Edited by author 09-09-2007 09:45 PM
First, I want to applaud the committee for all its hard work. I can see all the time and energy that went into these proposals.
Here are some of my thoughts.
1. Regarding the scheduling of the conference - while I agree that Labor Day weekend may not be optimal, I would strongly caution against moving the conference to later in September. As an Orthodox Jew and a proud APSA member, I am worried that moving the conference would conflict with the numerous Jewish holidays in September. The Midwest conference has numerous times been on or during the Passover holidays. Perhaps moving it even later in the year (mid to late October) would work better. I also think airfare would be cheaper when not traveling around a holiday.
2. I also agree on some detailed feedback as to why proposals are rejected. This would ensure that issues that caused a proposal to be rejected one year are not repeated the next year. On the same note, I think APSA should do more to encourage and accept the proposals of newer scholars. I am a recent PhD and while I have submitted proposals for several years, I have yet to be accepted. Some feedback on why would be nice as would some encouragement as I try and make my way in the discipline.
3. I also have a concern about site selection for the annual conferences. In the last 10 years I have been to Boston twice (and next year will be the third time), yet the conference has yet to be held in NYC. Each year I am told it is too expensive. Perhaps this could be investigated more. I also think the conference needs to move west of the Mississippi River.
Overall, I enjoy coming to the meeting. It allows me to keep up on what is new and network with other people in my field.
Again, good job to the committee members.

I'd like to comment on the labor day scheduling as well. Is this tied primarily to finances? (AHA, AEA, and MLA are all between Christmas and New Years--is this also for financial reasons?)

ASA is mid August, which seems a far more convenient time for most of us. I have dual problems with the Labor day weekend: it forces me to miss part of the first week of class, and small children in school. Also, for untenured colleagues at many schools, missing the first week of class for a professional meeting can be problematic. We shouldn't be forcing junior colleagues into this choice.

HOWEVER let me also note how many very positive comments I heard this year about how affordable our convention is, in comparison to, say, the Midwest, where many individuals are either not attending or limiting their attendance due to the very high hotel cost.

RE: powerpoints. Thank god let's join the 20th century. Podcasts: also a big yes. Many of our colleagues have research with important public policy implications, and we don't do a very good job of promoting ourselves.

RE: new formats. Also an excellent idea. With most panels at 5 papers, and 1:45 per panel, there is barely enough time to present the papers, much less have some actual exchanges of ideas.

Edited by author 06-11-2007 02:02 PM
I strongly support three of the committee's recommendations.

1. Moving away from the Labor Day weekend. APSA during the Labor Day weekend is a nightmare for parents of children whose school year gets under way in mid-August. My husband and I are both political scientists, who live miles away from family members who could babysit. What are we supposed to do -- yank our kids out of school just as they are getting used to their new routines, classes, and teachers -- just so we can attend a professional conference? We have done it, but feel terrible in doing so, especially since our kids have learning disabilities and need to be in the classroom as much as possible. We also don't understand why the association doesn't make much use of Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend, as opposed to Thursday and Friday. Our kids are expected to be in school on Thursday and Friday; they have Sunday and Monday off!

Finally, I hate to schedule substitutes for myself a week or two into my teaching! I do it, but my classes start in August, and you have to set the tone early rather than later.

2. Having discussants for posters. Discussants should be required for those presenting papers in a poster session. Someone who has taken the time to write a great paper for one of these sessions should get some feedback!

3. Encouraging presenters to post their papers on PROceedings. In fact, I would make it MANDATORY. APSA did away with the paper room and established PROceedings, but I find it more difficult to get papers today than in the old "paper room" days! Being chosen to present at APSA involves responsibilities, including sharing one's preliminary findings with as many people as possible.

Thanks, Janet, for these suggestions. Our view is that as the committee making broad recommendations we should not get into the details of implementing this recommendation. We will pass your comments along to the Annual Meeting Committee if the Council adopts the recommendation!

Best regards,
Joan Tronto (Annual Meeting Review Committee Chair)

Recommendation #19 on carbon neutrality could be fleshed out. For example, the May 2007 issue of "Backpacker" magazine (p. 37) provides two sites (nativeenergy.com and terrapass.com) that have carbon calculators to estimate single-trip footprints. A round-trip flight between Philadelphia and Salt Lake City, for example, costs $15. How would the APSA staff implement such a voluntary option? One possibility would be a surcharge to our convention registration fee, based on distance and mode of transit. Would this then be passed on to our institutions as a part of our travel expenses?