PAHA's Call for Papers and Nominations - Due on April 15, 2016

CALL FOR PAPERS - DUE APRIL 15, 2016  FOR THE 74TH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE POLISH AMERICAN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION

PAHA's 74th Annual Meeting will be held on January 5-7, 2017 in Denver, Colorado as part of the 131st American Historical Association's Annual Conference. The theme for the 2017 AHA conference is "Historical Scale: Linking Levels of Experience." AHA encourages contributors "to trace links among scales—spatial, temporal, and topical." This theme provides an excellent opportunity for the Polish American Historical Association to showcase research carried out by its members, as well as to present it in a comparative perspective.

We invite scholars who work on the Polish American experience as part of the greater Polish diaspora as well as those who deal with migration, ethnic, and regional studies. We invite proposals for sessions as well as individual papers.

Presentations may address the following areas:

• Polish American experience – all aspects (history, sociology, literature, art, music, etc.) in the Americas
• Migration and settlement patterns, ethnic experience and interethnic encounters, Polish Americans and Poland
• Intersections of ethnicity, gender and race
• Ethnic press, ethnic lobbying, labor issues
• Polish Americans and Polish American communities in the American West

The deadline for submissions is April 15, 2016. Abstracts for papers and panel proposals are now being accepted and should be submitted to the Chair of the Program Committee: Grazyna J, Kozaczka, Ph.D., Cazenovia College, Cazenovia, NY 13035; phone: 315-655-7302; email: gkozaczka@cazenovia.edu.

Electronic proposals in email and word format are strongly preferred. Individuals and session organizers should include the following information when submitting a proposal:

• Paper/Session title(s) (of no more than 20 words)
• Paper/Session abstract(s) (up to 300/500 words, respectively)
• Biographical paragraph or c.v. summary (up to 250 words) for each participant
• Correct mailing and e-mail address for each participant
• Chair (required) and commentator (optional) for the session
• Audiovisual needs, if any.

Please be advised that it is not always possible for PAHA to provide AV equipment for all sessions due to the high cost of mandatory rental from AHA so let us know in your proposal if using AV equipment is necessary for your presentation. We also encourage distribution of paper handouts as an alternative.
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GRADUATE STUDENT/YOUNG SCHOLAR TRAVEL GRANT

PAHA encourages graduate students and young scholars (up to three years after graduation) to apply for our travel grants. Two such grants of $500.00 each will be awarded to offset travel costs to attend the 2017 PAHA Annual Meeting in Denver. The grants will be awarded by the program committee to the two best conference proposals dealing with Polish American topics submitted by graduate students/young scholars. To apply please include a brief letter of application and a CV together with the paper proposal. Each awardee must present the paper at the conference in person and will receive the check at the conference in Denver. Also Graduate Students are encouraged to apply for the Graduate Student Research Paper Award, please see details at: Call for Nominations Page.

All presenters are encouraged to submit their papers for possible publication in PAHA's scholarly journal, Polish American Studies.

The Polish American Historical Association holds its Annual Conference in conjunction with the American Historical Association (AHA). The full information about the AHA conference can be found at www.historians.org. PAHA members who plan to attend PAHA conference only do not need to register for the AHA conference, but are required to register for the PAHA conference by November 15, 2016. Registration may be done on-line at www.polishamericanstudies.registration.html.

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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR PAHA's 2015-16 AWARDS

Nominations are sought for the following awards. Kindly send all nominations to the chair of the awards committee, Dr.Iwona Drag-Korga (Pilsudski Institute) at i.korga@pilsudski.org.


GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH PAPER AWARD - DUE APRIL 15, 2016

The Polish American Historical Association announces the call for nominations and applications for the Graduate Student Research Paper Award.

The Graduate Student Research Paper Award recognizes a substantial original research paper on Polish-American history and culture produced by a young scholar in the humanities or social sciences.

A paper should be sent via e-mail to: i.korga@pilsudski.org before April 15th, 2016.

In addition to the recognition by PAHA and a potential paper publication offer from the interdisciplinary, refereed scholarly journal The Polish American Studies (the publication is not guaranteed), the winner will receive a $1,000 travel grant to present the paper at the PAHA 2017 Annual Meeting in Denver, January 2017. The conference is held in conjunction with the American Historical Association.

