Spring 2023 Keynote Speaker
Keynote Speaker: Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock
Mayor Michael B. Hancock is serving his third term as Denver’s 45th mayor and is the second African American to hold the position. He is a member of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, where he chairs the Communications and Transportation committee, is Vice President of the National Conference of Democratic Mayors and is a member of the African American Mayor’s Association.
Raised in Denver since he was 10 months old, Mayor Hancock found his passion and purpose in serving the city and the people he loves.
Equity is the foundation of his public service and the intention that drives his leadership, from the start of his career at the Denver Housing Authority and the National Civic League, to becoming the youngest President of an Urban League chapter in America, to today as a third-term Mayor of the City and County Denver.
Mayor Hancock has never looked away from a challenge – meeting the needs of the community by helping organizations with fiscal management, civic engagement, and better governance. He honed those skills in the non-profit and private sectors and brought them to the Denver City Council, where he served for eight years including two terms as City Council President.
Mayor Hancock and his Administration would help enable Denver’s recovery from the Great Recession, fixing Denver’s budget challenges, innovating tax payer money-saving efficiencies in government, investing in infrastructure, raising the minimum wage for Denver’s workforce, and prioritizing children, families, and small and minority- and women-owned small businesses. The strategic expansion of Denver International Airport created jobs and elevated Denver as a thriving city and global leader in industry and a sought-after destination to live and do business.
When the deadly COVID-19 pandemic paralyzed cities around the world, Mayor Hancock took immediate action, supporting a public health order to protect the health and welfare of residents, first responders and businesses. His Administration secured millions of pieces of PPE for frontline workers, funding for programs to assist residents who need help paying for basic needs and stood up emergency around the clock shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
The Hancock Administration’s prudent fiscal planning, strong community partnerships, progressive housing and social and economic support programs, and emergency management operations response enabled Denver to respond quickly and nimbly to the impacts of the virus and the civil unrest born from a simultaneous national reckoning on race.
Mayor Hancock’s economic recovery committee took shape even before vaccines were in the arms of Denver residents, planning ahead for the needs of families and businesses that would need sustained support to rebound after more than a year of devastating losses of lives and livelihoods.
Mayor Hancock pledged that Denver would build back better – a promise he had fulfilled once before in the years following the Great Recession. Prioritizing public safety, housing and economic recovery – he crafted a bond package with infrastructure investments that will bring long term benefits to compliment federal aid to sustain Denver’s economic recovery and growth, expand opportunity, and ensure prosperity for more residents, businesses and families into the future.
The Mayor is a die-hard Denver Broncos fan. He earned a B.A. from Hastings College and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Colorado, Denver.
Mayor Hancock is the proud father of three children and doting grandfather to an adorable granddaughter.
