The Nominating Committee of the Society for the History of the Early American Republic (SHEAR) is responsible for presenting a ballot of new officers (President-elect, Advisory Council, and Nominations Committee) for election by the Society’s membership. Though the 2020 election for SHEAR officers was postponed due to Covid-19, the Advisory Council has called for a new election this fall. All members of the Society who are in good standing, including long-standing members and those new to SHEAR, are eligible for nomination. Self-nominations are welcome. The Nominating Committee is especially interested in nominations of scholars from underrepresented backgrounds and scholars with a demonstrated commitment to equity and inclusion.  Self-nominees should send a CV and paragraph-long (no more than 500 words) statement of interest no later than August 8, 2020, to the Nominating Committee Co-Chairs, Emily Conroy-Krutz and Gautham Rao at SHEARnominating@gmail.com  The Co-Chairs will request a CV and statement of purpose from those nominated by others.

The following descriptions of the duties of the President, Advisory Council, and Nominating Committee are taken from the SHEAR constitution:

President

1. Presiding over the meetings of the Advisory Council and general meetings of the Society, setting the agendas for these meetings, and ensuring the implementation of these bodies’ decisions.
2. Delivering a presidential address at the annual meeting that concludes their term.
3. Overseeing with the Advisory Council an annual evaluation of the offices of Executive Coordinator, Journal Editor, and Conference Coordinator. Such annual evaluations will be written, at least one paragraph in length, and presented to those who are evaluated to provide opportunity for response.
4. Overseeing the Society’s processes for elections and for amending its Constitution and Bylaws.
5. Serving on and chairing the Executive Committee, whose duties are outlined below.
6. Appointing the Treasurer and Conference Coordinator to six-year terms; and Social Media Coordinator, members of the Book Prize committee, members of the Broussard Best First Book committee, and members of the Mary Kelley Prize committee to three-year terms.
7. Overseeing any special committees that they and the Advisory Council might appoint for specific purposes.

Advisory Council

1. The Advisory Council shall consist of twelve members, elected by mail ballot of the membership for three-year terms, one-third of the Council being elected each year. Nominations for the Advisory Council will be determined by the Nominating Committee.
2. The Advisory Council is charged with the responsibility of working with the President to develop and implement all phases of the Society’s efforts to fulfill its mission as a learned society. For this reason, all members of the Advisory Council, beginning with those elected in 1993, will be expected to attend all annual Council meetings, as will all ex officio members.
3. No member of the Nominating Committee may serve concurrently on the Advisory Council.

Nominating Committee

1. To nominate annually for the approval of the membership a candidate for the position of President Elect.
2. To nominate annually pairs of candidates for election by the membership to the Advisory Council.
3. To nominate annually pairs of candidates for election by the membership to the Nominating Committee itself.
4. To make nominations consistent with the Society’s membership diversity in gender, race, geographical area, type of organization represented, historical field, and time period.

We, the members of the Nominating Committee, are determined to present a ballot that represents the SHEAR membership while also continuously working to broaden the diversity of scholars, vocations, and fields included within the Society.  Established in 1977, the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic (SHEAR) is an association of scholars dedicated to exploring the events and the meaning of United States history between 1776 and 1861. SHEAR’s mission is to foster the study of the early republican period among professional historians, students, and the general public. It upholds the highest intellectual standards of the historical profession and encourages the broad diffusion of historical insights through all appropriate channels, including schools, museums, libraries, electronic media, public programming, archives, and publications. SHEAR cherishes a democratic ethos in scholarship and cultivates close, respectful, and productive exchanges between serious scholars at every level of experience and recognition. SHEAR membership is open to all; most members are professional historians employed in colleges, universities, museums, and historical parks and agencies, as well as independent scholars and graduate students. The Nominating Committee welcomes nominations that will help move SHEAR toward fuller implementation of its democraticideals and diverse membership.