I invite members of this group who might be interested in exploring careers beyond university teaching to explore our new site for the Connected Academics initiative. Content—interviews, advice, resources—will updated regularly, but please let us know if there’s anything you’d like to see up there.

connect.mla.hcommons-staging.org

Warner’s essay is concerned that students will continue to be ill prepared for college because of Common Core testing:  https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/just-visiting/unfortunately-i-am-ready-common-core

Word Books and Material Culture

Sponsored by the new Theory and Method forum Book History, Print Cultures, Lexicography (formerly known as the Lexicography Discussion Group).

ABCs, dictionaries, spellers, synonymies, thesauruses: what is the life of a word book? What stories do word books tell? Please submit 250 word abstracts by the deadline.…[Read more]

I hope members of his discussion group can utilize the MLA site for registering one’s support for contingent faculty both within the MLA and in one’s department, union, and institution.  Here’s the…[Read more]

Call for Papers for a guaranteed panel at the Modern Language Association

(MLA) Annual Convention, 7-10 Jan. 2016, in Austin.

Satire and the Editorial Cartoon

Ever since the days of William Hogarth and his brand of pictorial satire, expressing an opinion on the politics of the day in print demanded the combination of humor, hyperbole, a…[Read more]

When Diane Ravitch spoke to the MLA  two years ago, she predicted that the push for Common Core standards would soon be extended to state colleges and universities. That moment has come.

The Florida State Board of Education now is offering grants to support collaboration between state colleges and K-12 systems. I have a copy of my college’s gr…[Read more]

I am looking for people who have been teaching anti-ageism, or the subject of age, in the writing classroom. Especially interested in writing assignments that counter ageism, that use ageism along with other diversity issues (racism, sexism, ableism, classism).

CFP (Call for Papers): I’m seeking papers in order to propose a panel for the upcoming 2016 MLA in Austin, TX.  The subject is “Teaching Writing, Rhetoric, and Composition to Online/Distance Students.”  I am particularly interested in (but not limited to) papers that explore the primacy of written language as instruction compared to oral, t…[Read more]

Hi all,

I posted a storify of tweets posted around Rosemary Feal’s #precariat conversation with Andrew Ross, Barbara Ehrenreich, and Jennie Shanker at the Shanker Institute on January 15. (Margaret Hanzimanolis features!) You can view the storify on this group’s blog.

Cheers,

Nicky

We were successful in moving that a PTF be a required member of the Executive Council!  The motion, put forward by the radical caucus, also asked for more governance opportunities for PTF throughout the organization.  The dominance of tenured faculty in the MLA is beginning to topple. Please get in touch with me at hanzimanolis@gmail.com if you w…[Read more]

Please write to Maria Maisto, the incoming chair, if you would like to serve on this committee. It is a potentially important committee in an environment of rapidly increasing hospitality toward contingent and adjunct participation in the business of the MLA!

maria.maisto@newfacultymajority.info

Motion 2015-1:
Proposers of record: John Maerhofer and Margaret Hanzimanolis on behalf of the Radical Caucus in English and the Modern Languages

Whereas Part-Time Faculty (PTF) constitute over 50% of the faculty in the US, and presumably a similar percentage of language and literature faculty;

Whereas PTF are presumably and anecdotally…[Read more]

This motion was submitted by the radical caucus of the MLA, and will be discussed at the open hearing on Friday and the Delegate assembly on Saturday. Please come to both venues, if you can, to support the motion and speak in its behalf!

Motion 2015-1

Proposers of record: John Maerhofer and Margaret Hanzimanolis on behalf of the Radical Caucus…[Read more]

Please consider attending this important conference, to be held on two days before the regular MLA.

http://mlasubconference.org/2015-program/

Subconference of the MLA “Non-Negotiable Sites of Struggle” January 7-9, 2015
Location: Simon Fraser University
Harbour Centre Joseph and Rosalie Segal Room

*co-sponsored by the TSSU

Wednesday, Jan…[Read more]