Welcome our new Treasurer, Mariana Grohowski
We are happy to announce that Mariana Grohowski is now serving as the CFSHRC Treasurer! Read more
Welcome Casey Miles, our new Web Coordinator!
We are delighted to announce that Casey Miles has agreed to serve as the CFHSRC Web Coordinator. Read more
Join us for our 4C17 Event: Building Sustainable, Capable Lives, or Tilting at Windmills?
How many of us lament our busy lives, and wonder how we can possibly balance the demands of family, work, and even maybe self? This year’s Coalition session arose from conversations and frustrations that Coalition members have expressed over the years—how do we do all that we do and still (maybe) even stay sane?
The Coalition is hosting its annual Wednesday night meeting: 6:30 pm, on Wednesday, March 15 in The Portland Ballroom 252. Read more
Changing the Landscape: Feminist Rhetorical Practices: New Horizons for Rhetoric, Composition, and Literacy Studies Five Years Later
Five years ago, Gesa Kirsch and Jacqueline Jones Royster published Feminist Rhetorical Practices: New Horizons for Rhetoric, Composition, and Literacy Studies. Met with much critical acclaim, Feminist Rhetorical Practices offered historians of rhetoric and composition a way to read, interpret, and analyze historical texts through the lenses of social circulation, critical imagination, strategic contemplation, and globalization. An immediate success, the text had—and continues to have—a major impact on the historical feminist thinking in our field.
To that end, the Coalition’s 2018 Wednesday evening session* will revisit Kirsch and Royster’s work and how it has changed (and continues to change) our discipline. Read more
CFSHRC Goes To Washington
The Women’s March on Washington is shaping up to be a historic show of feminist solidarity and collective action. We know that many of the CFSHRC are going to be attending, either in DC or in one of the many sister marches. As your professional organization, the CFSHRC wants to help you connect with fellow members of #teamfemrhet and also document our community’s participation in this historic event.
Coalition of Feminist Scholars Statement of Solidarity
In 2016, the Coalition changed its name to reinforce the organization’s longstanding commitment to critical feminist work and to better reflect the diversity of its membership, where “diversity” is not always marked by stark or traditional distinctions. After the 2016 general U.S. election, we wish to reaffirm our commitment to the values of inclusion and gender justice on which our organization was founded; to recognize and bring attention to the unique challenges involved in feminist writing, teaching, scholarship, and leadership in the current political climate; and to reiterate our support for our members. Read more
Join Us at FemRhet 2017
Greetings!
We, the members of the planning committee, are thrilled to host the 2017 Feminisms and Rhetorics conference. Read more
Feminisms and Rhetorics 2017: Call for Reviewers
The site host committee at the University of Dayton invites scholars to review paper and panel proposals for the 2017 Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference. Reviewers will be responsible for: evaluating the potential quality of conference papers, panels, roundtables, and other presentations; evaluating the relevance of the proposed work according to the conference themes; and should be committed to the timely review for acceptance to the conference.
There are several opportunities for review. The committee asks for reviewers to commit by November 15, 2016 and to be available for review between January 1 and February 15, 2017.
Reviewers will be asked to return their comments on proposals within two weeks of receiving proposals.
Reviewers must be past or current members of Feminisms and Rhetorics or Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition, or attendees of previous Feminisms and Rhetorics Conferences. Interested persons should submit the following: name, contact information (email and/or phone), and areas of interest or expertise. Please send details and inquiries to feminismsandrhetorics@gmail.com.
The conference is scheduled for Oct 4-7, 2017 in Dayton OH. See you there!
Become the Next Web Coordinator for the CFSHRC
The Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Composition and Rhetoric seeks its next Web Coordinator to maintain, monitor, and update the organization’s website. The Web Coordinator typically collaborates with CFSHRC Executive and Advisory Board members as needed. Approximate time on task averages 5-10 hours per month, with some periods of the year being slower or busier (e.g., prior to CCCC or FemRhet). Proficiency with WordPress is required.
Position Details
The CFSHRC Web Coordinator performs the following activities:
- Filtering and responding to user questions as well as general questions about the website;
- Working with Peitho editors to upload each issue of the semi-annually published journal, overseeing the process of archiving past issues, and liaising with the Peitho editorial team as needed;
- Coordinating the PayPal portion of the site (e.g., radio buttons, membership information) in collaboration with the Treasurer;
- Working with the CFSHRC Archivist to maintain the group’s administrative archive;
- Maintaining and (as needed) updating website style guidelines.
