When Darren James II ’20, ’26MBA receives his Master of Business Administration from Arcadia University, it’ll be a feat 10 years in the making, whose obstacles include homelessness and loss. 

While at Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville, N.J., James became a caretaker for his mother after she suffered a near-fatal stroke. He decided to attend Arcadia during the 2015-16 school year, but found his grades slipping because of his personal commitments. During his time away from Arcadia, he and his family lost their home, leading to James hopping between houses of friends and other family members.

“I always have a belief and that mentality of ‘finishing what you start,’” he said. “In all honesty, what truly influenced my return was not letting down my family, especially since they look to me for support. I also wanted to prove everybody wrong since I wasn’t able to be successful at Arcadia the first time.”

Before returning to Glenside, James completed a year-long stint at Valley Forge Military College. In addition to taking part in all that is required of a student at a military college–five-mile runs in the morning, pushups and other exercises on the college lawn, and structured academics–James worked several jobs, including as a pizza delivery driver, front-desk associate at LA Fitness, and an after-school teacher at St. Luke’s Catholic School in Glenside. This allowed James to save money in anticipation of getting back to Arcadia.

“I had to own and take accountability for my lack of success in my first year [at Arcadia],” he realized. “I mean, I had a 1.25 GPA, which is horrible by any academic standard. I came up with a game plan to return to Arcadia, and I just had to trust it.”

James had the opportunity to return to Arcadia for the 2018-19 academic year, and he was hungrier than ever to complete his college education. However, before he could arrive back on campus, he hit another bump in the road when his Aunt Winnie, someone he considered a second mother, died of breast cancer. It was at this time he decided to reinvent himself in order to pursue his second chance at Arcadia.

“This was the person who took me in after my mother got sick, so this loss hit me much differently than others,” he explained. “That summer was very dark for me, but I just knew from that alone, I had to do it for her.”

James rejoined the basketball team, helping the team to advance to the 2018-19 NCAA Division III tournament, and completed his bachelor’s in Accounting in 2020. After gaining work experience as a fund accountant at SEI Investments, he knew it would be a no-brainer to return to Arcadia for his MBA.

“Someone once told me, ‘Get your master’s degree because that will be the standard some day, and a bachelor’s will be only like a high school diploma,’ and that really stuck with me,” James explained. “I was already familiar with the Arcadia curriculum, and I had outstanding mentors, such as Dr. Thomas Brinker and Prof. Cynthia Planita, who always had my best interest at heart. I needed only a few more credits to be able to sit for the Certified Public Accountant, so I was able to achieve two things at once.”

James’ journey to receiving his undergraduate and MBA degrees may have included several twists and turns, but it was those tribulations that helped shape the man he is today.

“With everything that has happened, this makes the 10-year journey very humbling and proud, but bittersweet because I honestly grew from a boy to a man during my time at Arcadia,” he said. “I came in as a struggling 18-year-old kid with no home and no parents to support me, but came out as a 28 year-old-man that found his way and his extended family through Arcadia. My journey doesn’t end at Arcadia; it was just a chapter in my life, but I will never forget where I came from.”