James Reiss works in Institutional Equity Sales for Howard Weil, Inc and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from the University of Mississippi. He recently retired from a 15-year career in the Marine Corps where he earned the rank of Captain, was granted Top Secret Clearance and was deployed on several overseas missions. James holds Airplane and Helicopter FAA pilot licenses. In the Marines, James served as Aircraft Maintenance Department Supervisor, Future Operations and Plans Officer, Pilot Training Officer, Quality Assurance Officer and Public affairs Officer. In these various positions, James acted as a liaison officer to Special Forces and foreign governments, served as a senior squadron flight instructor, performed bi-annual program audits, managed up to 100 Maries under his command at a time and managed over $100 million in capital equipment. James stepped forward and offered to help Audubon Charter School recognizing that quality public education is a key to the survival of the City of New Orleans post-Katrina.