Please note the approaching deadline (October 1, 2014). This conference promises to be MHA’s best yet.

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Call for Papers
2015 Provo, Utah
50th Anniversary Conference

?Mormon Cultures, Cultural Mormons?

2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Mormon History Association, whose annual conference will beheld in Provo, Utah, on June 4?7, 2015, at the Utah Valley Convention Center. We invite papers and presentations that consider Mormon history in its broadest possible sense, as well as those which reflect retrospectively on the history of the MHA itself at its first half-century mark.

The theme of ?Mormon cultures,cultural Mormons? suggests many possible avenues for exploration: cultural history, popular culture, cultural production, media culture, and material culture, to name a few. Is ?Mormon culture? singular or plural? If plural, how are Mormon cultures defined, experienced, constructed, reinforced, and challenged? In what sense has Mormonism been experienced or understood as a culture or a subculture unto itself? How does Mormon cultural identity intersect with national, transnational, racial, ethnic, and other identities in historical context? What does it mean, now or in the past, to be a ?cultural Mormon??

As the conference returns to Provo and the Wasatch front area?which has a long history as the heart of what is often termed the ?Mormon culture region??we especially encourage presentations that probe the importance of this geographic region from multiple perspectives across time, or which investigate the concept of a ?Mormon culture region?itself. How have the city of Provo and surrounding communities shaped Mormon history and culture? And beyond the local, which other places, practices, traditions, and stories deserve consideration as part of our proceedings?

Finally, the occasion of the organization?s 50th meeting lends itself to papers or panels providing critical introspection on the state of the maturing field of Mormon history. Where have we been? Where is the field headed? And what are the emerging areas of study, methods, technologies, and possibilities for the future of Mormon history?

Although the Program Committee will consider individual papers, it will give preference to proposals for complete sessions.  These might follow the traditional format of two or three papers with commentators, but we also encourage alternative or innovative formats, such as roundtables, performances, film screenings or other experimental arrangements. Because audiences appreciate the opportunity to ask questions or offer comments, do not try to pack too much into a single session. Please send a title and 300-word abstract for each paper or presentation, and a brief 1?2 page CV for each presenter with email contact information. Full session proposals should also include the session title and brief abstract outlining the theme, along with a confirmed or suggested chair and commentator, if applicable. Previously published papers are not eligible for presentation at the MHA. Please note that only one proposal per individual may be submitted. Financial assistance is available to some student presenters; those who wish to apply should include estimated travel expenses with their proposals.

The deadline for all proposals is October 1, 2014. Proposals should be sent by email to the program co-chairs, Spencer Fluhman and Tona Hangen, at mha2015provo@gmail.com. Notification of acceptance or rejection will be made by January 1, 2015. Presenters are expected to be members of MHA and to register for the conference.

MHA 2015 Provo, Utah Program Committee

Spencer Fluhman, Brigham Young University, Co-Chair
Tona Hangen, Worcester State University, Co-Chair

Amy Easton-Flake, Brigham Young University
David Grua, Church History Museum, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Crissy Hutchinson-Jones, Harvard University
Tom Simpson, Phillips Exeter Academy
Barbara Walden, Community of Christ Historic Sites Foundation
David Walker, University of California?Santa Barbara