James McNelis: Curriculum Vitæ

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Last modified April 8, 2018.

Professor James I. McNelis III, Ph.D.
English, Wilmington College
Until June 2018:
Pyle Center Box 1261
1870 Quaker Way
Wilmington OH 45177
Office telephone 937.382.6661 x304

Internet: McNelis "at" aol dot com. Web: teachingtolkien.org/McNelis

• Education
• Academic Employment
• Teaching Interests and Abilities
• Publications
• Invited Lectures
• Awards
• Professional Activities
• Service
• Professional Memberships
• Languages
• Special Projects

Education:

• 2004:
• National Endowment for the Humanities Institute, "Anglo-Saxon England," at Trinity College, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
• 2000:
• Visiting Scholar audit in Graduate Linguistics, University of Pennsylvania
• National Endowment for the Humanities Seminar, "Constructing Subjects in Anglo-Saxon England," University of Notre Dame
• 1996: Ph.D., University of Washington, Seattle
• 1991: M.A., University of Washington
• 1982: B.A., University of California at Santa Cruz (Crown College)

Dissertation Title:

"The Uncollated Manuscripts of The Master of Game: Towards a New Edition"

Dissertation Director:

Professor Paul G. Remley

Academic Employment:

2018:

• Retired.

2011:

• Promoted to full professor.

2009:

• Taught an online graduate course on Tolkien's Lord of the Rings in the Humanities MA program at Tiffin University.
• Building a Youtube channel, TeachingTolkienOrg, to publish lectures by myself and others as podcasts.

2005:

• Founded the TeachingTolkien.org domain, a site devoted to the nonprofit teaching of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien at the collegiate level.

2003:

• Tenured at Associate rank.

2001-:

• Assistant Professor in English at Wilmington College, Ohio.

1997-2001:

• Assistant Professor in English (graduate faculty) at Kutztown University.

1995-:

• Editor-in-Chief of the journal Envoi: A Review Journal of Medieval Literature.
• Editor of the Medieval Science Web Page (this page historically received over 100,000 hits per annum before the evolution of the Web overtook it).

1995:

• Web Page Editor for the English graduate program at the University of Washington. Duties include conversion, programming, linking and maintenance of all web files relating to graduate studies in English.
• Instructor in the University of Washington Extension/Evening Degree Program: English 121 (composition/social issues); English 131 (composition); and English 281 (intermediate composition, including medieval literature).
• Also served as an instructor in medieval studies on the America Online computerized information service. This work consisted of receiving student queries by e-mail, and also conducting real-time discussions of academic subjects in online chat rooms.

1993-95:

• Instructor in various courses taught at the University of Washington, including composition and Evening Extension programs.

1991-93:

• Assistant Editor, Modern Language Quarterly. Work included copyediting; typesetting; all editorial office work including all editorial correspondence, telephone consultations, subscriber services, and budget management; supervision of a graduate student assistant; and conducting the transition to production of the journal by Duke University Press. On behalf of the journal I accepted the 1994 Runner-up Phoenix Award of the Council of Editors of Learned Journals at the Modern Language Association meeting in San Diego.

Ph.D. Examination Areas:

• Old English
• 18th-century novel
• Manuscript study and theory of editing, including application of computers to literary study and research

Teaching Interests and Abilities:

• Old and Middle English
• History of the English Language
• Linguistics
• Shakespeare
• Fantasy and film including J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, C.S. Lewis, and science fiction
• 18th- and 19th-c British literature
• History/development of modern computers
• Computer-assisted instruction, bibliography/database theory and design, hypertext. Would be interested in teaching an introductory/survey course on history and significance of the computer.
• Introductory composition/rhetoric
• Business communication (see non-academic work experience, below)
• Scientific and technical writing
• Desktop publishing

Courses Taught:

