CLAJ EDITOR AND HOST INSTITUTION CALL FOR PROPOSALS
December 1, 2020
Dear CLA Colleagues:
The past few months have brought many challenges; however, your College Language Association (CLA) Executive Committee members remain committed to the mission and goals of our illustrious organization while working to ensure the safety of our members. Even though we were unable to gather in Memphis this past April, we still are excited about the opportunity to celebrate our 80th annual convention with all of our members. As we prepare for the rescheduled convention, we also would like to share an opportunity for members to insure the future of our highly respected CLA Journal (CLAJ) by proposing the next Host Institution and Editor. We are seeking an institutional host that could provide editorship, administrative support, production, and journal housing in line with 21st-century standards while remaining ever true to the publication’s rich heritage and legacy.
The CLA Journal is a multilingual, peer-reviewed biennial publication by the College Language Association. Established in 1957, the journal fosters the publication of socially engaged, innovative, and groundbreaking scholarship in language, literature, linguistics, and pedagogy cultivated by the diverse, international membership of CLA. CLAJ is the voice of a community of scholars, the first in establishing a forum for intellectual discourse among Black scholars in language and literary studies.
After years of stellar service to the College Language Association, the CLAJ Editor, Dr. Sandra Shannon, will be stepping down from that position. With the generous support of Howard University, Dr. Shannon has reinvigorated the journal and worked to establish important partnerships with JSTOR and Project Muse that increase the journal’s reach and its production. We now have an opportunity to build upon her leadership by producing an even more efficient digitally-born journal that will continue to make our members and readership proud for generations to come.
Host Institution for CLAJ:
The CLA Executive Committee invites formal proposals made on behalf of any member institution interested in assuming the housing, editing, and publication of CLAJ.
Benefits to Host Institution:
- Enhanced institutional research profile
- Laboratory for faculty and upper level graduate students to study and engage in all aspects of academic publishing
- Focal point for academic rigor in teaching and research
Proposals should include:
- A formal letter of interest
- A narrative of the personnel, technological, and financial resources available for the long-term support and maintenance of the journal
- A letter of support from your institution’s President, Dean, or Provost
Potential host institutions should be able to offer:
- 1-2 course releases per year;
- 12-15 hours per week of graduate student support;
- 10 hours per week of administrative staff support;
- Office space for the journal’s editor and administrative support team;
The Host Institution agreement is for five years and will be reviewed annually.
Editor for CLAJ at the Host Institution:
The CLAJ Editor must be a tenured faculty member at your institution and have the full support of their department’s Chairperson. As stated in the CLA Constitution and Bylaws, the Editor must be approved by the CLA Executive Committee.
The primary duties of the Editor of the journal are:
- To manage operations for the publication of the College Language Association Journal
- To manage special publications of the College Language Association Journal
- To serve as Chair of the Editorial Board
- To make recommendations to the Executive Committee about any potential changes to any aspect of the CLAJ
The Editor serves a five-year term. The first two years of the appointment are conditional, with continuation of the editorship contingent upon agreement between the applicant and the CLA Executive Committee. CLA carries the cost of the Editor stipend, the contract and fees associated with JSTOR and Project MUSE, journal hosting, and graphic design among other variable costs. CLA's average annual cost for managing CLAJ is approximately $30,000.
The CLAJ Editor is an officer of the College Language Association and is granted all of the rights of all members of the Executive Committee, including voting privileges. The Editor is required to attend all Executive-level meetings, which include monthly virtual and some in-person meetings. These in-person meetings may include but may not be limited to an annual fall planning meeting at the upcoming conference site as well as pre- and post-convention meetings. The Editor will offer reports on the financial and operational state of the journal at these meetings as well as to the membership at the general business meeting during the annual convention.
We ask that proposals be submitted directly to the CLA President and Vice President, via e-mail, no later than December 31, 2020.
Sincerely,
Reginald A. Bess, Ph.D. CLA President [email protected]
Jervette R. Ward, Ph.D. CLA Vice President [email protected]
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