Raleigh, Feb 16, 2021

Governor Roy Cooper announced new appointments to state boards and commissions today.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Building Code Council:

• Robert Zapple of Wilmington as county commissioner or county manager. Zapple is a licensed general contractor and the owner and president of Rob Zapple Design and Build Inc. Zapple is a commissioner on the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, where he has served since 2014.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the Governor’s Crime Commission:

• Anthony D. Kelly of Fayetteville as a municipal government official. Kelly is the Assistant Chief of Police for the Fayetteville Police Department. He has over 27 years of experience in law enforcement serving as a Patrol Officer, Police Sergeant and Police Lieutenant and Captain.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities:

• Carla L. West of Clayton as a representative of the Department of Health and Human Services. West is the Senior Director for Economic Security at the NC Department of Health and Human Services, where she oversees programs such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Food and Nutrition Services (FNS).

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the Domestic Violence Commission:

• Deborah Weissman of Chapel Hill as chair. Weissman is a Reef C. Ivey Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of North Carolina School of Law in Chapel Hill. She is also the author of In Pursuit of Economic Justice: The Political Economy of Domestic Violence Laws and Policies published in 2020.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina State Board of Education:

• James Ford of Charlotte as a member at-large. Ford is the Executive Director of the Center for Racial Equity in Education (CREED) and the Principal Consultant at Filling the Gap Educational Consultants, LLC. He was also named the 2014-2015 North Carolina Teacher of the Year.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Board of Electrolysis Examiners:

• Ronnie Dunn of Siler City as an at-large public member. Dunn works as a cosmetologist and has been a part of the cosmetology industry for nine years.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors:

• John M. Logsdon of McGrady as a registered land surveyor representative. Logsdon founded and currently works as an attorney at Logsdon & Neece, PLLC, where he practices general civil law. He is also the President Elect of the North Carolina Society of Surveyors’ Northwest Chapter.
• Brenda Moore of Cary as a registered engineer representative. Moore worked for the North Carolina Department of Transportation from 1988 to 2020, where she most recently served as a state roadway design engineer. In this role, she was responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Roadway Design Unit.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the Governor’s Entrepreneurial Council:

• Robert “Chip” F. Andrews, III of Raleigh as a member at-large. Andrews is the retired Chairman and CEO of FMI Corporation, and he is currently a managing member or president of Andrews Ventures, LLC; Nu Associates, LLC; Alpha Three, LLC; Andrews Investment Group, LLC; and the Stanhope, LLC. He also serves on the North Carolina State University Board of Trustees.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Holocaust Council:

• Victoria Carlin Milstein of Greensboro as a member at-large. Milstein is a professional portrait artist who has been commissioned to paint for both private and public figures locally and internationally. She is a public speaker and advocate for the arts in her community. She is also in the process of creating North Carolina’s first women’s Holocaust Monument, to be situated in La Bauer Park.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina Human Relations Commission:

• Sheila M. Cuffee of Fayetteville as a representative of the 8th Congressional District. Cuffee has spent over 30 years serving military families and employees, including as an Equal Employment Opportunity Counselor and a Family Support Advisor at Fort Bragg. She serves on multiple boards in Cumberland County and has been awarded many national volunteer awards.
• Zakiya Bell Rogers of Asheville as a representative of the 11th Congressional District. Rogers has worked at the Buncombe County Health and Human Services, Helpmate Inc (a survivor of domestic abuse support agency) and City Steam Cleaning. She currently serves on the Different Strokes Performing Arts Collective and serves as the Vice Chair of the YWCA.
• Howard J. Morgan of Sedalia as a member at-large. Morgan is the Mayor of Sedalia. He is also a property manager at Carolina Rental Homes and is experienced in the maintenance of commercial and residential properties, construction projects, and home renovations.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina Board of Landscape Architects:

• Jennifer Wagner of Raleigh as a landscape architect. Wagner is the founder and owner of Prospect Landscape Architecture, PLLC. She is also the chair of the City of Raleigh Parks, Recreation, Greenway Advisory Board.
• Shawsheen D. Baker of Raleigh as a landscape architect. Baker is the Capital Projects superintendent and a landscape architect at the City of Raleigh, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources. She also served as a member of the Professional Licensure Exam Committee for the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the License to Give Trust Fund Commission:

• Aurea L. Rodriguez of Raleigh as Department of Transportation representative. Rodriguez is the Deputy Director of the Governance Office for the North Carolina Department of Transportation. Previously, Rodriguez was a program manager with the Department of Transportation.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina South Carolina Boundary Commission:

• Ted Davis, Jr. of Wilmington as a legislator. Davis has served in the North Carolina House of Representatives since 2012. He practiced law until 2016, serving as Assistant New Hanover County Attorney, State District Attorney, and Assistant United States Attorney.
• Brandon Lofton of Charlotte as a legislator. Lofton has served in the North Carolina House of Representatives since 2018. He is also a partner at the Robinson Bradshaw Law Firm in Charlotte.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Board of Nursing:

