Presidential Letter

June 19, 2017

Dear Colleagues,

Recent weeks and months have seen an increase in the cultural tensions in our nation—and, indeed, the world.  It is not uncommon now for disagreements to escalate quickly into verbal attacks, threats of violence, and even—as recently took place in Washington, DC—actual violence.  Unquestionably, this tendency has been facilitated by social media.  But our digital media are only a means or instrument.  More troubling is the mentality fueling the rush to attack, across the political spectrum; and that is an unwillingness to verify information, weigh arguments, and attempt to make independent, rationally-grounded judgments.  These habits of mind are the very bedrock of learning and of scholarship; they are the principles on which the SCS, as a learned society, is founded and which we have a duty to uphold and protect.  

The American Numismatic Society has released a free article from their ANS Magazine publication discussing the relationship between the American Numismatic Society and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

You can read the article here: http://numismatics.org/pocketchange/neh-issue/

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(Photo: "2010 Logo fof the United States National Endowment for the Humanities" by the U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities, in the public domain)

The Vergilian Society is soliciting proposals for the Third Annual Symposium Campanum, to take place at the Villa Vergiliana in Cuma in mid-October, 2018. We will consider proposals on any aspect of the history, archaeology, art and architecture, and geology of Italy and Sicily from the remotest antiquity to the Renaissance.

Each proposal should be prepared by the person who is intending to direct the symposium, or by the lead person if co-directors are envisioned.  The successful director will have logistical assistance from the Vergilian Society’s Italian staff and from the executive committee; a set of guidelines is available to assist in planning.

Proposals should be 250-300 words in length, giving a brief rationale for the theme, some thoughts on what kinds of subjects are likely to be treated, and the names of several scholars who have worked on this theme and might be approached to participate.  As international meetings, our symposia attract participants from all over the world, but since the Vergilian Society is an Italian-American cultural association, we are especially interested in seeing solid participation from scholars in these two countries.

Proposals should be submitted electronically by September 21, 2017 (new deadline!) to the president of the Vergilian Society, James O’Hara, at jimohara@unc.edu.

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Ruth Scodel, SCS delegate to the American Council of Learned Societies, has written up her report of the annual ACLS meeting.

You can read the full here.

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(Photo: "_DSC7061" by rhodesj, licensed under CC BY 2.0)