Baltimore's Deutsch Foundation picks a staff member to succeed the CEO who led it for 31 years

The Robert W. Deutsch Foundation in Baltimore announced on October 15 that George A. Hopkins, a current senior staff member, will succeed Jane Brown as president and CEO as of January 2027. Brown, who has led the private foundation for 31 years, will become board chair "to make way for a new generation of leadership," the foundation said.

An internal pick from 119 applicants

The search launched in June and drew 119 applicants, in a review managed by Pluck Consulting, according to the foundation. Since joining in early 2025, Hopkins has focused on housing and neighborhood renewal, serves on the grantmaking committee and supports the foundation's arts and culture and digital equity work, the release said.

Hopkins is a native of Baltimore's Cherry Hill neighborhood and a Morgan State University graduate with 18 years of experience as a community leader, organizer and pastor. He founded a church in southwest Baltimore in 2014, previously co-chaired Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD) and chaired the board of ReBuild Metro. In 2023, Mayor Brandon Scott, BUILD and the Greater Baltimore Committee announced a 15-year plan to invest $3 billion in redeveloping at least 37,500 properties, centered on ReBuild Metro's "whole blocks" approach, with the Deutsch Foundation among the philanthropic investors, according to the release.

"I am humbled and appreciative of this opportunity to honor the Foundation's legacy, while leading its long-term investments in the city and culture of Baltimore into the future," Hopkins said in the release.

A long-serving leader moves to the board

Dr. Robert W. Deutsch established the foundation in 1991. It describes itself as a hyper-local, early-investing philanthropy, and last year it made 98 grants totaling $4.8 million, the release said. When the search opened in June, Baltimore Fishbowl reported, citing the job listing, that the next CEO would help manage the foundation's $147 million endowment.

Brown said Hopkins "loves this city and its people, is full of energy and optimism, and is open to new ideas and ways to collaborate that get important things done." Besides serving as board chair, she will continue to support people and projects with her personal philanthropic resources in Baltimore and nationally, the foundation said.

What boards can take from it

In our view, two features stand out: an open search that ended with someone already on staff, and a departing leader who stays on in a defined governance role. Boards that try the same arrangement can put in writing how the chair's role differs from the CEO's, so the new leader has room to lead. For another long-tenured succession, see how Per Scholas named its president to succeed the CEO who led it for 28 years.