It could be a bad joke: A historian, psychologist, philosopher and musician walk into a room ….

But it’s no joke, and it’s anything but bad.

It’s Dr. Jeff Broome, an ACC faculty member.

He is a father of three sons and one daughter. His daughter and oldest child is 30 and his sons are 24, 21, and seven.

His youngest, Kile, is named after Gen. John Kile, who ended up getting killed in a bar fight with Wild Bill Hickok. As a true lover of history, it makes complete sense to name one’s son after a general.

This ACC professor has been at the main campus for 30 years – since 1985–, longer than any other faculty member. He has taught Ethics, Logic and Introduction to Philosophy.

His and the school’s goal is to create lifelong learners.

Broome has written several book and even more chapters within other books. He has received five writing awards in the last three years and is still going. Currently, he is working on releasing two more books. One will come out before Christmas and the other before Spring.

His books now include one on philosophy and three on Indian wars. About eight other books include chapter written by him. And then there are the magazine and journal articles ….

“ACC opened the doors for the Indian wars,”Broome said.

His training in philosophy is what made him want to write about history. He knew that “people weren’t telling an accurate tale of the past.”

Broome was able to find a voice in the Indian wars because he had first-hand accounts from people telling him their story. He even took the time and money to make sure that what he was writing was the truth. He spent $10,000 of his own money to get the right documents for an accurate view of what happened during the events of these wars.

Before teaching, Broome had a few other jobs. He worked at the Littleton jail as a counselor. He also was a counselor with the Salvation Army, and was the director for eight years. Another counseling job he had was at the jail chaplain for four years. He also worked at Red Rocks for three years, teaching part-time at ACC during that period.

“One year after getting hired here, a full time job at Red Rocks opened up and I turned it down,” he said, “I would have gotten the job — no problem — but I knew this was where I wanted to be.”

“I didn’t even apply for the job,” he said.

Broome is a fifth generation Colorado native who moved to Littleton from Pueblo.

As a teenager, Broome dropped out of high school and was a “pseudo hippy.” He said he had gotten into a lot of trouble as a kid with a few misdemeanors and over a dozen run-ins with law enforcement. He then later in life became friends with the Sheriff and started working in the jail after getting his own life together.

After a serious spiritual change, he went to college for a major in history. He then changed it to psychology and then to philosophy. He got his doctorate at the University of Colorado in Boulder and has a double master’s degree in psychology and philosophy.

In his free time, Broome likes to play his guitar. He taught himself to play the guitar – an American primitive style. John Fahey, founded this style of music in the 50’s and 60’s. It is tuning the guitar to open chords instead of the traditional tuning.

“Let the guitar be its only concert piece,”he said.

Broome has been playing at Jake’s Brew Bar every Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. for quite some time and has made a few albums. Broome has never used it to make money, he said. Even though he can play the guitar, he cannot read music.

Once he started working at ACC, he found a hockey club. At 38 years old, he was the faculty advisor. He started playing hockey in his 20’s and still plays today.

If anyone personifies his (and ACC’s) “lifelong learning philosophy,” it’s Broome. He continues writing, playing the guitar and teaching – and learning.