Purpose of the Forum: To provide an opportunity for graduate students preparing dissertations in early American history to discuss their projects with peers and with the Society’s membership of academics and other history professionals.

Format: The event is held at the Society’s Beacon Hill townhouse, with welcoming coffee and lunch provided. Nine students present and receive comments during the course of the day (15-minute presentation per student), which will be capped by a keynote address from moderator Joyce Appleby, emerita professor of history at the University of California, Los Angeles.

How to Submit Your Proposal: The proposal, not to exceed five double-spaced pages, should give a vivid sense of the dissertation project and then highlight a particular dilemma—methodological, conceptual, source-based, etc.—encountered in the course of research or writing. We ask that you outline a problem so that the forum’s audience may be focused in providing constructive advice. Preference will be given to New England topics, but the committee will attempt to achieve a balance in subjects covered.

Monies are available for students’ travel and lodging. Successful candidates will be asked to submit specific requests for funding.