Spring 2013 – Status

Friends, colleagues, and fellow Christian historians,

Hopefully your semesters are off to a rousing start.  I hoped that we could communicate a bit more extensively about our respective programs.  One of the great things about the CFH is that we have this (inter)national breadth of scholars in various places, points in their careers, and experience levels.  We all wrestle with similar problems and frustrations, yet we seemingly all put up with (or do I mean endure?) them for the same reasons.  It’s my idea that in the comment section of this post, some of you might be willing to share an extended “status update” of sorts with colleagues.  Who knows, maybe there’s a fellow CFH member at a nearby school… or sitting at the other table in your coffee shop.  Won’t you join us?

I suppose I’ll get us started.  After the awesome CFH Conference at Gordon College in the fall and the birth of my baby girl, life’s been a bit of a roller coaster.  I’ll decline to comment publicly on the exact status of my dissertation, but suffice it to say I’m near(ing) in the end.  That said I’m adjuncting (and, apparently, gerunding) at two different schools in two different states.  I’m thankful for both opportunities.  I am particularly excited about a course I’m teaching at Geneva College called Digital History in which I’m working with 7 undergraduates to build an archive.  We’re still narrowing our focus and determining what it will look like exactly, but I hope to have something to share with you all.

In terms of “what I’m reading” these days… that’s an oddly personal question but one I like thinking about.  I’ve been trying to read more on postmodern education, as I see it as an important obstacle to effective teaching compared to the late-modern era of schooling that bore my scholastic self.  I’m working on N.T. Wright’s *How God Became King* for a dose of the theological.  For my academic historical reading, I’m trying to broaden some theoretical work on correspondence in the 19th century as well as failing horribly in my attempt to keep up with the unending waterfall of Civil War historiography.  The best book I’ve read recently is Mark Schantz’s *Awaiting the Heavenly Country* about death culture that motivated the society of Americans that fought and supported the Civil War.

So… what say you?

Opportunities to Chair a Session: CFH Gordon College in October

Grad Students… to arms! to arms!  (Or, at least, to pens!)

We’ve been volunteered (you’re welcome, I think) to serve our esteemed organization by way of offering commentary on the papers for the undergraduate conference at Gordon College in October.  The dates are October 4-6, 2012.  Check out the details of the conference here.

Some of you may be a little apprehensive about this, but we’re really looking for advanced graduate students (ABD preferred) to comment on papers within your field of specialization.  That said, we may not have a perfect match between papers being presented and commentors available.  So, let’s begin the process by getting willing volunteers to contact me (grjones83@gmail.com) and I will work with Jared Burkholder, the undergraduate conference organizer, to match things up.

If you’re wondering WHY on Earth you should volunteer your time for such an endeavor, the answer is simply because it will help your career.  Not only is it the ever-popular “vita line,” it is also and opportunity to show future employers your willingness to help in a time of need.  We, the grad students, will be lightening the load for the rest of the membership of the CFH.  Additionally, you’ll gain experience in commenting on papers.  Remember that these will be more polished than the average undergraduate “written the night before its due” papers.  Many of these are inquiring young scholars attempting to dip their toes in the academy.  We have a chance to offer them direction and encouragement in the way that many of us received at a similar critical juncture in our careers.

I truly hope many of you will volunteer.

CFP: SSHA

*I get a ton of these CFP through H-Grad, but this one seemed particularly applicable.  Perhaps we could get a CFH panel together for this integrating history and theology?  Thoughts?*

********

We invite you to take part in the Urban Network panels of the 37th annual
meeting of the Social Science History Association, November 1-4, 2012, in
Vancouver. The members of the Social Science History Association share a
common interest in interdisciplinary and systematic approaches to
historical research (including, but by no means limited to, sociology,
urban planning, geography, demography, economics, and political
science).The SSHA is a particularly good forum for graduate students’
work: we welcome a diversity of scholars at various stages of their careers and
encourage graduate student participation in network events.

