June 6-8, 2024
The WCSA 2024 Conference will happen Friday-Saturday, June 7-8 at SUNY Old Westbury, Long Island, New York, and on Zoom, Thursday, June 6. Thanks to Dr. Peter Ikeler and the Conference Organizing Committee!
Read the Call for Presentations (CFP) here! Deadline to submit: December 15, 2023. Extended to Jan. 2, 2024.
The CFP includes links to join WCSA or renew thorough the member portal, and embedded forms to submit your Proposal and apply for WCSA’s Travel Grant or Young Scholars & Activists Award.
Information on submitting awards for new work that are announced at our Conference can be found here: Call for Awards.
Don’t miss it!
Find information for WCSA24 Conference-Participants here: WCSA24 News
Future Conferences
Dec 2025: The WCSA conference will happen at the University of Technology, Sydney, Australia, and on Zoom. Thanks to Dr. Sarah Attfield!
June 2026: The WCSA conference will happen at the University of Wyoming, US, and on Zoom. Thanks to Dr. Scott Henkel!
Past Conferences
2023 Conference: Chicago, Illinois & Zoom
From June 15-17, 2023, WCSA held a Symposium on Class Cultures and a Leadership Retreat at the University of Illinois, Chicago. The conference was co-sponsored by the UIC United Faculty union and the UIC History department. A parallel Zoom track with synchronous sessions was also offered. Here is the call for presentations, “WCSA 2023 Symposium & Leadership Retreat” and the program(s).
Our lunchtime plenary featured UIC United Faculty sharing their recent strike victory and how they used art as part of their struggle. Speaker Therese Quinn opened their session with the 2 1/2 min. video below featuring the president of the Chicago Teachers Union, Stacy Davis Gates at their picket line and union power. The video was produced by UIC UF member, Josh Radinsky.
radinskymusic.wordpress.com
2022 Conference: Corvallis, Oregon & Zoom
In June 2022, the conference was held primarily at Oregon State University which also broadcast some panels via Zoom. This was the first Western U.S. conference, and the theme was Class Dynamics at Work. Click here to view the conference program. Watch a 1-minute video recap below.
2021 Conference: Zoom & Youngstown, Ohio
In Spring 2021, the Conference was held online with the organizing committee working transnationally to produce an interactive website and Zoom program: WCSA 2021. Originally, the Conference was meant to be held at Youngstown State University where the Center for Working-Class Studies was founded, marking its 25th anniversary. The Center is a primary root from which the Working-Class Studies Association grew. Due to the pandemic, only a small group met in Youngstown. However, the inaugural WCSA Zoom conference was well attended and included participants from geographically distant locales. It opened doors for new ways of thinking about placing class and community: the Conference theme was, Re-Placing Class: Community, Politics, Work, and Labor in a Changing World.
2019 Conference: Kent, England
In Fall 2019, the Conference was held at the University of Kent. This was the first time that the WCSA Conference was held outside of the US. See the Conference program and its fringe festival that included publicly oriented performance events. Here is the call for papers. The theme for 2019 was: Working-Class Studies: Beyond the Heartlands.
2018 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2018 WCSA Conference, Class at the Border: Migration, Confinement, and Immobility hosted by the Center for the Study of Inequalities, Social Justice, and Policy at Stony Brook University.
2017 Conference: Bloomington, Indiana
2017 WCSA Conference at Indiana University at Bloomington
2016 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2016 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2015 Conference: Georgetown, Washington DC
2015 Conference 2003 Proceedings Fighting Inequality: A Joint Conference of the Labor and Working-Class History Association and the WCSA at Georgetown University
2014 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2014 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2013 Conference: Madison, Wisconsin
2012 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2012 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2011 Conference: Chicago, Illinois
2011Working-Class Organization and Power at the University of Illinois‐Chicago
2010 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2010 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2009 Conference: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2009 Class Matters: WCSA Conference at the University of Pittsburgh
2008 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2008 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2007 Conference: St Paul, Minnesota
2007 Class Matters: Working Class Culture and Counter-Culture, WCSA Conference at Macalester College
2006 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2006 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2005 Conference: Youngstown, Ohio
2004 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2004 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2003 Conference: Youngstown, Ohio
2002 Conference: Stony Brook, New York
2002 How Class Works Conference at Stony Brook University
2001 Conference: Youngstown, Ohio
1999, ’97, ’95, ’93 Conferences: Youngstown, Ohio
Featured image, Long Island, NY, Tatiana Rodriguez, Unsplash