“My most memorable moments at Southeast were my involvement in the University Theatre program,” says Southeast alumnus James Adams. “I enjoyed all the people I worked with on each and every show and treasure the memories that I took from each.
“I thoroughly enjoyed auditioning, rehearsals and performing in several main stage and black box theatre shows,” he added.
A Topeka, Kan., native, James attended Southeast after being encouraged by his wife. “My wife was a student at Southeast and spoke highly of it. So when I got out of the Marines in North Carolina, we moved back to Cape Girardeau so she could finish her schooling that she had already started and I could begin mine,” he says.
James is a veteran of the U.S. Marines, where he spent four years on active duty, making him eligible for the U.S. Marine Corps College Fund. The fund paid for his entire undergraduate degree at Southeast.
“I spent nearly two years training for and being deployed in Western Africa and participated in four evacuation operations while overseas,” James says. “I am very proud of my service, and I think it prepared me tremendously for going to school in that it gave me focus while being there,” he says. "I didn’t take school for granted at all."
James graduated with academic distinction in December 2002 with a bachelor of science degree with a major in industrial technology and an option in technical graphics.
Currently, he works as a Web designer for Kansas.gov, the official Web site of Kansas. “Basically, I work for a company that builds Web sites and Web applications for the State of Kansas,” he said. “Some of my primary responsibilities include: developing interface designs, information architecture, Web site and Web application task analysis, usability testing, market research, prototyping, coding, testing and wire-framing,” he says. “I also develop imagery for Web sites, and determine the look and feel of applications.”
James says his favorite aspect of his job is learning and implementing new technology as it applies to the Web. “Southeast gave me great exposure to the field I am currently in today,” he says. “Without the hands on classes in graphic and Web design, I probably wouldn’t have been as interested as I still am today.”
While in Cape Girardeau, James and his wife enjoyed going for walks and bike rides around Capaha Park, on campus, and at Cape County Memorial Park. They also enjoyed spending time with friends at Pop’s Pizza, football and basketball games, and the Riverfest in downtown Cape Girardeau.
Today, he and his wife are involved in activities with their two daughters.
“My wife and I love to play with our little girls. They are four and a half and two years old, so in the past four and a half years, our biggest and most enjoyable thing to do is spend time with them,” he said. “We love to go on family vacations and play all types of games and sports with them.”
James offers the following advice to Southeast students: “One of the best things you can do while being a Southeast student is get to know as many people as possible and after you graduate, do the best to continue communication with those people. Do your best to get involved in social clubs, athletics, academic groups, Student Government, or just any group where you can establish a network of friends, which is not as easy to do in a classroom environment.”