Ne AATSEELom edinym

[K E Robblee]

Dear Colleagues:

There are intellectual, personal and financial reasons why some members of
AATSEEL may prefer that we meet with MLA, others with ACTFL and still
others with AAASS. As the field changes, our so do the relative needs and
the preferences of our membership. Perhaps it is time for the membership to
be polled systematically in order to determine what would benefit us as a
whole. I'm not suggesting a "majority rules" type of determination, because
I think it's quite possible that those who are in a less secure position
[e.g. grad students] would tend to benefit from one policy while senior
members of the profession would benefit from another. These are the kinds
of things that need to weighed. In the past I have thought that we should
follow MLA because it was to the advantage of our most vulnerable members.
But a colleague has pointed out to me that this year the MLA job listings
included over 130 positions for faculty with training in second language
acquisition or applied linguistics. This suggests to me that those on the
market may have benefited more if AATSEEL had met with ACTFL than with MLA.


I have been an active member of AATSEEL for over 10 years, and have heard
many discussions about where and when we should meet (including the
business meeting in Washington the year that MLA was in New Orleans!).
However, I do not recall any poll on this issue, or any other attempt to
consult with the membership in order to determine what the policy should
be. It might be that the present policy really is the best. I don't know.
But I do know a number of Slavists who would probably more gracefully
accept the inconveniences of attending AATSEEL's meeting in the middle of
the holidays if they knew that there was an informed basis and rationale to
the current policy.

That's my two cents.

With best wishes for the end of your winter quarters and semesters,
Karen Robblee




*************************************************
Karen E. Robblee, Visiting Assistant Professor
Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures
The Ohio State University
(614) 292-4398 [office]
(614) 292-6733 [dept.]
(614) 688-3107 [fax]