From the SFRA Executive Committee
From the President
Hugh O’Connell
It’s hard to believe that I’m reaching the end of my three-year term as president and writing my last column for the SFRA Review. However, before signing off there’s still some last minute business to attend to. Up first, the SFRA has adopted its first official policy on AI usage for conference hosts and presenters (general statement on AI) as well as a set of values that explains the guiding principles (principles statement) that inform the general statement.
Speaking of conference hosts and presenters, as members are working on their proposals for “Into the Slipstream: Watering Futures,” SFRA 2026 at Michigan State University, I’m excited to officially announce that the Executive Committee has just accepted a conference hosting proposal for SFRA 2027. For the first time in its history, the SFRA is heading to East Asia – Seoul, South Korea to be exact. More details will be forthcoming shortly, but members should start planning for July 2027! It’s an incredibly exciting opportunity for us as an organization as we continue to extend our global outreach efforts.
Finally, speaking of the SFRA’s future, I’ll remind everyone to vote in the ongoing election for the next president and secretary. You can view the candidate statements here (you will need to sign-in to your account), and voting will close on Nov. 14th.
In closing, I would like to thank all of the members of the Executive Committee that I have had the privilege to serve with over the last three years (Gerry Canavan, Ida Yoshinaga, Tim Murphy, Chris Pak, Josh Pearson, Sarah Lohmann, Helane Androne, Kania Greer, and Gabriella Lee) and our web directors (Thomas Connolly and David Shipko). I’ve mentioned this before, but the SFRA is an entirely volunteer organization with no remuneration or monetary perks (everyone pays full membership rates and conference fees); we simply couldn’t exist without the commitment and time that these members have put in. The last three years have been a whirlwind of work and a great deal of travel: SFRA 2023 in Dresden with the GFF, 2024 in Tartu, and our return to North America with Rochester in 2025. Throughout this time, I’ve been lucky to not only work alongside an amazing Executive Committee, but also so many fabulous conference hosts at each of the universities (Moritz Ingwersen, Julia Gatermann, Jaak Tomberg, and Stefanie Dunning – alongside the many other volunteers). As I wrote in my initial candidate statement, coming into the ambit of the SFRA was the first time I ever felt at home in academia. I went from dreading conferences to looking forward to them, and I very much look forward to seeing everyone in East Lansing in 2026!
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