International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts

The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts is accepting applications for the position of Interim Chief Technology Officer.

The duties involved in the position include:

• inputting the conference program into the Sched app and continuing to update it with errata
• managing the IAFA and the Board listservs  
• ongoing technical maintenance of the IAFA website (running on WildApricot) 
• managing email forwarders for the Board and officers 
• supporting, in a limited capacity, the VICFA team 

Except for populating Sched with the program, which requires a stretch of time before the conference, most duties are low-intensity outside the March conference window, which requires more sustained attention. 

Prospective candidates do not need to have specific experience in the duties listed above but must feel securely comfortable with digital technologies and be willing to learn (the learning curve for all duties is not particularly steep). 

The appointed candidate will be trained by the IAFA CTO and will begin their duties immediately upon appointment, most likely around February 25. The length of the appointment is not fully clear at this time but may extend until the end of the calendar year with a possibility of becoming (semi)permanent.

Those interested in applying must send a brief statement of interest in, and qualifications for, the position to the IAFA President, Pawel Frelik (p.frelik@uw.edu.pl), no later than February 20, 2023.

The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts is accepting applications for the position of Division Head of the Fantasy Literature (FL) Division. (Please see the division description below.)

Division Heads are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the First Vice President, who chairs the Council of Division Heads after formal discussion and a majority vote of the Board. The term is for three years. The incoming FL Division Head will begin full Division Head duties immediately following the conference in March of 2023. The Division Head term runs for three years.

The incoming FL Division Head will begin their term in March of 2023 and end the term in March of 2026.

Division Heads may have an opportunity to extend their term.

Each Division Head organizes and supervises all conference activity within a subdivision of fantastic scholarship. Division Heads work under the guidance of the First Vice President. Division Heads are responsible for recruiting session proposals and papers and are responsible for formatting these to the requirements of the First Vice President. Division Heads are responsible for forwarding all information to the First Vice President in a timely fashion. Division Heads have the responsibility to check the draft program for accuracy and AV needs. Division Heads are expected to liaise with other Division Heads and the First Vice President. The First Vice President is the final arbiter of the program under the aegis of the Executive Board. At the conference, the Division Heads oversee sessions in their respective Divisions and collect suggestions for future topics, special guests, etc.

Those interested in applying must send a cover letter explaining their interest in, and qualifications for, the position, and a current CV, to the First Vice President, Valorie Ebert at iafa.1vp@fantastic-arts.org, no later than March 1, 2023.

Fantasy Literature (FL) – The Fantasy Literature division welcomes critical scholarship on all aspects of fantasy literature (broadly defined to mean anything from genre fantasy to magic realism), including, but not restricted to, criticism on works by fantasy authors writing in English, interdisciplinary approaches to the genre, and scholarship on fantasy theory.

First Vice President

The IAFA requests nominations for individuals interested in becoming our First Vice President. Nominees must be members in good standing. Before nominating someone, please make sure they are a member and willing to stand for election. Self-nominations are welcome.

The First Vice President is a member of the Executive Board, elected by majority vote of the IAFA members who participate in the election, serves a three-year term unless otherwise stipulated, and may be re-elected.

The First Vice President coordinates the ICFA Program, overseeing the work of the Division Heads and scheduling paper sessions for the Annual Conference Program. The First Vice President also consults with the President and Second Vice President concerning appearances by special guests in panels, readings, and lectures, and with the Conference Director about physical arrangements such as AV equipment, room assignments, etc. The First Vice President substitutes for the President when necessary. The First Vice President also oversees the IAFA Graduate Student Award, including the following: advertising the award, organising the prize committee, and collecting and forwarding submissions to the committee for a blind reading process.

Nominations open on  October 25, 2022 and close on November 25, 2022. Nominated candidates will be asked to submit their Candidate Statement to IAFA Immediate Past President Dale Knickerbocker at knickerbockerd@ecu.edu by 25 November 2022. Voting begins in December and finishes in January. The person elected will take office at the end of the 2023 ICFA. Questions about the position should be directed to Valorie Ebert at iafa.1vp@fantastic-arts.org.

Public Information Officer

The IAFA requests nominations for individuals interested in becoming our Public Information Officer (PIO). Nominees must be members in good standing. Before nominating someone, please make sure they are a member and willing to stand for election. Self-nominations are welcome.

The PIO is a member of the Executive Board, elected by majority vote of IAFA members who participate in the election, serves a three-year term unless otherwise stipulated, and may be re-elected.

