18th Small City and Regional Community Conference: Call for Papers and Presentations

The Center for the Small City and the Wisconsin Institute for Sustainable Technology announce the 18th conference on the Small City and Regional Community, April 6–7, 2011, at University Center, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. The theme of the conference is environmental sustainability and economic development. This interdisciplinary and multi-level conference is soliciting papers, roundtables, demonstrations, and other presentations related to environmental sustainability in the small city and town. Proposals from academic researchers, applied professionals, government officials and staff, as well as nonprofit and private sector leaders are encouraged.

To submit a presentation or organize a session, please send a brief abstract before February 1, 2011, to Robert P. Wolensky, Center for the Small City, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI 54481 (e-mail: rwolensk@uwsp.edu); or Ed Miller, Center for the Small City, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI 54481 (e-mail: emiller@uwsp.edu).

ICPSR and Research Center for Minority Data 2011 Research Paper Competitons

The Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) and the Research Center for Minority Data (RCMD) are pleased to announce their 2011 Research Paper Competitions. This year, ICPSR and RCMD are holding three competitions—two for undergraduates and one for master's students.

The purpose of these competitions is to highlight student research papers using RCMD or ICPSR data. The objective is to encourage students to explore the social sciences by means of critical analysis of a topic supported by quantitative analysis of a dataset(s) held within ICPSR or the RCMD archive and presented in written form. Entries to either the undergraduate or master's competition could include papers written for a capstone course, a senior seminar, or any writing-intensive course for which the student uses quantitative data analysis to support or refute a hypothesis. A master's thesis could be appropriate provided that the terms above are met.

One of the undergraduate competitions is for papers using data in the RCMD archive; for the other competition, entrants can use dataset(s) from any ICPSR archive. The master's competition can use data from any ICPSR archive.

Awards are $1,000 for first place and $750 for second place. The deadline for submission is January 31, 2011. For more information, submission guidelines, and promotional posters, please visit the competition website at http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/icpsrweb/ICPSR/prize/index.jsp.

Open Invitation to Participate in IPSA Research Committee 33 Round Table 2011

The International Political Studies Association (IPSA) invites participants for its Research Committee 33 Round Table 2011, “How Can We Improve Our Capacity to Study Politics?” to be held July 25–26, 2011, in Cordoba, Argentina, just prior to the annual meeting of the Argentine Society of Political Analysis (SAAP). All political science, social science, and philosophy of science professors and senior graduate students who are concerned about the current state of the discipline and are seeking improvements are encouraged to submit, whether or not they are members of IPSA or RC 33.

The Round Table will address the broad topic of how we can improve our capacity to study politics, and will engage more specifically with the problem of specialization in political science; the relationship between political science and international relations (is international relations a subdiscipline of political science?); the relationship between political science and public administration (can public administration be devoid of politics?); the relationship between political science and other social sciences; and the relevance of political science for the public, politics, and the media. Papers are invited on the general topic or any of these subtopics.

The Argentine members of the IPSA Research Committee 33 on the study of the discipline of political science, Cecilia Lesgart and Arturo Fernandez, and the Argentine Society of Political Analysis (SAAP) will act as joint hosts. Local hotels and meals will be covered by SAAP for the first ten paper presenters, but participants must cover their own travel, although by April or May, funding may be available to cover part of the costs of air tickets.

Abstracts of proposed papers and short CVs should be received by March 31, 2011. Electronic versions of papers should be available by July 15, 2011. For more information or to propose a paper, please contact Professor Cecilia Lesgart at clesgart@hotmail.com. For additional information about the Round Table or Research Committee 33, please e-mail Jtrent@uottawa.ca.

