[KS] Committee on Korean Studies-AAS

Tue Feb 23 10:32:02 EST 2010

Hello,
I'd like to post the following message.  Thank you, SSM

Notes from the Chair of the Committee on Korean Studies (February 2010)

Seungsook Moon
Professor of Sociology
Vassar College

As the chair of the CKS-AAS (April 2008 - March 2010), I would like 
to report CKS activities and accomplishments during the past one 
year. Since the CKS (executive board members) redefined in 2008 its 
identity as a professional organization that would connect various 
forms of resources to our members to promote your scholarly and 
teaching interests, we pursued the following new projects in 
collaboration with the Korea Foundation. First, in December 2009, we 
conducted an on-line survey to identify contents of multimedia 
teaching resources on Korea. With the support of the Northeast Asia 
Council (NEAC), we sent out this survey to members who were listed as 
Koreanists or/and Japanologists and received very positive feedback 
from them. We thank you for your participation. During the 2010 AAS 
meeting, the CKS board members will review contents of the 
audio-visual materials, which the Korea Foundation will produce on 
the basis of this feedback, in order to ensure their utility as 
effective teaching tools (rather than nationalist materials) for CKS 
members and beyond. Second, we will launch a series of professional 
development workshops to support advanced graduate students and 
junior faculty in the U.S. and South Korea. As a pilot project for 
this type of workshop, we will bring together mentors who are CKS 
members and advanced graduate students and junior faculty in South 
Korean universities. This first workshop intends to enhance these 
mentees' skill to present their scholarly work in the U.S. and 
thereby expand the body of new scholarly materials on Korea for CKS 
members and beyond. This type of workshop can also facilitate 
scholarly exchange between those in South Korea and those in the U.S. 
During the 2010 AAS meeting, the board members will discuss logistics 
for organizing the workshop in Seoul, Korea. Third, we will compile a 
list of "recommended" books on Korea that are already published in 
English to support CKS members' teaching about Korea in colleges and 
make these resources also available for K-12 teachers and general 
readers. We strongly encourage our CKS members to send your lists to 
the chair (<mailto:semoon at vassar.edu>semoon at vassar.edu) before the 
2010 AAS meeting. It would be of great help if you can add brief 
annotations on the books you recommend. The board members will also 
generate concise annotations on these books.

             I would like to emphasize that the board members of the 
CKS have a strong commitment to build and maintain the identity of 
the CKS as an autonomous organization that promotes our members 
scholarly and teaching interests and therefore look for various 
funding sources beyond the Korea Foundation. So please let us know if 
you have good suggestions for potential funding sources in the U.S., 
South Korea, and beyond. Please also share your constructive 
suggestions for project ideas. Our names (terms of service) and 
e-mail addresses are: Seungsook Moon (2007-2010; 
<mailto:semoon at vassar.edu>semoon at vassar.edu), Janet Poole (2007-2010; 
<mailto:janet.poole at utoronto.ca>janet.poole at utoronto.ca), Donald N. 
Clark (2008-2011; <mailto:dclark at trinity.edu>dclark at trinity.edu) and 
Michael Pettid (2008-2011; 
<mailto:mpettid at binghamton.edu>mpettid at binghamton.edu). The three new 
members elected in the Summer of 2009 are Christopher Hanscom 
(2009-2012; 
<mailto:christopher.p.hanscom at dartmouth.edu>christopher.p.hanscom at dartmouth.edu), 
Joy Kim (2009-2012; <mailto:joykim at usc.edu>joykim at usc.edu), and 
Hwasook Nam (2009-2012; <mailto:hsnam at u.washington.edu>hsnam at u.washington.edu).

Next, let me report on some routine activities of the CKS board 
administered by myself as the chair in collaboration with the NEAC. 
First, we sponsored a panel entitled "the Japanese Seizure of Korea: 
A Centennial Retrospective" that focuses on Hilary Conroy's work. 
This was organized by Wayne Patterson and to be held during the 
upcoming AAS meeting in Philadelphia. Second, I continued to work 
closely with the NEAC in reviewing applications for the following 
four categories of Korean Studies grants: 1) Research Travel Grants 
to Korea and North America, 2) Grants for organizing workshops and 
conferences, 3) Grants for enhancing Korean Studies teaching, and 4) 
Travel Grants to support graduate students' participation in the 
annual AAS meeting. I urge you, CKS members, to submit strong 
proposals especially for the Research Travel Grants. Please plan 
ahead and submit your proposals before the deadlines in the fall and 
in the spring. Please also pay attention to the required information 
on the application form to avoid disqualification due to inadequate contents.

The CKS also has collaborated with the Academy of Korean Studies 
(AKS) to sponsor the Fifth World Congress of Korean Studies to be 
held in Seoul, Korea in 2010.

Let me also report the result of the fall 2009 election of the NEAC 
officers. A Koreanist was elected (Kyung Hyun Kim at UC-Irvine, 
film). He will join two other continuing Koreanists in the NEAC 
(Namhee Lee, UCLA and Clark Sorensen, University of Washington, 
Seattle). This is a decrease from 4 Koreanists in the NEAC last year 
and the parity between Koreanists and Japanologists in the 9-member 
NEAC (including myself as an ex-officio) depends partly on your 
active participation in the AAS elections in the future.

Finally, let me draw your attention to the General Meeting of the CKS 
in Philadelphia during 2010 AAS conference. This meeting will be held 
from 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm in Room 404 in Marriott Downtown Hotel on 
Saturday, March 27th. I hope to meet you and hear from you during 
this meeting. Please mark your calendar if you will attend the 
meeting. The CKS identity as autonomous professional organization to 
promote its members interests really depends on your active 
participation and interest in CKS activities pursued by the board 
members you elected.

Thank you and best wishes,

Seungsook Moon
Professor
Department of Sociology
(on sabbatical leave, 2009-10)
Vassar College, Box # 507
124 Raymond Ave.
Poughkeepsie, NY 12604
Tel: 845-437-7662
Fax:845-437-7677
http://www.dukeupress.edu/books.php3?isbn=3616-2
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