the scholarly analysis of popular culture? What counts as a "text," an "audience," and "method"? Who are the appropriate audiences for scholarly analysis of popular culture? How might we bring pedagogy and scholarship into a productive conversation in the performance of our professional duties? What are the relative strengths and weaknesses of the dominant theoretical approaches to popular culture criticism? How might we bring critical-humanistic and social scientific approaches to popular media into a productive conversation?
Class sessions will discuss assigned books that exemplify strategies of analyzing popular culture practices and artifacts. The primary modus operandi of the class is to study exemplary works to note their strengths and limitations, and to produce a work of our own.
Seminars always have to negotiate the tension between depth and breadth. The relevant literature concerning popular culture analysis is vast and there is no way a single class can cover it all. At the same time, to examine only one approach risks leaving students without an appreciation of the range of theoretical, critical, and methodological options available. Accordingly, the way this seminar will negotiate this tension is to read seven books thoroughly and carefully. Some of these books are acknowledged "classics" of pop culture analysis that every serious scholar should read. Our reading of these books will be augmented by short lectures by the instructors to fill in any problematic gaps in students' knowledge of relevant theories or research traditions. Through this combination of close readings of a limited number of texts and supplemental lectures and materials, students hopefully will complete the class feeling they have a solid basis for continued research in the area of popular culture analysis.
Note: Below are listed the tentative list of books we will read, though the final line-up has not yet been determined:
Dick Hebdige, Subculture: The Meaning of Style (Routledge, 1981)
Janice Radway, Reading the Romance: Women, Patriarchy, and Popular Literature (University of North Carolina Press, 1991) OR her A Feeling for Books (University of North Carolina Press, 1999).
Sut Jhally & Justin Lewis, Enlightened Racism: The Cosby Show, Audiences, and the Myth of the American Dream (Westview Press, 1992),
Sarah Benet-Weiser, Kids Rule!: Nickelodeon and Consumer Citizenship (Duke UP, 2007).
Laurie Ouellette & James Hay, Better Living Through Reality TV: Television and Post-Welfare Citizenship (Wiley-Blackwell, 2008)
Gilbert Rodman, Elvis After Elvis: The Posthumous Career of a Living Legend (Routledge, 1996)
Tricia Rose, Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America (Wesleyan University Press, 1994)
Edward Schiappa, Beyond Representational Correctness: Rethinking Criticism of Popular Culture (Albany: SUNY Press, 2008).
Please email Edward Schiappa if you have any questions schiappa@umn.edu

DNCE 5500/AFRO 5910-May Session 2010

DNCE 5500/AFRO 5910, "Black Women in Cultural Production", will be taught May session 2010 by instructors Ananya Chatterjea and Rose Marie Brewer, Mondays-Thursdays, 11:15 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.This is a studio/lecture class investigating the his¬tory and politics of cultural production in visual and performing arts, by black women in both diasporic locations and transnationally.


DNCE 5500/AFRO 5910-May Session 2010
bwcp_flyer2-1.pdf

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Special Course for Fall 2010:ENGL 5020

ENGL 5020, "Studies in Narrative: Readings in Contemporary Fiction", will be co-taught by renowned Somali novelist, playwright, and essayist Nuruddin Farah, and Charles Sugnet for fall 2010 on Tuesdays 1:15-3:45 p.m.

Special Course for Fall 2010:ENGL 5020
Special Course for Fall 2010
Renowned Somali novelist, playwright, and essayist Nuruddin Farah will be in residence Fall semesters of 2010, 2011, and 2012 as holder of the Winton Chair in the Liberal Arts. Special courses will be offered during fall semester 2010 in connection with his visit:
Engl 5020. Studies in Narrative: Readings in Contemporary Fiction, co-taught by Nuruddin Farah (Winton Visiting Professor) and Charles Sugnet (Morse Alumni and Motley Teaching awards). First three weeks will be taught by Prof. Sugnet and will introduce students to Farah with study of his novel /Maps/ and one other work, with some criticism and contextual reading. Rest of course will be based on Prof. Farah's selections, including recent "postcolonial" titles like Miral al-Tahawy's /Blue Aubergine/ and Nega Mezlekia's /Notes From the Hyena's Belly/ but also some European and American favorites such as Graham Swift's /Waterland./ Undergraduates seeking permission to enroll should send a brief statement of interest and a writing sample to Rebecca Aylesworth (ayles001@um.edu); include postal address, e-mail address, and phone number. Course meets Tuesdays 1:15-3:45PM.
Nuruddin Farah has published ten acclaimed novels and one nonfiction book, and has received numerous awards, including the prestigious Neustadt International literary prize. Over his three semesters of residence here, he will engage in a variety of activities: teaching courses, giving public readings from his work, staging original plays, and working with high school students.
The David Michael Winton and Penny Rand Winton Chair in the Liberal Arts was established to encourage "innovative, distinctive research in the liberal arts" by supporting individuals whose research or creative work "questions established patterns of thought."

