The Midwest Association of Latin American Studies (MALAS) was organized to foster an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach to education and research on LatinAmerica. To accomplish this objective:MALAS organizes national and international annual conferences that address the myriad themes reflected in the diverse interests of the membership. It publishes a regular Newsletter (MALAS Noticias) and operates an electronic listserv MALASnet. MALAS welcomes the participation of social and natural scientists,artists, and humanists from all disciplines at its meetings and in its publications. MALAS also makes several awards each year to recognize outstandingstudent and faculty research papers presented at the annual MALAS conference.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF MIDWEST ASSOCIATION FOR LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES _______________________________________________________________________________ Introduction The Midwest Association for Latin American Studies (MALAS) was organized to foster an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach to education and research on LatinAmerica. The Association purposes are:
(a) To stimulate public interest in and understanding of the area of Latin America; (b) To promote the study of the area in institutions of education; (c) To encourage research in the area by scholars of all disciplines; (d) To serve as a forum for the exchanges and dissemination of information relative to the area; and (e) To cooperate with the Latin American Studies Association and regional associations, the Organization of American States, and institutions and individuals within Latin America and elsewhere, for the achievement of these purposes.
To accomplish these objectives, MALAS organizes national and international annual conferences that address the myriad themes reflected in the diverse interests of the membership. It publishes a regular Newsletter (MALAS Noticias) and operates an electronic listserv MALASnet. MALAS welcomes the participation of social and natural scientists, artists, and humanists from all disciplines at its meetings and in its publications. MALAS also makes several awards each year to recognize outstanding student and faculty research papers presented at the annual MALAS conference.
The Early Years
The origin of The Midwest Association for Latin American Studies is found in the decade of the 1950s, at which time the Pan American Union fostered the establishment of five regional councils for Latin American Studies.
The region included in the Midwest Association includes the states of Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Elizabeth Fox Hartmann from Texas Tech was a long-standing secretary-treasurer of MALAS, probably from the 1960s into the 1980s. 1975 Phil Kelly attended his first MALAS meeting, in St. Louis around 1975 when Ken Johnson picked him up at the airport. Phil was MALAS president in 1991 and have been secretary-treasurer ever since.
Conferences St. Louis, 2004 The annual conference of the Association was held in St. Louis, Missouri and hosted by Webster University and St. Louis Community College at Meramec. Conference co-chairs were Webster’s Dan Hellinger and Guillermo A. Rodríguez. The theme of the conference was “Latin America at the Crossroads” / “América Latina en la Encrucijada”
2005 Board of Directors
Conferences St. Louis, 2005 The annual conference of the Association was held in St. Louis, Missouri and hosted a second consecutive time by Webster University. Conference co-chairs were Dan Hellinger and Guillermo A. Rodríguez. The theme of the conference was “New Horizons in the Americas” / “Nuevos Horizontes en las Américas.” Dan Hellinger was elected president and Orlando J. Pérez of Central Michigan University vice president. Phil Kelly was re-elected as secretary-treasurer.
2006 Board of Directors
Conferences Managua, 2006
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Information Student Conference Scholarships
The annual conference of the Association was held in Managua, Nicaragua and hosted by Albertus Magnus. Conference chair was Francisco Mayorga. The theme was: “Latin America - Shifting Seas, Constant Currents” / “América Latina - Los Mares Movedizos, las Corrientes Incesantes”
The annual conference of the Association was held in St. Louis, Missouri in conjunction with the International Studies Association- Midwest (ISA-Midwest). The conference had no specific theme. Orlando Pérez was re-elected as president. Jaime Torres of St. Louis Community College was elected vice president and Phil Kelly of Emporia State University re-elected secretary-treasurer. Torres, Guillermo A. Rodríguez of Webster University in St. Louis and Mario Porrata from San Juan were appointed co-chairs of the 2008 Conference to be held in Puerto Rico.
A new corporation named Midwest Association for Latin American Studies was formed as a not-for-profit corporation in the State of Missouri. This occurred on August 29, 2008 with the initiative of Jaime Torres and Guillermo A. Rodríguez.
Phil Kelly stepped down as secretary-treasurer of MALAS after serving in that capacity for almost 20 years. Guillermo A. Rodríguez was elected secretary and Thomas Shannon Stiles as treasurer. It took two people to substitute on special person.
The annual conference was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico during these dates: November 20 – 22. The conference theme is “Latin America: Dealing with the Heritage of the Past, Building Bridges to the Future”. The Senate and House of Representatives of Puerto Rico sponsored the conference at the capitol building.
The following were elected: Jaime Torres of ERIBEC & Associates of St. Louis as president, Jennifer S. Holmes of University of Texas at Dallas as vice president, Guillermo A. Rodríguez of Webster University in St. Louis as secretary, Thomas Shannon Stiles of Webster University at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois as Treasurer, Todd F. Hartch of Eastern Kentucky University as a director at large. Orlando J. Pérez of Central Michigan University became the immediate past president in due course.
