YOU DON’T SAY

“It’s unfortunate that some of the work that we know needs to be done is so politicized.”

Incoming Durham Public Schools Superintendent Anthony Lewis, on negotiating the political climate. (State Affairs Pro, 7/24/24)

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Robinson Nonprofit

Colin Campbell, WUNC Radio, 7/24/24

A nonprofit led by Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s wife was found “seriously deficient” following an N.C. Department of Health and Services review, according to documents released Wednesday. The agency found a long list of missing documents required to administer a federally funded food program for childcare centers, as well as claims filed for payment for centers that apparently hadn’t requested or received money.

Yolanda Hill has led a nonprofit called Balanced Nutrition that helps childcare facilities apply for and receive federal funding for kids’ meals. Mark Robinson and the couple’s son and daughter have worked as employees of the Greensboro nonprofit; he wrote in his book that Hill’s success with the nonprofit allowed him to quit his job and move into politics. Hill abruptly closed the nonprofit in April after the state agency launched its review.

Documents released Wednesday show that both Hill and her lawyer did not respond to multiple requests to meet with DHHS officials about the probe over the past month, and they failed to provide a long list of documents requested by the agency.

“Balanced Nutrition, Inc. has not retained all records to support its claim for reimbursement for three years,” the report said. It said the nonprofit filed reimbursement claims for a childcare center called Gingerbread Learning Center eight times in 2023 and early 2024, even though that facility didn’t file a claim through Balanced Nutrition.

“Ms. Hill confirmed with the compliance team that Gingerbread Learning Center had not filed a claim since November 2022,” the report said.

DHHS also found that Balanced Nutrition “failed to file valid claims” for nine of the facilities it was working with.

The review found that Balanced Nutrition didn’t maintain required enrollment documentation for the childcare facilities it worked with, as well as documentation related to required trainings, free and reduced lunch eligibility, and the meals served at centers. Many of the findings in the report were listed as “repeat findings.”

And while organizations like Balanced Nutrition are required to make in-person monitoring visits to childcare centers to make sure the food funding is being spent correctly, it “failed to accurately monitor facilities under its sponsorship.”

Previous financial documents for Balanced Nutrition show that Mark Robinson was at one point, prior to running for lieutenant governor, employed as a monitor for the nonprofit.

DHHS also said Balanced Nutrition didn’t get permission to hire family members, such as the Robinsons’ daughter, Kimberly Cephas.

“Balanced Nutrition, Inc. did not report expenses accurately and unallowable expenses were claimed” for four different centers, the report said.

DHHS’ letters give the nonprofit two weeks to take corrective action, and if it doesn’t fix the problems, Hill and her employees will be banned from any future participation in the childcare center food program.

Hill and her attorney could not be immediately reached for comment on Wednesday, but in March, Hill criticized the DHHS review actions taken at that point.

“As an organization, there are numerous things that have happened and been documented that makes us feel as if we are the target of some type of vendetta, be it personal or political,” Hill wrote on March 11 after she was informed of the April review. [Source]

 

Durham Superintendent

Matthew Sasser, State Affairs Pro, 7/24/24

Incoming Durham Public Schools Superintendent Anthony Lewis will begin his new role next month, bringing with him 22 years of education experience. 

He’s leaving Kansas, where he served as superintendent of Lawrence Public Schools for the past six years. Lewis sees many political parallels as he prepares for his new post. 

Similar to Durham, Lawrence was a “blue dot in a red state,” Lewis said. Kansas has conservative supermajorities in its House and Senate, along with a Democratic governor, mirroring North Carolina. 

Lewis said he has seen the positive strides put forward by diversity, equity and inclusion offices, especially in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, that are now being dismantled in Kansas. He is aware of the recent UNC System decision to eliminate positions related to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. 

Lewis has been praised for his work within the Kansas African American Affairs Commission and the Commission on Racial Equity and Justice, but he acknowledged the progress from those efforts was “minimal.” 