Comparative U.S. Race and Ethnicity Studies Speaker Series

On Thursday. April 22, renowned scholar George Sanchez will participate in a "Fireside Chat" discussion with Edén Torres, Chair of the Department of Chicano Studies, and SooJin Pate, member of the Comparative U.S. Race and Ethnicity Studies Interdisciplinary Graduate Group. Drawing from his past and present research, they will discuss methods, practices, issues, and trends in comparative race and ethnic studies. The event will take place from 3:30-5:00 p.m. in 135 Nicholson Hall.

Comparative U.S. Race and Ethnicity Studies Speaker Series
Time: 3:30 PM - 5 PM with Catered Reception Immediately Following
Location: 135 Nicholson Hall (East Bank)
Description: Comparative U.S. Race and Ethnicity Studies Speaker Series
Keynote Speaker: George Sanchez (Professor of American Studies and Ethnicity and History at the University of Southern California). More information about George Sanchez can be found at http://college.usc.edu/cf/faculty-andstaff/faculty.cfm?pid=1003672&CFID=10812534&CFTOKEN=44098014.
Sponsored by: Graduate School, Office of Equity and Diversity, and the Institute for Advanced Study
Hosted by: Departments of African American and African Studies, American Indian Studies, Chicano Studies, and the Asian American Studies Program

"Ethics for Jessica: Meditations on Living"

American Studies Professor Emeritus Gayle Graham Yates will discuss her book, Ethics for Jessica: Meditations on Living , on Tuesday, April 27 at 4:00 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Bookstore in Coffman Memorial Union.

"Ethics for Jessica: Meditations on Living"
Ethics for Jessica is Yates' memoir to her firstborn grandchild Jessica, now ten years old, for her life as a young adult. Filled with life lessons, personal experiences, memories and stories, Yates shares her thoughts on family, education, spirituality and the enjoyment of life. Moving through ethical frameworks drawn from Aristotle's ethics and the Ojibway narrative by Ignatia Broker, the chapters develop sequentially through ways of learning, ways of loving, and ways of hoping.
Yates will sign copies of her book following the discussion. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, or to order a signed copy visit www.bookstore.umn.edu/genref/authors.html.

Workshop: "The Pedagogy and Practice of Interdisciplinary Teaching", Monday, May 3, 2010, 3:00pm - 5:00pm

The Provost's Interdisciplinary Team through the Graduate School's Office of Interdisciplinary Initiatives is sponsoring the workshop "The Pedagogy and Practice of Interdisciplinary Teaching" on Monday, May 3, 2010, 3:00pm - 5:00pm in the Mississippi Room of Coffman Memorial Union. Space is limited and early registration is encouraged.

Workshop: "The Pedagogy and Practice of Interdisciplinary Teaching", Monday, May 3, 2010, 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Workshop: The Pedagogy and Practice of Interdisciplinary Teaching
Date: Monday, May 3, 2010
Time: 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Location: Mississippi Room, Coffman Memorial Union
Faculty are increasingly teaching in interdisciplinary settings at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. If you are interested in learning more about best practices in interdisciplinary pedagogy, as well as strategies for overcoming barriers to interdisciplinary teaching, this workshop is for you. Topics for discussion include: models for interdisciplinary teaching, finding solutions for administrative challenges to interdisciplinary teaching, and promising pedagogical practices in interdisciplinary contexts. Faculty who teach undergraduate students, as well as those who teach graduate and professional students, will benefit from this workshop.
Space is limited and early registration is encouraged. To register, go to:
https://onestop2.umn.edu/training/courseDetail.jsp?course=CL0015&category=LEADER&unit=CL
You may also participate in this event via live webcast. We recommend you test your connectivity using MediaSite in advance of the event. To test your MediaSite connection, go to:
http://mediasite.uvs.umn.edu/Mediasite/Viewer/?peid=c1748f2d1da8467aa8b415e79b94b020.
If you are unable to open the MediaSite link, please contact your University Minnesota IT support person to install the proper software.
Panel: Best Practices and Models for Interdisciplinary Pedagogy and Teaching
• Stephen Lehmkuhle, Chancellor, University of Minnesota Rochester
• Uwe Kortshagen, Professor and Head, Department of Mechanical
Engineering
• Robert McMaster, Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate
Education and Professor, Department of Geography
• Eric Sheppard, Associate Director, Interdisciplinary Center for
the Study of Global Change and Professor, Department of
Geography
Panel: Solutions for Administrative Challenges to Interdisciplinary Teaching
• Arlene Carney, Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs and
Professor, Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences
• Allen Levine, Dean, College of Food, Agriculture and Natural
Resource Sciences and Professor, Department of Food Science and
Nutrition
• Becky Yust, Professor and Head, Department of Design, Housing
and Apparel
This workshop is sponsored by the Provost's Interdisciplinary Team through the Graduate School's Office of Interdisciplinary Initiatives.

