The College of Humanities accepts invitation to join the MLA Strategic Partnership Network.
Students of the humanities know the ins and outs of MLA format, but the Modern Language Association (MLA) does much more than create style guides for academic writing. As the largest and oldest professional association in the humanities, the MLA hosts conventions, sustains a successful publishing program, and facilitates networks dedicated to the support of humanities programs nationwide. In an exciting move, the College of Humanities recently became a founding member of the new MLA Strategic Partnership Network—cementing BYU’s status as a respected university committed to the work of the humanities.
Humanities Center Director Rex Nielson says, “In a time of decreased support for the humanities, this signals BYU’s increased support for the humanities.” Individual faculty members have joined the MLA in previous years, but the affiliation with the Strategic Partnership Network signifies that BYU is now connected to the MLA at an institutional level. Faculty in the College of Humanities will enjoy unique opportunities and resources that the network provides to its participants, including discounts on MLA memberships, discounts on registration for the MLA Annual Convention, access to useful databases and directories, and more.
The new relationship between BYU and the MLA originated in part from a visit by Paula Krebs, executive director of the MLA, who came to campus earlier this year (spring 2023) to present about careers in the humanities. Krebs’ message to the BYU community echoed the MLA’s vision to “strengthen the study and teaching of language and literature.”
Participation in the Strategic Partnership Network fulfills one of BYU’s strategic objectives, which aims to enhance the university's position as a leader in languages and other areas that are central to the Church’s purposes. Nielson sums up the significance of the collaboration: “This partnership with the MLA both symbolizes BYU’s established excellence in the study of language and literature while providing our faculty and students with new resources to continue to their work.”
To learn more about the purpose of the MLA, click here.
For information about the upcoming 2024 MLA Annual Convention, click here.