Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America

Guidelines for Special Interest Groups
February 2006

Nature and Purpose of Special Interest Groups

In its 8 April 2005 letter to members (Attachment #1), the Executive Committee of the Association for Bahá’í Studies announced efforts to further develop Special Interest Groups, in order to increase interchange and collaboration amongst its members. Special Interest Groups are agencies of the Association, which itself is an agency of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada. Both the Association and its Special Interest Groups are structured as membership organisations with appointed administrators. Both exist to “stimulate scholarly study of the Faith and its teachings, to promote a sound understanding of the Cause in academic circles and to demonstrate its relevance to the study of social issues.”[1] Special Interest Groups can make a particular contribution to the Association’s distinct role in developing and presenting accurate information on the Faith’s teachings and history in university courses and other scholarly venues and creating respectful and encouraging environments for interchange amongst a diverse range of scholars. This range includes both “scholars whose principal interest is in theological issues as well as those scholars whose interests lie in relating the insights provided by the Bahá'í teachings to contemporary thought in the arts and sciences.”[2]

In order to serve these purposes, and in light of the ABS Vision Statement (Attachment #2), the specific goals of the Special Interest Group system within the Association are the following:

1. to promote networking among ABS members, based on their interests, fields and professions;
2. to mentor students and young people, in their studies and early professional life;
3. to encourage, inspire and facilitate individual and collaborative Bahá’í scholarship; and
4. to support, as appropriate, members’ “outward looking orientation” within their respective fields and professions, with particular emphasis on universities.

Special Interest Groups on a diverse array of subjects will develop at different rates, establish different patterns of activity and organize themselves in different ways, as suited to their particular field and the interests of their members. This diversity is expected, appreciated, and valued. Efforts to develop Special Interest Groups should be founded on the principles of Bahá’í consultation and a continual process of learning through action and reflection.

Practical Matters.

While the success of a SIG will depend primarily on the initiative and efforts of its coordinator and members, the ABS Executive Committee will make every effort to provide the infrastructure and the support needed, on a timely basis, to assist in SIG development. Each member of the Committee has been asked to serve as liaison to one or more SIGs, and a SIG coordinator should feel welcome to contact the liaison or the ABS Office Manager, Parvin Rowhani, to discuss any question that may arise. The current guidelines for SIG operations are as follows:

• SIGs will use standard names only, identifying themselves as a Special Interest Group on [topic] of the Association for Bahá’í Studies.
• No fees will be charged for forming or joining a SIG but SIG members must be members of the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America. They need not be Bahá’ís.
• SIG activities should generally be self-supporting but the Executive Committee will consider requests for small amounts of funding for a specific purpose.
• SIGs may not solicit funds or conduct fundraising activities without specific approval of the EC.
• SIGs may develop their own Web site, either as a page on the Association’s site or a separate site linked both to and from the ABS site. Some technical support for this will be available.
• Any material a SIG intends for publication, including in a newsletter or on a Web site, must be submitted in advance to the SIG’s liaison on the Executive Committee, in order to uphold the standards of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada for material published by its agencies.

2006 Annual Conference

Participation in organizing sessions at the Association’s annual conference is one important avenue by which Special Interest Groups can advance their purposes. In past years, one day was scheduled for their activities. This year, the conference will experiment with another model, familiar to those accustomed to participating in scholarly and academic conferences. Specifically, the main conference will take place on all days (Thursday morning, August 10, through Sunday noon, August 13) and Special Interest Group presentations will be integrated into sequences within the conference program. The transition this year to this new model for organizing the conference may be a rather bumpy ride at times, but the overall goals are to:

1. increase the visibility and contribution of the Special Interest Groups in the whole conference,
2. ensure that topics, especially overlapping topics, are identified and scheduled in the most effective manner,
3. build into the conference planning process a method for peer review, support and encouragement for individuals proposing presentations,
4. thereby increase the potential andlikelihood that presenters might continue to develop work presented at theconference, publishing it and/or presenting it in other venues, and
5. develop the feel and sense that the conference, rather than just an event, is part of an ongoing process of collaborative support for work in progress in Bahá’í scholarship.

