Peitho Journal Seeks First Web Coordinator

Peitho, the flagship journal of the Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition (CFSHRC), seeks its first web coordinator to serve a 2-year term (May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2020). As part of a highly collaborative editorial team, the web coordinator will work with Peitho’s editors to upload each issue of the journal (currently published twice per year), archive past issues, help remediate the annual 4C Wednesday night SIG into a digital format, and liaise with the Coalition’s general web coordinator as needed. Read more

Small Scholarship Program for Students in Missouri

In response to the NAACP Travel Advisory in effect for the state of Missouri, in response to the Coalition’s decision to cancel its appearance at the 4C18 SIG, and subsidized in part by a generous gift from an anonymous donor, the Coalition would like to announce that there are funds available for a small scholarship program this year.

Specifically, these funds are available to support undergraduate and graduate students currently enrolled in an English/Composition or Women’s Studies undergraduate or graduate program in the state of Missouri with demonstrated financial need to travel to other conferences in 2018.  Conferences may include (but are not limited to) RSA, WPA, Computers and Writing, Watson, Conference on Community Writing, or Cultural Rhetorics. The Coalition is pleased to offer three (3) travel awards at $300 apiece. 

Nominations for scholarships are due by May 1, 2018 to Lisa Mastrangelo (lmastrangelo919@gmail.com). Undergraduate/graduate students are encouraged to nominate themselves. All nominations should include the following items:

1) A brief cover letter and cv

2) A brief statement of eligibility/support from a current professor or advisor.

4C19 Coalition SIG CFP: Building Out From ‘The Margins’: New Directions in Intersectionality

Twenty-five years ago, in “Mapping the Margins,” Kimberlé Crenshaw provided feminist academics and activists with the critical vocabulary they needed to define identity politics at various intersections of sexism and racism, in turn equipping us with structural, political, and representational “frameworks” for thinking about the fraught or hybrid spaces we occupy. Emphasizing frameworks over “totalizing theor[ies] of identity” (Crenshaw 1244), the Coalition’s 2019 Wednesday evening session dedicates itself to an interrogation and exploration of how those intersections look today, and of where intersectionality has led us as a Coalition, and as a field.

We invite proposals for brief critical talks to form the basis of a roundtable discussion on any of the following questions: Read more

The 2016 and 2017 Coalition Award Recipients

As our coalition expands, we are delighted that the number of our awards have also expanded to celebrate the outstanding work of our members at all stages of their careers. Join us as we celebrate the winners recognized the 2017 Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference. Additionally, we hope that you will consider nominating yourself or someone you know for our upcoming awards: the Winifred Bryan Horner Outstanding Book Award and the Feminist Research GrantRead more

CFSHRC Regarding #4C18

Since we last wrote you to you, the Coalition Advisory Board has met and conducted a thorough and thoughtful discussion regarding concerns surrounding the travel advisory for Kansas City, Missouri. As a result of our discussion, and informed by the decisions made by the Queer Caucus to hold an event virtually and the Latinx Caucus to boycott the conference, the Coalition Advisory Board has voted to officially cancel the Wednesday night SIG for 2018.

This has been a difficult and painful decision for the Coalition. We have a long and engaged relationship with the Cs convention, which will continue in the future.

We encourage members to make their own decisions about attending the larger Cs conference and fully respect individual decisions.

Currently our plans to move forward include:

1. Investigating the possibility of a Coalition presence at RSA in May 2018,

2. Publishing this year’s intended Cs talks as a special edition of Peitho,

3. Identifying actions that we can take to support people of color on the ground in Missouri, specifically graduate students, faculty members, local organizations or workers

We are writing today to not only inform you of this decision, but also to ask for your suggestions, comments, and concerns for moving forward. Responses can be anonymous; if you would like feedback, please leave your contact information. Click here to leave comments: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScOSiJaDZhhDiM8aWK7VLjKlZFiwAisl-sSWfqV6dZQhilLJQ/viewform?usp=sf_link

Yours in solidarity,

The Executive Board, Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition

#FemRhet2017 Recap: Day 1

By Sweta Gyanu Baniya and Rachel Chapman

The 11th Biennial Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference 2017 (#FemRhet2017) with the theme Rhetorics, Rights, and Revolution has kicked off at the University of Dayton (UD), Ohio on Oct 04, 2017. This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the FemRhet conferences. More than 400 scholars from various institutions have gathered at the UD for the #FemRhet2017 conference this year. Read more

Reminiscing 20 years of #FemRhet with Dr. Jennifer Bay

20 years ago in the fall of 1997 when she was a graduate student, Dr. Jennifer Bay attended the first ever Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference. Since then, she has missed only one of all the FemRhet conferences as the conference coincided with her daughter’s birth. Now, Dr. Bay is Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Composition at Purdue University and her research interests includes: Engagement Theory, Digital  Rhetorics, Feminisms and Rhetorics, and Professional/ Technical Writing.

Sweta Baniya, PhD Student at Purdue University and also one of the Social Media Curators for the #FemRhet2017, prepared a special podcast where Dr. Bay talks about her first as well as past 2 decades of experiences with the conference, her experience of co-editing Coalition’s journal Peitho, and provides excellent advice to graduate students and conference attendees. We hope you will enjoy this special podcast prepared on the occasion of 11th Biennial Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference.

Listen in SoundCloud here.

#TeamFemRhet

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C’s and the Coalition

As most of you know, the Executive Committee of CCCC has made the decision to keep the annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri.  As you also know, the Coalition hosts their annual SIG on Wednesday night of the Cs.  The Coalition has been and remains committed to feminist principles and practices of social justice, and we work to ensure the safety, dignity, and equity of our membership.  We realize that it seems as if we have been quiet in response to the Cs Executive Committee decision of September 11.  In reality, we have been organizing spaces to hear your voices on the issue.

 Moving forward:

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Upcoming Due Dates for Feminist Research Grant and Book Award

As our coalition grows, we are also able to expand our opportunities to celebrate and support feminist research in rhetoric and composition. We have two upcoming opportunities that we hope YOU will consider: the Feminist Research Grant (application due Dec 15, 2017) and the Winifred Bryan Horner Outstanding Book Award (nominations due December 1st, 2017) Read more

Follow #FemRhet2017 Online

Whether you are at home or with us in Dayton for the Feminisms and Rhetorics 2017 Conference, we hope that you follow along and engage with the conference conversations on our social media feeds. We are delighted to have a full team of social media curators who are going to be working hard to live-tweet sessions, create connections among panels, and offers ways to engage with the conference for those who aren’t able to attend in person.

Follow along on Twitter @femrhet2017 and on Facebook @Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference 2017. And you can participate by using our hashtag #FemRhet2017 Or one of our other favorite hashtags: #TeamFemRhet #TheFeministsAreComing #FemRhetSyllabus

Meet our #FemRhet2017 Social Media Team!

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