The Salzburg Seminar is pleased to announce a new Alumni Association dedicated to American Studies: SSASAA (Salzburg Seminar American Studies Alumni Association.) SSASAA is open to all Seminar alumni interested in the field of American Studies. The first meeting will be held at the Schloss on September 2-5, 2004 and will consider the topic "America in Our Time", a topic chosen to provide a forum for discussions revolving around broad American Studies themes, including understanding America's role in the 21st century, the importance of cultural diplomacy, issues of race and ethnicity, the influence of popular culture, and current trends in American literature. The "mini-session" will consist of small theme-based discussion groups, as well as presentations by four distinguished American Studies scholars:

Chris Bigsby, Director, Arthur Miller Center for American Studies, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK;

Emory Elliott, Distinguished Professor of English, and Director, Center for Ideas and Society, University of California, Riverside, USA

James Horton, Benjamin Banneker Professor of American Studies and History, George Washington University; Director, Afro-American Communities Project, National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution, USA;

Lois Horton, Professor of History in the Department of History and Art History, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

A special event during the symposium will be the commemoration of the founding of the European Association for American Studies (EAAS) at the Salzburg Seminar fifty years ago, in 1954. We are pleased that Professor Josef Jarab, current President of the EAAS, will be present to mark this memorable occasion. Additional events include a barbeque, receptions, and a gala dinner on the final evening, September 4.

Payment information: The fee for the symposium is € 400 for a single and €700 for a couple. The fee includes accommodation and meals for three nights, tuition and fees and social events. Bank Transfer: Bankhaus Carl Spängler & Co., Salzburg, Account No.:AT 401953000100180942 BIC SPAET2S UID-No.: ATU33978602 Credit cards are also accepted. Space is limited and reservations will be confirmed in the order in which they are received.

For further information, contact SSASAA leader Marty Gecek, mgecek@salzburgseminar.org To download a registration form, please click here.