MLA Interviews

[Emily Isaacs]

Folks,

I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA
but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also
feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together because
you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to hole up in
hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible time of year to
boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so sensible, but the
worry is that it conveys a negative message to interviewees -- it says,
somehow, that this isn't truly important to the institution that aims to
hire.  That having an MLA interview demonstrates rigor and commitment.  

Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?

Emily

[isaacse.vcf]

---

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title:Director of First-Year Writing
tel;work:973-655-7502
x-mozilla-html:TRUE
url:english.montclair.edu/isaacse
version:2.1
end:vcard

---

[Christopher Ervin]

We haven't gone to MLA in a few years. I think the search that brought me to
USD was the last year (2004) when the department sent faculty to interview
at MLA. We rely solely on telephone interviews now.

Christopher Ervin
University of South Dakota


On 10/7/08 9:36 AM, "Emily Isaacs" <isaacse@...> wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA
> but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also
> feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
> shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together because
> you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to hole up in
> hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible time of year to
> boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so sensible, but the
> worry is that it conveys a negative message to interviewees -- it says,
> somehow, that this isn't truly important to the institution that aims to
> hire.  That having an MLA interview demonstrates rigor and commitment.
>
> Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>
> Emily

Christopher Ervin
Director of Writing and the University Writing Center
University of South Dakota
605-677-6502

P Plastic bags blow. Purchase reusable bags at http://www.reusablebags.com .
(This is an unsolicited endorsement.)

[Steve Krause-2]

I don't want to comment on all of what Emily is asking about below for
a variety of different reasons.  But I will say this:  I do not think
a lack of an MLA interview is evidence of a lack of rigor or
commitment. I think the reasons that Emily gives below-- expense,
carbon footprint, bad for grad students, the sheer unpleasantness of
it all-- are all excellent reasons to not go to MLA, and for me
personally, I think all of these reasons trump the advantages for
interviewing at MLA.

BTW, we are indeed in the process of searching for a hire in computers
and writing here at EMU this year.  We'll be conducting phone
interviews.

--Steve

--
Dr. Steven D. Krause
Professor, Department of English Language and Literature
Eastern Michigan University | Ypsilanti, MI 48197
734-487-1363 | http://www.stevendkrause.com


On Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 10:36 AM, Emily Isaacs
<isaacse@...> wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you observed
> any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the location for
> screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit searches (as well as
> comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA but it's awfully
> expensive to send the full committee and then I also feel for the poor
> graduate students who have to go as well. And I shudder at the carbon
> footprint.  It's one thing to get together because you want to share ideas
> at a conference, it's another just to hole up in hotel room to interview a
> few people.   It's a horrible time of year to boot. Anyway,
> phone/skype/video conferences seems so sensible, but the worry is that it
> conveys a negative message to interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this
> isn't truly important to the institution that aims to hire.  That having an
> MLA interview demonstrates rigor and commitment.
> Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>
> Emily
>

[Shelley DeBlasis]

Emily,

I would welcome the opportunity to interview with search committees  
via phone or video conferences. Instead of taking a negative view of  
such a situation, I recognize that members of search committees devote  
a large amount of their time during an academic year to the search  
process. In fact, I would appreciate the efforts of the search  
committee to coordinate the logistics of phone or video conferencing.  
Setting up such schedules may take a lot of time and attention to  
technological details.

Now, I say this firmly situated in my position as a doctoral student  
specializing in rhetoric and composition who lives on a fixed income  
from sources such as an assistantship, scholarships, federal loans,  
and part-time work. As many on the list know, every penny counts when  
a doctoral student undertakes a broad job search. Right now I am  
trying to budget for my nationwide job search for next year, which  
means I am pestering everyone I know about little things such as how  
much paper people purchase for their searches and where they are  
getting their affordable shoes!

