What should scholarly societies be doing to help embed digital scholarship in our disciplines? MLA and AHA, along with other societies, have been active in creating guidelines for digital scholarship related to tenure and promotion for some time now. Additional work—such as organizing THATCamps, providing digital scholarship training at association meetings and elsewhere, organizing panels, etc—has also helped to promote and engage with digital scholarship. Is this the correct way for scholarly societies to connect with and advance the use of digital tools and methods with the humanities? What else should we or could we be doing?

Happy new year everyone. We’re looking forward to seeing you all at the Institute for the Humanities bright and early tomorrow.

As always, the program is up to you, so it’s time to start proposing sessions. We’ve had a few already posted to the site, and it’s easy to propose your own. If you haven’t been to an unconference before, you can read about proposing a session at aha2018.thatcamp.org/propose/. If you don’t get around to proposing something before January 3rd, or if you’re unsure about the process, no worries: you can always suggest an idea on the morning of the unconference or even after it’s underway.

Most THATCamp sessions in my experience tend to be discussions (Talk sessions), which are plenty valuable in themselves, but we *strongly* encourage you to propose hands-on collaborative writing or coding sessions (Make sessions) or digital skills workshops (Teach sessions) that will let everyone learn and work together productively. You’d be surprised at how useful even a spontaneously organized workshop can be: I’ve been at THATCamps where someone mentions a tool in one session and then by popular demand agrees to teach it in the next: unconferences are great at determining what the people in the room really want to learn and do.

To propose a session, click the “Log in” link on the site’s home page, then choose Posts –> Add New, write notes in the text box, and hit “Publish” when you’re done. See codex.wordpress.org/Writing_Posts for more help, or just play around in the THATCamp AHA-MLA website itself.

And one more important detail: coffee and lunch will be provided.

See you tomorrow.

I can’t believe it’s on us already, but I hope everyone is getting excited for THATCamp in a few days.

We will be hosted by the Institute for the Humanities at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Registration will be from 8:30 to 9:00, and we’ll start the opening session at 9:00AM. The final session will finish at 4:00PM. Here’s a map with directions to help you find your way to the Institute on Wednesday.

Map with parking 1-2018

In the meantime it’s time to start proposing sessions. As you can see we’ve had a couple of good suggestions to get us started already. So if you have something you would like to see on the program please submit a brief description.

See you all on Wednesday.

Over the years, THATCamps have been a place where humanities scholars learn about and exchange ideas for how to use technology for research and in the classroom. Projects have been conceived, connections made between scholars, and hundreds introduced to digital humanities in a relaxed, fun, and informal environment.

With the AHA and the MLA meetings happening in the same city at the same time for the first time in 50 years, we are excited about the opportunity to create further connections and share ideas across disciplines.

What makes THATCamp great is you, so register now, and plan to join us in Chicago on January 2nd, 2019. You do not need to be attending AHA or MLA to participate. All are welcome!

Participation is on a first-come, first-served basis, but please register before December 17th. When you submit your registration you should receive an email confirming that it’s been received, and another one once your registration has been approved. Please contact me if you have any problems.

We look forward to seeing you there.

We are very excited to announce the first THATCamp that will be jointly held by MLA and AHA to coincide with annual meetings occurring simultaneously in Chicago. Generously hosted by the Institute for the Humanities at the University of Illinois Chicago, THATCamp AHA-MLA will take place on January 2, 2019.

This will be a great opportunity to talk to digital humanists across the disciplinary divide and share perspectives on digital methods and approaches with a broader range of scholars.

We’ll be opening registration on a first-come first-served basis very soon so watch for further announcements.

If you are new to the idea of an un-conference or THATCamp you can read more about the THATCamp movement and browse other THATCamps at thatcamp.org.

Hope to see you in Chicago in the new year!