Faculty Biography
This biography provides a sense of my professional career outside of academia, my academic pursuits in teaching, service, and research activities, and concludes with a brief discussion of my personal activities.

Before entering academia, I spent 25 years working in a small family business oriented towards audio, video, and digital production and editing. This work involved the recording, editing, production, and packaging of promotional and educational materials for individuals and companies across the United States and Canada. As a senior executive and owner, my professional responsibilities including customer relations, marketing, budgeting, and employee management with hire, review, and termination authority. During my time on the management team (1989-2009) the company (Dicobe Media, Inc.) won a Heartland Better Business Bureau Ethics award (2003) and I was fortunate enough to be named to the 40 under 40 list of business executives in Omaha. After I started work at Creighton in October of 2012, the business was sold to its’ employees and continues to operate today.

Academically, I hold a BA in Political Science and History from Bellevue University (dual major, degree obtained in 1991). After obtaining my BA, I worked in the family business for many years. In 2004, I started my studies at Creighton, eventually obtaining an MA in International Relations. During my MA studies, I worked on several research projects with Dr. Terry Clark, the director of the program at that time. I also worked as an open-source researcher for several months with USSTRATCOM in the GISC (Global Innovation and Strategy Center) as a student-intern.  After completing my MA, I was fortunate enough to teach a few introductory level political science courses as an adjunct for UNO and eventually as a visiting instructor at Bellevue University (where I learned to teach online). In 2009, I started my PhD studies at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. During my PhD program (a residential program) I traveled back and forth between Omaha and Tallahassee to attend to studies, work, and family responsibilities. At Florida State, I was advised and worked with Dr. Sona Golder and Dr. Brad Gomez as a research assistant and also taught several online courses in comparative politics. I was hired to teach in the Doctoral Program in Interdisciplinary Leadership (the EdD program) by Dr. Isabelle Cherney in October 2012; I successfully defended my PhD at Florida State in March of 2013.

I have taught full-time in the EdD program since that time, primarily teaching online doctoral level social science research and writing courses. I’ve also had the opportunity to teach in the classroom a few times for the Department of Political Science. My responsibilities in the program currently involve teaching courses, advising 70+ students, chairing the admissions committee, serving as a chair and 2nd committee member on numerous dissertation committees, facilitating faculty development and communications, and acting as and coordinating the activities of course directors (technical administrative management of courses) in our program).

In terms of research, I've published solo political science research articles and SOTL works, book chapters in leadership oriented books and SOTL pieces, and am a regular presenter at conferences like the Midwest Political Association Conference and the Association of Leadership Educators conference. Furthermore, I've also presented at various on-campus Creighton conferences like our Assessment Day. Furthermore, I've co-authored a book with EdD program graduate Dr. Sara Bharwani. The book, a study of the experiences of people who have obtained a doctoral degree within the last 15 years, will be published by Routledge in July of 2025. I am also an active YouTube creator. I am a co-creator of "The Leader Ship" YouTube channel with Dr. Gargi Vyas, and the solo creator of two channels: "Global Politics with JIm Martin" and "Jim Martin Does Things". The latter two feature new content 2-3 times each week in the case of Global Politics with JIm Martin and every other week for Jim Martin Does Things. Finally, I am active on SubStack as well.

Regarding service: I've been active, with numerous service roles in the program, at the college level, and at the university level.Some examples of these: at the program level, I served for over a decade as the assistant director of the program and as the chair of the admissions committee. I recently (in late 2024) stepped down from those roles to focus on other priorities. At the college level, I've served on assessment committees, our rank and tenure committee, various task forces, and participate in or led confidential investigations several times over the years. At the university level, I've served on faculty and academic council, the executive committee of faculty council, and, most recently, on the CFE Advisory Board, as a member of the CURAS review committee, and on the University Rank and Tenure Committee. I've also served three times on the HLC review committee.

Personally, I’ve lived and worked in Nebraska for most of my adult life. I have two adult children, both of whom are Creighton graduates. I am active in serving the community of those recovering from alcohol and drug abuse and have volunteered in several capacities in this regard over the last 28 years. I was also a caregiver for my widowed mother until her passing in 2024. I am also active in the art community in Omaha, presenting shows most recently at the Apollon, Malibu Galleries, and an art space in Benson. As noted earlier, I'm also an active YouTube content creator.