I am sure there are plenty of issues for us to discuss regarding  
material and affective dynamics that are in play when one interviews  
via phone or video technology. I would be concerned about these  
issues; however, for me at this moment in my position, such options  
would be a welcomed response to a very expensive process.

Shelley

---
Shelley DeBlasis
Assistant Editor, JAC
GTA, Department of English
Instructor, Women and Gender Studies Program
Illinois State University

sddebla@...
301D STV; 438-2022
www.jacweb.org


Quoting Emily Isaacs <isaacse@...>:

> Folks,
>
> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA
> but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also
> feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
> shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
> because you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to
> hole up in hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible time
> of year to boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so
> sensible, but the worry is that it conveys a negative message to
> interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this isn't truly important to
> the institution that aims to hire.  That having an MLA interview
> demonstrates rigor and commitment.  Anybody giving up MLA for English
> dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>
> Emily

--------------------------------------------------------------
This message was sent using Illinois State University Webmail.

[Risa Gorelick]

 
I'll start by saying I have gone to MLA for job searches in 1999 and 2003;  in 2006, I did drive to MLA in Philadelphia for one "local" interview (I live in  NJ and was interviewing for a handful of positions in the NJ area) where I met  the search cmt at a hotel and left afterwards, not paying for conference but not  attending any of the conference events.  Honestly, as a  composition/rhetoric professional, I don't feel welcome at MLA and always  wondered why our field has used MLA for interviewing when the organization does  so little for our field.  
 
I did a local search last year (NJ/NY/PA/CT) and when campuses called to  invite me to MLA to interview, I asked if I needed to fly to Chicago to meet  with them when I was an hour or so by car or train away from their home  campus.  I asked if they would consider doing a telephone or MLA-like  interview on their campus.  All agreed to schedule MLA-like  campus interviews on their campus before or after MLA, for which I was  grateful.  One campus even paid for my train ticket to meet with  them--something I'm sure no school could afford to do if one was going to fly to  meet them at MLA for the initial interview.  I wondered if any of the  non-MLA interviews would be held against me as this required the search cmt to  meet yet again, outside of their "normal" working hours during a winter  break.  While I can't honestly answer if that was a factor, I can  report that three out of the five MLA-like campus interviews offered me campus  visits.
 
I was thrilled to not have to travel to MLA during the holidays, especially  to a climate like Chicago's where one is likely to get stuck due to bad  weather.  I think we can have the same commitment and rigor to job searches  without going to MLA.  I could see having interviews at a place like CCCC  where composition/rhetoric professionals are welcomed if CCCC was earlier (and,  no, I'm NOT suggesting that CCCC be moved to another time).  But I think we  as a field should reconsider why we conduct job searches at MLA when the  organization does little in terms of composition/rhetoric programming, sessions,  and the like and there are less expensive (on both the search committee's and  candidate's end) and more environmentally friendly alternatives.
 
FYI:  The job I was offered and accepted conducted the first round of  interviews on the telephone.
 
Risa
 
 
Risa P. Gorelick, Ph.D.
Chair, Research Network Forum at  CCCC
Associate Professor/Director of First Year Writing
Ramapo College of  NJ
School of American & International Studies
Mahwah, NJ  07430-1680
rgorelic@...
risa1804@...

 
In a message dated 10/7/2008 10:41:04 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  isaacse@... writes:

Folks,

I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask,  have you
observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the  
location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit  
searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to  MLA
but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also  
feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I  
shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together  because
you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to hole  up in
hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible  time of year to
boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so  sensible, but the
worry is that it conveys a negative message to  interviewees -- it says,
somehow, that this isn't truly important to the  institution that aims to
hire.  That having an MLA interview  demonstrates rigor and commitment.  

Anybody giving up MLA for  English dept. tenure line searches?   Thoughts?

