Area Chair Guidelines

           Subsequent to each conference, there should be an evaluation by the executive board of the performance of area chairs.  A deadline date should be set for such evaluations (January).  Action should be taken in cases where performance is deemed to be unacceptable, either in the form of appeals to the chairs in question for better performance in the future, or, where unacceptable performance is repeated, notification of dismissal.  The executive board is responsible in dismissal cases for finding replacements.  Every reasonable attempt should be made to keep area chairs apprised of the criteria used for evaluation of their performance.
           Following is a list of tentative guidelines for area chairs.  Once authorized conformity to these guidelines will become part of area chair responsibilities and will be used by the executive board in making area chair evaluations.
           Area chairs should submit panel proposals to the program chair (February).  As part of their proposal, they should include their name, affiliation, mailing address, phone, email address and fax (if applicable).  Chairs should not assume that a panel is active for an upcoming conference because it was active in previous conferences. Each year chairs will be required to propose panels to the program chair, whether those panels are new or continuing.  Those chairs who wish to resign should so inform the program chair (February).  In such cases, they can suggest a replacement or request that the program chair do so.
           Area chairs should be notified by the program chair that their panel proposals have been accepted (March).  Once they are informed, it is the area chairs' responsibility to actively solicit paper submissions (March/April).  Advertisement of panels appears in The Gazette.  Chairs can advertise by listserves, fliers, and other materials that can be sent to campus colleagues, as well as other colleges and universities.  Fliers can be distributed at conferences attended by chairs and colleagues.  One very effective site for panel advertisements is the "Call for Papers" website at http://www.english.upenn.edu/CFP

Subscription information can be found at http://www.english.upenn.edu/CFP/cfp.html
          A deadline date for paper submissions (June) should be made clear in all advertisements.  Advertisements should request from submitters information concerning their affiliation, mailing address, phone, email address and fax (if applicable), as well as paper titles, word counts for abstracts and AV requests.
          Area chairs review submitted paper proposals.  The practice of MAPACA has been to accept or help find a place for all proposals that show merit.  If chairs do not find a submission acceptable for their panel or are not certain of their merit, they should forward them to the program chair for evaluation or placement.  In such instances, the area chairs should inform the submitters in question of their action.  Area chairs should plan for three or four presenters for each panel session.  When there are more acceptable proposals than can fit onto one session, a request for additional sessions is in order.  At present there is no MAPACA policy to limit the number of sessions for each panel.  Incases where there are not enough submissions the panel is cancelled for that conference.
          Submitters should be notified that their proposals have been received.  There should be included in the notification information, including dates when they will be notified of the acceptance/rejection of their proposals (July).
          Once panel submissions have been selected, area chairs should send information concerning their completed panels to the program chair (July).  That information should include each panelist's name, affiliation, mailing address, phone, email address and fax (where applicable, as well as the title of the paper.  Congratulations should be forwarded to those submitters whose proposals have been accepted.  It is good policy to inquire if any of the panelists require an official acceptance notification for purposes of tenure/promotion or funding.  Panelists should be informed that they must be MAPACA members to present.  They should be notified that membership and hotel registration forms will be provided by the program chair.  In cases of rejection, the submitter should be given reasons for the rejection with encouragement to submit again, along with an invitation to attend the conference.

         Comments are welcome at wxm3@psu.edu