Ryan Cartwright-Smithsonian Institute Predoctoral Fellowship

Congratulations to Ryan Cartwright who has been awarded a Smithsonian Institution Predoctoral Fellowship at the National Museum of American History.

PCard Receipt Reminder

Please submit receipts for all April PCard purchases to date to Laura by Friday, April 30, 2010.


PCard Receipt Reminder
Please submit receipts for all February PCard purchases to date to Laura by Friday, April 30, 2010. See attachment below for generic coversheet.
COVERSHEET generic-1.xlsx

Karissa White-2010 Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship

Congratulations to Karissa White who has been awarded a 2010 Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

2010 TA Position Application

To apply for a TA-ship next year, please complete the attached application (s). One is a form used to indicate your preference for assisting in the classroom, the other for teaching. To be eligible for the teaching positions you must have passed your preliminary examinations. Please feel free to contact Colleen (612-624-1871) with any questions. The deadline for the application is Friday, May 7th , 2010.

2011 TA Position Application
See attachments below for applications:
App Teaching Pool FY11.docx
App Assisting Pool FY11.docx

"Could he Forgive her? Gender, Agency and Criminality in 19th Century Law and Literature"

"Could he Forgive her? Gender, Agency and Criminality in 19th Century Law and Literature" will be presented by distinguished visiting lecturer Nicole Lacey, professor of criminal law and legal theory, at the London School of Economics and Political Science on April 21, 2010 at 3:30 p.m. in Lockart Hall room 25.

"Could he Forgive her? Gender, Agency and Criminality in 19th Century Law and Literature"
By Nicola Lacey
Professor of Criminal Law and Legal Theory, London School of Economics and Political Science
Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 3:30 P.M.
Lockhart Hall (Room 25)
Reception to follow in the Lindquist & Vennum Conference Room (385)
RSVPs to lawevent@umn.edu or (612) 625-4544
This lecture shall contend that there is a great deal to be learnt from realist novels about how women's agency and criminality was understood in the latter part of the 19^th Century. Focusing on the work of Anthony Trollope in particular.
*NICOLA LACEY *is a professor of criminal law and legal theory at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she has taught since 1998. Until 2006, she was also an adjunct professor at the Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra. She has been a visiting fellow at Harvard's Center for European Studies and a visiting professor at New York University's Global Law School and Yale's Program for Ethics, Politics and Economics. She was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2001.
Lacey's extensive and interdisciplinary research has included criminal law theory, comparative analysis of community-based crime-prevention methods, and comparative political economy of crime and punishment. In 2006-09, she analyzed the development of ideas of responsibility for crime since the mid-18th century as a Leverhulme Major Research Fellow. She has written widely on criminal law and justice and legal and social theory. Her most recent book is /Women, Crime and Character: From Moll Flanders to Tess of the d'Urbervilles /(Oxford, 2008).
The late Curtis B. Kellar, Class of 1940, established the Horatio Ellsworth Kellar Distinguished Visitors Program in memory of his father in 1996. In keeping with his father's many interests, Curtis Kellar's desire was to support an interdisciplinary lecture series at the Law School that would connect emerging issues in the law with other disciplines, such as art, drama, and literature. Mr. Kellar retired in 1981 as an Associate General Counsel of Mobil Oil Corp. He served on the Board of Directors of the Law Alumni Association and the Board of Visitors of the Law School.

University of Pittsburgh New Postdoctoral Fellowship Program 2011

The University of Pittsburgh School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to announce a new Postdoctoral Fellowship Program for 2011. The program is offering up to eight postdoctoral fellowships in the humanities and social sciences to begin January 2011. Fellowships are for one year and renewable for an additional year. Annual stipend will be $45,000. Ph.D. required by beginning of fellowship. Application deadline: June 1, 2010.

