Faculty Leadership Staff

James Lambert

Provost; Associate Professor of English

James Lambert
Biography

Dr. James Lambert was appointed provost of Southern Virginia University in May 2021. In that capacity, he acts as the Chief Academic Officer of the university. A values-driven and enthusiastic leader, Dr. Lambert continues to prioritize student learning initiatives as a professor, administrator, and leader in higher education.

Previous to this appointment, Dr. Lambert served as executive vice president of academic operations, a position created in August 2020 to oversee the execution of pandemic-era education at Southern Virginia University in collaboration with the provost. During his time at Southern Virginia, Dr. Lambert has directed the Writing Center, the Personal Learning Center, chaired the Humanities, and taught all levels of English and Writing courses.

Throughout his career, Dr. Lambert has been a strong advocate for education that is based on seeking wisdom, generosity, and acuity from the best materials and books. In using that approach to undergraduate education, students become better equipped for graduate schools, professional schools, careers, and life. By first knowing how students learn, Dr. Lambert can then understand how teachers should teach. This continues to be his guiding philosophy in teaching, advising, and leading.

Dr. Lambert earned a doctorate in literature from the University of Iowa, a master’s degree at the University of Arizona, and a bachelor’s degree at Brigham Young University. Before joining Southern Virginia University in 2016, Dr. Lambert chaired the English Program at American University of Kuwait. He has four kids and loves to ride around on a bike.

“Students learning trumps teacher teaching. I try to consider that when I plan, execute, and evaluate my literature and writing courses. While I sincerely believe that knowledge in the subjects I teach (writing, British literature, Shakespeare, Renaissance poetry) will enrich a student’s life, I also affirm that learning how to learn about those topics is immanently more useful and important. I arrange my courses, pedagogy, and advising accordingly.”

Education

  • Ph.D. in Early Modern British Literature, University of Iowa, 2012
  • M.A. in American Literature, University of Arizona, 2006
  • B.A. in English, minor Spanish, Brigham Young University, 2003

Courses

  • Teaching courses in the Core and English major including Spiritual Literature, Shakespeare, Devotional Poetry, History of the English Language, Introduction to Composition, and Classics of Western Literature

Teaching Positions & Professional Experience

  • Joined the Southern Virginia University faculty in 2016
  • Researched, taught, and served as Writing Program Administrator and Chair of the English Department at the American University of Kuwait, 2012–16
  • Taught literature and writing courses at University of Iowa, 2006–11
  • Taught film, rhetoric, and writing courses at University of Arizona and UA Medical School
  • Public Speaking specialist at University of Iowa, 2007–11

Scholarship & Creative Work

  • Interests include writing pedagogy, composition, and literary pedagogy; research agenda centers itself firmly in the literature and religious culture of Early Modern England
  • Published articles in SEL, Philological Quarterly, This Rough Magic, BYU Studies, Studies in Philology, and other journals
  • Article on Edmund Spenser’s Epithalamion, republished twice in different anthologies
  • Received Mellon and NEH fellowships to study lyrical emotions of the Renaissance at Dartmouth College, the Huntington Library, the Folger Shakespeare Library, and Dr. Williams’s Library
  • Gave the Shakespeare lecture at James Madison University, 2018
  • Invited to the International Shakespeare Symposium at NYU-Abu Dhabi, 2017
  • Organized and executed the Reformation Conference, 2017

Awards, Leadership & Service

  • Provost, Southern Virginia University, 2021–present
  • Vice President of Academic Operations, Southern Virginia University, 2021
  • Chair, Division of Humanities, Southern Virginia University, 2018–20
  • Academic Affairs Council, Southern Virginia University, 2018–present
  • Director of Writing Center, Southern Virginia University, 2016–20
  • Helped execute University’s Quality Enhancement Program, 2016–present
  • Named Faculty Mentor of the Year, 2014–15; 2015–16