2014 – Cowell, Janet

May 12, 2014

North Carolina State Treasure

Janet Cowell is North Carolina’s popularly elected Treasurer and is the first woman to hold the office. With over 20 years of private and public-sector financial leadership, Cowell oversees more than 80 billion dollars in pension investments for the more than 875,000 teachers, firefighters, and public employees in North Carolina. As Treasurer, she manages the 32^nd largest public pension in the world.

While many public plans are struggling to meet financial obligations, North Carolina’s pension system is ranked 2nd in the nation. In 2013, Treasurer Cowell was named one of the top 25 public pension executives in the world by Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute, and is one of only two United States fund managers to rank in the top 25 globally.

Under Cowell’s executive leadership, North Carolina is one of only nine states in the country to earn a AAA bond rating by all three rating agencies – the ultimate good housekeeping seal of approval for fiscal strength. North Carolina also has the most AAA-rated local governments of any state, which keeps borrowing costs for taxpayers low for schools, roads, and other needed infrastructure.

Cowell is a member of the State Board of Education and a champion for improvements in education, including financial education. Because of her efforts, North Carolina’s Kindergarten through 12^th grade students began receiving financial education as part of their curriculum in 2012.

Recently, Cowell stepped up to oversee the State Health Plan, ensuring access to affordable health care for more than 650,000 North Carolina families. The perfect spokesperson for the healthy, active lifestyles that the Health Plan promotes – when she’s not in the office, Janet can be found running, biking on our state’s beautiful trails, or occasionally completing military-style endurance trainings for charity.

Cowell is a Wharton School of Business alumna, the Chair of the State Banking Commission, and recently chosen as an Aspen Institute Fellow. Over the past year, she has been featured on CNBC, FOX Business, Bloomberg TV and others for her solid fiscal leadership, and for North Carolina’s unique financial successes among the national picture.

Now in her 10th year of elected office, and with the nation facing unprecedented economic challenges, Cowell continues the conservative debt management practices and solid economic development policies that keep North Carolina in secure financial standing.

She is proud to serve the citizens of North Carolina as State Treasurer and remains committed to working each day to build and maintain a fiscally strong and prosperous North Carolina, and a brighter future for all who call North Carolina home.

2014 – Atkinson, June

April 10, 2014

NC State Secretary of Public Instruction

June St. Clair Atkinson is the first woman elected State Superintendent of the Public Schools of North Carolina and has served in this position since August 2005.

As State Superintendent, Dr. Atkinson understands the importance of improving teaching and learning, creating school environments that encourage student success, keeping education modern and relevant, and graduating every student career and college ready.

In leading the Department of Public Instruction, Dr. Atkinson is directing the groundbreaking Accountability and Curriculum Reform Effort (ACRE) initiative to revitalize the state’s curriculum and accountability programs. North Carolina’s landmark Race to the Top Grant is helping support this work in addition to several other key reform initiatives such as transforming low-performing schools. Dr. Atkinson also is focused on ensuring students have the opportunity to learn the technical skills that are important in today’s global economy. Thanks to partnerships with numerous corporations, North Carolina is able to advance the skills of both teachers and students, as well as transform learning, and ultimately student achievement.

As State Superintendent, Dr. Atkinson oversees almost 1.5 million students in over 2,500 public schools. She has more than 35 years of experience in education. During her career, she has served as a chief consultant and director in the areas of business education, career and technical education, and instructional services within the NCDPI. A former business education teacher, Dr. Atkinson has been involved in instruction and curriculum development throughout her career.

She has received numerous awards over the years including recent accolades such as the Champion of Children Award from the North Carolina Association of School Administrators, the State Policy Maker of the Year Award from the National Association for State Educational Technology Directors, and the North Carolina Association of Educators Inclusive Leadership Award. In addition, Dr. Atkinson has held many professional offices and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Council of Chief State School Officers.

Dr. Atkinson received a bachelor’s degree in Business Education from Radford University, a master’s degree in Vocational and Technical Education from Virginia Tech, and a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy from North Carolina State University.

2014 – Skavarla III, John E.

