Job Announcement: Managing Editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies

Job Announcement: Managing Editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies

Job Announcement: Managing Editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies

By : Jadaliyya Reports

[The Institute of Palestine Studies is looking for someone to fulfill the position of managing editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies. Scroll down for information on how to apply.]

What we do and Offer Our Team


The Journal of Palestine Studies
 (JPS) is a refereed multidisciplinary journal published by Routledge, Taylor & Francis on behalf of the Institute for Palestine Studies. Since its founding in 1971, JPS has been the English-language academic journal of record on Palestinian affairs. It publishes original articles that span the humanities and social sciences, including, but not limited to, history, political science, international relations, law, economic development, geography, sociology and anthropology/ ethnography, as well as gender and queer studies, literature, and the arts.

JPS is the flagship publication of the Institute for Palestine Studies, an independent, non-profit research institution, established in Beirut in 1963. IPS-USA and its parent organization, IPS, are unaffiliated with any political organization or government and maintain full editorial independence. The mission of IPS-USA is to conduct research and publish English-language content on Palestinian affairs, which in addition to JPS includes the Palestine Square blog, the Current Issues in Depth monograph series, and full-length books.

IPS-USA provides significant opportunities for professional development in a highly collaborative working environment where everyone is dedicated to the proposition that regarding Palestine, the facts, coherently presented, speak for themselves. IPS-USA offers flexible work schedules, a 401K, health insurance benefits, including dental and vision, as well as life insurance.

What the Managing Editor Does


The Managing Editor position is key to the successful acquisition and development of material for publication in JPS, shepherding the manuscript and peer-review process from initial submission to publication decision. The Managing Editor serves as the primary contact for submitting authors, peer reviewers, and book reviewers, working in close collaboration with the Journal's two Co-editors to assess manuscripts, in coordination with the Associate Editor, Assistant Editor, and the Editorial Board. Using Scholar One, the Managing Editor ensures a smooth and streamlined process throughout, cultivating and maintaining a wide network of relationships with authors and prospective authors, and attending conferences, panels, and other events that advance the Journal's reach and exposure. The Managing Editor reports to the journal's Associate Editor.

Specific Responsibilities

  • Manage peer review and manuscript process using ScholarOne software
    • From initial author submission through peer review to acceptance & handover to editing/production
    • Manage correspondence with authors, editors, and reviewers
    • Set and enforce deadlines
    • Solve problems & tactfully navigate issues that arise in the manuscript process
    • Assist editors, authors, & reviewers with ScholarOne when necessary
  • Work closely with co-editors to choose and assign peer reviewers and readers
  • Manage Recent Books (book review) section working closely with Book Review Editor
    • Identify new Palestine studies books for review
    • Arrange for review copies both for journal office and book reviewers
    • Correspond with (prospective) reviewers, solicit reviews, set and enforce deadlines
    • Edit and format book reviews
  • Manage Weekly Editorial Team Meeting
    • Produce and distribute meeting agenda, including detailed status review of all Journal content currently in planning, editing, or production
    • Facilitate meeting
    • Take meeting notes, distribute to team, and archive
  • Work as a part of a very small editorial team
    • Coordinate with Scholar One Journal Editorial Office as well as co-editors, associate editor, assistant editor, and with Editorial Board as needed
    • Participate in regularly scheduled video meetings with editorial team
    • Contribute to the shaping of editorial policies and practices
    • Offer input and suggestions on content in upcoming journal issues
  • Cultivate relationships with Editorial Board and keep in close contact with board members
  • Cultivate and grow scholar network
  • Merge or update reviewer/author records to maintain an up-to-date database/scholar pool
  • Reports to the journal’s Associate Editor

 
What the Managing Editor Brings to the Team


The successful candidate for Managing Editor will possess in-depth knowledge of Palestine, a solid understanding of current events and trends, as well as a good grasp of the wider constellation of political and other actors associated with Palestine and the history of the Palestinian question. A solid grounding in Palestine studies and the surrounding literature is required.

