Born into a blue collar and agricultural clan in rural Pennsylvania, Dr. Jim Crawford was the first in his family to graduate from college. Earning his PhD from the University of North Carolina, he taught US and World History at several universities in the piedmont North Carolina for several decades. He served as chairman of the Chatham County board of commissioners, and currently serves as trustee for Central Carolina Community College. He is a firm believer in American democracy and trusts that the constitution will hold firm now as it has in past crises despite the broken, distempered electorate.