March 10, 2014
NC State Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources

Gov. Pat McCrory named Mr. John E. Skvarla, III Secretary of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Dec. 2012, as part of his new Cabinet and administration.

Mr. Skvarla comes to DENR after a successful career in business. He most recently served as CEO for Restoration Systems, an environmental mitigation firm based in Raleigh that helps improve and restore wetlands and waterways. His past environmental experience also includes his work as chairman with Wilkinson Hi-Rise, a world leader in manufacturing new products such as waste management and automated recycling systems. Skvarla previously served as chief operating officer for The Aviation Group, Inc., a company that emerged as the world’s largest all-cargo airline during his tenure. He also has been managing director of an investment banking office in Raleigh and owner of a Sandhills golf course community. An attorney, Skvarla in 1978 founded and served as senior partner to the Raleigh-based Skvarla, Wyrick and Robbins law firm, where he specialized in corporate and tax matters, as well as public and private capital formations.

2014 – Decker, Sharon Allred

January 13, 2014

NC State Secretary of Commerce

Sharon Allred Decker was appointed Secretary of Commerce by Gov. Pat McCrory in January 2013.  She brings more than 30 years of experience in business and commerce to the position.

After graduating summa cum laude from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Decker spent more than 17 years with Duke Power Company, now Duke Energy. She began with the company in consumer services and moved rapidly through the ranks to become the youngest and first female vice president in Duke Power’s history. Her work at Duke Power led to the creation of its 24-hour customer service center, an organization that still serves as a model for the industry.

Decker left Duke Power as Chief Communications Officer to become the founding president of The Lynnwood Foundation, which was created to restore the Duke Mansion in Charlotte as a conference center, and to begin the William States Lee Leadership Institute. While at Lynnwood in 1998, she also served as the chair of the Charlotte Chamber and was named Charlotte Woman of the Year. She moved to Rutherfordton in 1999 to serve as president of the Doncaster division of Tanner Companies.

In 2004, she created and served as the CEO of the Tapestry Group, a non-profit that helps individuals lead healthy lives in body, mind and spirit. In addition to her work with Tapestry, Decker is wife to her husband, Bob, a mother of four, a lay pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and a student at the Christopher White School of Divinity, completing her Master of Divinity Degree with a concentration in Spiritual Formation. She completed an internship last year as Director of Graduate Ministries for the Center for Christian Study in Charlottesville, Virginia where she served as chaplain to students at the Darden School of Business and the UVA School of Law. She remains a member of the Board of the Center for Christian Study. Decker has served on the boards of three Fortune 500 companies

2013 – Hack, Dr. Bradley

Nov. 11, 2013

Dr. Bradley Hack received his B.A. from the University of Michigan and his Ph.D. from Michigan State University. He started his career as a staff psychologist at the Counseling Center at UNC, Chapel Hill and as an Adjunct Associate Professor in the UNC School of Medicine before going into private practice. He has been treating adolescents, adults and athletes in his practice for more than 14 years.

Dr. Hack is also one of the nation’s leading Sport Psychologists. Since 2001 he has been the Director of Sport Psychology for the Athletic Department at the University of North Carolina. In addition to his work with Division I athletes, he has also worked with professional athletes from the NFL, MLB, PGA, NASCAR, WNBA as well as members of the 2000, 2004 and 2008 U.S. Olympic teams and hopefuls for the 2012 Games in London. He also serves as a treating clinician for the NFL’s Substance Abuse Program.

Dr. Hack has taken a leadership role in promoting the field of psychology at both state and national levels. He has been elected twice to the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Psychological Association and was appointed as its Federal Advocacy Coordinator. On a national level, Dr. Hack was appointed to the Executive Committee for the American Psychological Association’s Division of Sport Psychology. He was instrumental in establishing sport psychology as a proficiency within APA and was one of four sport psychologists selected to co-author the national guidelines for the practice of sport psychology. He serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology and his work has been published in The Sport Psych Handbook (2005).

Outside the office, he loves being a dad, competing in any sport, and playing guitar.

