General Paul M. Hankins currently serves as the Vice Chairman of the Montgomery Housing Authority. He is also the President of the Alabama Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (AAICU), a role he has held since February 2005. In this capacity, he leads a non-profit organization that represents the interests of fourteen non-profit, SACS-accredited, four-year colleges and universities in Alabama.

Before joining AAICU, General Hankins entered the private sector as a municipal consultant for the Mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, and the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce. He played a pivotal role in overturning the recommendations of the 2005 BRAC Commission, successfully preserving over 2,000 jobs that were at risk of being relocated out of Alabama.

General Hankins served over 29 years in the United States Air Force, culminating in his final position as the Commander of the Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools. In this role, he served as the university president for three educational branches of the U.S. Air Force: Air Force ROTC (18,000 students at 144 colleges and universities), Air Force Junior ROTC (113,000 students in 744 high schools), and a post-graduate officer training program (3,500 students in resident on-campus programs). With over 25 years of leadership experience, General Hankins also served as a direct liaison for the Department of Defense and the Air Force with the U.S. Congress for more than seven years.

General Hankins is actively involved in his community, serving on numerous boards, including:

• Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Montgomery Education Foundation
• Vice Chairman of the Alabama Prepaid Affordable College Tuition (PACT) Board
• Board of Directors Member for the Central Alabama Sports Commission, Metro Area YMCA, Alabama Military Stability Foundation, Coalition for College Cost Savings, and the Montgomery Chamber of Commerce
• Co-Chair of the F-35 Task Force that successfully secured the Air Force’s next F-35 fighter wing for Montgomery’s Air National Guard Unit

A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, General Hankins holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado and a Master of Science degree from Troy University in Alabama. He completed a yearlong national fellowship with the Broad Foundation’s Urban School Superintendents Academy in 2004 and is a graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business Senior Executive Program.

General Hankins is married to Donna Hankins, and they have two children, Priscilla Hankins Wunderl and Clark Hankins.