USM’s English Graduate Organization Conference Call for Papers

(Un)Spoken: Voices of Dissent

April 10th and 11th, 2026

University of Southern Mississippi

Hattiesburg, MS

Welcome to EGO Conference 2026 at the University of Southern Mississippi. The theme for this year’s conference is “(Un)Spoken: Voices of Dissent.” During this time of social and political upheaval, we call for writers and speakers who look to engage with the culture of normative systems by non-normative means. By highlighting atypical modalities and marginalized voices, this conference aims to provide an opportunity for meaningful conversations during the event and beyond. We invite papers that explore aspects of this theme across disciplines, historical and cultural contexts, and geographical locations. We encourage all USM graduate students to submit creative, critical, and/or pedagogical projects that speak directly to the theme or complicate our expectations of it.

Along with traditional paper proposals, we welcome pitches for panels, roundtable discussions, and special events on topics including, but not limited to, the following:

-Silence(ing)

-Diaspora

-(Dis)Ability

-Machine

-Reaction(ary)

-Resistance

-Change(lings)

-Dogma

-Ideology

-Question(ing)

-Identity

-Futurity/Potential

Submission and Contact Information: 

Please submit your abstracts/proposals via email to egogradconf2025@gmail.com using the subject line: “EGO 2026 Proposal: [Title of Your Proposal]” by January 17th, 2026.  You may address this email to Grace Borcherding and/or Katie Rhodes. 

• For a paper proposal, please submit a 250-word abstract. 
• For a panel, please submit a 500-750-word proposal that includes brief abstracts for all featured papers. 
• For a roundtable discussion, please submit a 350-word proposal. 
• If you would like to propose a special event for the conference, you may submit a proposal of up to 1,000 words that details the event, featured speaker(s), and how it would fit into the conference theme. 

We will send notification of decisions by February 21st at the latest.

While we are committed to highlighting voices coming out of the Gulf South and scholars who are interested in Southern literature, culture, and history, we encourage all interested parties to apply. Please be aware that the EGO Conference does not offer virtual options for presentations. If you must travel to attend the conference, USM and the English Graduate Organization will not compensate any travel or lodging expenses. If you have any ideas for a session or event, or have any questions or concerns, please email Grace Borcherding at Grace.Borcherding@usm.edu or Katie Rhodes at Katie.E.rhodes@usm.edu to discuss.