Dear Mixed Methods Research SIG Members,

Thank you all for being part of our Mixed Methods SIG. Our business meeting went very well last May in Philadelphia. The 20% reserve of papers to be allotted for those new to the field as voted on at our 2013 business meeting was again a success. We had many new presenters and upcoming scholars present in Philadelphia last spring and we had many new scholars propose papers this summer for the Chicago 2015 conference to be held April 16- 20th in Chicago. We had 59 submissions this year which is a record! 

This year we will be presenting our American Educational Research Association SIG “Mixed Methods Research” Outstanding Dissertation Award. The recipient will receive a $1000 travel stipend and an award at our annual business meting

The Mixed Methods Research Special Interest Group (SIG) of AERA welcomes nominations for the Outstanding Dissertation Award (2015). This is an AERA-sanctioned award and it is intended to recognize an individual whose dissertation makes an outstanding contribution to the field of mixed methods research. Empirical studies and methodological topics pertinent to conducting mixed methods research are considered appropriate submissions.  A successful recipient will receive recognition by the SIG in the form of a $1,000 honorarium. To receive the award, the recipient must attend AERA 2015 Mixed Methods Business Meeting. The chair of the student’s committee will be invited to attend the awardees’ presentation and will be recognized with a certificate. 

To be eligible for consideration, the dissertation must be completed and defended successfully during the period of January 2012-December 2014. To receive consideration, an application packet, must be submitted electronically to both the AERA Mixed Methods SIG Chair Thomas Christ and the program chair, Lisa Foster 

[email protected]
[email protected]
 
Applications must be received no later than December 15, 2014. 

Nominations may come from either faculty or from students themselves. If the dissertation is self-nominated, a letter of faculty endorsement from the student's dissertation committee chair or academic advisor is required. 

A completed nomination packet should include the following information:  (1) dissertation summary, prepared by the nominee (typed, double-spaced, 10-15 pages); (2) a copy of the full dissertation; (3) letter of endorsement from the dissertation chairperson or academic advisor. The letter, must include the date of acceptance of the dissertation and it must outline how the dissertation contributes to the development of mixed methods research; and (4) nominee’s mailing address, email address, and telephone number. All documents must be in Word or PDF format. The nominee agrees that this work will not be submitted for a similar award that will be given during the 2015 Annual Meeting of either AERA or NCME. 

A panel of judges comprising experts in the field of mixed methods research will review and evaluate nomination packets. The successful award recipient will be notified by the SIG’s chair by February 10, 2015. Please note, no funds will be dispersed unless attendance and presentation of research at 2015 AERA SIG's Business Meeting is confirmed. In case the award recipient will not be able to attend the meeting, the first runner-up will receive the award. 

Your voices continue to be heard at the AERA MM SIG business meetings and we look forward to input about next years AERA Annual Meeting program. 

Please consider nominating guest speaker(s) or a panel to our business meeting. This allows for an additional presentation. 

As the chair of the Mixed Methods SIG I went to other SIG business meetings to find out what is being offered. One attractive possibility is to add an outstanding book award; another could be a lifetime achievement award for contributions to the field of Mixed Methods Research. 

The International Mixed Methods conference at Boston College this summer was a huge success. The organization has over 600 international members and well over 300 attended the conference. Special thanks to all the interim board members who made this excellent conference a huge success. A big hand for the newly elected MMIRA board!


Special thanks to our Mixed Methods SIG paper reviewers this year, without their effort we could not have such great programs. We look forward to seeing you all at AERA in Chicago next year.

Sincerely
Thomas W. Christ Mixed Methods SIG Chair