A Message from 2008 ALSC President Christopher Ricks

What We Do

In pursuit of its mission, the ALSC

provides a forum for encounters between scholars, critics, editors, and teachers, and fiction writers, poets, playwrights, and screenwriters;
fosters connections between the academic study of literature and the wider literary culture;
sponsors and disseminates studies of curriculum and wider topics relating to literature;
creates links between the teaching of literature in primary and secondary schools, and instruction in colleges and universities;
encourages debate and exchange between scholars of ancient and modern literatures, and between Western and Asian literatures;
explores the literary dimensions of other arts; and
strongly advocates the teaching of literature as literature.

To continue our mission, we need your help now!

What Your Dollars Can Do

A gift of $8.50 from each current member would fund an entire volume of the Literary Matters, keeping you informed of our projects and initiatives and those of your colleagues, and affording opportunities to promising undergraduates to have their work published and their interest in graduate literary study nourished.
Five $50 donations would make a year of book symposia and conversation possible on our literary weblog, The Valve.
Thirty $100 donations would publish an issue of Forum, where debate on literary education and the state of the Humanities occurs in depth.
Three $500 donations would secure a year of telephone service, providing you with access to ALSC staffers for your questions and concerns.
A single pledge of $1,000 would enable four cash-strapped graduate students to attend the ALSC Conference, providing opportunities for professional growth and wide-ranging literary collegiality and enrichment of a kind that exists almost nowhere else.

Any gift—no matter how large or small—adds up to make a difference. We need your strong support!

The Hard Facts

Less than 25 percent of our operating expenses are covered by membership dues.
Less than half of our annual conference expenses are covered by registration fees.
Many foundations are unwilling to fund general operations of non-profit organizations like ours.

How You Can Help

Upgrade your membership. Show your support of the Association by taking out a Premium Membership. After the cost of a subscription to Literary Imagination is deducted, the remainder of your Premium Membership contribution supports directly the other ALSC publications, programs, and initiatives you value.

Make a donation beyond the paying of dues. Whatever dues category you choose, an additional donation in any amount that fits your charitable budget adds up to make a difference.

We have expanded our giving categories to challenge greater support. In addition to our now-familiar Circle of Friends gift categories, you can now choose from an array of options for deeper support.

Every dollar counts. Become a "Hero" among Circle donors by donating $250 to $499. Or make a more modest contribution: $5, $15…every penny adds up.

Secure a matching gift. If you or your spouse work outside academe, please ask your employers about matching-gift programs, since many companies will match qualifying gifts.

Thank you for your support.