A Unicorn, Butterflies, and Rainbows, Coalition Style

/in ,

If you follow the Coalition on Facebook or Twitter then you know May 5th turned out to be a banner day. In the throes of third quarter for some and the end of the semester and academic year for others, the meme to the right turned out to a rallying cry for our membership—along with more than 5000 of our friends, friends of our friends, friends of friends of our friends, and so on.

Oh, how tempting it is to try turning that runaway meme into an ad hoc membership drive. Oh so very, very tempting.

Instead, I offer everyone reading this post a unicorn, a variation on the theme of butterflies, and some rainbows.

To start, a unicorn along with the first rainbow:

This particular unicorn and the figure we now know as Everyprofessor, all revved up to grade all the things, are both the work of Allie Brosh. Although she did not create the meme, she is well known through her website, Hyperbole and a Half, her book by the same name, and all kinds of cool swag. Brosch writes humorously and movingly about any number of subjects, including her own childhood and depression. Increasingly, her work appears on rhetoric and composition syllabi alongside Lynda Barry‘s, Alison Bechdel‘s, and others’. When you have a chance, take a look. Meanwhile, we owe Brosh one heckuva hat tip.

As for butterflies, they’re aspirational. At least here along the shores of Lake Michigan it’s early for caterpillars let alone butterflies. As a substitute, how about a button? Back in March at #4C14 we gave everyone able to attend the Coalition’s 25th Anniversary Gala a keepsake pin. Today we pair it with a button. Specifically, and thanks to Alli Crandell, our most wonderful webmistress, we offer you a  Peitho recommendation button.

Click it and you’ll find yourself on a page with a short form where you can tell Peitho‘s editors about colleagues with as-yet-unpublished projects on feminist research, histories of women, and/or studies of gender and sexuality in rhetoric and composition. If you are attending conferences this summer, starting with RSA in San Antonio, try it out. Please, too, let us know if you have any problems or suggestions for how it can be improved.

Now rainbows, a topic that has at least some of you thinking about 4Cs, Cs the Day, and those ever-sought-after Sparkleponies. (If you missed the post-conference controversy, read all about it here, here, here, and here.) Whether you plan to celebrate the sixth year of the conference’s first (formal) augmented reality game at #4C15 or not, as you get ready to upload your proposals plan to use Joyce Carter’s innovative keyword system to help Coalition members identify—and attend!—your sessions.

So far, three keywords have emerged as Coalition members’ favorites: Coalition, CWSHRC, and FemRhet. If your session addresses feminist research, histories of women, and studies of gender and sexuality in rhetoric and composition, use one or more of these terms, and next spring we’ll be there.

As promised, then, a unicorn, butterflies (more and less), and rainbows. Check this space again in a week or two for news about the Coalition’s 2014-15 volunteer survey among other things.

#CWS25: Gratitude, Congratulations, and an Invitation

/in

Last night and early this morning, a lunar eclipse. Today, the start of a new term for the Coalition of Women Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition. Since good things so often come in threes, my first President’s Blog offers gratitude, congratulations, and an invitation.

First, gratitude. As many of you know, at #4C14 in Indianapolis, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Coalition. Our gala, hosted by Elizabeth Tasker Davis, planned by the 2012-14 Executive Board, and supported by the 2012-14 Advisory Board, featured speakers, nearly a dozen mentoring tables, and cake!

If you were at the conference or following our Twitter feed then you already know that Kathleen Welch, Shirley Wilson Logan, and Barb L’Eplattenier delivered thoughtful and provocative talks, calling on all of us not only to look back at the organization’s history but also to look ahead, consider the future of the Coalition, and get involved in not only sustaining but also strengthening a group that offers so many scholars in rhetoric and composition a professional home.

Perhaps the best thanks we can offer to everyone who has served the Coalition over the past quarter century is to work with with equal commitment and care—for each other, for feminist work in our field—for at least another 25 years.

In this spirit, congratulations! At the Coalition business meeting, which takes place on 4Cs Wednesdays just before the Coalition evening session,  the Advisory Board voted to expand, increasing elected membership on the board from 25 to 30. This decision reflects both a recognized need and a collective desire to see the organization grow in different ways in order to fulfill its mission: not only to support women in the profession but also to support all teachers and scholars who do feminist work, who research and write histories of women, and who study and teach gender and sexuality in rhetoric and composition.

Our decision was followed by an election. Thirty-four colleagues were nominated for open seats on the CWSHRC Advisory Board, and I am delighted to welcome the following newly elected members to the Coalition’s leadership: Jane Greer, Gwen Pough, Cristina Ramirez, Dora Ramirez-Dhoore, Rebecca Richards, Bo Wang, and Hyoejin Yoon along with #FemRhet15 co-chairs Maureen Goggin and Shirley Rose.

