It is time to begin the process of our annual elections to the Advisory Board of the Society for Medieval Feminist Scholarship. Here is a summary of elections-related activity occurring this year:
Advisory Board members concluding terms of service in 2020:
Bettina Bildhauer
Jonathan Hsy
Janine Larmon Peterson
Graduate Student Representative concluding term of service in 2020:
Jenny C. Bledsoe
The executive Team, on behalf of the Advisory Board and society membership, wishes to express our gratitude to these departing members of the ad board for your efforts in support of our organization’s many initiatives over the past several years. Thank you to all of you!
2021 ELECTIONS
The SMFS Advisory Board are excited to report that due to an increased number of initiatives in support of our members and robust participation in our programming, we are expanding our board this year to the full number of advisory board members allotted by the Society’s by-laws.
Among the initiatives new members of the Advisory Board will have the opportunity to aid in developing are the new “Medieval Futures” grant designed to support the work of a medievalist scholar of color working at the intersections of race, gender, and the law, and online programming including research groups and book clubs, all initiatives we began but have not yet formally codified in 2020.
Members of the advisory board also serve on various other committees, including adjudicating the Best Book/ Best Article and Best Grad Student Essay Prizes, reviewing applications for the Foremother’s Fund and Trans* Travel Fund, and planning SMFS-sponsored sessions and events at various conferences and symposiums both online and, when the pandemic permits, in-person.
SMFS Ad Board members are not tasked with overwhelming amounts of service, but we do all play our part in ensuring the organization’s membership needs and desires in terms of scholarly and collegial support are being met. In addition to serving on at least one committee, ad board members are required to attend our once-annual meeting, typically at or at the same time as the International Congress on Medieval Studies/ Kalamazoo, in May.
We are offering a choice of an abbreviated 2-year, or a regular 3-year, commitment for those who are interested in joining the ad board. The 2-year commitment gives those newer to the profession or unsure of their next steps professionally a shorter time commitment while also still offering the opportunity to develop their service and leadership profile with the organization; the 3-year positions are the typical commitment held by ad board members. Regardless of whether you elect to run for a 2-year or 3-year position, all new members are full members of the Ad Board with the same rights and responsibilities.
We are also welcoming a new graduate student representative to the advisory board. Grad Student representatives are also recognized as full members, with all rights and responsibilities.
Service terms for all individuals elected to the Advisory Board begin in January of the first year listed and conclude in December of the last year listed (So, for example, a 2021-2022 term lasts from January 2021 through December 2022.)
We will be electing the following positions in the 2021 elections:
4 regular ad board members, for two-year terms (2021-2022)
4 regular ad board members, for three-year terms (2021-2023)
1 graduate student representative for a 3-year commitment (must be a graduate student at the time of election, but can roll into faculty or alt-ac during the 3-year service term; 2021-2022.)
*The call for nominations to these positions is now open, and will run through Friday, November 6*.
Nominations may be made by any current member of SMFS (now is a good time to renew your membership for 2020 if you have not already done so!) Candidates should be members of SMFS, or join SMFS prior to the election. Self-nominations are acceptable.
Please send your nomination(s), comprising an email address for the nominee, a brief biographical/candidate’s statement of approximately 150-200 words, and also an expression of which position–2-year, 3-year, or grad student–the individual is running for to Kath Maude, elections officer: km55@aub.edu.lb .
Information about these positions, clarification about the process, and answers to questions about the elections can also be obtained by writing to Melissa Elmes at MElmes@lindenwood.edu
2021 Elections timeframe:
October 27-November 6: Call for nominations to the ballot
November 16-20: voting period (all SMFS members with current membership during this voting period are eligible to vote)
November 23: Results announcement