Emily







**************New MapQuest Local shows what's happening at your destination.  Dining, Movies, Events, News & more. Try it out (http://local.mapquest.com/?ncid=emlcntnew00000002)

[Nick Carbone]

It shouldn't bespeak lack of rigor if you present it as a better
option.  That is, the reason for doing video or phone or alternative
conferences interviews shouldn't be about the timing of MLA or the
cost of getting to MLA, but should instead be about being relevant in
our modern world -- video conferencing is a legitimate way to meet and
do interviews. It saves time, allows more people to participate, makes
it easier for people to get together. Rigor is dependent on the
discussion, not the location; commitment is measured by whom you
invite to interview and the questions you ask, not whether you require
yourselves and they to be at MLA.

Now if someone is going to MLA, it won't hurt them to do an interview
before, during, or after by conference phone or video. And for someone
not going to MLA, the option opens doors that would be closed
otherwise.

I think the idea is genuinely innovative, timely, and speaks more to
the commitment to the field and to your program -- you're effectively
widening your search pool and acting socially responsibly at the same
time -- than going alone would be.



On Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 10:36 AM, Emily Isaacs
<isaacse@...> wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you observed
> any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the location for
> screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit searches (as well as
> comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA but it's awfully
> expensive to send the full committee and then I also feel for the poor
> graduate students who have to go as well. And I shudder at the carbon
> footprint.  It's one thing to get together because you want to share ideas
> at a conference, it's another just to hole up in hotel room to interview a
> few people.   It's a horrible time of year to boot. Anyway,
> phone/skype/video conferences seems so sensible, but the worry is that it
> conveys a negative message to interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this
> isn't truly important to the institution that aims to hire.  That having an
> MLA interview demonstrates rigor and commitment.
> Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>
> Emily
>

--
nick.carbone at gmail dot com
http://ncarbone.blogspot.com/TeachingWriting/

[David Schwalm]

Over the last bunch of years, I was doing a lot of hiring outside of
English and Rhetoric/Comp. It appears that conference interviews as part
of the hiring process are a pathology that either never did or no longer
does exist in most other disciplines. The usual process is to solicit
applications, make the first cut based on application letters and
documentation, and then invite the top candidates for campus visits. On
occasion, the campus visits might be preceded by telephone interviews,
if the pool is rich enough. I always wondered whether the MLA interview
arose out of the time of year at which the conference was scheduled.
There are quite a few major professional conferences that are either too
late (4Cs) or too early (NCTE) in the hiring season to be very useful
venues for candidate interviews. Having started looking for jobs in the
heyday of MLA interviewing, I do not look back on the experience with
much fondness.

Some years ago, ASU generally discouraged us from doing conference
interviews in that they introduced an element of inequity into the
process.

David E. Schwalm
School of Applied Arts and Sciences
ASU at the Polytechnic campus
7001 East Williams Field Road
Mesa, AZ 85212
Phone: [phone]  david.schwalm@...

-----Original Message-----
From: Writing Program Administration [mailto:WPA-L@...] On Behalf Of
Risa Gorelick
Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 9:59 AM
To: WPA-L@...
Subject: Re: MLA Interviews


 
I'll start by saying I have gone to MLA for job searches in 1999 and
2003;  in 2006, I did drive to MLA in Philadelphia for one "local"
interview (I live in  NJ and was interviewing for a handful of positions
in the NJ area) where I met  the search cmt at a hotel and left
afterwards, not paying for conference but not  attending any of the
conference events.  Honestly, as a  composition/rhetoric professional, I
don't feel welcome at MLA and always  wondered why our field has used
MLA for interviewing when the organization does  so little for our
field.  
 
I did a local search last year (NJ/NY/PA/CT) and when campuses called to
invite me to MLA to interview, I asked if I needed to fly to Chicago to
meet  with them when I was an hour or so by car or train away from their
home  campus.  I asked if they would consider doing a telephone or
MLA-like  interview on their campus.  All agreed to schedule MLA-like
campus interviews on their campus before or after MLA, for which I was
grateful.  One campus even paid for my train ticket to meet with
them--something I'm sure no school could afford to do if one was going
to fly to  meet them at MLA for the initial interview.  I wondered if
any of the  non-MLA interviews would be held against me as this required
the search cmt to  meet yet again, outside of their "normal" working
hours during a winter  break.  While I can't honestly answer if that was
a factor, I can  report that three out of the five MLA-like campus
interviews offered me campus  visits.
 
