Irish Journal of American Studies open positions: Co-Editor-in-Chief + Marketing & Reviews Editor
The Irish Journal of American Studies (IJAS Online) is seeking to fill two positions:
• Co-Editor-in-Chief
• Marketing & Reviews Editor
The Irish Journal of American Studies is an internationally respected, peer-reviewed, open access journal. It is the official journal of the Irish Association for American Studies (the all-Ireland scholarly association for the study of the United States and the Americas), and has published since 1992. It currently publishes issues annually at http://ijas.iaas.ie/ featuring articles, reviews and interviews on topics including history, literature, film, art, music, media, and politics. The previous Editor-in-Chief David Coughlan is stepping down, with the previous Marketing & Reviews Editor Tim Groenland moving to the position of Editor-in-Chief.
The journal is seeking a candidate to share the Editorship as well as a new Marketing & Reviews Editor. Both posts will run for three years, with the possibility of renewal. The roles are briefly outlined below, and we hope to fill both by September 2021; we anticipate a handover period, provisionally scheduled for the final weeks of August. Excellent editorial, organisational and communication skills are essential for both posts. An interest in academic publishing and research expertise in American Studies are also essential. No salary is available for either role, as the journal is entirely volunteer-run. The nature of scholarly publishing means that the work will not be distributed evenly throughout the year, but we estimate that the Co-Editor-in Chief role will require a commitment of 2 hours per week, with the Marketing & Reviews Editor requiring 1 hour per week. The role also comes with a non-executive position on the IAAS committee, and the Editor-in-Chief is thus
expected to attend the four committee meetings each year; attendance can be alternated between the Co-Editors. The IJAS is committed to equity and inclusion, and we encourage expressions of interest from under-represented groups. Both roles will require regular consultation and coordination with the wider editorial team, but possibilities for role-sharing may be considered in the case of the Marketing & Reviews Editor position so as to accommodate varying responsibilities and workloads.
To apply, please send the following to irishjournalofamericanstudies@gmail.com by midnight on August 12th, 2021:
• One-page cover letter outlining your interest in the role, skills, and experience
• CV
Please direct any informal enquiries to the same address.
Outline of Roles:
Co-Editor-in-Chief
• Working with Co-Editor-in-Chief Dr Tim Groenland to bring articles to publication;
o identifying peer reviewers (with the assistance of the Editorial Board), liaising with reviewers, synthesising reviewer reports
o Communicating with authors, working with authors on copy-edits, managing submission and revision deadlines
o Publishing to the IJAS Online platform; formatting according to journal guidelines, sourcing suitable images, adapting content to WordPress requirements as needed
• Maintaining and improving access to the journal;
o Managing the journal’s website http://ijas.iaas.ie/ (e.g. updating menus and lists of Books for Review)
o Preparing content for (and communicating with) JSTOR, formatting articles for print
• Planning future issues and strategy in collaboration with Dr Groenland and the IJAS Editorial Board (a diverse supporting network of Americanist scholars in Ireland and beyond)
• Mentoring early-career writing Marketing & Reviews Editor
• Commissioning reviews, liaising with reviewers and publishers of books available for review, managing deadlines and review schedules
• Preparing reviews for publication;
o Editing, communicating with authors on approval for changes
o Copy-editing and formatting reviews, liaising with the Co-Editors-in-Chief on publication
• Marketing:
o Liaising with IAAS Secretary to promote new articles & reviews in newsletter, and with American Studies conference organisers as well as local departments where appropriate to advertise the journal
o Managing the journal’s social media account(s) (Twitter, at present)