• ENG 101 Composition
• ENG 250 Varieties of Literature--content varies by semester: Fall 2001, "From Frankenstein to the Posthuman"; Spring 2002, "Time Travel Past and Future"; Fall 2002, to the present, "The Lord of the Rings"; Spring 2011, "Hiroshima"; Fall 2016, "Japanese Popular Culture."
• ENG 307I/now ENG 244 British Literature I
• ENG 331 Shakespeare
• ENG 330 Major British Authors
• ENG 435 Intro. to Linguistics and History of the English Language
• ENG 450 Senior Seminar: Critical Theory: Chaucer (Fall 2003)
• CA (Comm Arts) 350 Videogame Studies (Fall 2016)

Courses formerly taught at Kutztown:

• ENG 100 Principles of Literary Analysis
• ENG 113 British Literature I
• ENG 321 Early and Medieval Literature
• WRI 205 Scientific and Technical Writing
• WRI 207 Business Writing
• WRI 226 Desktop Publishing
• ENG 530 Chaucer. (graduate)
• ENG 534 Studies in Middle English Literature (graduate)

Master's Thesis Committees at Kutztown:

Jacante Jackson (1998)--Examination Committee Member
Jessica Parnell (1999-2000)--Director
Tim Bonner (1999-2000)--Member

Publications:

In Preparation:

• The Master of Game, the critical edition, to be published in the series Middle English Texts, edited by William Marx and published by Universitätsverlag C. Winter, Heidelberg.

In Print:

2015:

• "Teaching the Critical Debate over The Lord of the Rings," in Donovan, Leslie A., ed., Approaches to Teaching Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Other Works (Approaches to Teaching World Literature, the Modern Languages Association). Routledge: New York, 2015, pp. 44-49.

2007:

• Entries on "Arts and Crafts" and Piers Plowman in J.R R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. Ed. Michael D. C. Drout. Associate editors: Douglas A. Anderson, Marjorie Burns, Verlyn Flieger, and Thomas Shippey. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2007.

2006:

• " 'The tree took me up from the ground and carried me off': A Source for Tolkien's Ents in Ludvig Holberg's Journey of Niels Klim to the World Underground," in Tolkien Studies 3 (2006).

2001:

• "Parallel Manuscript Readings in the CT Retraction and Edward of Norwich's Master of Game," The Chaucer Review 36 (2001): 87-90.
• "The Goose and the Golden Egg: Intellectual Property in Higher Education," in Perspectives: The Bulletin of the American Historical Association (April 2001).

2000:

• "Index of Middle English Verse 3910.5: A Misidentified Envoy to The Master of Game," Notes and Queries 245 [n.s. 47] no. 2 (2000): 171-2.

1997:

• "A Greyhound Should Have 'Ears in the Manner of a Serpent': Bestiary Material in the Hunting Manuals Livre de chasse and The Master of Game," in L. A. J. R. Houwen, ed., Animals and the Symbolic in Mediaeval Art and Literature, in the series Mediaevalia Groningana.

1996:

• "The Pen Mightier than the Sword? Hrothgar's Hilt, Theory, and Philology," in M. J. Toswell, ed., "Doubt Wisely": A Festschrift in Honour of E. G. Stanley (London and New York: Routledge).

1994:

• "Layamon as Auctor," in Françoise le Saux, ed., The Text and Tradition of Layamon's Brut (Suffolk: D.S. Brewer):253-272.

1993:

• Founding editor of Ã�stel, a medieval/renaissance journal entirely student-run at the University of Washington. Solicited, typeset and arranged for printing of pieces by T. A. Shippey, A. S. G. Edwards, Gillian Overing, E. G. Stanley, Hoyt N. Duggan and others in Ã�stel 1 (1993).

1992:

• "Mailing List Management with HyperCard," Editor's Notes (journal of the Council of Editors of Learned Journals) 11 no. 2 (Fall 1992):17-22.

Invited Lectures:

Upcoming (have been invited for some time; dates TBD):

· Presentation to Stephen Yandell's undergraduate Tolkien class at Xavier University, Cincinnati.

· Guest lecture for the history program at Southern State Community College on the history and context of the Peasant's Revolt of 1381.

Completed:

2010:

· Presentation in spring term to the crosslisted graduate/undergrad. course, "Nature in the Middle Ages," of Lisa Kiser of the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at Ohio State University.

