My email in-box offered me today two very welcome pieces of news, both about my main disciplinary organization, the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR).
The first announcement concerns the launching of a new NCFR journal, the Journal of Family Theory & Review. This is a huge and--IMO--important development for the organization and discipline. I was present during talks at the Theory Construction and Research Methodology (TCRM) Workshop some years ago when this idea was first proposed. After a few set-backs and revisitations, the idea was finally transformed into reality. From my email:
NCFR announces its forthcoming third scholarly journal; the Journal of Family Theory & Review (JFTR). The inaugural issue is slated for publication in March 2009. JFTR will be peer-reviewed and published quarterly. The journal's editor, Dr. Robert Milardo, Professor of Family Relations at the University of Maine, invites submissions beginning November 1, 2007 on theory and review in any area of family studies. The journal is especially interested in publishing emergent theory or work that reinterprets or integrates existing theory... Coming to Pittsburgh? Dr. Milardo will be available to meet NCFR members at the Business meetings of the Theory Construction and Research Methodology (TCRM) Workshop, the Research and Theory Section as well as the Wiley-Blackwell reception for NCFR Journal Editors.
Given my love of all things theory and my growing interest in methodology, I am greatly looking forward to reading--and hopefully, one day, publishing in--this new journal!
The second announcement is also about something very close to my heart: NCFR now has a blog! Again, from the email:
I have asked staff member, Nancy Gonzalez, to launch NCFR’s first blog, which she has entitled - Nancy’s N = 1 Experiment. Organizational bloggers are an increasingly popular trend in professional associations; social networking and Web 2.0 are here and NCFR is ready. Read Nancy’s news, commentary and thoughts - then post a response.
Well, I am very glad that NCFR is now "ready" for blogging! A few years ago I tried to organize an NCFR conference session on family scholars who blog and sent out a call on the various email lists. The overwhelming response I got back was "What is a 'blog'?" Maybe this year there will be enough bloggers to get together informally at the meeting in Pittsburgh. If you are going to NCFR this year and blog or are interested in blogging, shoot me an email.