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Minority Scholars Committee
Report from the Minority Scholars’ Committee 2001
The Minority Scholars’ Committee eagerly anticipates the annual meeting in Washington, D.C., where we will welcome our newest members, Lisa Coleman, Duchess Harris and Roberta Hill and reconnect with Dwight McBride, our longest serving member. We will miss the presence and leadership of outgoing chair, Catherine Ceniza Choy, and thank her for her hard work and commitment to the goals and concerns of the Minority Scholars’ Committee. We also welcome the opportunity to introduce to the committee the new co-chairs for 2001-2002, Dionne Espinoza and Diana Paulin. In preparation, we are also planning for our co-sponsored panel with the Women’s Committee, “The Meanings and Representations of Work in the Lives of Women of Color”, and for our joint reception with the Women’s Committee and the Sexual Minorities Scholars(hip) Caucus. At the reception, we will introduce our members, as well as alert those in attendance to panels that our committees are sponsoring.
At the annual meeting, we plan to discuss the following issues and strategies for increasing our constituency’s presence and involvement in the ASA:
- Assess Relationship of Our Constituency to the ASA
- Introduce and establish immediate and long-term goals for the MSC with new members, especially issues of consistency and active membership.
- Review charter of the MSC and revise, if necessary, to address current/future projects.
- Discuss ASA’s continued responses to anti-affirmative action efforts nationwide and effective strategies for maintaining support for its objectives.
- Support Systems for Our Constituency
- Discuss regular meetings to promote continuity and productivity, like the 2001 joint-retreat in Washington, D.C. with the Women’s Committee. They will supplement, not replace, the annual conference.
- Maintain collaborative relationship with the Women’s Committee and reestablish more active relationship with the Sexual Minorities Scholars(hip) Caucus, with events such as the joint reception at the ASA annual convention and co-sponsored panels.
- Current/Future Projects
- Continued support and publicity for the Lora Romero First Book Prize proposal that was unanimously endorsed by the Executive Committee in May 2001.
- Develop specific panel proposals for future ASA meetings, such as “Minority Scholarship in the 21st Century.”
- Discuss possible workshop on publishing in American Studies.
- Develop a panel based on texts or projects that fulfill criteria for the Lora Romero Book Award.
- Prospects for Funding
- Continue to discuss plans for minority mentorship. Explore other resources for research/travel grants for minority graduate students to promote minority participation in the ASA.
The annual meeting provides an opportunity for the Minority Scholars’ Committee to establish its goals for the year, to continue to develop the professional and personal relationships of its members, and to maintain the institutional memory of the MSC’s accomplishments. This vital meeting will also allow us to review the “history” of the MSC that outgoing chair, Catherine Choy, has generously offered to document. This written document will enable the new co-chairs to share this valuable information with current members. In addition, this history will enable us to evaluate our current plans and future strategies in light of the committee’s past objectives, achievements, and experiences. The participation of long-standing members, such as Dwight McBride, will help to provide some of the “institutional” memory for our newer members.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dionne Espinoza and Diana R. Paulin, Co-Chairs
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