Special Edition E-Bulletin
November 2011
 
 
American Academy of Religion
In This Issue
 

The AAR Annual Meeting, November 19–22, is less than two weeks away! Excitement is building and final plans are being made to make this the best meeting ever. Here are the 1-2-3s to help you navigate the Annual Meeting.

Name Badges & Registration

Registration is located in the Moscone Center West.

  • Name badges are in the mail for preregistrants. Bring your name badge to Registration and pick up a badge holder, lanyard, Program Book, and your tote bag. With those in hand, you can head directly to sessions and exhibits.
  • Lost name badge? Did the post office not come through with the mail? Replacements are available at the Name Badge Reprint booth at Registration.
  • No preregistration – no problem! Register onsite at Registration in the Moscone Center West.
    • Credit card: Register at a self-serve computer kiosk then enter the line to pick up your badge.
    • Cash or check: Head to the special line reserved for Cash/Check Onsite Registration.
    • Or preregister now! Save money and skip the lines!

Program Books and More

Program Books are available for pick up at the Tote Bag desk at Registration in Moscone Center West.

  • AAR and SBL are publishing separate Program Books.
    • AAR members – hand in the pink ticket attached to your name badge to receive the tote bag and AAR Program Book.
    • Dual AAR and SBL members – submit both pink and blue tickets for your tote bag and get both Program Books.
    • Combined AAR and SBL programs can be found in the At-A-Glance and the Mobile App, available to all attendees. (see below)
  • Annual Meetings At-A-Glance is stuffed into all attendees' tote bags contains brief session information on all AAR, SBL, and additional meetings.

Mobile App

Introducing the free Annual Meetings app! AAR and SBL introducesthe use of Mobile Meeting Guide technology to provide members with a technically reliable, intuitive, and functional meeting solution. The app will provide attendees with:

  • The entire event program, including both AAR and SBL programs and Additional Meetings
  • Exhibitor info, including an interactive Exhibit Hall map
  • Maps of conference hotels
  • Create and customize your own schedule, make notes about sessions, and share information and your schedule with colleagues and friends via built-in social networking
  • Because the solution features an intuitive offline program that is native to Android, Blackberry, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices, no Internet connection is needed!
  • Schedule changes are downloaded in the background when Internet access is available.
  • Find out how to use the app on YouTube!

Don't have a smart phone? Don't worry! A similar web-based solution will be accessible via your computer or laptop.

The app is available now in the App Store and Android Market—simply search for AM11AAR&SBL. On the AAR and SBL websites, we have posted answers to frequently asked questions as well as an introductory guide to the app. You will also find a Mobile App HelpDesk in the registration area in the Moscone West Convention Center. You can send questions via email to charles.haws@sbl-site.org.

Download the app to your mobile device from the Android Market and App Store now, use the web version of the app that is available here, or scan the appropriate QR code displayed below and on signage throughout the meeting. We hope you will find the app useful!

 

Visit the Exhibit Hall!

A priority for anyone attending the Annual Meetings is a visit to the Exhibit Hall! The Exhibit Hall is located on the first floor of the Moscone Center West. Why visit?

  • Publishers feature the newest, latest, and greatest publications within the field.
  • Publishers often offer deep discounts off list prices at the meeting!

Search It Out!

Looking for a specific book or publisher? Introducing the new Search It Out kiosk in the front of the Exhibit Hall! This kiosk offers a searchable database of books, authors, and publishers. The results will appear on a map of the exhibit floor, highlighting the name and location of the publisher!

The kiosk can also display the exhibit hall map with a complete list of publishers for reference. You can find an list of exhibitors and an Exhibit Hall map in the Program Book, At-A-Glance, and in the mobile app.

Enter to Win in the Exhibit Hall!

Plan to visit the Exhibit Hall and enter to win one of the daily drawings and the grand prize drawings.