The PIO edits and distributes promotional materials and forms publicity liaisons with other organizations, where appropriate. The PIO maintains and regularly updates the website and blog, creates and distributes information from the Board–such as Calls for Papers and election material–and contributes photos and promotional copy to the IAFA website. The PIO maintains and regularly updates social media feeds, responds to inquiries via social media, and monitors the IAFA’s public image on social media. The PIO takes Executive Board minutes, disseminates them, archives them, and makes them available for archival use. The PIO is the recorder of motions and amendments at official meetings. The PIO maintains the IAFA electronic archive.

Nominations open on October 25, 2022 and close on November 25, 2022. Candidates will be contacted  by the IAFA Immediate Past President and asked to submit their Candidate Statement to knickerbockerd@ecu.edu by November 25, 2022. Voting begins in December and finishes in January. The person elected will take office at the end of the 2023 ICFA. Questions about the position should be directed to Skye Cervone at iafa.pio@fantastic-arts.org.

Dear IAFA Members:

I’m very pleased to share that Dr. Samantha Baugus will now be serving the IAFA as our new volunteer Director of Creative Programming.

The Director of Creative Programming (a new role) assists the Second Vice President with building programming items for the creative track. The job’s primary duties involve corresponding with invited creatives to help build discussion panels for the conference. The person in this role also helps build and manage the invited creative RSVP system, creates draft author reading sessions, and recruits/assigns hosts for creative track sessions. In recognition of the work involved, the volunteer who serves in this role receives complimentary ICFA registration and special event tickets.

The IAFA posted a call for volunteers for this role back in June, but we did not receive any applications for the position. Dr. Baugus, who previously served as the Student Caucus Representative on the Executive Board, subsequently volunteered to serve as Director of Creative Programming. Please join me in welcoming Samantha to this important new role! =)

Best,

David Higgins
IAFA Second Vice President

The IAFA is soliciting applications for the position of the Program Book Editor to edit the fall Virtual ICFA (VICFA) program and the ICFA conference program book. This appointment will be for one-year, with the possibility to renew indefinitely. Experience with IAFA culture is considered an asset for the position. Professional experience with layout and similar design work is a must. Those applying should have access to their own design software (InDesign or equivalent). The content for the book will be provided by the IAFA officers, and the files used in design of previous program books will be made available to help assist in the production of the new one. At the time of appointment, the IAFA will provide a detailed outline to the Program Book Editor of what should be included in the program book and in what order it should be printed.

The duties of the Program Book Editor include:

• for the Fall VICFA, prepare a PDF program with information provided by the Board,
• for the March ICFA, work with the Membership Coordinator to develop templates for the book in a professional design program (i.e., InDesign, Quark, or equivalent),
• using these templates, and information provided by the First and Second Vice Presidents about the conference’s guests and program schedule, produce camera-ready copy for the production of this book,
• with art provided by the Second Vice President, design the cover of the book,
• submit the program book layout for approval to the IAFA Board by February 15 2023, and make any adjustments as required by the Board after this review,
• continue to update the book with cancellations and other errata up to the time of printing; in consultation with the First Vice President maintain an errata sheet once the book has gone to print,
• produce an index for this book, with individuals listed by name and session number, and include this index in the final book,
• investigate appropriate vendors for printing the book in a cost-effective manner and arrange for the printing and delivery of the book to the hotel in numbers as specified by the Registration/Membership Coordinator.

The IAFA will pay a stipend of $500 for this work. Those interested in applying should submit

• a cover letter, which provides details of professional layout and design experiences, as well as information about the candidate’s history with the IAFA;
• a portfolio of previous design work;
• a CV outlining relevant professional and academic experience.

Applications should be sent to Pawel Frelik, IAFA President, at p.frelik@uw.edu.pl.

The closing date for applications is September 15, 2022. An appointment will be made by the end of September.

It is with great pleasure that the IAFA Executive Board announces that Carol McMullen-Pettit will be assuming the position of On-Site Technical Officer (OSTO) at this year’s ICFA.

The OSTO is crucial to the functioning of the conference: they are responsible for all technology use ​for and at ICFA. This includes purchasing ​audio visual equipment, setting up and tearing down projectors/screens in the break out rooms, ​liaising with the Book Room coordinator for A/V storage, and liaising with hotel personnel for events that require equipment we don’t own.

We would like to thank Sean Nixon for his twelve years of outstanding service in this position (his IAFA volunteerism in general dates back to the early 2000s). Sean oversaw our investment in new equipment and, as any attendee in recent years can attest, very little went wrong on his watch. When it did, he was always there instantly to solve the problem, as if by magic. He will be taking over the Treasurer position from Bill Clemente as of this ICFA. Thank you Sean!

