17 Facts About James Tooley

In July 2020, Tooley was appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, succeeding Sir Anthony Seldon from 1 October 2020.

James Tooley's family moved to Bristol where he was educated at Kingsfield School, Kingswood.

James Tooley holds a PhD from the Institute of Education, University of London, an MSc from the Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex, and first class BSc honours in Logic and Mathematics, from the University of Sussex.

James Tooley began his career as a mathematics teacher in Zimbabwe, before moving to the National Foundation for Educational Research in England in 1988.

James Tooley held short-term appointments at Simon Fraser University, Canada, and the University of the Western Cape, South Africa, while completing his PhD.

James Tooley is currently chairman of education companies in Ghana and India creating low cost chains of low cost private schools.

James Tooley holds an appointment as an Adjunct Scholar at the Cato Institute and serves on the Advisory Council of the Institute of Economic Affairs as well as on the Academic Advisory Council of Civitas: The Institute for the Study of Civil Society.

James Tooley serves on the Board of Visitors of Ralston College, a start-up liberal arts college in Savannah.

James Nicholas Tooley is a professor of educational entrepreneurship and of education policy at the University of Buckingham.

In July 2020, James Tooley was appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, succeeding Sir Anthony Seldon from 1 October 2020.

In October 2024 it was announced that James Tooley had been suspended as Vice-Chancellor of Buckingham University because of serious allegations which had been made against him.

James Tooley was reinstated in January 2025 after an investigation found that the allegations were not substantiated.

James Tooley is best known for his work on low cost private education.

James Tooley began this work in 2000, having discovered for himself the existence of low cost private schools in the slums of Hyderabad while doing consultancy for the International Finance Corporation.

James Tooley's work has been profiled in documentaries for the BBC and PBS: for the latter it was featured alongside the work of Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus and Hernando de Soto Polar.

In 2017 James Tooley announced plans to open a low cost private primary school in Durham, England.

James Tooley's work has explored the role of government in education from philosophical and other theoretical perspectives.