They were off Grounds, out of the biomedical engineering lab, but the change in environment couldn’t break old habits for University of Virginia student Clay McComb.
His umpiring mate at the Pen Park baseball diamonds in Charlottesville still held a singular title in his mind.
“I kept calling him ‘Professor Helmke,’” McComb said, “and he finally stopped me and was like, ‘No, when I’m not in class, I’m Brian. I’m just your partner out here, not your professor.’”
Brian Helmke is a lot of things. He’s an avid runner who’s completed four marathons, including the Boston Marathon. He’s a cello player in the Waynesboro Symphony Orchestra. He’s an associate professor of biomedical engineering at UVA. And, for the last six years, he’s umpired for Charlottesville’s Central Little League and now serves as the league’s umpire coordinator.
McComb, who graduated with a biomedical engineering degree last spring, counts among the several students Helmke has guided both in the classroom and at the ballpark. McComb attests that whether professor or umpire, Helmke’s passion for instructing is apparent.
“He’s very hands-on and is so good at simplifying different concepts,” McComb said. “I’ve learned so much from him just because of his teaching style.”
Helmke, who received the alumni association’s Distinguished Professor Award in July, has taught at UVA for 23 years. The native Wisconsinite fell in love with not only the University, but all that surrounds Grounds, finding opportunities in the local running, hiking, music and sports scenes.
A baseball lifer, Helmke was introduced to Central Little League while coaching his son. For one game, a second umpire was needed and Helmke volunteered to give it a try. He was soon hooked and saw it as his opportunity to stay connected to the league after his son was finished playing.
Call it Jeffersonian, but Helmke also liked that, after years of playing and coaching, he was still gaining knowledge about a game he’s been tied to since he was a child.
“That first season, I was always looking at the wrong things and in the wrong places because I was thinking like a player, which was my instinct,” Helmke said. “So, I had to learn a totally different side of the game, different responsibilities and positions, and things to be doing as an umpire that I wouldn’t necessarily be doing as a coach or a player.
“I thought that was really fun.”
In the classroom, Helmke has been lauded for his ability to simplify complex subjects with relatable examples. One of his go-to demonstrations, when visualizing how drug molecules get through tissues to their intended cells, involves the use of popular candy.
He fills a centrifuge tube with Gobstoppers to represent the polymer materials for tissue replacement and then tops the tube with a box of Nerds.
“And what happens? Some of the Nerds go through, some of them don’t,” Helmke said. “So they get stuck between the Gobstoppers, or it takes more energy to get them to go through. So to get them to go through, you have to shake it a little bit or something to add energy.
“This is exactly how molecules, like drug molecules, go through and around the cells and the structures in tissues. It’s like a filtration.”
Helmke may be just “Brian” at the baseball diamond, but his educator instincts don’t leave when he walks out of the classroom. Second-year pre-commerce student Jack Liskey, who’s never had Helmke for a class, made his umpiring debut at Central Little League last season, working 18 games and routinely sticking around afterward for impromptu lessons.
One time, when Liskey felt like he wasn’t seeing balls and strikes clearly for left-handed hitters when stationed behind home plate, Helmke spent 15 minutes explaining how and why he should adjust his positioning.
“He can definitely break things down that are fairly complicated in a way that you can understand,” Liskey said, “even if you don’t have that much experience.”
The Distinguished Professor Award celebrates those UVA instructors who, among other traits, show “unusual concern for their students.” Helmke has a unique style that is valued for its easily digested demonstrations and the professor’s way of gauging the room.
Biomedical engineering can be an intimidating topic to master. In his 3,000-level biotransport course, he’s established a tradition over the years of lightening the mood with the delivery of his “joke of the day.”
“It’s kind of turned into the cheesiest dad jokes you can find. I set the bar low,” Helmke said. “It’s about inclusiveness. I want people to be able to take a break and participate and have fun and just relax for a second.”
Helmke’s blend of humor, intelligence and relatability transcends whatever arena he steps into around Charlottesville. Whether behind home plate or at the whiteboard, he’s trusted to make the right call.
“He’s a great guy, super caring, loves the game and loves the students,” McComb said. “He’s an overall great mentor.”