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Leslie Frost on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

Dr. James Coleman ripped apart the first paper I wrote for him. It was a deeply labored effort to write critical theory, a language I neither understood nor particularly appreciated. Such a terrible paper—oh, it still makes me cringe to … Read more

Linda Wagner-Martin on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

James Coleman seldom said No to grad students. It seemed unusual that so productive a scholar, a teacher who cared so much for his undergraduate students, would willingly accept the responsibility of serving on countless grad students’ MA and PhD … Read more

Marc Cohen on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

James Coleman and I shared several classrooms, which we handed off to each other three days a week. I so much enjoyed our warm, friendly exchanges. He was a wonderful colleague for whom I feel great respect, and I will … Read more

GerShun Avilez on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

James Coleman was one of the kindest people I have ever met. He welcomed me into the UNC family and became a model of hard work and care. I always marveled at his productivity. A pioneering scholar of twentieth-century African … Read more

Alisa Johnson on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

I did not have the opportunity to take many classes with Dr. Coleman (Dr. C., as some of us called him), but I did have the chance to attend a number of conferences where he was presenting. Dr. C.’s presentations … Read more

Adam McKible on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

Dear James: Thank you for being such an inspiration to me during my time at UNC. You embodied the scholar’s life, and I will be forever grateful to you for being such an exemplary teacher and thinker. When I remember … Read more

Marianne Gingher on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

James (Jim) Coleman has been my Greenlaw next-door neighbor and admired colleague for many years and I miss him! It was a rare day that we were too busy to exchange pleasantries or share some personal anecdote. My fondest memories … Read more

Gena Chandler-Smith on James Coleman

November 25, 2019

Dear Dr. Coleman: I met you as a quiet, probably a little odd, twenty-year-old college senior from Florida A&M University, crazy about D. H. Lawrence. I had come as a participant in the MURAP program—the Minority Undergraduate Research Assistant Program—scared … Read more

Ruth Salvaggio on James Coleman

November 18, 2019

For James Coleman on His Retirement: Having James Coleman as a colleague during the last phase of my academic career was such a gift. We met almost fifteen years ago on the stairway in Greenlaw Hall, where of course the … Read more

Will Nash on James Coleman

November 18, 2019

To Jim Coleman, with Appreciation, on His Retirement:  “He’s written his books; now you write yours.” Professor James Coleman said that to me during my dissertation prospectus meeting as I outlined my plan to write a study of Charles Johnson’s … Read more