GSA MAILING POLICY:

GSA membership is on a calendar year basis. Renewals are in December for the following year. There has never been a change in the calendar year membership basis. Members who renew late, after an issue of GSR has been mailed in bulk mail at reduced cost, will still receive all copies of the journal, the German Studies Review, even though the extra postage cost of sending the copies individually must be borne by the rest of the membership. This will NOT be the case with the Newsletter. Members who renew after the Newsletter has been bulk mailed in April will not receive a copy. The cost of individual mailing outside of the bulk process is too high, and most of the GSA information contained in the Newsletter is on the web site. Generally, only non-GSA information will be missed. A certain number of copies will be available at the Annual Conference for late-payers to pick up, but none will be mailed.

It is hoped that most GSA members will renew prior to April.

GSA Elections and Nominations

In the just completed election, Volker Berghahn (History, Columbia University) and Sabine Hake (German, University of Pittsburgh) were elected to three-year terms on the Executive Committee. They will serve from 2004 through 2006. The new system of balloting in conjunction with the annual dues payment has resulted in a gratifyingly higher level of voting participation. Thanks to the nominating committee that produced an outstanding slate: Belinda Davis, Jeffrey Peck, and Marc Silberman, chair.

A new committee has been appointed to nominate candidates for four positions that will be elected in early 2004: A vice-president in German/Culture Studies, who will serve for two years (2005-2006) and then succeed to the presidency, according to the system of alternation between the areas of social science and humanities and three members who will be elected to the Executive committee as representatives of history, literature, and political science for three-year terms (2005 through 2007). The Nominating Committee for the upcoming election consists of: Gail Hart (German, University of California, Irvine), chair; Alice Cooper (Political Science, University of Mississippi); Gerd Gemünden (German, Dartmouth College); and Ronald Smelser (History, University of Utah).

Qualifications for suggested candidates for office include, of course, membership in the Association and a record of interest and participation. Please mail suggestions for nominees to the committee chair: gkhart@uci.edu

Update: Berlin Program for Advanced German and European Studies Fellowships

As announced in the Winter 2002 GSA Newsletter and in publicity on our website (www.g-s-a.org), the German Studies Association has begun the transition into its new role as the American partner in the Free University of Berlin's fellowship programs for A.B.D.s and recent recipients of the doctorate.

A. James McAdams (political science, Notre Dame) and Sabine Wilke (Germanics, University of Washington) served as GSA's representatives on the 2002-2003 selection committee; two more GSA delegates will be added for the 2003-2004 round. By 2005, responsibility for the American side of the program will have completely transitioned from the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) to GSA. Information and application materials for the program can currently be found in the above-mentioned Winter 2002 Newsletter, the GSA website, the SSRC website, and by mail from:

Berlin Program
Social Science Research Council
810 Seventh Avenue, 31st Floor
New York, NY 10019

Phone: 212 377-2700
Fax: 212 377-2727

e-mail: berlin@ssrc.org
web: www.ssrc.org

Application deadline for the 2004-2005 academic year is December 1, 2003. The awards cover transportation and 10-12 months of research support in Berlin, including a weekly seminar. The competition is open to citizens and permanent residents of the US in the fields of anthropology, economics, political science, and all germane social science and cultural studies fields, including history after the mid-nineteenth century. An important criterion in the selection process is demonstrated need for access to research facilities in Berlin.

In order to inform potential candidates, graduate advisors, and mentors about this program, there will be a special roundtable session at the GSA Annual Conference in New Orleans, entitled "The Berlin Program for Advanced German and European Studies: What Applicants Need to Know." The director of the program, members of the selection committee, and a recent grant recipient will offer brief explanations of the purpose of the program, requirements and criteria by which research proposals are judged, and the opportunities open to fellowship holders before responding to questions from the audience. Materials will also be available at a table in the exhibit area.

The Berlin Program represents a very special opportunity to support the research of young scholars in the field of German Studies and we seek to promote broader awareness of what it offers. Please spread the word!

NEW GSA MAIN OFFICE ADDRESS AS OF JANUARY 3, 2003:

German Studies Association

340 E. 15th Street

Tempe, AZ 85281 USA

Telephone: 480-966-2245

Telefax: 480-966-2239

E-Mail: thegsa@yahoo.com

GSA Secretary-Treasurer's Office for Membership Information. Send membership forms to this address:

Prof. Gerald A. Fetz,
GSA Secretary-Treasurer
Dean, Davidson Honors College
University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812

E-Mail: fllgaf@selway.umt.edu