I was thrilled to not have to travel to MLA during the holidays,
especially  to a climate like Chicago's where one is likely to get stuck
due to bad  weather.  I think we can have the same commitment and rigor
to job searches  without going to MLA.  I could see having interviews at
a place like CCCC  where composition/rhetoric professionals are welcomed
if CCCC was earlier (and,  no, I'm NOT suggesting that CCCC be moved to
another time).  But I think we  as a field should reconsider why we
conduct job searches at MLA when the  organization does little in terms
of composition/rhetoric programming, sessions,  and the like and there
are less expensive (on both the search committee's and  candidate's end)
and more environmentally friendly alternatives.
 
FYI:  The job I was offered and accepted conducted the first round of
interviews on the telephone.
 
Risa
 
 
Risa P. Gorelick, Ph.D.
Chair, Research Network Forum at  CCCC
Associate Professor/Director of First Year Writing
Ramapo College of  NJ
School of American & International Studies
Mahwah, NJ  07430-1680
rgorelic@...
risa1804@...

 
In a message dated 10/7/2008 10:41:04 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
isaacse@... writes:

Folks,

I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask,  have you
observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the  
location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit  
searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to  MLA

but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also  
feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I  
shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
because
you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to hole  up
in
hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible  time of year to

boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so  sensible, but the
worry is that it conveys a negative message to  interviewees -- it says,

somehow, that this isn't truly important to the  institution that aims
to
hire.  That having an MLA interview  demonstrates rigor and commitment.


Anybody giving up MLA for  English dept. tenure line searches?
Thoughts?

Emily







**************New MapQuest Local shows what's happening at your
destination.  Dining, Movies, Events, News & more. Try it out
(http://local.mapquest.com/?ncid=emlcntnew00000002)

[Emily Isaacs]

Good answer, Nick.  Well put.  Em

Nick Carbone wrote:

> It shouldn't bespeak lack of rigor if you present it as a better
> option.  That is, the reason for doing video or phone or alternative
> conferences interviews shouldn't be about the timing of MLA or the
> cost of getting to MLA, but should instead be about being relevant in
> our modern world -- video conferencing is a legitimate way to meet and
> do interviews. It saves time, allows more people to participate, makes
> it easier for people to get together. Rigor is dependent on the
> discussion, not the location; commitment is measured by whom you
> invite to interview and the questions you ask, not whether you require
> yourselves and they to be at MLA.
>
> Now if someone is going to MLA, it won't hurt them to do an interview
> before, during, or after by conference phone or video. And for someone
> not going to MLA, the option opens doors that would be closed
> otherwise.
>
> I think the idea is genuinely innovative, timely, and speaks more to
> the commitment to the field and to your program -- you're effectively
> widening your search pool and acting socially responsibly at the same
> time -- than going alone would be.
>
>
>
> On Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 10:36 AM, Emily Isaacs
> <isaacse@...> wrote:
>  
>> Folks,
>>
>> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you observed
>> any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the location for
>> screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit searches (as well as
>> comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA but it's awfully
>> expensive to send the full committee and then I also feel for the poor
>> graduate students who have to go as well. And I shudder at the carbon
>> footprint.  It's one thing to get together because you want to share ideas
>> at a conference, it's another just to hole up in hotel room to interview a
>> few people.   It's a horrible time of year to boot. Anyway,
>> phone/skype/video conferences seems so sensible, but the worry is that it
>> conveys a negative message to interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this
>> isn't truly important to the institution that aims to hire.  That having an
>> MLA interview demonstrates rigor and commitment.
>> Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>>
>> Emily
>>
>>    
>
>
>
>  

