About the 2009 MLA Convention

Audiotaping and Videotaping at Sessions

Badges

Plastic badge holders are available at the MLA registration and information centers in the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Lost badges can be replaced for $5 at the MLA registration center.

Business Centers

Loews Philadelphia Business Center, 3rd floor (Mon.–Fri., 6:30 a.m.–10:00 p.m.; Sat.–Sun., 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.); Philadelphia Marriott, Fed Ex Office, lobby level (24 hours a day); Pennsylvania Convention Center Business Center and Gift Shop, 2nd level, between Halls B and C (Mon.–Fri., 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.). Hours are subject to change.

Child Care

Faced with rising costs and limited interest from members, the MLA will not offer on-site child care at the 2009 convention. MLA members in need of child care during the convention should make arrangements directly through one of the convention hotels.

The MLA has funds available to reimburse up to $200 each to members who use a hotel-recommended service for child care during convention hours. If more requests are received than can be reimbursed with available funds, preference will be given to graduate students and members in lower-income dues categories.

Members should submit a request for reimbursement, along with a receipt for child care from one of the hotel-recommended services. Requests should be sent no later than 9 January 2010 to Maribeth Kraus, Director of Convention Programs.

Convention Guide

A PDF providing general information about convention services and containing city and hotel maps will be available on the MLA Web site in October.

Convention Registration and Housing

All persons wishing to attend meetings or use convention services must register for the convention (www.mla.org/conv_registration). Persons who plan to attend the convention may register by mail or through the MLA Web site; the early-registration fee must be received before 1 December. Preregistration information was sent to all MLA members in September and was available at the MLA Web site in early September. Registrations may be accepted after 1 December at the higher rate, but programs (for nonmembers) and badges may not be sent. Members attending the convention who have not preregistered may register during the convention at the registration area located in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). Registration areas will be open on 27 December from 12:00 noon to 9:00 p.m., on 28 and 29 December from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and on 30 December from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.

Hotel Reservations. Members are reminded that hotel rooms at the special MLA rates are available only to persons who are registered for the convention. Each convention registrant can reserve a maximum of one hotel room. Housing forms will not be processed if they include the names of persons in the profession who have not paid their registration fees for the convention. (Spouses, friends, and family members who wish to share a room with a registrant and who are also engaged in the study of language and literature must register and pay their registration fees for the convention.) Convention registrants who arrive in Philadelphia without hotel arrangements may go to the registration and information desk at the Philadelphia Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). A representative of the MLA housing service, CMR, will be there to help such attendees find housing and to assist attendees with any hotel issues they may have.

Registration Fees. Early registration fees from 1 September through 1 October are as follows: regular members, $125; regular members outside the United States and Canada, $50; graduate student members, $40; emeritus members, $40; non-tenure-track and unemployed members, $50. Preregistration fees from 2 October through 1 December are as follows: regular members, $150; regular members outside the United States and Canada, $50; graduate student members, $40; non-tenure-track and unemployed members, $50; emeritus members, $40; nonmembers, $200; graduate student nonmembers, $65; emeritus nonmembers, $65. Registration fees after 1 December are as follows: regular members, $175; regular members outside the United States and Canada, $50; graduate student members, $40; emeritus members, $40; non-tenure-track and unemployed members, $50; nonmembers, $225; graduate student nonmembers, $65; emeritus nonmembers, $65.

Registration Refunds. Requests for refunds of registration fees must be made in writing, accompanied by unused convention badges, and postmarked no later than 26 December. Refunds requested after 26 December will not be granted unless there were extenuating circumstances that made it impossible for the registrant to attend the convention. A $10 service fee will be deducted from all refunds.

Any disputes regarding convention fees should be put in writing and sent to the director of convention programs at the MLA office.

Council of Editors of Learned Journals (CELJ)

Officers and experienced editors who are members of the Council of Editors of Learned Journals (CELJ) will be available for consultation and advice for other editors and scholars who have questions about what to expect in journal submission, peer review, and publishing processes. Beginnings scholars (graduate students and entry-level professors) particularly welcome.

Editors from CELJ will be available to provide informal information and private consultations on 28 December, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and on 29 December from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in 203B, Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Disabilities, Facilities and Services for Persons with

The MLA is committed to making arrangements that allow all members of the association to participate in the convention.

Hotels. Meeting rooms in the headquarters hotels are accessible by elevator, and the doors are wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs. There will be desks in the convention registration and information centers at the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2), as well as the Loews Philadelphia (Lobby level, adjacent to the front desk), and the Philadelphia Marriott (outside Grand Ballroom, Salon I, level 5), staffed with personnel who can provide assistance to convention attendees with disabilities. There will also be a satellite desk in the lobby of the Philadelphia Marriott. To reserve hotel rooms that are specifically equipped for persons with permanent or temporary disabilities, check the appropriate boxes on the convention registration form and the housing reservation form or write or call Karin Bagnall in the MLA convention office by 13 November. The earlier we receive your requests, the better we can meet your needs.

