Joel Frank, Sr. was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and raised on federal reservation lands of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Joel M. Frank, Sr. has dedicated his career to the furtherance of economic prosperity and the protection of stable government for American Indians. As a national figure in American Indian affairs, Mr. Frank has earned a reputation for integrity and accomplishment as an advocate and spokesman for Indigenous peoples worldwide. Joel Frank, Sr. was one of the first Indians to attend college, at both Dade Community College and St. Thomas University.
Mr. Frank spent two years in the United States Marine Corps, assigned to special classified security duty, both in the United States and overseas.