Preparing Tomorrow’s Global Workforce

Dr. Jeff Cox became the 11th President of the North Carolina Community College System on June 1, 2023. Cox previously served as president of Wilkes Community College from 2014 to 2023. A native of Alleghany County, Cox also is a former superintendent of Alleghany County Schools from 2005 to 2014. He brings three decades of education experience to the System and has served from 2022-23 as head of the North Carolina Community College Presidents’ Association.

At Wilkes, Cox was heralded for more than doubling the completion rate at the college from 25 to 55 percent over five years and developing a strategic plan seen as a national model for other institutions. During his tenure as president, the College also raised a record $20 million in funds for strategic initiatives and launched a fully endowed Wilkes Community College Education Promise to guarantee the opportunity for a tuition-free college education for every graduating senior in the service area.

“Dr. Jeff Cox has proven to be among the best education leaders in the country during his time at Wilkes Community College and as a North Carolina K-12 superintendent, and we’re excited to announce Dr. Cox as the new president of the North Carolina Community College System,” said Burr Sullivan, Chair of the State Board of Community Colleges. “We know our community colleges need strong statewide leadership and dynamic future-forward approaches to business and workforce development and Dr. Cox is that leader.”

Cox is a former finalist for the annual President of the Year award bestowed by the State Board of Community Colleges to the top state college leader who exemplifies outstanding leadership and commitment to the community college mission among the presidents of the 58 institutions of the North Carolina Community College System.

In 2018, he was one of only 40 presidents in the U.S. selected to be a part of the Aspen Institute Presidential Fellowship. As an alumni of that program, he has mentored other aspiring presidents and community college thought-leaders as a part of the Aspen Community College Excellence Program. Cox also serves on the North Carolina State Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research Advisory Board.

Prior to leading Allegany County Schools, Cox served as assistant superintendent for Lee County Schools and as principal of Benton Heights Year-Round School in Union County. Cox holds a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He also is a graduate of Appalachian State University with both a Master of School Administration and a Bachelor of Science in English–Secondary Education.

The North Carolina Community College System is the third largest system in the U.S. and serves nearly 600,000 community college students each year with 58 colleges providing education to all 100 counties.

Charlé LaMonica is the director of UNC World View at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Committed to developing an inclusive program that serves the state and beyond, Charlé collaborates with more than 85 partners both on and off campus; forges strategic alliances and collaborations with schools, districts and community colleges; leads the World View Global Education Leaders Program; and represents UNC World View in North Carolina and on the national and global stage.

Since 2013, LaMonica has significantly expanded UNC World View’s support of educators, influencing 100,000 students in North Carolina in 2019-2020 alone, and increasing partnerships in both rural and urban settings. LaMonica and the World View team have led more than 21 global study visits, taking K-12 and community college educators around the world to learn about educational systems, history, business, and culture.

LaMonica’s international career began as a research associate with the NC China Council of the Asia Society. She later led medical and legal delegations throughout Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Africa. She continued her international work in the classrooms of Charlotte where she taught world history both in K-12 schools and higher education institutions. LaMonica attended Middlebury College’s Intensive Chinese Summer School and holds a master’s degree in history from UNC Charlotte and a bachelor’s degree in English from Boston College.

Barbara J. Stephenson, vice provost for global affairs and chief global officer, joined the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. She advances Carolina’s global reach, impact and reputation. Previously, she was president of the American Foreign Service Association. During her distinguished 34-year career in the Foreign Service, she was US ambassador to Panama, the first woman chargé d’affaires and deputy ambassador at the US Embassy in London, and dean of the Leadership and Management School at the Foreign Service Institute. She earned her PhD, MA, and BA in English literature from the University of Florida.

Dr. Nathan Dollar is the Director of Carolina Demography. His work helps leaders across North Carolina make sense of population-level changes throughout the state.

Dollar, a population health demographer by training, has decades of experience in research and program implementation across North Carolina and abroad. Most recently Dollar served as a research scientist and Project Director for the Dynamics of Extreme Events, People, and Places (DEEPP) survey at the Carolina Population Center. There, he worked with an interdisciplinary team of researchers investigating the factors that shape how people and communities in eastern North Carolina, prepare for, are affected by, and recover from extreme weather events.

Dollar previously served in the U.S. Peace Corps in El Salvador and as Executive Director of Vecinos, Inc. Farmworker Health Program in western NC. Since 2014, he has served on the Governing Board for the NC Farmworker Health Program within the NC Office of Rural Health. Through these experiences, Dollar has gained a deep understanding of our state institutions and the complex issues shaping population changes in North Carolina.

A native of Wilson, Dollar received his BA in Sociology and Spanish from Western Carolina University, his MA in Sociology from Colorado State University and his PhD in Sociology from UNC-Chapel Hill. 

