CULLOWHEE – Governor Roy Cooper has appointed four members to the Board of Trustees of the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT), a recognized national leader in professional development programming for our state’s teachers.
The following individuals are new members of the NCCAT Board of Trustees:
Region 2: Mr. Perry L. Harker of Beaufort as a representative from Educational Region 2. Harker currently serves as the Vice President of Corporate and Community Education at Carteret Community College. He has over 30 years of experience in the higher education and administration leadership field. He also serves on the board of directors for the Carteret County Boys and Girls Club, the East Carolina Community Development Inc. and the North Carolina Business Incubation Association.
Region 3: Mr. David M. Farris of Rocky Mount as a representative from Educational Region 3. Farris is the President and CEO of the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce. He serves on the Carolinas Gateway Partnership Executive Committee, NC East Alliance, Nash County Travel and Tourism and the Downtown Redevelopment. He also served as the Past Chairman of the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association.
Region 4: Dr. Robert P. Taylor of White Lake as a representative from Educational Region 4. Taylor has served as the Superintendent of Bladen County Schools since 2011. Dr. Taylor serves on the Advisory Council for both the Dean of the School of Education at Fayetteville State University and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. He also serves on the State Board of Education’s Whole Community School Child Advisory Council, working to create policy for the coordination of services between public schools and public agencies.
Region 7: Ms. Desarae D. Kirkpatrick of Nebo as a representative from Educational Region 7. Kirkpatrick currently serves as the Principal of East McDowell Middle School in Marion. She is a board member of the North Carolina Principals and Assistant Principals Association and was named the Northwestern Regional Principal of the Year in 2018.
“I am pleased to welcome these new board members and appreciate their willingness to serve,” NCCAT Executive Director M. Brock Womble said.
Their terms will expire October 10, 2023.
Per Section 115C-296.6 of the North Carolina General Statutes, the NCCAT Board of Trustees is composed of the following membership: the Chairman of the State Board of Education and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction or their designees (both ex officio members); two members appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate; two members appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and eight members appointed by the Governor, one from each of the eight educational regions.