Call for Papers
Purpose and Orientation: One of the primary objectives for developing and organizing an annual interdisciplinary conference at UMKC is to make evident the entwinement that exists between the branches of knowledge. As such, we wish to encourage cross-pollination between the disciplines and expand dialog throughout our campus. The other primary objective is to build relationships between scholarly researchers and their local and regional communities; to bridge theory and practice. This partnering is meant to create a co-operative problem-solving environment in the hopes of finding working solutions to many of the problems our society is now facing. The conference is an exercise in listening that spans the disciplines AND our communities. As Gunnar Myrdal once said, “The isolation of one part of social reality by demarcating it as economic [or any other discipline] is logically not feasible. In reality, there are no economic, sociological, or psychological problems, but just problems and they are all complex.” From this insight, and in accord with our inaugural conference, we invite papers exploring the bifurcations and crossroads between the disciplines as well as those between scholarly practitioners and community organizers. Moreover, these relationships need not be limited to certain “kinds” of activities within the community. It is our hope that this conference will enhance UMKC’s commitment to its responsibilities as an urban campus. This theme is intentionally broad to provide inclusiveness and at the same time possess the necessary specificity to generate productive dialogue and networking opportunities.
Roundtable Proposals: In addition to inviting papers for the conference, we would also like to invite suggestions for Roundtable Discussions to be led by faculty, students, or community organizers to address theoretical issues facing interdisciplinary education and research as well as the process of putting theory into practice. These discussions will provide an added experience not typically found at conferences, and provide greater freedom to explore new ideas and approaches.
Volunteers: At this time we are also looking for volunteers to contribute in a variety of roles including, logistics, paper readers, moderators, and promotions.
Procedure and Deadlines: Please submit paper abstracts and roundtable proposals to SSCConference@umkc.edu. The deadline for Roundtable discussion and abstracts should be submitted no later than February 28th, 2014. All inquiries may also be addressed to the above email.