Catching up with Jim Staab
He wasn’t the valedictorian or the salutatorian or even a member of the National Honor Society. A self-proclaimed mediocre high school student, James Staab didn’t kick into high gear academically until some time after he graduated from Huntington High School in 1981. But today, he’s definitely an intellectual.
Mr. Staab is a professor of political science at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, MO. The Huntington alum received a BA degree magna cum laude from Roanoke College in 1985, a JD from the TC Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond in 1988 and a Ph.D. in government and foreign affairs from the University of Virginia in 1998.
During a recent telephone interview from his office in Missouri, Dr. Staab recounted some fascinating personal stories from his years at Huntington High School. “My parents moved early in my junior year so in order to stay in the district and graduate from Huntington, I had to live with another family,” he said matter-of-factly.
But, it wasn’t any ordinary family that he lived with for two years. It was legendary singer-songwriter Harry Chapin’s clan in Huntington Bay. “I have always been very thankful for the opportunity they gave me,” Dr. Staab said about the Chapin family’s generosity. Mr. Chapin’s daughter, Jennifer, who is also a singer-songwriter, will be performing at UCM on April 6, 2010.
“I had a good experience there,” said Dr. Staab about his time at Huntington High School. He played on the varsity soccer and tennis teams and did well enough academically to gain acceptance to Roanoke College. Yet it wasn’t until those college years that he was really inspired intellectually. It was then that he “became interested in the profession of teaching,” he said. “I feel very privileged to teach.”
UCM students give Dr. Staab exceptionally high marks for his “passion” and “incredible enthusiasm” and his “entertaining” style. Many called him “amazing” in online ratings and others referred to him as the “best professor on campus.” He is almost universally acclaimed as a “fun guy” and is credited with a near encyclopedic knowledge of government and the Supreme Court.
According to his profile on the UCM website, Dr. Staab’s “primary field of interest is public law, broadly defined, including constitutional law, civil rights and liberties, judicial politics, and jurisprudence. He has written several articles or book chapters on Supreme Court justices, including Levi Woodbury, Benjamin Cardozo, and Antonin Scalia. He recently completed a book on Justice Scalia, titled The Political Thought of Justice Antonin Scalia: A Hamiltonian on the Supreme Court. Justice Scalia visited the UCM campus over a two-day period in March 2008 as a result of Dr. Staab’s book.
In addition to being a full, tenured professor, Dr. Staab is the chairman of the Dept. of Political Science at UCM. As an attorney, he is a former member of the Virginia and D.C. bars. Prior to coming to UCM, he worked a law clerk for a circuit court judge in Richmond, Virginia and was a teaching assistant, research assistant and instructor at the University of Virginia. He has written numerous journal and newspaper articles
At UCM Dr. Staab has taught courses titled: American Government, Public Law and the Judicial Process, American Constitutional Law, Constitutional Rights, First Amendment and American Presidency. His American Government course this fall has 120 students in it and he takes delight in working with them all.
He ended up in Missouri because that’s where the job opportunity happened to be at the time. “We have a very good department,” Dr. Staab said about his colleagues. “Everyone gets along well.”
Asked what might be the topic of his next book and the Huntington alum responds it could be a comparative study and analysis of Supreme Court Justices Hugo Lafayette Black and Antonin Scalia. “They are both originalists and both look back at history when forming their decisions,” he said. He quickly rattles off differences and similarities between the two and cites half-a-dozen major cases in less than 30 seconds.
It was while studying for a Ph.D. and working at the University of Virginia that Dr. Staab encountered some “outstanding professors” and was the recipient of “great mentorship,” which continues to influence his teaching and academic career to this day.
The Huntington alum was on Long Island this past summer visiting relatives, but wasn’t able to stop by his alma mater. “I’ll have to get back to Huntington High School one of these days,” he said.
Dr. Staab’s hobbies include jogging, tennis, basketball, swimming, traveling and hiking. He and Renee, his wife of 21 years, have a daughter, Ashley. The family resides in Warrensburg, MO.
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