“It’s unfortunate that some of the work that we know needs to be done is so politicized,” Lewis said, crediting the efforts of Gov. Laura Kelly in Kansas but citing the reluctance of conservative supermajorities in the Legislature to act on issues important to the African American community. 

Lewis said he looks forward to building relationships with North Carolina legislators and inviting them to visit Durham schools to get a firsthand look at policies impacting the education system, both positive and negative. 

“Schools can’t do this work alone,” Lewis said, adding he wants to educate others while recognizing that he will need some education as well. 

“We never want any student in their classroom to feel less than or that they caused harm,” he said. “It’s important for us to really understand, teach accurate history, so that we won’t repeat it.”

Lewis, who looks forward to being much closer to his family in Alabama, will begin his position as Durham superintendent Aug. 12. 

“That’s the work I’ve been doing pretty much my entire educational career and that’s why I do believe Durham Public Schools is a great fit for my experiences,” Lewis said, adding that questions regarding racial equity were at “every step” of his hiring process. “I just want to come in and continue and even excel at some of the work that is already taking place there.”

 

Chancellor Search

Emmy Martin, The News & Observer, 7/24/24

UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, staff and alumni will not have the chance to offer input this fall on the ongoing search for the university’s 13th chancellor — marking a clear reversal from a previous promise.

Original plans for a second round of public listening sessions were nixed, chancellor search committee chair Cristy Page told reporters last week after a committee meeting. The committee received enough public input from the forums it held in the spring and its online survey, she said.

“Based on the number of people who participated in the survey and the listening sessions, and the quality of the information that we got from those sessions, and then the quality of what we got from this last round of surveys, we don’t think there’s necessarily added value to do that again,” Page said.

The switch comes a few months after UNC System President Peter Hans’ chief of staff Norma Houston said during the committee’s first meeting on March 21 that plans were in the works to hold more listening sessions during the fall semester.

“What Anita and I have discussed is setting up a second round of listening sessions in the fall semester that the search firm would facilitate so that we really get input in two phases,” Houston said in that meeting, referring to Anita Brown-Graham, who serves as a special adviser to the committee.

In addition to gathering input via survey, the committee held five listening sessions in the spring, one for each stakeholder group: faculty, staff, graduate students, undergraduate students and alumni. Most were held in April, with the alumni forum taking place in June.

Alexander Denza, a senior at UNC and organizer with student groups Southern Student Action Coalition and TransparUNCy, said he thinks the decision is an excuse to avoid rising tensions in the fall after a spring semester marked by protests. He also thinks there’s a deeper reason the committee cut the second round of public feedback sessions.

To Denza, the committee has already selected interim Chancellor Lee Roberts to remain in the post permanently. He is confident the resources and time allocated for the search for UNC’s next chancellor are to “make it look fair.”

More than 500 students signed a letter published in The Daily Tar Heel, UNC’s independent student newspaper, that expressed outrage that there were only one or two committee members present at the forums for undergraduate and graduate students. The student authors, including Denza, called the listening sessions “a gross disregard to our right to voice our considerations to the search advisory committee” in the spring.

At a meeting of the Faculty Executive Committee this month, Sue Estroff, a social medicine professor at UNC, expressed a similar concern. “I fear that the chancellor search is already over, and I don’t have a lot of confidence in the process,” she said. [Source]

 

Program Cuts

Brianna Atkinson, WUNC Radio, 7/24/24

The UNC Board of Governors has officially approved program cuts at UNC Asheville and UNC Greensboro. The unanimous vote is the final step in a months-long process and means that four departments and two language concentrations at UNCA and a combination of 20 programs, majors and minors and UNCG are no longer available to new students. Cuts at UNC Asheville include drama, philosophy, religious studies and ancient Mediterranean studies departments, as well as French and German language concentrations. Cuts at UNC Greensboro include anthropology, physics and religious studies majors, as well as minors in Chinese, Russian and Korean language courses. Several graduate programs are also included.

Both chancellors, Kimberly van Noort and Franklin Gilliam, spoke at the board meeting. They stressed that reductions were needed at their institutions to address years of revenue losses.

