The MSA Board is seeking nominations for five Executive Board positions by February 6, 2026:

2nd Vice President. The Second Vice President assists the other officers as needed and is tasked with keeping minutes of Executive Committee meetings. The most significant job of the Second Vice President is to secure one or more future conference sites.

The 2nd Vice President assumes office on October 1, 2026. Then proceeds to the position of 1st Vice President in 2027, and then to that of President on the final day of the MSA conference in 2028 (or October 1, 2028, whichever occurs later).

Vice Program Chair. The Vice Program Chair—with the help of the Program Chair—oversees the planning of the program for the annual conference, coordinating with the local organizing committee. The Vice Program Chair and Program Chair manage the proposal submission platform and the review process for all submitted proposals by assigning proposals for peer review. Both Chairs also assist in organizing individual paper proposals into roundtables and panels; compile and publish seminar descriptions; assess workshop offerings; and review and publicize the program.

The Vice Program Chair assumes office October 1, 2026 and will initially serve as Vice Program Chair for one year after which they become Program Chair in 2027. In their third year, they will be the outgoing Program Chair and serve in a supportive role. The Vice/Program Chair serves approximately three years until the last day of the 2028 MSA Conference (or October 1, 2028).

Technology and Infrastructure Chair. The T&I Chair maintains the MSA Website in cooperation with JHUP; manages the MSA internal infrastructure, including communications systems (Slack); and maintains the digital document archive (dropbox). The T&I Chair also collaborates with the local organizing committee to create, launch, and maintain the annual conference website; sets up, administers, and oversees systems for conference Ex Ordo, in collaboration with the Program Chair.

Nominations for the T&I Chair are taken from the membership. The T&I chair is elected by the Executive Committee and serves a 3-year term (approximately).

Membership & Elections Chair. The M&E Chair solicits nominations and runs elections for Executive Board positions. The M&E Chair manages the MSA’s social media accounts, listserv, and communicates with the membership about MSA events and news. The M&E Chair also ensures that all requests for disability accommodations are met at MSA conferences. Finally, the M&E Chair serves as a liaison to the Special Interest Groups.

The M&E Chair is elected by the general membership and serves a 3-year term (approximately).

Graduate Student Representative. The Graduate Student Representative is the principal liaison between the graduate student caucus and the board. The Grad Rep advocates for MSA graduate students and helps to promote the work of junior scholars, provide networking opportunities, and organize professional development opportunities.

The Grad Rep assumes office on October 1, 2026 and serves approximately two years.

Prospective candidates with questions about the duties of any of the positions are encouraged to contact these current officers and/or outgoing Board Members: 2nd Vice President Amanda Golden; Treasurer Matthew Eatough; Program Chair Matthew Levay; Contingent Faculty Rep Kate Schnur.

More information about the MSA Board and its Bylaws can be found here.

NOMINATION INSTRUCTIONS:

We encourage both self-nominations and nominations of other MSA members. Any MSA member in good standing is eligible to be nominated and serve as an officer. Please send your nomination of another MSA member or of yourself to Karen Weingarten (kweingarten@qc.cuny.edu), Chair, Membership and Elections.

Nominations should include the following information about the nominee:

  • 1. Name
  • 2. Position sought
  • 3. Email and telephone contacts
  • 4. Rank, academic or organizational affiliation
  • 5. A statement of qualifications of no more than 200 words; the statement may additionally be accompanied by a list of up to four publications that demonstrate an interest in Modernist Studies and/or a website address that lists publications and other relevant information
  • 6. Current CV for public circulation (will be posted on MSA website during election)

NOMINATION DEADLINE: 6 February 2026 (Friday)

The Membership and Elections Committee Chair, in consultation with the Nominations Committee, will prepare a slate of candidates for election. The Nominations Chair will contact those nominees who were not self-nominated to confirm their interest in serving on the board. Please address any procedural questions to Karen Weingarten (kweingarten@qc.cuny.edu).

ABOUT THE MSA BOARD:

Since the inception of the MSA, membership has grown to almost 1000. Most of the organization’s work is done by volunteers on the MSA Board and their committees, with the assistance of an MSA administrator. Therefore, those deciding to run for election should be prepared to make a substantial time commitment to MSA. Board members also work individually and collectively to build the membership base, and to communicate with members and the larger academy concerning the Modernist Studies Association. The MSA Board is responsible for planning and executing the annual meeting in conjunction with representatives of the host institution; we believe that the liveliest and most provocative conferences result from attention to diversity of representation on the fronts of discipline, nation, race, and gender on the Board, among the membership, and on the annual program. Our most recent conferences in Brooklyn (2023), Chicago (2024), Boston (2025) have further diversified our membership and increased interdisciplinary and multicultural panel offerings. We expect no less of our future conferences.