For contact information for any of the officers, directors or committee chairs, please contact MSS Executive Director by email.
Interested in committee membership?
If you wish to be considered or nominate someone else to committee service, you (or the nominee) must:
- Be a MSS member in good standing at the time of nomination and appointment.
- Maintain MSS membership over the term of your committee appointment (typically 3 years).
- Attend committee's meetings during the appointed term (primarily occur at the annual meeting).
- Commit to committee work or e-discussions between annual meetings, as requested by the committee chair.
Committee appointments are made at the fall board meeting and terms officially begin at the spring MSS Annual Meeting.
Volunteer or recommend someone else to serve on a MSS committee.
Committee Information
Members can access current committee reports in the MSS Community. You can access those reports here.
Annual Meeting
Committee Chair: Patrick McGinty, Western Illinois University
Description: The Annual Meeting Committee is charged with facilities planning, local arrangements, and the smooth operation of the annual meetings of the Midwest Sociological Society.
Looking for info about previous or upcoming annual meetings?
- For dates, days and locations of upcoming annual meetings, see the Future Annual Meetings page.
- To browse program books from several previous annual meetings, see the Past Annual Meetings page.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ)
Committee Chair: Maria De La Torre, Northeastern Illinois University; Phyllis Baker, University of Illinois System
Description: The DEIJ Committee seeks to expand MSS membership, specifically focusing on increasing the diversity of society membership as well as among MSS leadership.Finance
Committee Chair: Allison Vetter, University of Arkansas
Description: The Finance Committee monitors financial policies and procedures concerning investments, budgets, Society expenditures, Treasurer compliance with Society financial policies and maintenance of both unrestricted and restricted funds.
Governance
Committee Chair: Karen Altendorf, Bucknell University
Description: The Governance Committee shall continually consider the long-range goals and needs of the Midwest Sociological Society and shall assess and oversee the Society’s programs and committees to ensure that those goals and needs are being appropriately addressed.
Membership
Committee Chair: Liz Legerski, University of North Dakota
Description: The Membership Committee is responsible for recruiting new members, encouraging the renewal of memberships, conducting membership drives, and disseminating information about the Society.
Minority Scholars
Committee Chairs: Paul Croll, Augustana College; Erika Busse, Macalester College
Description: The Minority Scholars Committee shall monitor the profession in relation to minority issues, gather information on such issues, and when it deems appropriate, recommend to the board and to the membership, and carry out action aimed at increasing equality of minorities in the profession and in society.
Nominations & Elections
Committee Chair: Jennifer Pearson, Wichita State University
Description: The Nominations and Elections Committee shall nominate slates of candidates for the elective offices of the society, supervise the polling of the membership by written or electronic ballot, count the returned ballots, and notify the Secretary of the names of those elected.
Professional Development
Committee Chair: Kayla Pritchard, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Description: The Professional Development Committee shall support and encourage discussion of topics related to career arcs in and out of academia, matters that impact students and faculty in the classroom, and issues that affect the discipline of sociology. These topics affect students as well as individuals as various places in their academic careers.Publications
Committee Chair: Chris Conner, University of Missouri
Description: The Publications Committee shall oversee, monitor and recommend policy to the board concerning publication of The Sociological Quarterly, and The Midwest Sociologist, and administration of the Student Paper Competition.
Seeking New Members
The MSS publications committee seeks new members to serve three-year terms. Interested MSS members may apply directly or nominate others.
The committee is charged with overseeing, monitoring and recommending policy to the board concerning publication of The Sociological Quarterly and administration of the annual student paper competition. The committee also judges the biennial TSQ Distinguished Contribution to Scholarship Award, solicits applications for new editors for the society’s publications, makes recommendations to the board with respect to the appointment of editors, advises the editors on policy, solicits proposals from publishers, and makes recommendation to the board with respect to the selection of a publisher.
Please send applications for appointment to the Publications Committee Chair Joan Hermsen, following the directions below.
Applicants who have experience with referred publications are encouraged to apply. Nominations are accepted until Aug. 1st, or until two qualified candidates have been determined. To apply, please indicate in the subject line of your cover email that you are applying for the committee membership. Send your vita and brief application letter, as attachments, to Chair Chris Conner via the MSS Exec Office at [email protected].
Queer Engagement, Scholarship, and Teaching (QuEST)
Committee Chair: Daniel Bartholomay, University of North Dakota
Description: The QuEST Committee seeks to foster and maintain a community of LGBTQIA+ scholars and those doing scholarship related to queer and trans issues, with goals of increasing the inclusivity of the organization and its activities. The committee works to increase safety and support for LGBTQIA+ scholars and provide a forum for current research, teaching strategies, and professional issues relevant to the queer and trans sociological community.
Scholarship Development
Committee Chair: Chris Hausmann, Northwestern College
Description: The Scholarship Development Committee reviews proposals for research grants and makes recommendations to the board for funding such proposals.
Social Action
Committee Chair: Daniel Bartholomay, University of North Dakota
Description: The Social Action Committee shall take under consideration proposals for social action by the society submitted either by individual members or other committees of the society. It is also responsible for soliciting nominations and selecting recipients for the two annual
Social Action Awards.
Grants for Grass-Roots Organizations in Support of Social Action:
MSS awards two $1000 grants each year to nonprofit organizations doing grassroots work in pursuit of social justice and social change in the MSS geographical area. The Social Action Committee is charged with selecting the award recipients. Past award winners and links to the organizations are listed below.
Sociological Practice
Committee Chair: Joel Crombez, Kennesaw State University
Description: The Sociological Practice Committee will explore ways that clinical and applied sociology may be highlighted within the Midwest Sociological Society.
Student Interest
Committee Chairs: Elisabeth Benteman, Wichita State University; Holly Stock, University of Missouri
Description: The Student Interest Committee shall develop and recommend policy to the board and monitor activities related to representation of the interests of student members of the Midwest Sociological Society.
Teaching & Learning
Committee Chair: Doug Valentine, University of Missouri
Description: The Teaching and Learning Committee shall concern itself with issues related to sociology education at all levels. It shall continually evaluate the development and implementation of teaching pedagogy and student learning in the discipline, and shall make the results of such evaluations available to the membership of the MSS.
Women in the Profession
Committee Chair: Christy Craig, Fort Hays State University
Description: The Women in the Profession Committee toward the end of producing equality of opportunity for women, shall keep under constant review the position of women in the profession, gather information on such issues, and, when it deems appropriate, recommend action to the MSS board and the membership.
In addition to their bylaws-mandated tasks, the MSS Women in the Profession Committee also administers the Jane Addams Award. See the Awards & Grants page for the current call for nominations.