Herb James: Resolved

Arguably, Dartmouth's long-time dominance in the field of competitive debating can be ascribed to one man: Professor Herbert James. James taught speech at the College for 37 years until his retirement in 1988, coached the debate team, and for 18 years was the College's Israel Evans Professor of Oratory and Belles Lettres. Earlier this year the National Debate Tournament gave Herb James its Life-Time Achievement Award, recognizing him as "a prominent member of debate's long gray line for excellence as a teacher and coach and for a lifelong commitment to debate." It was only the fifth such award in 27 years.

Life-Time achieverJames (center) in 1960.