James Alexander Grimsley Jr. (November 14, 1921 – June 11, 2013), was a United States Army Major General and combat veteran of two wars who also served as President of his alma mater, The Citadel from 1980 to 1989.

After graduating with The Citadel, class of 1942, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army and immediately went to the Pacific Theater to fight in World War II.

He held numerous high leadership positions including command of an infantry brigade in Vietnam, a tour as Assistant Commander of the 2d Armored Division and service on the Army General Staff.

[2] His tenure at the Citadel was marked by a return to traditional values in the corps of cadets, a significant increase in applications, major physical improvements to the campus and rising academic rankings.

[1] During Grimsley's active duty career, he received 35 major decorations,[3] including the following: # denotes interim president