Over the past five years, UNC Asheville’s student body has dropped by 25%. That left van Noort with a $6 million budget shortfall this year. She told the board that she believes the school will have “strong news” for the fall semester. “However, it is my responsibility as chancellor and the responsibility of my academic team to ensure that we correct the budget difficulties that we’ve had,” van Noort said. “And to position the university for future success, so that we will not deal with this ever again.”

In about the same time frame, UNC Greensboro has lost over $22 million in tuition and fee revenue with a 10% decline in enrollment. “We’ve lost 2,500 students in four years — that’s a whole class,” Gilliam said. “Institutions must evolve, (we) can’t remain static. Given the disruption in higher education, it would be neglectful to not respond in a meaningful way.”

Both chancellors said that although they will be eliminating departments, programs and majors, their universities will still offer courses in some of the affected programs. Van Noort said her team is working on whether to offer the courses in another department or as their own minor. She said one department, religious studies, will be transitioned into a minor and will have “robust offerings.”

It’s unclear how many faculty members will be laid off as a result of the cuts or how much money eliminating programs will save either UNC Asheville or UNC Greensboro. In the coming months, both universities will start a “teach-out” process to finish graduating the remaining students in affected departments.

Students, faculty and community members at both universities have spent months protesting and advocating against the cuts.
Faculty from UNC Asheville sent a 25-page letter to the Board of Governors ahead of the meeting. The letter was included in the board’s prepared materials but wasn’t discussed in the committee or full board meetings.

At the meeting, the UNC System also announced it was piloting a guaranteed admissions program at UNC Asheville, UNC Greensboro, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, UNC Pembroke and Winston-Salem State. Any North Carolina high school student with a minimum GPA of 2.8 will be automatically admitted to those institutions.

David English, the System’s vice president for Academic Affairs, said the pilot is being launched in part to “help address and stabilize campus enrollments.” [Source]

Trump Rally

Meg Kinnard and Adriana Gomez Licon, The Associated Press, 7/24/24

Donald Trump unleashed a barrage of attack lines Wednesday against his likely new opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, whom he called his “new victim to defeat” and accused of deceiving the public about President Joe Biden ‘s ability to run for a second term.

The rally in Charlotte, North Carolina marked his first public campaign event since Biden dropped out of the 2024 matchup and Harris became the Democrats’ likely nominee. The rally concluded minutes before Biden addressed the nation to explain he dropped his reelection bid to “pass the torch” to Harris, who is 22 years younger than him.

“So now we have a new victim to defeat: Lyin’ Kamala Harris,” Trump said, labeling her “the most incompetent and far-left vice president in American history.” Trump mispronounced her first name repeatedly.

Trump’s speech signaled the next stage for the campaign may be especially brutal and personal, even as some GOP leaders warned Republican allies not to use overtly racist and sexist attacks against Harris.

On Wednesday, the speakers who appeared on stage before the Republican nominee attacked Harris’ record on the border, highlighting she was tasked with leading a White House effort to tackle migration issues. Harris’ name was met with boos several times during the speeches.

Trump also accused Harris of being just as responsible for Biden’s policies at the U.S.-Mexico border, which saw illegal crossing arrests reach record highs at the end of 2023 and repeated his pledge to conduct mass deportations with the help of local police.

Harris, meanwhile, spent Wednesday in Indiana, telling members of the historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta that “we are not playing around” and asked for their help in electing her president in November, an election she characterized as “a choice between two different visions for our nation, one focused on the future, the other focused on the past.”

Harris’ campaign released a statement after Trump’s speech describing it as “unhinged, weird and rambling.”

Trump’s stop in North Carolina shows he’s concerned about keeping the state in his column this November, even as his team reaches for wins in traditionally Democratic-leaning states like Minnesota, which Trump is set to visit on Saturday.

North Carolina is a state Trump carried in both his previous campaigns but by less than 1.5 percentage points over Biden in 2020, the closest margin of any state Trump won. Trump stumped heavily in North Carolina even as the COVID-19 pandemic wore on, while Biden largely kept off the physical campaign trail and did not personally visit the state in the last 16 days of the election.

