By Tim Wallace
[tim_wallace@ncsu.edu]
North Carolina State University

Tim Wallace

As I reported in my last column the SfAA Executive Board is undertaking a significant review of the bylaws for our Society. The President in her column this issue asks you to participate in helping the Executive Board know what your opinions are regarding the proposed changes. I also urge you to come to the Denver Business meeting and make your ideas known.

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By Tim Wallace
[tmwallace@mindspring.com]

Tim Wallace

The mad rush to the end of the year is on. I find that November is a month that passes by so quickly that it is a blur, and then suddenly Christmas Eve is here and I wonder how am I going to buy my Christmas presents in time. Well, this year Christmas came early and my present for me and that of a lot of my friends, relatives and colleagues was the re-election of President Barack Obama. Not everyone may agree that November 6 was a good day for their political party, but it was a good day for the democratic process  and for the sciences in general and for the social sciences in particular.  Not only will issues such as climate change, energy, the environment, genomics, and education,  medicine continue to receive vital funding and a place in the Obama administration’s priorities, but also the social sciences should be in a better position than they would have been under a new Republican administration. The New York Times reports today (November 12, 2012) that a team of unpaid social scientists, including psychologists and behavioral economists, informally called the “consortium of behavioral scientists” (COBS), met several times in the last year to provide very unique recommendations on how to locate voters sympathetic to President Obama’s message and get them to the polls. They also developed strategies how to respond effectively to ads that portrayed President Obama negatively.  In sum, the recent presidential election campaign reminds me of how important it is to make your views known, locate supporters and participate in the democratic process. Furthermore, as social scientists we have special skills that can serve us well in the public policy arena.

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By Tim Wallace
[tim_wallace@ncsu.edu]
North Carolina State University

Tim Wallace

For those of us in an academic setting August is a crazy time. Shifting from summer’s pace to that of the fall is confounding as we reflect sweetly on what has been, while somewhat anxiously anticipating the excitement of what is to come. I am never ready to give up the joys of summer, and never fully prepared for the fall. But, no matter, change is afoot signaled by the subtle changes in the weather. Cooler days help me adjust to the new schedule and the new challenges. In this issue there are several articles commenting on the challenges of experiences past and wonderment about changes to come. Carla Pezzia’s piece challenges us to think about “rocking the boat” of the SfAA Code of Ethics. Is it time to do so? She argues that it is past time. Sally Robinson’s memoir of her life as an applied anthropologist recounts her challenges as a new graduate student in a heady time at the University of Chicago in the 1950’s as she encountered some of the best known members of that generation of anthropologists. The interview with the late Gil Kushner tells of that exciting time when the University of South Florida embarked on the first applied anthropology MA degree program in the country.  John Fox embarked on a new journey when his son asked him a simple question about playing ball leading him to write a fascinating new book, as described in the interview with Brian McKenna. And, our President, Merrill Eisenberg, tells us of the upcoming 75^th birthday of SfAA and the “Beyond 75” initiative to find ways to challenge us to get even better. So, maybe I should see the Fall mainly as a new chapter in a book that I hope has lots more chapters.

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By Tim Wallace
[tmwallace237@gmail.com]
North Carolina State University

Tim Wallace

For many of our colleagues in academia open access seems like a good idea now that universities across the country are taking big budget hits and many faculty are getting pay cuts. But, can this idea really be workable? Judith Freidenberg, the Chair of the SfAA Publications Committee, laid out some of the issues that are in play in a piece earlier in this issue of SfAA News. In my opinion, however, we had better carefully examine what we want before we make our wish. It is possible, instead, that open access is like the proverbial Trojan Horse or a bitter fruit, because from the outside it looks like a great idea, but upon closer examination there are lots of possibilities that the end result will have an undesirable outcome.

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By Tim Wallace
[tmwallace237@gmail.com]
NC State University

Tim Wallace

One of the best things about the SfAA meetings is the awards ceremony, at least in my opinion. First I am amazed at all of the wonderful, incredible things that the Malinowski and Sol Tax Award winners have done. These two recognize individuals who have had stellar careers and who have given their all to applied anthropology. The Mead Award recognizes outstanding achievement by an early career scholar. The Peter K. New Award rewards a promising graduate student for their outstanding research and/or applied work. The several other student awards, Del Jones, Bea Medicine, Gil Kushner, Valene Smith, Edward H. and Rosamond B. Spicer, and the Student Endowed Awards all recognize successful achievements by both graduate and undergraduate students. You can view all the past winners of these awards by going to the SfAA website [www.sfaa.net/awards.html].

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