  • Daily Drawing: The more you buy, the more chances to win! Make a purchase in the Exhibit Hall and receive a ticket. Fill out your name, e-mail, and phone number on the back of your ticket. Place your ticket in the raffle drum located in the back of the Exhibit Hall in the Food Court. At the end of each day, separate drawings will be held for:
    • A free registration for the 2012 Annual Meetings in Chicago
    • Free 2012 AAR membership
    • Free 2012 SBL membership.
    • Or the Grand Prize drawing on Tuesday for a free Apple iPad! Winners will be announced daily on the Mobile App and in the Exhibit Hall.
  • AAR Booth Giveaways: Visit the AAR booth (#509) in the Exhibit Hall and drop off your business card to enter four additional drawings:
    • "Books Under Discussion" at the 2011 AAR Annual Meeting — thirty-five books total!
    • The 2011 AAR Award Winning Books
    • Free 2012 AAR membership
    • Free 2012 Annual Meetings registration in Chicago

Program and Session Updates

Look for program updates or changes at:

Access the online Program Book to read about these sessions and more!
Lounges
  • Prayer Room, Marriott Marquis, Pacific F – For people of all faiths who need a moment of prayer, quiet reflection, or meditation.
  • Women's Lounge, Marriott Marquis, Pacific B – Featuring special programming sponsored by the Women's Caucus. Nursing mothers may find it a welcome private space.
  • Students Lounge, Marriott Marquis, Pacific C – Special programming sponsored by the Graduate Student Committee.
Services and Conveniences

Hungry? Food at the Annual Meeting

San Francisco has a ton of great places to eat! Ask at your hotel concierge for recommendations. If you are looking for something quick and easy, visit the food concessions area in the back of the Exhibit Hall in the Moscone Center West. Sandwiches, drinks, and snacks will be available during Exhibit Hall hours Saturday through Tuesday.

Internet Access

Need to check your e-mail or use the web? The Cyber Café offers computers with Internet connections at the back of the Exhibit Hall. Don't want to wait in line? The Cyber Café is also a wireless hotspot, and you can connect on your mobile device or laptop. Additional free wireless hotspots are located in the second and third floor foyers of the Moscone Center West.

Child Care

Childcare registration for the Annual Meeting is now open! KiddieCorp childcare is a service subsidized by the AAR and SBL for members with families attending the Annual Meeting. You may register at https://www.kiddiecorp.com/aarsblkids.htm.

Roomate Finder

Need a roommate? See who else is looking to share on the AAR Roommate Finder. Or you can Look Who's Coming to the Meeting to see if your friends and colleagues are attending.

 

Special Events and Things to Do

Welcome Reception

Join your colleagues for a wine and cheese reception on Friday, November 18, 7:00–9:00 pm in the Marriott Marquis, Golden Gate Ballroom C. Light jazz and a relaxed atmosphere makes it a great place to catch up with friends new and old.

Performances and Exhibits

  • Visit the display of Amalia Mesa-Bains' Circle of Ancestors in the Moscone Center West-3024. Mesa-Bains will discuss her work in a session on Sunday evening, 8:30 pm–9:30 pm.
  • Miri Hunter Haruach and her band, Sheba's Caravan, will perform in Moscone Center West-2001 on Sunday, 8:30 pm–9:30 pm.

Tours

The following Annual Meeting tours still have space available:

  • Swedenborgian Church (Friday, 12:00 pm–2:00 pm)
  • Historic Castro District (Saturday, 9:00 am–11:30 am)
  • Contemporary Jewish Museum and Girls in Trouble (Sunday, 1:00 pm–3:30 pm)
  • Vedanta Society of Northern California (Monday, 8:00 am–11:00 am)

Registration is on a first-come, first-serve basis. To sign up for a tour, log back into the online Annual Meeting registration system with your special code and add the tour(s) of your choice; fax in the form on page 21 of the Annual Meeting Program Planner, or call us at 404-727-7972. Sorry, no refunds.

The Swedenborgian Church Tour is now being offered at no charge. If you would like to join, please email Devin Zuber at dzuber@psr.edu.

Preconference Workshops

The following Pre-Annual Meeting Workshops still have space available:

  • Overcoming Barriers to Underrepresented Scholarship: A Strategy and Action Workshop, Friday, 9:00 am–4:30 pm
  • Sustainability Workshop — Teaching About Religion and Sustainability: The Animal Question, Friday, 1:45 pm–5:30 pm

Registration is on a first-come, first-serve basis. To sign up for a workshop, log back into the online Annual Meeting registration system and add the workshop(s) of your choice; fax in the forms in the Annual Meeting Program Planner, or call us at 404-727-7972.

Beyond the Boundaries Public Lecture Series

The AAR is committed to fostering the public understanding of religion. Inspired by this goal, the Graduate Student Committee has organized two evenings of public talks in San Francisco. Student members will present their cutting-edge research in these innovative evening sessions designed to move our discussions of religion out of the traditional academic setting of the Annual Meeting and into the community. This year's talks center around two themes:

  • American Religious and Spiritual Innovation: Marketing, the Law, and Marriage
  • Intersections of Spirituality, Healing, and Medicine

Plan to join us for these stimulating talks and discussions! All will be held from 6–8 PM at the California Institute for Integral Studies, 1453 Mission Street in San Francisco. Saturday: room 307. Monday: room 207.

