Originating perhaps as early as the 1940s, the Virginia Humanities Conference (VHC) is held annually, rotating among Virginia college and university campuses each year and bringing together individuals with an interest in the Humanities and a desire to participate in a scholarly exchange of ideas in a very broad, interdisciplinary context. The VHC is particularly interested in promoting student-faculty research. The theme for each year’s conference is chosen by the rising president.
Membership in the VHC is open to any institution of higher learning within the state of Virginia. Annual membership dues are presently $200.00, the payment of which entitles each member institution to appoint one delegate to represent the institution at the Conference. Delegates typically serve at the discretion of their respective Academic Deans. The Conference’s governing body is composed of these Institutional Delegates, and VHC officers are elected from and by the Delegates. Funding to maintain the Conference comes primarily from the annual membership dues and conference registration fees.
Participation in each Conference is open to all those individuals who are interested and qualified and is not restricted only to residents of the state of Virginia. The VHC encourages participation by individuals and scholars from any of the Humanities disciplines, including history, political science, anthropology, literature, modern languages, drama, philosophy, theology, and the arts (visual arts, music, dance, and architecture). The Conference typically welcomes not only submissions from the academic community but from those outside academe as well. Qualified graduate and undergraduate students, under the guidance of a supporting faculty member, are encouraged to participate in the Conference as a means of gaining insight into yet another aspect of academics.
The Virginia Humanities Conference Archives, with coverage maintained since 1988, presently reside with Dr. Kirk Richardson at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. To donate materials to the Archives or to make inquiries, please contact Dr. Richardson via email at krichard@vcu.edu or by phone (804) 307-5102.
