April 16, 2012
AHA news and updates for the history profession.
- Jobs – Most Recent Positions
- Calendar
- AHA Today – Recent history news
- News from Washington– NCH, NHA, and COSSA
The Annual Meeting Program Committee met this weekend and is excited about the 2013 annual meeting in New Orleans. A record number of submissions were sent in this year, and acceptance notifications will be sent to session organizers over the new few weeks. Some highlights from the 2013 program include sessions on exploring local history in global context, environmental history, and a mini-conference on the job market entitled "Beyond Plan B." The Local Arrangements Committee is planning tours on local urban history, ethnic geography, the post-Katrina recovery, riverfront environmental history, tourism in the Big Easy, local music, and also several museums and archives. The 2013 annual meeting will take place January 3-6, 2013 in the French Quarter of New Orleans.
Records of the 1940 Census Released Online
A digitized archive of 3.85 million records from the 1940s census was released online on April 2, 2102. These records were scanned from microfilm and are searchable by census enumeration district. In the next six to nine months, volunteers plan to have completed a name index for improved searching. Access to these records opens up the possibility of important new discoveries for historians.
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The AHA is accepting applications for its NEH Bridging Cultures Project, "American History, Atlantic and Pacific.” The AHA seeks an enthusiastic group of 24 community college faculty (in teams of two faculty members from twelve institutions) who are interested in creating or revising U.S. history courses with lessons, units, and other work that deepen teaching on the United States in the world. Applications are due June 15, 2012.
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The George C. Marshall International Center has announced the 10th Annual Marshall Immersion Workshop, an exciting professional and collegial experience for high school-level American and world history teachers, and social studies supervisors. All expenses are paid, and participants receive a $200 stipend, free materials, and re-certification points. The application deadline is May 14, 2012.
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We are currently considering whether historians would be interested in receiving e-books for review, and invite all members to fill out a brief survey about current reviewing and reading practices.
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AHA Member Spotlight: Anupama Rao
Anupama Rao is an associate professor in South Asian history at Barnard College and Columbia University. Rao first joined the AHA in 2002. In a recent AHA Member Spotlight she shared how she first developed an interest in history, why she thinks “archival research keeps historians honest,” and how she finds the interconnected nature of digital humanities exciting.
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AHA Member Spotlight: Jeffrey Reznick
Jeffrey S. Reznick is chief of the history of medicine division at the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health, and first joined the AHA in 1992. Reznick discusses his work at the NLM, “the very real applicability of historical training to a wide range of careers outside academe,” and how participating in a panel at the AHA’s annual meeting in 2004 helped him write his second book.
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The American Historical Association is preparing to publish the annual Directory of History Departments, Historical Organizations, and Historians. Institutions that have previously listed in the Directory can make changes to their entry online. Your institution's login information has been sent by e-mail to department contacts. If your department or organization did not receive a message from us, please write to Liz Townsend for assistance. To add your department or organization to the Directory, you can find details here. Please log in and review your Directory listing by May 1, 2012, and let us know if your institution will or will not be listing this year. Updates made now will be included in the print edition, and changes made throughout the year will appear immediately in the AHA Directory Online.
National Archives Legislative Archives Fellowship
The National Archives is accepting applications for the 2012 Legislative Archives Fellowship, which supports scholarly work in United States history, based on research in the records of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. A stipend of $10,000 is awarded to the recipient. Research proposals will be considered on any topic requiring research in the historical records of Congress housed at the National Archives Center for Legislative Archives. The deadline for applications is midnight EDT May 16, 2012. Instructions on how to apply are available online.
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The AHA invites public historians to nominate themselves or their colleagues for the prestigious Herbert Feis Award for distinguished contributions to public history. The terms of the award define both "contribution" and "public history" broadly. The award can recognize either a significant project or long-term achievement. Previous honorees include: Alfred Goldberg, formerly of the Historical Office of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (2011); Heather Huyck, College of William and Mary (2010); Noel J. Stowe, Arizona State University (2009); Richard Kohn, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2008); David H. DeVorkin, National Air and Space Museum (2007); and Victoria A. Harden, American University and National Institutes of Health (retired) (2006). The application deadline is May 15, 2012.