For those of you who do not have the pleasure of knowing Carol McMullen-Pettit, she has been attending and volunteering for ICFA since she was a tenth-grade high school student in Boca Raton. Carol attended the University of Florida while the conference was in Texas but resumed her attendance at the conference with its return to Fort Lauderdale (and her transfer to FAU). Carol finished her BA in Anthropology, and then her subsequent certification in Secondary Social Sciences in Education, all while married and producing the first two of her three children. She has held a variety of teaching positions, culminating in more than ten years of working as a Social Studies and Reading teacher for At-Risk Youth, and for nearly the last twelve years, with The Princeton Review as a test preparation instructor, tutor, and presenter. She lives in Hollywood, FL with her husband, two dogs, two cats, and a hedgehog.

Welcome aboard, Carol!

Call for Applications: IAFA On-Site Technical Officer

The IAFA requests applications for individuals interested in becoming our On-Site Technical Officer. The person who occupies this position is responsible for all technology use for and at ICFA. This includes purchasing audio visual equipment, setting up and tearing down projectors/screens in the break out rooms, liaising with the Book Room coordinator for A/V storage, and liaising with hotel personnel for events that require equipment we don’t own. The duties usually run from Tuesday afternoon through Sunday morning and compensation is provided for the extra hotel nights needed. The Tech Officer also manages a team of volunteers who provide assistance for presenters who need help with the equipment throughout the conference. Although experience with tech is a plus, most of the necessary knowledge can be learned quickly. While occasionally the Tech Officer may miss a session or two to perform required duties, the Tech Officer generally can enjoy the majority of the conference as a regular attendee. The Tech Officer is appointed by the President, after formal discussion and majority vote of the other elected officers. The position is not subject to term limits, but appointments will be reviewed annually.

To apply, please send a letter of application explaining why you are interested in volunteering for this position, describing your familiarity with the IAFA and the ICFA, and containing information about whatever technological knowledge and experience you possess that you feel may be useful, along with a current CV to IAFA President Dale Knickerbocker at knickerbockerd@ecu.edu by Feb. 7.

Call for Applications: IAFA On-Site Technical Officer

The IAFA requests applications for individuals interested in becoming our On-Site Technical Officer. The person who occupies this position is responsible for all technology use for and at ICFA. This includes purchasing audio visual equipment, setting up and tearing down projectors/screens in the break out rooms, liaising with the Book Room coordinator for A/V storage, and liaising with hotel personnel for events that require equipment we don’t own. The duties usually run from Tuesday afternoon through Sunday morning and compensation is provided for the extra hotel nights needed. The Tech Officer also manages a team of volunteers who provide assistance for presenters who need help with the equipment throughout the conference. Although experience with tech is a plus, most of the necessary knowledge can be learned quickly. While occasionally the Tech Officer may miss a session or two to perform required duties, the Tech Officer generally can enjoy the majority of the conference as a regular attendee. The Tech Officer is appointed by the President, after formal discussion and majority vote of the other elected officers. The position is not subject to term limits, but appointments will be reviewed annually.

To apply, please send a letter of application explaining why you are interested in volunteering for this position, describing your familiarity with the IAFA and the ICFA, and containing information about whatever technological knowledge and experience you possess that you feel may be useful, along with a current CV to IAFA President Dale Knickerbocker at knickerbockerd@ecu.edu by Jan 21. The IAFA hopes to make an appointment by Feb. 7.

Call for Applications

IAFA Treasurer, applications (cover letter and CV/resumé) to President Dale Knickerbocker (iafa.president@fantastic-arts.org) by 9/10/2021. Term to begin 11/1/2021.

Eligibility: To be eligible to be appointed to the office of Treasurer, one must be a member in good standing of the IAFA.
Appointment procedure, term length: The Treasurer is an appointed member of the IAFA Executive Board. Appointments are made by the President, after formal discussion and majority vote of the other elected officers. Appointed members are not subject to term limits, but appointments will be reviewed annually, with the exception of the JFA Editor and the Crawford Award Director, who each serve five-year, renewable terms.

Responsibilities: The Treasurer maintains a bank account for the Association, prepares the annual budget, and handles accounts for all monies received or disbursed by the organization. The Treasurer also represents the Association in filing returns with the IRS and in other legal matters. The Treasurer’s Annual Report is presented at the Annual Business Meeting of the ICFA and becomes basic data for future budgets; thus, the Treasurer works closely with the President. The Treasurer is appointed by the President, after formal discussion and majority vote of the other elected officers. Candidates for the position of Treasurer must demonstrate appropriate money management skills and fiscal knowledge in order to be confirmed, some experience with bookkeeping / accounting and non-profit tax regulations desirable. Inquiries to Treasurer Bill Clemente (iafa.treasurer@fantastic-arts.org).