Hosted by the East Asian Studies Center at
The Ohio State University
October 10-12, 2025 (in person)
The East Asian Studies Center is pleased to host the 74th Annual Meeting of the Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs (MCAA), October 10-12, 2025.
Open to participants across the world, the Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs (MCAA) is an annual conference bringing together scholars of Asian studies from the US Midwest Region (North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin).
MCAA seeks to promote Asian Studies at the university, secondary, and primary levels. Our mission is to encourage scholarly interchange between Asianists in the American Midwest with colleagues from other parts of the US and around the world.
Conference Venue
The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH.
Submissions
The deadline for paper and panel submissions is May 31, 2025. Applicants will be notified of results by June 30, 2025.
Registration
Coming soon!
Early bird (before Aug. 30, 2025) prices for faculty/scholars will be $180, and for students, $100.
Ohio State faculty, scholars, and students will be able to register for free (early bird).
All registrants will receive a year membership to MCAA ($30 value).
Regular registration will be open from September 1-October 12, 2025.
Prices for faculty/scholars will be $240, and $150 for students. The regular rate for Ohio State students, faculty, and scholars will be $30.
Communications
Email East Asian Studies Center Assistant Director Chris White (white.3941@osu.edu) with questions.
Conference Venue
The 2025 Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs will be held in person from Friday, October 10 through Sunday, October 12, at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Some events will be held in the Blackwell Inn and Pfahl Conference Center, but most panels will be held in campus classrooms.
Conference Host and Sponsors
The East Asian Studies Center (EASC) at The Ohio State University is a major hub and catalyst for original thought and action in the study of East Asia.
With unique expertise and domestic and international partnerships, EASC continually challenges paradigms to further knowledge, increase understanding, and inspire life-long learning of East Asia and its impact on the world.
MCAA Annual Prizes and Awards
The Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs offers three prizes for papers written by students - the Percy Buchanan and David Plath Graduate Prize for graduate students, and the Sidney DeVere Brown Prize and the Mikiso Hane Prize for undergraduate students. MCAA also offers the Jackson and Caroline Bailey Public Service Award for outstanding work in the advancement of Asian Studies. These prizes are awarded at the MCAA Annual Meeting held each fall.
MCAA Vice President George Pati is the prize coordinator for 2025. Please contact Professor George Pati with any questions about the undergraduate or graduate paper prizes; he can be reached at george.pati@valpo.edu.
The deadline for submission is Saturday, May 31, 2025.
The 2025 awardees will be recognized at the MCAA Banquet on Saturday, October 11, 2025.
Submission Requirements for All Papers
Graduate and undergraduate students may compete for these prizes if they attend a college or university in the following states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wisconsin. The decisions of the judges are final.
Percy Buchanan and David Plath Graduate Prizes
Percy Buchanan and David Plath Graduate Prizes of $100 each, plus travel expenses of up to $100, will be awarded for the best original graduate student research papers. Papers should be no longer than 35 pages double spaced including the bibliography. Students will have an opportunity to present winning papers at the conference. There is one prize for each of the four main AAS regions: China and Inner Asia, Northeast Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Graduate paper prize winners will receive a one-year complimentary membership in the Association for Asian Studies, and one of the winners will be nominated to present at the AAS annual conference (usually taking place in late March of that academic year) on the Council of Conferences designated panel. To submit your paper, please visit the Percy Buchanan and David Plath Graduate Prizes Submission Portal.
Sidney DeVere Brown Prize and the Mikiso Hane Prize
The Sidney DeVere Brown Prize, and the Mikiso Hane Prize are awarded to the two best original papers composed by undergraduates. Prizes of $100, plus travel expenses of up to $100, are awarded to the authors of the winning papers. Paper submissions should be between 10 and 30 pages double-spaced and must be accompanied by a letter from the student’s professor or advisor confirming that the paper was written while the author was an undergraduate. Papers will be reviewed by scholars in the appropriate field. Undergraduate winners have the opportunity to publish their papers in The Wittenberg East Asian Studies Journal. To submit your paper, please visit the Sidney DeVere Brown Prize and the Mikiso Hane Prize Submission Portal.
