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AMERICAN PHILOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION – TAPA EDITOR
The Editor, who must be a member in good standing of the Association, is initially appointed for four years, with the possibility of extension. The new editor's term officially begins in January 2006 and will cover volumes 136-139, 2006-2009. (TAPA is now produced in two issues annually, which appear in May and November.) As Editor Designate, however, the new editor will begin to receive submissions late in 2004, and spend the summer and fall of 2005 preparing the 2006 issues for the press. (The retiring editor, Cynthia Damon will complete the two issues for the year 2005.)

The editor of TAPA has sole responsibility for editorial content, and must acknowledge submissions, select referees, and inform authors whether submissions have been accepted. In addition, the editor must work closely with the journals division of Johns Hopkins University Press, which typesets, produces and distributes each issue.

The editorship requires care, tact, judgment, and efficiency. Authors have a right to expect that their submissions will be evaluated fairly, courteously, and promptly, but securing appropriate referees is not always an easy task. The editor contacts most potential referees and receives their reports by email. Referees do not always agree, and the editor must evaluate their evaluations. Most articles are significantly revised before final acceptance, and the editor frequently advises authors on matters of both substance and style. Many younger scholars submit work to TAPA, and the editor often needs to provide them extra help. Furthermore, the visibility and the contacts created by the job often lead to more requests to the editor for other professional service, such as acting as a referee for promotion or grant applications. The work is therefore considerable, but the editor enjoys a corresponding influence and authority.

The editor is also an ex-officio member of the Committee on Publications and prepares an annual report for the Committee. Also, the editor hosts the annual lunch meeting for editors of classical journals at the APA annual meeting. The editor receives an honorarium of $5,000 annually (paid in two installments as each issue goes to press), and the Association pays for the editor's travel and lodging for the annual meetings during the term of office. The Association also provides some financial support for the establishment of the new editorial office, e.g., for computer equipment and stationery. As in the past, short-listed candidates will be asked to determine what support their home institutions would be willing to provide to enable them to undertake this work.

Potential candidates should submit a current CV and a statement detailing relevant experience to the chair of the search committee, Professor Marilyn Skinner, Department of Classics, University of Arizona, PO Box 210105 Tucson AZ 85721-0105 (e-mail address: mskinner@u.arizona.edu), no later than January 31, 2004. The committee is also eager to receive suggestions for suitable candidates to invite to apply. The other members of the search committee are Barbara Gold and Donald Mastronarde, as well as 2004 President Elaine Fantham and Executive Director Adam Blistein.