Governor Stein Announces Boards and Commissions Appointments

Today Governor Josh Stein announced appointments to boards and commissions.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the Historic Hillsborough Commission:

• Kathryn Marie Senner of Durham County as an at-large member. Senner serves as president of the Hillsborough Elementary School Parent Teacher Association and volunteers as program planning co-chair for the American Public Gardens Association. In previous roles as vice president of advancement for the Museum of Life and Science and director of development at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens, she successfully secured millions of dollars in funding and growth for each organization.
• Sharon Billings of Orange County as an at-large member. Billings brings nearly 25 years of experience in plant biotechnology research at Rutgers' Cook College and Syngenta Agriculture Biotechnology. Among several volunteer contributions, Billings has served on the North Carolina Tree Board, been a member of the Hillsborough Garden Club, and given youth science presentations at the NC Museum of Natural Science.
• Kathleen Ferguson of Orange County as an at-large member. Ferguson is a strategic proposal and contracts professional with more than 25 years of experience in contract research organizations. She currently serves as a director of proposals and contracts for Lexitas Pharma Services and is serving her 13th year as a Hillsborough town commissioner.
• Wayne Buchanan Eads of Orange County as an at-large member. Eads is a criminal defense attorney with more than 50 years of legal experience, most recently as the managing partner at Eads Law, PLLC. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina School of Law in Chapel Hill.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the Historic Murfreesboro Commission:

• Sara Frances Hill of Orange County as an at-large member. Hill is a Murfreesboro native with more than 35 years of medical experience, most recently serving at Pitt County Memorial Hospital. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from East Carolina University and served on the inaugural East Carolina University College of Nursing alumni board. Hill served as secretary of the Murfreesboro Historical Association for six years.
• Mark Parker of Wake County as an at-large member. Parker is a Murfreesboro native who serves as an information technical specialist at Atos North America and recently celebrated 36 years with the company. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Murfreesboro Historical Association and supports local students through the Parker Family Music Scholarship at Chowan University.
• Kay P. Thomas of Hertford County as an at-large member. Thomas brings more than 25 years of leadership in historic preservation, tourism development, education, and community engagement across northeastern North Carolina. She serves as the director of alumni relations at Chowan University and has served as a key leader of the North Carolina Watermelon Festival for nearly 40 years.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the North Carolina Credit Union Commission:

• Nikitra S. Bailey of Wake County as a public member. Baily is a nationally recognized civil rights and economic justice leader with deep experience shaping housing and financial services policy at all levels of government. She serves as the executive vice president at the National Fair Housing Alliance, where she advances fair housing and lending and creates housing opportunities for millions of Americans. Bailey also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Institute of Minority Economic Development, working to strengthen the asset base of diverse populations through policy, education, and economic opportunities.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the North Carolina Marine Industrial Park Authority:

• Matthew R. Clarke of Hyde County as a resident of Engelhard. Clarke is an Engelhard native and has worked as a third-generation commercial fisherman for more than a decade. He is passionate about the conservation of North Carolina waterways and coastal resources in addition to marine construction and excavation services through his construction company, Clarke Custom Company, LLC.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the North Carolina Radiation Protection Commission:

• Dr. Trishul Veera Allareddy of Chatham County as an expert in the field of radiation and its biological effects from the NC Dental Society. Dr. Allareddy is an oral and maxillofacial radiologist who works as a tenured professor in diagnostic sciences in oral and maxillofacial radiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a member and the immediate past president of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology and serves as an editor of the Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology Journal.
• Dr. Chu Wang of Wake County as an expert in the field of radiation and its biological effects as a hospital admin from the NC Hospital Association. Dr. Wang is the director of the OESO-Radiation Safety Division at Duke University Health System. He serves as an assistant professor in the Department of Radiology and director for the Medical Health Physics Track graduate program, and he is the co-founder and executive advisor of the Golden Horseshoe Education Corporation. Dr. Wang volunteers as an exam panelist on the American Board of Medical Physics.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the Roanoke River Basin Bi-State Commission:

• The Honorable Paul A. Lowe Jr. of Forsyth County as a member of the Senate. Senator Lowe has served in the North Carolina Senate from the 32nd district since 2015. He serves as a pastor at Shiloh Baptist Church in Winston-Salem and a leader of the General Baptist Convention of North Carolina and the National Baptist Convention USA Inc.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the U.S.S. North Carolina Battleship Commission:

• Ed Turlington of Wake County as an at-large member. Turlington has serves as an attorney and partner at business law firm Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard, LLP. He has served as chief of staff for the late Governor Jim Hunt and as a national advisor to three presidential candidates. His work includes representing clients in procurement and contract matters with state agencies such as the Department of Information Technology, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Health and Human Services.
• Eddie Stuart of New Hanover County as an at-large member. Stuart has worked for the University of North Carolina at Wilmington for more than 25 years and currently serves as the vice chancellor for University Advancement. In this role, he has helped raise more than $225 million in support of the university's students, faculty, and staff.
• Avery L. Staley of Iredell County as an at-large member. Staley serves as the vice president for Institutional Advancement at Clinton College and previously served as the vice chancellor and chief of staff of North Carolina Central University.
• Tommy Otis Fulcher Jr. of Dare County as an at-large member. He is a former employee of Duke Energy and the U.S. Census Bureau and a small business owner. Fulcher is an avid volunteer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the North Carolina State University Alumni Association, and the Beach Food Pantry.
• Michael Hardison of Brunswick County as an at-large member. Hardison serves as the co-director of Senate Minority Government Operations for the North Carolina Senate. He has experience in public service and coastal policy as a member of the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission's Shellfish/Crustacean Advisory Committee.
• Frank A. Hobart of New Hanover County as an at-large member. Hobart is a practicing general cardiologist with Novant Health's Heart and Vascular Institute and has worked for Novant Health for more than 26 years.
• Jonathan Barfield Jr. of New Hanover County as an at-large member. The New Hanover County native is the owner and broker of Barfield and Associates Realty and a former president of the Cape Fear Realtors Association. He served on the New Hanover County Commission for 16 years, including the roles of chair and vice chair. He has also served on various boards and committees representing New Hanover County, including the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, Wilmington Business Development, Health and Human Services, and Cape Fear Public Utility Authority.
• John R. Clark III of New Hanover County as an at-large member. Clark served as general counsel and president of the Steuart Investment Company, a private Washington, D.C.-based company primarily focused on real estate investment, ownership, and development. He serves the community in a variety of volunteer organizations such as the Rotary Club of Wilmington.

Governor Stein has appointed the following to the Underground Damage Prevention Review Board:

• Grant E. Welch of Lee County as a representative of the telecommunications industry. Welch is the North Carolina legislative and political director for the Communications Workers of America with more than 25 years of experience in telecommunications. He is also a labor advocate who serves as vice president of the North Carolina AFL-CIO executive board, championing workers' rights and broadband expansion to help close the digital divide. He is an active civic leader, having served as president of the Rotary Club of Sanford and as a member of the NC State Conference of the NAACP.
• Frank Zdelar III of Wake County as a representative from the North Carolina Department of Transportation. He has served as a broadband engineer for the NCDOT Utilities Units since 2023 and has worked in telecommunications, engineering, and construction throughout the state.

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