Jan Harris
English
Professor
Biography
Jan Elaine Harris, PhD, is a Professor of English and Writing at Lipscomb University, where she serves as the Undergraduate Research Chair for Humanities and the Arts. Jan earned her BA from Lee University, and her MA and PhD at the University of Alabama.
Her chapbook, Isolating One’s Priorities, was published by Finishing Line Press. Recent poems have appeared, or are forthcoming, in Eascair, takahe, Spirit Lake Review, Abridged, Tiny Spoon, Susurrus, Stone Poetry Journal, Feral, American Writers Review, etc.
Jan completed three years of training to be a Spiritual Director and is an Ignatian Guide. She was honored to serve as the CTL Faculty Fellow for Well-Being from 2023–2026. Jan continues to support Lipscomb’s Faculty as a Peer-to-Peer Coach. Jan received the Bledsoe Award for Excellence in the Humanities in April 2022 and was chosen as one of three Teachers of the Year in April 2024.
Jan loves running, swimming, and meditation almost as much as she loves poems, but not as much as she loves her two German Shorthaired Pointers, Malloy and Astrid-June.
Academic Degree
Ph.D., University of Alabama
M.A., University of Alabama
B.A., Lee University
- EN 2103 Spiritual Autobiography
- EN 3013 Advanced Composition and Rhetoric
- EN 3033 History of the English Language
- EN 3613 Creative Writing Poetry
- EN 4263 Advanced Poetry Workshop
- EN 4773 British Modernism and Contemplative Theology
- Poetry and Creative Writing
- Literary Theory
- Writing and Composition
- British Modernism
- “The Allurement of Holes,” Eascair, Volume 4, November 19, 2026
- “Subterranean Passages,” Wild Roof Journal, Issue 35, Fall 2026 — Read online
- “Outdoor Lap Swim,” takahe, Volume 117, August 2026 — Read online
- “Anthropocene,” Spirit Lake Review, Spring 2026 — Read online
- “Suaitiu,” Abridged, Elixir Issue, May 2026
- “Geostationary: Marfa, Texas,” Susurrus, Winter 2025 — Read online
- “Revelation Reboot,” Feral: A Journal of Poetry and Art, June 2025 — Read online
- “Roost Seduction,” Stone Poetry Journal, Summer 2025
- “The Orange Grove,” Tiny Spoon, Volume 13, Summer 2025
- “Snake Condos” and “Love Breaks,” Solar Wind Exhibit, audio recording in gallery show, September 2024
- “Disaster Management,” Shift: A Publication of MTSU Write, Spring 2023
- “Exaltation” and “Can We Name Anything More Transient than the Summer Garden,” Plants and Poets, Volume 3, Fall 2022 — Read online
- “How to Pack Your Bags,” The Quarterly, Ninetenths Press, Summer 2022 — Read online
- “Invocation” and “Sea Monkeys,” American Writers Review, Summer 2022
- “Many Worlds Theory,” Yes, Poetry, October 2021 — Read online
- Isolating One’s Priorities in a Time of Crisis, chapbook, Finishing Line Press, October 2021 — Order
- “Ben’s Poem,” The West Trade Review, print, Spring 2021
- “Exclusion Zone,” The West Trade Review, Online Exclusive Feature, Fall 2020 — Read online
- “Apotheosis” and “Theosophy,” HerWords, Fall 2020
- “Mass Extinction,” “Chrismation,” and “After the Sun Goes Out,” The Portland Review, Summer 2020 — Read online
- “Expatriate Status,” The Rumpus, Spring 2020
- “Marauders All,” Camas, print, Winter 2020
- “Waking Poem,” Exposition Journal, Wonder Edition, April 2019
- “St. Paul’s Cathedral,” “Limited Visibility,” “Metamorphosis,” “An Outline of Irish History,” “Delphi,” and “The Riviera,” Waxing and Waning, Fall 2017
- “Lap Swim,” Event Magazine, Fall/Winter 2005
- “Exfoliation,” Anthology, 1998
- Spiritual Direction, Companioning Grief Workshop, Darcy Hansen, June 2024
- Spiritual Direction, Ignatian Guide and Ignatian Exercise Training, Wellsprings in the Desert, September 2023–June 2024
- Spiritual Direction, Year 2 Cohort, Institute for Christian Spirituality, Lipscomb University, August 2022–May 2023
- Spiritual Direction, Year 1 Cohort, Institute for Christian Spirituality, Lipscomb University, August 2021–May 2022
- Summer Faculty Research Grant, Lipscomb University, 2024
- Teacher of the Year Award, 2024
- CTL Faculty Fellow for Faculty Well-Being, Fall 2023–May 2026
- Bledsoe Faculty Award for Excellence in the Humanities, 2022
- Nominated, Teacher of the Year, Lipscomb University, 2022
- Catalyst Coaching Faculty Peer-to-Peer Coach, 2023–ongoing
- Catalyst Coaching Year Two Cohort, Lipscomb University, 2022–2023
