Membership

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In December 1938, a group of young academics attending the MLA convention in New York took on the biggest name in their field—the MLA. They chose to forge a new path by organizing into the College English Association and offering a voice to “the college English teachers of America.” Their aim was to upend the scholar-teacher dynamic by recognizing teaching as paramount. Today, more than eight decades later, the CEA continues in that same spirit.  At our core, we strive to meet these goals through two venues: our Annual CEA Conference and our journal, The CEA Critic.  

In the 80 years since its founding, the CEA has sought to balance the traditions of our profession and discipline with the inevitable—and sometimes unexpected—changes. Defined by our collegiality, the organization’s directors and members work in concert to keep the CEA a vibrant community and, as the CEA constitution suggests, to encourage the “humane” study of language and literature. 

Membership in CEA signals that you share in the values that have defined our organization for more than 85 years. Our members recognize that teaching is as important as scholarship to what we do as academics. Membership brings you into a community of teacher-scholars at all stages of their careers--from graduate students to emeritus faculty--working at all manner of institutions--from rural community colleges to urban universities--who value collegiality. 

Membership comes with a subscription to The CEA Critic, published by the prestigious Johns Hopkins University Press. JHUP also handles all CEA subscriptions. In addition, members attending the annual CEA conference are welcomed at the always-popular President's Reception.