Melissa Dinsman

Candidate statement

I am an Assistant Professor of English and author of Modernism at the Microphone. My research focuses on WWII women writers, the politics of the domestic, and information networks. A long-time member of MSA, I have published in Modernism/modernity, and contributed to the Print Plus’s “In These Times” series. I frequently present at the annual conference, have organized two panels, and run one seminar. Currently, I am finishing up a three-year term as co-President of the Space Between Society where I help run the annual conferences, including developing the conference program, and, during COVID, overseeing the pivot to online. As Program Chair, I want to continue promoting the mentorship work that MSA has increasingly been investing in. I see this as a central part of the society’s mission and as Program Chair would work to promote mentorship workshops at the conference as well as outside of it. Another issue facing many of us, but especially precarious scholars, is a lack of funding to attend conferences, which has increased due to the pandemic. As Program Chair, I want to work on creating a hybrid model to allow more scholars the opportunity to participate in the annual conference while also not losing the in-person environment that many of us love. Further information can be found here: https://www.york.cuny.edu/portal_college/mdinsman.