The ASA Committee on Publications invites proposals from members interested serving as the next editor of Contexts.

As you may know, Claude Fischer is the current editor and his term ends in December 2004. The official term for the new editor would commence in January 2005 (the editorial transition actually starts in August 2004) and is for a minimum of three years (until December 2007), with a possible reappointment of up to an additional three years.

Contexts, ASA’s award-winning magazine (first published in 2002) is devoted to bringing sociology to a wider audience by presenting the findings and ideas of sociology in an engaging and plain-speaking form. To do so, it currently uses a variety of approaches, including 3,500-word feature articles, short research notes, photo essays, book reviews, and first-person essays. To sustain its success, the new editor(s) should be committed to addressing the lay public through the magazine’s choice of topics, style of presentation, and language, bringing to non-academics the great topicality and scholarly diversity of sociology.

While potential candidates should feel free to submit a proposal based on a sole editorship or co-editors, the experience of Contexts’ first years suggests that the best way to fulfill its mission may be to enlist a team of editors within a single department or institution (or from nearby institutions). In addition to the executive editor, the team would include, for example, editors who focus on book reviews, the Discovery research notes, the other non-feature items (such as the personal essay and field note), and any other innovations the new team would develop. An image editor who would imagine, solicit and select the images that make Contexts so distinctive is critical. Such a team could also expand the topical range of the magazine.

The key elements of the editorial workload include receiving and soliciting contributions (in the first years, most features were solicited, but that may shift); distributing features for scholarly review; working closely with authors to refine their contributions; intensive editing for the lay audience; composing the “Discovery” notes; helping develop an attractive layout; and shepherding the magazine into production. With a quarterly schedule and 20 feature articles a year, an editorial team, including student assistants and interns, should be able to handle the work on a one-day-a-week basis.

Candidates must be members of the ASA and hold a tenured position or equivalent in an academic or non-academic setting. Applications from members of underrepresented groups are encouraged.

In accordance with ASA’s mission to publish high quality scholarship, the following criteria are considered in selecting editors:

• (1) Established record of scholarship;
• (2) Evidence of understanding the mission of the journal/series and its operation, indicated by experience with the journal/series across any of a wide variety of activities (submission, reviewing, editorial board experience);
• (3) Assessment of the present state of the journal/series, its strengths and challenges, and a vision for the journal/series’ future;
• (4) Openness to the different methods, theories, and approaches to sociology; and
• (5) Record of responsible service to scholarly publishing and evidence of organizational skill and intellectual leadership.

Selection Process: Applications will be reviewed by the Committee on Publications in December 2003. It is possible that prospective editors may be contacted to clarify any issues raised in the deliberations. A list (which may be ranked or unranked) will be forwarded to ASA Council for review in early 2004. The Council appoints the editors. The editors are contacted by the ASA Secretary.

The application packet should indicate the editorship to which you are applying and should include:

• (1) Vision Statement: Set forth your goals and plans for the content of the journal. This may include an assessment of the current strengths, weaknesses, or gaps that you plan to address and how you will operationalize your plan.
• (2) Editor/Co-Editor or Deputy Editor(s) Background Information: The name, affiliation, and other important information about the potential editor and, if applicable, co-editors and/or deputy editor(s) is required. Describe the qualifications of each person that supports their inclusion. Evidence of the ability and experience of the editor and editorial team to provide sound judgment and guidance to potential ASA authors is central to the application. Provide a clear description of and justification for the structure of the editorial office and responsibilities, as you envision them at this point. Name only those individuals who will serve as editor/co-editor. Please do not include names of individuals that you would like/plan to include on the larger editorial board. Contacting potential editorial board members can be a time-consuming task that should be done only after an editor is selected.
• (3) Institutional Support: It is important for candidates to consider and address the feasibility of serving as editor in light of the resources ASA can provide and those likely to be available to the candidate. The ASA does not pay for office space or release time, but provides basic financial support for office resources as necessary to journal editors. This support may include funds for clerical assistance, office supplies, postage, and telephone beyond what will be provided by the editor's home institution. Since the support offered by different institutions varies widely, you are encouraged to contact the Executive Office as necessary in order to ensure the feasibility of your application. At this point in the submission process, letters of support from deans or other appropriate institutional officials are neither required nor recommended. Specific arrangements with a potential new editor and with that individual and his or her institution will occur during the period after the ASA Council makes a selection and the ASA Secretary, with support from the ASA Executive Officer, works out the final agreement with this candidate.

  Application packets (as described above) should be no more than five (5) pages and should be sent by November 1, 2003, to: Karen Gray Edwards (edwards@asanet.org), Director of Publications and Membership, ASA, 1307 New York Avenue NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005-4701.

  Please include a vita or resume for each proposed editor and/or co-editor. Vitae are not included in the five-page limit, and no standard form is required.
  
  

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  Last Updated on January 08, 2005