Improving the Research Experience: 
A Workshop for Graduate Students in Western American History

Thursday October 28, 2021
1:30 P.M. to 4:00 P.M.

Location: Hilton Portland (Room TBD)

Sponsored by The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University

Organized by the Western History Librarian/Archivist/Curator Group

ADMISSION BY ADVANCE APPLICATION ONLY: Application Deadline is September 20!

Graduate Student Participants Receive $250 Honorarium

Presenters:

Peter J. Blodgett (The Huntington Library)

J. Wendel Cox (Dartmouth College)

Lisa E. Duncan (University of Arizona Special Collections)

Todd Fuller (University of Oklahoma)

Sam Herley (South Dakota Oral History Center)

Tamsen Hert (University of Wyoming Special Collections)

Anne Jenner (University of Washington Libraries)

Ginny Kilander (American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming)

Matthew Daniel Mason (Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University)

George Miles (Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University)

Suzanne Noruschat (University of Southern California Libraries)

Theresa Salazar (Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley)

Laurie Scrivener (University of Oklahoma Scholarly Services and Research Initiatives)

Benjamin Stone (Stanford University Libraries)

Gregory C. Thompson (J.W. Marriott Library, University of Utah)

Rachel Vagts (Denver Public Library)

Workshop Details

Today’s graduate students in western history confront an increasing array of unyielding obstacles in launching their careers. Each year, they must scramble to keep up with the accelerating pace of changes in everything from the descriptive tools created by libraries and archives to the proliferation of digital resources generated by cultural institutions. Moreover, given the shrinking pool of dollars for projects in the humanities, graduate students face a steadily more ferocious competition for fellowships, research awards and grants in general.  Believing as we do that the graduate student community represents an essential dimension of western history’s future, we have developed the following workshop in collaboration with the WHA as a means of helping to meet what we see as particularly crucial needs for the next generation of scholars.

Workshop Schedule
This workshop will run from 1:00 PM until 4:00 PM on Thursday, October 28 and will consist of two sessions, preceded by a fifteen-minute introduction and incorporating one fifteen-minute break. The sessions will address the following topics:

• Introduction:  overview of workshop goals (15 minutes).

• Session #1:  Fellowships, research awards and grant seeking in general (60 minutes).

• Fifteen-minute break

• Session #2:  Plotting out the research project:  individual/small-group conversations about the dissertations being pursued by the workshop attendees (60 minutes).

Workshop Participation Details:

In order to keep the size manageable for the instructors and to enhance the quality of the experience for the participants, attendance at this inaugural version will be capped at 20 graduate students, selected through advance application; preference will be given to those who are at an earlier point in their pursuit of a Ph.D. so that they will have the maximum opportunity to benefit from what they learn in the workshop. Other graduate students, however, may be admitted on a space-available basis.  In hopes of assisting those who attend the workshop with defraying conference costs, we will be able to provide each graduate student participant with a $250 honorarium thanks to the generous support of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University. You will receive this honorarium at the workshop.

Workshop Application Guide:

Graduate students wishing to apply for the workshop should prepare the following in a single pdf document:

            1. Cover Sheet:

-Student’s name

-Institutional affiliation

-Contact information (email and surface mail addresses)

            2. Description of stage the student has reached in their program

            3. Enumerate the student’s research experience to date

            4. Provide an overview of the student’s dissertation. (The overview should summarize the            topic, including chronological and geographic parameters, collections of original sources            already consulted and all research institutions that the student has visited or will visit while

pursuing the dissertation.)

Send the final, compiled pdf document as an attachment email to wha@westernhistory.org with “2021 Grad Student Workshop” in the subject line. Include your name, institutional affiliation, and contact information in the email message. Applications for the workshop are due Monday, September 20, 2021 to wha@westernhistory.org

Send Questions about the applications or workshop to Peter J. Blodgett at pblodgett@huntington.org

C-SPAN 3 will be airing Dr. David Wrobel's WHA 2020 Presidential Keynote on John Steinbeck Sunday, August 29th at 3:25pm EDT. If you miss the live viewing and would like to watch later, the keynote will be available here after it airs on C-SPAN: 

https://www.c-span.org/video/?513837-1/john-steinbeck-american-west

On July 1 of this year, the WHA opened its operations in the History Department at the University of Kansas, the organization’s new institutional host. Elaine Nelson remains in her role as the WHA Executive Director and joined the KU History Department faculty as an Assistant Professor of History. The KU History Department has an award-winning faculty with strengths in several areas of study, including western, environmental, and Native American history. The WHA will benefit from the support of the dynamic faculty, staff, and graduate students who work to maintain the department’s national reputation. We are confident that the organization’s transition to KU will allow the WHA an opportunity to continue to expand its core mission and initiatives. There are already conversations underway about how the WHA will contribute to the graduate student community and offer collaborative opportunities with faculty across a variety of KU programs.

