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Construction Trade Shows & Conferences 2021-2022Construction Trade Shows & Conferences 2021-2022

The construction industry is considered to be one of the leading providers in infrastructure development that drives the economy forward through the many challenges brought about by the global pandemic. Despite the logistical limits and the required adjustment to health protocols enforced in the interest of public safety, the organizers of these events have found ways around the issue of attendance and will still push through in the interest of celebrating and highlighting the many achievements and developments in the construction industry. 

The following events are on the lineup for the remaining months of 2021:

  • The Annual Associated General Contractors of America Convention will take place around Fall 2021; the final date is still up for discussion. It will be held at the Marriott World Center in Orlando, Florida. The AGC annual convention showcases the various insights from leaders in the industry on the many issues that come up in day-to-day operations. It also aims to pave the way for new learning experiences for contractors all over the nation. From job site safety and risk management to the many advancements in project management solutions, the AGC showcases the brightest minds from across the country to contribute to the knowledge pool for contractors, allowing them to collaborate and meet the many challenges of the industry.

Related: American Studies Association Annual Meeting

  • The International Construction & Utility Equipment Expo 2021 will be held at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Kentucky from September 28 to 30, 2021. The ICUEE highlights the emerging technologies, innovative developments, and trends in the utilities industry.
  • Construct 2021 is still being finalized in terms of location and final date but is estimated to be held in September 2021. Construct is an exhibition and educational program by the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) Industry that aims to bring together multiple disciplines in order to collaborate towards a better overall work environment. It aims to discuss industry trends, upcoming technology, and best practices.
  • The 2021 Greenbuild International Conference & Expo is expected to commence in November 2021, the largest annual event dedicated to environmentally-conscious professionals from all over the world to share and contribute to the growing knowledge of improving sustainability, resilience, and quality of our constructed structures. It is a highly anticipated event for many contractor groups such as the prestigious CCA Concrete Contractors Austin due to the valuable insights on highly efficient, cost-saving, and environmentally-friendly approaches to construction and building solutions.
  • The Construction Super Conference is scheduled for December 6-8 2021 and will be held at JW Marriott Bonnet Creek in Orlando, Florida. After 35 annual meetings, it is the foremost conference dedicated to discussing the many challenges facing the legal, economic, and business side of the construction industry. Attendees can learn from the insights and network of the many industry leaders and experts in attendance as well as avail of the leading products and services being showcased by the many sponsors.

There are many such annual conferences meant to inspire innovation and collaboration in the many members of the construction industry, with the list growing steadily as organizations and companies come together. These events showcase the greatest minds and cutting-edge technologies that shape the industry as we know it today and work towards a better tomorrow.

American Studies Association Annual MeetingAmerican Studies Association Annual Meeting

Founded in 1951 during the Cold War, the American Studies Association (ASA) is the largest and oldest association devoted to American studies. It has regional chapters all over the country. The ASA was founded to reflect and challenge reigning ideas regarding American exceptionalism. 

In 1967, it held its first national convention in Kansas City, Missouri. The move toward democratization of universities in the US and social movements led to the ASA highly emphasizing studies on race, gender, class, and empire. The ASA adopted American Quarterly a year after it was founded, a publication focused primarily on studies in the culture of the United States with an emphasis on globalism and utilizes an interdisciplinary approach.

Each year the American Studies Association holds an annual meeting. In 2013 the meeting was held Baylor University and the event was highlighted by a number of conferences and film viewings such as “The Day Kennedy Died.” to commemorate the 50 years since the tragic assassination of President John F. Kennedy; creative writing readings by Elizabeth Bates, Cassy Burleson, Kathleen Hudson, Donna M. Johnson, ​​Jenuine Poetess, June Zaner, and Richard M. Zaner; “Faulkner’s Bear: Squirrels, Timber and the Ecological Self” by Ken Hada, East Central University Department of English & Languages; and “Poe and the Blackwood’s Tale” by Brooke H. Smith, San Antonio I.S.D., both moderated by Mia Moody-Ramirez.