• Dr. Aimy S. Steele of Concord as a public member. Steele is the CEO of Reach Consulting, LLC, which helps students prepare for college. She has also been a teacher, assistant principal, and principal in elementary, middle, and high schools.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Parks and Recreation Authority:

• Harelda Mavis Gragg of Durham as chair. Gragg has served on the Parks and Recreation Authority since 2018. She is the founder of the Gragg Law Firm and is an adjunct professor at the North Carolina Central University School of Law.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Performance Management:

• Deanna M. Ballard of Blowing Rock as an North Carolina State Senator. Ballard represents District 45 in the North Carolina State Senate. Additionally, she is the Director of Public Policy for Samaritan’s Purse, an international Christian relief organization headquartered in Boone.
• Darryl D. Childers of Raleigh as the Governor’s policy staff designee. Childers is a policy advisor with the Office of the Governor of North Carolina, covering policy issues related to the environment, transportation, natural and cultural resources, energy, and information technology. He has served as a policy advisor in the Governor’s Office since 2017 and previously worked on issues related to health and criminal justice policy.
• Terence J. Everitt of Wake Forest as an North Carolina State Representative. Everitt represents District 35 in the North Carolina House of Representatives. He also has his own law practice in Wake Forest, where he works on behalf of other small businesses, and he is a member of the Board of Directors for the Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce.
• Kody Kinsley of Raleigh as a Department of Health and Human Services representative. Kinsley serves as the deputy secretary for behavioral health and intellectual developmental disabilities at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. He previously served as assistant secretary for management for the United States Department of the Treasury, which he was appointed to by President Obama.
• Kiernan McGorty of Raleigh as the legislative staff designee. McGorty is the director of the North Carolina General Assembly’s Program Evaluation Division, and she developed the division’s Measurability Assessment Program.
• Natalie S. Murdock of Durham as an North Carolina State Senator. Murdock represents District 20 in the North Carolina State Senate. Prior to serving in the state senate, Murdock was elected the Durham County Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor, worked as deputy director of communications at the North Carolina Department of Justice, and launched her own public relations and communications firm, Attal Strategies.
• David Smith of Raleigh as a Council of State representative. Smith is the Chief Deputy Commissioner for the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. In this role, Smith is responsible for the core business functions of the department. He has been with the department since 1972.
• Dr. Tonya Smith-Jackson of Greensboro as an education representative. Smith-Jackson is the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs at NC A&T State University. She is also a professor in and former chair of the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice:

• Jeffrey Smythe of Burlington as a chiefs of police representative. Smythe has been the Chief of Police in Burlington for over seven years, where he leads an agency of more than 150 staff. He has been a police officer for over 34 years and has a master’s degree from Northern Arizona University in Educational Leadership.
• April G. Dawson of Haw River as a representative from local and state government, academic institutions, research or advocacy groups. Dawson is an Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at North Carolina Central University School of Law. She teaches, among other classes, Constitutional Law, a Supreme Court seminar, and legal technology courses, and has been voted Professor of the Year multiple times.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the Task Force for Safer Schools:

• Vanessa Goodman Barnes of Wilson as a North Carolina licensed school counselor representative. Barnes is the dean of students, counseling, and student services at Millbrook Magnet High School. She was recently selected as a 2021 School Counselor of the Year Finalist by the American School Counselor Association.
• Sandy Bennett of Franklin as a public school resource officer representative. Bennett serves as a school resource officer sergeant and juvenile investigator for the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office. She has previously worked as a police officer for the Wake Forest and Durham Police Departments.
• Shelanna Copeny of Raleigh as a member at-large. Copeny is an instructional assistant at Roger’s Lane Elementary School. She has worked on her school’s Reopening Core Team throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure students can return to school safely.
• Mike Daniska of Raleigh as the designee for the Secretary of the Department of Public Safety. Daniska is the Director of Policy and Planning for the Department of Public Safety. Before taking on this role, Daniska spent 11 years working in various positions within the department’s Emergency Management Division.
• Dr. Stephanie Lowe Ellis of Eden as a public school psychologist representative. Ellis is the executive director of behavioral health, crisis intervention, and student safety for Rockingham County Schools. There, she supervises and coordinates the implementation of school safety standards and crisis intervention plans for the district.
• Rachel Johnson of Raleigh as the designee for the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Johnson is the statewide administrator for children with complex needs in the North Carolina Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services. Johnson has over 15 years of experience working with youth and families, including those with behavioral health needs.
• Matthew G. Knight of Trent Woods of as a local law enforcement officer representative. Knight is the assistant special agent in charge of the Coastal District of North Carolina for Alcohol Law Enforcement. Knight joined ALE in 2006 after beginning his law enforcement career with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and the Fayetteville Police Department.
• William L. Lassiter of Raleigh as a juvenile justice professional representative. Lassiter is the deputy secretary of juvenile justice in the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice in the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. There, he oversees juvenile facility operations, court services, community programs, and intervention and treatment programs.
• Evonne Moore of Rockingham as a North Carolina licensed social worker representative. Moore recently retired after 27 years as a school social worker for Richmond County Schools. She was awarded the North Carolina State School Social Worker of the Year in 2004.
• Sheriff Danny Rogers of Greensboro as a local law enforcement officer representative. Rogers was elected Sheriff of Guilford County in 2018, where he has instituted policies aimed at fighting crime and challenging injustice, and worked alongside his fellow officers to serve and protect his community.
• Danya C. Perry of Raleigh as an expert in gang intervention and prevention in schools. Perry is the director of diversity, equity, and inclusivity and equitable economic development for the Raleigh Chamber of Commerce. He has previously worked as an at-risk youth coordinator.
• Donna M. White of Clayton as a member at-large. White represents House District 26 in the North Carolina General Assembly, where she has served since 2017. She was previously an aging and health specialist in the Division of Aging and Adult Services in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
• India Irene Williams of Raleigh as a parent of a currently enrolled public school student representative. Williams is a quality assurance analyst and adoption manager at Cisco Systems. Williams is a parent of three children currently enrolled in the Wake County Public School System.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the North Carolina Board of Science, Technology and Innovation:

