Hi. My name is Jeff Harlow. I am a husband, a father, a pastor in the United Methodist Church, a teacher in the Norfolk State University system, a consultant for a few non-profit organizations, including churches. I am an applied theologian, a data analyst, a pastor, and I assess organizational effectiveness, although I’m not sure how all of these fit together. I love my family! I love dogs, all of them, everywhere. Lately I have developed an obsession with worms — composting — vermiculture. I wonder about a lot of things (including the worms). I wonder why I love to mow lawns, and I wonder why I am curious about dandelion seeds. I love summertime. It’s warmer then, and somehow it feels more safe in the summer. I love to read and write and teach, and I live in Virginia. While I am not a huge sports fan, I am totally a Penn State football fan. Must be something about nostalgia.
Jeff is the pastor of Brosville United Methodist Church in the Danville District of the Virginia Annual Conference. He received his Elder Orders in 2007. Jeff also teaches social work research (methods and data analysis) for Norfolk State University. Jeff was also the founding director of The Social Science Research Center at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia where he served on their faculty for six years (1998-2004). He holds a bunch of degrees revealing only that he has much more to learn: a B.S. in wildlife biology from Pennsylvania State University (’79), a M.A. in theology from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (’85), and a Ph.D. in social policy from Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research (’98). Jeff has worked as a data analysis consultant, a program evaluator, an organizational development trainer, a research center director, and a university instructor. The job he misses the most, though, was in high school and college when he worked for Ernie at Traylor’s Nursery in Beaver, Pennsylvania. He dug holes and planted trees and enjoyed the quiet clarity of the work.
You can contact Jeff at jeff@unpackingideas.org. Those of you curious about the less glamorous details of his life are welcome to take a peek at his CV: Harlow CV 2009
