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".
[12] 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.
"[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.
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.
[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.
[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.
[citation needed] 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.