Professor James has an MS in health policy and public management from the University of Southern Maine and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Maine School of Law. The first 20 years of his career have been spent in research administration, and he was the first Associate Vice President for Research at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. He is currently working as a professor in the Iron Range Engineering Program at Minnesota State University, Mankato which is one of the top 10 emerging world leaders in engineering education.