Serving as an area chair for the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association (MAPACA) is a rewarding, yet demanding experience. It requires that the individual be an active member of MAPACA, an active scholar in his/her area with a certain level of expertise, and have an active desire of service to the disciplines of American and popular culture studies. Sometimes, however, it can be a bit confusing. Therefore, we offer the following guidelines. These guidelines include some of MAPACA’s policies as well as helpful advice.
For additional information and clarification, consult the Vice President of Area Chairs, your fellow Area Chairs, and veteran members of MAPACA.
Area Chairs must have an active account at mapaca.net. The privileges of an Area Chair will be assigned by the Vice President of Area Chairs. Area Chairs should be sure their personal information is accurate, including a short one-to-two sentence personal biography. This can be done by clicking “Edit” on your MAPACA User page.
Area Chairs are responsible for entering an up-to-date description of their areas. This can be done by visiting the web page for your area, while signed into the website, and choosing the “Edit” tab. This description should be about your area, disciplinary approaches, and/or other information to assist potential presenters in choosing your area. This should reflect your vision of the area. An optional “Call for Papers” can also be entered here.
Area Chairs will be contacted by the Vice President of Area Chairs in the spring with information on the upcoming conference. Information regarding vacated areas, new area chairs, and new areas will be provided at this time. Additionally, the general Call for Papers will be distributed at this time.
Area Chairs are the public face of MAPACA, and the conduit between the organization and its general membership. Area chairs help solicit proposals for the upcoming conference by circulating the general Call for Papers, directing prospective presenters towards the website, and encouraging colleagues in related disciplines to present at the MAPACA conference. In addition to the general Call for Papers, Area Chairs are encouraged to circulate Calls for Papers specific to their own areas. Area Calls for Papers must adhere to the abstract submission process outlined at the “Submitting abstracts to the conference” page and the nature and specifics of the general Call for Papers.
Area Chairs should champion the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture on their campuses, in other scholarly and academic organizations, and with other colleagues.
Area Chairs should keep track of past presenters in order to contact them with information about the upcoming conference. Area Chairs can view current presenters via your area’s Dashboard. It is recommended that Area Chairs create a document from this information to keep track of presenters, “no shows,” and other pertinent information to use for the following year’s conference.
Area Chairs should encourage presenters to submit revised and expanded versions of past presentations to the Mid-Atlantic Almanack.
An inclusive organization, MAPACA welcomes a wide variety of presenters, including scholars, graduate students, professionals, and independent scholars. As long as an abstract or proposal is considered to be of high quality, Area Chairs should feel free to accept it, regardless of the submitter’s credentials. Area Chairs are also encouraged to work with potential presenters to assist them in refining presentations if necessary.
MAPACA does not limit the number of panels for areas; however, Areas Chairs should try to avoid creating so many panels that the conference becomes overwhelming.
Generally, panels and presentations should fall neatly into a single area, and submissions may only be submitted to a single area. But, in the case that this does not occur, Area Chairs should attempt to contact an Area Chair from another area in order to reassign the presentation, or the Conference Vice President for assistance.
Area Chairs should review, and accept or reject, presentations within two weeks of the Call for Papers deadline. You are also encouraged to assist a prospective presenter in improving his/her presentation rather than rejecting the proposal outright.
The deadline for proposals is usually on or around June 15. On or around July 15 is usually the deadline for Area Chairs to submit organized panels for inclusion in the conference program.
Area Chairs should organize panels according to subject matter, thematic or disciplinary approach, or other related organizational method. Traditional panels can have three or four presentations. Presenters on panels with three presentations will each get 20 minutes to present. Presenters on panels with four presentations will each get 15 minutes to present. It is important that Area Chairs relay this information to their presenters so panels do not go long and there is room for some discussion at the end of the panel.
It is also possible for Area Chairs to submit invited panels, round table discussions, film screenings, interactive panels, presentations, or other non-traditional formats. Check with the program chair to make sure MAPACA can accommodate alternative formats.
Each panel should have an assigned Panel Chair to ensure that panels run smoothly. Area Chairs may either opt to chair panels themselves, assign a presenter already scheduled to be on the panel, or assign an external chair with some level of expertise or contribution to the panel. Panel Chairs should keep track of time, order of presentations, and lead a question and answer session following the final presentation of a panel. Area Chairs should endeavor to replace “no shows” and should contact the Board and Area Chair list for substitutes in the case of an emergency.
