This message from the heads of the Emerging Scholars Network Section was distributed to all the section members on 13 May 2020.
Dear Emerging Scholars Network members,
We hope this finds you and your families well in this challenging time. We would like to thank you for being part of our community and for participating in ESN's activities. We appreciate your submissions to ESN this year and look forward to the online conversations and collaboration from our presenters later in July.
Today, we are writing to share some news with you regarding ESN elections this year. Ksenia Ermoshina is finishing her term this year and we originally planned to host an election for a new co-chair at the ESN business meeting at IAMCR conference. As you know, this year's IAMCR conference is going to be online. This new virtual format is very promising and interesting, yet it won't allow for a traditional face-to-face business meeting. Conventionally, the candidates nominate themselves in advance, their statements are posted on IAMCR website and at the business meeting candidates present themselves, speak about their strategies and plans, and then voting takes place. In the current online format, we feel that it would be challenging to have meaningful interactions and discussions, given time zones and regional differences of internet speed.
In this context, we suggest postponing ESN's election for one more year and hold it in 2021, instead of holding an online election this year. This decision does not conflict with IAMCR policies and is suggested as a means to guarantee all our members can participate in the elections at a traditional business meeting at the conference next year. In this case, Ksenia's mandates as Co-Chair will be extended for another year and the formal elections will take place in 2021.
Best Regards
Sibo Chen, also on behalf of Steph Hill and Ksenia Ermoshina