BrANCH (British American Nineteenth Century Historians) Teaching Packs
Iain Flood (Newcastle University)
The BrANCH website hosts a selection of essays that deal with important subjects on the AQA curriculum. The subjects were carefully selected to apply the expert knowledge of BrANCH postgraduate researchers to topics for which A Level students may lack adequate resources.
Lydia Davis Cluster
Julie Tanner (Queen Mary, University of London)
The Lydia Davis cluster has been published online by Post45. It contains creative and critical contributions from eleven writers, including Lydia Davis herself.
Teaching American History: Secondary School Teachers Panel at the 2019 BrANCH (British American Nineteenth Century Historians) Annual Conference
(BrANCH)
The award enabled teachers from local secondary schools to attend the 2019 Annual BrANCH Conference at the University of Edinburgh and participate in the association’s first Teaching American History Panel.
American Politics Group / BAAS Colloquium (19 November 2021)
Phil Davies (APG)
The 2021 American Politics Group/British Association for American Studies Colloquium was a web-based event, open to all, and free of charge. It formed the closing day of the Eccles Centre’s Autumn Congress to Campus programme. Brief introductions from Dr Cara Rodway (Chair of BAAS), and the co-chairs of APG (Dr Andrew Wroe and Professor Philip Davies) were followed by three one-hour panels, each addressing current issues in US politics.
American Studies Awareness programme
Rebecca Stone, Kate Barnett, Emily Brady, Emma Hall
This project received a grant from the BAAS Development Fund to develop a range of online resources whose aim was to promote the myriad positive benefits of studying American Studies as a subject. The project focussed particularly on engaging with American Studies alumni around the UK and encouraging them to share their stories as to why they chose to study American Studies, what they had enjoyed about their experience, how it impacted them and the doors it had opened in terms of opportunities, experience and future employment. The interviews were collated into written profiles and recorded audio/video clips, and graphics for use on BAAS Social Media and hosted on the BAAS website.
US Politics Today A Level Conference
Cara Rodway (Eccles Centre / British Library)
The ‘US Politics Today’ is a long standing conference aimed at KS5 (A level and equivalent) school students studying US Politics. It offers students access to Former Members of Congress (one Republican, one Democrat) who are able to offer personal insights and revealing anecdotes into the experiences of law-making and government, and up-to-date analysis of American politics by experts that students would not otherwise have access to from their textbooks. The BAAS Development Fund grant covered the speaker fees and 2 days of travel expenses of the 5 experts who contributed to the programme, and whose contribution was central to making the conference an exciting and highly valued educational experience. The Conference reached over 500 students over 2 days.
The experts this year were:
– Prof Philip Davies (De Montford University)
– Dr Laura Smith (University of Oxford)
– Dr Emma Long (University of East Anglia)
– Prof Andrew Moran (London Metropolitan University)
– Josephine Harmon (University College London)
Special Seminar – Black Matrilineage, Photography and Representation
Emily Brady (Rothmere American Institute, University of Oxford)
An online seminar where four speakers were able to present their work:
– Lesley Deschler Canossi and Zoraida Lopez-Diago (co-editors of Black Matrilineage, Photography and Representation and co-founders of Women Picturing Revolution)
– Qiana Mestrich, Photographic artist, based in New York
– Jonathan Michael Square, Academic and curator at Parsons School of Design
BrANCA Biennial Symposium
The 5th BrANCA Biennial Symposium on May 13 and May 14th 2022 focused on the theme – “Opening Up” and was designed as a post-pandemic prompt to sharing work after a time where doing so was harder than ever before. The conference aimed to provide a forum for sharing work and for scholars to speculate on future new directions for the field. To encourage participation the event ran as a hybrid event and used BAAS funding to underwrite costs for Postgraduates to attend.
