More than 1,100 Jewish studies scholars, including professors, historians, and Ph.D. students, will make their way to the nation’s capital this weekend to learn collaboratively, discover new ideas, and open new pathways in their scholarly work.

Organization: Association for Jewish Studies

Conference: 49th Annual Conference

Venue: Marriott Marquis

City: Washington, DC

AJS 2017 attendees will get to learning on Sunday morning with a block of education sessions and workshops. That evening, plenary speaker Daniel Kurtzer—a professor of Middle Eastern policy studies at Princeton University and a former diplomat and ambassador to both Egypt and Israel—will take the stage. He’ll discuss current dilemmas that confront Israel, American Jews, and U.S. policy. Also noteworthy on the agenda:

More learning opportunities. To honor its ongoing commitment to provide professional development to its members, AJS added an extra bundle of programming called “The Professor Is In.” The sessions will hit on topics that members requested, such as the art of public speaking, tips for academic book publishing, and writing productivity.

Get connecting. To encourage attendees to use the conference’s new mobile app, AJS is giving away two prizes to the user who makes the most connections or “handshakes” with it. The attendee with the most connections by the end of the plenary session on Sunday will get a free 2018 conference registration, while the person with the most at the end of the conference will get registration plus two nights at the conference hotel and a one-year membership.

Make the most of the meeting. On its “Art of Conferencing” webpage, AJS gives attendees and presenters a number of resources to help make the meeting experience more valuable. Topics include how to give an exciting talk, interviewing at a conference, and how to pitch your book at a conference.

Head to Facebook and Twitter (#AJS17) for other meeting details.

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