The thematic topic of the 2012 annual meeting is “Histories of Capitalism.”
However, we welcome papers and panels on all urban topics. Proposed panel
topics include:

- The Occupy Movement as an urban phenomenon

- Financial Crises and Cities

- Capital and the Rise and Fall of Cities

- Urban Economies

- Vancouver’s History and Development

- Cities of the Pacific Rim

- Olympic Games and Host Cities

- Migration and Immigration

- Cities and the Environment

- Urban Governance

- Crime and Justice in the City

- The Ancient City

To propose a paper or panel please submit: Paper Title, Brief Abstract, and
Contact Information at http://conference.ssha.org/.While we welcome paper
submissions, panel proposals are encouraged. Panels should include an
organizer, discussant, and at least four papers. The deadline for paper
and/or panel submissions is *MARCH 1, 2012.*

For more information on the meeting as well as the call for proposals,
please refer to the SSHA website: http://www.ssha.org or contact either of
the Urban co-chairs (Carl Zimring–czimring@gmail.com or Megan
Stubbendeck– mrs8v@virginia.edu).

We look forward to seeing you in the Fall!

Sincerely,

Megan Stubbendeck and Carl Zimring

Urban Network Co-chairs

Renewing Membership

Friends, colleagues, countrymen and women…

It’s that time of year to renew membership.  Since our membership is free (hip hip horray!), we don’t have to send in a dues check.   HOWEVER, what I’d like is for you to touch base with me (the grad rep) to let me know that you are still in graduate school and desire to be a member.

**NOTICE** We are going to make some massive cuts to the membership rolls for the people who have graduated, given up, or got lost somewhere in the 13th layer of NARA.

Please, also, add our fancy new Facebook Page!  The other “group” is defunct per Facebook’s new “group” policy.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Conference-on-Faith-and-History-Grad-Students/323046044383504

Thanks all.  My contact (to renew membership) is grjones83@gmail.com.

CFH at AHA in Chicago – Just a few weeks!

American Historical Association Meeting 

Chicago Marriott Downtown
Saturday, January 7, 2012

The annual breakfast reception of the CFH will be Saturday morning, January 7, in the Cook Room of the Chicago Marriott Downtown, from 8-9 am. All are welcome to join us, especially graduate students.

This will be followed by a stimulating panel discussion from 9 to 11 am in the McHenry Room of the Chicago Marriott Downtown on “Historians, Historiography, and the Confessional Divide,” in which historians from differing faith traditions discuss their perspectives on the intersection of faith and history. Will Katerberg (Calvin College) will chair. The panel will be composed of Bradley Nassif (North Park University), Mark A. Noll (University of Notre Dame), Dana L. Robert (Boston University), Lamin Sanneh (Yale University), and Leslie W. Tentler (Catholic University of America). We expect an interesting dialogue.

Announcement taken directly from:  http://www.huntington.edu/cfh/announcements.htm

Please comment, or email me (grjones83@gmail.com) if you’d like to get together.  PLEASE do attend the CFH breakfast and panel.

Attending the American Historical Association

The AHA Meeting in Chicago, January 5-8, 2012 is registering.  Check it out.

If enough of “us” are going, it would be great to get together.  Maybe for a deepdish pizza?  (That’s what we do in Chicago, right?)

Leave comments.  Tell friends.  Let’s do this!

Academic Status Update

Many graduate students are a part of a largely digital generation and are used to “status updates.”  For the sake of developing community here at the CFH Grad Student blog, it would be great if we could share a quick “status update.”  Just give us a sentence or two in the comments section about where you are (physically and progressively) in your program.

It only takes a minute!  You can post as “anonymous,” but tell us who you really are in your comment.

I’ll get us started.

I’m Greg Jones, fifth year PhD student at Kent State, and I’m currently editing my dissertation on Civil War soldiers in southeastern Ohio.  I am an adjunct history professor at Kent State and Geneva College, teaching a mix of intro and upper division courses.

Alright everyone… let’s hear the update!

