MAP International will be discussing distribution and recognition of service work at the 2020 Eastern APA meeting! This follows on from the report we released earlier this academic year, covered in the Daily Nous. The session is on Thursday, January 10, 2:30pm-5:30pm.

We will present the results of that report and our policy recommendations, followed by discussion with four panelists -- Arianna Falbo (Brown), Sukaina Hirji (Penn), C. Thi Nguyen (Utah Valley), and Angela Sun (Michigan) -- and finally opportunity to develop concrete ideas for implementing good policies in your department. 

Come along for a philosophically engaging and practically valuable session! You can RSVP through our Facebook event!

T​exas Tech is hosting its 14th annual graduate conference. In honor of the inaugural year of the MAP chapter at Tech, we have decided that the conference will feature papers in the philosophy of race. Our project seeks to foster diversity in the profession by organizing a graduate conference on the philosophy of race at Texas Tech University. We are interested in promoting scholarly issues related but not limited to historical, normative, metaphysical, epistemic, and linguistic questions surrounding race in America. With the diversity reflected in the population of west Texas but not in the political landscape, we hope that this conference also raises the consciousness of the general public with regard to the significance of race for contemporary social issues. The event is a multi-day conference with a panel of eight graduate speakers and commentators, and a pubic talk & keynote address by Charles Mills (Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, CUNY-The Graduate Center).

Keynote Speaker: Charles W. Mills (CUNY-The Graduate Center)

Summary: We are interested in promoting scholarship related but not limited to historical, normative, metaphysical, epistemic, and linguistic questions surrounding race in America. Submissions from current graduate students in any area related to the philosophy of race are welcome (Including papers about, e.g. ethnicity, immigration, etc.).

Submission Guidelines: Papers should be between 3,000-3,800 words in length. A 200-word abstract should precede the paper. All papers should be prepared for blind review. Include with each submission a separate document containing the presenter's name, institution, email, and paper title. Submissions may be in .PDF, .docx, or .doc format.

Submission Email: Submissions should be sent to jordan.botello@ttu.edu with subject heading "TTU Conference Submission."

Deadline: Papers must be submitted no later than February 21, 2020.

Notification of Acceptance: No later than March 13, 2020.

Accomodations and Travel: Invited participants will receive financial assistance to offset the cost of travel. Additionally, graduate students will host conference participants and several meals will be provided during the conference

More details can be found on the PhilEvents page: https://philevents.org/event/show/79266

MAP will host a Group Session at the Central APA with the theme "Setting Boundaries: Personal and Professional." Boundaries are rules we set for how others interact with us, and for how much of our time and energy different people and spheres of our lives take up. As such, they deserve explicit reflection so that they reflect our values and allow us to thrive. Unfortunately, they are liable to be hard to set and maintain in environments with the intense work culture of academic philosophy.

We are seeking paper abstracts and proposals for mini-workshops or advice sessions related to this theme. Proposals should include a workshop component, or be geared at generating discussion and reflection that leads to concrete steps that participants can take up. Each session should be around 45 minutes, all inclusive.
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Possible topics include:

• What are concrete steps that academic philosophers can take to maintain healthy boundaries between personal and professional life? What are challenges to successfully setting and enforcing boundaries, and what steps can we take to address them? 
• What do healthy boundaries look like in mentoring, teaching, and advising relationships? More broadly, how should faculty relate to students? How should graduate students relate to fellow graduate students?
• How can we become better equipped to recognize that our boundaries have been crossed? What is the best way to communicate that our boundaries have been crossed?
• What does a departmental culture that encourages healthy boundaries between personal and professional life look like? What are departmental best practices to support healthy boundaries between personal and professional lives, and between departmental members?
• What systemic factors contribute to members of marginalized groups in academic philosophy struggling to keep up healthy boundaries? How can we address such factors?
• In what ways does a poor culture around boundary-setting contribute to harassment, bullying, and a toxic departmental climate? What needs to change?
  
  

We particularly encourage submissions by members of under-represented groups in philosophy. We welcome submissions by people at all stages of their careers.

Abstracts and proposals should be between 500 and 1,000 words and should be sent as a PDF to mapforthegap@gmail.com with the subject line "Central APA Submission" by Jan 8, 2020. You will hear back from us by January 20. You can contact us at mapforthegap@gmail.com with any questions.

Further information: MAP (Minorities and Philosophy) is a collection of students in philosophy departments that aims to examine and address issues of minority participation in academic philosophy. Though primarily led by graduate students, MAP also relies on faculty support and encourages undergraduate participation. Currently, MAP has 140 chapters throughout the world, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, the US, and the UK. The Central APA will be held at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago, IL. Our session is scheduled for Thursday, Feb 27, 9am-12 pm.

Application Deadline: January 10, 2020

Ph.D. students are invited to submit papers (on any topic in philosophy) to participate in the workshop, held June 16-19, 2020 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Thirty-five PhD students in philosophy from outside the local region will be selected to participate in the workshop: seven submitted papers will be selected to be discussed at the workshop; fourteen students will be selected as commentators on the papers; and fourteen more students will be selected as chairs of sessions. An additional roughly fifteen students will be selected from the local region.

Our goal is to create a workshop at which high-level philosophical conversation occurs and great advice is offered. Participants will benefit from making connections with other talented philosophy students, getting to know the faculty mentors, and hearing the mentors’ advice on thriving as a woman in philosophy.

Please submit papers and applications by January 10, 2020.

For more information, please visit the event's website at athenainaction2020.weebly.com