James T. Laney (born December 24, 1927) is an American minister, professor, and former diplomat. He served as dean of the

Candler School of Theology Candler School of Theology is one of seven graduate schools at Emory University, located in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia. A university-based school of theology, Candler educates ministers, scholars of religion and other leaders. It is also o ...

, president of

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

, and

United States Ambassador to South Korea The United States Ambassador to South Korea () is the chief diplomatic representative of the United States accredited to the Republic of Korea. The ambassador's official title is "Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States ...

Early life and education

Laney was born in the American South and grew up in Arkansas and

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. After graduating from Central High School in Memphis, Laney earned his B.A. degree in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

. His studies were interrupted by service in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

in the late 1940s, where he went to Korea in January 1947 after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and the removal of Japanese rule. He was in the

Counterintelligence Corps The Counter Intelligence Corps (Army CIC) was a World War II and early Cold War intelligence agency within the United States Army consisting of highly trained special agents. Its role was taken over by the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps in 1961 and ...

. "He would say later in life that the experience in Korea so changed his thinking about the world, that by the time he returned to Yale to finish his degree, in 1950, he had determined to enter the ministry," his Emory biography states. Laney later attended

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

. After years as a minister, he returned to Yale, completing a Ph.D. degree in Christian ethics at Yale Graduate School.

Career

Laney became a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

minister and served as chaplain at Choate School (now Choate Rosemary Hall) while completing his seminary degree. After graduating, he was a church minister in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

for five years. "But in 1959, drawn by what he had seen in Korea, Laney returned

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Technologies, Here Television * Here TV (form ...

... to serve as a Methodist

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

teaching at

Yonsei University Yonsei University (; ) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. As a member of the " SKY" universities, Yonsei University is deemed one of the three most prestigious institutions in the country. It is particularly respected in th ...

in Seoul. In 1964, seeing higher education as another facet of his vocation, he entered Yale Graduate School, where he completed his Ph.D. degree in Christian ethics in just two years. In 1969, only three years after becoming an assistant professor at

Vanderbilt Divinity School The Vanderbilt Divinity School and Graduate Department of Religion (usually Vanderbilt Divinity School) is an interdenominational divinity school at Vanderbilt University, a major research university located in Nashville, Tennessee. It is one of o ...

, Laney was called by Emory to be dean of the

" from 1969 to 1977. He served as the 17th president of

from 1977 to 1993. The same year he became the university's president, Emory received an identity-changing $105 million gift for the school from Robert W. Woodruff, a former

Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups ...

chairman. As a result, Laney was instrumental in helping transform the school, elevating its academic offerings and standing. Laney was appointed Ambassador to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

by United States President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

on October 15, 1993, and presented credentials November 2, 1993. He was involved in defusing the 1994 nuclear crisis during his tenure. He left his post on February 5, 1996.

Other involvements

Laney served on

Harvard Board of Overseers The Harvard Board of Overseers (more formally The Honorable and Reverend the Board of Overseers) is one of Harvard University's two governing boards. Although its function is more consultative and less hands-on than the President and Fellows of Harv ...

committee for Harvard Divinity School and has served on the Executive Committee of the

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

University Council. He is a trustee of the

Henry Luce Foundation Henry may refer to: People * Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portuga ...

in New York; co-chair, with

Andrew Young Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (born March 12, 1932) is an American politician, diplomat, and activist. Beginning his career as a pastor, Young was an early leader in the civil rights movement, serving as executive director of the Southern Christian L ...

, of Faith and the City in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

; and board member of the

Community Foundation Community foundations (CFs) are instruments of civil society designed to pool donations into a coordinated investment and grant making facility dedicated primarily to the social improvement of a given place. Community foundations are a global pheno ...

for

Greater Atlanta Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Alpharetta, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ...

. He is a past director of

The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrup ...

and SunTrust Georgia. From 1997 to 2003, he co-chaired the Council on Foreign Relations Task Force on Korea. He served as the chair of th
United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia
His articles have appeared in ''Foreign Affairs'', ''The New York Times'', ''The Washington Post'' and numerous other publications.

Honors and awards

Laney has received at least 22 honorary degrees from colleges and universities in the US, Great Britain, Japan, Korea, and Africa. He has medals for distinguished service from the United States and Korea, the Wilbur L. Cross Medal from Yale, the Emory Medal, and the General

James Van Fleet General James Alward Van Fleet (March 19, 1892 – September 23, 1992) was a United States Army officer who saw service during World War I, World War II and the Korean War. Van Fleet was a native of New Jersey, who was raised in Florida and gradu ...

award from the Korea Society. Emory University's graduate school, founded in 1919, was renamed The James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies in 2009.

Personal

Laney is married to Berta Radford and they have five children and sixteen grandchildren. They live in Atlanta. The youngest two children were born in Seoul, Korea when the family lived there from 1959 to 1964 during Laney's missionary work. Three out of his five children graduated from Emory College and two received advanced degrees. Nine out of the sixteen grandchildren have attended Emory, and five have graduated as of August 2012.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laney, James 1927 births Living people Methodist missionaries in South Korea Yale Divinity School alumni Presidents of Emory University United States Army soldiers Ambassadors of the United States to South Korea