Jackson and Caroline Bailey Public Service Award
This award commemorates the lifetime exemplary service to MCAA by Professors Jackson Bailey and Caroline Bailey. It recognizes and honors those members of MCAA who have assiduously contributed to outreach, extra-curricular instruction, and public service in their communities. Successful nominees should have made efforts beyond the normal and expected contributions of scholarship and teaching in order to bring Asian Studies to the community at large. Such activities might include: the creation of teaching materials to be used by K-12 teachers; production of Asian-centered audio-visual materials; work with sister city and/or citizen to citizen activities aimed at intercultural exchanges; working for student or faculty exchanges with Asian Universities; arranging Asian film series, community lectures, book clubs, children’s story hours, museum exhibitions, and public discussions. In short, this award for lifetime achievement honors those who have devoted time and treasure to public service outside the academy.
Submission requirements
Both nominees and nominators must be regular members of MCAA at the time of nomination. The nomination must be made in writing and should include a summary of the exemplary activities that make the nominee worthy of the award. To apply please visit our Jackson and Caroline Bailey Public Service Award Submission Portal.
There are several accommodation options on or near Ohio State's Columbus campus:
Group Rates for MCAA
The Blackwell Inn and Pfahl Conference Center
2110 Tuttle Park Place
Columbus, Ohio 43210
Phone: (614) 247-4000
Group code: MCAAOCT25
Use the above link embedded in the group code when making reservations. If you visit the website without using the link, please use the code (MCAAOCT25) for the group rate. If you are calling to make reservations, mention that you are coming for the MCAA event to receive the group rate.
Other Accommodation Options
Mariott Columbus OSU
3100 Olentangy River Road
Columbus, Ohio 43202
Phone: (614)-447-9777
Hampton Inn and Suites Columbus Downtown
501 North High Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Phone: (614)-559-2000
Hilton Columbus Downtown
402 North High Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Phone: (614)-384-8600
MCAA 2025 will take place in on The Ohio State University's main campus in Columbus, Ohio
Air Travel
The closest airport is John Glenn Columbus International Airport (CMH). This is the primary commercial airport serving the Columbus metropolitan area. There are a variety of public transport options to and from John Glenn Columbus Airport shared below.
Taxi & Ride Hailing
Ridesharing pick-up, such as Uber and Lyft are available. After reserving your ride, go to the arrivals level (level 1 of the terminal), cross the Arrivals drive to the ground transportation area, and stand between the columns to the right.
Taxis are available on the ground transportation level.
Public Transit
Columbus Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) Bus Line
Visit the COTA website to see route schedule, maps and fares to ride the bus. Download the Transit App to pay for buses easily.
Parking
More information coming soon.
For additional public transit available in Columbus, visit the Experience Columbus transportation page.
The 74th Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs (MCAA 2025)
October 10-12, 2025 (in person)
The Ohio State University | Columbus, OH
The East Asian Studies Center at The Ohio State University is pleased to host the 74th Annual Meeting of the Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs (MCAA), October 10-12, 2025.
We welcome proposals for panels, roundtables, individual papers, and workshops from all disciplines focusing on East and Inner Asia, Northeast Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Asian Diaspora, as well as comparative, inter-Asian, and global Asia topics. We also welcome scholars and students from all regions. Faculty, graduate students, undergraduate students and independent scholars are encouraged to share their work, receive feedback, and network at the conference.
MCAA also awards several student prizes at the graduate and undergraduate levels. More information about the submission and deadlines for these prizes is available under Prizes and Awards tab.
This year’s MCAA will consist of in-person sessions only. All speakers must be present at the in-person session during the scheduled time.
- Individual Papers: Proposals should include (1) Presenter's name, affiliation, position, and contact information, including email address, and (2) Paper title and abstract (200 words max.).
- Panels and Roundtables: Proposals should include (1) a list of participants, their paper titles, their affiliations, their positions, and their contact information, including email addresses, and (2) A panel summary (1000 words max.) that includes a brief description of each paper and makes clear the connection between the papers.
- Workshops: Proposals should include (1) a list of participants, their affiliations and positions (2) title and abstract for the workshop (200 words max.) that includes goals and format of the workshop.
For questions about the call for proposals, please contact the MCAA 2025 Program Committee at easc@osu.edu. The submission portal is open until May 31, and results will be announced by June 30.
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Select one of their free experiential trails, like the Columbus Coffee Trail or the Short North Art Trail, for a self-guided themed tour of the city.
In no time at all, you’ll see why Columbus has been named a Top 10 Best Big City in the U.S., One of the Best Food Cities in the U.S. and One of the Friendliest Cities in the U.S. by Condé Nast Traveler’s 2024 Readers’ Choice Awards.
Some popular attractions in Columbus include:
