Class of 1962

James was an outstanding basketball and baseball player at Apex Consolidated High School from 1959 until 1962. At a time when many African-American athletes attended high school at Ligon High School in Raleigh, James’ love and passion for his community in Friendship encouraged him to stay at Apex Consolidated. After graduation, James attended Shaw University, where he was named an All-Conference athlete three times as an outfielder and first baseman on the baseball team.

James spent two years as a teacher and coach in South Korea before he moved to Charlotte, the city he now calls home. He went on to become an outstanding baseball umpire for 11 years, but it was as a basketball official that he truly made his mark. James has served as an outstanding basketball official in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association from 1975 to the present. James’ excellence was recognized in 1996 when he was inducted into the Shaw University Hall of Fame. He has officiated the state championship game on eight separate occasions. The NCHSAA presented him with the Gold Whistle Distinguished Service award in 2000 and he officiated the East-West All Star game in 2014.