This year, Trump had planned to hold his first rally since the start of his hush money trial in Fayetteville, but that event was called off due to inclement weather. Trump called in from his private plane instead. [Source]

Cooper Boosters

Tom George, WTVD News, 7/24/24

Gov. Roy Cooper is now officially being vetted as part of Kamala Harris’ search for a Vice Presidential running mate. Cooper joins several other Democrats, including Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear as top contenders.

As the Governor of a key battleground state Democrats believe they can flip, someone who won twice on the same ballot as Donald Trump, and someone who has a long history working with Kamala Harris from their days as Attorneys General.

Cooper himself has remained quiet about the process and whether he wants the job, but now some prominent local leaders are working to hype him up and make the case for him.

“I’ve been a big Roy Cooper fan for decades,” said Congresswoman Deborah Ross. “I knew him back in the legislature we did a lot of work together.”

Ross started a trend on X, of Democrats posting pictures of themselves with Cooper with the caption, “I know who I’d pick for VP.” Dozens of others, including Rep. Wiley Nickel, Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton, and multiple state lawmakers and local leaders joined in.

Party chair Anderson Clayton said it’s getting a lot of buzz in the political world. “The legacy that he’s had throughout the state and coming from a place in the state eastern North Carolina, Rocky Mount, Nash County, he’s representing in every way.”

“I think anyone who the Vice President picks to be her choice is going to be the strongest choice possible and we trust her judgment full force, but you know we’re battling it out for the hometown ground,” Clayton said. “I think it’s important for us, especially in North Carolina, we’re a state that we protect our own and also support our own in a lot of ways, and even the conversations I’ve seen my hometown in Person County in Facebook it would be nice to see one of ours in a position like that.”

Clayton believes there is enthusiasm on the ground for Harris’ candidacy, but that Cooper on the ticket would make it easier to win the state, and also give North Carolina more national recognition and an ear to the White House.

Nickel, who represents a swing district, said Cooper is the most strategic choice. “He’s a moderate. He’s someone who’s a governor for Democrats, Republicans and independents. I think anybody who’s watching knows he’s somebody that is working for everybody. And I think that’s important to focus on that message of bipartisan accomplishments,” Nickel said.

The last time a North Carolinian was on the ticket was Senator John Edwards in 2004. The Kerry-Edwards ticket lost North Carolina and the election to George W. Bush. [Source]

 

GenX Ruling

Peter Castagno, Port City Daily, 7/23/24

Local environmentalists applauded an appeals court decision to reject Chemours’ lawsuit alleging the Environment Protection Agency acted unlawfully by issuing a drinking water health advisory for GenX. Chemours sued the EPA shortly after the agency announced its lifetime health advisory level for GenX at 10 parts per trillion in June 2022.

Although EPA’s advisories are non-enforceable, Chemours argued the advisory was “extreme” and would serve as a “de-facto regulation” that states would use to inform tangible regulation. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed a brief in support of the chemical manufacturer.

The EPA countered its health advisories are supposed to serve as informational guidelines using the best available science to identify the concentration of contaminants that can cause adverse health effects.

The Third Circuit of Appeals dismissed the case Tuesday. It found no parties’ rights were infringed by the advisory and regulation is not determined by the agency’s health guidelines.
Environmentalist groups, including Cape Fear River Watch, Clean Cape Fear, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Center for Environmental Health, filed briefs as interveners in the case and celebrated the decision Tuesday.

“Through the years, our community has learned that when companies like Chemours are not actively hiding the science, they are usually attacking it,” Clean Cape Fear founder Emily Donovan said in a press release. “This is a win for public health and every resident harmed by GenX exposures. The court got it right this time.”

The EPA reached a voluntary agreement with DuPont to use GenX as a replacement for PFOA — a toxic PFAS compound recognized by the agency — two decades ago. The EPA later found GenX to be potentially even more toxic than its predecessor, after years of allowing DuPont and its spinoff company Chemours to disseminate GenX, in addition to at least 53 other PFAS substances, in the Cape Fear River. [Source]

 

Netanyahu Speech

Will Doran, WRAL News, 7/24/24

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to a joint meeting of the United States Congress on Wednesday, seeking to maintain American political and financial support for his country’s military actions in the Gaza Strip that have killed an estimated 40,000 people — including 15,000 children.

