National Coalition of Independent Scholars

2009 Membership Renewal!

It is time for membership renewal and we have a special offer for you this year! Please review the documents below for more information.

Online Membership Renewal
Membership Renewal Form
Notice to New Members
Member Web Page Offer

The National Coalition of Independent Scholars (NCIS)

NCIS was formed in January 1989 to facilitate the work of independent scholars. NCIS objectives are to:

• Bring independent scholars together to share scholarly interests and expertise
• Improve access to research libraries for independent scholars
• Offer independent scholars information and advice about grants and fellowships and about publishing.
• Encourage foundations and institutes to open competitions to independent scholars and to include them on review committees
• Hold conferences and workshops of interest to independent scholars and to the public
• Offer grants-in-aid to NCIS members and small grants to affiliates
• Serve as administrator for members applying for grants
• Encourage information exchange through publications and electronic communication
• Aid organizations of independent scholars by collecting and sharing organization experience and by publicizing their work
• Provide information for the creation of local organizations of independent scholars

President's Message, June 2009

Dear Members,

On June 5, the NCIS Board held its annual meeting. We met via teleconference and covered a remarkable amount of ground. A number of new initiatives are starting up as a result of the meeting, including the creation of disciplinary interest groups, led by Vice-President Susan Iwanisziw and renewed support for affiliate meetings, led by Affiliate Relations chair David Sonenschein. We are also trying out some new outreach programs, including a program to hold receptions for both NCIS members and nonmember independent scholars at the large conferences such as MLA and AHA. If you are attending your disciplinary conference this year and would be interested in hosting such a reception, the guidelines are listed below.

New Membership chair Neil Dukas (who will take over from Kati Lynn in the fall) is investigating additional member benefits and partnerships for NCIS, as well as ways to increase membership and awareness of NCIS. We are also looking into limited database access for our members and podcasting or otherwise offering online tutorials on publishing, researching, and other relevant topics.

As of today, we have five positions open on the Board. The current officers and Board members would love to have these filled by the end of the calendar year. Work on the Board generally entails a few hours of volunteer work a week, usually serving on a committee; and one Board meeting a year, held via teleconference. We have a number of committees for you to choose for your Board work. If you are interested in serving on the Board, please contact me (kendraprestonleonard@gmail.com) or Nominating chair Janet Wasserman (mae08ben02x@aol.com).

Don't forget that several grant and award deadlines are July 15. Contact Grants chair Shana Penn (shanapenn@gmail.com) with any questions; guidelines can be found at http://www.ncis.org/news.asp.

Best,
Kendra Leonard
NCIS President