University of Pittsburgh New Postdoctoral Fellowship Program 2011
For the first time, the University of Pittsburgh School of Arts and Sciences
is offering up to eight postdoctoral fellowships in the humanities and
social sciences to begin in January 2011. These inaugural fellowships are
designed to attract excellent scholars from outside the University of
Pittsburgh and to offer junior scholars the time, space, and financial
support necessary to produce significant scholarship early in their careers.
The Arts and Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowships are for one year and are
renewable for an additional year. Fellows will teach two courses per year,
complete scholarly work, and participate in the academic and intellectual
community of the School of Arts and Sciences and the department or program
with which they are affiliated. The fellowship offers junior scholars the
time, space, and financial support necessary to produce significant
scholarship early in their careers. The annual stipend will be $45,000.
Fellows will receive an annual research fund of $3,500 and a one-time
reimbursement of up to $1,500 for moving expenses.
Eligibility
We invite applications from qualified candidates in the humanities and
social sciences who have received the PhD from outside of the University of
Pittsburgh between December 1, 2007 and November 30, 2010. Applicants who
do not have the PhD in hand at the time of application must provide a letter
from the Department Chair or the Advisor stating that the PhD degree will be
conferred before the term of the fellowship begins.
Guidelines
Postdoctoral education is an important facet of research and scholarship at
the University of Pittsburgh, and the University has developed a
comprehensive set of guidelines for postdoctoral fellows and the faculty,
departments, and programs who work with them.
Application Requirements and Procedure
Applicants should submit the following materials:
1. An application form (available at www.as.pitt.edu/postdoc)
2. Curriculum vitae
3. Detailed statement of current research interests (1,000 words) that
clearly outlines the goals of the research you will undertake during the
term of the fellowship.
4. One writing sample no longer than 20 pages.
5. A copy of the Dissertation Table of Contents
6. A two-page statement of teaching interests and one or two course
proposals (subject area, brief syllabus, proposed methods) for a 15-week
course directed towards advanced undergraduates or graduate students.
7. Three letters of recommendation. (NOTE: Letter writers should e-mail
their recommendations directly to postdoc@as.pitt.edu, using the applicant's
name and the word, "Postdoc Recommendation" in the e-mail subject line.)
Application Deadline and Notification of Awards
All application materials-including letters of recommendation-must be
submitted electronically before June 1, 2010. Only fully completed formal
applications will be considered. It is your responsibility to ensure that
all documentation is complete and that referees submit their letters of
recommendation to postdoc@as.pitt.edu by the closing date. Awards will be
announced in July 2010.
The University of Pittsburgh is an affirmative action/equal opportunity
employer and educator. Women, minorities, and international candidates are
especially encouraged to apply.

Crossings: Featuring Pashmina Murthy - April 20, 2010

Please join Crossings on Tuesday, April 20, 2010 featuring Pashmina Murthy presenting "The Wicked Witch of the South", demonstrating the metonymic slippage between the feminine and the marginal becoming complicated within the dynamics of a witch-hunt, where it is the "crone," upon whom the violence is visited. The event will take place in 105 Scott Hall from 3:30-5:00 p.m.

Crossings: Featuring Pashmina Murthy - April 20, 2010
Critical Dialogues: Crossings in American Studies
Tuesday, April 20th 3:30-5:00 pm
105 Scott Hall
"The Wicked Witch of the South"
Pashmina Murthy
Framed in the cross-cultural belief that the female body is capable of embodying both powerful evil and good, her talk seeks to demonstrate the ways in which the figure of the witch complicates our understanding of marginality. What she hopes to show is that the metonymic slippage between the feminine and the marginal becomes complicated within the dynamics of a witch-hunt, where it is the "crone," upon whom the violence is visited. Approaching it from a theoretical perspective, she is interested less in accusations of witchcraft/sorcery/possession per se and more in their resurgence at this particular juncture in the global South. Her interest in this issue is, thus, two-pronged: on the one hand, she examines scholarly readings of this resurgence as a possible response to globalization and to the failure of democracy. At another level, however, I look into the transhistorical punctuation of these instances of violence as demanding a re-conceptualization of marginality - one that isn't encapsulated within the formation of the nation-state.
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Sponsored by the Department of American Studies
Pashmina Murthy is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies at the University of Minnesota. She has a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Southern California, and her research interests include transnational studies, postcolonial theory, urban politics, and subaltern feminisms.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

16th Annual David Noble Lecture

We are pleased to invite you to the 16th Annual David Noble Lecture featuring Professor Shelley Streeby, professor of literature at the University of California-San Diego. Join us for this special event being held on Tuesday, April 13th, 2010 at 7 pm at the Minnesota History Center. Professor Streeby will present the lecture "Archiving Black Transnational Modernity: Stereopticons, Scrapbooks and Social Movements." A reception will follow.