[isaacse.vcf]

---

begin:vcard
fn:Emily Isaacs
n:Isaacs;Emily
org:Montclair State University;English
adr;dom:;;;Montclair;NJ;07043
email;internet:Isaacse@...
title:Director of First-Year Writing
tel;work:973-655-7502
x-mozilla-html:TRUE
url:english.montclair.edu/isaacse
version:2.1
end:vcard

---

[Amy Rupiper Taggart]

Another reason to conduct interviews by phone is getting an edge on hiring.
A department doesn't have to wait until MLA to start interviewing "in
person," and can then get people on campus earlier and make offers earlier.
So, it can be good for the department, as well, to indicate interest earlier
when a really good candidate is being considered.

Amy Taggart


On 10/7/08 10:32 AM, "Shelley DeBlasis" <sddebla@...> wrote:

> Emily,
>
> I would welcome the opportunity to interview with search committees
> via phone or video conferences. Instead of taking a negative view of
> such a situation, I recognize that members of search committees devote
> a large amount of their time during an academic year to the search
> process. In fact, I would appreciate the efforts of the search
> committee to coordinate the logistics of phone or video conferencing.
> Setting up such schedules may take a lot of time and attention to
> technological details.
>
> Now, I say this firmly situated in my position as a doctoral student
> specializing in rhetoric and composition who lives on a fixed income
> from sources such as an assistantship, scholarships, federal loans,
> and part-time work. As many on the list know, every penny counts when
> a doctoral student undertakes a broad job search. Right now I am
> trying to budget for my nationwide job search for next year, which
> means I am pestering everyone I know about little things such as how
> much paper people purchase for their searches and where they are
> getting their affordable shoes!
>
> I am sure there are plenty of issues for us to discuss regarding
> material and affective dynamics that are in play when one interviews
> via phone or video technology. I would be concerned about these
> issues; however, for me at this moment in my position, such options
> would be a welcomed response to a very expensive process.
>
> Shelley
>
> ---
> Shelley DeBlasis
> Assistant Editor, JAC
> GTA, Department of English
> Instructor, Women and Gender Studies Program
> Illinois State University
>
> sddebla@...
> 301D STV; 438-2022
> www.jacweb.org
>
>
> Quoting Emily Isaacs <isaacse@...>:
>
>> Folks,
>>
>> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
>> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
>> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
>> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to MLA
>> but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also
>> feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
>> shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
>> because you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to
>> hole up in hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible time
>> of year to boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so
>> sensible, but the worry is that it conveys a negative message to
>> interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this isn't truly important to
>> the institution that aims to hire.  That having an MLA interview
>> demonstrates rigor and commitment.  Anybody giving up MLA for English
>> dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>>
>> Emily
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------
> This message was sent using Illinois State University Webmail.
>

[Marie C. Paretti]

Let me second David's point. I've spent the last few years in
engineering departments and served on multiple search committees; the
approach has always been to go from the applications (all electronic
now) to reference contacts to campus interviews. We've always ended
up with phenomenal hires, so the elimination of the intermediate
conference hotel interview doesn't seem to hurt the process.

Marie


At 01:20 PM 10/7/2008, you wrote:

>Over the last bunch of years, I was doing a lot of hiring outside of
>English and Rhetoric/Comp. It appears that conference interviews as part
>of the hiring process are a pathology that either never did or no longer
>does exist in most other disciplines. The usual process is to solicit
>applications, make the first cut based on application letters and
>documentation, and then invite the top candidates for campus visits. On
>occasion, the campus visits might be preceded by telephone interviews,
>if the pool is rich enough. I always wondered whether the MLA interview
>arose out of the time of year at which the conference was scheduled.
>There are quite a few major professional conferences that are either too
>late (4Cs) or too early (NCTE) in the hiring season to be very useful
>venues for candidate interviews. Having started looking for jobs in the
>heyday of MLA interviewing, I do not look back on the experience with
>much fondness.
>
>Some years ago, ASU generally discouraged us from doing conference
>interviews in that they introduced an element of inequity into the
>process.
>
>David E. Schwalm
>School of Applied Arts and Sciences
>ASU at the Polytechnic campus
>7001 East Williams Field Road
>Mesa, AZ 85212
>Phone: [phone]  david.schwalm@...
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Writing Program Administration [mailto:WPA-L@...] On Behalf Of
>Risa Gorelick
>Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 9:59 AM
>To: WPA-L@...
>Subject: Re: MLA Interviews
>
>
>
>I'll start by saying I have gone to MLA for job searches in 1999 and
>2003;  in 2006, I did drive to MLA in Philadelphia for one "local"
>interview (I live in  NJ and was interviewing for a handful of positions
>in the NJ area) where I met  the search cmt at a hotel and left
>afterwards, not paying for conference but not  attending any of the
>conference events.  Honestly, as a  composition/rhetoric professional, I
>don't feel welcome at MLA and always  wondered why our field has used
>MLA for interviewing when the organization does  so little for our
>field.
>
>I did a local search last year (NJ/NY/PA/CT) and when campuses called to
>invite me to MLA to interview, I asked if I needed to fly to Chicago to
>meet  with them when I was an hour or so by car or train away from their
>home  campus.  I asked if they would consider doing a telephone or
>MLA-like  interview on their campus.  All agreed to schedule MLA-like
>campus interviews on their campus before or after MLA, for which I was
>grateful.  One campus even paid for my train ticket to meet with
>them--something I'm sure no school could afford to do if one was going
>to fly to  meet them at MLA for the initial interview.  I wondered if
>any of the  non-MLA interviews would be held against me as this required
>the search cmt to  meet yet again, outside of their "normal" working
>hours during a winter  break.  While I can't honestly answer if that was
>a factor, I can  report that three out of the five MLA-like campus
>interviews offered me campus  visits.
>
>I was thrilled to not have to travel to MLA during the holidays,
>especially  to a climate like Chicago's where one is likely to get stuck
>due to bad  weather.  I think we can have the same commitment and rigor
>to job searches  without going to MLA.  I could see having interviews at
>a place like CCCC  where composition/rhetoric professionals are welcomed
>if CCCC was earlier (and,  no, I'm NOT suggesting that CCCC be moved to
>another time).  But I think we  as a field should reconsider why we
>conduct job searches at MLA when the  organization does little in terms
>of composition/rhetoric programming, sessions,  and the like and there
>are less expensive (on both the search committee's and  candidate's end)
>and more environmentally friendly alternatives.
>
>FYI:  The job I was offered and accepted conducted the first round of
>interviews on the telephone.
>
>Risa
>
>
>Risa P. Gorelick, Ph.D.
>Chair, Research Network Forum at  CCCC
>Associate Professor/Director of First Year Writing
>Ramapo College of  NJ
>School of American & International Studies
>Mahwah, NJ  07430-1680
>rgorelic@...
>risa1804@...
>
>
>In a message dated 10/7/2008 10:41:04 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
>isaacse@... writes:
>
>Folks,
>
>I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask,  have you
>observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
>location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
>searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to  MLA
>
>but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I also
>feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
>shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
>because
>you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to hole  up
>in
>hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible  time of year to
>
>boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so  sensible, but the
>worry is that it conveys a negative message to  interviewees -- it says,
>
>somehow, that this isn't truly important to the  institution that aims
>to
>hire.  That having an MLA interview  demonstrates rigor and commitment.
>
>
>Anybody giving up MLA for  English dept. tenure line searches?
>Thoughts?
>
>Emily
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>**************New MapQuest Local shows what's happening at your
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Dr. Marie C. Paretti, Asst. Prof., Dept. of Engineering Education
Director, MSE/ESM Engineering Communications Program
Co-Director, Virginia Tech Engineering Communications Center
(http://www.vtecc.eng.vt.edu)
Office: 14 Holden Hall; 608 McBryde Hall
Phone: [phone]
Email: mailto:mparetti@...
Web Site: http://www.enge.vt.edu/paretti
Mailing Address: Engineering Education (0218), 660 McBryde Hall,
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061

