James A. Joseph
Encyclopedia
James A. Joseph is a former American
diplomat.
Joseph is Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Studies at Duke University
and founder of the United States – Southern Africa Center for Leadership and Public Values at Duke and the University of Cape Town
. He has served four U.S. Presidents. In 1995, he was nominated by President Bill Clinton
and confirmed by the United States Senate as the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa. He was the only U. S. Ambassador to present his credentials to President Nelson Mandela
. In 1999, President Thabo Mbeki
awarded him the Order of Good Hope, the highest honor the Republic of South Africa
bestows on a citizen of another country. As a legacy and contribution to South Africa
and the USA, Joseph helped found the Emerging Leaders Program, a pioneering effort in partnership with both the University of Cape Town
and Duke University
aimed at identifying and mentoring the next generation of significant leaders working to make an impact on the world.
From 1977–1981, Joseph served as the Under Secretary of the Department of Interior under President Jimmy Carter
. President Reagan appointed him a member of the Advisory Committee to the Agency for International Development and the first President Bush appointed him an incorporating director of the Points of Light Foundation and a member of the Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges. President Clinton appointed him the first Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National Service.
Joseph is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation created by Governor Blanco, and was recently honored by his home state as a Louisiana Legend. The award goes to Louisiana natives who have distinguished themselves in music, art, theater, literature and politics. He has also had a distinguished career in business, education and philanthropy. From 1982-1995, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Council on Foundations
, an international organization of more than 2000 foundations and corporate giving programs. He served as a Vice President of Cummins Engine Company and President of the Cummins Engine Foundation from 1971-1976. An ordained minister, he has taught at Yale Divinity School
and the Claremont Colleges
where he was also University Chaplain. In 1985, he was a Distinguished Visitor at Nuffield College at Oxford University and serves presently as an Honorary Professor and a member of the Board of Advisors at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town.
After graduating from Southern University
and Yale, Joseph began his career at Stillman College
in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where he helped organize the local civil rights movement in 1963. A frequent speaker to academic, civic and religious audiences, he is the author of two books, The Charitable Impulse and Remaking America. A third book on The Changing Role of Ethics in Public Life is near completion. He is the recipient of nineteen honorary degrees and his undergraduate alma mater, Southern University, has named an endowed chair in his honor. The Board of Directors of the Council on Foundations appointed him President Emeritus and the Association of Black Foundation Executives established the James A. Joseph Lecture on Philanthropy.
Joseph has served on the Board of Directors of the Brookings Institution
, the National Endowment for Democracy
, Africare
, and the Children’s Defense Fund. He serves presently as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NHP Foundation and MDC
. He is a director of the Management and Training Corporation
and serves on the Board of Advisors of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University and the Leadership Center at Morehouse College. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
and the National Academy for Public Administration. He is married to the former Mary Braxton, an Emmy Award winning television journalist, and has two children from a previous marriage to Doris T. Joseph.
Joseph is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
fraternity.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
diplomat.
Joseph is Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Studies at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
and founder of the United States – Southern Africa Center for Leadership and Public Values at Duke and the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
. He has served four U.S. Presidents. In 1995, he was nominated by President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and confirmed by the United States Senate as the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa. He was the only U. S. Ambassador to present his credentials to President Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
. In 1999, President Thabo Mbeki
Thabo Mbeki
Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki is a South African politician who served two terms as the second post-apartheid President of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008. He is also the brother of Moeletsi Mbeki...
awarded him the Order of Good Hope, the highest honor the Republic of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
bestows on a citizen of another country. As a legacy and contribution to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and the USA, Joseph helped found the Emerging Leaders Program, a pioneering effort in partnership with both the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
and Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
aimed at identifying and mentoring the next generation of significant leaders working to make an impact on the world.
From 1977–1981, Joseph served as the Under Secretary of the Department of Interior under President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
. President Reagan appointed him a member of the Advisory Committee to the Agency for International Development and the first President Bush appointed him an incorporating director of the Points of Light Foundation and a member of the Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges. President Clinton appointed him the first Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National Service.
Joseph is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation created by Governor Blanco, and was recently honored by his home state as a Louisiana Legend. The award goes to Louisiana natives who have distinguished themselves in music, art, theater, literature and politics. He has also had a distinguished career in business, education and philanthropy. From 1982-1995, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Council on Foundations
Council on Foundations
The Council on Foundations, formed in 1949, is a nonprofit membership association of grantmaking foundations and corporations. Members of the Council include more than 1,750 independent, operating, community, public, and company-sponsored foundations, and corporate giving programs in the United...
, an international organization of more than 2000 foundations and corporate giving programs. He served as a Vice President of Cummins Engine Company and President of the Cummins Engine Foundation from 1971-1976. An ordained minister, he has taught at Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
and the Claremont Colleges
Claremont Colleges
The Claremont Colleges are a prestigious American consortium of five undergraduate and two graduate schools of higher education located in Claremont, California, a city east of downtown Los Angeles...
where he was also University Chaplain. In 1985, he was a Distinguished Visitor at Nuffield College at Oxford University and serves presently as an Honorary Professor and a member of the Board of Advisors at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town.
After graduating from Southern University
Southern University
Southern University and A&M College is a historically black college located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The Baton Rouge campus is located on Scott’s Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in the northern section...
and Yale, Joseph began his career at Stillman College
Stillman College
-Marching Band:The school's marching band is named the Blue Pride Marching Band.In February 2010, Stillman College dedicated the brand new facility, the Thomas Lyle Band Center, named in honor of former band director Thomas Lyle, in conjunction with the Wynn Fine Arts Center.Organizations include:...
in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where he helped organize the local civil rights movement in 1963. A frequent speaker to academic, civic and religious audiences, he is the author of two books, The Charitable Impulse and Remaking America. A third book on The Changing Role of Ethics in Public Life is near completion. He is the recipient of nineteen honorary degrees and his undergraduate alma mater, Southern University, has named an endowed chair in his honor. The Board of Directors of the Council on Foundations appointed him President Emeritus and the Association of Black Foundation Executives established the James A. Joseph Lecture on Philanthropy.
Joseph has served on the Board of Directors of the Brookings Institution
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and...
, the National Endowment for Democracy
National Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
, Africare
Africare
Africare is a non-profit organization based in the United States which provides development aid for Africa. Africare was founded in 1970 by former Peace Corps members who had worked in eastern Niger, as well as a Nigerian diplomat. Africare now provides aid for approximately 25 countries in every...
, and the Children’s Defense Fund. He serves presently as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NHP Foundation and MDC
MDC
MDC usually refers to:*Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai , a Zimbabwean political party**Movement for Democratic Change , a former Zimbabwean political party that split in 2005 into the MDC-T and MDC-M...
. He is a director of the Management and Training Corporation
Management and Training Corporation
Management and Training Corporation or MTC is a Utah-based contractor that manages private prisons and provides vocational training. It is involved in the U.S. Job Corps program. The company made headlines in 2010 after three convicted murderers escaped from one of its prisons.-History:MTC was...
and serves on the Board of Advisors of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University and the Leadership Center at Morehouse College. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
and the National Academy for Public Administration. He is married to the former Mary Braxton, an Emmy Award winning television journalist, and has two children from a previous marriage to Doris T. Joseph.
Joseph is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha is the first Inter-Collegiate Black Greek Letter fraternity. It was founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its founders are known as the "Seven Jewels". Alpha Phi Alpha developed a model that was used by the many Black Greek Letter Organizations ...
fraternity.