2010 David Noble Lecture.pdf
16th Annual David Noble Lecture featuring Shelley Streeby
"Archiving Black Transnational Modernity:
Stereopticons, Scrapbooks, and Social Movements"

Tuesday, April 13, 2010
7 p.m.
Minnesota History Center

Harlem intellectual Hubert Harrison, who was born in the Virgin Islands and came to New York City in 1900, moved in and out of some of the most significant transnational movements of his day: the Socialist Party, the IWW, the Liberty League, and the UNIA. He also co-chaired the major Black protest of World War I, edited the Voice and Negro World, and was a popular lecturer and cultural critic. Harrison and other participants in transnational social movements constructed alternative histories of Black modernity, responded to white supremacist uses of media, traced connections between the US and the world, and imagined an internationalism other than Woodrow Wilson's. Prof. Streeby's talk examines Columbia University's archive of the "Hubert H. Harrison Papers, 1893-1927" and will focus on how transnational black identity and new black social movements, in the United States and the Caribbean, found expression after World War I in the popular
culture of the 1920s.
Shelley Streeby is a professor of literature at the University of California-San Diego. Streeby works in the interdisciplinary field of American Studies, with a specialization in U.S. historical and literary studies through the early 20th century. She is currently working on a book on transnational movements in U.S. literature and visual culture from 1886, the year of the Haymarket riot in Chicago, through 1927, the year that Marcus Garvey was deported. She also serves on the managing editorial board of American Quarterly: The Journal of the American Studies Association.

"Publishing and Paradigm Shifts"

"Publishing and Paradigm Shifts". Please join this conversation on Tuesday, April 13th at 10 a.m. in the Scott Hall Commons (Rm. 105).

This is a moderated conversation between Curtis Marez, editor of American Quarterly, and Kevin Murphy, co-chair of the Radical History Review's editorial collective. The conversation will explore how journal publishing can be a mechanism for field transformation and innovation. Marez and Murphy will discuss how they have helped to maneuver American Quarterly and Radical History Review for changes in the fields of history and American Studies, in particular. The panel will also address practical matters concerning publishing for faculty and graduate students.

Fall Book Orders Due

NOTE FROM LAURA: I've been notified by the bookstore that it is time to submit fall book orders. Please send your order to me by Wednesday, May 5, 2010. Please continue reading for the order form, bookstore ordering guidelines, and notes that help me process your order and obtain desk copies.

Blank Book Order Form.xls
Notes from Laura:
-Please complete one form for each course, and email your order as an attachment to me at Domin047@umn.edu by Wednesday, May 5, 2010.
-Let me know whether or not you need a personal desk copy. I will be requesting copies for your TAs.
- I submit a request to the publisher for desk copies after I receive your completed order form. It can take weeks to obtain desk copies, so the earlier I get the order, the earlier you and your TAs will have copies of the books. Desk copies cannot be guaranteed for faculty and instructors if the deadline for book orders is not met.
-If your course is cross-listed, include all department names on your order form so that all sections of the course will have books ordered.
- Include the ISBN of the edition you want . If the ISBN is incorrect, you may end up with a different edition of the book.
-If you are NOT ordering books or ordering a packet instead, be sure to let me know.
Bookstore guidelines:
-Submitting book orders before Spring 2010 Finals Week gives the bookstore the opportunity to pay students the best price for their books during buyback.
- If you delete or change books for your course after they have shipped from the publisher, your research account will be charged for return fees.
-If know you will be using a book in the future, please indicate when that is. This allows the bookstore to plan to purchase used copies, saving students money.
- Be sure to specify whether the book is Required (R) or Optional (O).

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Division of Academic Technologies for the CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for the position of Digital Content Library Fellow

The Division of Academic Technologies for the CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for the position of Digital Content Library Fellow for 2010 for a nine or twelve month appointment. The 50% appointment includes tuition remission for fall and spring semesters. All applicants must be within their first six years of funding. Applications due: Friday, April 23, 2010 by 4:00 p.m.

Division of Academic Technologies for the CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for the position of Digital Content Library Fellow
DCLF_Call_2010.pdf

CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for Academic Technology Development Fellows

CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for the position of Academic Technology Development Fellows for a 12 month 50%, annually renewable appointment beginning September 2010. The 50% appointment includes tuition remission and summer support, and may include tuition remission for summer courses depending upon available resources. All graduate students are welcome to apply. Applications due: Friday, April 23, 2010 by 4:00 p.m.

CLA Office of Information Technology is taking applications for Academic Technology Development Fellows
ATDF_call_2010.pdf

"Civic Leadership in the Age of Obama"

Please join Macalester College for the 4th Annual Civic Forum, "Civic Leadership in the Age of Obama", on April 8, 2010 from 6:30-9:40 p.m. in the John B. Davis Lecture Hall. Free and open to the public.

