Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations

Crossing Boundaries: Foreign Relations and Transborder Histories

The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR) invites proposals for panels and individual papers at its annual conference to be held June 24-26, 2010 at the Pyle Conference Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In order to receive full consideration, proposals should be submitted no later than December 1, 2009.

The program committee welcomes panels and paper proposals that deal with the history of United States’ role in the world in the broadest sense. In order to complement SHAFR’s signature and continuing strengths in diplomatic, strategic, and foreign relations history, particularly for the post-1900 period, the Committee especially encourages proposals that deal with non-state actors and/or pre-1900 transborder histories, as well as proposals that involve histories of gender and race, cultural history, religious history, environmental history, economic history, labor history, immigration history, and borderlands history. The Committee also invites applications from scholars working in areas other than U. S. history, and panels that include work by such scholars. Finally, the committee welcomes panels dealing with issues such as pedagogy and professionalization.

To defray traveling costs for some graduate students and first-time participants, SHAFR is offering a number of competitive fellowships. Please read below for further information.

The committee seeks complete panels with a coherent theme in one of the following formats: (1) three papers, chair, and commentator; or (2) a roundtable discussion with a chair and participants. Panels and roundtables must have at least three presenters. The committee also welcomes panels using innovative procedures. We request that applicants have no more than two roles at the conference and only one presentation of their own research.

Please read and follow the instructions at: SHAFR 2010 Annual Meeting link at the SHAFR website, http://www.shafr.org.

Although proposals for individual papers will be considered, proposals for complete panels are encouraged and will receive preference. Those seeking to create or complete a panel should consult the “panelists seeking panelists” link at the SHAFR 2010 Annual Meeting website.

Electronic submissions are strongly encouraged, but paper submissions will also be accepted. Please include the following information in a document that begins with the surname of the contact person. e.g., “Smith.shafr.2010.doc”

1. Panel title & short, one paragraph description
2. Paper proposals for each paper
3. The c.v.s of all participants
4. Email address of designated contact person

Please email a copy of your application as a single Word file attachment—saved as a document that begins with the surname of the contact person to: Anne Foster and Naoko Shibusawa, program chairs, at: program-chair@shafr.org.
If submitting a paper copy of your application, please mark “SHAFR 2010 Proposal” on the front of the envelope, and mail it to: Naoko Shibusawa, History Department, Brown University, 79 Brown St., Providence, RI 02912

Divine Graduate Student Travel Grants

This year SHAFR will offer several Robert A. and Barbara Divine Graduate Student Travel Grants to assist graduate students who present papers at the 2010 conference. The following stipulations apply: 1) no award will exceed $300 per student; 2) priority will be given to graduate students who receive no or limited funds from their home institutions; and 3) expenses will be reimbursed by the SHAFR Business Office upon submission of receipts. The Program Committee will make the decision regarding all awards. A graduate student requesting travel funds must make a request when submitting the paper/panel proposal. Applicants must include another separate abstract in their travel grant application. Funding requests will have no bearing on the committee’s decisions on panels, but funds will not be awarded unless the applicant’s panel is accepted by the program committee in a separate decision. Requests must be accompanied by a letter from the graduate advisor confirming the unavailability of departmental funds to cover travel to the conference.

SHAFR Diversity and International Outreach Fellowship Program

This year, SHAFR inaugurates a competition for fellowships that will cover travel and lodging expenses for the 2010 annual meeting. The competition is aimed at scholars whose participation in the annual meeting would add to the diversity of the Society. Preference will be given to persons who have not previously presented at SHAFR annual meetings. The awards are intended for scholars who represent groups historically under-represented at SHAFR meetings, scholars who offer intellectual approaches that may be fruitful to SHAFR but are under-represented at annual meetings, and scholars from outside the United States. “Scholars” includes faculty, graduate students, and independent researchers. To further acquaint the winners with SHAFR, they will also be awarded a one-year membership in the organization, which includes subscriptions to Diplomatic History and Passport. For application instructions, contact diversityprogram@shafr.org. Please send another separate abstract of the individual paper proposal. Funding requests will have no bearing on the committee’s decisions on panels, but funds will not be awarded unless the applicant’s panel is accepted by the program committee in a separate decision. Application deadline: December 1, 2009.