A message from the PSA Chair
| Author | Angelia Wilson |
| DOI | 10.1177/0263395718822973 |
| Date | 01 February 2019 |
| Published date | 01 February 2019 |
| Subject Matter | Letter |
https://doi.org/10.1177/0263395718822973
Politics
2019, Vol. 39(1) 3
© The Author(s) 2018
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DOI: 10.1177/0263395718822973
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A message from the PSA Chair
Dear reader,
Happy 2019! As Chair of the Political Studies Association, I’m delighted to share with
you some fantastic news of activities for those with a wide-ranging interest in politics.
The PSA had an eventful 2018! We have purchased new offices in Camden, London.
It has meeting rooms for up to 25 people that can be rented by members (at a low rate) or
non-members (at competitive London prices) – see website for details of how to rent! In
addition, with a couple of extra desks, we welcome any members travelling through
London and in need of free wifi and a coffee for a couple hours.
At our Annual Awards Dinner in November, we launched the ‘Diverse Voices PSA
Doctoral Scholarship Fund’. We will spend the next year raising money to enable us to
support PhD students from diverse backgrounds to embark on political studies doctoral
research. We are excited about the potential impact this will have in facilitating inclusion
and diversity across the profession. Please consider supporting our efforts – whether you
can give £5k or run 5k – you can help us increase the diverse voices teaching and research-
ing political studies.
The scholarship fund is just one of our recent efforts to reach out to a wider community
of scholars and students of politics. Our recent changes to the membership structure enable
us to offer membership to schools for only £25. This allows 10 teachers to be PSA mem-
bers and access benefits such as teacher training events, A-level student events, and a large
range of teaching and learning resources. As part of our education outreach programme
this will help the PSA provide better support to state schools and teachers – reaching a
range of students who we hope will go on to study politics at university.
In addition, the PSA has also launched our new website, with the second phase of devel-
opment due to be rolled out in early spring. This will enable members of our research spe-
cialist groups to have their own revamped websites and an easier method to collaborate with
one another. The website will also have easily accessible resources for students, teachers,
and for the general public – helping us connect the expertise of our academic members with
others outside the academy interested in politics, including media and policy makers.
Politics touches the lives of every citizen. We at the Political Studies Association
believe that it is our duty to support academics researching and teaching politics and,
alongside this, to facilitate the knowledge transfer of that expertise to the wider commu-
nity. Our commitment to engagement and to diversity is manifest in our structural changes,
our outreach programmes, and our strategic priorities for 2019.
We have achieved good things in 2018, but we have more in store for the coming year.
Keep an eye out for developments; please join us in planning and participating in our
activities; and please support our efforts for inclusion by donating to our new Diverse
Voices Scholarship Fund (details on our website).
Happy New Year from the PSA!
Angelia Wilson,
Chair
821257PCX0010.1177/0263395718822973Political StudiesLetter
other2018
Letter
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