"Civic Leadership in the Age of Obama"
4th Annual Civic Forum: Civic Leadership in the Age of Obama
6:30 PM - 9:30 PM
Thursday Apr 8, 2010
John B. Davis Lecture Hall, Ruth Stricker Dayton Campus Center
Dr. Ian F. Haney López is a Professor of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, where he teaches and writes in the area of race and constitutional law. His current research examines the emergence and operation of "colorblindness" in U.S. constitutional law as an indicator of a new racial ideology aimed at legitimating and preserving the racial status quo.
Faculty Respondent: Dr. Karin Aguilar-San Juan is an Associate Professor in the American Studies Department at Macalester College. An urban sociologist, she publishes and teaches courses in Asian-American Studies on community and identity, as well as, courses on racial inequality and race-based social movements.
Student Presenters:
Westenley (Wes) Alcenat is a senior at Macalester College with a double major in History and Political Science. His talk will explore the rebuilding of American human capital under Obama's presidency.
Callie Thuma is an American Studies major and Geography minor and a senior at Macalester. Her talk will illuminate examples of local and national leaders who are using the arts and oral history to creatively and collectively address class and race-based inequities.
http://www.macalester.edu/igc/civicforum/
Sponsored By: Institute for Global Citizenship
Categories: Front Page Events, Lectures and Speakers and Featured Events

Monday, April 5, 2010

University of California, Merced - One Year Position in US History-Comparative Race and Ethnicity

The University of California, Merced is accepting applications for a one year position in US History - Comparative Race and Ethnicity. They seek candidates with expertise in Chicano/a-Latino/a topics and capable of teaching in the 2010-2011 academic year. Anticipation start date is July 1, 2010. Ph.D. required. Application deadline: April 28, 2010.

University of California, Merced - One Year Position in US History-Comparative Race and Ethnicity
The University of California, Merced is a dynamic new university campus in Merced, California, which opened in September 2005 as the tenth campus of the University of California and the first American research university in the 21st century. In keeping with the mission of the University to provide teaching, research and public service of the highest quality, UC Merced offers research-centered and student-oriented educational opportunities at the undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels through three academic schools: Engineering, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences/Humanities/Arts.
The School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts at the University of California, Merced invites applicants from exceptional scholars and teachers at the Visiting Assistant Professor level in US Comparative Race and Ethnicity.
They particularly seek candidates with expertise in Chicano/a-Latino/a topics and capable of teaching the following subjects in the 2010-11 academic year, along with an additional course in their area of expertise: The Modern United States (1877-present), Topics in the History of Migration & Immigration, and Comparative Race and Ethnicity. The anticipated start date is July 1, 2010.
The University of California at Merced is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer with a strong institutional commitment to the achievement of diversity among its faculty, staff, and students. The University is supportive of dual career couples.
Qualifications: A Ph.D. in History, Comparative Race or Ethnicity, Chicano Studies or a related field by the start date and the ability to teach broadly in Comparative Race and Ethnicity in the U.S.
The announcement, and information on applications (due by April 28) are at http://jobs.ucmerced.edu/n/academic/position.jsf?positionId=2616

HSG 8463 - Fall 2010

HSG 8463, "Housing: Race and Class", will meet fall 2010 on Thursdays 6:15-8:45 p.m. The course looks to develop an understanding of the residential structure of the city, examine the linkages between the city's residential structure, social class and race, and examine the connections between the specific types of housing developing (public housing, gentrification) social class, and race. This course includes a field trip to Chicago.

HSG 8463 - Fall 2010
Are you concerned about the foreclosure crisis?
Are you interested in urban landscapes and housing policy?
Then please consider taking:
Housing: Race and Class (HSG 8463)
Fall Semester 2010 (meets Thursday 6:15-8:45PM)
Housing both reflects and shapes society. As such, the examination of housing, the residential structure of the city and characteristics such as social class and race is an important step in reaching a deeper understanding of the role of housing in the social, economic and cultural processes that shape society as a whole. Our examination of housing and residential structure will be a critical one and proceeds from the assumption that housing, residential structure, social class and race are created by human activity and that the linkages between them can be created differently. Such a recognition puts social justice at the heart of our critical inquiry into housing, residential structure, and the city.
Specific objectives for the course:
•Develop an understanding of the residential structure of the city.
•Examine the linkages between the city's residential structure, social class and race.
•Examine the connections between specific types of housing development (public housing, gentrification) social class and race.
The course includes a field trip to Chicago!
All graduate students are welcome!
For more information, please contact Dr. Jeff Crump, Housing Studies Program, 350 McNeal Hall, 1985 Buford Ave., St. Paul, MN 55108. Email: jrcrump@umn.edu, voice: 612-624-2281.

Fulbright Program Call for Papers - "Impacts: Does Academic Exchange Matter?"

