RRAAAASS NNeewwsslleetttteerr nnoo...1122//22001111 aanndd 22001122 TABLE OF CONTENTS LLeetttteerrffrroommtthheePPrreessiiddeenntt _____________________________________ Letter from the President Adina Ciugureanu Dear Colleagues, The RAAS - Fulbright Conference: Constanta, 4-6 October 2012 Anca Iancu It’s been a while since the RAAS newsletter was published and, as we all know, numerous events have taken place during this American Studies period: new laws and regulations, elections, thoroughgoing Roxana Ghița changes in Romanian universities, new developments in the American Corners political field. Meanwhile, the RAAS has continued its work and Constanța encouragement of research in American Studies and may report, as many other realms of human undertaking, both Conference Participation success and failure. Costin-Valentin Oancea, Costel Coroban Academic Exchanges and Summer In the “positive” category of commendable events in which Schools RAAS members participated, there are the highly profitable Raluca Rogoveanu, Sorina Chiper , EAAS conference held in Izmir (March 30–April 2, 2012) and Cristina-Georgiana Voicu, Roxana Ghița the exciting RAAS-Fulbright biennial conference in Constanta Ph.D. Theses (October 4-6, 2012). The former, called The Health of the Adriana Bulz, Cristina-Georgiana Voicu, Nation, gathered over 300 scholars in American Studies from Monica Manolachi, Costinela Dragan Europe and Fulbright grantees from the USA. Romania was represented by four colleagues, out of whom Professor Rodica Reflections of a U.S. Fulbrighter Katelyn Browher Mihaila from the University of Bucharest was invited to hold the parallel lecture “Healing the Nation? The Critique of Book Reviews Exceptionalism in the Post-9/11 American Novel.” The pleasant Raluca Rogoveanu environment, the hospitality of the organizers and of the local academics, the high standards of the seminars, the inciting US Embassy Events/Notices results of recent research in American Studies presented during Fulbright Scholars 2011-2012 the conference turned the EAAS event into a unique, excellent experience. Moreover, the EAAS board elected the new RAAS Officers & EAAS treasurer for the following term, a position which, this time, is occupied by the Romanian representative. Having been elected UCLA, and Professor Augustin Ioan, the one of the four officers of the EAAS is a challenge for me and I University of Architecture and Urbanism, do hope to able to rise to the general expectations. It is also Bucharest as key-note speakers, the proof of the appreciation which the EAAS has shown for the conference gathered Romanian RAAS activity on the whole. academics and Fulbright grantees who tackled a large number of topics pertaining The latter activity which the RAAS may report as successful is to urban studies and the American the biennial RAAS-Fulbright Conference with the title metropolis (designing, imagining, Remapping Urban Spaces – American Challenges, held at redefining urban space in culture, Ovidius University Constanta in early October, 2012. With literature, popular culture, the media). On Edward Soja, Distinguished Professor of Urban Planning, this occasion, the RAAS launched the volume The American Tradition of Descent/Dissent: The proposal is that the first and second Underground, the Countercultural, the (Anti)Utopian (Iasi: issues of the Romanian Journal for Institutul European, 2012), which contains most of the articles American Studies (RJAS) contain the best presented at the 2010 RAAS-Fulbright Conference held in presentations held at the October Constanta, with the title topic. conference in Constanta, which would have successfully passed the peer- For the second time, two students became the recipients of the reviewing process. Professor Edward RAAS Graduate Student Award: Sorina Chiper from Al. Ioan Soja’s key-note talk, which he agreed to Cuza University, Iasi received the award for the best PhD publish in the first number of our e-journal, dissertation and Cristina-Maria Nitu, from the University of I am certain, will make a difference in the Bucharest, was the happy beneficiary of the award for the best immediate reception of the RJAS. The MA dissertation. The RAAS board is very pleased to have CFP for the finished articles, observing the managed to have set up a tradition of awarding grants for the publication guidelines, is to be found on best MA and PhD research work. the RAAS website. We all know how fast time flies by. 2012, already in the past, Last, but not least, there are the oncoming was the election year for the RAAS officers and board EAAS Conference in Hague and the members. The colleagues present at the general meeting RAAS-Fulbright Conference in Constanta, decided that the Constanta team should serve for another term, both scheduled