- Catalyst Coaching Year One Cohort, Lipscomb University, 2021–2022
- Summer Faculty Research Grant, Lipscomb University, 2017
- Half-Summer Faculty Research Grant, Lipscomb University, 2013
- SALT (Service Learning) Honorarium for SALT Teaching, Lipscomb University, 2011
- Nominated, Cheney Distinguished Professor Award, Belmont University, 2009
- Portfolio Based Fellowship for Nonfiction, Vermont Studio Center, Spring 2003
- Commendation for Excellence in Teaching, University of Alabama, 1998, 1999, 2001
- Nominated, Zeno Tharpe Award, 1998
- Presidential Scholar, Lee University, 1993–1998
- Purpose Ignited Podcast S2 E7 & 8: “Ideation, Poetry, and Authentic Presence,” November 2025 — Listen
- Gladness and Hunger Podcast S3 E7: “Contributing a Verse,” September 2024 — Listen
- Manuscript review in The Wrath Bearing Tree, October 2021 — Read online
- Bison Talk S4 E8: “National Poetry Month with Dr. Jan Harris,” April 2021 — Listen
- Lipscomb University web feature, April 2021 — Read online
- Panel Organizer/Presenter, “Starting with Seeds: Cultivating Conditions that Nurture Students’ Creativity, Knowledge, and Spirit Inside and Beyond the Classroom,” Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture, February 18–21, 2027 (co-presenters from Palm Beach Atlantic University, Brigham Young University, and Lipscomb University)
- Poetry collection reading, “Feral Monk Summer,” Pop Culture of America/American Culture Association (PCA/ACA), April 8–11, 2026
- Panel Presenter, “The Limits of AI in Holistic Faculty Care,” Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture, February 25–28, 2026 (co-presenter: Dr. Elizabeth Stice)
- Nurturing Faculty Flourishing: “Designing Holistic Supports for University Faculty,” Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture, October 17–19, 2024 (co-presenter: Dr. Laura Morrow)
- Poetry reading, Pacific Ancient and Modern Languages (PAMLA), November 12–15, 2021 (conference cancelled due to COVID)
- Poetry reading, Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association (RMMLA), October 2020 (conference cancelled due to COVID)
- Poetry reading, “Poems for the End Times,” Pop Culture of America/American Culture Association (PCA/ACA), April 2020 (conference cancelled due to COVID)
- Poetry reading from collection manuscript Isolating One’s Priorities in a Time of Crisis, Pacific Ancient and Modern Languages (PAMLA), November 14–17, 2019
- Poetry reading from chapbook manuscript Voyager, Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association (RMMLA), October 4–6, 2018
- Poetry reading, “Erasure Poetry and Travel Guides,” Pop Culture of America/American Culture Association (PCA/ACA), March 28–31, 2018
- “The Pilgrim’s Landscape: Creating Space for Epiphany and Reconciliation in W.G. Sebald,” Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association (RMMLA), October 11–14, 2017
- “The Relic: Remnants of ‘that which escaped annihilation’ in W.G. Sebald,” South Central Modern Language Association (SCMLA), October 5–7, 2017
- Poetry reading, “Travelers Itinerary,” selections from section 3 of The Grand Tour, South Central Modern Language Association (SCMLA), October 5–7, 2017
- “Outside on the Lawn: Mr. Carmichael’s Role in Woolf’s To the Lighthouse,” South Central Modern Language Association (SCMLA), November 2015
- Poetry reading, selections from section 1 of The Grand Tour, South Central Modern Language Association (SCMLA), November 2015
- “Homeschool and Writing Centers: Extending the Community,” Southeastern Writing Centers Association (SWCA), February 2014 (co-presenter: Dr. Stacia Rigney)
- “Mr. Carmichael as the Androgynous Artist in To the Lighthouse,” Tennessee Philological Association, February 2014
- “Lyric Speaker as Organizer: Parody and Narration in Nabokov’s Pale Fire,” Marginalised (sic) Mainstream, London University, London, UK, September 2013
- Workshop, “Who Are We Talking to?: Marketing to Students, Faculty, and Administrators in the Writing Center?” Southeastern Writing Centers Association (SWCA), March 2013 (co-presenters: Dr. Stacia Rigney and Rachel Robinson, MA)
- “Getting Schooled in the Groove: Songwriting and the Writing Center,” Southeastern Writing Centers Association (SWCA), February 2007
- Featured reader, poetry selections, Advent and the Arts Reading Series, Tuscaloosa, AL, December 2004
