The Society of Architectural Historians invites its members to apply for service on a variety of committees including awards, fellowships, and other standing or working committees. We seek a breadth of voices, viewpoints, and experience on our committees. This call gives information on how committees are formed, the length of the service commitment, a committee member’s responsibilities, the timeline needed to complete the assigned tasks, and the preferred skills of an applicant.
The deadline to submit your interest is Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. CDT.
Notices will be sent in early June.
Publications and Video/Film Award Committees
Please visit https://www.sah.org/jobs-and-careers/award-programs for details on each award’s area of focus.
Alice Davis Hitchcock Book Award Committee: 3 members
Antoinette Forrester Downing Book Award Committee: 3 members
SAH Exhibition Catalogue Award Committee: 3 members
Spiro Kostof Book Award Committee: 3 members
Elisabeth Blair MacDougall Book Award Committee: 3 members
Founders' JSAH Article Award Committee: 3 members
SAH Award for Film and Video Committee: 3 members
Qualifications: Members of publications and film awards committee should have published a peer-reviewed article or book as appropriate and have expertise connected to the nature of each award. The term is one year, nonrenewable.
Workload: Members will review books, articles or films submitted in a timely fashion. The number of submissions varies per award but can be between 10 to 30 items. (Please note that some publishers only submit electronic versions of books at the present time). Committees will collectively select the award winner after reading each entry and then draft a citation that will be given to the awardee and read at the SAH Awards Celebration at the annual conference.
Timeline:
Fellowship and Dissertation Award Committees
Please visit https://www.sah.org/jobs-and-careers/sah-fellowships-and-grants/research-fellowships for descriptions of most fellowships.
Those not found on this page have their own link below.
Committee members for fellowship and dissertation awards will usually be senior members of the organization, with expertise in guiding advanced work in academia and heritage conservation. Applications may number 10–60 and vary according to award. Committees will usually have 1–4 months to complete their review and report recipients to SAH staff.
(Please note that timelines may vary slightly from what is indicated below). The term is one-year nonrenewable.
SAH David Brownlee Dissertation Award: 3 members
Timeline: 7/31/2024 applications due, 12/1/2024 decision made
HABS-SAH Sally Kress Tompkins Fellowship: 2 members
Timeline: 12/31/2024 applications due, 1/31/2025 decision made
Charles E. Peterson Fellowship of the Buildings of the United States and the Athenaeum of Philadelphia: 3 members (1 emerging scholar preferred)
Timeline: 12/31/2024 applications due, 2/28/2025 decision made
SAH Annual Conference Fellowships: 3 members
Timeline: 9/30/2024 applications due, 11/1/2024 decisions made
Edilia and François-Auguste de Montêquin Fellowship: 3 members
Timeline: 9/30/2024 applications dues, 12/1/2024 decisions made
H. Allen Brooks Travelling Fellowship: 3 Members
Timeline: 8/31/2024 applications close, 12/1/2024 decisions made
Standing and Ad Hoc Committees
Standing committees of the Society are set out in “Article IX – Standing and Ad Hoc Committees” of our bylaws and include: Budget and Audit; Development; Investment; SAH IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accountability, and Sustainability); and Nominating.
Other committees may be created as needed; at this moment these Ad Hoc Committees include Graduate Student Advisory; Heritage Conservation; Membership; and those related to our publications including JSAH Editorial, SAH Archipedia/BUS Editorial, and Digital Publications.
Unless otherwise indicated, membership on each Standing and Ad Hoc committee is for a two-year term, renewable twice for a total of six years maximum. Some committees do not need members at this time; therefore, they are not included in the call below. Calls for some SAH committees are issued at other times of the year than this call and will be shared with membership as needed.
Budget and Audit: 2 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The SAH Budget and Audit Committee works with SAH staff and leadership to review proposed annual budgets, quarterly budget to actual reports, and draft audit reports. Meetings are bi-monthly with an interim monthly email check on the budget and financial status of the Society. Experience with budgets and financial statements is preferred for this role.