The candidate for the award must be a graduate student at the time of the application or nomination. In addition to the paper (up to 25 pages, 1.5 spaced, Times New Roman 12) any submission must contain: graduate student's short biographic note, 250-word abstract, and one letter of reference. The results will be announced by June 15, 2016

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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR PAHA'S OTHER AWARDS - DUE APRIL 15, 2016 

• Mieczyslaw Haiman Award is offered annually to an American scholar for sustained contribution to the study of Polish Americans.
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• Oskar Halecki Prize recognizes an important book or monograph on the Polish experience in the United States. Eligibility is limited to works of historical and/or cultural interest, including those in the social sciences or humanities, published in the two years prior to the year of the award.
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• Skalny Civic Achievement Award honors individuals or groups who advance PAHA's goals of promoting research and awareness of the Polish-American experience and/or have made significant contributions to Polish or Polish-American community and culture.
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• Amicus Poloniae Award recognizes significant contributions enhancing knowledge of Polish and Polish-American heritage by individuals not belonging to the Polish-American community.
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• Distinguished Service Award is given occasionally to a member of PAHA who has rendered valuable and sustained service to the organization.
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• Creative Arts Award recognizes the contributions in the field of creative arts by individuals or groups who have promoted an awareness of the Polish experience in the Americas.

Winners of PAHA's 2015 Awards Announced in Atlanta, GA

PAHA President Grazyna Kozaczka announces the award winners.

On January 9, 2016, Dr. Grazyna Kozaczka, President of the Polish American Historical Association announced the following winners of the 2015 PAHA Awards and Prizes.

MIECZYSLAW HAIMAN AWARD  - PROF. DOROTA PRASZALOWICZ

Mieczyslaw Haiman Award is offered annually to a scholar for sustained contribution to the study of Polish Americans.

Prof. Dorota Praszalowicz’s contributions to the field of Polonia studies are broad and have had considerable influence not only in the U.S. but also in Europe. The biannual migration conferences she organizes gather eminent scholars from the United States and Europe. Also, her editorship of the journal, Studia Migracyjne – Przegląd Polonijny, provides a significant contributions to the development and dissemination of new knowledge about Polonia and provides a valuable forum for comparative studies. She is an independent researcher at the Instytute of American Studies and Polish Diaspora of the Jagiellonian University and an author of numerous articles, conference presentations and two monographs: Polacy w Berlinie: strumienie migracyjne i społeczności imigracyjne and Mechanizmy zamorskich migracji łańcuchowych w XIX wieku: Polacy, Niemcy, Żydzi, Rusini. Zarys problemu, coauthored with Krzysztof Makowski, Andrzej Zięba. Her work has focused not only on Poles in the USA but also in Europe.

Prof. Grazyna Kozaczka addresses the attendees.

OSKAR HALECKI PRIZE - DR. ANNA JAROSZYNSKA-KIRCHMANN AND THEODORE ZAWISTOWSKI, for LETTERS FROM READERS IN THE POLISH AMERICAN PRESS

Oskar Halecki Prize recognizes an important book or monograph on the Polish experience in the United States. Eligibility is limited to works of historical and/or cultural interest, including those in the social sciences or humanities, published in the two years prior to the year of the award.

Anna Jaroszyńska-Kirchmann and Theodore Zawistowski, Letters from Readers in the Polish American Press, 1902-1969: A Corner for Everybody.

A Corner for Everybody is a unique collection of close to five hundred letters from Polish American readers, which were published in the Polish-language weekly Ameryka-Echo between 1902 and 1969. In these letters, Polish immigrants speak in their own words about their American experience, and vigorously debate religion, organization of their community, ethnic identity, American politics and society, and ties to the homeland. The translated letters are annotated and divided into thematic chapters with informative introductions. The Ameryka-Echo letters are a rich source of information on the history of Polish Americans, which can serve as primary sources for students and scholars. They also provide a new, fascinating, and lively look into the passions and experiences of individuals who created the larger American historical experience.

