By J StuartJune 16, 2016
Today’s post on livetweeting a conference comes from Eliza N. She is an editor who lives and works in Salt Lake City. She grew up in the Midwest and misses the cornfields. When she’s not working, reading, or watching Netflix, she enjoys running, playing volleyball, and hanging out with her dog. Eliza tries her best to follow these Twitter tips @EtotheNev.
You can see the archived tweets from #MHA2016 at the links provided at the bottom of the page! If you have tweets we missed please post them in the comments. If your tweets or session appear in the links below, please share on Twitter and Facebook (and tag either @MormonHistoryJI or our Facebook page).
Etiquette for Tweeting a Conference, or Seven Tips for Making Your Live-Tweet Game Sizzle
As younger generations and technology invade academia, audiences for conferences like this past weekend’s Mormon History Association’s grapple with what the heck certain platforms are and how to use them. Perhaps the most popular for MHA, Twitter is a useful and fun tool that might baffle newcomers. It takes time to learn its tricks, cadence, and inside jokes, but we can help you catch up on some of the particulars for live-tweeting a conference like MHA.
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By J StuartJune 10, 2016
2016 MHA Award Winners
JI Permabloggers in BOLD
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By J StuartMay 23, 2016
Last year, we at the Juvenile Instructor started a Summer Book Club on Richard Bushman’s Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling. The posts garnered thousands of views, many helpful comments, and publicity from the Salt Lake Tribune and the Religion News Service. I received notes from friends, acquaintances, and perfect strangers who benefited from reading along with us. It was extremely gratifying to hear from folks that found a reason to tackle such an important biography.
In the spirit of introducing non-specialists and non-academics to Mormon history, we have decided to read Linda King Newell’s and Valeen Tippetts Avery’s Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith. We landed on Mormon Enigma for several reasons. First, we wanted to address the history of women in Mormon history. There are very few books on women in Mormonism, far fewer, at any rate, than books on men’s actions, thoughts, lives, and decisions. For instance, there are several biographies on Joseph Smith but only Newell and Avery have written a biography of Emma Smith.

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By J StuartMay 15, 2016
This year, Kris W. and I are running a workshop on Mormonism in Religious Studies (which embraces the methodologies of history, sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, etc.). We will meet at the University of Utah on Tuesday, June 7, from 9 AM to 5 PM. We will congregate in Room 351 of the Carolyn Tanner Irish Humanities Center. There is parking close by ($) but the building is also accessible by Trax or UTA bus routes.
As a participant, you will be responsible for presenting a colleague’s paper to the rest of the group. You will be responsible for introducing the paper to the group and assessing the paper’s strengths and weaknesses (5 minutes or less). You will then lead a discussion on the paper for 20-30 minutes.
Participants should submit a paper to their readers by May 27th, 2016 by 11:59 PM. The papers can be up to 10,000 words, including footnotes. Your submission could be anything from a blog post to a book or dissertation chapter. It is expected that each participant will read each other participant’s paper and make comments for the benefit of the author, either in track changes or by hand.
We will also discuss trends in Mormon Studies, or as I prefer to think of it, the study of Mormonism within an academic framework, often using the tools of religious studies. As a part of that discussion, we will read:

Dr. Richard Bushman

Dr. Jan Shipps

Dr. Stephen Taysom
Many participants will have read these articles before, but Kris and I feel that they will allow us to have an informative and engaging conversation.
Please let Kris or I know if you would like to attend by e-mail, joseph dot stuart at utah dot edu. We hope to make the workshop an annual tradition–please send a note if you’d like to be included in the future.
By J StuartMay 5, 2016
As early-bird registration for #MHA2016 wraps up this Saturday, May 7, I thought it would be useful to highlight what our authors will speak about at this year’s conference.

In alphabetical order:
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By J StuartMay 2, 2016
Brian Birch, Professor of Philosophy at Utah Valley University, will be teaching a course on the intellectual life of Mormonism this coming fall at the University of Utah. He has kindly made his syllabus and course readings available online, which many readers will want to read at their leisure.

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By J StuartApril 19, 2016
Helen Z. Papanikolas Award for
Best Student Paper on Utah Women’s History
Utah State History sponsors the Papanikolas Award to encourage new scholarly research in the area of Utah women’s history at colleges and universities. The award is named for Helen Z. Papanikolas (1917-2004), a former member of the Utah State Board of History who was most noted for her research and writing on Utah and ethnic history, but also wrote fiction, as well as women’s history.

Helen Z. Papanikolas
Submission Guidelines
- Papers must address some historical aspect of women’s lives in Utah.
- The author must be enrolled at a college or university.
- Papers need not be published.
- Papers should include original research that includes primary sources. The paper must be footnoted.
- Papers should not be more than 50 pages long.
- Papers must be received by May 15, 2016.
- Please call or E-mail us on May 16, 2016 if you have not heard directly from us that we received your paper.
The winner receives a monetary award as well as being honored at Utah State History’s annual meeting held September 30, 2016 in Salt Lake City.
Submit papers to:
Linda Thatcher
(801) 534-0911
thatcher0911@msn.com
By J StuartApril 3, 2016
While watching the LDS General Conference this weekend I consulted Instagram for inspiration regarding breakfast choices. While I searched the #ldconf hashtag, my mind turned to the ways that historians and cultural analyze Mormonism, both now and in the future. All photos are in the public domain from Instagram.com. If anyone would like their photo removed, please contact me immediately.
RITUAL
Much of Mormon ritual is found in their Sunday services and temple liturgy, including the Sacrament and the performance of temple ordinances. However, Sunday morning sessions of General Conference are affectionately known in some quarters as “Pajama Church.” Because there is no need to dress up, families celebrate by staying in their pajamas. Photos documenting this trend on Instagram often show entire families on the couch together in their pjs, spending time together. This informal ritual speaks volumes about Mormon families and the ways that Mormons envision worship experiences.
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By J StuartMarch 30, 2016
If you are in Utah this June after MHA, friends and colleagues of Richard Bushman are meeting to honor him and his work on Mormonism within the Academy. Dr. Bushman has been a friend, mentor, adviser, and role model to all those that study Mormonism in its religious and historic contexts. The schedule for the Colloquium can be found below.
You can see the schedule and original press release at the Maxwell Institute’s Website.
Mormonism in the Academy: Teaching, Scholarship, & Faith
A Scholars’ Colloquium in Honor of Richard L. Bushman
Brigham Young University
June 17-18, 2016

Dr. Richard Bushman
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By J StuartFebruary 27, 2016
BYU and the LDS Church History Library are hosting a conference this Thursday and Friday entitled, “Beyond Biography: Sources in Context for Mormon Women’s History.” The conference looks to be a major step forward for Mormon history by engaging Mormon Women’s history through a number of methodologies. There is no registration fee–if you’re in Utah you will want to be at the BYU or LDS Conference Center!
R. Marie Griffith and Julie B. Beck will deliver the plenary addresses.
JI-er presentations can be found below. You can view the rest of the schedule here.

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