Shuttle Bus. A complimentary transportation service will be available throughout convention meeting hours to transport attendees with disabilities. Arrangements should be made at the desk for persons with disabilities in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2) as well as the Loews Philadelphia (Lobby level, adjacent to the front desk) and the Philadelphia Marriott (outside Grand Ballroom, Salon I, level 5). Further details and phone numbers will be posted at the headquarters hotels.

Sessions. Speakers are asked to bring five copies of their papers, even in draft form, for the use of members who wish to follow the written text. Speakers who use handouts should prepare some copies in a large-print format (14- to 16-point font size). Speakers should indicate whether they want their papers and handouts returned. Sign language interpreters and real-time captioning are available on request. To arrange for either of these services, write or call Karin Bagnall in the MLA convention office by 13 November.

Scooter Rentals. Scooters, for navigating the convention more easily, can be rented from Scootaround (888 441-7575) or through the MLA Web site (http://www.scootaround.com/rentals/m/mla/).

Karin Bagnall coordinates arrangements for persons with disabilities; she can be reached at the MLA convention office at kbagnall@mla.org; the TDD number is 646 576-5148.

Exhibits

Over 110 firms will display books and other materials of interest to teachers of language and literature in the Philadelphia Marriott (Franklin Hall, level 4). The area will be open on 28 and 29 December from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on 30 December from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Admission to the exhibit area is restricted to persons wearing badges or carrying appropriate passes. To view a list of the 2009 exhibitors, visit www.mla.org/exhibitorslist. The editor of the MLA International Bibliography will be in the MLA exhibit booth on 28 and 29 December from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. MLA staff members will be available in the MLA exhibit booth to demonstrate the features of the MLA Web site and to answer questions.

Friends of Bill W.

In the Philadelphia Marriott, Meeting Room 502 (level 5) is set aside for the Friends of Bill W. throughout convention hours. A list of meetings will appear in the MLA Convention News and Program Update, available at the convention.

Future Conventions

There will be no convention in December 2010. In 2011 the convention will be held in Los Angeles from 6 to 9 January.

Graduate Student Lounge

A lounge with comfortable chairs and tables where graduate students can meet for discussion or relaxation will be located in the Philadelphia Marriott (Conference Suite II, level 3).

Headquarters Offices

Headquarters offices will be located in the Philadelphia Marriott (Conference Suite III, level 3) and the Loews Philadelphia (Hospitality Suite 413, 4th floor). Members of the MLA convention staff will be available in these offices whenever meetings are in session to handle problems that might arise with meeting rooms or meeting facilities. Program organizers are asked to refer questions on such matters to one of the headquarters offices, not to the hotel management. More general questions will be answered by staff members at the MLA information center.

Illness and Medical Emergencies

Procedures may vary from one hotel to another.

Philadelphia Marriott. Dial 51 for security from any house phone.

Loews Philadelphia. Picking up any house phone will immediately connect you to the hotel operator, who will then direct your call.

Pennsylvania Convention Center. Dial 4911 from any house phone.

Please note: whether you are seeking medical advice or have a medical emergency, the hotel or convention center will direct you to the closest hospital emergency ward.

Information Center

General questions about the convention and the association will be answered at the MLA information center in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). Copies of the Program and the Job Information List will be sold at the center; the MLA Convention News and Program Update will be distributed free; and information about cultural events, restaurants, and transportation will be available at the registration and information area in the Pennsylvania Convention Center or through the MLA Web site (www.mla.org). The information center will be open on 27 December from 12:00 noon to 9:00 p.m., on 28 and 29 December from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and on 30 December from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.

Job Information Center

For Prearranged Interviews. Consult the interviewer’s sign-in file in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Ballroom A, Ballroom level) if you do not know whether your interview is scheduled for a hotel room or the interview area or if you need to find out the hotel room number for your interview. Allow yourself ample time to obtain this information. If your interview is scheduled for the interview area, proceed directly to the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Ballroom B, Ballroom level) and ask a staff member for the table number.

If the interviewer has not signed in, consult the “Who’s Where” directory in the members’ lounges in the Pennsylvania Convention Center and the Loews Philadelphia. Once you know where the interviewer is staying, you can call the hotel information desk and be connected with the interviewer’s hotel room. (For reasons of safety, hotel staff members will not give guests’ room numbers to callers.) If the interviewer is not in, use the hotel’s message facilities. A message left in a hotel mailbox will be flashed on the guest’s room telephone. If the person is not listed in the “Who’s Where” directory, check the Program Participants section of the convention program to see whether that interviewer is speaking at or chairing a session and can be reached at a specific time and place or ask a Job Information Center staff member for help.