Dispatches from Graduate School – Post 37

Cali Pitchel McCullough is a Ph.D student in American history at Arizona State University. For earlier posts in this series click here. –JF
[Reposted by permission of *The Way of Improvement Leads Home*]

Last week I made my first (of many, I hope) public lectures for History to the People. When I first had the idea for the website, I connected with a local marketing agency for some direction on developing a brand. The agency’s managing director makes himself available for mentoring hours each week at their office, which happens to be a really cool collaborative workspace in Chandler, Arizona, called Gangplank. Gangplank helps to create a “new economic vision comprised of collaboration and community” through sharing workspace, resources, and most importantly ideas.

Fourteen small businesses occupy the space at Gangplank and co-work on a daily basis free of charge. In exchange for space, each anchor business (the marketing agency included) must commit to reinvest into the Gangplank community by planning events such as a weekly brownbag discussion.

After my mentor-session with the agency’s managing director, he suggested that I share my idea with the Gangplank community at a brownbag discussion. The next day I received an email from Gangplank’s Director of Community Outreach, and she put History to the People on the calendar for September 21st. I asked my classmate and co-founder to join me for the discussion. The thought of debuting the idea to the public by myself seemed a bit daunting. She agreed, and together we shared our vision with a group of individuals who work in entirely different industries. Most of our audience were “creative types”—web developers, graphic artists, and social media specialists. The marketing agency team and our graphic designer showed their support, as did my dad (I thought he might be the only one) and a friend who has close ties at Gangplank. Brianna and I were the only “academics” in the building.

Despite our fear of that we might put the crowd to sleep, everyone responded enthusiastically to History to the People. We received great feedback and people raised questions that are important to address as we continue to move forward with our vision. (One attendee even posted a response to the brownbag on her blog!) We learned a lot from the discussion, and most importantly, we discovered that there are people outside of academia who believe thinking historically is crucial to contemporary life.

Our time at Gangplank provided us with that extra impetus to press on. Last week we met with our web designer, and this week I complete our registration with the Arizona Corporation Commission. By the end of next week I will officially be the Director of History to the People. Once the designer finishes the logo I can finalize our executive summary and begin the laborious fundraising process. In the meantime my benefactors (i.e., my mom and dad) generously give of their resources to help me realize this goal.

I believe in the success of History to the People. Most Americans agree that history matters, but not all Americans understand the implications of ahistorical thinking. Through the website we will provide our audience with both the tools necessary to think historically and a plethora of accessibly written and rigorously researched historical material. One day HTTP will encourage thousands of people to think historically, and as a bonus, we might even be able to pay back my parents.

Letter from the President – Professor Barry Hankins, Baylor University

Dear CFH Grad Students,
As we start another school year I want to send along the CFH’s best wishes for a successful semester. I’ve always believed that the primary benefit of the CFH is that it brings Christian scholars together for fellowship and mutual encouragement. In recent years this vital function has been extended to graduate students in unprecedented ways, so let CFH be a resource for you. Stay connected through the website and Greg Jones’s blog, and begin now to network with CFH members on faculty at Christian colleges. Also, as you develop seminar papers this semester, keep the October 2012 biennial CFH meeting in mind. When you give a paper at a CFH conference, you will encounter a diverse array of participants who want to help you develop as a scholar and who see you first and foremost as a human being created in God’s image. Finally, when you hit that mid-semester point when you wonder whether all your effort is someday going to be worth the sacrifice you’re making, stay in the present. Being a scholar means reading, thinking, writing, and teaching, which is what grad students do. In other words, while grad school is in one respect “training,” it is also one’s entrée into the vocation of scholarship. God has opened doors for you to be a scholar right now, so make the most of the opportunity. Be a good steward of your present calling and trust God to open future doors at the appropriate time.

Barry Hankins
President, Conference on Faith and History

Getting Connected

Well it’s summer. You’ve put the books down (haha!), you’re spending time with family (who?), and you’re contemplating the depths of frisbee golf or lawn darts.

It’s still important to get and stay connected. If your only graduate school connections are those in your department, be sure to take note of some external resources. Check this out:
http://onlinemastersdegree.org/40-must-read-forums-for-grad-students/

The one that readers of this blog would most be interested in is probably InterVarsity. However, the rest of the list is intriguing. Enjoy!