ACLS Welcomes Five Scholarly Associations to Its Federation of Member Societies

NEW YORK, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), a leading voice for the creation, advancement, and circulation of knowledge in the humanities and social sciences, is pleased to announce five new members of its federation of professional academic societies. 

On Friday, April 24, 2026, the ACLS Board of Directors approved the African Literature Association, the Berkshire Conference of Women Historians, the Council for European Studies, the Omohundro Institute of Early American History & Culture, and the Society for American Archaeology as its newest member societies.

"We are excited to grow our federation of academic societies with the addition of these highly respected organizations," said ACLS Director of Member Society Relations Camilo Villalpando. "As we navigate a time of increasing uncertainty and attacks on the integrity of our fields of study, a strong community is essential. Our network of leaders connect and share practices and ideas and provide an unrivaled support system that enables us all to promote vibrant academic communities."

The addition of these new member organizations makes ACLS a national federation of 86 academic societies, representing more than 300,000 scholars, faculty, and students of humanistic fields of study in the United States.

Each ACLS member society is an independent, not-for-profit organization focused on promoting the research, publications, education, and impact of the distinct fields of study they represent. Member societies are represented through the Conference of Executive Officers and the Executive Committee of the Delegates, whose respective chairs serve as ex-officio members of the ACLS Board of Directors. ACLS hosts regular gatherings for both groups and twice yearly in person meetings for society executive directors that include workshops on responding to the most urgent needs facing academic societies today.

Learn more about our work with societies and membership.

SOURCE American Council of Learned Societies