These fine colleagues join ongoing board members Lisa Mastrangelo (Vice President), Marta Hess (Treasurer), Tarez Graban (Secretary), Elizabeth Tasker Davis (Immediate Past President), Nancy Myers (Member at Large), Roxanne Aftanas, Kate Adams, Risa Applegarth, Lindal Buchanan, Kirsti Cole, Jess Enoch, Lynée Lewis Gaillet, Cheryl Glenn, Patti Hanlon-Baker, Nan Johnson, Andrea Lunsford, Jacqueline McLeod Rogers, Whitney Myers, Wendy Sharer, and Hui Wu as well as ex officio members Jenny Bay, Alli Crandell, Shirley Wilson Logan, Arabella Lyon, Joyce Irene Middleton, Kris Ratcliffe, Pat Sullivan, and Kathleen Welch.

Last, an invitation: I invite you to get ready. As our Gala speakers underscored and our converation during the following Q&A period made clear, we have work to do.

Over the past several years, the Coalition has transformed. You may not know, but the CWSHRC is now a 501c3. Online, we have not only a dynamic website but also a growing social media network, and we co-host not only the biennial Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference but also Peitho, which is now a twice-annual  peer-reviewed journal. Our work is to make the most of these still new resources—and then make even more. Some questions to consider: How can we max out our current potential for scholarly communication about subjects of shared interest and concern? How can we build more working relationships both within our membership and beyond, “coalitioning” with other professional groups? How can we be more representative and, at the same time, better represent?

To address these questions is to keep transforming, and my invitation to you—whether you are a new or long-time Coalition member or a non-member willing to coalition with us—is to get ready to get involved. New initiatives and new opportunities on the horizon will give you new ways  to contribute, to mentor and to be mentored, to collaborate, to coalition. So, I encourage you to watch this space, like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter, and contact me or any members of the Advisory Board with questions, comments, and ideas.

25th Anniversary Gala Celebration

/in , ,

The Executive Board would like to announce that plans are well underway for the Coalition’s 25th Anniversary Gala celebration, to be held in Indianapolis on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in Grand Ballroom III (Second Floor), at the JW Indianapolis  Marriott. One such plan involves restoring and re-using the 2008 Coalition history video produced by Wendy Sharer and Michelle Eble. Additionally, Alexandra Hidalgo — Assistant Professor of Rhetoric, Writing, and American Cultures at Michigan State University, and co-founder of Agnès Films — has agreed to produce a new documentary project on the Coalition as a history-in-the-making, which means she will be taking videography throughout the Gala event.

To continue two long-standing traditions, the Gala will feature engaging speakers and mentoring tables, and our speakers — all past presidents of the Coalition at various moments in its history — will, in the spirit of a roundtable discussion, focus on their interpretations of the Coalition’s scholarly and civic impacts on rhetoric and composition, and on future goals and directions for feminist scholars working in the field. We hope you will join us there for a special reception and celebration! We also hope you will take some time to help us envision those future goals and directions by contributing to the CWSHRC 2014-16 survey.

Until the Gala,
Elizabeth Tasker-Davis
Nancy Myers
Jenn Fishman
Lisa Mastrangelo
Tarez Samra Graban
Jaque McCleod Rogers

Upcoming in 2013 and beyond

/in

Dear friends in feminism, rhetoric, and composition,

I so enjoyed our Wednesday evening session at CCCC 2013 in Las Vegas.  Thanks to our three speakers (Jessica Enoch, Letizia Gugliemo, and Phyllis Thompson), our mentoring table hosts, my co-board members, and all who joined us.  The speaker talks will appear in a special section of the Spring issue of the journal Peitho.  Also be aware that we have moved the mentoring table notes, which in previous years were published in the Peitho newsletter, to a new online forum on this web site.

With so much diverse intellectual and technological energy in the Coalition lately, I am reminded that feminism is not just an ideology but a collaborative and forward-thinking way of life.  Given the rampant violence and oppression that continues to pervade human civilization, I take a great deal of comfort in the nurturing metaphors and practices of feminist rhetoric and composition.  I also see that we have a responsibility to encourage feminist values in our students, our colleagues, and our field at large.

Thus, we are looking forward to the upcoming Feminisms and Rhetorics conference on September 25-28, 2013 at Stanford University.  Like many of you, I received my paper acceptance a few days ago, and so I have started thinking about exactly how I want to craft and polish my topic for the other scholars who will be attending.  The Executive Board is also thinking beyond this event to the 2015 Feminisms and Rhetorics conference, the site of which has not yet been determined.

Please take a moment to read the call below and consider if your institution might fit the bill:

Host the 10th Biennial Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference in 2015

In 2015, Feminisms and Rhetorics will meet for the tenth time in twenty years. You and your colleagues can lead the celebration by volunteering to host this historic event. Sponsored by the Coalition of Women Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition and convened at campuses across the country, past hosts include Oregon State University, The Ohio State University, the University of Arkansas-Little Rock, and (this year) Stanford University.

