Dr. John Helms

Dean of Work-Learning and Faculty in Environmental Sciences

John Helms, PhD. was trained as an  Analytical/Environmental Chemist and spent his graduate school years studying Chemical Oceanography and Photochemistry. He can occasionally be seen stumbling about knee deep in the wetlands and intertidals of the northeastern US, scooping up handfuls of sediment, and muttering to himself about “good mud.” A longtime kayaking enthusiast, John has begun to learn to cross-country ski since moving to Vermont. Having taught at the college level for over a decade, John is now in charge of Sterling’s federally funded Work Program and serves as Internship Coordinator while continuing to teach part time in Sterling’s Environmental Studies major.

John started working at Sterling September 2023

    • Ph.D. Biogeochemistry
      Old Dominion University

    • M.S. Analytical/Environmental Chemistry
      Old Dominion University

    • B.A. Chemistry
      Virginia Wesleyan College

  • Biogeochemical cycling (esp. photochemical and microbial alteration) of organic matter and nutrients. Analytical chemistry and instrumental analysis applied to environmentally relevant questions. John is passionate about valuing all work and building caring, sustainable, and resilient communities.

    • Foundations of Ecology

    • Career Planning Skills Seminar

    • McFarland, B., Christopherson K., Helms, J.R., Leugers, C., Sesterhenn T., . PERSIST: Project-based experience to retain students in STEM. March 28, 2023  Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Indianapolis, IN.

    • Bass, M., Helms, J.R. Photochemical Release of Dissolved Phosphorus from Suspended Soils and Riverine Sediments. 2022 Ocean Sciences Meeting, March 4, 2022, Honolulu, HI (virtual).

    • Helms, J.R. Mythbusters: Climate Change Edition. Invited speaker at Northwest Iowa Sierra Group lecture series. April 23, 2019, Sioux City, IA.

    • McGuire, N.*, Alvarez Cancel, O.*, Helms, J.R. Sources of Dissolved Organic Matter in Rocky Intertidal Zones: Optical Characterization of Photochemically Released Dissolved Organic Matter from Rockweed (Esp. Fucus spiralis, Fucus vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum) and Rockweed Detritus. 2018 Ocean Sciences Meeting, February 13, 2018, Portland, OR.

    • Harfmann, J.L., Avery, G.B., Rainey, H.D.*, Mead, R.N., Skrabal, S.A., Kieber, R.J., Felix, J.D., Helms, J.R., Podgorski, D. C. 2021. Composition and lability of photochemically released dissolved organic matter from resuspended estuarine sediments. Organic Geochemistry. 151, 104164. 

    • Cao, X., Mulholland, M.R., Helms, J.R., Bernhardt, P.W., Duan, P., Mao, J.-D., Schmidt-Rohr, K. 2017. A Major Step in Opening the Black Box of High-Molecular-Weight Dissolved Organic Nitrogen by Isotopic Labelling of Synechococcus and Multibond Two-Dimensional NMR. Analytical Chemistry. 89(22), 11990-11998.

    • Helms, J.R., Mao, J.-D., Chen, H., Perdue, E.M., Green, N., Hatcher, P.G., Mopper, K., Stubbins, A. 2015 Spectroscopic characterization of oceanic dissolved organic matter isolated by reverse osmosis coupled with electrodialysis. Marine Chemistry. 177, 278-287.

    • Helms, J.R., Mao, J.-D., Stubbins, A., Schmidt-Rohr, K., Spencer, R.G.M., Mopper, K. 2014. Loss of optical and molecular indicators of terrigenous dissolved organic matter during long-term photobleaching.  Aquatic Sciences. 76(3), 353-373.

    • Helms, J.R., Glinski, D.*, Mead, R.N., Southwell, M., Avery, G.B., Kieber, R.J., Skrabal, S.A.  2014. Photochemical dissolution of organic mater from resuspended riverine sediments: Impact of diagenetic state on photorelease. Organic Geochemistry. 73, 83-89.

    • Helms, J.R., Stubbins, A., Perdue, E.M., Green, N.W., Chen, H., Mopper, K. 2013. Photochemical bleaching of oceanic dissolved organic matter and its effect on absorption spectral slope and fluorescence. Marine Chemistry. 155, 81-91. 

    • Helms, J., Mao, J.-D., Schmidt-Rohr, K., Abdula, H., Mopper, K. 2013. Photochemical flocculation of terrestrial dissolved organic matter and iron. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 121, 398-413.  

    • Helms, J.R., Kong, X., Schmidt-Rohr, K., Mao, J.-D. 2012. Structural characterization of gilsonite bitumen by advanced nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry revealing pyrrolic and aromatic rings substituted with aliphatic chains. Organic Geochemistry. 44, 21-36. 

    • Helms, J.R., Stubbins, A., Ritchie, J.D., Minor, E.C., Kieber, D.J., Mopper, K. 2008. Absorption spectral slopes and slope ratios as indicators of molecular weight, sources, and photobleaching of chromophoric dissolved organic matter. Limnology and Oceanography. 53(3), 955-969.

  • In 2019 John was awarded tenure at Morningside University and promoted to Associate Professor. In 2018 John received a professional certificate in Campus Sustainability from University of Vermont. In 2016 the journal, Limnology and Oceanography, noted that one of his papers is the 5th most cited paper they published during the 2000s and included it in a 60th anniversary special collection.

    • Wool by Hugh Howey

    • Down the River by Edward Abbey

    • Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

  • John began learning to play the guitar during Covid-19 lockdown and continues to make noise regularly. He occasionally performs publicly as the father portion of the father/son duo Bois and Bubert with his son Will.