Francis Bernard Francois
Born(1934-01-21)January 21, 1934
Barnum, Iowa, U.S.
DiedFebruary 17, 2021(2021-02-17) (aged 87)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
CitizenshipAmerican
Alma materIowa State University, George Washington University
Known forTransportation, Engineering and Policy Leadership in Surface Transportation Infrastructure and Research
AwardsW.N. Carey Jr. Award, Theodore M. Matson Memorial Award, Marston Medal, Frank Turner Medal, ARTBA Top 100 Professionals in the U.S. in the 20th Century, Washingtonian of the Year
Scientific career
FieldsEngineering, Elected Official, Judge, Law
InstitutionsAASHTO, Prince George's County, Maryland

Francis Bernard Francois (January 21, 1934 – February 17, 2021)[1] was an American engineer and lawyer who received recognition for his achievements in the field of engineering and policy leadership in regional government, surface transportation infrastructure and research. In 1999, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering.[2]

Career

Francois grew up on a farm in Barnum, Webster County, Iowa and graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor's degree in engineering[3] in 1956. He moved to Washington, D.C. and began his career in 1956 as a patent examiner in the U.S. Patent Office. He enrolled in night law school at The George Washington University, and earned a law degree in 1960. Francois become a patent advisor for the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in 1959. He was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1960, and practiced patent and trademark law with the firm of Bacon and Thomas from 1962 until 1980.

Prince George's County

Francois became an elected official in Prince George's County, Maryland, in 1962, serving first as Chief Judge of the Orphan's Court, then a County Commissioner. After the county changed from a County Commissioner to a County Council system, he served 10 years as a member of the County Council. There his special interests included civil rights legislation,[4] fair employment for African Americans,[5] education, problems of the handicapped and senior citizens, fiscal management, recreation and economic and community development.[6] When he announced that he would not run for County Executive in the 1978 Democratic primary, The Washington Post noted Francois as the council's "philosopher historian", "maverick" and "ambassador to the outside world".[7] Francois represented Prince George's County on the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG)[8] and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA)[9] and he chaired the Joint Policy Steering Committee on the Washington Metro Alternatives Analysis Project. With COG he supported and helped coordinate the D.C. Air Pollution Act in 1968, which predated national air quality legislation by several years; he was present for the signing of the bill alongside President Lyndon B. Johnson[10] and Washington DC's first mayor, Walter Washington. Nationally, he was twice elected president of the National Association of Regional Councils and in 1979–1980 was president of the National Association of Counties (NACo).[11] With NACo he advocated for the role of county government in policy briefings with President Jimmy Carter[11] and said in his inauguration speech as NACo president: "From this day forward, let us never speak of county government as being anything less than the most meaningful and effective form of local government in America, for that is precisely what we are." He concluded that message with a tip to his Irish ancestry, offering an old Irish blessing to the NACo audience.[12]

AASHTO

In 1980, he resigned from the County Council to become executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO),[1] where he remained until his retirement in 1999. AASHTO said that in his application letter for the executive director's job, Francois wrote: "Never before in history has transportation been more important than in the America of the late 20th century. Our economy, our life-style, the design of our urban and rural areas, and indeed our very survival as a modern nation are all dependent on us having a good transportation system."[1][13]

He assumed the duties as AASHTO's executive director at a time when the association faced new and daunting challenges with respect to maintaining the nation's multi-modal transportation network.[1] During his nearly 20-year tenure as AASHTO executive director, Francois reasserted the association as the premier technical organization for adopting and issuing highway standards and specifications. He also strengthened its role with respect to setting national transportation policy for all modes, and played a major role in four legislative reauthorization efforts (1981, 1986, 1991, 1996)[14] under the administrations of President Ronald Reagan,[15] President George H. W. Bush and President Bill Clinton. He was an important player in the Washington, D.C., debates over transportation policy and helped marshal state departments of transportation activities to push for several major highway and transit bills, capped by the 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, or TEA-21.[13] Francois also further cultivated AASHTO's involvement in international activities, working with global transportation organizations such as the International Road Federation and the World Road Association.[1] He co-led the Scanning Tour on Transportation Agency Organization and Management sponsored by AASHTO, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and industry; the tour included meetings with transport agencies in New Zealand, Australia, Sweden, and England.[16]

Other work

In addition to leading AASHTO, Francois supported the transportation profession in many ways, advocating for innovation with the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP), and serving on the executive committee of the Transportation Research Board (TRB). Francois was also one of the cofounders of Intelligent Transportation Study of America (ITS America), where he served a term as its chair and was made an honorary life member of its board. Francois also served on the board of directors of Cambridge Systematics Inc from 2000 to 2010.[17]

