Sean James

Sean James

Sean James speaking at Washington University in St. Louis 2015
Date of birth (1969-03-15) March 15, 1969
Place of birth Meridian, Mississippi
Career information
Position(s) Running Back
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 213 lb (97 kg)
College Missouri Southern State University
NFL draft 1991 / Undrafted
Career history
As player
1991–1992 Minnesota Vikings

Sean James (born March 15, 1969, in Meridian, Mississippi) is a former American football player and activist who signed as a rookie free agent with the Minnesota Vikings (1991–1992). Sean is the cousin of father and son Major League Baseball players Cecil Fielder and Prince Fielder. In June 2012, James created Be In The Know About Bullying to combat homophobia and bullying.

Early life

James played his high school football at Hutchinson High School in Hutchinson, Kansas. James was a member of the 1986 team that reached the state semifinals, and was awarded All County and All State running back honors. James was a three-sport letterman in football, basketball and track and field. As one of the state's top high school long jumpers and sprinters, James had the best long jump in the state of Kansas at the 1987 Kansas Relays with a jump of 23 feet 6 1⁄2 inches (7.176 m).

Education

College career

James received his B.A. in Business Administration with a minor in Physical Therapy (Sports Medicine) from Missouri Southern State University, where he was a two-sport athlete. In track and field he was an All Conference sprinter in the 60 metres, 100 metres, and long jump, and had a long jump personal best of 25 feet 3 inches (7.70 m). On NFL pro day, James was able to show his exceptional speed (4.37 seconds in the 40 yard dash) and exceptional jumping ability (41-inch vertical jump) when working out for NFL scouts.[1]

Modeling career

After James' professional football career ended, James went on to sign a contract with the Ford Modeling Agency, appearing in several advertising campaigns, including Hanes, Fubu, Avon Products, and Phat Farm.

Advocacy

In February 2015, there had much controversy and discussion about the problems that exist between police departments of urban communities and their citizens. Gateway, a program created by James is aptly name as it creates an opening for communication and healing between the Police Department of St.Louis and its urban youth. The goal of the program is to take the sense of belonging to ones' community, and transform it into tangible relationships that we help to cultivate by focusing on the four principals of guidance, access, tolerance, and education, Gateway redefines the urban experience through a singular purpose and a shared responsibility.

In February 2010, Al Joyner and James appeared in a Planned Parenthood anticipatory response message to a controversial Focus on the Family anti-abortion Super Bowl commercial starring Tim Tebow and his mother.[2]

Philanthropy

In 2007 James founded and is the president of Sean James Student Athletes (SJSA), a nonprofit organization in New York City. SJSA provides scholarships for underprivileged youth.[3] In 2012 James founded Be In The Know About Bullying organization. Be In The Know is an anti-bullying program centered on the philosophy that students can make a meaningful impact on preventing bullying in their schools through leadership, education, and the use of meaningful mentors. The purpose of this organization is to increase awareness of our organization in local communities and share vital information about bullying in order to spark interest and momentum in our fight to end bullying. By bringing together important community figures from different walks of life, and NFL Players we can facilitate networking and cross promotion to increase awareness and foster programs to combat bullying within our local communities.

References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ NFL Individual Workout Analyses
  2. ↑ YouTube Video of Planned Parenthood Commercial
  3. ↑ SJSA Scholarships Recipients

General references

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