L to R: Dr. Pien Versteegh, Dr. Silvia Dapia, Dr. Theodore Zawistowski, 

Dr. Anna Jaroszynska-Kirchmann, and PAHA President Dr. Grazyna Kozaczka

AMICUS POLONIAE AWARD - DR. SILVIA DAPIA

Amicus Poloniae Award recognizes significant contributions enhancing knowledge of Polish and Polish-American heritage by individuals not belonging to the Polish-American community.

Dr. Silvia Dapia has provided significant service to Polonia and PAHA through her work on the Polish experience in Latin America. She guest edited a special edition of Polish American Studies on this topic and also guest edited a special issue of Polish Review on the work of WitoldGombrowicz. Beyond this she has presented papers on Polish-related topicsat PAHA and PIASA conferences as well as at the conference organized by Dr. Anna Mazurkiewicz at the University of Gdansk. Further, she organized two complete sessions on Gomrbowicz for the Fifth World Congress on Polish Studies in Warsaw in 2014. (Papers from this conference formed the basis for her guest-edited issue of The Polish Review.) In her position on the organizing committee for a 2014 conference on Gombrowicz held at the National Library in Buenos Aires she was able to obtain invitations for three prominent Polish scholars to participate, and she solicited papers for the completion of the Polish Review issue on Gombrowicz.

Drs. James Pula, Silvia Dapia and Anna Jaroszynska-Kirchmann

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD - DR. PIEN VERSTEEGH

Distinguished Service Award is given occasionally to a member of PAHA who has rendered valuable and sustained service to the organization.

Dr. Pien Versteegh’s role as executive director of PAHA since 2007 years has been vital to the smooth and successful operation of the organization and its annual meetings. As Dean of the Avans School of International Studies at the Avans University of Applied Sciences in Breda, Netherlands she directs two bachelor programs: International Business and Management Studies (IBMS) and International Financial Management (IFM). Her own scholarly interests focus on Migration/ and Ethnicity and her contributions as a scholar and as a PAHA officer are a model of service and scholarship to the academic community.

THE SWASTEK PRIZE - LORI A. MATTEN

The Swastek Prize is awarded annually for the best article published in a given volume of Polish American Studies, the journal of the Polish American Historical Association. This award, established in 1981, is named in honor of Rev. Joseph V. Swastek (1913-1977), the editor of Polish American Studies for many years, and a past president of the Polish American Historical Association.

The Editorial Board of Polish American Studies recommends that the Swastek Prize for the best article in Polish American Studies for the year 2014 is awarded to Lori A. Matten for “Scouting for Identity: Recruiting Daughters to Save the Traditional Polish Family During the Interwar Years” (PAS 71/1, Spring 2014). The author presents sound exploration of the history and formation of Polish American organizations conceptualized by questions of gender and ethnicity. She skillfully examines understudied processes of identity transformations and assimilation of the second generation in the interwar period, as observed through the lens of gender distinctions present in the Polish scouting organizations in the United States. The article is well contextualized and makes good use of both primary and secondary sources. It can be used in any classroom to foster discussion on U.S. history, Polonia history, and gender relations in ethnic communities.

The Awards Banquet was held in the historic Mary Mac's Tea Room, with the attendees enjoying traditional southern cuisine, including fried green tomatoes, fried okra, shrimp with grits, and peach cobbler for dessert.

In 2016, PAHA has not awarded its Graduate Student Research Prize, Skalny Civic Achievements Awards, nor its Creative Arts Prize.

Dr. Anna Mazurkiewicz, First VP and Meeting Organizer with the Awards.

PAHA Members and Guests at the Mary Mac's Tea Room.

L to R: Michal Mydlowski, John P. Dunn and Halecki Prize winner Theodore Zawistowski

Mary Patrice Erdmans at Mary Mac's Tea Room.

The organizer of the Annual Meeting, Anna Mazurkiewicz celebrates with PAHA Treasurer Prof. James Pula. 

Distinguished Service Award winner Pien Versteegh celebrates with Maja Trochimczyk, last year's winner.

PAHA Officers and Council in Atlanta, GA