Upon Francois' retirement, an announcement from FHWA said "Frank was an unflagging advocate for transportation research and technology innovation" explaining, "From the moment SHRP was first envisioned and at every milestone throughout its research and implementation phases, Frank was there. To many people, Frank was SHRP."[18]

Awards and honors

In 1973, Francois was recognized by Washingtonian Magazine as a Washingtonian of the Year.[19] In 1989, Francois received TRB's W.N. Carey Jr. Award for his leadership in supporting transportation research.[20] In 1993, he received the Institute of Transportation Engineers Theodore M. Matson Memorial Award.[21] He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1999.[22] He was also made an honorary lifetime member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers in 2002, which noted at the time that, "Frank's ability to see both sides of an issue – and to issue a verdict that withstands scrutiny – has made him a treasured leader."[1] In 2003, he received the Marston Medal from Iowa State University.[23][24] In 2004, he was named by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association as one of the top 100 private-sector design and construction professionals in the U.S. in the 20th Century.[25] In 2007, Francois was the recipient of TRB's Frank Turner Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Transportation.[26]

On February 4, 1999, U.S. Congressman Steny Hoyer honored Francois in the Congressional Record citing his reputation as "Mr. Goodwrench," "Mr. Fixit", and having "the vision of an allpurpose reformer."[27]

In 2000, AASHTO created the Francis B. Francois Award for Innovation – an award bestowed annually to state departments of transportation that have developed innovative projects.[28]

In September 2021, his alma mater Iowa State University inducted Francois into the Hall of Fame at the Department of Civil, Construction & Environmental Engineering. He was one of 26 inductees at the CCEE department's 150th anniversary on campus in Ames, Iowa.[29]

Patents and basketball

Francois was the patent attorney for two boyhood friends, Paul D. Estlund and Kenneth F. Estlund, who received U.S. Patent 4,534,556 for a break-away basketball goal, filed in 1977.[30] He wrote a book about the experience of acquiring the patent for the invention that saved many basketball courts from having broken backboards or bent rims.[31] The invention also likely made it easier for the NCAA to decide on the re-introduction of the slam dunk as a legal move in college basketball, after it had been banned in 1967.

Many claim the no dunk rule was implemented to keep Kareem Abdul-Jabbar from dominating the college game, but coach John Wooden said, in an interview to the UCLA student daily paper, "(Alcindor) didn't cause the change. The NCAA Rules Committee outlawed the dunk because of hanging on the rim, rims bending back, boards breaking and glass down."[32] With the advent of the break-away basketball goal, this was no longer an issue.

Written works

  • Francois, Francis B. (2008). Two Guys From Barnum, Iowa And How They Helped Save Basketball. Francois Press. ISBN 978-0-6151-8342-8.
  • Francois, Francis B. (2011). Me? I'm from Iowa. Lulu Press. ISBN 978-1-1052-5880-0.

