A S Book Review Coordinator Position Available

AS Book Review Coordinator Position Available
The Association for Asian Studies is seeking a PT Book Review Coordinator for the Journal of Asian Studies(http://www.asian-studies.org/publications/JAS.htm)  The coordinator will regularly communicate and work with AAS secretariat staff in Ann Arbor, JAS editorial staff at UC-Irvine, and individual area-specific book review editors to facilitate and oversee the book review process.  Primary functions will include:

1. Screening books submitted for review to the secretariat by publishers to determine "review worthiness" and to direct them to the most appropriate individual book review editor (BRE).

2. Improving coverage by regularly consulting with all parties mentioned above to determine which recently-published titles have not been submitted for review and should be solicited from publishers.

3. Monitoring status of reviews in progress through an online tracking system and direct communication with BREs.

Ideally the coordinator will be a trained Asianist scholar located in or near Ann Arbor, and be able to regularly visit the secretariat office in the Briarwood area to physically review submitted books as mentioned in #1 above.  The coordinator also should be familiar with the overall Asian Studies publishing scene, and have broad interests beyond their own academic specialization.  Good organizational and communication skills as well as a proactive approach will be essential in overseeing the review process, facilitating regular and effective communication between 14 BREs, the editorial office, and the secretariat, and in requesting books from publishers.

We anticipate the position will require approximately 8 hours or one day per week.  The coordinator will be expected to arrange regular face-to-face meetings with local BREs when possible, and with non-local BREs and editorial office staff via email, phone or Skype to discuss submitted books, identify significant works that have not been submitted for review, suggest possible review writers for individual titles, etc.  In addition to regular weekly communication, partial travel funding is provided to enable JAS editorial staff to meet and discuss policies and procedures at the AAS annual conference.

We are able to offer an annual stipend of $8,000 for the position paid on a quarterly basis.

Interested parties should respond via email to Michael Paschal at mpaschal@asian-studies.org with a letter elaborating on their interest in the position, and a short C.V.  We will begin to review applications immediately and hope to make an appointment prior to the upcoming annual conference in Chicago in late March.