The Fulbright Program is pleased to announce a call for papers, "Impacts: Does Academic Exchange Matter? Cultural Diplomacy, Scholarly Internationalism, and American Studies since World War II." The conference will take place on November 18-19, 2010 in Vienna, Austria. Abstract deadline: May 1, 2010.

Fulbright Program Call for Papers - "Impacts: Does Academic Exchange Matter?"
Does academic exchange matter? The celebration of the 60th anniversary of the
establishment of the Fulbright Program in Austria in 1950 provides an excellent
opportunity for a broader discussion of this question. The aim of this conference is
to highlight the ongoing research on the various topics related to academic
exchange and its impact and to stimulate further reflection on the state of cultural
diplomacy, scholarly internationalism, and the their ultimate impacts on foreign
relations.
As a program based on the conception of bilateral mobility and binational decisionmaking, the Fulbright Program has provided almost 300,000 students and scholars with opportunities to live and study abroad since its inception in 1946. It has played a significant role in the internationalization of academic practices as well as in the
consolidation of cultural relations between the U.S. and Austria as well as many
other participating countries.
Taking the Fulbright Program as a point of departure, this conference is designed to
embrace a broader range of topics and issues. Thus, it will aim at covering several
fields related to academic exchange and cultural diplomacy, such as the impact of
cultural diplomacy on the relations between the U.S. and Austria (and other
cooperating countries); the processes of the internationalization of academic
practices and the role of American scholars and American Studies therein; the
relationships between academia and politics during the Cold War and thereafter;
and the tacit and explicit economic and political agendas and expectations related to
cultural exchange.
The conference programming committee is seeking contributions that cover a wide
range of topics related to the fields of academic exchange, cultural diplomacy, and
the internationalization of the academy, and it solicits abstracts from scholars and
graduate students working in the fields of cultural diplomacy; diplomatic history;
American Studies; intellectual history; the history and political implications of
methodological innovation in the social sciences and the humanities; and related
topics associated with transatlantic academic and cultural relations, exchanges, and mobility.
The programming committee wishes to solicit in particular papers that address one
or more of the following thematic clusters:
A. The history and the evolution of the concept of "cultural diplomacy":
Cultural diplomacy as a widespread practice is in many respects a result of
World War II and has its roots therein: the purpose of propaganda and
psychological warfare was to transmit a series of images and arguments
conceived to modify the assumptions and behavior of recipient audiences.
After World War II, "re‚Äêeducation" and "public information" were high
priority items on the U.S. political agenda in occupied Austria and Germany,
in particular. The Fulbright Program (1946) and the U.S. Information and
Educational Exchange Act (Smith‚ÄêMundt Act) of 1948 brought the U.S.
government into exchange programs and cultural diplomacy in an
unprecedented and big way, and the United States established the United
States Information Agency (USIA) in 1953 explicitly to manage U.S.
exchanges and information policy. Idealists and practitioners of cultural
diplomacy praise cultural diplomacy as the nonpartisan "promotion of
mutual understanding" just as its critics and detractors identify it as part of a
"hegemonic project." Cultural diplomacy can be an ambivalent concept, and
in recent years, an increasing amount of historical research has thrown new
light on those instruments, which have come to be associated with "soft
power" diplomacy (Joseph Nye). How does cultural policy work?
B. The impact of exchange on academic and political life: The establishment
of the Fulbright Program in 1946 was a milestone in the institutionalization
of academic exchanges which, in the context of the Cold War, also were
accompanied by explicit political expectations (at least on behalf of the
policymakers) concerning the benefits and merits of an exposure to and the
propagation of an "American way of life." Despite the fact that "study abroad"
or "academic mobility" have become increasingly widespread phenomena,
the longitudinal impact of exchanges on academic and political life in those
cultures that were to benefit from exchanges has not been empirically
investigated to a great extent. How has institutionalized exchange affected
career choices trajectories of scientists, scholars, and politicians? How has it
contributed to the internationalization of academic culture and cultural
practices? Has it met the expectations of policymakers in terms of anticipated
"results"? This conference will provide a platform for the presentation of new
empirical evidence as well as theoretical approaches.
C. "Mobility" and the epistemic, political and cultural geography of the
social sciences and humanities: The history of exchanges also includes the
internationalization of academic practices, and the impact of the export and
import of methodologies as a result of academic mobility can be traced
particularly well in the social sciences and the humanities: disciplines which
constitute core domains of national identity. The extent to which long‚Äêterm
visits of European scholars to the U.S. in the 1950s and 1960s impacted
substantially on their careers after they returned to their home countries is
well known. New methodologies and, in some cases, new disciplines also
emerged as a result of internationalization: among the prominent examples
is "American Studies." How has exchange shaped the epistemic geography of
disciplines, approaches, and practices? To what extent is the
internationalization and globalization of social sciences and humanities
actually their Americanization, and what semantics are behind such
attributions? How does the social and cultural capital accumulated through
the exchange function in local conditions? Is it possible to map out these
impacts and practices?
D. Transatlantic perceptions, images, and stereotypes: Cultural exchange is
supposed to dismantle stereotypes and to foster mutual understanding.
American cultural diplomacy in particular also has relied on people‚Äêtopeople
exchanges as well as the idea of citizens as "cultural ambassadors."
This session wishes to discuss the extent to which transatlantic exchanges
have impacted on the perpetration and alteration of stereotypical
perceptions and images, and it wishes to investigate the extent to which the
expectations placed cultural diplomacy ultimately are met and outcomes are
measured in different national contexts. Where, when, and why has cultural
diplomacy been successful, and why is it more successful in some cases than
others?
Contingent upon submissions, conference panels will be designed around these
clusters of issues and be conceived to facilitate interconnections among the topics
addressed.
Advisory Committee
Prof. Oliver Rathkolb, Chair, Institute of Contemporary History, University of Vienna
Univ. Doz. Dr. Margit Reiter, Institute of Contemporary History, University of Vienna
Prof. Friedrich Stadler, (joint appointment for History and Philosophy of Science)
Institute of Contemporary History, Institute of Philosophy, University of
Vienna
Prof. Reinhold Wagnleitner, Institute of History, University of Salzburg
Mag. Barbara Weitgruber, MA, Austrian Ministry of Science and Research, Chair of
the Austrian‚ÄêAmerican Educational Commission (Fulbright Commission),
Programming and Planning Committee
Dr. Lonnie R. Johnson, Austrian‚ÄêAmerican Educational Commission (Fulbright
Commission), Vienna
Dr. Thomas König, Institute of Contemporary History, University of Vienna
Dr. Claudia Schwarz, Institute of American Studies, University of Innsbruck
Dr. Tereza Stöckelova, Institute of Sociology, Academy of Science, Czech Republic
This conference is being organized with the support of the Austrian‚ÄêAmerican
Education Commission, Austrian Ministry of Science and Research, and the Public
Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy, Vienna, in collaboration with the Institute of
Contemporary History, University of Vienna
Date: Thursday and Friday, November 1819,
2010 under the auspices of
International Education Week
Venue: Amerika Haus, Friedrich Schmidt Platz 2, 1010 Vienna
Format: Keynote (tba) and panels
Deadlines and Organizational Details:
Deadline for the submission of abstracts is May 1, 2010. Abstracts should include a
short description of the proposed presentation (400 words), and a curriculum vitae
including recent publications.
Conference languages: English and German
Abstracts should be sent to Dr. Thomas König at thomas.koenig@univie.ac.at.
Individuals submitting abstracts will be informed about the status of their proposals
by June 1, 2010.
Participants invited to present will be required to submit papers for distribution
among panel participants and chairs by October 1, 2010. The length of the
conference presentations will be dictated by the panel format and number of
individuals on individual panels.
Participants will be expected to cover their own costs for travel and
accommodations on‚Äêsite. There will be a number of hosted meals and events.
For further information or details, please contact Thomas König at
thomas.koenig@univie.ac.at

