Dr. Jourdan received a BA in Biology and an MA in Botany from the University of South Florida.  After an 18-month study at the Ruhr University in Germany, he pursued his PhD in Botany/Plant Breeding at Cornell University.  He joined the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science at Ohio State in 1988. Since 2010 he has been Director of the Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center.

Dr. Jourdan’s research focuses broadly on germplasm enhancement of herbaceous ornamental plants and on seed biology of under-explored species.  A particular focus is the exploitation of interspecific hybridization to combine novel traits in selected ornamental plants, particularly species of the genus Phlox.  Research on seed biology emphasizes understanding of parameters that contribute to seed longevity in wild species; these efforts include basic germination studies and analysis of production components that influence seed quality and longevity.