John S. Adams earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN, 1960; a M.A. in Economics from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 1962 and a Ph.D. in Urban Economic Geography from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 1966.
He is Professor Emeritus from the Department of Geography, Environment and Society, University of Minnesota.