2022 APG / BAAS Colloquium
Philip Davies and Andrew Wroe (American Politics Group)
The 2022 American Politics Group / BAAS Annual Colloquium took place on Friday 11th November 2022. The event took place only 3 days after the critically important 2022 US mid-term elections, and aspects of the midterms were interrogated in each of the colloquium sessions.
Charles Brockden Brown Society Biennial Symposium (University of Nottingham)
Hannah Murray
The 14th Biennial Conference of the Charles Brockden Brown Society took as its theme “Crime, Justice and Cultures of Transgression in Early America” and featured papers on multiple aspects of the expression and representation of law-breaking in North American literacy, cultural and intellectual life between 1691 and 1830. Details of the conference’s full programme as well as photographs from its proceedings can be found on the Brockden Brown Society website and an extended review of the proceedings can be found in the Conference Reports section of the journal “Early American Literature”.
The funding from the BAAS Development Fund was able to provide financial support to the conference organisers who were able to support 2 US-based graduate students in travelling to Nottingham, pay a US graduate student to serve as a conference assistant, and offer childcare costs to potential participants.
Historical Perspectives on Gendered Violence
Elizabeth Barnes (Reading University), Elizabeth Evens (University College London), Grace Watkins (University of Oxford)
Together, Elizabeth Barnes, Elizabeth Evens and Grace Watkins shared research interests and a wish to connect with other historians. They applied for funding from the BAAS Development Fund to bring together scholars working on histories of gendered state violence in the United States to foster collaboration. Secondly they constructed an online resource for students, historians and a range of publics, to share the research of junior scholars. They have used their BAAS funding towards hosting a productive series of seminars in 2021-22, as well as a book launch for Anne Gray Fischer’s ‘Sex. Race. and Police Power’ in March 2022. They are creating their website with contributions from a range of junior scholars working in both the UK and the US.
Lydia Davis in Context
Lola Boorman (York University)
The funding provided by this BAAS Development Fund grant helped to facilitate a two-day, international workshop on the short story writer, Lydia Davis, including a range of scholars from the UK, US, Canada, France and Chile and from various career stages. The workshop involved discussion of pre-circulated chapters-in-progress, which formed the basis of a landmark edited collection on Lydia Davis. The BAAS Development Fund Grant was instrumental in providing the travel and accommodation costs and ensured that the majority of participants were able to attend in person.
USSO Podcast and Audio Visual Content
(USSO)
This grant was awarded to enable the USSO to purchase the necessary equipment to enable them to dramatically expand USSO’s audio and visual content, doubling their YouTube subscriber base. Over the Spring and Summer of 2023 this equipment was critical to launching their major new subseries ‘European Initiatives in American Studies’ which investigates careers, conferences and NGO’s working in American Studies in continental Europe, and supported the new programme of podcasts launched in the same year.
HOTCUS Annual Conference
(HOTCUS)
The 2023 HOTCUS Annual Conference were awarded monies from the BAAS Development Fund to support the attendance of PGR’s and ECR’s without permanent employment to attend the Conference which was held at Northumbria University in June 2023. The funding enabled the organisers to reduce costs for PGR/ECR attendees to the minimum possible, and offer travel bursaries for speakers without access to institutional funds. Secondly a proportion of money provided by BAAS was dedicated to providing childcare bursaries. PGR/ECR’s who attended online were also able to register for the event, free of charge.
Pro and Anti-War Voices
Joseph Rix & Wendy Toon (University of Worcester)
Facilitated by a BAAS Development Fund grant, PhD student Joseph Rix and Director of Studies, Wendy Toon co-organised a conference and exhibition entitled ‘Pro and Anti-War Voices’ designed to illuminate the positive and negative responses that “ordinary” people have had in relation to American Wars. The conflicts under discussion and on display ranged from the American War of Independence all the way up to the Vietnam War.
The Many Afterlives of Disco
William Rees (Exeter University)
This conference was awarded funding from the BAAS Development Fund to provide honoraria for 2 Keynote speakers: Frankie Elyse, (a Scottish DJ and owner of the Polka Dot Disco Club) and Musicologist, Louis Niebur of the University of Nevada. More information on the conference can be found here.
