Call for Editor of the Sociology of Sport Journal (SSJ)
Deadline: June 3, 2011
The North American Society for the Sociology of Sport (SSJ) is seeking applications for the position of Editor of the SSJ.
Qualifications and Requirements
Key qualities sought for the position of editor are an established record of scholarship; managerial skills to oversee the editorial cycle and meet deadlines; and the ability to attract respected experts to his or her editorial advisory board. Applicants should have recognized expertise in the field, possess editorial experience, and be able to lead an active editorial board in working effectively with publishing professionals. Applicants must have clear employer or institutional support for this activity for the duration of the appointment, including release time as necessary and general office support.
Term
The term is from November 2011 to November 2014. The first issue for which the new Editor will be responsible is Issue 1 of 2012 which is due in December 2011 and for which reviewing will begin in October 2011. The term of the current Editor, Dr. Pirkko Markula, will be officially terminated on November 5th, 2011 but, for overlap and hence a smoother transition, she will stay on as Past Editor until November 2012.
Major Responsibilities
Ø Providing a clear vision for the direction of the Journal;
Ø Identifying and appointing qualified members for the editorial team currently consisting of 2 associate editors, 1 editorial assistant and 1 book review editor;
Ø Managing the peer review of approximately 200 manuscripts per year;
Ø Selecting a sufficient pool of competent reviewers to reach conclusions and make decisions on manuscripts in a timely fashion;
Ø Deciding which manuscripts to publish;
Ø More details on the responsibilities of the Editor and a general overview of the characteristics of a good journal editor are provided at the end of this Call-for-Editor.
Stipend
NASSS provides a stipend to offset the costs associated with hiring an editorial assistant.
Search Procedure
Applicants will be reviewed by the Search Committee immediately after the deadline submission date and the Search Committee will make a recommendation to the NASSS Board of Directors.
Application Procedure
The application package should include:
1. A cover letter with a statement of institutional support (see first paragraph above) and a vision statement (goals and plans for the content of the SSJ as well as an assessment of the current strengths, weaknesses or gaps that could be addressed);
2. A CV;
3. Names of at least three references;
Send your application package via email to the Secretary of the Search Committee, Dr. Katherine Jamieson:kmjamies@gmail.com
Additional Information
Please find below a general overview of the characteristics of a good journal editor. This overview also provides additional details with regards to the responsibilities of the SSJ Editor:
Ø Broad knowledge of the field: Because SSJ is an association journal (NASSS), its remit is to publish papers from this broadly defined field. Consequently, SSJ receives/publishes papers from a wide-range of topics, theoretical perspectives, methodologies, and countries. To be able to provide a fair assessment of each paper, the editor should be knowledgeable of many facets of social theory as well as quantitative methodology and the entire range of qualitative approaches. In addition, the SSJ Editor needs to be able to put his/her own preferences aside to think of serving the field.
Ø Broad understanding of the contributing scholars: As reviewer selection is crucial in a peer reviewed journal, the SSJ Editor needs to have a good knowledge of individual scholars in our field and their expertise to assign appropriate reviewers. In addition, to appoint an appropriate editorial board, the Editor should be able to invite committed and knowledgeable scholars from the field of sport sociology.
Ø Time management: It is essential that the Editor be committed to moving on the submitted papers promptly (i.e., to assign the appropriate associate editor, assign reviewers, make the final decision). Without this, it is not possible to fill the issues in a timely manner. Neither is it possible to service the authors and our field in a respectful and supportive manner. Usually senior scholars who have been tenured can afford to take the required amount of time for editing a journal.
Ø Leadership and decision-making skills: As SSJ now operates through an editorial team, the Editor is required to provide leadership for this team. This includes advising and supporting the associate editors, the book review editor, and the editorial assistant. The Editor makes the final decision on each manuscript (the associate editors and the reviewers provide recommendations) and is responsible of filling each issue. In a peer-reviewed journal, the review process can take a substantial amount of time. Consequently, the Editor needs to be able to plan long term in addition to continually making decisions regarding the individual papers. Even with the help of reviewer recommendations and the associate editor recommendations, the decision making is often complicated and complex. In addition, the Editor is the contact person with the publisher and, thus, needs to be able to negotiate this relationship.
Ø Initiative and dedication: Much of the Editor’s work is managing the day-to-day business of the journal and being an effective manager is an important characteristic of an Editor. However, good editors are also dedicated to work beyond managing the journal to provide new initiatives for the journal. This might include actively working on proposals for special issues, working with the editorial board, and thinking of ways to improve the quality of SSJ.
Ø Attention to detail and people skills: As the Editor deals with the publisher, the editorial team, the board of editors, the authors, and the reviewers, s/he needs to be continually attentive to a myriad of details. Most of these involve people in one way or another and the Editor needs good “people” and communication skills. In addition, as publishing is an important part of the academic promotion process, dealing with the authors often requires careful negotiation between the author’s satisfaction and the quality of the article. As it is common to receive frustrated comments from the authors, the Editor should be able to handle these situations in a constructive manner. It is also important to be respectful to the reviewers whose work is crucial for the journal, but often goes quite unnoticed. Selecting a good editorial assistant is also important as s/he directly deals with many of the authors and reviewers.
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