MICHAEL and ANN HANKIN met at Emory University and went on to share the same educational background, graduating from Emory in 1979 with both a B.A. and an M.A. along with Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude honors. They also graduated together from the University of Virginia School of Law with a J.D.s in 1982.
Mike is President and Chief Executive Officer of Brown Advisory, a position he has held since the firm became independent from Bankers Trust/Alex. Brown & Sons in 1998. Brown Advisory is a leading independent investment firm that offers a wide range of solutions to institutions, corporations, nonprofits, families, and individuals. The firm’s mission is to make a material and positive difference in the lives of clients by providing them with first-rate investment performance, customized strategic advice, and the highest level of personalized service. Today, Brown Advisory has 340 employees and oversees more than $42 billion in assets for clients in all 50 states and 20 countries around the world. Mike is passionate about the responsibility of business leaders to be visible and constructive in their communities. Mike gave a TEDx talk in 2017 titled, “Speak Up. Where It Counts. Loudly.” In it, he shares his journey to finding his voice as a business leader and his hope that others will join him in catalyzing positive change by speaking up. His community commitment extends to his roles as Chairman of the Baltimore Healthy Harbor Project, Trustee and Vice-Chair of Johns Hopkins Medicine, and member of the Principal Professional Staff and former Chair of the Board of Managers of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab. He is also a member of the boards of directors of the Greater Baltimore Committee, Business Executives for National Security, Nature Sacred, and National Park Foundation. Mike also serves on the board of directors of Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (SWK) and on the boards of directors of three private companies, Tate Engineering Services, Inc., The Wills Group, Inc. and 1251 Capital Group, Inc. In 2021, Mike assumed the role of Co-Chair of UpSurge, an effort to propel Baltimore into the top tier of innovative cities by building an engine to launch, support, scale and celebrate high-impact startups with an “Equitech” lens.
Ann worked as an attorney at Piper & Marbury from 1982 to 1990, and then at U.S.F. & G. until 1992. Since then, Ann has been a devoted mother to her three children and dedicated partner to Mike while playing important leadership roles in the community. She was a leading force at The Bryn Mawr School, serving as chair of the largest capital campaign for a girls’ school in Baltimore, and then chair of the board for three years. Initially, she declined serving as chair because she believed the role should be filled by an alumna, an issue that disappeared when the school then gave her an honorary degree. She has also served as a trustee of the Baltimore School for the Arts and Paul’s Place. Apart from her family, Ann’s true love is music; she has sung as part of a choral group since her first year in college and today is an active member of the Canticle Singers, a women’s chorale group.