SASA 2024 Annual Conference
Benjamin Quail (Glasgow University)
This conference celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the Scottish Association for Study of America, and its Organisers were awarded funding from the BAAS Development Fund to provide grants and stipend to travelling students and a plenary speaker from around Scotland and abroad.
Elizabeth Bishop in Glasgow: A Symposium
This 3-day symposium hosted by the College of Arts & Humanities and the University of Glasgow, attracted participants from around the world and heard a range of excellent papers from early career and established scholars from several disciplines. The funding awarded by BAAS was used to support venue hire, keynote speakers and the translation of Bishop’s poem, “Sandpiper” into Scottish Gaelic – which was premiered at the opening evening of the Symposium.
‘Celebrating Master Juba: a bicentennial anniversary for the birth of the first transatlantic tap dancer’
Lucy Thompson & Hannah Ballard
The funding provided by BAAS contributed to the bicentennial anniversary and symposium event held in Liverpool to celebrate Master Juba, 200 years on. The event celebrated the bicentennial birth of William Henry Lane (“Master Juba”) the mid-19th Century renowned tap dancer and performer who travelled from America to Britain in 1848 and tragically passed away in a Liverpool Workhouse. The event featured panel discussions, guest speakers, dance performances. The grant secured instrumental funding for the early career speakers, panellists and discussants for the symposium.
APG/BAAS Annual Colloquium 2024
Philip Davies
BAAS Development funding contributed to the success of the APG/BAAS Annual Colloquium 2024, hosted by the Eccles Institute at the British Library. The event featured a keynote address delivered by Professor Lisa McGirr (Harvard and Oxford), roundtable events on the recent 2024 election, and informative Q&A sessions featuring former members of Congress, Cheri Bustos (D-IL) and Bob Dold (R-IL)
US Studies Online – Book Hour
Aija Oksman (USSO)
USSO was awarded BAAS Development Funding to enable them to continue their successful and popular Book Hour. Speakers are invited to talk about their research, books and offer insights into various topics vital for postgraduate and early career researcher cohorts. The funding was able to be used to fund a host of speakers throughout 2024.
Exhibition and Special Seminar with Civil Rights Photographer Maria Varela
Emily Brady
The ‘Time to Get Ready’: Maria Varela and the Civil Rights Movement’ exhibition was held from the 29th April – 18th May 2024 at the University of Oxford in St John’s College. The exhibition marked the first time that Civil Rights Movement organiser and activist Maria Varela’s images have been shown in the UK. The exhibition was attended by 10s of members of the public. During the exhibition Maria Varela herself travelled to Oxford for the first time, making her first trip to the UK during which time she delivered the talk “Time to Get Ready: Resistance through My Lens” followed by a Q&A. The talk was attended by dozens of academics, students and members of the public.
British American Nineteenth Century Historians (BrANCH): Completing our Digital Collection
Emily West
With the funding secured by the BAAS Development Fund, BrANCH were able to recruit a committee member to undertake the completion of the Digital Collection Project. They were able to secure further interviews for the project, collate, upload and transcribe various conference programmes and add to the photography collection and format and enhance the appearance of their digital archive pages. The completed results can be viewed here.
Enhanced Development of the American Studies Research Group at the University of Bristol
Lorenzo Costaguta & Erin Forbes
The BAAS Development funds were used to support the Research Group’s Speaker Series, allowing scholars and students from the group to the opportunity to hear excellent talks and engage in lively dialogue from 4 academics from various university institutions around the UK.
The British Network of Everett Studies: a One-day Symposium
George Kowalik
BAAS Development Funding contributed to the success of the international conference on the literature and art of Percival Everett, which took place at Kings College London, from 6-7th December 2024. The event included an intersectoral roundtable with guest speakers from the publishing and film industries and a cinema screening and Q&A.