  • Requirements:
    • A Master's in Palestine studies, Middle East studies, or a related field
    • 2+ years of experience in academic publishing that includes familiarity with the editorial and peer review processes
    • Experience with ScholarOne manuscript software
    • Expertise in Microsoft Word and Outlook; knowledge of SharePoint; familiarity with MS Excel, Salesforce, & Adobe Creative Suite
    • Expertise and prior experience using Chicago Manual of Style, 17th 
  • Other qualifications:
    • Basic knowledge of Arabic, Hebrew is a plus
    • Authorized to work in the United States
  • Competencies
    • A superior command of the English language, excellent writing and editorial skills
    • Outstanding attention to detail and organizational skills
    • Sound editorial judgment and excellent interpersonal skills
    • Demonstrated ability to work collegially and effectively with others, adding value in the form of complementary skills, and contributing ideas, opinions, and feedback
    • Demonstrated leadership, problem-solving, & decision-making skills
    • Ability to exercise highest level of discretion on confidential matters
    • Ability to multitask, prioritize assignments, and meet deadlines
    • Ability to be discerning about when to take action and when to seek guidance
    • Ability to work both collaboratively and independently, varying by task and deadline
    • Interest in professional development and in learning and applying new hard and soft skills
    • Interest in the scholarly publishing industry and participation in events and conferences
    • Time-management skills to ensure that tasks are completed in a timely way.

To Apply


For consideration, please submit your application to Stephen Bennett at stephenbennett@palestine-studies.org by June 18, 2021 at 11:59 PM ET. Applications must include a cover letter, resume, desired salary, and contact information for three professional references, of which one should be a supervisor. Please, no phone calls. The successful candidate for this position will be subject to a pre-employment background check.

Applications that are submitted without the required documents are considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

The Institute for Palestine Studies-USA is committed to a work culture of inclusion and connectedness with the wider world. We value individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, and the range of talents that employees invest in their work. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or age.

  • ALSO BY THIS AUTHOR

    • Long Form Podcast Episode 8: Resigning the State Department Over Gaza With Hala Rharrit

      Long Form Podcast Episode 8: Resigning the State Department Over Gaza With Hala Rharrit

      In this episode of Long Form, Hala Rharrit discusses the factors that led her to resign from the US State Department, the mechanisms by which institutional corruption and ideological commitments of officials and representatives ensure US support for Israel, and how US decision-makers consistently violate international law and US laws/legislation. Rharrit also addresses the Trump administration’s claim that South Africa is perpetrating genocide against the country’s Afrikaaner population, and how this intersects with the US-Israeli campaign of retribution against South Africa for hauling Israel before the ICJ on charges of genocide.

    • Emergency Teach-In — Israel’s Profound Existential Crisis: No Morals or Laws Left to Violate!

      Emergency Teach-In — Israel’s Profound Existential Crisis: No Morals or Laws Left to Violate!

      The entire globe stands behind Israel as it faces its most intractable existential crisis since it started its slow-motion Genocide in 1948. People of conscience the world over are in tears as Israel has completely run out of morals and laws to violate during its current faster-paced Genocide in Gaza. Israelis, state and society, feel helpless, like sitting ducks, as they search and scramble for an inkling of hope that they might find one more human value to desecrate, but, alas, their efforts remain futile. They have covered their grounds impeccably and now have to face the music. This is an emergency call for immediate global solidarity with Israel’s quest far a lot more annihilation. Please lend a helping limb.

    • Long Form Podcast Episode 7: Think Tanks and Manufactuing Consent with Mandy Turner (4 June)

      Long Form Podcast Episode 7: Think Tanks and Manufactuing Consent with Mandy Turner (4 June)

      In this episode, Mandy Turner discusses the vital role think tanks play in the policy process, and in manufacturing consent for government policy. Turner recently published a landmark study of leading Western think tanks and their positions on Israel and Palestine, tracing pronounced pro-Israel bias, where the the key role is primarily the work of senior staff within these institutions, the so-called “gatekeepers.”

Past is Present: Settler Colonialism Matters!

On 5-6 March 2011, the Palestine Society at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London will hold its seventh annual conference, "Past is Present: Settler Colonialism in Palestine." This year`s conference aims to understand Zionism as a settler colonial project which has, for more than a century, subjected Palestine and Palestinians to a structural and violent form of destruction, dispossession, land appropriation and erasure in the pursuit of a new Jewish Israeli society. By organizing this conference, we hope to reclaim and revive the settler colonial paradigm and to outline its potential to inform and guide political strategy and mobilization.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is often described as unique and exceptional with little resemblance to other historical or ongoing colonial conflicts. Yet, for Zionism, like other settler colonial projects such as the British colonization of Ireland or European settlement of North America, South Africa or Australia, the imperative is to control the land and its resources -- and to displace the original inhabitants. Indeed, as conference keynote speaker Patrick Wolfe, one of the foremost scholars on settler colonialism and professor at La Trobe University in Victoria, Australia, argues, "the logic of this project, a sustained institutional tendency to eliminate the Indigenous population, informs a range of historical practices that might otherwise appear distinct--invasion is a structure not an event."[i]