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Award for Scholarly Distinction – Nominations
AHA Members are invited to submit nominations for the AHA Award for Scholarly Distinction, which is given annually to senior historians of the highest distinction who have spent the bulk of their professional careers in the United States. Generally, they must also be of emeritus rank, if from academic life, or equivalent standing otherwise. Submit nominations to Sharon K. Tune, Assistant Director, American Historical Association, 400 A Street, SE, Washington, DC 20003-3889, by April 30, 2012.
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The American Historical Association seeks nominations for its Equity Awards, which recognize individuals and institutions for excellence in recruiting and retaining students and new faculty from racial and ethnic groups underrepresented within the historical profession. Deserving nominees will have records that include such achievements as mentoring, program building, fundraising initiatives, pursuing civic engagement, and enhancing department and campus culture to promote a supportive environment. Nominations are due by May 15, 2012.
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Below are some of the most recent job ads submitted to the AHA website. Sign in to access more information on the jobs listed below, and to find more job ads. Information on how to advertise a job is available here.
Postdoctoral Teaching Fellowship – Villanova
The Villanova Center for Liberal Education in Pennsylvania seeks scholars in the humanities to apply for the Arthur J. Ennis, OSA, Postdoctoral Teaching Fellowship, starting in the fall semester 2012.Dean, Public and International Affairs – Princeton
Princeton University seeks a new dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, a full-time appointment.
Again, sign in to the AHA web site or more information about these and other positions.
See the AHA Calendar for more upcoming meetings and seminars, research, awards and fellowships, and upcoming exhibitions. Have a call for proposals, event, or award listing you'd like to submit? Simply send it in through our online form.
Field School: Buildings, Landscapes and Cultures
This summer field school from the University of Milwaukee provides students an immersion experience in the field recording of the built environment and cultural landscapes and an opportunity to learn how to write history literally “from the ground up.” Students will receive training in site documentation, historic interpretation of buildings and landscapes, and primary source research.Call for Papers: Astride Two Worlds: Technology and the American Civil War
Proposals are being accepted for a symposium on technology and the American Civil War, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution’s contribution to the war’s sesquicentennial commemoration. Abstracts and CV or resume due June 30, 2012.Conference: The Port Huron Statement
The Port Huron Statement and the Making of the New Left is an open conference at the University of Michigan, October 31-November 2, 2012. The conference will mark fifty years since publication of The Port Huron Statement by Students for a Democratic Society. The conference will explore the social, cultural, political, and global contexts for the rise of new radical movements from 1958-1965.
Keep up with the latest information on history and the profession on the AHA's blog, AHA Today. Recent posts include:
Debating “Professional Boredom” in History
AHA President William Cronon's article “Professional Boredom,” which advocated for history writing that’s engaging and accessible to a broad audience, generated numerous insightful responses and discussions online and we've highlighted them in this blog post.Time Maps and Careers for History Majors
As we develop more ways to generate data, and as we get better at programming machines to sift through this data, human analysis, and specifically analysis by historians, becomes more important, not less.National Park Service’s New Civil War Website
The National Park Service has launched a new Civil War website, featuring stories, timelines, featured places, and educational resources.What We’re Reading
The latest “What We’re Reading” posts (April 5 and April 12) include links to articles on hurdles in the history profession, the future of scholarly societies, the Civil War, and more.Grant of the Week
Recent Grants of the Week: Grants-in-Aid at the Caltech Archives and National Archives Legislative Archives Fellowship.
The AHA draws on the efforts of a number of coalitions that support the Association's agenda to keep track of issues in the nation's capital that will be of concern to historians. Their most recent reports include:
National Coalition for History
Recent news from the National Coalition for History:
National Humanities Alliance
Announcements from the National Humanities Alliance:
House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee Holds Hearing on NEH Funding - Public witnesses testify about the importance of humanities, arts funding.
National Humanities Alliance Holds 2012 Annual Meeting & Humanities Advocacy Day - Participants convene in Washington, DC.
Consortium of Social Science Associations
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Last Updated: April 16, 2012