Personal life

Francois was married to his wife Eileen Mary Francois for 43 years, before her death in 2003. Together they had five children Joseph, Marie, Michael, Monica and Susan.[33] In 2011 Francois documented his early years growing up on a farm in Barnum Iowa, Webster County as well as his move to the Washington, D.C. metro area, and dedicated his memoir to his wife, 5 children, and 7 grandchildren saying: "Nothing in my life means more to me than these people, and my memoirs are dedicated to them."[34]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Former AASHTO Executive Director Francis Francois Dies". The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Members Directory: Mr. Francis B. Francois". National Academy of Engineering. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  3. ↑ "Guide to the Francis Francois papers, 1967–2004". scrc.gmu.edu. George Mason University Libraries. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  4. ↑ Goldman, Ivan G. (May 3, 1972). "Pr. George's votes strict rights law: Pr. George's enacts strict rights law". The Washington Post. ProQuest 148294028. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  5. ↑ Conway, Sharon (April 28, 1977). "Prince George's Council supports reorganization of human resources unit". The Washington Post. ProQuest 146747306. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Prince George's County Council – At-Large". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  7. ↑ Maraniss, David A. (November 24, 1977). "Francois Won't Run, Says So in 10 Pages". The Washington Post. ProQuest 146700953. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  8. ↑ From Staff Reports and News Dispatches (January 11, 1969). "Francois Is Elected Chairman Of Area Council of Governments". The Washington Post. ProQuest 147734944. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  9. ↑ DeYoung, Karen (January 29, 1976). "Railing Over Metro by Rail". The Washington Post. ProQuest 146449019. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  10. ↑ Beck, William O. (2007). "A Half Century of Regional Partnership – COG Celebrates 50 Years (pp. 16)". Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  11. 1 2 Hillenbrand, Bernard (September 17, 1979). "Francois Pushes Congress to Act to Stem Inflation" (PDF). County News. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  12. ↑ "History of MACo by Chapters (Chapter 8)". Maryland Association of Counties. January 2003. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  13. 1 2 "Former AASHTO Executive Director Frank Francois, 87, Dies". www.enr.com. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  14. ↑ Orski, C. Kenneth (1999). "TQ Interview: Francis B. Francois Recently Retired Executive Director of AASHTO". Transportation Quarterly. Eno Transportation Foundation. 53 (2): 79–86.
  15. ↑ Holsendolph, Ernest; Times, Special To the New York (1982-11-22). "OFFICIALS SAY ROAD PROJECTS COULD START ALMOST AT ONCE (Published 1982)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  16. ↑ "AASHTO Establishes Committee to Coordinate International Activities" (PDF). Transcan, NCHRP Project 20-36. Highway Research and Technology; International Information Sharing. Fall 1997. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Cambridge Systematics, Inc. on LinkedIn: Former AASHTO Executive Director Francis Francois Dies". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  18. ↑ "SHRP Champion Francois Retires – February 1999 – Focus | Federal Highway Administration". www.fhwa.dot.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  19. ↑ "Past Washingtonians of the Year". Washingtonian Magazine. January 29, 2008. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  20. ↑ "W. N. Carey, Jr., Distinguished Service Award". trb.org. Transportation Research Board. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  21. ↑ "Past Recipients of Theodore M. Matson Memorial Award". ite.org. Institute of Transportation Engineers. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  22. ↑ "National Academy of Engineering Elects 80 Members and 8 Foreign Associates". nationalacademies.org (Press release). National Academy of Engineering. February 16, 1999. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Marston Medal, PACE Awards presented". Marston Muses. Iowa State University College of Engineering. Fall 2003. Archived from the original on May 6, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Distinguished Alumni: Anson Marston Medal". Iowa State University College of Engineering. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  25. ↑ "'Top 100' Honorees" (PDF). Transportation Builder. American Road and Transportation Builders Association. November 2004. p. 31. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 23, 2006.
  26. ↑ "Former AASHTO Executive Director Frank Francois Receives TRB's Turner Medal". transportation.org (Press release). AASHTO. January 24, 2007. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007.
  27. ↑ Hoyer, Congressman Steny (February 4, 1999). "Francis Francois, A Dedicated Public Servant" (PDF). Congressional Record: E141.
  28. ↑ "Francis B. Francois Award for Innovation". Archived from the original on 2006-08-07. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  29. ↑ "AASHTO's Francois Added to Iowa's CEEE Hall of Fame". AASHTO Journal. 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  30. ↑ "Break-away basketball goal". Free Patents Online. August 13, 1985. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  31. ↑ "Two Guys From Barnum, Iowa And How They Helped Save Basketball" (Press release). Francois Press. PR.com. April 1, 2008. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  32. ↑ Cadman, AJ (March 2, 2000). "The birth of a legend (part 2)". Daily Bruin. UCLA. Archived from the original on September 16, 2006. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  33. ↑ Death Notices (October 23, 2003). "Francois, Eileen Mary". The Washington Post. ProQuest 2267456702. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  34. ↑ Francois, Francis B. (2011). Me? I'm from Iowa. Lulu Press. ISBN 978-1-1052-5880-0.
  • Papers of Francis Francois, Special Collections, University of Maryland Libraries
  • AASHTO
  • Bacon and Thomas
  • Archived 2008-02-22 at the Wayback Machine Cambridge Systematics Inc.
  • U.S. Patent 4,534,556 For A Break-Away Basketball Goal
  • Francois, Francis B. (2008) Two Guys From Barnum, Iowa And How They Helped Save Basketball : A History Of U.S. Patent 4,534,556 : Paul D. Estlund And Kenneth F. Estlund, Inventors (ISBN 978-0615183428)
  • Francois, Francis B. (2011) Me, I'm From Iowa (ISBN 978-1105258800)
  • Institute of Transportation Engineers – Honorary Member
  • Francis Francois Papers 1967–2004, George Mason University Libraries
  • Appearances on C-SPAN
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