He used the speech to dismiss protests across America in support of Palestinian rights as being secretly promoted by the Iranian government. And he singled out the fraternity brothers at UNC-Chapel Hill who made headlines for tussling with protesters on campus who had taken down an American flag and replaced it with a Palestinian flag.

“I wish to salute the fraternity brothers at the University of North Carolina who protected the American flag,” Netanyahu said Wednesday. “Protected the American flag, against these anti-Israel protesters.” Congress erupted in a standing ovation, chanting “U-S-A! U-S-A!” at Netanyahu’s remarks praising the students.

The Chapel Hill fraternity brothers have since become minor celebrities in conservative circles. They were invited to speak at the Republican National Convention, and a fundraiser to throw them an “epic rager” called Flagstock has raised more than half a million dollars.

Netanyahu also had harsh words for the pro-Palestinian protesters in Chapel Hill and the rest of the country, calling them hypocrites since many of the protesters are liberals. “When the tyrants of Tehran — who hang gays from cranes, and murder women for not covering their hair — are praising, promoting and funding you, you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots.”

Most Americans oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza, according to a Gallup Poll released earlier this month that also found Americans have an overall unfavorable view of Netanyahu, a far-right politician who has been in power at various points since the 1990s.

Many Democratic leaders were absent from Netanyahu’s address Wednesday, including President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders called Netanyahu a “war criminal” who should never have been allowed inside the Capitol building. [Source]

Opioid Settlement

Hannah McLeod, Smoky Mountain News, 7/23/24

Macon and Jackson County commissions signed resolutions this month enabling the governments to receive funding from the Kroger opioid settlement, the third settlement of its kind for both counties. The national grocery store chain agreed to pay $1.2 billion to states, local governments and Native American tribes in September of last year to settle claims that its pharmacies played a role in fueling the opioid crisis. Approximately $40 million is expected for North Carolina.

The resolution signed by both counties to receive the settlement funds notes that the “opioid overdose epidemic has taken the lives of more than 37,000 North Carolinians since 2000.” 

In 2021 alone, 22 people died from an overdose in Jackson County and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the total economic burden of prescription opioid misuse in the United States is $78.5 billion a year. The first round of settlement funds provided the most significant amount to local governments with both Jackson and Macon counties receiving approximately $3 million over the course of 18 installments in as many years.

This latest round of funding from the Kroger settlement will provide far less, with Macon County set to receive just under $160,000 over the next 11 years.

Because the money provided through the settlements is not enough for individual counties to take on large-scale projects, municipalities in Western Carolina have discussed a collaborative effort to construct a regional treatment facility.

At the Jackson Commission’s July 9 work session, Tanya Snyder presented information about the opioid settlement planning process on behalf of the Southwestern Commission. Together, the seven western counties and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians that make up Region A are set to receive about $18 million in settlement funding. “All seven counties collectively decided to go through some regional planning because while $18 million sounds like a lot of money, we felt like there’s an opportunity to leverage that fund if we are working together with other communities and other counties,” said Snyder.

So far, the project managers hired to work on the opioid settlement planning contracted with Omni Institute out of Denver, Colorado to complete a strengths and needs assessment. [Source]

 

Jail Lawsuit

Deana Harley, WNCN News, 7/24/24

Right now in North Carolina, hundreds of people are being detained for months on end before they’ve ever been convicted of a crime, as they await a mental health evaluation. Now, the ACLU of North Carolina and Disability Rights North Carolina are suing the Department of Health and Human Services, saying what’s happening is unconstitutional.

In North Carolina, the Department of Health and Human Services is in charge of facilitating those evaluations at one of the facilities they operate across the state. If a defendant is deemed ITP, or incapable of proceeding, it’s then up to DHHS to place them in a treatment center rather than a jail.

