Contact the Executive Director / About the Executive Director / Home

The IUS International Conferences

The biennial IUS International Conferences have become THE FORUM for the academic discussion of civil-military relations, terrorism, socio-political issues, and the welfare of service members and their families. Our Conferences continue to grow in participants and in the number of panels and papers presented. Scholars, military officers, civilian officials, and journalists from all over the world attend and network. Conference presentations are of the highest quality, and we had tremendous participation for the very successful 2011 Conference in Chicago. The Call for Paper and Panel Proposals for the 2013 International Conference will be disseminated in the fall of 2012.

I am thankful for the efforts of Conference Chair Sandra Carson Stanley, Conference Director Ryan Burch, and Secretariat Manager Eric Morse. Continuing a tradition of distinguished speakers at IUS Conferences, our keynote speaker, Dr. Peter W. Singer, director of the 21st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution, provided thought- provoking insights into the current international security landscape. Some 350 Fellows and others participated in the three-day gathering. 100 of these were from outside North America, with a total of 28 countries represented. Over 300 papers were presented at 64 panels and roundtables, including a special series of panels organized by James Burk on the world ten years after 9/11. We also hosted post-conference sessions by the European Research Group on Military and Society (ERGOMAS) and the Research Committee 01 (Armed Forces and Conflict Resolution) of the International Sociological Association.

We had an exceptionally large number of junior scholars and first-time conference attendees. This gives me great hope for our future as the founding and successor generations of IUS Fellows continue to pass the torch of intellectual and scholarly excellence. It is crucial for all IUS Fellows to identify and encourage junior scholars who might benefit from becoming an IUS Fellow. Please consider sponsoring a year of their modest dues to get them started.

Fellow Dues

Dues are an important source of revenue helping us maintain our intellectual activities, journal, and global outreach. Please take note of your renewal when it arrives and respond as soon as possible. Discounted 2 and 3-year renewal options are available. Life Fellowship is also an option, featuring a single dues payment for life. You can also now pay your dues online through our Fellows-Only section and we strongly recommend this. You may also contact the Secretariat for appropriate forms to submit via fax.

I especially encourage you to recruit student Fellows at the reduced rate. They are the future of the IUS and the new student Fellowship rates make joining the IUS very reasonable for our colleagues still enrolled in Universities worldwide. Why not consider sponsoring and funding one or more of your students?

I ask you to consider approaching your academic colleagues in relevant departments, qualified non-academics, executives, policymakers and military personnel with expertise and an interest in our work. I believe that the diversity they would provide would only benefit and enrich our organization and activities.

Investing in the IUS

Rebecca Schiff serves as Chair of our Development Committee. She and IUS Chair and President Jay Williams continue to spearhead a program that asks IUS Fellows and other interested individuals and organizations to invest in the IUS. The financial health of our organization enables greater support for related conferences, publishing activities, and IUS regions. We are so fortunate to have both the intellectual and financial support of our Fellows and benefactors. Please consider an investment in your Seminar (tax- deductible in the US).

You may wish to consider a bequest or IUS Trusts and Annuities in your estate planning. Please contact me with any questions on these or other planned giving options.

Armed Forces & Society

The most important indicator of intellectual quality is the scholarly work done by IUS Fellows. Our journal Armed Forces & Society continues to be the leading outlet for the most important scholarly discussions of the issues of concern to our Fellows. This is reflected in the high ranking of AF&S in Thomson ISI's® Journal Citation Reports®.

AF&S Online in the Fellows-Only section of this website provides IUS Fellows with access to a tremendous variety of Sage journals in full-text format online.

Armed Forces & Society editor Patricia Shields and her associates continue to work exceptionally hard and effectively to maintain and enhance the quality of our journal. Only the former editors know how time-consuming (and occasionally frustrating) this work is. We thank them for the tremendous job they do for our flagship publication. I also thank James Burk, who continues as Chair of the IUS Publications Committee. His attention to both policy and financial issues has been a tremendous asset to our publication efforts.

IUS Regions

The IUS has two regions which provide Fellows with an opportunity to share their work and experiences with colleagues closer to home.

Paul Viotti of the University of Denver and Thomas Drohan of the US Air Force Academy continue to develop the IUS/Rocky Mountain Region. They have just received IUS funding to commence a series of programs in Colorado. Please visit our regions page for further information as it becomes available.

IUS/Canada Region has been especially robust, and their activities include hosting their own conference in even-numbered years. IUS/Canada 2010 was very strong, with participants coming from far beyond Canada's borders. Program Chair Sarah Hill England deserves our thanks for her efforts in organizing the event in Toronto, as does Sean Danchuk, the on-site coordinator. Plans are underway for their Fall, 2012 conference at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario. IUS/Canada Chair Alan Okros has continued the tradition of excellence established by former IUS/ Canada Chair Frank Pinch.

Social Media

Just as our conferences and journal have adapted to our changing world, the IUS itself will not be left behind. I have invited IUS Webmaster Thomas McHenry to chair our Social Media Committee, which will investigate how best to optimize our use of social media tools in reaching those interested in our work, especially students, cadets, younger scholars, and military officers. I look forward to the launch of this next, exciting phase in the work of the IUS.

Keeping in Touch

I hope you will contact me regarding ways in which the IUS can serve our Fellows better. We are most receptive to your suggestions and appreciative of your efforts on behalf of the organization. Should you have announcements or other relevant information you would like us to publicize, please forward to Secretariat Director Eric S. Morse. Please visit often for information and updates.

As the IUS enters its next half-century of success, I thank you for your contributions of scholarship, time, and resources to our organization.

Robert A. Vitas
IUS Executive Director