Dr. Dana Griffin has experience as a school counselor and marriage and family counselor. A Virginia native, Dr. Griffin came to Chapel Hill in 2007 to work at Carolina. Dr. Griffin cites her upbringing (being raised by a single mother in rural Virginia, and considered low-income), and the disparate treatment she received in schools, as the motivation for the work she does with schools, families, and communities. Dr. Griffin believes that if given the opportunities and right support, historically marginalized students have the capability to be just as academically successful as other students.

Dr. Griffin researches parent involvement and school-family-community partnerships. She believes that collaboration can be better achieved when school stakeholders are multiculturally competent, aware of their biases and preconceived beliefs, and understand the different complexities of families and parenting. To this end, she also researches inequity issues in education. She believes that school counselors should be leaders in bridging the gap between historically marginalized families, schools, and communities in order to build stronger relationships, collaborations, and increased effectiveness when working with culturally diverse students and their families.

Timothy Humphrey is currently IBM’s Chief Analytics Officer. He is also the Senior State Executive for IBM in North Carolina and Senior Location Executive for IBM in Research Triangle Park, NC, one of the company’s largest sites. Tim has over 25 years of global experience with IBM and Lenovo. He has held various roles spanning hardware, software, battery technology, supply chain, acquisitions, data, and AI. He has earned numerous patents as well as management, innovation, and excellence awards for his contributions to the computing industry.

Active in the community, Tim engages in several non-profit fundraising activities, special events, and volunteer efforts. He serves as a board member for many local non-profit organizations. Tim is also a very active mentor to over 40 global professionals, students, and youth.

Tim graduated from North Carolina State University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and is a member of the North Carolina State University Electrical and Computer Engineering Hall of Fame and the North Carolina State University Board of Trustees. Tim is a North Carolina native and currently resides in Raleigh, NC.

The research interests of Shimul Melwani meet at the intersection of emotions and interpersonal processes in organizations. She is conducting groundbreaking research on the influence of gossip – the negative and positive consequences of initiating and participating in it – for individuals, dyads and groups in the workplace.

She also is examining the interpersonal influence of discrete emotions on organizationally relevant outcomes. By studying the interpersonal effects of discrete emotions, such as contempt, compassion and anger in a series of different work contexts, her research provides a richer picture of how emotions influence attributions, relationships and performance of both those expressing emotions as well as perceiving them. In related research, Dr. Melwani is exploring the role of implicit processes that occur outside of people’s conscious awareness on critical workplace outcomes such as creativity and performance.

Her research has appeared in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Journal of Applied Psychology and Psychological Science.

Dr. Melwani teaches courses on global leadership and organizational behavior to undergraduate and graduate students.

She is an award-winning teacher. She received the 2021 Weatherspoon Award for Excellence in Teaching in the PhD Program, the 2018 Weatherspoon Award for Excellence in Teaching in the Undergraduate Business Program, and Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, a University award.

She received her PhD and master’s degree in management and organizational behavior from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. She received a master’s degree in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University and a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Mumbai.

Hazael Andrew is the Associate Director of UNC World View. As part of his role, Hazael plans and administers professional development programs for K-12 and community college educators. He collaborates with 31 community colleges in North Carolina and Florida on the Scholar of Global Distinction program, a program where community colleges and their faculty commit to develop and offer globally intensive courses and activities through which students can earn a global distinction credential from UNC World View.

Prior to joining UNC World View, Hazael directed the student affairs experience of 4,200 first-year residential students at UNC-Chapel Hill. Beyond domestic educational engagement, Hazael has extended his strategic global engagement, where he worked in China, piloting a large-scale summer academic enrichment program for Chinese, Indian and American students at Duke Kunshan University. Similarly, Hazael created an inaugural program for UNC Chapel Hill that cultivated a new collaborative relationship with the University of the West Indies, exposing students in the United States to the British education system, and fostering increased cultural awareness through travel and engagement in Trinidad and Tobago.

Hazael’ s educational background includes a Ph.D. in Educational Studies with a concentration in Cultural Foundations from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, an MBA in Finance from Mississippi State University, and a dual bachelor’s degree in Managerial Economics and Finance from Fayetteville State University.

Rhonda Breed is a full-time faculty member and the Global Studies Coordinator at Martin Community College in Williamston, NC. She has been teaching Sociology, Psychology, and Humanities at the college for over thirteen years. She chairs the Scholar of Global Distinction Committee, and she is a pioneering leader in expanding global studies at the college.

A native of Pamlico County, Rhonda started her educational journey close to home. She received a GED in 1979, an AAS in Business Administration in 1992, and an AA for College Transfer in 2002 from Pamlico Community College. She transferred to East Carolina University in the fall of 2002, where she received a BA in Psychology in 2004 and an MA in Sociology in 2006 (including 18 graduate-level hours in Psychology for teaching purposes).

