ASR News and Announcements

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Volume 44, Preregistration Issue Spring 2010

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ATLANTA: THE PRELIMINARY PROGRAM

The 2010 Preliminary Program is now on our Web site: www.sociologyofreligion.com. If you lack Web access, hence need a paper copy, or you have Web access and would like a searchable Word file emailed to you, contact the Executive Office (bill4329@hotmail.com). It is an exciting program, and I hope you will attend. We have several sessions specifically directed toward students as well as outstanding thematic presentations featuring colleagues from around the world. Now it is time for you to respond by completing your preregistration materials. Preregistration entitles you to save money and is also of enormous assistance to us in making adequate plans for the meeting to serve everyone most effectively. Please note, in particular, the following:

× In the case of co-authored papers, the requirement of ASR membership for program participation is met by one of the authors being a member, but note that all co-authors attending the meeting must pay registration fees. It is much cheaper for non-member co-authors to pay these now, when the member rate is available—but note that we do not contact these people. You need to do that on their behalf.

× If you think you are on the program and don’t see your name on the preliminary pro-gram, contact the Executive Office (bill4329@hotmail.com) right away.

× The deadline for preregistration is June 29. In addition to mailing the form, you may fax it to 309-932-2282 (secure 24/7) or convert it to a pdf and send it to bill4329@ hotmail.com. You must be preregistered to be on the final program.

× Those not on the program are also encouraged to preregister. On-site registration fees will be higher for all categories of attendees.

× The New Attendees Welcoming Breakfast is available only by preregistration.

× Do not ask to be rescheduled. Any rescheduling involves from 6-11 other people being rescheduled. What if everybody did that?

Preregistration requirements will be strictly enforced, both in terms of program partici-pation and charges. Try to firm up your plans in the next few days, and send in your materials.

2010 Election Ballots

This packet also includes 2010 ballot materials. If you receive this, you are entitled to vote. Please follow the procedures outlined on the ballots to have your vote count! Even if you are not preregistering or paying dues, you will still need to use the preregistration form to address your return envelope. (You do not need to complete the form in this case, however.)

About the Hotel

We are based at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. This is an exceptionally well-situated hotel, including indoor connection to at least some of the ASA venues. Our rates are $169 single; 189 double; and 209 triple. The cut-off for reservations at this rate is 10 July. You would do well to make your reservations when you preregister. Our block runs from the night of 10 August through the night of the 16th. The hotel will not use paper forms, so you must work from this newsletter when making your reservation. Use this link to access our block/rates:

https://resweb.passkey.com/Resweb.do?mode=welcome_ei_new&eventID=2498813

This year we begin our sessions on a Friday, the 13th of August. Council’s first meeting is the evening of the 12th, followed by an opening reception, co-sponsored by Brill, at which we will celebrate this year’s "Religion and the Social Order" volume (18), Religion Crossing Boundaries: Transnational Religious and Social Dynamics in Africa and the New African Diaspora, edited by Afe Adogame and Jim Spickard. ASA Religion Section day is principally the 14th, but will carry over in other directions. (Our block holds through the ASA meetings, so if you have interests or commitments later there, you do not have to change hotels to participate in both meetings.)

If you have difficulty making reservations with the hotel before the deadline, please contact the Executive Office at once (309-932-2727; bill4329@hotmail.com). After the deadline, there’s not a lot we can do to help you. It is important that you stay at the ASR hotel. In 2004 and again last year we paid extra hotel charges due to lack of adequate hotel registration on the part of our meeting attendees. The 2004 case was particularly disheartening as that was at that point the largest meeting registration in our history! We cannot afford to do this indefinitely.

Registration and the Book Exhibit

Our registration desk will be open Thursday from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; Sunday from 8:00 to 1:00. We should be able to have the book exhibit open daily from noon Thursday, with pick up of purchases Saturday from 8:15 to 10:15, and the final sale from 10:15 ’til noon. Further details of these events will be included with your preregistration confirmation. To have a book included in the book exhibit, email the author/title, and complete publisher address information to the Executive Office by 1 June. At the same time, please note that books can be exhibited only if publishers send them to us—so a word from you directly to your publisher is very helpful. We also do solicit books/publishers on our own.

Audiovisual Equipment

ASR will try to provide overhead projectors on an as needed basis. We will be contacting presenters via email in mid-June to assess these needs. If you need an overhead and will be away from your email during June, alert us before you go! In general, overhead projectors will be provided only when they are necessary to present materials in a way that it is not reasonably possible to do through printed handouts. These are standard overhead projectors, using trans-parencies, not PowerPoint. The ASR does not provide other audiovisual equipment. You must either bring your own or make arrangements with the hotel’s a/v service provider (for which contact the ASR Executive Office). Also note that if you bring your own a/v equipment, you must bring everything you require, not least electrical cords to make your equipment work! We will make a limited number of up to eight-page (four sheets of paper) handouts for you, if need be. These will need to be sent to the Executive Office by 1 August (bill4329@hotmail.com).