Three-D Issue 17: The 2011/12 Postgraduate Network Committee
Ruth Sanz Sabido
De Montfort University
The new MeCCSA-PGN executive board was elected at a meeting on 4th July during the MeCCSA PGN annual conference, hosted by University of Bournemouth. Following the work of previous committees, and in line with our mission statement, this year the MeCCSA PGN board will focus on generating awareness of the Network within the Postgraduate community and creating new ways for students to become more involved in our activities and resources.
The Postgraduate Network welcomed back Markee Rambo-Hood and Matthew Holtmeier, who will continue to serve as Secretary and Communications Officer respectively, and Victoria Kearly, who has taken a new role as Training Officer. The committee also welcomed three new officers to its board (see opposite).
Our goals include offering a forum for postgraduate researchers to support their formation as future academics and their transition to their careers; providing events, such as conferences and workshops, related to teaching, learning and research; facilitating a ‘space’ in which the postgraduate community can debate current issues in media, communication and cultural studies; and providing a supportive environment for networking with fellow postgraduates and academics.
According to a survey carried out by Dr Einar Thorsen, MeCCSA Communications Officer, only a minority of postgraduate researchers in our field are aware of the fact that they are already members of the MeCCSA Postgraduate Network. The Committee will work to establish a stronger connection with the Postgraduate community. In order to achieve this, we must also identify who our members are so that we can address their needs in our events and activities. We plan to implement some ideas to create a more inclusive environment for our members, which will involve outreach activities, such as contacting Universities and students, incorporating a discussion forum, perhaps through our mailing list, and emphasising our journal, Networking Knowledge.
Our next annual conference will be held at University of Loughborough and organizers have already begun to plan it. Next year the PGN conference will exceptionally be held in September due to the University commitments with the 2012 Olympic Games. In addition to the PGN conference, our previous Training Officer, Florian Zollmann, is organizing a training day that will be held at University of Lincoln in March 2012. We are also about to release our call for conference hosts for our annual event in 2013.
Finally, we would like to thank the previous committee for helping us in the transition to the new board and for their continued support in its early days. Shelley Thompson, Florian Zollmann and Dr Vincent Gaine, who have completed their PhDs or have entered into their final stages, have provided us with invaluable advice during this time thanks to their knowledge and experience gained during their time in the PGN committee.
MeCCSA PGN Exec for 2011-2012
Chair: Ruth Sanz Sabido, De Montfort University
Secretary/Vice-Chair: Markee Rambo-Hood, University of Glasgow
Communications: Matthew Holtmeier, University of St Andrews
Training Officer: Victoria Kearly, University of Southampton
Outreach Officer: Indrani Lahiri, University of Stirling
Journal Editor: Tom Phillips, University of East Anglia