Born and raised in middle Georgia, James’ mother was a cardiac nurse and his father was an officer in the Georgia National Guard. Due to his mother’s sickness (diagnosed with breast cancer in 1993), work commitments, and his father’s deployments, James was largely raised by his grandparents, which gave him significant autonomy in learning about topics of his own and reading books about which he was curious. 

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At his high school, little emphasis was placed on the college application process, but James was admitted into the single school to which he applied, the University of Georgia. Once there, he excelled quickly and earned entry to the Honors Program in his first semester. Instead of majoring in Accounting, Biology, or International Business, James focused on English, choosing to address a weakness and focus on his worst subject, in route to improving himself as a thinker. In 2011, he graduated from UGA’s Honors Program with summa cum laude distinction. 

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Unsure whether to pursue law, business, or graduate school, he worked as a tennis pro in Alpharetta for the Department of Parks and Recreation. This role allowed James to instruct tennis players between the ages of 6 and 75 in group clinics as well as 1-1 sessions. James also had the opportunity to read widely during this period, realizing that he wanted to apply to graduate school to pursue teaching English literature.

 

James was admitted to multiple MA programs but chose to enroll at UGA. Though he had initially intended to study Irish literature, he changed course after working with Dr. John Lowe, who would later serve as James’ thesis advisor. Once James learned that Dr. Lowe was working on a biography of Ernest J. Gaines and that James could transcribe the interviews Lowe had conducted with Gaines, James quickly found the topic for his thesis, the influence of Ivan Turgenev on Ernest Gaines. Dr. Lowe encouraged James to apply to various doctoral programs where James could pursue Southern literature, African-American literature, and Russian literature scholars, and the University of South Carolina became his next academic home, mainly due to Dr. Robert Brinkmeyer and his directorship of the Institute of Southern Studies.

 

During his time at USC, James taught a variety of English classes, including several honors classes, while, most importantly, meeting the person who would become his wife, Dana Mittag. In only a few short years and after numerous conferences, presentations, and revisions, James finished his dissertation and completed his doctorate before turning 30. However, James’ college classes clarified the lack of significant time to influence students or support them as much as he wanted, so he considered independent school teaching. He quickly found an opportunity at Providence Day School in Charlotte, NC as a substitute teacher and interim English teacher, thanks in large part to Dr. Clint Crumley, Ms. Barbara Gregory, and Mr. Eric Hedinger. 

 

After five years at Providence Day School, James has served in various roles in three different departments (English, History, and IDEAS), taught in every division (lower, middle, and upper), coached all tennis teams (middle, JV, and varsity), and was one fourth of the design team that restructured the Computer Science Department into IDEAS. He also served as the inaugural Social Entrepreneurship Coordinator where he planned and hosted five Hackathons that served over 1200 students across the metro-Charlotte area in competitions advocating coding, data analytics, and entrepreneurial approaches to solve community problems. Though James has had a significant impact at Providence Day School, he feels he can achieve even more with, and for, students in 1-1 sessions.