Contingent Faculty Committee: 2 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The Contingent Faculty Committee is a newly formed committee with the objective of developing strategies and hosting events to better support contingent faculty who are members of SAH. For the purposes of this committee, contingent faculty is defined widely, including any faculty and scholars who are not in tenure-track positions. The committee welcomes applications from contingent faculty at all points in their careers, from emerging scholars to established faculty. The committee will meet regularly on a monthly or bimonthly schedule. Initial committee members will serve staggered terms of one, two, or three years in length.
Development: 2-3 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The SAH Development Committee strategizes with SAH staff and leadership about how to raise new funding for priorities established by the SAH Board including programs, publications, special initiatives, and operations. This committee meets monthly via virtual conferencing. Expertise in fundraising for non-profits or other organizations is valuable for members of this committee.
Heritage Conservation: 2 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: Preserving important structures, landscapes, and other aspects of the built environment is a key tenet of the Society of Architectural Historians' mission. As a matter of policy, the Society only becomes involved in preservation issues of national or international significance. The SAH Heritage Conservation Committee meets monthly via virtual conferencing to discuss buildings and landscapes at risk. Expertise and knowledge of the diverse nature of architectural heritage, conservation and/or preservation is essential. Graduate students and emerging professionals are encouraged to apply.
SAH Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accountability, and Sustainability (SAH IDEAS) Committee: 6 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The IDEAS Committee works with the SAH Board to devise sustainable DEI strategies for SAH and makes recommendations for actions to promote meaningful change within the Society. We strongly encourage women, BIPOC, and members of the LGBTQ community to apply. This includes members who are from outside of the U.S. and global north, who work outside the academy, and who have contingent employment.
In this cycle we seek to diversify the levels of academic seniority within the IDEAS Committee, by calling on senior faculty, scholars, and professionals to apply, as well as junior, contingent and otherwise under-represented groups (women, BIPOC, LGBTQ community).
The SAH IDEAS Committee meets monthly, currently on Fridays at 11am CST, (the meeting time is at the discretion of the committee and subject to change depending on members’ time zone and preference) and we request a minimum of 75% attendance to all meetings. Committee members serve a two-year term beginning in April. The IDEAS Committee this year will also be electing two Co-Chairs and forming sub-committees to complete ad-hoc tasks. A 30-minute open information session webinar will be held on April 26th at 12pm CST which will cover all aspects of work with the committee.
Investment: 2 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The SAH Investment Committee works with SAH staff, leadership, and investment advisors to review SAH investment policies and performance of the Society’s investments. Members with experience handling endowments and investments are encouraged to apply. The committee meets quarterly by video conference.
JSAH Editorial Advisory Committee: 2 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The JSAH Editorial Advisory Committee advises the Journal’s editor and assists them in promoting the Journal to potential readers and authors, suggesting peer reviewers to the editor, and acting as peer reviewers. Members of the Editorial Advisory Committee shall provide advice to the editor, who maintains final decision-making authority. Candidates must be current SAH members, may not serve simultaneously on the Society’s Board of Directors, and should not be serving on the editorial board of a competitive journal. Members may not publish their own work in JSAH during the term of service. The Committee will meet at least once a year with the editor and associate editor at the Society’s Annual International Conference and by video conference periodically. Committee members serve a four-year term.
Membership Committee: 5 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The SAH Membership Committee is tasked with strategizing about increasing membership numbers and revenues, decreasing non renewals, and winning back past members. The Committee aims to keep members engaged by providing needed services, resources, and programs, including Member Meetups, which help members connect with one another and explore a variety of topics. The Committee awards about 20 Membership Grants for Emerging Professionals annually. The Committee meets virtually as many as six times a year. SAH members in all professions and at all levels of experience are welcome.
Nominating: 4 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications: The Nominating Committee is tasked with working year-round to advertise, cultivate, recruit, and encourage nominations to the Society’s Board of Directors. Work will begin immediately for this committee in June 2024 and go through April 2025. The committee meets regularly as needed to select the new slate of officers and board members by October 15th.
Study Tours Advisory Committee: 3 members
Tasks, Time Commitment, and Qualifications. The Tours Committee is tasked with working year-round to advise on potential destinations and suggest tour leaders for future programs.
