LACS-SHA Executive Committee Meeting

2006

Attendees: Andrew McMichael, William Connell, Theron Corse, Richmond Brown, John Clune, Sherry Johnson, Barbara Ganson

1. McMichael called the meeting to order

2. Connell spoke on the 2007 program: Six possible spots available but at the moment we only have five panels. We need chairs and commentators. Not many submissions - had to recruits and get support. The SHA program committee was OK with us filling out our panels as we wish. We will try to finish by Christmas. Tentative program:

a. Race and Power in the Caribbean

b. Colonial Immigrants

c. Mexico in the Calles period

d. One paper on 18^th-century masculinity

e. Kris Lane at William and Mary has promised a panel.

3. A general discussion about a possible program chair for next year. Brown had spoken to Rosanne Adderley; Matt Childs also said he could do it. McMichael and Brown agreed to ask Adderley if she would do it.

4. Connell indicated that Phi Alpha Theta panels would be submitted later. Clune asked for help finding graduate students.

5. Clune recommended that the proposed panel on Race and Power in Caribbean be selected as the Hanger memorial panel. Discussion in the committee led to the suggestion that Jane Landers and Murdo MacLeod be asked to serve as commentator and chair.

6. McMichael indicated that Barbara Ganson would present the paper prize. After discussion, the committee agreed to nominate her as vice-president. He further indicated that the graduate student prize for 2005 would go to Magdalene Gomez of FIU for her paper on smallpox vaccination in Cuba

7. McMichael discussed the possibility of changing the role of the president. He suggested that the president should be a major figure who would serve as a figurehead while the vice-president would take on all working duties. After much discussion, there was no resolution in this point.

8. McMichael asked if all the potential panelists for 2007 were members, noting the importance of being clear on this point. He also noted that all candidates for the article prize should be members. Brown stated that were between thirty and forty submissions.

9. McMichael noted that one problem with the book prize was that publishers tended to submit the books and authors found out about it later. A discussion followed on the question of how strict we have been in the past about enforcing the membership requirement for the prize. Johnson suggested that we politely ask authors to join if their book has been submitted, and that the prize committee should have a list of members. McMichael suggested that the submission list be sent to Mike LaRosa (Treasurer) for confirmation of membership.

10. Johnson agreed to appoint a book prize committee.

11. Brown stated that he had been informed that at the moment we have 30 paid members and $3200. Johnson suggested using the CLAH directory as a source for recruiting new members.

12. Brown indicated that the article prize would go to Paulo Drinot for his paper “Madness, Neurasthenia, and "Modernity": Medico-Legal and Popular Interpretations of Suicide in Early Twentieth-Century Lima,” Latin American Research Review - Volume 39, Number 2, 2004, pp. 89-113.

13. McMichael discussed the need to for nominations for the presidency. Also indicated that we need a graduate student representative. Suggested asking the graduate student paper prize winner.

14. Brown suggested that we begin working on an endowment for the MacLeod book prize. He also noted that we need to name the article prize.

15. Ganson joined the meeting. Stated that we have forty article submissions for the article prize with some very good papers. She agreed to be nominated for vice-president.

16. The meeting closed on a discussion about organizing receptions at future conferences.

LACS-SHA Business Meeting

2006

1. Andrew McMichael opened the meeting with a report from the Executive committee.

a. Program panelists must be members

b. Discussed the membership requirement for book and article prizes and that we have been somewhat lax in enforcing this. Discussed sending “polite letters” to candidates.

c. Rosanne Adderley will be program chair for New Orleans and Childs will do it at some later date.

d. Louisville may have low attendance. We may need to push borderlands as a topic.

2. Richmond Brown gave his report as LACS representative to the SHA Executive Committee

a. Emphasized the importance of membership

b. The SHA Executive Committee is very supportive of us.

c. SHA may be ready to sue government over question of Cuban attendees

3. Matt Childs and Sherry Johnson discussed the practical details of bringing Cubans to the SHA.

4. Bill Connell gave program committee report

a. Not many submissions

b. Discussed possible panels

i. Race and Power in the Caribbean

ii. Colonial Immigrants

iii. Mexico in the Calles period

iv. One paper on 18^th-century masculinity

v. Kris Lane at William and Mary has promised a panel.

c. We have gotten an extended deadline from the SHA

d. We got a good response from Virginians when I sent out a last minute appeal

e. We need chairs and commentators.

5. McMichal thanked Clune for this year’s program.

6. Mike LaRosa gave treasury report.

a. We have $3261.22

b. We have a declining membership - down to 30 from 59.

c. Emphasized that graduate membership were only $7

7. McMichael suggested that departments pay for the graduate student memberships. $7 is the minimum for affiliate membership in the SHA. Suggested that each member recruit one member.

8. Barbara Ganson reported on article prize for 2006

a. we had 40 submissions.

b. the winner is Paulo Drinot for his paper “Madness, Neurasthenia, and "Modernity": Medico-Legal and Popular Interpretations of Suicide in Early Twentieth-Century Lima,” Latin American Research Review - Volume 39, Number 2, 2004, pp. 89-113.

c. Drinot was in attendance and accepted award.

8. McMicahel indicated that there had been a substitution for the speaker and Jane Landers would speak.

9. Landers spoke on preserving ecclesiastical slave records in the Caribbean and took question from the audience.

10. McMichael turned over the meeting to Sherry Johnson, the next president, and spoke briefly about his experience in LACS.

11. Johnson conducted elections for the vice-president

a. Brown nominated Barbara Ganson. This was seconded by McMichael.

b. There were no other nominations

c. Ganson was elected by acclimation

12. Johnson called the meeting to a close.