Jim Klein

Photo by Tavin Alatta.

By Jean Hardiman

Early in his career, Jim Klein wanted a job as a football coach. Instead, he took the only opening at North Hagerstown High School—a junior varsity volleyball coach, learning everything he could about the sport and eventually leading a high school team to three state titles. As a boy, he saw himself as a teacher when he grew up, which led to a career in higher education, helping a branch campus, its students and surrounding community flourish.

Klein may not have always taken the road he expected, but an enthusiasm for learning something new, a willingness to work hard and a passion for helping others achieve their goals make him a remarkable asset to West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle and the many organizations he serves in the region.

Originally from Hagerstown, MD, Klein works as the director of Martinsburg Center and graduate studies marketing at Shepherd University. He spent 10 years working in higher education elsewhere and jumped at the opportunity to come back to the region and help Shepherd University establish its Eastern Panhandle presence. Klein became an integral part of the team that made that happen.

“I love what I do,” says Klein. “Not only do I have an opportunity to help people learn every day, but education has a direct role in economic development. If we want better living conditions in the Eastern Panhandle, then we must continually focus on K-12 and higher education.”

Klein sees education as a lifelong endeavor. While he earned a two-year degree after high school, he did not earn a bachelor’s degree until well into his diverse career. He stayed close to home following high school, attending Hagerstown Community College and accepting a full-time job as a program director at the Hagers­town YMCA.

“In high school, I was pretty serious about coaching and being involved with youth. In many different ways, I fulfilled those dreams, although I’m not a classroom teacher,” he says.

His unplanned volleyball coaching role is an example of Klein’s ability to learn as he goes and bring others along, encouraging them to be their best.

“I ordered a manual on coaching for dummies from Eastbay and really got into it,” Klein says. “I didn’t believe in punishment or draconian conditioning. We had fun, played music during practice, tried to keep the pressure off and enjoyed the lessons that sports manifest.”

While coaching, Klein frequently quoted President Dwight Eisenhower: “We succeed only as we identify in life, or in war or in anything else, a single overriding objective and make all other considerations bend to that one objective.”

When he came to Shepherd University nine years ago, Klein threw himself into helping the university serve fellow dreamers and doers in the Martinsburg area. Along with hiring staff, developing policies and establishing business and community partnerships to serve the needs of students, he’s been improving his community through volunteerism with numerous organizations.

Klein is the immediate past president of the Berkeley County Schools Business Education Partnership and chair of the Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport Authority board. He is also a member of the board of directors for the Eastern Panhandle Transit Authority, Eastern Panhandle Regional Planning and Development Council, Martinsburg Rotary Club, Moose Lodge 120 and Elks 778 and a Main Street Martinsburg volunteer. Klein also serves on the advisory board for West Virginia Promise—The Alliance for Youth. In 2020, he became a sports color commentator for TV10.

Klein is grateful to Shepherd for giving him the opportunity to come back to his home base.

“The panhandle and its people make it very easy to become involved and acclimate,” Klein says. “I’ve learned from so many influential people in Berkeley County who share their experiences about moving from other areas and simply falling in love with Martinsburg.”

His love of sports lives on, and he spends his free time running marathons, biking and hiking in West Virginia.