The Interdisciplinary Nineteenth Century Studies Association (INCS) is now accepting proposals for their 2022 annual conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah from March 24-27, 2022. The theme for the 2022 annual conference is stratification: physical and social, spatial and temporal, visual and textual. INCS invites papers that consider the myriad varieties of literal and figurative layering that played out across the nineteenth century. This conference will foreground how exploratory and creative acts of digging down and building up expose new truths and generate new knowledge: both in the nineteenth century and in contemporary scholarship of the period. 

For paper proposals, send a 200-word abstract and a one-page CV to INCS2022@utah.edu by October 8, 2021. For panel proposals, provide a brief overview of the panel in an email message and attach all paper proposals and CVs. 

For more information, visit the INCS site here: https://incsscholars.org/. Those interested may also contact Jessica Straley (jessica.straley@utah.edu) or Leslee Thorne-Murphy (lesleetm@byu.edu) for more information. 

The South Dakota Historical Society Press, an award-winning publisher located in the heart of the Northern Great Plains, seeks a Production Coordinator/Editorial Assistant. This early career position will work closely with their books and quarterly journal.

Production duties will include: working with their network of designers, typesetters, indexers, and illustrators; keeping book and journal projects on schedule; managing e-books and open-access projects; acting as a liaison between the Press and freelance workers; transmitting final proofs to printers; and securing copyright permissions. This position will work under the direction of the Marketing Director and the Managing Editor of South Dakota History. Other duties will include copyediting, proofreading, and working with images as part of their editorial team.

This position requires experience with project management and strong communication skills. Capacity to work independently, excellent time management skills, and an eye for detail are a must. 

Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree in history, English, or a related field (advanced degree preferred). Candidates must also have a background in writing, editing, or publishing and be familiar with the Chicago Manual of Style. Knowledge of U.S. history, especially of the American West and the Northern Great Plains, is preferred. Experience using Adobe Photoshop and understanding of basic design principles would also be beneficial.

This position is not open to remote work. Candidates upon receipt of offer will be expected to move to the Pierre area; relocation expenses will be reimbursed. Limited travel may be required. This is a full-time position with salary in the $18-$20 per hour range (commensurate with experience) and benefits. This position is administered by the South Dakota Historical Society Foundation.

To apply, please email a cover letter and a resume or curriculum vitae with names and contact information for 3-5 references to Dr. Dedra Birzer, South Dakota Historical Society Press Director, at Dedra.Birzer@state.sd.us. Their website is sdhspress.com. Applications will be accepted through Sept. 1, 2021.

The Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest at Villanova University is pleased to announce a new funding opportunity to support public-facing historical projects related to the theme of “Turning Points” in history.

The Center will fund up to 5 projects that creatively engage with how the study of past turning points have affected the course of history, and how historical study can further public understanding of the present moment.

The Lepage Center welcomes applications that are original and imaginative in content and form. Proposals can include (but are not limited to) a series of blog posts, a series of podcast conversations, digital and in-person exhibits, an oral history project, an initiative with a local newspaper to write a series of op-eds, a mapping project, a multimedia resource, and other creative ideas. Educators, researchers, activists, students, librarians, digital humanists, museum specialists are all invited to apply. 

Each grantee will receive up to $5,000 depending on the scope, size, and need of the proposal.

The deadline for submissions is August 31, 2021, at 11:59 pm (EST).

Visit the Turning Points in History grant page for more information about eligibility and requirements. Please share widely! 

Learn more about Lepage past grantees.

The Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies Program in the Department of Ethnic Studies seeks a tenured (Associate or Full) professor in the Social Sciences whose dynamic research agenda focuses on the US Latinx experience. This can include a focus on US Latino communities, immigration, political participation, demography, and racialization experiences in any historical or contemporary time period. The scholar should have an established record in Latinx Studies and the Social Sciences, and will be expected to lead the new Latinxs and Democracy Cluster along with affiliated senior faculty. Qualified candidates will have a history of excellent research, teaching, and mentorship and will be expected to teach relevant social science methods courses within the program.

