Two Distinguished Board Members from the University of Maryland School of Medicine to be Inducted into Maryland Business and Civic Hall of Fame

Visionary Leaders Michael Cryor and Brit Kirwan Are Recognized for Extraordinary Contributions

University of Maryland School of Medicine (UM SOM) Dean E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, announced today that two distinguished members of its Board of Visitors – Michael E. Cryor and William E. “Brit” Kirwan – have each been selected by the Baltimore Sun as the newest inductees to the Maryland Business and Civic Hall of Fame.

The inductees, selected by community leaders and the Sun’s editorial board, are honored for their “extraordinary contributions to the state in business, government, philanthropy and the arts.” Mr. Cryor and Dr. Kirwan are among this year’s 10 honorees to be inducted at a ceremony in June. “Both Michael Cryor and Brit Kirwan are visionary leaders and true ‘pillars’ of our community. They have had enormous impact on the City of Baltimore and State of Maryland, if not the nation and the world,” said Dean Reece, who is also Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Maryland and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean of the School of Medicine. “This is well-deserved recognition for their longstanding contributions. We are grateful to have them as highly-valued members of our Board.”

Michael E. Cryor, has served as Chair of the UM School of Medicine’s Board of Visitors since January, 2010. As President of The Cryor Group, LLC, he has been a tireless advocate for improving the lives of Baltimore’s citizens over the past three decades. Over the past two years, he has traveled extensively to meet with hundreds of city leaders and community members, in Baltimore and across the U.S., to discuss and determine the best possible solutions to the most complex and challenging urban problems.

An expert in strategic communications and public policy, he has been recognized numerous times for his advisory and public service work with leading corporations and nonprofits specializing in urban policy, health care and technology-based initiatives.

In addition to receiving SOM’s distinguished Gold Medal for his exemplary service at the school, he has been awarded the Thurgood Marshall College Fund’s Award of Excellence and has been honored by the Associated Black Charities with its “Icon Award.” In May of 2015, he was presented an honorary Doctorate of Public Service from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. He also holds an Honorary Doctorates from Montclair State University and Morgan State University. This year, he has been selected as the 2017 Alumnus of the Year by Morgan State University.

“Michael Cryor’s unique ability to join the powerful forces of the private and public sectors has greatly enhanced the School of Medicine and other great institutions in so many meaningful ways. He is truly one of the community’s greatest assets,” Dean Reece said.

William E. “Brit” Kirwan, who joined the UM SOM Board in July, 2015, served for 13 years as Chancellor of the University System of Maryland. He is regarded nationally and internationally as one of the most successful academic leaders of his generation.

During his long and distinguished 50-year career in academia, he held positions of leadership for 37 of those years, including as Department Chair of Mathematics at University of Maryland, College Park,;Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Provost, and President at two major universities (The Ohio State University and University of Maryland, College Park) and then chancellor of the 12-campus University System of Maryland. Over the course of his career, he has received numerous honors and awards, including two of the highest honors given in the field of higher education: the TIAA-CREF Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence, for leadership and commitment to higher education, and the Carnegie Corporation Leadership Award, for commitment to excellence in undergraduate education and outreach to communities. He has authored many articles on issues in higher education and is recognized worldwide as a leading advocate for the value and necessity of education. Dr. Kirwan received his bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Kentucky and his master's and doctoral degrees in mathematics from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

Dr. Kirwan has had a close partnership with the SOM and Dean Reece, over the past many years. At his retirement as Chancellor, he noted that “the School of Medicine is a true star in the University System that will continue to shine brightly.” He pointed to the construction of HSF III, the new SOM biomedical research building, as well as the MPower Initiative and UM Ventures, as exemplary of the tremendous collaboration between SOM, the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and its President Jay Perman, and the University System.

“Dr. Kirwan’s wisdom and leadership will forever be treasured by the State of Maryland and the USM,” “He is most deserving of this honor, and we are so very fortunate to have him as a close friend and counselor to the SOM.”

Other inductees at this year’s ceremony include: Doreen Bolger; David Cordish; Barbara Mikulski; Henry Rosenberg; Geroge L. Russell, Jr.; Lainy LeBow-Sachs; and Betsy and George Sherman.