2013 – Rao, Vikram

September 9, 2013

Executive Director, Research Triangle Energy Consortium

Vikram Rao is Executive Director, Research Triangle Energy Consortium www.rtec-rtp.org , a non-profit in energy founded by Duke University, North Carolina State University, RTI International and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Its mission is to illuminate national energy priorities, and those of the world by extension, and to catalyze research to address these priorities.

Dr. Rao serves on the board of Intelligent Well Controls Ltd. and also advises venture capitalist Energy Ventures AS, and firms BioLargo Inc., Global Energy Talent Ltd. and Integro Earth Fuels Inc. He retired as Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of HalliburtonCompany in 2008 and followed his wife to Chapel Hill, NC, where she is on the faculty. Later that year he took his current position. He also serves on North Carolina Mining and Energy Commission and chairs the Water and Waste Management Committee.

Dr. Rao’s book Shale Gas: the Promise and the Peril was released in 2012 by RTI Press and can be found at www.rti.org/shalegasbook . It is written for general audiences and is intended to inform on the heated debate on fracturing for shale gas.

Dr. Rao holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, India, along with a master’s degree and a doctorate in engineering from Stanford University. He is the author of more than 50 publications and has been awarded 36 US patents and foreign analogs.

2013 – Ellis, Lee

May 13, 2013

President – Leadership Freedom
Early in his career, Lee served as an Air Force fighter pilot flying fifty-three combat missions over North Vietnam. In 1967, he was shot down and held as a POW for more than five years in Hanoi and surrounding camps. After the war he served as an instructor pilot, chief of flight standardization/evaluation, and flying squadron commander. Additionally he commanded two leadership development organizations before retiring as a colonel. Lee’s combat decorations include two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star with Valor device, the Purple Heart, and the POW medal.

Lee Ellis is President and Founder of Leadership Freedom® and FreedomStar Media™. For more than fifteen years he has served as an executive coach and a corporate consultant in the areas of hiring, teambuilding, leadership development, and succession planning. His clients include Fortune 500 senior executives and C-Level leaders in a variety of industries. Since 1990, Lee has managed the development, validation, and internet deployment of several personality and leadership assessments that have been used by more than 200,000 individuals.

Lee has a BA in History and a MS in Counseling and Human Development. He is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College and the Air War College. Lee has authored or co-authored four books on leadership and career development. His latest book is entitled Leading with Honor: Leadership Lessons from the Hanoi Hilton. He and his wife Mary reside in Atlanta, GA and have four grown children and six grandchildren.

2013 – Dorrance, Anson

April 18, 2013

Head Coach UNC Women’s Soccer Team

When Anson Dorrance was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame on August 2, 2008, it marked one more milestone moment in the career of a man whose coaching prowess became legendary at a young age. Because Dorrance has not yet retired from his coaching career, he was only eligible for election on the “Builders of the Game” ballot and he won election to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility on that ballot.

Like fine wine – with age – the coaching career of Anson Dorrance only gets better. Dorrance proved that again in 2009 as he led his team successfully through one of the most competitive College Cup fields in history as the University of North Carolina won its 21st overall national title and its 20^th NCAA crown. Dorrance thus became the first coach in NCAA history to win 20 championships coaching a single sport.

Head coach of the North Carolina women’s soccer program since its inception in 1979, Dorrance has built and guided a well-oiled winning machine. Under his direction, the Tar Heels have collected national and conference championships at a stupendous rate, compiled an overall record staggering in its numerical verity, established records likely never to be approached and procured the esteem befitting a dynasty.

At an institution familiar with such incomparable achievement, especially with regard to its storied basketball program, it might be possible to think that Dorrance’s accomplishments could somehow fade to the background. But what he has done in Chapel Hill is simply impossible to disregard.

Thus, when an expert panel employed by ESPN announced its list of the Best Coaches of the Past Quarter Century on July 28, 2004 – coincidentally headed at the No. 1 spot by legendary Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith – it came as no big surprise that another deserving Tar Heel mentor made the list.