    

In order to ensure as smooth a process of coordination as possible, all proposals will be submitted through one central online submission form and will be routed to Special Interest Group coordinators electronically. This will allow all of the information to be gathered into a central database so that information can then be easily sorted and shared throughout the conference organizing process. However, the role of the coordinators in generating proposals is also critical. They may issue a SIG call for proposals if they wish, approach and encourage individuals to submit proposals, work with them in developing or refining proposals, put together proposals for panels or group presentations in various formats, etc., all of which will then be submitted via the online submission form on the ABS Web site.

SIG coordinators will also then assist the programme chair with the review of topical submissions and, following the review and final selection of presentations, contribute to overall scheduling to help coordinate the many crossover topics. It is understood that the many Special Interest Groups are at different stages in their development and that the number and length of conference sessions that they will be involved in planning will vary. In addition to main conference sessions, the consultative business/networking meetings of the Special Interest Groups can be scheduled at any time during the conference breakout sessions, instead of being restricted to the first day. The conference task force may be able to arrange for extra venues for special meetings during mealtimes, and other unscheduled hours. 

Role of Special Interest Group Coordinators

            The successful development of a SIG will depend on having one or more coordinators who can, at a minimum, carry out the following tasks:

1. set up and maintain at least a basic level of communications with and among SIG members throughout the year,
2. organise a consultative business/networking meeting for the SIG at the annual conference and send a brief report of the meeting to the liaison,
3. assist the programme chair of the annual conference with the review of submissions, either as a reviewer or by recommending a reviewer for the Executive Committee’s approval,
4. maintain complete confidentiality regarding membership lists, conference submission review, and communications regarding members and membership, and
5. ensure that the Executive Committee is kept apprised of SIG activities on a regular basis, including forwarding to the liaison or the ABS Office any plans for SIG development.

Beyond these basic responsibilities, the opportunities for a SIG coordinator to stimulate the development of Bahá’í scholarship in a given field of study is limited only by his or her time and imagination. The Executive Committee is deeply grateful to those who will serve in this essential capacity.

Attachment #1

Association for Bahá’í Studies
34 Copernicus Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 7K4
Tel: (613) 233-1903   Fax: (613) 233-3644
Email: abs-na@bahai-studies.ca Website: www.bahai-studies.ca

To: All Members of the Association for Bahá'í Studies                                         April 8, 2005

Re:  Special Interest Groups

Dear Friends,

In an effort to foster a greater degree of interchange and collaboration among members of the Association for Bahá'í Studies, the Executive Committee of ABS-North America is pleased to announce an initiative designed to strengthen and diversify the Special Interest Group system. Our hope is to multiply the opportunities afforded to ABS members to network, mentor, learn, study, act and serve together. Over the long-term, advancing the mission of the Association will be tied to creating communities of research and practice that can expand capacity and generate continuity of exchange and learning in many fields.

At present, Special Interest Groups are pursuing valuable objectives, but with a few exceptions most SIGs have not developed organizational structures or lines of communication that are sustained between annual ABS conferences. A more robust SIG system providing ongoing mechanisms for networking and knowledge-sharing is vital. For this reason, the Executive Committee is taking steps to provide the necessary support and infrastructure that will allow SIGs to develop and flourish.

Choose 3 SIGs. To impart momentum to this process, the Association is inviting members to choose up to three Special Interest Groups that they would like to join. There is no cost associated with this beyond regular ABS membership dues, and members may change their preferences at any time. An expanded list of SIGs is attached. We are proposing new SIGs based on interest in particular subjects expressed at previous conferences and trends of activity in the Bahá'í community, and others may be suggested. Although some of the SIGs address theme areas that are the focus of other Bahá'í organizations and events, the intent of these SIGs is to complement rather than replicate other efforts. A principal function of the SIGs is to offer an arena for discourse about theory and practice that will elaborate and amplify Bahá'í perspectives across various disciplines. In short, SIGs are vehicles for generating, refining and diffusing knowledge.

We would ask that the enclosed form specifying your SIG preferences be returned to ABS by May 15, 2005. The Executive Committee also welcomes offers of service from individuals who would be interested in coordinating a particular Special Interest Group.

