Former College Park mayor dies

By KATELYNN WINEBRENNER

Former College Park Mayor Michael Jacobs, who served as an elected official in the city for two dozen years, died on Jan. 13. He was 81.

Jacobs, who worked for the National Security Agency (NSA) for 38 years, juggled the responsibilities of his career with his duties as a member of the College Park City Council for two decades before becoming mayor in 1997. He served until 2001.

“His day job was super demanding, but he was pretty much at almost every meeting,” Prince George’s County Councilmember Eric Olson (District 3), who began serving on the College Park council when Jacobs became mayor, said. “I mean, there were a few times when he had a work thing, but by and large, he was present in the city and at our meetings. … It’s amazing. I don’t know how he did it.”

NSA inducted him into its Hall of Honor in 2018. According to the agency’s website of historical figures, he helped expand the NSA’s data and communications capabilities, while modernizing the Department of Defense’s cybersecurity strategies.

Outside of work, Jacobs was passionate about cryptology, the study of codes and cybersecurity. He co-founded the National Cyber Security Hall of Fame, which inducted him in 2023. He was a long-time member of the National Cryptologic Foundation.

Not only did Jacobs play a profound role nationally, but he had an important role in city politics.

“He was the dominant mind in College Park politics in the 1990s,” former College Park Mayor Andrew Fellows said.

As mayor, Jacobs played a large part in establishing relations with the University of Maryland following the founding of the College Park City-University Partnership in 1997, Olson said.

Jacobs, who lived in College Park Estates during his time on the council and later relocated to Ocean City, was also one of the leaders of the Quality of Life Committee, focused on updating city codes like noise ordinances, according to Olson.

Jacobs was also open to talking with residents one-on-one.

“I used to call him at 9 o’clock on Friday nights and get in a conversation with him,” Kathy Bryant, a College Park resident, said. “He was never too busy to talk to me, or I’m sure, to anybody else who wanted to talk to him. He was always available, and he talked sometimes for two hours about issues. He’d let me argue with him if I had a different opinion, and he didn’t make me feel bad.”

Watching Jacobs balance his professional and political roles inspired Fellows to run for city council and later for mayor.

“If he can be the deputy director of the National Security Agency, one of the top, although completely unseen, positions in the government, and still have time to be the mayor, I think I can be on the council and do what I was doing,” Fellows said.

After leaving NSA, Jacobs joined the private sector to work as vice president and director of the Cyber and National Security Program for SRA International, a private IT contractor, between 2002 and 2007. 

There, he led and mentored many, such as CrowdStrike’s senior vice president of intelligence, Adam Meyers.

“He always kind of provided that mentorship for anybody that wanted to receive it,” Meyers said. “He enjoyed being able to take the next generation of cybersecurity folks and help them develop their capabilities and help do the right thing to keep the U.S. government and cybersecurity, in general, safe from threat actors.”

At age 58, Jacobs declined to run for re-election.

“He didn’t have to be a local official. He had enough on his plate with his day job, but he enjoyed public service and he wanted the best for his community,” Olson said.

Jacobs’ visitation and memorial Mass will be held March 8 at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church starting at 10 a.m..