Complete proposals are due no later than August 15, 2013 and should include:

  • Contact information, position, and credentials of the co-chairs and the local planning committee.
  • A brief statement of interest, describing your and your colleagues’ approach and qualifications for hosting FemRhet.
  • An overview of the conference theme, including the types of scholarly, pedagogical, and civic questions you want presenters to address.
  • Information about the site itself, including a description of the geographic area, campus, conference facilities (rooms for general and breakout sessions, meals, technology, access accommodations, etc.), and lodging (including proximity from conference site and range of cost).
  • Proximity and transportation costs to and from the nearest airport.
  • Possible local sightseeing and cultural opportunities for attendees.
  • Institutional and community sponsorship and partners.

 

 

CCCC Agenda

/in , ,

Begin your CCCC 2013 experience at our Wednesday night session!

Coalition of Women Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition.

Riviera Hotel, Grande Ballroom D, First Floor

Wednesday, March 13, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

 

Session agenda:

“Connecting Past and Future Feminist Research Practices”

Chair: Elizabeth Tasker-Davis, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches,TX

Keynote Speakers: Jessica Enoch, University of Maryland, College Park. “Mining, Mapping, and Making: Feminist Historiography and the Digital Humanities”

Letizia Guglielmo, Kennesaw State University, Atlanta, GA. “Finding their Voices: Feminist Intervention, Public Narratives, and Social Media.”

Phyllis Thompson, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City. “The New Archive: Women, Writing, and Work.”

 Book and article awards, presented by Nancy Myers

Roundtable discussions with established and new feminist scholars:

1) History Methodologies – Nan Johnson, Marta Hess

2) Single Author Book Manuscript – Kathleen Welch, Lindal Buchanan

3) Collaborative Research and Writing – Jenn Fishman, Andrea Lunsford, Carolyn Wisniewski

4) Full Professor Portfolio – Lynee Lewis Gaillet, Kate Adams, Lisa Ede

5) Turning the Dissertation into a Book Manuscript – Cheryl Glenn, Shirley Wilson Logan, Wendy Hayden

6) Edited Collections – Kris Ratcliffe, Wendy Sharer, Jacqueline McLeod Rogers

7) Finding Balance between Professional and Personal Life – Hui Wu, Barb L’Eplattenier, Jenny Bay

8) Interviewing and Changing Jobs – Nancy Myers, Jessica Enoch

9) Women in Digital Spaces – Mary P. Sheridan and Lee Nickoson, Mariana Grohowski

 

Greetings friends of feminism!

/in

As the president of the Coalition of Women Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition (CWSHRC) for 2012-2014, I would like to welcome you to our newly re-designed web site.  Here, we have a virtual space for connecting past theories, practices, and pedagogies of women’s rhetoric and composition with the current and future interests of our constituents.  Since its inception in 1990, the CWSHRC has served as a vital network for feminist scholars and teachers in our field.  As a group, we are dedicated to sharing our experience in feminist research methodology and pedagogy; in teaching courses, workshops, and seminars; in mentoring colleagues, friends, and students; and in contributing to many types of community-focused projects.  If these are your interests, our Coalition can help you.

Even for a non-joiner like me, the CWSHRC has been a tremendous source of inspiration and strength.  I am not just talking about moral support.  I am talking about colleagues who are willing to collaborate, read, review, recommend, network, and offer tangible professional help to those who share similar goals and interests.  Let me be more specific.  At the recommendation of my dissertation director, I joined the Coalition in 2005 when I was a graduate student—that is, a pregnant middle-aged graduate student starting my second career.  By the time I finished my Ph.D. in 2007, I was divorced with three kids and a new profession that I had grown to love.  I had defended my dissertation, published my first article (in the Peitho newsletter), and landed a tenure-track job at a middle-tier state university–just in time to save my life, or so it felt.  Later that same fall, in October 2007, when I attended my first Feminisms and Rhetorics conference in Little Rock, AR, I discovered that I was not alone as a feminist scholar, teacher, single mother, and professional academic female.  Of course, intellectually, I already understood there were other professionals of my ilk, but at the FemRhet conference, I was surrounded by feminist academics of all ranks and stripes and at many stages of life.  It was like coming home…

In keeping with the open and invitational spirit that I have found in the CWSHRC, I encourage any individual interested in learning about feminist historiography, theory, practice, or pedagogy in the fields of rhetoric and composition to browse our site and join our organization.  I also encourage new and ongoing members to get involved in CWSHRC, submit to Peitho, attend the Feminisms and Rhetorics conference, subscribe to our listserv, and use this site to keep up on professional developments, make connections, and share ideas.  Please note that this president’s blog will serve as a special place not only for the president but also for invited scholars in the field to reflect on the ways they have done and do feminist historical and theoretical work.

I appreciate your visit to our new site.

Best wishes,
Elizabeth Tasker Davis
President, CWSHRC