Call for Papers, Lightning Talks and Posters

The Annual Conference of the Midwest Chapter/MLA Research Committee invites proposals for contributed papers, posters, and lightning sessions for the 2024 Midwest Annual Meeting.

Submissions will be accepted between May 30 - July 12, 2024.

We accept both research and program submissions. Paper presentations are limited to 15-20 minutes and lightning talk presentations will have 5-10 minutes. Poster presenters will be asked to provide up to a 10-minute video or audio recording beforehand about their poster. The posters and recordings will be made available to conference attendees on October 4 so that they can be previewed ahead of time.

We welcome presentations that were made at the 2024 MLA meeting in Portland. Please consider presenting it again at the Midwest 2024 conference!

Submissions will be evaluated using MLA’s rubric for reviewing proposals. Acceptance and rejection notices will be sent by Wednesday, August 14, 2024.

For more information about writing a structured abstract, refer to the MLA Research Section page.

Please contact Emily Johnson-Barlow at emj11@uic.edu if you have any questions.

Here is the information you will need to submit:

1.     For what kind of presentation are you submitting this proposal?

2.     Primary author (who will serve as point of contact)

3.     Primary author’s preferred email 

4.     Primary author’s institution

5.     List any additional authors and their institutions

6.     Are you a member of the Midwest Chapter?

7.     If your submission is accepted, would you or your co-author be a first-time presenter at a Midwest or other chapter of MLA conference?

1.     If yes, please list the first-time presenter at Midwest or other chapter of MLA conference:

8.     Title of your presentation

9.     Abstract (250 word maximum, structured abstract preferred.) Please blind your abstract and de-identify information about your institution and individuals’ names. To find more information about structured abstracts visit http://www.malnet.org/page/structured-abstract

10.  If you are submitting a research project, would you like to be considered for the Midwest Chapter of MLA’s Research Award? To find information about the awards visit https://mcmla45.wildapricot.org/awards

11.  Would you like to be considered for the Midwest Chapter of MLA's Fan Favorite presentations? To find information about the awards visit https://mcmla45.wildapricot.org/awards#research

12.  If your proposal is accepted for inclusion in the conference, does the Midwest Chapter/MLA have your permission to include your submission in the proceedings? (Your response will not impact the evaluation of your submission.)

13.  If your proposal is accepted for inclusion in the conference, does the Midwest Chapter of MLA have your permission to record the presentation and make available on an unlisted YouTube channel available only to conference attendees? (Your response will not impact the evaluation of your submission.)