James Smoot Coleman (4 February 1919 – 20 April 1985) was an American scholar, professor and administrator in political science, but more specifically in African studies.
He is noted for two of his books, Nigeria: Background to Nationalism[1] and Education and Political Development[2] which have been called "classics of scholarship".
He enrolled in Brigham Young University, but interrupted his college education to join the U.S. Army in 1941, and achieved the rank of Lt.
In 1967 he moved to Kenya to assume the position as Director for the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nairobi.
As head of CICS he was instrumental in leading the Southern California Consortium for International Studies from 1978 until his death in 1985.