[Christopher Thaiss]

Emily,

At UC Davis, the University Writing Program has been doing phone
interviews instead of MLA interviews since I came here in 2006. The
advantages are several: the entire committee can participate, neither we
nor the candidates have to travel to a conference that we'd not likely
attend otherwise, and we can interview earlier (in mid to late
November).  Also, since our Winter quarter begins just after January 1,
the earlier interview date lets us schedule campus interviews for the
beginning of the quarter.

The dynamic of a phone interview is somewhat different from that of a
face-to-face interview, but if you have a good speakerphone and everyone
follows good speakerphone etiquette, the  interview can be at least
equally successful.  We've been very pleased by the results. We're
searching for two new tenure-line positions this year, and plan to use
the same system.

Chris

Emily Isaacs wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to
> MLA but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I
> also feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And I
> shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
> because you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to
> hole up in hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible
> time of year to boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so
> sensible, but the worry is that it conveys a negative message to
> interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this isn't truly important to
> the institution that aims to hire.  That having an MLA interview
> demonstrates rigor and commitment.
> Anybody giving up MLA for English dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>
> Emily

--
Chris Thaiss
Clark Kerr Presidential Chair and Director, University Writing Program
University of California, Davis
One Shields Avenue
Davis, CA 95616
[phone]
Homepage: http://writingprogram.ucdavis.edu/thaiss
UWP website: http://writing.ucdavis.edu
International WAC/WID Mapping Project: http://mappingproject.ucdavis.edu

[Emily Isaacs]

All,

I don't actually need any convincing.  For writing searches I've done
phone interviews.  The issue is persuading the rest of the English
Department!  The argument for increasing one's competitiveness by going
early is great, as are many other points.  But I find English faculty
pretty uninterested in what happens in other areas of campus (!).  
Perhaps because English departments tend to be large, they also tend to
be inward focused, not so interested following precedents set by other
disciplines.  So here's the refined question: are many of you doing LIT
searches without going to MLA?

Em

Chris Thaiss wrote:

> Emily,
>
> At UC Davis, the University Writing Program has been doing phone
> interviews instead of MLA interviews since I came here in 2006. The
> advantages are several: the entire committee can participate, neither
> we nor the candidates have to travel to a conference that we'd not
> likely attend otherwise, and we can interview earlier (in mid to late
> November).  Also, since our Winter quarter begins just after January
> 1, the earlier interview date lets us schedule campus interviews for
> the beginning of the quarter.
>
> The dynamic of a phone interview is somewhat different from that of a
> face-to-face interview, but if you have a good speakerphone and
> everyone follows good speakerphone etiquette, the  interview can be at
> least equally successful.  We've been very pleased by the results.
> We're searching for two new tenure-line positions this year, and plan
> to use the same system.
>
> Chris
>
> Emily Isaacs wrote:
>> Folks,
>>
>> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
>> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
>> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
>> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to
>> MLA but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I
>> also feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And
>> I shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
>> because you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to
>> hole up in hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible
>> time of year to boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so
>> sensible, but the worry is that it conveys a negative message to
>> interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this isn't truly important to
>> the institution that aims to hire.  That having an MLA interview
>> demonstrates rigor and commitment. Anybody giving up MLA for English
>> dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>>
>> Emily
>

[isaacse.vcf]

---

begin:vcard
fn:Emily Isaacs
n:Isaacs;Emily
org:Montclair State University;English
adr;dom:;;;Montclair;NJ;07043
email;internet:Isaacse@...
title:Director of First-Year Writing
tel;work:973-655-7502
x-mozilla-html:TRUE
url:english.montclair.edu/isaacse
version:2.1
end:vcard

---

[Kimball, Miles]

Texas Tech's English department has done lit searches with phone interviews instead of MLA interviews, but it's usually up to the search committee. However, when funding permits, they've sometimes been enticed by the opportunity to bring 3 candidates to campus instead of 2 if they use phone interviews. It tends to come down to how traditional the committee members are.

