Councilwoman Sylvia Jordan holds a bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies from Michigan State University and performed graduate studies at Oakland University. A resident of the community for over 20 years, Ms. Jordan has worked hard to help Southfield remain a premiere city for all people to live and work. Ms. Jordan has served as a city councilwoman since 1997 and has served as council president from 2004-2007. Her responsibilities have included chair of the finance committee, chair of the neighborhood services committee, member of the boards and commissions and the non-profit senior housing committee. Ms. Jordan also served as president pro tem of the council prior to being elected from among her peers as council president for the last three consecutive years.
Councilwoman Jordan served as a panelist for the National League of Cities on the “Municipalities in Transition Round Table Panel” and she is a previous member of the Southfield Housing Commission, which oversees low-income housing in the city. She served with the Michigan Municipal League on the “How to Pay for Public Projects” educational program and received a National League of Cities Leadership Training Institute Certificate “Foundations of Leadership: Building Character, Courage & Credibility.” She is also a recipient of the Michigan Municipal League Leadership Training Award and was also recently named among the prestigious Who’s Who in Michigan.
Of her many accomplishments, Councilwoman Jordan is most proud of assisting in drafting and making recommendations for revisions to the city charter. Among her other achievements, Ms. Jordan performed an independent study of issues and how they affected the city's long-term financial position to ensure stability. On future accomplishments, Ms. Jordan would like to ensure that the city maintains its strong financial posture through stewardship and new development and redevelopment projects. She is committed to finding new ways to increase revenues and reduce costs without compromising the effective and efficient delivery of outstanding city services. Ms. Jordan is also working to ensure that additional taxes do not burden the city's residents or business community.
An acclaimed author, entrepreneur and public speaker, Ms. Jordan is the mother of two college students and has been married to her husband Larry for 23 years.