May 1,2002

Dear Respected Colleague:

I hope that you are having a very productive and enjoyable academic year. The 44th Annual Conference for the American Association for Chinese Studies will be held at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles on October 26-27, 2002. Thanks to Professors Bill Parish and Yung-mei Tsai, the preliminary program will be posted at the AACS and USC websites soon. The Program Committee has extended the deadline till June 1, to accommodate more proposals for the conference. Professor Gordon Berger at USC is the local host for conference arrangements. Here is some important information regarding the conference.

1. Conference hotel and reservations: The conference rate for rooms at the Radisson Hotel Midtown Los Angeles is $120.00 for single, $130.00 for double per night plus tax. The hotel is nearby USC campus from the Figueroa Street. The block of rooms is being held for the period from October 24 through October 28, 2002. The conference rate only applies if rooms are reserved on or before September 24, 2002. So, please make your reservations by September 24. Here is the information for conference hotel;

CONFERENCE HOTEL (across the street from USC):

Radisson Hotel Midtown Los Angeles
3540 South Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90007
Telephone: (213) 748-4141, fax 213-746-3255.
National Reservation Line: (800) 333-3333
Reservations must be guaranteed by: September 24, 2002

The Host Committee also reserved an alternative motel at a special USC/conference rate of $79 (plus 14% tax) per double room. It is also two blocks north of campus; 5 minute walk to conference site. Vagabond Inn, 3101 S. Figueroa Street Los Angeles, CA. Tel: 213 746-1531 Fax: 213 746-9106

2. Ground transport: There is a Super-shuttle from the Los Angeles International Airport to the Radisson Hotel. It costs $13.00 one way. No reservation is necessary. Please tell the driver that you are heading for the Radisson Hotel nearby the USC campus.

3.Highlight of the 44th Annual Conference

a) Friday night reception: Please note that the TECO reception will be held at 6:30PM in the evening of October 25 at the Faculty Center on the USC campus. Please indicate on the registration form whether you and your spouse are planning to attend. The reception, which includes ample food and drink, is for registered participants and spouses only.

b) The conference luncheon will be hosted by the University of Southern California at the conference site on Saturday, October 26. Please indicate whether or not you and your spouse will attend this luncheon in the registration form.

c) Saturday night banquet: A banquet of 10 courses of authentic Chinese food will be held at Ocean Seafood Restaurant in Chinatown, Los Angeles. The cost is $ 25.00 per person. Seats are limited. Please reserve it as soon as possible.

d) The registration fee for the conference is $20 for AACS active members and $50 for others. Registration fee for spouse is $ 10.00. Non-active members can reactivate their AACS membership, and non-AACS members can apply for their AACS membership prior to the conference by paying the $30.00 membership fee to the AACS office.

Please check your membership status on the address label. The sign of Lf is for life member, 02 for the active member, all others are non-active members. A membership application form is enclosed for your convenience. You can also download it from the AACS website. Please fill it out and return it along with your membership dues to the AACS office as soon as possible. The Secretariat Office will send an updated membership list to USC to verify your membership status by October 1.

We will have the program brochure printed two weeks prior to the conference and available in a conference packet at the hotel on Friday and Saturday. It will be posted at AACS website at: www.ccny.cuny.edu/aacs. And the USC website at URL : http://www.usc.edu/aacs2002

If you need a letter of invitation or notification for the conference, please contact Prof. Yung- mei Tsai at Texas Tech University. His E-mail address is: ctymt@ttacs.ttu.edu. Meanwhile, please feel free to contact the Secretariat Office if you have any suggestions or comments regarding the services provided by your humble secretary.

I look forward to seeing you in Los Angeles. Have a nice summer.

Sincerely yours,

Peter Chow
Executive Secretary
AACS

Enclosures:
1) Preliminary program [HTML] [DOC]
2) AACS membership application form [HTML] [DOC]
3) Conference registration [HTML]