2026 Call for Proposals

Conference Theme

The ASALH Academic Program Committee is pleased to invite proposal submissions for panels, workshops, roundtables, papers, posters, media sessions, and Woodson Lightning Rounds at the 2026 ASALH Annual Meeting and Conference. The conference will be held in person in Norfolk, VA on September 23-27, 2026.

As we approach our 111th ASALH conference, we seek to showcase versatile and innovative historical research that includes and reaches beyond our theme of A Century of Black History Commemorations and highlights the roles and importance of storytelling, memory, and history. On this anniversary year, we are commemorating the history of the Association and are interested in the impact of challenges and successes in institutionalizing the teaching, study, dissemination, and commemoration of Black history. From Negro History Week to Black History Month, ASALH has carried forth the tradition, and these observances have become part of the fabric of American culture and increasingly the global community. Thus, this conference provides an opportunity to examine in depth this history as forces weary of democracy seek to use legislative means, book bans, and challenges to excise Black history from America’s schools and public culture. Black history’s value is not its contribution to mainstream historical narratives, but its resonance in the lives of Black people.

During this year, in which the 250th Anniversary of United States Independence is being commemorated, it is important to not only tell an inclusive history, but an accurate one.

Our 111th Annual Conference will also preserve and strengthen African American history in these stressful times. Black history continues to be assaulted on multiple political fronts, and we require scholars committed to studying the African American experience across many fields, topics, and interests. We especially call on emerging scholars and graduate students to submit research from their subfields. ASALH grows stronger each year as new scholars introduce their work at our annual conference.

We call on all scholars, organizations, students, independent researchers, and others interested in the African American experience to convene in Norfolk, VA, for the continued reshaping of African American history and thought.

General Proposals of Black Life, History, and Culture
To be included on the program, your panel proposal need not be centered on the Annual Theme. The academic program committee will also accept panels and individual submissions that explore all aspects of Black life, history, and culture.

Proposal Types
Proposals should be detailed, comprehensive, and descriptive that outline the theme, scope, and aim of the session. Proposals that incorporate the annual theme are preferred, but submissions can be on a variety of temporal, geographical, thematic, and topical areas in Black history, life, and culture. Details on each can be found on the ASALH and All Academic website.

For individuals who are interested in collaborating on a panel, workshop, or roundtable, please use the Google spreadsheet, which is an informal tool to connect individuals who are seeking ideas and/or collaboration. The spreadsheet is not monitored by ASALH or the Academic Program Committee and is not part of the official submission process.

Individual Submissions
Paper Submissions: Individual(s) can submit papers. These papers will be put together with other papers on the same theme/topic by the Academic Program Committee. Papers will ONLY be accepted by non-academics, undergraduate, and graduate students on the 2025 Annual Black History Theme: African Americans and Labor. Paper submissions are not guaranteed audiovisual during the conference. There will be limited slots for paper sessions at the ASALH annual meeting. Submissions that are performances or plays will not be accepted.

Woodson Lightning Round/Pop-Ups: Individual(s) can submit lightning round papers/presentations. These proposals will be put together with other lightning-round proposals by the Academic Program Committee.

Poster Submissions: Individual(s) and ASALH Branches can submit posters. The posters will be put together in a single or multiple session by the Academic Program Committee. Posters have both a virtual/pre-recording and in-person component.

Session Submissions
Proposals will be accepted by all affiliations and academic status. Access to audiovisuals is not guaranteed during the conference. Panels: Are sessions composed of individuals presenting different papers/presentations on a specific concept/topic/idea.

Roundtables: These are sessions that are composed of individuals presenting a single idea/concept/theme.

Workshops: These are sessions that are hands-on and work to teach attendees about a particular tool, project, idea, and theme. Sessions that are performances or plays will not be accepted.

Media: These are sessions that are comprised of an individual film or a film panel where a moderated or group discussion of a film is conducted following the screening.

Submission

All proposals are submitted in the All-Academic system. You will need to provide an abstract (300 words or less), a title of your presentation, your name, email, and affiliation. If you are submitting a panel, workshop, roundtable, or media session, you will need the information for all the presenters. Once the proposal is submitted, the submitter and all presenters will receive an email confirmation.

The submission deadlines for proposals are as follows: Early Bird Submissions will be accepted via All Academic until March 20, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (EST). Conditional acceptance responses to Early Bird submissions will be sent out by April 22, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (EST). After this date, the committee will accept all submissions until the deadline of May 18, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (EST). Regular conditional acceptance submissions will be responded to by June 12, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (EST). You will not be considered official until all session participants have joined the Association and registered for the conference.

The Association for the Study of African American Life and History proudly announces its Woodson Ambassador Program, which is an early professional training for History, Public History, and Museum Studies Scholars.

Students who attend ASALH’s Annual Meeting and Conference get to:

• Attend and participate in workshops and sessions geared toward rising professionals
  • Dissertation Workshops
  • Poster Sessions

• Gain experience working in a professional society as a member of the on-site program committee and/or the local arrangement committees.
• Receive a certificate verifying that they were a Woodson Ambassador

Who can participate

1. Undergraduate and graduate students who are interested in professional development.
2. Selected students will be provided conference session registration and membership fees.
3. Students who are willing to volunteer for a minimum of 8 hours during the conference. Conference dates are September 23-27, 2026.