by Christina Seymour

After John Ernest’s departure from the WVU English Department, there is a new man behind the inner-workings of Colson Hall, and he is none other than our very own Jim Harms. This is the first time a creative writing faculty member has served as chair at WVU! Knowing that Jim has been an active member of the department for 19 years—founding the MFA program, involving himself in administrative processes and creating courses, earning many distinct teaching and writing awards, publishing nine books of poetry, and always being a positive presence on campus—we know we are in good hands.

Of his long-term devotion to the dwellers of Colson (formerly Stansbury) Hall, Jim says, “I really feel a sense of duty and loyalty to my colleagues. I’ve made a lot of good friends here, and I’m very proud of what we’ve created together. That sense of responsibility provides me with a lot of motivation to do a good job. I value the interpersonal aspect of being a chair, the importance of building and maintaining good relationships with lots of different people.” As evidenced by his sense of pride, Jim is both grounded and easygoing enough to manage the demands of work and life that drive most of us to our vices. I think Jim’s secret is that he wouldn’t call it “managing” but “balancing”; and he wouldn’t call them “demands” but “duties” and “joys.”

Some of the concrete changes I’ve noticed since Jim has become chair are frequent updates on faculty and student achievement, e-mails that encourage spirit (t-shirts!) and that kindly remind us to get on the ball (driver training!), and—drumroll—the addition of doorstops on Colson classroom doors. Our trashcans will no longer be bent down the middles from propping open doors! (Don’t worry though, as per MFA tradition, trashcans may still be used as podiums.) Demonstrating his common sense approach to problem-solving, Jim explains, “How did we go so long without those doorstops, when all we had to do was ask?”

Indeed, Jim says his favorite part of the day to day job is “finding ways of making everybody’s life a little easier in the context of their work within the department.” But it’s not just the little things, he emphasizes: “the big picture is just as important, and one of the things that makes any group of people engaged in a shared enterprise happy is a sense of ownership, the feeling that they have a stake in that bigger picture. So helping the department plan for the future in a way that allows everyone to see his or her role in that future is crucial.” Well said.

According to The Role of the Modern English Department Chair, great chairs possess the qualities of “honesty, interpersonal skills, problem-solving, a sense of humor” and the abilities to “make independent decisions and maintain an open information policy.”

Sensible, honest, rational, funny, decisive, friendly—sounds like Jim, doesn’t it? His example gives me hope that a laidback appreciation for life does not have to be sacrificed for incredible productivity in the workplace. I’m not sure how he remains so calm, but I bet all you have to do is ask.