Kenneth Forbis Jordan Jr.

Dr. K. Forbis Jordan

K. Forbis Jordan, 81, died August 16, 2011 after an extended illness from Parkinson's disease and cancer. Born April 19, 1930 in Ekron, Kentucky, he resided in Kentucky, Bloomington IN, Gainsville, FL, Washington, D.C., Tempe, AZ and, for the past 16 years, in Henderson, NV. His undergraduate and masters degrees were from Western Kentucky University. He was an Army veteran of the Korean War. He earned his doctorate from Indiana University at the age of 31.

Dr. Jordan's career spanned 45 years as a teacher, basketball coach, high school principal, and university professor. He was a professor at three major research universities; Indiana University, University of Florida, and Arizona State University. He served as the senior education research analysis for the Congressional Research Service of the U.S. Library of Congress during the Carter and Reagan administrations. He was recognized as a national school finance expert and received the Outstanding Service Award from the Association for Education Finance and Policy in 1990.

Dr. Jordan's professional life was devoted to the improvement of public school finance equity and adequacy. His work focused on states' equitable funding for children at-risk of not completing school and for children with disabilities. However, his first love was mentoring and developing the potential of his doctoral students. He chaired over 70 dissertations during his academic career.

Forbis will be remembered to his family and friends for his gentle and generous spirit, his wit and sharp intellect, and his bridge and Scrabble acuity. He is survived by his wife, Teresa, sons Kenneth and John Mark, and daughter Julia. He is also survived by two stepsons: Douglas and Keegan Lyons and four grandchildren: Brianna, Alexis, Alex, and Gabriel.

A memorial service is planned for Friday, August 26, 2011 at 2 p.m. at Green Valley Palm Mortuary, 7600 S. Eastern, Las Vegas, NV 89123. In lieu of flowers, contributions in his honor may be made to support graduate student scholarships at one of the following institutions: Indiana University Foundation, P.O. Box 500, Bloomington, IN 47402; University of Florida Foundation, Inc, P.O. Box 14425, Gainesville, FL 32604; or Arizona State University Foundation, P. O. Box 2260, Tempe, AZ 85280-2260. We encourage you to share your memories or express condolences at www.mem.com .