Goodnight, James Howard
Class of 1961Born January 6, 1943 graduated New Hanover High School 1961.
Goodnight attended North Carolina State University where he got a job writing software programs for the agricultural economics department. He received a master’s degree in statistics. He worked for a company building electronics equipment for the ground stations that communicated with Apollo space capsules. Returning to NCSU earned a PhD in statistics. Goodnight and three other faculty members formed SAS Institute where he remained as CEO.
Goodnight was elected as a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, named a Great American Business Leader by Harvard and named one of America’s 25 most Fascinating Entrepreneurs by Inc. Magazine. He has also been a frequent speaker and participant a the World Economic Forum.
Accolades: CEO SAS Institute, Great American Business Leader, Fascinating Entrepreneur