Women's Mentoring Lunch

Register today for the Women's Mentoring Luncheon at the Annual Meeting! Meet with senior women scholars in the field to ask your questions and hear how others have faced the challenges of navigating academe. Lunch is provided with your $10 registration. Sorry, no refunds.

Invitation to a Conversation on Disabilty at the AAR

The AAR is renewing its commitment to disability access and integration at the annual meeting and in the profession. As an initial step, leading to a larger discussion at an open forum for the 2012 Annual Meeting, we are inviting anyone who is interested to join a conversation at this year's meeting in San Francisco.  The details for the meeting are A20-237, Sunday, November 20, 1:00–2:00 PM, Parc 55 Wyndham Hotel, Divisadero Room.

This initial dialogue will be moderated by Member Advocate, Janet Jakobsen, and will allow AAR members to discuss possible plans for next year's forum and to identify and prioritize issues in need of attention by the AAR. 

The AAR will provide accommodations to ensure full inclusion in this discussion.  If you need any form of accommodation, please contact Robert Puckett (rpuckett@aarweb.org) as soon as possible.

Other Exciting Sessions in San Francisco

We are excited about the tremendous lineup of scholarly sessions on the program this year in San Francisco. Some of the many highlights include the following sessions:

  • Scholars and the Public Representations of Islam in the United States: The Park 51 Mosque Controversy and the Peter King Hearings on the Radicalization of American Muslims (A19-103)
  • AAR Plenary Address: Trinh T. Minh-Ha: Walking with the Unmourned (A19-138)
  • A Noble Tradition: On the Meaning and Relevance of the History of Religions Lectureship in Its Second Century (A19-202)
  • Biblical Studies and the Modern Invention of "Religion" (A19-314)
  • AAR Presidential Address – Kwok Pui Lan, Empire and the Study of Religion (A19-404)
  • Egypt and Liberation (Square) Theologies (A20-106)
  • AAR Plenary Panel: Envisioning the Study of Religion in the Twenty-first Century (A20-136)
  • The Marty Forum: Jonathan Sarna (A20-200)
  • A Conversation with Robert Bellah on Religion in Human Evolution (Harvard University Press, 2011) (A20-203)
  • Conversation with Gary Snyder, 2011 AAR Religion and the Arts Award Winner (A20-251)
  • Conversation with Katie Geneva Cannon, the 2011 Excellence in Teaching Award Winner (A20-301)
  • Reflections: The Study of Religion in the Decade after 9/11 (A20-302)
  • Discussion with Abdul Karim Soroush on Revelation, Reform, and Secularism (A20-309)
  • AAR Plenary Address – Judith Butler, New Thoughts on Solidarity (A20-400)
  • Beyond Atheistic and Religious Fundamentalisms: Imagining the Common Good in the Public Sphere (A21-100)
  • AAR Plenary Address – Katie G. Cannon and Judith Plaskow, Lifetime of Learning Lecture (A21-141)
  • Public Understanding and Education on Religion Roundtable (A21-238)
  • Who Speaks for Us?: Responses to Representations of Islam and Christianity in America (A21-300)

 

 

Sustaining and Supporting Membership

With the Annual Meeting just around the corner, the AAR's Board of Directors has introduced two new membership categories — a $1000 Sustaining Membership and a $500 Supporting Membership.   These new memberships will begin in 2012, and will help increase support for a broad array of AAR program, including research grants, travel grants, award programs, and regional activities. 

Sustaining Members receive special benefits including:

  • AAR Member status; receive all of your member benefits such as the Journal of the American Academy of Religion and Religious Studies News.
  • Complimentary Annual Meeting registration
  • Priority access to Annual Meeting hotels as a VIP
  • A portion of your Sustaining Membership is tax-deductible

Supporting Members receive special benefits including:

  • AAR Member status; receive all of your member benefits such as the Journal of the American Academy of Religion and Religious Studies News.
  • A portion of your Supporting Membership is tax-deductible

We hope you will consider becoming a Sustaining or Supporting AAR member

 

 

 
Table of Contents
  1. Name Badges and Registration
  2. Program Books and More
  3. Mobile App
  4. Exhibit Hall and Giveaways
  5. Program Updates
  6. Lounges
  7. Services and Conveniences
  8. Special Events
  9. Sustaining Memberships
Account Information