June 1, 2014 Dear College Language Association Members: On behalf of the host committee at Southern Methodist University, I would like to invite you to the 75th CLA Convention in Dallas, Texas! The theme for the convention is Expanding Frontiers: Freedom, Resistance, and Transnational Identities in Languages and Literatures. We have selected the Sheraton Dallas in downtown for its recently updated, modern amenities, central location, and easy accessibility from the area’s two major airports, Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW) and Love Field (DAL). By late this summer, both airports will be served by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) light rail system; the Sheraton is adjacent to the St. Paul and Pearl/Arts District Stations, which allow easy access to downtown Dallas’s many attractions. We invite and encourage you to explore the Dallas Visitors’ Bureau’s link for our event at http://www.visitdallas.com/includes/events/index.cfm?action=displayDetail&eventid=26055. You can also discover facts about Dallas by visiting http://www.cox.smu.edu/web/guest/dallas-facts. Within a few blocks of the hotel are Dallas’s major museums, including the Dallas Museum of Art, the Nasher Sculpture Center, and the Winspear Opera House. Downtown’s free D-Link bus system and historic McKinney Avenue trolley put within easy reach all major museums, Klyde Warren Park, the Bishop Arts District, Convention Center, and the restaurants of Uptown and the West End. You might also wish to take a short ride on DART to historic Fair Park, home to Dallas’s African American Museum (http://www.aamdallas.org/) and the State Fair of Texas, where some of Harlem Renaissance-era painter Aaron Douglas’s work was featured in the controversial 1936 State Fair. See: http://ameripics.wordpress.com/2013/11/07/texas-invites-the-world/. On Thursday evening, April 9, we invite you to a reception hosted by Southern Methodist University on our main campus. The reception, of course, is included in your registration, and will include food, beverages, and fine entertainment worthy of Dallas’s rich culture. On Saturday, after the panels have ended, we hope you will spend some time in Dallas to visit some of the attractions listed above, among many others, to enjoy the city’s fine dining, and to strengthen connections with friends and colleagues you met at the convention! We encourage you to see the CLA website for easy-to-use links to helpful websites related to the convention. Please email me at [email protected] with any questions you might have. We look forward to seeing you! As a reminder, the deadline for paper and panel submissions for the 2015 convention is September 15, 2014. All presenters should have paid their membership dues by February 1, 2015. Sincerely,

Darryl Dickson-Carr Associate Professor of English Chairperson, Local Host Committee