Dr. James Neil Turnage (Class of 2007)

Neil came to Virginia from Mississippi where he was born in 1957 to obtain a Bachelor’s of Integrated Studies degree at Virginia State University. His first career began at Steward School where he was Director of Plant and Maintenance as well as soccer and basketball coach. He later became Athletic Director and Head of Upper School before embarking to MCV’s School of Dentistry graduating in 1994. While working at Steward he also became recognized as one of the best soccer officials in the Richmond area. He hung up his official cleats, when he became a dentist practicing at Virginia Family Dentistry. Neil was also inducted into the Steward Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018 as a beloved member of the Spartan community following in the footsteps of his son Corey Turnage inducted in 2015 in the inaugural class at Steward, whose talent on the pitch as a player scholastically and professionally may have exceeded his father’s as a referee.