With the effects of a worldwide pandemic still heavy on us, the 2021 Annual American Studies Association conference will be held via a hybrid of face-to-face and virtual programs. The first week will be dedicated to an in-person convention to be held in San Juan, Puerto Rico on October 7-10, 2021. The following week will be reserved for a 100% virtual conference and in line with this, book exhibits will be held virtually as well. These changes were implemented to account for an adjustment to the many changing circumstances brought about by the global pandemic of 2020. 

The theme for this year’s conference is “Creativity within Revolt,” which can be described as a condition in which those who refuse to or are unable to tolerate the normalization of global and domestic productions of both state and extra-state violence. It expresses a will toward a collective consciousness that intends to displace, challenge, and hopefully abolish relations of dominance that negatively impact not just our lives but the lives of those we share this world with. 

Revolt can be considered a historical imperative carried out as a creative and dynamic act by communities who have been under conditions of duress, something inherited by most but embraced only by a few. Building on the momentum of the 2019 annual meeting theme “Build As We Fight”, the aim of this year’s theme is to encourage a critical conceptualization of both “revolt” and “creativity.” As such, the American Studies Association calls on its vastly diverse, multicultural, interdisciplinary community to consider forms of participation that involve creative scholars, practitioners, and artists from as many sociopolitical contexts and places as possible. These include those who have been oppressed, incarcerated, or exiled, community activists, those working under conditions of occupation or apartheid, social movement veterans, and survivors of all kinds. 

The Association seeks workshops, panels, and experimental forms of collective engagement and creativity that demonstrate commitment to universal accessibility and inclusivity.

The ASA hopes that this will all set the stage for the 2022 Annual Meeting which, if circumstances permit, will be held from November 3 to 6 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

American Studies Association of Texas at the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association ConferenceAmerican Studies Association of Texas at the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association Conference

The Southwest Popular/American Culture Association held its 37th Annual Conference last February 10-13, 2016 in Albuquerque, New Mexico’s Hyatt Regency Hotel and Conference Center. The SWPACA aims to promote non-traditional and innovative academic movements in social sciences and the humanities in a way that celebrates America’s cultural heritage, increases awareness of and improving the public perception of these cultural traditions and diverse populations. 

The organization works towards this mission with a professional network of writers, scholars, and anyone who may be interested in popular or American culture through the annual academic conferences and “Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular culture and Pedagogy,” SWPACA’s open-source, peer-reviewed academic journal. 

The South West Popular American Culture Association is committed to providing support for up-and-coming academics in the fields related to American culture studies through professional development opportunities, travel grants, and paper awards among others. 

The American Studies Association of Texas participated this year with a delegation composed of Baylor University students from various disciplines. Presentations and conferences were considered enlightening and educational to say the least. Some conferences of note include “From Concept to Book with Cynthia Miller and Stephen Ryan,” “The Works of Joss Whedon—Screening of “Once More with Feeling,” and “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog Singalong,” “Grateful Dead 3: Roundtable: The Grateful Dead, Third Wave Feminism, and Changing Cultural Hegemony,” and “Fires Tall and Bright”: Philosophical Perspectives on the Grateful Dead,” among the many others on the itinerary.

Baylor University’s American Studies Department was represented by Drs. Cassey Burleson and Mia Moody-Ramirez at the conference and presented their respective works. Burleson presented “Apples Don’t Fall Far from the Tree: Tracing the Trail to ‘Her Texas: Story, Image, Poem & Song” while Moody-Ramirez presented “Discourse Analysis of the Top Rachel Dolezal Internet Memes.” They describe their experience to be educational and insightful. Moody-Ramirez herself said that “Attending the conference was a great experience for me, I hope to return each year”.

