Hello, Coalition!
Thank you all so much for your patience as we navigate the fallout of NCTE’s decision to de-charter Cs. As you are likely already aware, we have historically held our annual Advisory Board meeting and an event with mentoring tables and featured speakers on the Wednesday evening before Cs at their location. You may not know that the Coalition grew from Cs—our intrepid foremothers came together because they felt they needed a space of their own that Cs was not providing. We have never been affiliated with Cs or NCTE financially or in other way. We are an entirely separate, independent non-profit organization. That said, the recent actions of NCTE and its seismic effects on our field are concerning and will affect our event at this year’s final Conference on College Composition and Communication in April.
CFSHRC Executive board members attended the Cs leadership town hall meeting on October 9, and our president, vice president, and immediate past president met with Shane Wood of transition team to gather information. The CFSHRC Executive Board met twice to discuss next steps, taking the time to look over our shared values, and we have decided that to best serve our members, we will offer a virtual Wednesday evening event this year in lieu of our in-person gathering at Cs. We did not come to this decision easily. Ultimately, we determined that—considering our shared values of inclusivity & multivocality, anti-racism & equity, inquiry & methodology, transparency, mentorship, and accountability & responsiveness—gathering online aligns with our values, allowing our event to be accessible for participants who travel to Wisconsin and those who do not. I plan to reach out to Cs to withdraw our event from the program.
On Wednesday, April 14, 6-8pm Eastern, the Coalition will host a free Zoom-based event that will continue our fabulous mentoring tables with online “mentoring rooms” where we can meet people and share ideas. We plan to hold a breakout room for reminiscing about Cs and another to discuss plans moving forward! Our proposal for this year’s Cs event was to be themed “Designing Writing Futures”—who knew how timely this would be? Keep an eye out for invitations as April approaches.
As president and recent host of our Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference, I firmly believe that it is crucial to our scholarly community to gather in person. I encourage you to put together a proposal to present at our next Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference, “Feminist Rhetorics of Resistance,” that will be held at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, from August 5-7, 2027. Proposals are due shortly—November 1, 2026. Please submit your proposal here!
I hope that our decision reflects our respect and gratitude for all who worked hard to plan the conference. We have treasured our Wednesday night events and look forward to future opportunities to gather. In the meantime, I’m planning to see you all in Minnesota! The conference team is already planning a fantastic event!
Best wishes to you all, my friends,
Cristy