James A. Joseph papers, 1961-2004
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Summary
- Creator:
- Joseph, James A. (James Alfred), 1935-
- Abstract:
- James A. Joseph is a Louisiana native who graduated from Southern University, Baton Rouge, and from Yale Divinity School. He is an ordained minister and is currently Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Studies and Leader-in-Residence at the Hart Leadership Program at Duke University. He is also responsible for launching the U.S. - Southern Africa Center for Leadership and Public Values. Joseph has worked for four U.S. presidents, beginning as Interior undersecretary for President Carter from 1977-1981. He has also served on the Advisory Committee to the Agency on International Development under President Reagan, and was appointed by President Bush to the Presidential Commission on Historically Black Colleges. In 1996, he was appointed as Ambassador to South Africa by President Clinton, where he served until 1999. He is also a former president and CEO of the Council on Foundations, 1982-1995. Collection includes correspondence, chronological files, calendars, clippings, memorabilia, notes, and administrative materials largely dating from Joseph's time as an undersecretary for the Department of the Interior and his ambassadorship to South Africa. Also included are some materials from his work for the Council on Foundations, largely dating from the late 1980s, and some awards and honors dating from the early 2000s. Some newspaper clippings dating from the 1960s discuss his Civil Rights work and ministerial activities. This material has not been processed and therefore no arrangement has been completed at this time. Acquired as part of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture.
- Extent:
- 3 Linear Feet
2030 Items - Language:
- Material in English
- Collection ID:
- RL.00653
Background
- Scope and content:
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Collection (2009-0015) (2000 items, 3 lin. ft.; dated 1961-2004) includes correspondence, chronological files, calendars, clippings, memorabilia, notes, and administrative materials largely dating from Joseph's time as an undersecretary for the Department of the Interior and his ambassadorship to South Africa. Also included are some materials from his work for the Council on Foundations, largely dating from the late 1980s, and some awards and honors dating from the early 2000s. Some newspaper clippings dating from the 1960s discuss his Civil Rights work and ministerial activities. This material has not been processed and therefore no arrangement has been completed at this time. Acquired as part of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture.
Addition (2012-0218) (3 items, 0.1 lin. ft.; dated 1999, 2002 and undated) comprises two photographs, one a 4x6-inch color official portrait (1999) the other a black-and-white 5x7-inch on location, perhaps in South Africa (undated), along with an article on Joseph in the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business magazine, vol. 3 no. 1 (Autumn 2002).
Addition (2012) (27 items, 0.1 lin. ft.; dated 1970-2000 and undated) contains primarily 16 color and black-and-white photographs ranging in size from 3x4-inches to 8x10-inches that document his official functions, clippings, an interview with Joseph following a plane crash he survived, and an invitations list for a cocktail party.
- Biographical / historical:
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James A. Joseph is a Louisiana native who graduated from Southern University, Baton Rouge, and from Yale Divinity School. He is an ordained minister and is currently Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Studies and Leader-in-Residence at the Hart Leadership Program at Duke University. He is also responsible for launching the U.S.-Southern Africa Center for Leadership and Public Values.
Joseph has taught at Yale Divinity School and at Clairemont Colleges, where he served as chaplain. He was also active in the Louisiana Civil Rights movement during the 1960s. From 1971-1976 he worked as vice president of the Cummins Engine Co. and was president of the Cummins Engine Foundation. In 1977, he was appointed by President Carter to be the undersecretary of the Interior, where he served until 1981. He was also chairman of the presidentially appointed Commission on the Northern Mariannas under President Carter; a member of the Advisory Committee to the Agency for International Development under President Reagan; and an incorporating director of the Points of Light Foundation and a member of the Presidential Commission on Historically Black Colleges under President Bush. He is also a former president and CEO of the Council on Foundations, 1982-1995.
Joseph served as ambassador to South Africa from January 1996 to November 1999, and was the first and only U.S. ambassador to present his credentials to President Nelson Mandela. In recognition of Joseph's contributions, South African 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. Before serving in South Africa, Joseph was the first chairman of the board of directors of President Clinton's Corporation for National Service.
This information is taken from his personal papers and from Joseph's biography as written on the Hart Leadership Program website.
- Acquisition information:
- The James A. Joseph papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2005, 2012.
- Processing information:
-
Processed by Meghan Lyon, March 2009
Encoded by Meghan Lyon, March 2009
Updated for addition 2012-0218 and unnumbered 2012 accession by Alice Poffinberger, February 2014
Accessions described in this guide include: 2009-0015, 2012-0218.
Materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.
- Physical location:
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
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- Preferred citation:
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[Identification of item], James A. Joseph Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University