The conference also awarded the many submissions to their various categories. Here is a list of winners of the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association Graduate Awards 2016

  • Samantha Vertosick’s “Beyond the Veil”: The Narrative Functions of Death in the Harry Potter Series” for the Science Fiction and Fantasy category, awarded by  Erin Giannini
  • Jennifer Fierke’s “Jennifer Phang’s Advantageous: Equipment for the Disembodied” for Identities & Cultures category awarded by Margaret Vaughan and Jack Hutchins
  • Julia Moeseneder’s ““Urbanity in the Post-Apocalypse”: The Production of Space in AMC’s The Walking Dead” for the Film, Television, Music, & Visual Media category, awarded by Debbie Olson and Chuck Hamilton
  • John Lewis’ “Biblical Allusions and Individual Theologies in McCarthy’s The Road” for the Languages & Literatures category, awarded by David Oberhelman and Helen McCourt
  • Stephanie Redekop‘s ““the madman is holy”: Madness and Spirituality in Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl”“ for the Historic & Contemporary Cultures category, awarded by Stacy Rusnak, Janet Croft, and Jennifer Jenkins

The three-day conference met with much success and expanded the professional networks of the various attendees as well as provided each person with insights and inspiration in the many disciplines accommodated by the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association Conference.

2021 JASAT Submission Guidelines2021 JASAT Submission Guidelines

Founded in 1956, the American Studies Association of Texas is the regional association of the national American Studies Association for the Texas area. It aims to promote studies in a vast number of disciplines and subjects concerned with American studies. 

Every year, the American Studies Association of Texas holds a conference in which the Journal of The American Studies Association of Texas or the JASAT is published and covers a great number of topics. Membership is open to anyone residing within the United States of America and not just to those near Texas.

The Journal of The American Studies Association of Texas is currently accepting submissions for its next publication. If you are interested in having your work included in this year’s run, please be guided accordingly by the following details.

Submission Requirements

You will be required to submit at least three (3) documents:

The first is a short professional sketch that includes your job title and university affiliation. This document must not exceed 100 words.

A title page that includes all necessary contact information such as phone number, email address, residential address, and the like.

Finally, a manuscript that includes only the title of the submission. The journal adheres to a blind review process meaning that all articles will be received by the reviewers without knowledge of the author’s name. If applicable, please provide documentation of your bibliography.

Article Specifics

The Journal of American Studies Association of Texas accepts both essays or articles and creative works as submissions.

  • Essays and articles must explore a theme relevant to American Studies and be written in comprehensive US English in the third person with an active voice, in a style accessible to an audience with interdisciplinary inclinations. 
    • The piece must maintain a tone appropriate for scholarly audiences and refrain from language or themes that may be deemed inflammatory or discriminatory. 
    • For formatting, the submission must be 15-20 pages, double spaced in Times New Roman font, size 12. 
    • Please Include all pertinent Bibliographic information. Note that this does not count toward your 15-page minimum. Text that does not meet the 15-page minimum will be considered underdeveloped and consequently rejected.
  • Creative works such as fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry will be considered for entry as long as they explore American Studies-related themes.
    • Fiction and creative non-fiction works must be 10-15 pages. This may need editing to account for space.
    • Poetry up to 5 pages maximum. Multiple poems are allowed as long as they are within the 5 pages allotted.

For both types of entry, the Journal of American Studies Association of Texas strictly adheres to the American Psychological Association (APA) style guide.

How to Submit

Please ensure that all requested documents follow the above guidelines. All submissions to the Journal of American Studies Association of Texas must not be previously published or submitted for publication while under review by the JASAT staff.

Documents must be created in MS Word format and sent as one attachment to the appropriate editor:

For Creative Works and Artwork: Cassy_Burleson@baylor.edu

For non-fiction works: Mia_Moody@baylor.edu

You will receive a notification that your submission was received within 72 hours. If your submission is accepted for a future issue or the current year’s publication, you will be notified within 60 days of the review or no later than May 31st of the submission year.