Association for Core Texts and Courses (ACTC) Seventeenth Annual Conference

Yale University, Augustana College, Boston College, and the College of the Holy Cross invite participants to attend the 17th Annual Conference of the Association for Core Texts and Courses during April 14–17, 2011, in New Haven, Connecticut. The theme of the conference is “The Quest for Excellence: Liberal Arts and Core Texts.” Many institutions are currently engaged in discussions centering on the formation of the student—intellectually, morally, and spiritually. The expansion of student services speaks to the enhancement of the collegiate experience, but, in the spirit of the early humanist scholar Bruni's wide learning, we are more interested in what the arts of a liberal education and the core texts of cultural traditions contribute to student formation. As teachers and faculty, we are interested in how our institutions of varying secular and religious affiliations have interpreted core text, liberal arts traditions and learning for their students. Primary questions include: What subjects should we read and discuss? What do the liberal arts bring to achieving curricular and interdisciplinary collaboration? Can we articulate the arguments and grounds of the excellence of books, so that we can say what texts we want those not in our field to read, and what texts out of our field we should read?

Last year marked the ACTC's largest conference ever. No less is expected this year. ACTC still offers the six fine plenary meals and many plenary speeches. The Omni Hotel offers a reasonable rate at $118 per night. New Haven is at the end of a commuter line from New York City. But, most of all, the conference will offer liberal arts conversations about ideas, texts, teaching, and programs. Submit a short proposal and register through our website at www.coretexts.org. For more information, see http://www.coretexts.org./17th_annual_conference.htm.

National Humanities Alliance Annual Meeting and Humanities Advocacy Day

The National Humanities Alliance (NHA) will hold its Annual Meeting and Humanities Advocacy Day at the George Washington University and on Capitol Hill on March 7–8, 2011. The preliminary program includes the annual business meeting for NHA voting members, commentary on the post-election landscape, discussion of humanities funding and other policy issues, luncheon and keynote address, presentations of current work in the humanities, Capitol Hill reception, and Congressional visits.

Meeting, including online registration and hotel accommodations, information is available on the NHA website, http://www.NHAlliance.org. Organizations and institutions interested in sponsorship opportunities are invited to contact the NHA staff at 202-296-4994.

Founded in 1981, NHA is a coalition of more than one hundred organizations and institutions dedicated to the advancement of humanities education, research, preservation, and public programs.

American National Election Series 2010–12 Evaluations of Government and Society Study

As of November 23, 2010, the American National Election Studies (ANES) will be accepting proposals for questions to include on the last three waves of our new series of studies, “The 2010–12 Evaluations of Government and Society.” Proposals may be submitted through the ANES Online Commons. The overarching theme of the surveys is citizen attitudes about government and society. These Internet surveys represent the most cost-effective way for the ANES user community to gauge political perceptions during one of the most momentous periods in American history. Aside from the historic nature of the current administration and the almost unprecedented economic crisis facing the country, we believe it is imperative that researchers assess attitudes about politics and society in the period leading up to the 2012 national elections. Potential topics include: attitudes about the performance of the Obama administration on the major issues of the day, evaluations of Congress and the Supreme Court, identification with and attitudes about the major political parties, and levels of interest in and engagement with national politics. This is primarily because these perceptions are unmistakably correlated with both presidential vote choice and levels of political participation. We intend to measure each of these topics at multiple points throughout the two-year period preceding the 2012 elections. In addition to these subjects, we envision that each of these surveys would explore a particular aspect of these political perceptions.

This study includes five rolling cross-section waves that will allow us the opportunity to pilot new items for possible inclusion on the 2012 time series. Proposals for the first two waves of the study were accepted earlier this year. The first wave of the study was conducted in October 2010; the second wave will be conducted in the spring of 2011.

We are currently accepting proposals for the final three waves of the study. Wave 3 will be conducted in late 2011. Wave 4 will be conducted earlier in 2012 and the final wave will be in the field in the middle of 2012. For the timelines and deadlines for the three waves, please see http://electionstudies.org/studypages/2010_2012EGSS/2010_2012EGSScalendar.htm.

By offering multiple opportunities for the user community to place their items on one or more surveys, we will provide the capacity to survey on a diverse set of topics that are relevant to a wide set of research communities. Lastly, the flexibility of these surveys as to both content and timing will allow the ANES to respond promptly to emerging political issues in this volatile period in our country's history.