Area Chairs should be familiar with the types of audio-visual equipment available for the current conference. Generally, this will include a projector, a VGA connection for projecting from laptops (Apple laptops will require an adapter to connect to standard video outputs), and WiFi or an Ethernet connection. Rooms may also be equipped with amplified sound, microphones, or DVD players. Rooms will never be equipped with a computer. It is the responsibility of the presenter to provide a laptop for running PowerPoint or other presentation software, showing video clips, or other visual aid. Rooms are often assigned according to audio-visual requests made in the abstract/proposal submission process. If the presenter requests the specialized equipment at the conference, the presenter will have to pay for it. MAPACA will not pay for expensive special requests.
Area Chairs should keep in touch with their presenters in the weeks and months between the submission of completed panels and the conference. Inform your presenters of deadlines (including early and regular registration) and other requirements, but also engage in friendly conversation about the conference, regional areas of interest, field questions, and offer advice for younger and less experienced presenters. Area Chairs should check the Dashboard throughout this period to keep track of those who have yet to register for the conference. It is not possible to register for the conference on site and unregistered presenters will not be scheduled or included in the program.
Area Chairs should ask their areas’ presenters to check that all information is correct and without error prior to the deadline for program printing. This will occur sometime in early September. Once this deadline passes, no changes to the program will be possible.
Area Chairs should inform the VP of Conference and VP of Area Chairs of any issues with presenters (including withdrawals) immediately.
Area Chairs are encouraged to reach out to the Area Chairs of similar and/or related areas of the national Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association and other affiliated regional and international organizations in order to share resources, refer presenters, and otherwise cultivate a positive collaborative relationship. If an Area Chair receives notice from a presenter that he/she has to withdraw from the MAPACA conference, suggest that he/she submit to the national conference, another regional conference, or the following year’s MAPACA conference.
A couple of weeks before the conference, Area Chairs should send an email to all presenters to remind them of time limits, panel organizations, and other pertinent information. Remind them to bring back-ups of visual aids, handouts if necessary, business cards for networking, and copies of their papers if they wish. Area Chairs should also encourage their presenters to attend the Thursday night reception and Friday night dinner (both included in registration costs). Presenters may also add a guest to attend these events (available via the MAPACA web store/conference registration). Additionally, there may be special off-site panels and/or tours available, some at additional costs and/or requiring additional registration.
Area Chairs are expected to regularly attend the annual conference and attend a majority of panels in their areas. The VP of Area Chairs will contact Area Chairs who are absent. MAPACA’s Executive Board will seek replacements for Area Chairs with excessive absenteeism or who have not fulfilled expectations for their area.
At the conference, Area Chairs should check in at the registration desk immediately and occasionally throughout the conference. Presenters may leave messages at the registration desk for Area Chairs.
Area Chairs may choose to provide presenters with mobile phone numbers for communications throughout the conference. Otherwise, Area Chairs should regularly check their email addresses associated with the MAPACA web site’s “Contact Area Chair” form for any communications from presenters.
Throughout the conference, Area Chairs should make sure all panels are running smoothly. If no Panel Chair is assigned, or in the unfortunate event of a “no show,” the Area Chair should act as the Panel Chair to introduce presenters, keep track of time, ensure presenter order, and facilitate the question and answer portion of the panel. It is best to keep all questions and discussion at the end of the panel, after all presenters have spoken. Area Chairs are encouraged to ask questions and make comments in the absence of discussion, and to ensure that all panel members are asked at least one question.
Area Chairs should inform the registration table of any “no shows” within their areas. Area Chairs should also send a complete list of “no shows” to the Conference Vice President.
Area Chairs are expected to attend the annual Area Chair Meeting at the conference. The Conference Vice President schedules this meeting to occur at an opportune time during the conference. During this time, Area Chairs are invited to make suggestions or air their concerns regarding their areas and/or MAPACA. If an Area Chair cannot attend this meeting, he/she should arrange for a proxy to attend the meeting.
Within two weeks of the conclusion of the conference, Area Chairs should send a congratulatory email to presenters. At this time, you may also remind them about submitting to the Mid-Atlantic Almanack.
MAPACA encourages Area Chairs to submit scholarly papers to the peer-reviewed Mid-Atlantic Almanack.
Area Chairs no longer interested or available to serve as an Area Chair should contact the VP of Area Chairs as soon as possible. Outgoing Area Chairs may be asked to offer references for possible successor(s).
The MAPACA conference is a load of fun because a lot of people work hard. We work hard and we play hard. On behalf of MAPACA’s Executive Board and its general membership, thank you for your contribution to this effort. Finally, have fun, be friendly, encourage discussion and interaction, share a drink or a snack with attendees, and introduce yourself around at the conference.