1. Call for Papers Out
2. Conference Proposal Submission
3. Child Care Input Solicited
4. Shunda Alston Joins SPSA Staff
5. More from the SPSA Archives
6. Last Call for 2005 Membership

1. Call for Papers Out
The Call for Papers for next January’s meeting in New Orleans has gone out. The conference will be held January 5-7, 2006 at the Hotel Intercontinental. The deadline for submitting your paper or panel proposal is June 1st. Decisions should be forthcoming by August 15th. Direct follow-up inquiries to the SPSA staff at:
proposals@spsa.net.

2. Conference Proposal Submission
The SPSA uses a centralized proposal review process with electronic submissions. Your completed electronic submission form will come to the Program Chair and Conference Manager’s attention and will be forwarded to the appropriate track chair(s). Please do not direct your proposal to individual Program Committee members; this will only slow down the process. Follow this link to submit a proposal:
http://www.spsa.net/.

3. Child Care Input Solicited
If you would be interested in having us provide childcare at the conference in January 2006, please send an e-mail stating your interest, the number and ages of your children, and the amount that you would deem reasonable as the family’s share of the costs. Direct you input to the Conference Manager:
kmccurdy@georgiasouthern.edu.
Just type “Child Care” on the subject line.

4. Shunda Alston Joins SPSA Staff
Ms. Shunda (pronounced Shawn-da) Alston has joined the SPSA Staff as the Executive Director’s Administrative Assistant. Shunda is a graphic artist with considerable experience in formatting and layout. She has also worked as the Administrative Assistant to the Manager of a Snelling Personnel Services office. Ms. Dale Jacoby is moving to an SPSA contractor position where she will work on Member Services.

5. More from the SPSA Archives
Participation at the annual conference is increasing as a result of panel participation.

During the 1990s, panel growth faltered for several years. But meetings then bounced back and ended the decade with around 140 panels. Thus far during the 2000s, the number of panels has already grown dramatically (+64 or +46%) topping 200 for the first time in 2005. Taken as a whole, the data set suggests that we may be experiencing linear growth in the size of the annual program.

6. Last Call for 2005 Membership
Your involvement the association is important! If you were not at the conference in January or if you have not responded to the reminder sent out by Blackwell Publishing, please renew your SPSA membership for calendar 2005. You can renew by going to the Blackwell website below and following the easy-to-understand instructions found there:
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/memb.asp?ref=0022-3816.
As we process your registration for the next meeting, we will be asking for your 2006 dues. You do not want to have to double-up on payments.