“What we’re seeing is that ITP detainees are waiting on average 68 days just to be assessed, and on average, 145 days just to be admitted to the state psychiatric hospital,” Michele Delgado, a staff attorney with the ACLU of North Carolina said.

Now the ACLU and Disability Rights North Carolina are suing over those delays. No statute exists in North Carolina mandating a time frame for the evaluations to be done, but Delgado points to the landmark Jackson court decision, saying detainees can’t be held for unreasonably long periods of time in situations like these. “People are in these jails decompensating, so waiting 30-plus days is egregious and harmful to them,” she said.

When asked for an interview, a DHHS representative said they don’t comment on pending litigation. But in a 23-page motion to dismiss, the agency says the delays are simply out of their control. In another motion, the agency said rushing the evaluations would have what they call “catastrophic effects on ITP detainees,” and the behavioral health system statewide because of staffing shortages.

Delgado, though, says neighboring states like Virginia are facing the same staffing shortages and not facing these same delays. “If our neighboring state, who has a comparable size of state as us, can be ordered to do it in seven days, why can’t we do that here?” she said. [Source]

Kitty Hawk Leadership

David Mildenberg, Business NC, 7/23/24

Andrew Kelly, who has been the chief strategic officer at the UNC System for the past eight years, will become the permanent director of the Project Kitty Hawk educational technology nonprofit on Aug. 1.

UNC officials named Kelly to the post on an interim basis in May after former CEO Will Zemp departed, two years after joining the enterprise. Project Kitty Hawk’s mission is to help UNC campuses expand online degree programs for working adults, most of whom now opt for programs offered by non-UNC institutions.

Kelly “has led countless big and bold initiatives at the System, from financial aid simplification to student success innovation to new accountability and performance funding models,” UNC President Peter Hans said in a July 11 email to Project Kitty Hawk’s 50 staff members. “And he was one of the primary drivers behind the development and launch of PKH.”

Project Kitty Hawk received $97 million in pandemic relief funding, which is slated to be spent through 2028. Enrollment is projected to reach nearly 15,000 students and achieve annual revenue of $78 million by then, half the initial projections.

Hans called the effort “possibly the biggest and boldest step a university system has ever taken to better reach, educate and graduate adult learners.” He added that he is “amazed and enthusiastic about the pace” of Project Kitty Hawk’s progress, noting it has enrolled more than 200 students into its programs, re-enrolled about 1,800 students in the system and brought 11 programs to market.”

Kelly worked at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C. before joining UNC as senior vice president for strategy and policy. He has master’s and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. [Source]

Agricultural Grants

Olivia Wolfson and Mekaela Muck, WNCT News, 7/24/24

North Carolina’s General Assembly is looking to help veterinarians that work on large animals to relieve the stress that comes with the job. They’re doing this by offering up to $25,000 in a grant for those who help cows, pigs and other animals that most vets don’t typically see. Any vet that sees large animals for at least thirty percent of their time and who practices in a county with under 100,000 people is welcome to apply.

Robert Hosford from the Agriculture Finance Authority said that they’re looking to select people who are trying to relieve student debt, are looking to upgrade their facilities or for anything that might be helpful for their rural community.

“We hope that it keeps them in business. We hope that it alleviates some financial stress. And we hope that the General Assembly we carry out their mission, and that is to give a little bit of relief to a very difficult lifestyle. It’s hard being a large animal veterinarian.” said Hosford.

Some of those challenges include getting injured on the job and being on call 24/7. People have until August 16, to apply on the North Carolina Department of Agriculture website. [Source]

Gaston Resignation

Kara Fohner, The Gaston Gazette, 7/24/24

The Gaston County attorney and a deputy county attorney who worked under him both resigned last week, according to county officials. County Attorney John Joye, who began working for Gaston County on Jan. 29, 2024, quit on Tuesday, said Chad Brown, chair of the Gaston County Board of Commissioners. Attorney Al Andrews also resigned.

“On Tuesday, Mr. Joye had tendered his resignation. He did a wonderful job for Gaston County,” Brown said. Brown said that he doesn’t know where Joye is going next. 