Reading America, Reading Loneliness; Prison Book Groups at HMP Hull & HMP Full Sutton
Josephine Metcalf (University of Hull)
BAAS Development Funding contributed towards a series of book groups held at HMP Hull and HMP Full Sutton. Among a rate of texts, American novels were studies alongside short stories and poetry and a series of creative writing exercises stemmed from the discussions of the books. The book groups contributed towards supporting HMPPS requirements that prisoners undertake “purposeful hours” and an academic article containing more information about the event and its success can be found here.
Cultural Connections: Transatlantic Literary Women Series
Laura Rattray
The Development Fund grant was used to support the in-person book club as a way to invigorate the series with a return to some in-person activities and because previously their book clubs often draw a different audience from their online talks, reaching out to non-academics. Being able to use the BAAS Development Grant to provide free copies of the books, helped to ensure that no-one was excluded due to costs.
The Scottish Association for the Study of American (Annual Conference 2025)
Mariane Gallet
The BAAS Development Fund Grant was able to be used to support the 2025 conference and its essay prize competition. The grant was specifically used to assist postgraduate and early career researchers with otherwise limited or no means to come to the conference, to not just attend but also present their research. The funding also meant the delegates could enhance their networking opportunities at the event and promote their career development.
HOTCUS Annual Conference (2024)
Megan Hunt
BAAS Development Funds were crucial to allow the conference organisers to offer bursaries for postgraduate and early career attendance at their conference. This enabled more scholars to attend the conference, present their research and participate in developmental panels.
The Basquiat Mixtape – the Launch of New Carthaginians, in the ICA Theatre
Nick Makoha
This successful event enabled academics, artists, poets and members of the public to a most successful poetry event included a panel discussion with multi-award-winning poet Roger Robinson and Nicholas Makoha. They discussed the themes of The New Carthaginians and the impact that Basquiat’s paintings had on Makoha’s work. The event also featured readings from T.S Eliot’s prize-winning volume Portable Paradise, a book signing.
Rasanblaj Fanm: Stories of Haitian Womanhood, past, present and future.
Nicole Willson, University of Central Lancashire
This event used BAAS Development Funding to secure the keynote speeches, including one from the self-taught Haitian born artist Patricia Brintle. In addition, the event featured, roundtable discussions, film screenings, and a creative showcase featuring readings and performances. The remaining funding was used to enable fee waivers for Postgraduate Researchers to attend the event.
Civil Rights and Black Health Movements
Parise Carmichael-Murphy
This project focused on intersections between civil rights history and Black Health activism, with a focus on transatlantic dialogues between the US and the UK. Activities included academic workshops, public dissemination, and collaborative initiatives with the Black Health and Humanities Network (BHHN), US-based scholars and UK institutions. The funds from the Development Fund were primarily allocated toward honoraria for invites speakers, travel and subsistence for attending the Institute for Medical Humanities seminar in Durham and books and postage for workshop attendees. The project successfully built bridges between UK and US Scholars working at the intersection of civil rights and health justice.
Radical Print Cultures in the US South
Amanda Stafford
The BAAS Development fund contributed towards the one-day conference “Radical Print Cultures in the US South” which took place on 15th February 2024 at the University of Leeds. The hybrid conference brought together an international group of scholars from the UK, The United States, Europe and India, for a day of panels and presentations exploring a range of approaches to the topic. The conference was well attended both by scholars in person and remotely via Zoom. The Development Fund grant allowed the conference organisers to provide travel bursaries for the travel of the PGR Panellists and their distinguished keynote speaker, as well as funding an outreach project.
Keynote and EDI support for June 2024 conference – “Historical Roots, Modern Realities: Nationalism Across the Americas
Thomas Cryer
This virtual event brought together an impressive array of presentations from scholars in the UK, US, France, Denmark, Germany and Martinique, whilst attendees joined from as far as Australia, Japan and South Korea. Through the BAAS Development Fund, the organisers were able to support attendees with technological needs.
