Kemper Alumnus James Hallam Joins MMA Board of Trustees

The following press release was sent from the Missouri Military Academy.

Texas food and beverage executive James R. Hallam has joined the Missouri Military Academy Board of Trustees.

As trustee, Hallam will help provide strategic oversight and support to MMA, one of the nation’s top college preparatory military boarding schools.

An all-male school, MMA provides residential and day school education for middle and high school (grades 7-12, plus postgrad year).

Hallam is a 1988 graduate of Kemper Military School, a 158-year-old private academy in Boonville, Missouri, that closed in 2002.

He serves as president of the Kemper Military School & College Alumni Association and is active in the Tri-Military School Alliance. His son Hale is a 2024 graduate of MMA.

“We welcome James Hallam to the Academy’s Board of Trustees,” said MMA President Brigadier General Richard V. Geraci, USA (Ret).

“He brings tremendous passion for our military educational model to the board and has done a great job in his role with the Kemper Alumni Association.

We are excited to have his expertise on the board as we continue to strengthen the Tri-Military School Alliance.”

A Dallas native, Hallam is the chief executive affairs officer of Ben E. Keith Co., a food and beverage distributor based in Fort Worth, Texas, which does business in 20 states.

He has been with the company for 37 years.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from St. Edwards University and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.

He is an active member of the Dallas community and has served on boards in Texas, Washington, D.C., and Missouri.

As Kemper Alumni Association President, he spearheaded post-pandemic efforts to develop the Kemper Military School & College Museum in Boonville, which opened in 2021.

“I am excited about joining the board of Missouri Military Academy,” Hallam said.

“The value of a military education extends far beyond the day-to-day fundamentals of discipline, honor and respect.

MMA produces leaders, and our society desperately needs leadership.

My son flourished at MMA; he became a leader. It is just so important to get involved and support this school.

There’s so much we can do and there’s never been a better time to do it.”

Hallam and his wife Kristin live in Dallas, where they enjoy parenting their combined family of children – Georgia, Hite and Hale Hallam, and Christian and Jackson Case.

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