Meet Jim Coleman

When he was 12 years old, Jim Coleman was already tending to his family’s farm in Lexington – feeding livestock, maintaining equipment, controlling costs and minimizing waste. From that point forward, Jim credits his father’s farm for first teaching him the principles of business economics.

For the past 40 years, Jim’s influence in the private sector has led to the creation of thousands of high wage jobs. He is a Fortune 500 executive, economic developer and owner of the Coleman Crest Farm in Lexington, Kentucky.

Jim has experience leading organizations to success including; Oscar Mayer & Co., Pepsi Cola Company, Philip Morris USA, American Express, Altria Corporation, the New York State Senate, Westchester County New York Government and Prince George’s County Maryland Economic Development Corporation.

After the passing of Jim’s wife and college sweetheart, Cathy Clash, Jim relocated from New York to Lexington. He began restoring his family’s farm and using it to teach aspiring farmers about the profession. Coleman Crest Farm has quickly established itself as a premier producer of all-natural produce. The farm is committed to becoming the first African American Owned, USDA Organic Certified Produce Farm in the State of Kentucky in 2022.

Jim is a 1983 graduate of Howard University with a B.A. in Economics. He established the Cathy and James Coleman Scholarship Fund for minority students in agriculture at the University of Kentucky. Jim is also the author of “Cut the Crap and Close the Gap”, an operating guide for small and large businesses and not for profit organizations.