• Scott D. Dorney of Fayetteville as a representative of private industry. Dorney is the executive director of the North Carolina Military Business Center, which connects North Carolina businesses to federal contracts, connects military and other jobseekers to employment and helps recruit defense contractors to the state.
• Katrinka McCallum of Morrisville as a member at-large. McCallum is a strategic high-growth technology leader and financial expert with public, private and non-profit director experience. McCallum was previously the vice president of customer and product experience at Red Hat, Inc. She was a Women in IT Awards Finalist for Data Leader of the Year in 2019.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individuals to the Governor’s Teacher Advisory Committee:

• Maureen Stover of Fayetteville as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Stover was named the 2020 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year, and throughout her career, she has worked as an educator at the elementary, middle and high school levels. Most recently, she taught at Cumberland International Early College High School.
• Rodney D. Pierce of Roanoke Rapids as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Pierce teaches middle school social studies in Nash County public schools, and he was named the 2019 North Carolina Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Teacher of the Year. Pierce was the inaugural Teacher Fellow for the NC Equity Fellowship through the Center for Racial Equity in Education.
• Steven Gupton of Louisburg as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Gupton is a high school CTE teacher at James E. Shepard IB Magnet School in Durham, where he also serves as the school’s Equity Team Co-Chair. Gupton was a finalist for Teacher of the Year in 2017, his first full year of teaching, and he received the CTE Teacher of the Year/Challenger Award in 2018.
• Brittany Hammonds-Hunt of Lumberton as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Hammonds-Hunt teaches NC Math 1 at Fairmont High School. She is passionate about includingculturally relevant curriculum, working with at-risk youth, mentoring, and building strong, impactful relationships with students.
• Tamika Walker Kelly of Raleigh as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Kelly serves as the President of the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE). Prior to this role, she was the K-5th Grade Music Specialist for 13 years, was the Vice President and Political Action chair of the Cumberland County Association of Educators and served on the NCAE Board of Directors.
• Sean R. Parrish of Pisgah Forest as an active classroom teacher/educational support staff. Parrish is a visual arts teacher at Brevard High School and an adjunct professor in the fine arts department at Brevard College. He was selected as both Transylvania County’s Teacher of the Year and Brevard High School’s Teacher of the Year in 2005.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina Travel and Tourism Board:

• Tamara Daniels of Charlotte as a tourism representative. Daniels is the senior vice president and general counsel for Hornets Sports and Entertainment. Daniels is part of the Hornets’ executive leadership team and advises and counsels across all areas within the organization. Previously, Daniels was the vice president and general counsel of the National Hockey League’s Las Vegas Golden Knights and the organization’s other properties.

Gov. Cooper has appointed the following individual to the North Carolina State Youth Advisory Council:

• Tara M. Sanchez of Charlotte as an adult member. Sanchez, along with working as a Virginia State Certified Police Officer, worked with the City of Charlottesville Police Department as a Background Investigator and Recruiter, leading officers as the Strategies for Youth Instructor. She was the Captain of Indiana University Women’s Basketball Big 10 Championship Team from 2001-02 and was the Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach for Washington State University and the University of South Florida.

The article originally ran on Governor Roy Cooper's website on 2/16/2021.

It also ran on the following:

• Einpresswire.com
• Publicnow
• Johnston County Report / WTSB-AM Online