Friday, April 2, 2010

Critical Dialogues: April 6th, 2010 - Kandace Creel Falcon

Please join Crossings on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 featuring Kandace Creel Falcon on her feminist knowledge production, "Mestiza Methodology: Interrogating the Self as a Site of Chicana." This event will take place in Scott Hall 105 from 3:30-5:00 p.m.

Critical Dialogues: April 6th, 2010 - Kandace Creel Falcon
Tuesday, April 6th 3:30-5:00 pm
105 Scott Hall
Mestiza Methodology: Interrogating the Self as a Site of Chicana Feminist Knowledge Production
Kandace Creel Falcón
This talk critically examines the role of self revelation as a site for Chicana feminist knowledge production. Based on my dissertation research with eight Chicanas in the Midwest I explore the journey involved with conducting research that is painful, personal, and powerful. I examine the methodological framework to explore how one can integrate the self in research and writing about other women's lives and why this is an important endeavor. Through engaging with other Chicana feminist scholars and writers I explore mestiza methodology and speak to the ways that I have incorporated a mestiza methodology to analyze issues of Midwestern Chicanas' storytelling practices. The result of the interrogation of the self in research is the bringing together of voices, the melding together of stories, and a deep commitment to Chicana feminist epistemologies that begin with critically reflecting about our own lives. I believe in this way oral histories come to life on the written page and mestiza methodology creates opportunities to better understand the gender, race, class, and sexual identities Chicanas in the Midwest navigate daily.
See attachment below for flyer:
crossings-kandace-1.pdf