Joye replaced former county attorney Bill Stetzer, who resigned Dec. 31, to serve an eight-year term as a Superior Court judge for the Fifth Judicial Division, which includes Gaston County. Previously, Joye worked as a senior assistant city attorney for aviation for the city of Charlotte. He also spent five years before that working as the city attorney for the city of Wilmington.

Attorney Al Andrews had worked for Gaston County since March 2024, according to his LinkedIn account. Joye hired Andrews shortly after he himself started, said county spokesman Adam Gaub. Andrews and Joye quit on the same day. Andrews was previously the county attorney for Durham County, North Carolina, according to his LinkedIn.

In a meeting Tuesday evening, attorney Charles Moore was appointed interim county attorney. Moore was county attorney from 1984 until he retired in 2020, and he was one of Gaston County’s longest-serving high-level employees at the time of his retirement. [Source]

 

Pitt President

Kevin Ellis, Business NC, 7/24/24

The State Board of Community Colleges has named Maria A. Pharr to serve as president of Pitt Community College. Pharr has been president of South Piedmont Community College since January 2017, but was assistant vice president for academic affairs at Pitt Community College from July 2011 to January 2014.

When Pharr begins her duties Aug. 13, she will become only the sixth president of Pitt Community College in its 63-year history and the first woman to serve as the college’s top administrator. She replaces Lawrence Rouse, who retired in June after six years.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as next president of Pitt Community College and look forward to contributing to the college’s legacy of leadership excellence,” Pharr said in a statement. [Source]

 

Airport Grant

Sherry Jones, Wilmington StarNews, 7/24/24

Wilmington International Airport is getting a $4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for improvements, according to a news release Wednesday from U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.

The grant funding, which comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which Tillis helped negotiate, write, and pass into law, will be used to construct a new terminal access road and curb expansion.
“This funding will be used to replace the existing terminal access road and realign the curb outside the terminal, making access to the airport facilities easier and more convenient for passengers,” Tillis said in a statement. “I am proud to have helped author and pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which made this project and other critical infrastructure projects like it possible.”

In a letter to Michael Whitaker, the administrator for the Federal Aviation Administration, Tillis and U.S. Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., said the airport “is an economic engine for North Carolina’s southeastern region.”

The letter also cites a recent study that showed the airport generates roughly $2.5 billion in annual economic impact.

“In the last two years, ILM had record passenger numbers and passenger enplanements increased by 25%,” the letter says. “Based on seat capacity, from January through September of this year, ILM is one if the fastest-growing airports in the country. We have been told that ILM’s aging terminal infrastructure is no longer able to meet current passenger demands and safety needs.” [Source]

 

Hospital CEO

News Release, 7/24/24

After a five-month search, UNC Health Blue Ridge announced Wednesday that Gary William Paxson, from Batesville, Arkansas, will be the new president and CEO starting Sept. 3. Paxson starts his career with UNC Health Blue Ridge following the retirement of Kathy C. Bailey, who has been in leadership for nearly 19 years.

Since 2018, Paxson has served as president and CEO of the independently owned White River Health System in Batesville, a 224-bed licensed medical center located in North Central Arkansas, which employs 1,700.

“I am honored to join UNC Health Blue Ridge and excited to work with such a dedicated team,” Paxson said.

“We are thrilled to welcome Gary Paxson to our team,” said Mac McCrary, chairman of the UNC Health Blue Ridge Board of Directors. “His proven track record of leadership and dedication to outstanding patient care aligns perfectly with our mission and values. We are confident that he will continue moving health care forward for our community.” [Source]

 

Auto Dealers

News Release, 7/25/24

The North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association (NCADA) has announced the election of Randy Hunter, with Hunter Corporation in Hendersonville, NC, as the association’s 2024-2025 Chairman of the Board.

Hunter is the former Chairman of the Hunter Corporation’s Board of Directors and is currently the company’s Chief People Officer and Vice President. Hunter is also the immediate past Chairman of the Henderson County Chamber of  Commerce and currently serves on the Boys and Girls Club of Henderson County  Executive Board and the Pardee Hospital Foundation Board.

