Leadership North Carolina Celebrates Graduation of 31st Class

Raleigh, NC – On Wednesday, May 8, 2024, Leadership North Carolina held the graduation ceremony for its 31^st class. Fifty-six leaders from across the state celebrated completion of this prestigious program at the North Carolina Museum of History.

Each year, through a rigorous selection process, LNC chooses a class of established and emerging leaders from across the state to participate in its acclaimed program. Leadership North Carolina’s Class 31 comprises top leaders from the government, business, nonprofit, and education sectors. A full list of participants follows.

During the ceremony, special recognition was shared for the following:

• Dr. Charles Dulaney Harr of WakeMed Health and Hospitals, elected by his classmates as the class graduation speaker.
• Annette R. Taylor of the Office of Digital Equity and Literacy, North Carolina Department of Information Technology, chosen by her classmates as recipient of the Stanley Frank Class Award.
• Dr. Sara Imhof of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, honored for her leadership as the Class 31 Program Chair.
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina for funding the Blue Cross Blue Shield 100 County Initiative Scholarship. With the graduation of Class 31, LNC has achieved alumni representation from all 100 North Carolina counties, a milestone made possible through this scholarship’s support for participants from underrepresented parts of the state.

Leadership North Carolina’s mission is to inform, develop, and engage committed leaders by broadening their understanding of and involvement in issues and opportunities facing North Carolina. Leadership North Carolina’s Core Program cultivates a network of individuals with diverse backgrounds and experiences who share a deep commitment to their state. There are more than 1,400 graduates of the program whose continued ties to LNC and to one another provide them with rich opportunities for serving North Carolina.

Over the course of seven two-and-a-half day sessions the members of LNC Class 31 learned about issues critical to the state through discussions with top officials and professionals, intentional dialogue, and experiential learning activities. LNC’s sessions focus on six key areas: government, education, health and human services, economic development, the environment, and inclusive leadership.

LNC sessions are held in locations around the state, highlighting the social, geographic, and economic diversity of North Carolina. The members of LNC Class 31 visited Boone, Raleigh, Greensboro, Durham, Greenville, Charlotte, and Asheville. Through LNC’s program, participants gained new insight into North Carolina’s strengths and challenges and developed their own priorities for ways they can improve and empower their communities and the state as a whole.

The application period for LNC Class 32 (2024-2025) opens June 1 and will remain open through June 24. To find out more about Leadership North Carolina, please visit: www.leadershipnc.org.

LNC Class 31

• Kristie Aldridge, Vice President, Strategic Communications & Marketing, North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives, Wake
• Madison Allen, Senior Program Officer, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, Guilford
• Meredith Archie, President, NC Chamber Foundation, Wake
• LaRita Barber, Chief Advancement Officer, Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, Union
• Vivian Bolanos, VP Business Banker II, First Citizens Bank, Henderson
• Trey Cash, Economic Development Director, Greene and Lenoir County Governments, Greene
• Jenn Chase, Chief Marketing Officer, Executive Vice President, SAS, Wake
• Lisa Cherry, Planning and Economic Development Director, Gates County, Gates
• Rochelle Cook, Project Manager, Laboratory Corporation of America, Guilford
• Jill Cox, President and CEO, Communities In Schools of North Carolina, Wake
• Frank Creech, Superintendent, Greene County Schools, Greene
• Nancy Cross, Assistant Director for CTE Regional Services and Reporting, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Randolph
• Erin Crouse, Field Representative, Southeast Region, The Conservation Fund, Orange
• Kathie Dello, Director of North Carolina State Climate Office/State Climatologist, North Carolina State University, Wake
• Jody Donaldson, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, North Carolina Department of Public Safety, Wake
• Pat Eglinton, SVP, Senior Director, Operational Risk, First Citizens Bank, Wake
• Wesley Fountain, Vice Chancellor of External Affairs and Military Relations, Fayetteville State University, Cumberland
• Venu Ghanta, VP, Regulatory Affairs and Policy, Duke Energy, Wake
• Charles Harr, Chief Medical Officer, WakeMed Health and Hospitals, Wake
• Kara Henderson, Owner, Henderson & Henderson Dentistry, LLC, Warren
• Jennifer Howard, SVP, Director of Operations, Dogwood State Bank, Wake
• Lauren Iannitti, Vice President, Facility Executive, Atrium Health, Mecklenburg
• Jessica Ijames, Corporate Director, Community Engagement, Novant Health, Rowan
• Tracey Johnson, Washington County Commissioner, Beaufort County Community College, and Past President, NCACC, Washington
• Matthew Kagel, Director, State & Local Government Affairs, International Franchise Association, Johnston
• Carolyn Keith, Associate Director of Research Partnerships—Clean Energy, Office of Research Partnerships / Division of Research, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Mecklenburg
• Colleen Kinser, Director, ICFNC, North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, Johnston
• Nicole Kiser, Principal Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Piedmont Natural Gas (Duke Energy), Iredell
• Gregory Lahrman, Senior Director, Operational Excellence, Martin Marietta, Wake
• Stacy Lowry, Director, Community Support Services, Mecklenburg County, Union
• Kathryn Marker, Director, K12 Scholarship Programs, North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority, Wake
• Steven Martin, President & CEO, Constellation Quality Health, Wake
• Tyler McLauchlan, Architect, Clark Nexsen, Buncombe
• Greg McNamara, Business Development Manager | Senior Associate, LS3P Associates LTD., Wake
• Shannon McSwiney, Director, Marketing & Communications, Delta Dental of North Carolina, Wake
• David Mize, Senior Tax Manager, DMJPS, PLLC, Guilford
• Jack Monell, Provost Fellow & Associate Professor of Justice Studies, Winston-Salem State University, Forsyth
• Christina Moody, Deputy Clerk of Superior Court, North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, Halifax
• Hannah Morecraft, Deputy Managing Director, APCO Worldwide, Wake
• Kevin Price, President & CEO, National Institute of Minority Economic Development, Chatham
• Nate Quirk, Partner, Burr & Forman, Mecklenburg
• Ciara Rogers, Partner / Lawyer, Waldrep Wall Babcock & Bailey, PLLC, Wake
• Grace Rountree, Director, NC Public Affairs & Communications, Duke Energy, Wake
• Jacqueline Russell, Director, Division of Disability Determination Services, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Wake
• Kimberly Shaw, Executive Director, The Triangle Nonprofit & Volunteer Leadership Center, Durham
• Paola Sztajn, Dean, College of Education, North Carolina State University, Wake
• Annette Taylor, Director, Office of Digital Equity and Literacy, North Carolina Department of Information Technology, Wake
• Melanie Taylor, AVP, Healthcare Strategy, Planning, and Performance, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Durham
• Jessie Tenenbaum, Associate Professor, Duke University, Wake
• Deborah S.K. Thomas, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Mecklenburg
• Stacie Walker, Chief Lending Officer, State Employees’ Credit Union, Wake
• Jordan Whichard, Chief Deputy Secretary, North Carolina Department of Commerce, Wake
• La’Meshia Whittington, President/CEO, The Whittington & Staley Consulting Group, Wake
• Kim Winter, Dean & Professor, Western Carolina University, Jackson
• Valyce Woolaston, Senior Counsel, Dominion Energy Services, Inc., Wake
• William Wooldridge, Senior Director of Product Line Management, Corning, Cabarrus

Graduation photography by Story Photographers.