That Dorrance, who was ranked No. 24 on the list, was one of only two coaches in the prestigious collection to coach an Olympic sport on the collegiate level only speaks louder about his recognized greatness. More accolades were bestowed on Dorrance with his induction into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame on May 19, 2005 and to the National Soccer Hall of Fame on August 2, 2008. He earned those honors while still in the prime of his coaching career, further testament to his ongoing legacy.

2013 – Bailey, Joe

March 11, 2013

Managing Director, RSR Partners

Joe is Managing Partner, Global Sport Leadership Advisory Group. The Group advises on effective leadership and solving complex problems that involve vision, strategic alignment, general management/execution, and talent management. Their work is for owners, boards, companies, associations, federations and government entities – all of whom are involved in the “global sport ecosystem.”

Joe is uniquely qualified for this role having had hands-on experience in virtually every facet of the business of sport. Joe has held leadership roles – both global and domestic, with the Dallas Cowboys, the National Football League/World League, the National Thoroughbred Horseracing Association, and the InterCompete Group. He has served as CEO of Dolphins Enterprises, the Miami Dolphins, and Dolphins Stadium. Since May 2012, Mr. Bailey has also served as the interim Commissioner of the Big East.

Earlier in his career, Joe spent 10 years in executive search consulting where he built and led the Media, Sport and Entertainment practice of a global search firm. During his tenure, he was the Partner in charge of the flagship New York office and completed more than 150 assignments and special projects. His overall experience in building, starting, or turning around complex entities brings a unique insight, perspective, and value.

Recognizing Joe’s deep understanding of what is required to build peak performance organizations, the Sporting News called him the most influential recruiter in sports, and included him on its list of The 100 Most Powerful People in Sports. Joe is a frequent media guest speaker on the “Future of Global Sport.”

Joe serves on the advisory board of Duke University’s Fuqua Business School’s Center of Leadership and Ethics, is an adjunct professor at Duke Sports Medicine Center, is on the advisory board of Beyond Sport, serves on the Task Force for Diversity for the USOC, and is the relationship partner for the International Academy of Sport, Technology, and Science in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Joe attended the University of North Carolina where he earned his AB in Political Science. He also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

2013 – Nye, C. Howard

January 14, 2013

President, CEO, Director – Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.

C. Howard (Ward) Nye is President, Chief Executive Officer and Board member of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE: MLM). Martin Marietta’s principal operating businesses are Martin Marietta Aggregates – the second largest producer of crushed stone, sand and gravel in the United States ‒ and Martin Marietta Magnesia Specialties – a leading U.S. manufacturer of magnesia-based chemical products used in a variety of industrial, agricultural and environmental applications and a producer of dolomitic lime. Martin Marietta’s network of over 300 quarries and distribution facilities spans coast to coast through 28 states, the Bahamas and Nova Scotia.

Prior to joining Martin Marietta in 2006, Ward spent 13 years with London-based Hanson PLC’s North American aggregates, hot mix asphalt, ready mixed concrete, cement and construction group headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Hanson was one of the world’s largest suppliers of heavy building materials. At Hanson, Ward held a series of increasingly responsible positions, including Executive Vice President.

In addition to his educational, professional and executive roles, Ward has been a gubernatorial appointee to the North Carolina Mining Commission and is currently vice chair and serves on the executive committee of the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA). He has been a member of the boards of directors of the American Road Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) and the National Association of Chief Executive Officers. In addition, he has served numerous other state, community and charitable organizations including the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Duke University Alumni Association Board of Directors, Wells Fargo/Wachovia’s Central Regional Advisory Board, and Rex Healthcare, Inc.’s Board of Trustees. Ward was recognized by Aggregates Manager magazine in 2006 as its AggMan of the Year.

Ward completed his undergraduate studies at Duke University with honors in 1984; in 1987 Ward received his law degree from Wake Forest University. Ward’s early legal career focused on serving as counsel for a number of construction and building materials companies. As an attorney, Ward was recognized by his peers with Martindale-Hubbell’s “AV” rating, indicating highest ethical standards and preeminent legal ability.

Ward and his wife, Laura, reside in Raleigh, North Carolina, have been married nearly 25 years and have three children.