Impact Report: Year-Ends 2021 and 2022

Jim Hartnett, Cañada College alumnus

Jim Hartnett has been known as many things over the years: CEO, mayor, city councilmember, attorney, graduate student, and international student.

But when you ask this graduate of Santa Clara University School of Law and former CEO for SamTrans to describe himself, he says, “Oh, just a local boy. A pretty good athlete at one time. Mostly, I’m just a blue-collar kid from Redwood City.”

There are a few more descriptors to add to the list:

Navy veteran
Community volunteer
Cañada College alumnus
Cañada College President’s Advisory Group member.

Often seen on campus, alongside his wife Rosanne Foust, Jim is a long-time supporter of the college. He calls his support an honor and insignificant compared to what the college has done for him. He credits much of his success to what began at Cañada College.

Many locally know him for his law practice, civic leadership, or his frequent writings on national security matters, but Jim’s relationship to Cañada College goes back much further. In fact, he first set foot on the campus in 1968, when he enrolled as a student at nearby Cañada College after graduating from Sequoia High School in Redwood City.

Jim is the first to admit that there was no grand plan for his post-high school academic pursuits. He hadn’t even bothered to take the SATs as a high school student. Fortunately for him, Cañada College was close to home and affordable. As a result, his education wasn’t a financial burden to his parents — a San Mateo County Sheriff and a homemaker. In fact, he was able to cover both his tuition and books, by saving up from working a couple of part-time jobs, at Pisano’s Bakery and as a lifeguard.

At Cañada College, Jim threw himself into campus life. He joined the student government, eventually becoming president of the “Men's Students.” (There was a President of Women’s Students too.) “I joined the Navy Reserve and was active with veterans’ activities on campus. I made many friends. My biggest recollection of that time was tied to whether the PE department should receive a portion of student fees. That was a hot-button issue. This time was also during the height of the Vietnam War and I recall some controversy around potential speakers being invited to campus, including ‘up and coming’ attorney Willie Brown, who would eventually become mayor of San Francisco.”

Jim describes himself as not very academically driven in those early days, but at Cañada College, he found intriguing classes and faculty who were interested in his success. He’s grateful to the faculty for pushing him academically and encouraging him to dream big.

After graduation from Cañada College, Jim was stationed in Japan. Upon completing his military service, he applied to Sophia University International Division in Tokyo, which had an English-language section accredited in the U.S. There, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. Eventually, he attended Santa Clara University School of Law. Jim worked in Japan for several years at a Japanese law office. His professional career took off and he became chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan, Western Region, and later was elected to be Vice President of the national organization. That gave him opportunities to travel around Japan.

The early 80s brought Jim back to the States and the Bay Area. “I was active in the local Chamber of Commerce. I eventually started a new legal practice in Burlingame with two partners. I was appointed to the Redwood City Housing and Human Concerns Committee, where I served my community for eight years. I also served on a few other committees and boards, in addition to being elected as a city council member and selected as Mayor. I eventually became chair of the SamTrans board, then chair of the Caltrain Board." All that experience working on regional transportation issues eventually positioned him for the CEO role for SamTrans/Caltrain.

“Transportation affects everyone and every community, whether you personally use it or not. I was honored to serve my community in such a critical role. I guess, I just want to do good and make a difference.”