Senior, tenured (Associate or Full) applicants for the Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies position should note that the program seeks a social scientist with an established research and teaching/mentoring record.

The tenured professor position is only available in the Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies Program (Department of Ethnic Studies). Individuals should submit their application at this level if they meet one of the following conditions: Current tenured professor or position equivalent to tenured professor. Please note that this level determination is only for application review purposes, not the ultimate appointment level of the finalist.

Document requirements

• Cover Letter

• Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V.

• Statement of Research - Statement of research, including past research accomplishments and proposed research at Berkeley.

• Statement of Teaching and Service - Statement of teaching and service, including prior teaching experience, teaching philosophy, future teaching interests, prior and proposed academic, professional and/or community service.

• Statement on Contributions to Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Statement on your contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion, including information about your understanding of these topics, your record of activities to date, and your specific plans and goals for advancing equity and inclusion if hired at Berkeley (for additional information go to https://ofew.berkeley.edu/recruitment/contributions-diversity).

• Publication/Writing Sample #1 - Journal article, book chapter, dissertation chapter, or other appropriate products

• Publication/Writing Sample #2 - Journal article, book chapter, dissertation chapter, or other appropriate products

• Publication/Writing Sample #3 - Journal article, book chapter, dissertation chapter, or other appropriate products

Reference requirements

• 3 required (contact information only)

Letters of reference will solicited at a later stage.

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF02941

The National Humanities Center invites applications for academic-year or one-semester residential fellowships. Mid-career, senior, and emerging scholars with a strong record of peer-reviewed work from all areas of the humanities are encouraged to apply.

Scholars from all parts of the globe are eligible; stipends and travel expenses are provided. Fellowship applicants must have a PhD or equivalent scholarly credentials. Fellowships are supported by the Center’s own endowment, private foundation grants, contributions from alumni and friends, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Located in the vibrant Research Triangle region of North Carolina, the Center affords access to the rich cultural and intellectual communities supported by the area’s research institutes, universities, and dynamic arts scene. Fellows enjoy private studies, in-house dining, and superb library services that deliver all research materials.

Applications and all accompanying materials are due by 11:59 p.m. EDT, October 7, 2021. For more information and to apply, please visit: https://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/become-a-fellow/.

Application requirements:

Fellowship applicants are asked to complete the online application form and to upload the following documents:

· 1,000-word project proposal

· Short bibliography (up to 2 pages)

· Curriculum vitae (up to 4 pages)

· One-page tentative outline of the structure of the project (if the project is a book, provide an outline of chapters; otherwise, give an outline of the components of the project and their progress to date)

Applicants will also be asked to provide names and contact information for three references. References will receive an email prompt inviting them to upload a letter of recommendation on behalf of the applicant. All letters are also due by October 7, 2021.

We strongly recommend applicants read through our Frequently Asked Questions before beginning their application. Questions can be emailed to fellowships@nationalhumanitiescenter.org.

The Western History Association recognizes the significant impact that Covid-19 brings to the personal and professional lives of our members and affiliates around the world. The WHA staff and leadership is closely monitoring the situation and will make careful, informed decisions in the months leading up to our annual conference in October. The WHA staff, which transitioned to work remotely on March 9, will alert members and conference participants with urgent updates in a timely manner through email, social media accounts, and the WHA website. We are living in difficult times which call upon us to be flexible and generous. We are deeply grateful for the service, support, and dedication you provide to the WHA, and we hope you are well and taking care of yourselves, families, colleagues, and communities.

It is always difficult to learn the news that a fellow scholar has passed away. Scott Zeman's (Jan. 1969 - Sep. 2020) graduated with his Ph.D from Arizona State University in 1998. His work focused on tourism in the Southwest and more specifically, atomic culture in a national/transnational focus.

Zeman published the edited volume, Atomic Culture: How We Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, co-edited with Michael Amundson in 2004, as well as multiple book reviews and articles in the Western Historical Quarterly, the Journal of Arizona History, and the New Mexico Historical Review. Zeman presented at the 2001 WHA Conference and served on the Program Committee for the 2005 Conference.

For more information about the life and scholarship of Scott Zeman, please see his obituary here.