Timeframe and Remuneration
The web coordinator serves a two-year term, typically starting on May 1 and ending on April 30, although an earlier start date is both possible and preferable this term in advance of some of the new initiatives at 4Cs.
There are no geographical restrictions on this position, as the role can be performed remotely at the Web Coordinator’s convenience.
Compensation is $500 over a two-year term, plus complementary registration for one conference each year, either to attend CCCC or FemRhet.
Qualifications
We seek applications from graduate students, faculty, and/or independent scholars committed to helping the Coalition maintain and expand its strong presence in the field through digital means. All applications will be considered, but strong candidates will have the following qualifications:
- Academic training and/or scholarly interest in one of several fields, including rhetoric, composition, feminist historiography, data design, or technical and professional writing;
- Demonstrated experience managing and maintaining websites with shopping carts and PayPal connections;
- Strong English language skills;
- Strong collaborative and interpersonal skills both on and offline;
- Commitment to serving the CFSHRC, which is the intellectual home of a diverse and growing group of scholars whose interests span histories of studies in gender and sexuality and feminist research in rhetoric and composition.
To Apply
Coalition members are encouraged to apply, but applicants need not be current members. Interested candidates should submit a brief letter of interest and current resume or CV. The latter should include URLs to sites designed or maintained, or access to other digital projects representing the candidate’s range of interests and abilities. Materials should be emailed to Lisa Mastrangelo (lmastrangelo919@gmail.com) and Tarez Graban (tarez.graban@gmail.com) by December 15, 2016.
Job Seekers, Be Like the Willow Tree
Guest post by Erin Costello Wecker, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of English
Director of Composition
The University of Montana
At the 4C16 CFSHRC event, Lydia McDermott, Letizia Guglielmo and I co-hosted a mentoring table on preparing for the job market. Now that the job hunt season is gearing up, we are going to use the coalition blog to sum up a few of the key points to help prepare and empower job seekers in rhet/comp. This blog post offers some insight that was shared with me while I was on the job market and things that I learned while going through the process two years ago. Be on the lookout for additional advice from Lydia and Letizia in upcoming blog posts on this topic.
Willow tree with sun beams shining through the leaves
Be Flexible
Be flexible and open to different kinds of academic settings and positions, this includes TYC, WPA, small Liberal Arts Colleges, and larger state Universities. Sometimes when looking at all of the job openings it is daunting to envision which type of school or position you are looking for, especially if you are just finishing graduate school.
Begin by making a list of schools and then take time to visit their website. What is their mission statement? Who would be your colleagues and what type of research are they doing? Would your position be teaching focused, research focused, a combination of the two? What type of students attend this institution (i.e. focus on STEM fields, thriving Business School, loads of English majors)? Would you be working with graduate students?
Think About Fit
From this preliminary search you can get a sense of what type of work seems exciting. It is helpful to think of your own schooling background. What type of institutions did you attend? Generate a list of things you enjoyed and things you felt did not foster your academic development.
From that list a clearer picture of what contributions you would like to make to a school will become more evident, which will in turn help to refine your list of places to apply. Let your list guide you, but do not let it rule your search–remember where we started, be flexible and open to different kinds of academic settings. To that point, generate honest and focused documents for your teaching statement, research statement, and administrative statement and tailor your CV for two-three different types of positions.
Start getting ready soon. The job ads are already coming out. You can check them out here on the handy-dandy rhet map.
Be Like the Willow
A job search is demanding, but it is also exhilarating as there is promise in each new adventure. As the title suggests, willow trees are adaptive to climate and soil, grow fast, and have a distinctive shape with strong, well-developed roots. When I went on the job market I could not imagine leaving the city I loved, especially after calling it home for fifteen years; to my mind I had roots and I was not sure I wanted to uproot them. Yet as I begin year number two in my new job, in my new home, in a new time zone, with a new climate, and new people, I am reminded that possibility is what led me to this location.
A final bit of advice, to help wrap your mind around the changes that accompany a job search, take time to read your documents over and allow yourself to enjoy, for at least a moment or two, the accomplishments that have led you to a job search in the first place. When teaching writing we often stress the importance of process vs. product, yet when on the job market it is so easy to develop tunnel vision where landing a job is the only destination in sight. So, trust your talents and embrace the opposite actions of the willow tree: reaching skyward for light and remaining earthbound for rootedness, and when a gust of wind approaches just sway; I promise you will not break.