However, we did have some lit faculty interested in diversity (aren't we all?) who agitated a few years ago to mandate MLA interviews for all searches so we could "see" the diversity of the pool (evidently through skin tone!). Fortunately, this was voted down as implicitly discriminatory.

Miles Kimball
TTU


-----Original Message-----
From: Writing Program Administration [mailto:WPA-L@...] On Behalf Of Emily Isaacs
Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 7:46 PM
To: WPA-L@...
Subject: Re: MLA Interviews

All,

I don't actually need any convincing.  For writing searches I've done phone interviews.  The issue is persuading the rest of the English Department!  The argument for increasing one's competitiveness by going early is great, as are many other points.  But I find English faculty pretty uninterested in what happens in other areas of campus (!).
Perhaps because English departments tend to be large, they also tend to be inward focused, not so interested following precedents set by other disciplines.  So here's the refined question: are many of you doing LIT searches without going to MLA?

Em

Chris Thaiss wrote:

> Emily,
>
> At UC Davis, the University Writing Program has been doing phone
> interviews instead of MLA interviews since I came here in 2006. The
> advantages are several: the entire committee can participate, neither
> we nor the candidates have to travel to a conference that we'd not
> likely attend otherwise, and we can interview earlier (in mid to late
> November).  Also, since our Winter quarter begins just after January
> 1, the earlier interview date lets us schedule campus interviews for
> the beginning of the quarter.
>
> The dynamic of a phone interview is somewhat different from that of a
> face-to-face interview, but if you have a good speakerphone and
> everyone follows good speakerphone etiquette, the  interview can be at
> least equally successful.  We've been very pleased by the results.
> We're searching for two new tenure-line positions this year, and plan
> to use the same system.
>
> Chris
>
> Emily Isaacs wrote:
>> Folks,
>>
>> I recall this coming up a bit before, but I want to ask, have you
>> observed any changes in your department's reliance on MLA as the
>> location for screening interviews?  I am talking about about lit
>> searches (as well as comp).  At my institution we try hard to go to
>> MLA but it's awfully expensive to send the full committee and then I
>> also feel for the poor graduate students who have to go as well. And
>> I shudder at the carbon footprint.  It's one thing to get together
>> because you want to share ideas at a conference, it's another just to
>> hole up in hotel room to interview a few people.   It's a horrible
>> time of year to boot. Anyway, phone/skype/video conferences seems so
>> sensible, but the worry is that it conveys a negative message to
>> interviewees -- it says, somehow, that this isn't truly important to
>> the institution that aims to hire.  That having an MLA interview
>> demonstrates rigor and commitment. Anybody giving up MLA for English
>> dept. tenure line searches?  Thoughts?
>>
>> Emily
>

[Margaret Price-2]

Emily--Thanks for this question, and thanks to all the thoughtful
respondents.  Great discussion.

Another problem--or set of them--with MLA interviews arises for people
with disabilities. Often the hotels are inaccessible; the time of year
means that the streets may be snowy or slushy; candidates often must
move quickly between interviews, or navigate in unfamiliar spaces;
etc. Not to mention just making the trip may raise problems for
candidates with fatigue or chronic illnesses.

The thing is, phone interviews can be equally inaccessible.  This is
most obviously true for d/Deaf candidates (or committee members), but
can also be true for a person whose processing style relies heavily on
picking up c