KAY COLES JAMES has a broad background of public service having served as Virginia's secretary of Health and Human Resources and President George W. Bush's director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. 

James has also served as Senior Vice President of the Family Research Council, Director of Public Affairs for National Right to Life Committee and was founder and President of Black Americans for Life.

Currently, James is president and founder of The Gloucester Institute, an organization which trains and nurtures leaders in the African American community. The Gloucester Institute is committed to providing an intellectually safe environment where ideas can be discussed and transformed into practical solutions that produce results. 

A graduate of Hampton University, James is the recipient of numerous honorary degrees; she received a Doctor of Laws from Pepperdine University, the University of Virginia's Publius Award for Public Service and the Spirit of Democracy Award for Public Policy Leadership from the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. 

Most importantly, Kay Coles James is the wife of Charles James, Sr. and the proud mother of three grown children and five grandchildren.