2007:

· Presentation on Tolkien and his reception in the 1960's, in a crosslisted graduate/undergrad. course, "The Two Rings: Wagner and Tolkien," at Cleveland State University on Feb. 22, 2007, at the invitation of Ed Haymes.

2006:

· Presentations on Jan. 23 and Feb. 8 to the crosslisted graduate/undergrad. course, "Nature in the Middle Ages," of Lisa Kiser of the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at Ohio State University.

2005:

· Presentation in the English Ph.D. program on the topic of interviewing for jobs in teaching-intensive small colleges, at Ohio University, Oct. 30th, at the invitation of Josephine Bloomfield.

Awards:

• 2004: National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute in Old English (Trinity College, University of Cambridge)
• 2000: National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar in Old English (The Medieval Institute at the University of Notre Dame)
• 1995-96: Nominated for Joan Webber Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award
• 1994: Western European Travel Grant
• 1993: W. W. Stout Fellowship
• 1992: David C. Fowler Travel Fellowship

Professional Activities:

2014:
Presenting on a discussion panel, "What is Ecocriticism, Anyway? (A Roundtable)," on the topic "Buton Folcscare: Royal and People's Preserves," at the 49th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies, May 8-11 2014, at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
Presented at a panel/demonstration of falconry at the "Game of Thrones Day" Conference, February 8th, at Ohio State University.

2012:
Sponsored a session, "Kindle-ing the Codex: Are e-Books the New Lindisfarne?", at the 47th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
Presented in a panel discussion, "J.R.R. Tolkien's Impact on Studying the Middle Ages," at the 28th annual conference of the Medieval Association of the Midwest, held at Xavier University in Cincinnati.

2010:

• Sponsored and organized the panel for a discussion roundtable, "The Bow and the Canon: Teaching Robin Hood in the Survey" for the 46th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2009:

• Presented a paper on a discussion roundtable, "Teaching Tolkien," for the 45th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2006:

• Sponsored a session, "From Papyrus to Parchment: Issues in the Management of Manuscript Collections," for the 40th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2005:

• Presented a paper on a discussion panel, "Teaching the Middle Ages in the Small Liberal Arts College," for the 40th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2004:

• Sponsored a session, "Is Just-in-Time Publishing Ready for Prime Time?" for the 39th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Presented a paper entitled " 'The Scripts and Tongues Have Become Dark': Using Tolkien to Teach Language," on a panel for the 39th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2003:

• Presented on a panel, "Where Are We Now: Rethinking Graduate Student Training," for the 38th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Sponsored a session, "The Future of the Academic Library," for the 38th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2002:

• Presented on a panel, "The Crisis of Credentialing in the Twenty-First-Century Academy: A Roundtable Discussion with Medieval Studies Journals and Acquisitions Editors," for the 37th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Sponsored a session, "Application of Emerging Technologies to Manuscript Studies" for the 37th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University.

2001:

• Sponsored a session, "Lights, Computer, Action: Multimedia Presentations for Teaching and Research" for the 36th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

2000:

• Read a paper, " 'As seith in his book Phebus': How Edward of York Translated Livre de chasse," in the session "The Translation Process in the Medieval Period" at The 35th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Sponsored a session, "Integration of Computer-Aided Teaching and Research," at The 35th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Participant in an e-seminar of the Twelfth International Congress (July 14-17) of the New Chaucer Society: "Computers in Research and Teaching."

1999:

• Sponsored a session, "There Can Be Only One: SGML, the Web Consortium, and the Browser Wars," at The 34th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.
• Read a paper at the above-mentioned conference session: "Can There Be Only One? Scholarship vs. Business on the Web."

1998:

• Sponsored a session, "The Book of (Virtual) Memory: Scholarly Applications of the 3-D Web," at The 33rd Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

1997:

• Sponsored a session, "Instructional Applications of the Java Language on the World-Wide Web," at the 32nd Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

1996:

• Presided at "Layamon's Brut: Current Critical Questions and Desired Studies," a session organized by Wayne Glowka for the 31st Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.

