Calls for Nominations: Society Editor-in-Chief, Journal and Magazine Editors

Editor‐in‐Chief of SSSA

The SSSA Editor‐in‐Chief is expected to provide visionary leadership for Society publications and the scholarly communication of its members as well as implementing the editorial policies established by the Society’s Board of Directors. 

The market landscape and business models for scholarly communication are undergoing rapid evolution, and Society publishing needs to embrace the transition. Drivers of the evolution include funding body mandates, federal open science regulations, open science adoption, and open access business models. The pressure for publication and curation of data sets coupled with improved knowledge translation is accelerating the changes in publication. Increased pressure for transparency, repeatability, and reproducibility in science is also emerging. The Editor‐in‐Chief should be well versed in or eager to learn about current trends in scholarly communication and excited about opportunities to innovate to ensure the sustainability of our publications while growing the profile and impact of our membership’s science products.

Editor of CFTM, Editor of JPR, Editor of AEL, and Editor of TPPJ

Candidates for the four open positions of Editor of Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management, Editor of Journal of Plant Registrations, Editor of Agricultural and Environmental Letters, and Editor of The Plant Phenome Journal are expected to be visionary as the publication ecosystem is experiencing rapid changes in scientific content delivery as well as publishing models. In addition, there is fierce competition for authors and readers.

Position Duties

Journal Editors will: 

• provide leadership for the journal, promote scholarship in the science targeted by the journal, and promote manuscript submission and peer review to researchers and authors; 
• act as ambassador of the journal to international communities to raise the quality of science; 
• collaborate in the development, implementation, and communication of vision for the journal; 
• be responsible for maintaining the journal’s quality content standards, objectives, and metrics; 
• strive to advance scientific publishing to ensure the high standards of reliability, accessibility, openness, and integrity of the scientific enterprise; 
• promote broad ethical and communal interests of science in support of Society diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives; 
• appoint associate editors to the journal’s editorial board on behalf of the Society’s president; and 

• serve as a member of the Societies’ Editorial Affairs, Policies, and Practices Committee among other responsibilities.

  

Nomination Procedure and Deadline

The SSSA Editor‐in‐Chief and journal Editor positions are appointed by the Society’s president upon confirmation by its Board of Directors. Interested persons may nominate themselves or be nominated by an active member of ASA, CSSA, or SSSA. Appointees must be a Society member during their term. Candidates should email (i) a vita including a list of previous editorial experience and (ii) a vision statement for the position not exceeding one page. Applications for all positions are due no later than June 1, 2024.

Magazine Regional Editors

There are four Regional Editor positions open for Crops & Soils magazine—(i) West Region, (ii) Pacific Northwest Region, (iii) Northern Great Plains Region, and (iv) Eastern Canada Region. Candidates for these positions should be passionate about serving the practicing professional community and getting the best research‐based practices down to the farm level. They must either work or have experience working in the regions for which they apply to serve. 

Crops & Soils magazine is distributed to more than 14,000 readers, most of which are Certified Crop Advisers (CCAs). By serving as a Regional Editor for this magazine, you could have a huge potential impact on acres across North America as CCAs are estimated to be involved in advising somewhere between half and three‐quarters of the crop production acres in the U.S.!

Position Duties

Magazine Regional Editors will: 

• represent a region on the board; 
• provide five or six stories or story ideas each year for the magazine that are of interest to readers in the geographic region they represent and/or of general interest across North America; and 
• provide feedback to magazine staff or answer technical questions from time to time.