Africans and war in Vietnam: global protest, liberation politics and transnational soldiers.
Uta Balbier (Oxford University)
This hybrid event allowed 15 scholars to present their work. The Development Fund Grant allowed Professor Pierre Asselin, keynote speaker, to attend the event to present a keynote entitled “Art as Weapon: Vietnamese Communist Cultural Diplomacy in the American War” more information on the event including the publication of the conference papers can be found here.
Spotting Red Flags Symposium: Toxic Screen Romance in the Feel-Bad Era
Victoria Pistivsek
This event held at King’s College London on 9th June 2025 included topics covered by 16 presenters ranging from PhD researchers to Professors based in the UK and abroad. The BAAS Development Fund was able to be used to contribute towards the costs of running the event and enabled the organisers to foster critical dialogue at the intersections of film, media and American Studies.
16th Annual Conference of the US Foreign Policy Working Group of the British International Studies Associations (BISA) at King’s College London
Zeno Leoni (Kings College London)
The BAAS Development Fund was used to secure a highly prominent keynote speaker from the US, Jennifer M Lind, Associate Professor at the Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. The event attracted around 50 delegates and included presentations, and networking opportunities for Early Career Researchers and established academics alike.
International Scholarly Network Planning Workshop, held by the Sussex Centre for American Studies
Charlie Jeffries
With the support of the BAAS Development Fund, the Sussex Centre for American Studies was able to hold a Funding Planning Workshop on February 26th, 2025. This half-day long workshop allowed them to come together as a group to agree on the aims and path forward for an international American Studies network that they are developing, and to solidify their plans to secure funding for this network’s activities. Since the meeting’s conclusion they have already established the connections with their US and European partner institutions and have begun to organize fundraising efforts for the coming years, with the aim of securing sustainable support for this international research network in American Studies.
The Society for the History of Women in the Americas (SHAW) Annual Conference
Olivia Wright
The Society for the History of Women in the Americas (SHAW)’s 2025 annual conference took place on Friday 11th July 2025 at Leeds Beckett University and the University of Leeds. The conference addressed the way that emotions can inform teaching and research and deepen our understanding of historical events. Details of the programme and a review of the conference can be found on SHAW’s website: https://shawsociety.net/conference/
HOTCUS Annual Conference (2025)
Megan Hunt, Kaeten Mistry, Ellie Azoulay
The HOTCUS Annual Conference, held in June 2025 at Lancaster University was a great success, and consisted of 2.5 days of panel sessions, plenaries and developmental workshops. Thanks to a BAAS Development Grant the organisers were able to significantly reduce the overall cost of registration and attendance for all delegates, and in particular their PG/ECR members. They were also able to offer a bursary scheme for these members, which helped to keep the conference as accessible as possible.
American Dream / American Nightmare Conference
Sophie Harris-Nijmeijer
The event took place in hybrid form, taking place online on July 3rd 2025 and in-person on July 4th 2025 at the University of Westminster. The event was hosted by the New Voices in Postcolonial Studies Network (NVPoco) in collaboration with the University of Westminster, and featured a keynote speech, a keynote panel, 5 roundtable discussions, 4 panels of presentations, a discussion with published author Curtis Chin, and a poster presentation session. The event welcomed 19 speakers online, 21 speakers in-person at Portland Hall at the University of Westminster, and around 70 attendees in total across both days from across the globe.
The University of Edinburgh Southern History Workshop
Audrey Sisel and Lewis Johnson
This student-led Edinburgh Southern History Workshop, held between June 5 and 6 and supported by the BAAS Development Fund, brought together a diverse range of scholars of the American South. Around twelve participants – from senior academics to early-stage PhD students – provided and received feedback on pre-circulated papers of up to 5,000 words. Attendees were allocated 45 minutes for discussion of their paper and each received valuable suggestions pertaining to argument, structure, historiography, and sources.