The MLA Job Information Service will operate a center at the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Ballroom A, Ballroom level). Positions that become available after the printing of the December Job Information List will be posted, and a counseling service for job candidates will be available in the interview area on 28 and 29 December. An interviewers’ sign-in file will be maintained and facilities provided for job candidates and interviewers to exchange messages. Space will be available for interviews, but candidates and interviewers are urged to arrange interviews in advance. Job candidates are reminded that almost no unscheduled interviews take place at the convention. Therefore, members are advised not to attend the convention for the sole purpose of seeking employment if they do not have scheduled interviews. The Job Information Center will be open on 27 December from 12:00 noon to 8:00 p.m., on 28 December from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., on 29 December from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and on 30 December from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.

Lost and Found

Members wishing to report personal items either lost or found should call extension 51 for security at the Philadelphia Marriott, pick up any house phone at the Loews Philadelphia, and dial 4911 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Lounges

Areas furnished with comfortable chairs and tables where members may congregate for discussion or relaxation will be provided in the Loews Philadelphia (Millennium Hall, 2nd floor) and the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). A graduate student lounge will be located in the Philadelphia Marriott (Conference Suite II).

Mail and Messages

Although the hotels will make every effort to deliver mail and messages received during the convention, the MLA can assume no responsibility for failure in delivery. A message service in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Ballroom A, Ballroom level) is provided in conjunction with the Job Information Center to facilitate exchange of messages between job candidates and interviewers. For other kinds of messages, determine the recipient’s hotel by referring to the “Who’s Where” listing (see “Who’s Where” section) posted near the members’ lounge in each hotel, then leave messages with the desk clerk at the appropriate hotel. Bulletin boards where convention attendees may post messages for their colleagues will also be provided in the lounges.

Meetings

Membership in the MLA

For the convenience of those who would like to join the MLA, as well as for continuing members who would like to pay their 2010 dues, membership desks will be located in the registration center. Although new memberships are for the 2010 calendar year, individuals who join the association while registering for the convention are entitled to register at members’ rates.

MLA Convention News and Program Update

During the convention the MLA Convention News and Program Update will print special notices, changes in schedule, and brief reports on convention activities. It is available free at the MLA information center. The 27 December issue will be available on the MLA Web site in mid-December.

National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Information

Staff members from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will be available to provide materials and information about the endowment on 28 December, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and on 29 December from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in 203B, Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Jason C. Rhody and John D. Cox, senior program officers at the NEH, will highlight recent awards and outline current funding opportunities during “Getting Funded in the Humanities: An NEH Workshop” on 28 December, from 1:45 to 3:45 p.m. in the Philadelphia Marriott (Liberty Ballroom Salon A). In addition to emphasizing grant programs that support individual and collaborative research and education, the workshop will include information on new developments such as the NEH’s Office on Digital Humanities Initative. A question-and-answer period will follow.

Parking

Parking in garages near the hotels ranges from approximately $12 to $27 per day. Parking at the Philadelphia Marriott is $39 per day plus tax; in-and-out privileges are for overnight guests only. Parking at the Loews Philadelphia is $38 per day plus tax, with in-and-out privileges.

Passes

A convention speaker may obtain a pass for a family member or friend who has no professional interest in language or literature to hear a paper given by that speaker. These passes are available to speakers at the MLA information center.

All MLA members and members of the profession that the MLA serves are required to register in order to participate in or attend meetings. Please note that if you need a pass for an evening session you must obtain it before the information center closes.

MLA convention registrants may obtain free passes to the exhibit hall for guests they accompany in the hall. Persons who are not registered for the convention and who are not accompanied by registrants may purchase a one-day pass to the exhibit hall for $10. These passes are available at the Exhibit Registration booth, Philadelphia Marriott (by the Franklin Hall, 4th level).

Philadelphia Information

Pamphlets will be available in the Loews Philadelphia (Millennium Hall, 2nd floor) and the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). To obtain information beforehand, you may call the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau at 215 636-3300 or link from the MLA Web site (www.mla.org) to a Philadelphia information Web site.

Programs

Copies of the Program can be purchased for $5 at the MLA information center. Free copies are available only to those who received in their registration packets a card entitling them to a complimentary Program or to foreign registrants who did not receive their Programs. There is a $5 charge for all additional copies.