Therefore, the classification of the Zionist movement as a settler colonial project, and the Israeli state as its manifestation, is not merely intended as a statement on the historical origins of Israel, nor as a rhetorical or polemical device. Rather, the aim is to highlight Zionism`s structural continuities and the ideology which informs Israeli policies and practices in Palestine and toward Palestinians everywhere. Thus, the Nakba -- whether viewed as a spontaneous, violent episode in war, or the implementation of a preconceived master plan -- should be understood as both the precondition for the creation of Israel and the logical outcome of Zionist settlement in Palestine.

Moreover, it is this same logic that sustains the continuation of the Nakba today. As remarked by Benny Morris, “had he [David Ben Gurion] carried out full expulsion--rather than partial--he would have stabilised the State of Israel for generations.”[ii] Yet, plagued by an “instability”--defined by the very existence of the Palestinian nation--Israel continues its daily state practices in its quest to fulfill Zionism’s logic to maximize the amount of land under its control with the minimum number of Palestinians on it. These practices take a painful array of manifestations: aerial and maritime bombardment, massacre and invasion, house demolitions, land theft, identity card confiscation, racist laws and loyalty tests, the wall, the siege on Gaza, cultural appropriation, and the dependence on willing (or unwilling) native collaboration and security arrangements, all with the continued support and backing of imperial power. 

Despite these enduring practices however, the settler colonial paradigm has largely fallen into disuse. As a paradigm, it once served as a primary ideological and political framework for all Palestinian political factions and trends, and informed the intellectual work of committed academics and revolutionary scholars, both Palestinians and Jews.

The conference thus asks where and why the settler colonial paradigm was lost, both in scholarship on Palestine and in politics; how do current analyses and theoretical trends that have arisen in its place address present and historical realities? While acknowledging the creativity of these new interpretations, we must nonetheless ask: when exactly did Palestinian natives find themselves in a "post-colonial" condition? When did the ongoing struggle over land become a "post-conflict" situation? When did Israel become a "post-Zionist" society? And when did the fortification of Palestinian ghettos and reservations become "state-building"?

In outlining settler colonialism as a central paradigm from which to understand Palestine, this conference re-invigorates it as a tool by which to analyze the present situation. In doing so, it contests solutions which accommodate Zionism, and more significantly, builds settler colonialism as a political analysis that can embolden and inform a strategy of active, mutual, and principled Palestinian alignment with the Arab struggle for self-determination, and indigenous struggles in the US, Latin America, Oceania, and elsewhere.

Such an alignment would expand the tools available to Palestinians and their solidarity movement, and reconnect the struggle to its own history of anti-colonial internationalism. At its core, this internationalism asserts that the Palestinian struggle against Zionist settler colonialism can only be won when it is embedded within, and empowered by, the broader Arab movement for emancipation and the indigenous, anti-racist and anti-colonial movement--from Arizona to Auckland.

SOAS Palestine Society invites everyone to join us at what promises to be a significant intervention in Palestine activism and scholarship.

For over 30 years, SOAS Palestine Society has heightened awareness and understanding of the Palestinian people, their rights, culture, and struggle for self-determination, amongst students, faculty, staff, and the broader public. SOAS Palestine society aims to continuously push the frontiers of discourse in an effort to make provocative arguments and to stimulate debate and organizing for justice in Palestine through relevant conferences, and events ranging from the intellectual and political impact of Edward Said`s life and work (2004), international law and the Palestine question (2005), the economy of Palestine and its occupation (2006), the one state (2007), 60 Years of Nakba, 60 Years of Resistance (2009), and most recently, the Left in Palestine (2010).

For more information on the SOAS Palestine Society 7th annual conference, Past is Present: Settler Colonialism in Palestine: www.soaspalsoc.org

SOAS Palestine Society Organizing Collective is a group of committed students that has undertaken to organize annual academic conferences on Palestine since 2003.

 


[i] Patrick Wolfe, Settler Colonialism and the Transformation of Anthropology: The Politics and Poetics of an Ethnographic Event, Cassell, London, p. 163

[ii] Interview with Benny Morris, Survival of the Fittest, Haaretz, 9. January 2004, http://cosmos.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IPSC/php/art.php?aid=5412