The Ball State English Department is thrilled to present Practical Criticism Midwest (PCM) for the 2026-2027 academic year. This year’s conference will take place at the Pittenger Student Center on Friday, March 12th, 2027. While this conference is hosted by the English department, students of all majors and fields of study are invited to submit a proposal. PCM will be presented as a hybrid event in order to foster the inclusion and accessibility of our presenters and attendees.
The Spring 2027 theme is Holding Power and Determining Meaning: Censorship, Rebellion, and Creation. With this theme, we invite students to explore the multifaceted concept of “meaning making” and its relationship to power, both in terms of power that can be wielded against speakers, and power that can be reclaimed by speakers. How do we, as social, collaborative, and expressive creatures, make sense of both ourselves and the world around us? How do we navigate modes and methods of creation in the face of phenomena like censorship, that could limit or seek to censure that creation? We encourage presenters to identify and explore their own relationships to the act of determining meaning and to show these using narratives and experiences in a variety of disciplines and media.
We invite both undergraduate and graduate level students to submit a proposal to present their scholarly work, including creative pieces, research, and educational resources. Students will participate in a panel, and proposals may be submitted individually or as a group. All presentations are 15 minutes in length with a Q&A session following panels moderated by a committee member. Students can also submit visual art pieces that will be displayed.