Restaurant Reservations and Information

The Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau will provide a Restaurant Reservations and Information desk near the MLA Registration and Information center located in the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Grand Hall, level 2). Staffed by knowledgeable personnel, the service offers information on restaurants, cuisine, nightlife, theater, sports, and attractions and can make complimentary dining reservations. Ask at the front desk about Philadelphia’s Show Us Your Badge program, which offers discounts on area restaurants and attractions. The desks will be open on 27 December from 12:00 noon to 6:00 p.m., on 28 and 29 December from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and on 30 December from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Shuttle Bus Service

Because of the proximity of the headquarters hotels, there will be a shuttle service only for attendees with disabilities.

Smoking

Philadelphia has a nonsmoking policy in all buildings and restaurants. Smoking is allowed in bars where food is not served.

Speaker Ready Rooms

Space in the Loews Philadelphia (P2, 3rd floor) and the Philadelphia Marriott (Meeting Room 413, level 4) has been reserved to allow speakers to run through their audiovisual presentations before their sessions. Those who have computer presentations should have completed a Presenter’s Computer Information form to arrange for a pretest appointment. If you have not done so, please contact Karin Bagnall (kbagnall@mla.org).

Telephones

With the increased use of cell phones, there are a limited number of public phones available in the hotels. Calls may not be made from telephones in meeting rooms, and the use of telephones in any convention office is limited to members of the MLA staff.

Ticket and Information Tables

Several allied organizations will have tables for selling tickets to their meal functions or for supplying information. These tables will be in the members’ lounge. The MLA is not responsible for staffing these tables, and MLA staff members cannot provide information on these organizations other than what appears in the Program.

Transportation to and in Philadelphia

MLA convention hotels are located in Center City Philadelphia.

By plane: Philadelphia International Airport is served by all major domestic carriers, with flights to more than 100 cities, including 30 international destinations. The SEPTA Airport Rail Line R-1 connects the airport with Center City and includes stops at 30th Street Station (Amtrak), Suburban Station, and Market East Station (Convention Center, Marriott, and Loews). It operates daily every half hour; the one-way fare is $7. Call 215 580-7800 for specific travel instructions and sales locations. Calls are answered from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekends. Additional information is available at www.septa.org. Lady Liberty Transportation Company offers an airport shuttle between the Philadelphia Airport and Center City. Shuttles run every fifteen minutes between 5:30 a.m. and 12:00 midnight. No reservations are required. Dial #27 from the free transportation counter telephones located in the baggage claim area. The one-way fare is $10. One-way cab fare to or from Center City is $28.50. For Philadelphia International Airport information, stop at one of the information booths in the airport terminals, call 215 937-6937 or 800 PHL-GATE (800 745-4283), or go to www.phl.org.

By train: Philadelphia is served by Amtrak (800 USA-RAIL; www.amtrak.com), which operates rail service along the Northeast Corridor. Visitors have access to intercity trains operating over the corridor, including high-speed` Metroliners and Acela Express service between Boston and Washington, DC. Intercity service is also provided to many points south and west. Amtrak’s 30th Street Station is two miles from the Pennsylvania Convention Center and Center City hotels. The one-way taxi fare is $5–$8. The train ride to Market East Station (Convention Center, Marriott, and Loews) is complimentary for those who show their Amtrak ticket to the ticket agent.

By bus: Intercity bus service is excellent, with daily arrivals from all parts of the country. The Greyhound Terminal (215 931-4075) is located at 20th and Filbert Streets.

Transit: Philadelphia has an excellent transit system. The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) offers commuter rail service between the city and the suburbs. Suburban Station and Market East Station are in the heart of the business, shopping, and hotel districts. Also, the 30th Street Station provides a quick connection with Amtrak. Each of these stations connects the entire rail system with the city’s Airport Rail Line. SEPTA also operates a large fleet of buses, subways, and streetcars throughout the city and suburbs with highly concentrated service in the Center City area. Two subway lines—Market-Frankford (east-west) and Broad Street (north-south)—crisscross the city. Cash fare on most routes is $2 (exact change required). Discounted tokens and passes are available. Call 215 580-7800 for specific travel instructions and sales locations. Calls are answered from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekends.

“Who’s Where” Directory

The “Who’s Where” directory will be posted in the members’ lounges in the Loews Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Convention Center and near the Job Information Center in the Philadelphia Convention Center. The directory will include the names and convention addresses of persons who make hotel reservations through the housing bureau or send their local addresses to the MLA office before 10 December. Only the names of hotels listed on the convention housing form or local addresses are listed. Members are advised to check their own “Who’s Where” listings for accuracy and to make any necessary revisions. The information used to compile the list comes from the housing service, not from the MLA.