Writing Into the Profession:
Enacting and Exploring Roles of the English Scholar

September 25-26, 2009

For its fourth interdisciplinary conference in English studies, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro's English Graduate Student Association asks, "What academic work are you engaged in?" This conference is designed to build a sense of community among graduate scholars by providing a forum to present ongoing research in a non-threatening and receptive academic environment. Additionally, this conference is designed to bring graduate scholars into contact with professionals who can answer questions about best practices.

We are each "Writing into the Profession" as we employ the theories and practices of effective English scholarship. Instead of asking you to bend your interests to a specific theme, we want you to use our conference as an opportunity to explore what it means to be part of the English profession as you present your work, honestly engage your peers' work, and participate in a comfortable, open forum with current professionals who will answer questions you may have about the daily practices of scholars in our field. We invite you to share your current interests and encourage you to contribute to the fundamental questions that fuel discussion in English studies.

Individual and panel proposals will be accepted on topics relating to English Studies including: literature, composition and rhetoric, creative writing and nonfiction, and critical theory. For individual proposals, please submit a one-page proposal describing your current project by June 30, 2009 via email to our conference email account. Panel proposals should be submitted to the same email address, by June 30, 2009, and should include the following: panel title, organizer/moderator's name and contact information, names and contact information for panelists, a short description of the panel topic, and abstracts of the papers included in the panel.