Frank Jordan

Early life and education

Jordan was born in San Francisco in 1935 and graduated from Sacred Heart High School in 1953. He studied political science and government at the University of San Francisco during his time on the police force and graduated in 1975.

Police career and Chief of Police

Before becoming mayor, Jordan served as the Chief of the San Francisco Police Department from 1986 until 1990, at which point he resigned to run for mayor. He joined the force in 1957 and was named Chief of Police by then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein in 1986. At a conference at USF Jordan was reported to have said, "Since I have been the mayor and chief of police, I believe disciplinary procedures are very important to have in the hands of the chief of police," The panel also specifically recommended that the chief be given the power to suspend an officer for up to 90 days. Currently suspensions are limited to 10 days.

Mayor of San Francisco

Jordan served as the Mayor of San Francisco, California from 1992, succeeding Art Agnos, until January, 1996, after being defeated by former California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown in the November, 1995 mayoral election. He continued Agnos' campaign against the city's chapter of Food Not Bombs and introduced a controversial program called Matrix which aimed to deal with the city's homelessness problems. During his mayoral tenure Jordan played a role in converting the Presidio Army Base into part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, bringing Bay Area Rapid Transit to the San Francisco International Airport, keeping the San Francisco Giants in the city and balancing the city's budget.

Jordan was challenged for mayor in the 1995 mayoral election by Brown, who was termed out of the State Assembly. Brown, considered by many to be one of the most powerful African-American politicians in the country, had been defeated only once in a run for public office. Brown and Jordan advanced out of a crowded field to a run-off election, where Brown was victorious. In the 1999 mayoral election, Jordan attempted a comeback bid for Mayor of San Francisco, but came in third place behind Willie Brown and Tom Ammiano.

Foundation executive

Since 2001 Jordan has served as special advisor to the president of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and is the foundation's principal counselor on the impact of potential grants in the nine-county Bay Area. According to the foundation's 2007 annual report, in that year nearly $53 million in grants was devoted to the San Francisco Bay Area.

Personal life

Jordan holds a degree in government and political science from the University of San Francisco, where he has served on the Business Advisory Council since 1989, and teaching credentials from the University of California. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, Wendy Paskin.