Full circle. "While she's certainly not colorblind, she's not overwhelmed by the black-white issue," he says. "For so many years in Atlanta, I think the first question we asked ourselves was what will the black community think and what will the white community think? Shirley has brought us full circle to ask us what is the right thing to do. That is a dramatic change."

As she plans for her second term, Franklin's goals have shifted. She started a program last year to support internships, jobs, and college application fees for the city's recent high school graduates, after she found that 775 students had no postgraduate plans. In July, the city opened a center to provide healthcare and job training to about 500 homeless Atlantans as a first step in Franklin's plan to end homelessness in the next 10 years. And now she's turning to another challenge: a massive redevelopment plan that calls for 30,000 new jobs and a $20 billion increase in Atlanta's tax base over the next 25 years. The centerpiece of the plan is the transformation of 22 miles of railroad circling the city's core into parklands and housing.

Atlanta has turned itself around in many respects during Franklin's first term, but some critics say her pro-growth policies have hurt the city's poorest by raising the cost of living and focusing on attracting newcomers. Driving back from a meeting recently, she acknowledged the problem after pointing to new houses under construction and the new downtown headquarters of the Southern Co. "It's challenging to keep the city affordable," she says. For her personally, she'll have to maintain the energy that paid off on the sewer project. Her re-election campaign began in September. This time it'll be a two-month effort, not two years, and although rumors swirl around a possible run for the U.S. Senate, she says the best place for her to shape policy is Atlanta. Based on her track record to date, it's hard to argue the point.

BORN: May 10, 1945 EDUCATION: B.A., Howard University; M.A., University of Pennsylvania FAMILY: Divorced, three children CAREER PATH: Longtime city administrator elected mayor, 2001; very likely headed for a second term ON PERSISTENCE: "I have a tremendous ability to stay focused ... and I'm willing to do whatever it takes that is legal ... ethical, and moral to get there."