About the University of Maryland School of Medicine Board of Visitors

The School’s Board of Visitors is an advisory board currently comprising 29 total members*, including: Michael E. Cryor, Chair, Board of Visitors, President, The Cryor Group, Baltimore, MD ; Peter G. Angelos, Esq., Emeritus Board Member, President, Law Offices of Peter G. Angelos, PC, Baltimore, MD; Louis F. Angelos, JD, attorney at the Law Offices of Peter G. Angelos, PC, and Ownership Representative of the Baltimore Orioles; Kenneth R. Banks, President, Banks Contracting Company, Baltimore, MD; Marc P. Blum, Ph.D., LL.B., C.P.A., Attorney, Gordon Feinblatt, LLC, Baltimore, Maryland; Jocelyn Cheryl Bramble, Publisher, The Baltimore Times, Baltimore, MD; Scott Burger, President PANDORA Americas, PANDORA Jewelry, LLC, Baltimore, Maryland; Cynthia Egan, Director, Envestnet, Baltimore, MD; Robert C. Embry, Jr.,President, The Abell Foundation, Baltimore, Maryland; Robert E. Fischell, ScD, President, Fischell BioMedical, LLC, Dayton, MD; Carolyn Frenkil, President, Center City, Inc., Baltimore, MD; Michael Greenebaum, President, Greenebaum Enterprises, Baltimore, MD; Stewart J. Greenebaum, Emeritus Board Member, Founding Partner, Greenebaum Enterprises, Baltimore, MD; Donna S. Hanes, MD, (Ex-Officio Member) President, Medical Alumni Assoc. of the University of MD, Baltimore, Maryland; Jeffrey L. Hargrave, President, Mahogany, Inc. Baltimore, MD; John R. Kelly, President & Senior Consultant, Kelly Benefit Strategies, Baltimore, MD; William “Brit” Kirwan, PhD, Former Chancellor, University System of Maryland, Adelphi, MD; Harry C. Knipp, MD, FACR, Founding Member, Advanced Radiology PA, Baltimore, MD; Alan R. Malouf, MD, (Ex-Officio Member) Past-President, Medical Alumni Assoc. of the University of MD, Baltimore, Maryland; Valencia McClure, Vice President, Governmental and External Affairs, Baltimore Gas and Electric, Baltimore, MD; Patrick McCuan, President & CEO, MDG Companies, Columbia, MD; Patricia J. Mitchell, Director,KCI Technologies, Inc., Baltimore, MD; Edward Magruder Passano, Jr., President & Chief Executive Officer, One Waverly, LLC Baltimore, MD; Abba D. Poliakoff, Partner and Chairman of Securities Law Practice Group at Gordon Feinblatt, LLC, Baltimore, MD; Maurice Reid, MD, CEO & Medical Director, ExpressCare, Bel Air, Maryland; Timothy J. Regan, President & Chief Executive Officer, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company, Baltimore, MD; Melvin Sharoky, MD, Past Chair, Board of Visitors, Member and Former Chairman of the Board of Directors, Insmed, Royal Oak, Maryland; and Richard L. Taylor, MD, FAAN, Founding Member, Taylor Medical Group; Baltimore, MD;. *includes emeritus and ex-officio members

About the University of Maryland School of Medicine

Commemorating its 210th Anniversary, the University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 as the first public medical school in the United States. It continues today as an innovative leader in accelerating innovation and discovery in medicine. The School of Medicine is the founding school of the University of Maryland and is an integral part of the 11-campus University System of Maryland. Located on the University of Maryland’s Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine works closely with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide a research-intensive, academic and clinically based education. With 43 academic departments, centers and institutes and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians and research scientists plus more than $400 million in extramural funding, the School is regarded as one of the leading biomedical research institutions in the U.S. with top-tier faculty and programs in cancer, brain science, surgery and transplantation, trauma and emergency medicine, vaccine development and human genomics, among other centers of excellence. The School is not only concerned with the health of the citizens of Maryland and the nation, but also has a global presence, with research and treatment facilities in more than 35 countries around the world. https://medschool.umaryland.edu.