UA’s Frannie James Named Buford Peace Award Winner

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Frannie James, a global studies instructor in the Capstone International Center at The University of Alabama, is the 2017 recipient of the Lahoma Adams Buford Peace Award.

James, who has been involved in international education since 1990, designed and directs Culturally Speaking, a class in which degree-seeking UA students meet with small groups of English Learning Institute students twice a week for discussions focused on issues of culture.

James has taught for 11 years in Capstone International Center’s Global Studies Certificate Program.

James will be honored during a ceremony at 5 p.m., May 8 at the Cypress Inn Pavilion in Tuscaloosa. For more information about the ceremony, contact Liz Dykes at eadykes@sw.ua.edu.

“When I read that I’d been selected, I immediately thought ‘I’m not deserving of this,’” James said. “I think about people like [UA political science professor] Norm Baldwin and some of the truly remarkable people who’ve won this award … it’s an incredible honor.”

Established in 2002 by UA School of Social Work alumnus Tony D. Walker to honor Lahoma Adams Buford, the award is given annually to a faculty member at UA who, in his or her teaching, research, professional practice and personal life, has demonstrated exceptional levels of involvement in mediating human disputes, helping overcome prejudice, promoting justice and establishing peace.

James was nominated, in part, for her advocacy of international students at UA following a federal executive order in January that temporarily suspended immigration from select countries in Africa and the Middle East.

Dr. Carol Drolen, associate professor in the UA School of Social Work, also noted James’ advocacy style, which incorporates many of social work’s values.

“She exemplifies these values, not in a stern or harsh manner, nor does she degrade those in power as a way to align herself with those in need,” Drolen said. “Rather, she works by using the tools social workers are familiar with, such as consensus building, being mindful and aware, listening, not judging, and seeking commonalities.

“We are fortunate to have Frannie on our campus, working with our students, serving as a role model for all of us who seek to promote humanitarian goals and justice,” Drolen said. “Through her efforts, the community of The University of Alabama and the community of Tuscaloosa have moved closer in the direction of inclusiveness and fairness, closer in attaining mutual respect and comfort.”

During the last few years, James has coordinated the ELI Intercultural Experience, a set of ELI classes that involve UA students integrating into ELI classes. James said her mission is to give UA students the opportunity to have the same cultural awakenings she had as a youth when she relocated from Southern California to rural Alabama, during her undergraduate years at UA, backpacking through Europe, and through her professional career at UA.

“With all of the content and different things we create into the classes themselves, sometimes the contact with someone from another country or culture ends up being the center piece of the class,” James said. “When I teach, I’m a firm believer in experiencing difference. And if the students have someone to guide them through it, it opens them up, and there’s no way to not have a sense of social justice after that experience. I want to impart a sense of curiosity about the world around them.”