MGSA Standing Committee Mandates

Article IV §13 of the MGSA Constitution states that the Executive Board “shall have the power to create any standing or ad hoc committees . . . [and] shall appoint the personnel thereof from among the membership of the association.”

All standing committees are expected to submit written reports of their deliberations to the board.

Here are mandates for the current standing committees:

The ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE (Chair: Neni Panourgia) monitors the association’s institutional structure and operations. In doing this, it considers ways to make the association more effective in carrying out its mission. It

  • evaluates the performance of the board and officers
  • evaluates the performance, and salary, of the executive director
  • considers the best method for appointing committee members and chairs
  • evaluates the performance of standing and ad hoc committees
  • reviews committee mandates and modifies them as needed
  • examines how various projects are funded
  • works closely with the Nominations Committee

The FUND RAISING AND LONG-TERM PLANNING COMMITTEE (Chair: Gonda Van Steen, ex officio) explores ways to improve the association's finances by identifying fund-raising opportunities. In recommending strategies for exploiting such opportunities, it may

  • suggest the use of fund-raising consultants;
  • cultivate relationships with foundations and other relevant agencies
  • consider a regular public fund-raising event;
  • foster contacts with relevant officials in the Greek and US governments
  • work closely with the Membership and Publicity Committee
  • concern itself with the association's public image

It also evaluates current programs and considers possible expansion or contraction while its concerns include

  • the quality and relevance of our symposia
  • the quality and relevance of JMGS
  • the quality and relevance of the Bulletin
  • the quality and relevance of our website

The LIAISONS with each professional organization will strive to:

  • organize Modern Greek panels at the organization's annual meetings or symposia
  • produce a list of MGSA members who specialize in the discipline
  • encourage other scholars in their discipline to join the MGSA
  • advance the visibility of Modern Greek Studies in their discipline
  • submit annual reports to the Executive Board

The NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE: (Chair: TBA) is established by the Executive Board at the third to last meeting of its term.. The composition and duties of this committee are specified in Article IV §6 of the MGSA Constitution. The committee works in cooperation with the Administration Committee; ideally, there will be some overlap in membership between the Administration Committee and the Nominations Committee.

The MEMBERSHIP AND PUBLICITY COMMITTEE (Chair: Stratis Papaioannou) explores ways to expand the association's membership. It does this by furnishing the executive director with lists of individuals (plus their addresses) who should be invited to become members recommending ways to publicize the association's activities working with the local arrangements committee for each of our biennial symposia.

The COMPUTERS AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE (Chair: Sakis Gekas) provides MGSA members with electronic resources and aids them in utilizing those resources. It concerns itself with the web site, list-serve, information delivery, and the membership data base. It also provides a forum for electronic exchange for librarians in charge of Modern Greek collections.

The PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE (Chair: Konstantinos Kornetis) concerns itself with the quality, usefulness, and appeal of the association's publications. It may offer recommendations to the board concerning JMGS, the Bulletin, various bibliographies, etc. However, editorial responsibility for JMGS rests entirely with the journal's editors and editorial committee.

The LIBRARY COMMITTEE: Chair: Anthony Oddo

  • Facilitate communication among librarians involved with Modern Greek Studies collections and the MGSA membership on library/collection matters.
  • Cooperate internationally with other library and area studies organizations on projects of mutual concern and benefit.
  • Compile and disseminate information relating to Modern Greek Studies collections and resources.
  • Identify areas for needed reference and research tools and initiate projects to bring these materials to fruition.
  • Encourage cooperation among librarians involved with Modern Greek Studies collections in areas such as acquisition, bibliographic control, preservation and digitization.
Download the latest library report here.

The GRADUATE STUDIES COMMITTEE (Chair: Effie Rentzou) explores ways to make the association more sensitive to the needs of graduate students and provides them with support and encouragement. To facilitate this mission, it keeps a list of current graduate students and of dissertations in process; gathers and disseminates information regarding job opportunities perhaps arranges mini-conferences for graduate students; fosters the maximum exposure of graduate students at the MGSA biennial symposia; organizes a social event for graduate students at the biennial symposia.

In addition, it constitutes a Dissertation Prize Committee sub-committee and develops rules for how this sub-committee shall operate in holding a competition for a dissertation prize. Ideally, the winner should be announced at each of the biennial symposia.

The UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES COMMITTEE (Chair: Elsa Amanatidou) explores ways to support and enhance the development of undergraduate programs in Modern Greek. It does this by examining and recommending teaching methods and resources, including electronic resources, enhancing cooperation among the various programs, disseminating information about research resources, including those on the web.

The TRANSNATIONAL STUDIES COMMITTEE
(Co-Chairs: Yiorgos Anagnostou and Peter Jeffreys)
MANDATE: The Committee on Transnationalism has the following goals and responsibilities both short and long term.

  • To foster and strengthen the relationships between programs, Centers, and Departments of Modern Greek Studies globally through collaboration on intellectual and academic projects. The Committee will seek to initiate such collaborative projects in a spirit of parity among participating entities.
  • To find ways to enact an intellectual, institutional, and academic dialogue among various organizations, colleagues, and independent scholars.
  • To maintain and enhance the overall mission of The Greek American Studies Resource Portal, providing information on research, activities, and resources in the field of Greek American Studies broadly defined.