Dr. James D. Grady graduated from the University of Alabama in Birmingham School of Dentistry in 1971. He served his residency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill from 1971 – 1974. He served as an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon in the U.S. Army at Fort Benning from 1974 to 1976 and returned to his hometown of Opelika to practice Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 1976. Since that time, he has been active in state and community affairs-among other positions, he served for eight years on the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, and for two terms on the Board of Directors, Opelika Chamber of Commerce. He is a past President of the Alabama Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons.

Dr. Grady serves on the medical staff at East Alabama Medical Center, is a Diplomat in the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and a Fellow in the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. He is also a member of several other state and local professional organizations.