James Proctor was born in
Washington, D.C., on June 14, 1936. He grew up in Washington and attended
Dunbar High School. He served in
U.S. Air Force from 1961 to 1962 and again in 1968. Following the service he entered
Bowie State College and earned his
B.S. in elementary education in 1969, and then his
M.Ed in 1972. After 17 years as a secondary school principal, Proctor retired from the education arena and devoted himself full-time to the political arena. He died on September 10, 2015, of heart disease. ==In the legislature==