This periodical publication from the Graduate and Early Career Caucus of the History of Science Society highlights news and events — upcoming conferences, CFPs, and job postings — relevant to the history of science. Check out our page on the HSS website and join our WhatsApp group to stay up-to-date on all things GECC.

This first newsletter of 2026 includes a follow-up from last year’s Annual Meeting and information on the upcoming GECC elections.

Follow-Up on Annual Meeting Session “History of Science and the Trump Administration”

The below Google form is a virtual extension of the listening session organized at the HSS Annual Meeting in New Orleans and its online counterpart. It is an open forum to discuss how the current policy changes of the Trump administration are affecting the research, teaching, and public engagement of historians of science. From funding cuts to the impact of federally-defined “divisive concepts” on pedagogical practice, to a more general chilling of historical inquiry at the state or local level, we hope participants will share — vent! — their experiences. We would also like to hear from you about whether and how we might want to preserve this historical moment and the downstream effects of the U.S. government’s attack on STEM and higher education. What would an archive of the downstream, agnotological effects look like? Whose voices would it preserve, what materials would it include, what resources would be required, and what networks would it engage?

If you do not want want to contribute to this survey but do want to receive updates related to this initiative, please just add your email address and write N/A to the write-in questions.

Reminder: GECC Elections Next Week

Please join us to elect our new officers on January 20th, 2026, at 12 pm PST/2pm CST. See the below link to join.

If you have not already done so, please complete the below form to confirm your interest in GECC. Thank you to those who have already reached out to express interest! Anyone interested in learning more about GECC is welcome to join our January meeting… attending does not automatically commit you to a formal position ;)

If you are NOT able to attend our Jan. 20 meeting/elections, please email MaryKate Wolken OR the GECC address below with the following:

• Name, Graduate Scholar or Early Career Scholar status, and what you are interested in doing with GECC (committees you’re interested in, work you hope to contribute to, etc.)

We hope that you consider joining our team so that we can continue to provide (and hopefully grow) support for graduate and early career scholars, both during and beyond the annual conference. We are particularly hoping to build out our programming during the year, and we look forward to having new team members.

See below for extended details about GECC positions…

GECC’s Goals and Committees:

GECC’s goal is to foster a welcoming community where graduate students and early-career scholars in HSS can meet, exchange ideas, and learn about navigating the profession. As an official caucus of the History of Science Society (HSS), GECC offers mentoring programs and organizes sessions and social events at the annual meetings of the HSS. Further, we hope to grow our programming online throughout the year. The officers are graduate students and early career members of HSS, who serve as liaisons between the standing committees of HSS and the student/early career constituency.

GECC leadership currently consists of two co-chairs positions and three committees within GECC: Communications, Diversity, and Mentorship. There is no limit to the number of committee officers. Historically, there have been 3-4 people per committee. There is also no limit to the number of years one can serve on a committee as long as you remain a graduate student or early career scholar. The term is 1 year with elections every year in January. 

• Chairs: The Caucus has two co-chairs who serve staggered two year terms. The terms are staggered so that when the senior co-chair rotates out after their second year, the junior co-chair has a year of experience as a new co-chair is elected into their two year term (and so on and so forth).

Claire Votava will be rotating out as the senior GECC co-chair, and MaryKate Wolken will be staying on for her second year of her co-chair term (we will elect a new co-chair on January 20th). 

• Communications Officers distribute the newsletter and keep the online outlets current with recent information on GECC and its programs and events–especially those related to the HSS Annual Meeting. GECC posts information on our page on the HSS website, and relevant social media accounts.

• Diversity Officers represent the DEI concerns of members and coordinate with the Committee on Diversity and Inclusivity (CoDI) to provide accountability and resources for the society’s DEI initiatives. This involves attending monthly CoDI meetings as ex-officio members and organizing events like the GECC listening session.

• Mentorship Program Officers focus on mentorship and advocacy for our members. We usually organize 2-3 events for the annual conference (recently the Tacit Knowledge and Professionalization panels, as well as the Women’s Mentorship Event). The officers solicit and coordinate participation from faculty members as mentors and graduate students & early careerists as mentees for these events, which can be co-sponsored and co-organized with other caucuses (for example, the Women’s Mentorship event has in recent years been co-sponsored by the Women, Trans, and Binary Caucus).

GECC WhatsApp Community

The GECC WhatsApp Community includes all the latest news and events from the Caucus and offers a venue for coordinating conference panels, housing, and travel.

That’s all from the GECC Communications Committee for now. Click below to submit your own announcements for next month’s newsletter.