1995:

• "Bestiary Elements in the Hunting Manuals Livre de chasse and The Master of Game," paper read at the 30th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University.

1994:

• "Ahead on Points: A Reference to the Impeachment of Richard Lyons in Piers Plowman B," paper read at the 29th Annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University.
• "The Tournament as Drama," paper read at Medieval Association of the Pacific at Seattle, WA.

1992:

• "Layamon as Auctor in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," paper read at the First International Layamon Conference at Lausanne, Switzerland.

Professional Service

• State Board Member in various capacities, Ohio Conference of the AAUP, 2006-10
• President, Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), 2007-08
• Vice-President (non-CBU), Ohio Conference of the AAUP, 2006-07

Services to Wilmington College:

• Campuswide:
• Founder and President, Wilmington College Chapter of the AAUP (2005-)
• Assessment Committee, 2008- ("Recording clerk" [=secretary], 2008-present)
• Library and Technology Committee, 2009-10
• "Clerk" (Chair), Academic Policies Committee, 2004-05
• President's Advisory Council, 2004-5
• General Education Program Review Subcommittee, 2004-
• Internet Task Force, 2001
• Academic Computing Committee, 2001-2004
• Spanish Faculty Hiring Committee, 2001-2
• Religion and Philosophy Faculty Hiring Committee, 2002-3
• Faculty Development Committee, 2002
• "Orphan Programs" Committee, 2002-03

• English Program:
• Tenure-Track Hiring Committee, 2007-8
• Tenure-Track Hiring Committees, 2002 (two searches)
• Founding Sponsor, Delta Kappa Iota Chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honors society
• Founder and publisher, Essais,, the literary magazine of our chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honors society
• Editor, English program web page

Community Service:

2010:

• Presented an on-campus lecture in April, open and advertised to the community: "Reincarnation: Case Closed" (Indianapolis Police captain Robert Snow, ret.)

2009:

• Presented an on-campus lecture in March, open and advertised to the community: "Hooray for Bollywood! A lecture on Slumdog Millionaire and Indian Cinema" (Professor Alpana Sharma, Wright State).

2007:

• Presented an on-campus lecture in March, open and advertised to the community: "After Apocalypse: Nuclear Writings in Native America and Japan" (Dr. Kyoko Matsunaga)
• Presented an on-campus lecture in April, open to the community: two nights' presentation by Al Gore's Climate Project: their report on global warming. This also provided me the occasion to get Earth Day restored to the Wilmington College calendar, from which it had been absent for many years.

2003:

• Lectured on Lord of the Rings to Cincinnati chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism

2002:

• Visited Kings Mills High School and presented on Lord of the Rings to four class sections

2001-:

• Currently offering presentations on Lord of the Rings for local-area bookstore reading interest groups

1999-2000:

• Member, Marketing Board, Allentown Symphony Orchestra

1994:

• Hosted a classroom visitation by at-risk minority students from Yakima (Eastern Washington), as part of a project by the Office of Minority Affairs to enable them to observe college classes in session.

Professional Memberships:

• Medieval Academy, 1996-
• American Association of University Professors, 1995-
• New Chaucer Society, 1992-
• Delaware Valley Medieval Association, 1998-2001
• Medieval Association of the Pacific, 1992-1998
• International Society of Anglo-Saxonists, 1991-
• MLA, 1991-

Languages:

Premodern:

• Latin
• Old Norse
• Old High German
• Old Saxon
• Old English
• 14th c. French

Modern:

• Fair reading knowledge of French
• Moderate knowledge of German

Previous Non-Academic Employment:

Technical editor and systems/procedure writer:

• 1997: Contract Web Page Editor, Microsoft, Redmond WA
• 1989: Perkin-Elmer Corp., Hayward, CA
• 1987-88: Informix Software, Menlo Park, CA
• 1985-87: Benham Capital Management Group (mutual fund), Palo Alto, CA
• 1984-85: National Semiconductor, Sunnyvale, CA

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James McNelis