for 2014. For the former, the only changes made being those concerning the regional the deadline for seminar proposals is representation. Thanking everybody present at the general March 15, 2013. We would be very happy meeting for the renewed trust in the Constanta team, we if the Romanian colleagues could be welcome all our new colleagues and hope to achieve better counted among the seminar organizers. ways of communicating with one another, irrespective of our Alternatively, we would be glad to broader or narrower interests and expertise in American financially support the RAAS members to Studies. participate in the Hague Conference by covering the travel expenses, as we have As for the “minus” category, however, we have to confess the done in the past four years. Regarding the disappointment at the constant postponing of the first issue of latter conference, the board expects the RAAS e-journal, which was scheduled to come out in spring proposals for the general topic by May 15, 2012. After an enthusiastic launch of the call for papers for the according to the CFP posted on the Romanian Journal of American Studies (RJAS) in spring 2011, website. after an equally animated response of the scholars who were invited to join the advisory board of our e-journal, the articles Hoping for ever more flexible and merrier sent to undergo the peer reviewing process failed to rise to the times, highest expectations, as, it seems, they either needed serious rewriting or they did not entirely touch upon the topic of the I wish you all a stimulating and journal. In spite of the hard work and dedication of the general academically rewarding spring. editor and of our young colleagues who embarked upon this huge ordeal of issuing the first number of an academic journal Adina Ciugureanu which we all wanted to be exemplary, the RAAS board and the President of the RAAS journal editors decided to drop the publication of the first issue EAAS Treasurer under the previous topic. The e-journal question was also discussed at the RAAS general meeting in October when the decision was made to publish the essays presented at the 2012 RAAS-Fulbright Conference in two consecutive issues of the RJAS. Consequently, the board’s ______________________________________________________________________________ The conference opened Fulbright roundtable, “Enriching the with Dr. Edward Soja’s (University Exchange Experience,” organized of California, Los Angeles) keynote by Dr. Rodica Mihaila, Executive lecture on “The Spatial Turn in the Director of the Fulbright Human Sciences.” Dr. Soja Commission in Romania, and The RAAS - emphasized the significance of moderated by Mr. Jonathan Stillo, spatial criticism as a growing critical U.S. Fulbright-Hayes Alumnus, City Fulbright dimension across disciplines, such University of New York, Graduate as the humanities and social Center. The roundtable brought Conference: sciences. Dr. Soja’s thought- together Romanian Fulbright provoking presentation was alumni: Dr. Rodica Mihaila; Dr. followed by several concurrent Augustin Ioan, University of Constanta, 4-6 sessions, among which “Designing Architecture and Urbanism, the Urban: Contemporary Bucharest; Dr. Ludmila October 2012 Approaches,” “The City: Historical Martanovschi, Ovidius University, and Political Perspectives,” Constanta; and myself, from Lucian “Apocalyptic Cityscapes,” Blaga University of Sibiu, and Remapping Urban Spaces: “Redefining Urban Spaces,” former and current Fulbright American Challenges sessions that re-examined the scholars and grantees in Romania, Anca-Luminita Iancu American urban spaces from a such as Dr. Barbara Nelson, former plurality of perspectives. Executive Director of the Romanian- Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu US Fulbright Commission, Dr. Gene Tanta, who held a senior award at The biennial international the University of Bucharest, and Mr. conference “Remapping Urban Eric Burnstein, recipient of a junior Spaces: American Challenges,” award at the University of organized by the Romanian Timisoara. The roundtable offered Association for American Studies in participants an exciting opportunity association with the Fulbright to share the outcomes of their Commission in Romania, took place Fulbright experience and to discuss at Ovidius University, Constanta, the necessity of creating a support from October 4 to 6, 2012. Under network for the new Fulbright the auspices of its novel and grantees within the departments of generous theme - remapping Romanian universities, the American urban spaces - this In re-defining urban spaces necessity of building more efficient edition brought together numerous from political, historical or institutional relationships between Romanian academics and foreign contemporary perspectives,