John Stanford

John Henry Stanford (September 14, 1938 – November 28, 1998) was a United States Army major general who later became superintendent of public schools in Seattle. Early life and education Born in Darby, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia, Stanford graduated from Yeadon High School and Pennsylvania State University, earning a B.A. in political science. In 1975, he received a master's degree in personnel management and administration from Central Michigan University. Military service Stanford entered the U.S. Army in 1961 after college and rose to the rank of major general (O-8). He served during the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm and also worked as executive assistant to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger. Trained as an infantry officer and fixed-wing aviator, Stanford was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and several Air Medals. Fulton County Executive In 1991, Stanford was hired as executive of Fulton County, Georgia. As county executive in Atlanta, he earned praise from civic leaders, though progress on his agenda of cutting bureaucracy and waste in county government was often impeded by infighting among members of the county commission.