The Vision. The emergence of a vibrant SIG system will depend ultimately not on the infrastructure that the Executive Committee can provide but on individuals taking the initiative to reach out to each other, organize, encourage each other, and in sustainable ways gradually create networks and build up capacity. We are confident that more varied and complex lines of inquiry and interaction will evolve within each SIG over time. For example, beyond facilitating the creation of SIG email lists and electronic archives, the Association will endeavor, where conditions are propitious, to facilitate SIG gatherings outside the annual ABS conference. The Executive Committee will also be alert to opportunities where the energy and expertise of particular SIGs could be tapped so as to assist ABS in its academic outreach work or to support Bahá'í institutions with particular projects or representational activity. In addition, we anticipate that the SIGs will come to play a more integral role in ABS conferences and will become a source of original research for the Journal of Bahá'í Studies.

We trust that this initiative will stimulate a greater intensity of activity in correlating Bahá'í teachings to the crises of contemporary life, thereby contributing to the evolution of a “new scholarly paradigm.”

With loving Bahá'í greetings,
Executive Committee
Association for Bahá'í Studies-North America

Special Interest Groups Selection Form

From the list below please indicate up to three different Special Interest Groups that you would like to join. If you are already active in a SIG and wish to continue to be involved, please check that group here. If you feel you can assist in coordinating the activities of a SIG, please indicate what level of commitment and experience you could offer on the back of this form. The Executive Committee will select coordinators to serve for an initial two-year term, beginning after the 2005 conference in the case of existing SIGs. The number of coordinators for each SIG can vary from one to a team.

Please provide full contact information below and return this form to the ABS address above.  Alternatively, you may email your contact information and SIG preferences to us at: abs-na@bahai-studies.ca

Existing Special Interest Groups

• Arts
• Bahá’í Language Educators
• Bioethics and Health Sciences
• Communication
• Conflict Resolution
• Ecology and Sustainable Development
• Education
• Indigenous Studies
• International Affairs
• Philosophy
• Science and Religion
• The Study of Religion
  

New or Reactivated Special Interest Groups

•  Architecture and the Built Environment
•  Bahá’í History and Biography
•  Business, Ethics and Management Science
•  Information Technology and Society
•  Law and Governance
•  Marriage and Family
•  Psychology
•  Race Unity and Intercultural Issues
•  Women and Gender Studies
• Other____________________________

Name____________________________________________

Address___________________________________________

Telephone_________________________________________

Email____________________________________________

Attachment #2

Vision Statement

Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America

The Association for Baha’i Studies is a vibrant, diverse, Covenant-centered, service-oriented organization which has become synonymous with inclusiveness, openness and creativity in its fostering of new paradigms of Baha’i scholarship in a multitude of disciplines and areas of inquiry. It assists the Baha’is of North America to view themselves as a community of learning and mutual encouragement for advancing Baha’i scholarship, a scholarship which is coming to be seen, within and outside of the Baha’i community, as providing fresh ideas and new perspectives or solutions to contemporary issues. The Association’s primary but non-exclusive focus is on Baha’i scholarship in academic contexts.

The Association is known for the excellence and diversity of its publications and for the spiritual atmosphere, intellectual inspiration, and integration of the arts in its annual conferences and other activities. Professional organizations, academic departments, NGOs, policy makers and other specialized groups increasingly collaborate with the Association in presenting seminars and symposia. On-going courses on the Baha’i Faith are offered at North American universities, Campus Associations for Baha’i Studies are flourishing across Canada, and area committees of the Association are thriving in many regions of the United States. Through systematic networking that ensures Baha’i undergraduates, graduate students and young professionals ample opportunity to connect with others in their field, countless students and other young members are mentored under the care of the Association. Aboriginal Baha’is, encouraged by the Association in their pursuit of Baha’i scholarship in order to develop their distinctive contributions to the creation of a spiritual civilization, have become regular participants in Association activities. In addition to its other roles, the Association is viewed by the National Spiritual Assemblies of Alaska, Canada and the United States as an effective resource in connection with their own community development and external affairs work.

Revised March 2004