NCADA also announced the election of the following additional NCADA officers  for 2024-2025:

• Rob King, Bob King Automotive, Winston-Salem, NC – Vice Chairman
• Mark Fisher, LaFayette Ford, Fayetteville, NC – Treasurer 
• Brad Tyson, Cloninger Ford, Hickory, NC – Secretary 

Legislative Sessions, Studies and Meetings

LB: LEGISLATIVE BUILDING. LOB: LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING

HOUSE CALENDAR

Monday, July 29, 2024

• House Convenes at 12:00 P.M.

SENATE CALENDAR

Monday, July 29, 2024

• House Convenes at 12:00 P.M.

HOUSE & SENATE: Reconvening allowed under provisions of SB 916, if no sine die adjournment previously adopted.

• Monday, July 29 to Thursday Aug. 1
• Monday, Sept. 9 to Wednesday, Sept. 11
• Wednesday, Oct. 9
• Tuesday, Nov. 19 to Friday Nov. 22
• Wednesday, Dec. 11 to Friday Dec. 13

N.C. Government Meetings and Hearings

BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS

Thursday, July 25

• 9 a.m. | N.C. Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System & Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System  – TSERS and LGERS Boards of Trustees Meeting, 3200 Atlantic Ave, Raleigh.
• 9 a.m. | North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission  –  Commission Business Meeting, 1751 Varsity Drive, Raleigh.
• 1:30 p.m. | NC State Health Plan for Teachers and State Employees  – State Health Plan Board of Trustees, 3200 Atlantic Ave, Raleigh.

Wednesday, July 31

• 10 a.m. | North Carolina State Board of Education meets, 1 South Wilmington St, Raleigh.

Thursday, Aug. 1

• 6 p.m. | The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality Public Hearing on Moriah Energy Center Draft Air Quality Permit, Vance-Granville Community College, 200 Community College Road, Henderson.

Monday, Aug. 5

• 9 a.m. | The Board Development Committee of The North Carolina Partnership for Children meets, The meeting will be held via Zoom. You may contact Yvonne Huntley at 984.221.1242 or email at [email protected] for additional information.

Tuesday, Aug. 6

• 9 a.m. | The Council of State meets. 1 South Wilmington St, Raleigh.

Monday, Aug. 19

• 2 p.m. | The Executive Committee of The North Carolina Partnership for Children meets, The meeting will be held via Zoom. You may contact Yvonne Huntley at 984.221.1242 or email at [email protected] for additional information.

UNC Board of Governors

23 S. WEST STREET, SUITE 1800, RALEIGH

Wednesday, Sept. 11

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Sept. 12

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Oct. 17

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Wednesday, Nov. 13

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Nov. 14

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

N.C. Utilities Commission Hearing Schedule

DOBBS BUILDING, 430 NORTH SALISBURY STREET, RALEIGH

Tuesday, Aug. 13

• 10 a.m. | Public Hearing – Annual Review of Gas Costs | G-5 Sub 675

Wednesday, Aug. 14

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Tuesday, Aug. 20

• 6 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for Transfer of Public Utility Franchise and Approval of Rates of HISCO East, LLC in Carteret County to HISCO I in Carteret County | W-1297 Sub 17, W-1344 Sub 0
• 6 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity and for Approval of Rates to Provide Sewer Utility Service to Currently Served Cape Ponte Village Subdivision, Additional Phases for the National Park Service, Harkers Island RV Park and a Fe | W-1344 Sub 1

Wednesday, Aug. 21

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Thursday, Aug. 22

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Other Meetings and Events of Interest

BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS

Thursday, July 25

• 2:30 p.m. | Gov. Roy Cooper to join leaders from the North Carolina National Guard and the Republics of Malawi and Zambia for a flag exchange ceremony commemorating a new state partnershipNorth Carolina Museum of History, Raleigh.

Saturday, July 27

9 a.m. | North Carolina Federation of Young Republicans Convention, The Farm at 95, Selma.