To the Members of the Medieval Academy,
Voting in the Medieval Academy governance election is one of the most important means that members have to impact both the Academy and the future of medieval studies in North America. I am very pleased to announce the names of the Medieval Academy members who have generously agreed to stand for election to office in 2023:
President (uncontested):
Robin Fleming
First Vice-President (uncontested):
Sara Lipton
Second Vice-President (three candidates for one position):
Suzanne Conklin Akbari (Institute for Advanced Study, English/History)
Peggy McCracken (University of Michigan, French and Comparative Literature)
Marina Rustow (Princeton University, History)
Council (eight candidates for four positions):
Roland Betancourt (Univ. of California at Irvine, Art History)
Gerard Chouin (The College of William and Mary, History)
Bonnie Effros (Univ. of British Columbia, History)
Nahyan Fancy (Depauw Univ., History)
Christopher MacEvitt (Dartmouth College, Religion)
Luisa Nardini (Univ. of Texas at Austin, Musicology)
Xiaofei Tian (Harvard Univ., Chinese Literature)
Michelle C. Wang (Georgetown Univ., Art History)
Nominating Committee (four candidates for two positions)
Gregor Kalas (Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, Art History)
Akash Kumar (Univ. of California at Berkeley, Italian Studies)
Michelle M. Sauer (Univ. of North Dakota, English)
Jesús R. Velasco (Yale Univ., Spanish)
Click here for more information about these candidates.
The election will be conducted in accordance with our By-Laws. The Nominating Committee is charged with nominating eight candidates for the four positions on the Council, balancing racial, gender, geographic, professional, and specialization diversity while also considering the same facets of the incumbents. There are four candidates for two openings on the Nominating Committee, tasked with proposing candidates for the annual Council and Officers’ election. As is our practice, the President and 1st Vice-President run unopposed;the position of 2nd Vice-President is contested among three candidates.
Additional nominations by petition may be made as follows, in accordance with article 26 of the By-Laws:
Nominations of other members of the Academy for elected officers, Councillors, or members of the Nominating Committee may be made by written petition signed by at least seven members of the Academy. A nomination by petition may be for a single office, several offices, or an entire slate. Such petitions must be received by the Executive Director within twenty days of the circulation of the report of the Nominating Committee (article 25), unless the Council extends the period for making nominations by petition.
As the slate of candidates is being announced on 21 September, the closing date for nomination by petition has been set at 11:59 PM, 12 October 2022. Additional information about the governance of the Academy can be found on our FAQ page:
http://medievalacademy.site-ym.com/page/FAQ
In addition to biographical information, each candidate has submitted a statement detailing their vision for the Academy and their reasons for wanting to participate in its governance. It is our hope that these statements will assist members in making informed choices about the governance of the Medieval Academy. These statements are online here:
https://www.medievalacademy.org/page/2023Ballot
As you consider these candidates, you may wish to take into account the demographics and specializations of the incumbents.
My thanks to the Nominating Committee for their careful and thoughtful work in establishing the slate of Council candidates. My thanks as well to President Maureen Miller for proposing the slate of Nominating Committee candidates.
Electronic balloting will open on 20 October. If you would prefer to receive a paper ballot and have not received one in the past, please contact me.
Please vote and let your voice be heard. I look forward to your participation in the election of the leadership of the Medieval Academy of America.
– Lisa Fagin Davis, Executive Director