She first dreamed of being a teacher in the third grade but because of life circumstances, she didn’t fulfill that dream until more than three decades later. As a teacher, she encourages her students to dream big and work hard. Last year, her own hard work paid off when she traveled abroad to Ireland for professional development with the Institute of Study Abroad-Ireland. She was transformed by the experience, and she hopes to help students to do the same through globalized learning, and hopefully, future study abroad.

Rhonda still lives in Pamlico County with her husband, Tad, her daughter, Emily, and her grand-dog, Bailey. She loves traveling, writing, learning unique facts, and spending time with her three grandchildren—Aiden, Gabe, and Ensley.

Melanie DeKerlegand is a full-time English Instructor at Gaston College. She has been teaching English in the NC Community College System since 2013 and at Gaston College since 2015. She has also taught writing at NC State University and UNC-Charlotte. DeKerlegand has an MA in English with a concentration in rhetoric and composition from NC State University and a BA in English from Appalachian State University. Outside of academia, DeKerlegand is a volunteer with the Girl Scouts of the USA. She currently lives in Mt. Holly, North Carolina with her husband, two daughters, and a whiny, aging beagle.

Katie Hester is a full-time Biology Instructor at Piedmont Community College.  She has been teaching Biology, Anatomy & Physiology and Microbiology in the NC Community College System since 2008.  Hester has an MS in Biology from NC Central University and a BS in Medical Technology from UNC Greensboro.  Outside of academia, Hester serves as a consultant to area medical laboratories to share her expertise in laboratory accreditation requirements.  She enjoys spending time at the lake and playing with her dogs.  Hester currently lives in Roxboro, North Carolina with her husband, both new empty nesters with two sons who just left for college.

Matthew Humphries is an English, Religion, and Humanities instructor at Isothermal Community College, where he has been a faculty member for 11 years. He is also the director of the Global Distinction Program. He has an MA in English-Literature from UNC-Greensboro and an MA in Religious Studies from UNC-Charlotte.

Joy Morrow is the Director of Apprenticeships and Work-Based Learning at Gaston College.  Joy has worked for Gaston College for 18 years.  She started as a Recruiter for the Life Skills Department and was housed at the Job Link Career Center.  After five years, Joy transitioned to Work-Based Learning where she worked 13 years as the Coordinator of Work-Based Learning and Placement.

Joy has a passion to serve others, and loves being part of the Gaston College family.  Joy is active with the NC Work-Based Learning Association, and is currently serving as the Secretary.  Prior to coming to Gaston College, she held positions as a Career Development Specialist with Goodwill Job Connection and Case Manager with Gaston Community Action.  Joy has a Bachelor of Science Degree from Western Carolina University.

Paige Ouimet’s research agenda sits at the intersection of labor and finance. She is interested in in how decisions studied in finance impact employee stakeholders as well as how changes in the U.S. labor force impact corporate finance decisions.

She has several research projects looking at inequality and the role of firms. She is interested in income inequality as well as broader measures of inequality that reflect differences in non-wage benefits and other job characteristics across workers.

Dr. Ouimet also has researched employee share ownership plans (ESOP) and employee stock options and their impact on labor productivity, wages and turnover.

Her work has been published in the American Economic Review, Journal of Finance, Review of Financial Studies, and Journal of Financial Economics.

Greg Smith is the Vice President for Economic and Workforce Development at Gaston College serving Gaston and Lincoln Counties in North Carolina. Prior to his work at Gaston he served as the Director of Occupational Programs as Surry Community College and Coordinator of Stokes County programs for Forsyth Technical Community College. Greg began his occupational career as an auto mechanic in the family business before pursuing an Associate Degree in Electronics at his local community college. The community college inspired his love of education leading him to ultimately complete a degree in Middle Grades Education. He taught Middle and Junior High School before completing a Masters in Higher Education Administration and following his goal to return to the community college where his passion for education began.

Pamela Young-Jacobs is the Vice Chief of the Waccamaw Siouan Tribe of North Carolina, being the first female elected as Vice Chief in her tribe’s history. She is charged with protecting tribal sovereignty, leading the tribal nation in economic development, and health and educational initiatives. She is employed by Southeastern Community College as the Director of the Small Business Center, the first American Indian woman to hold this position. Mrs. Young-Jacobs is leading the way in American Indian activism and education on campus at SCC in her work to develop traditional personal interest classes taught by American Indian instructors and economic development through the expansion and establishment of small businesses in the county. She has received numerous community service awards including the 2023 “Game Changer” award from the SCC President and an appointment by the Governor to the NC Council for Women. Pamela, a first-generation college graduate, holds a bachelor’s from UNC Pembroke, where is currently and MBA student. In addition to working with youth, she is a singer, songwriter and poet!

Lisa Chapman has been in the North Carolina Community College System for thirty-six years. She currently serves as the president of Central Carolina Community College (CCCC), a position she has held since April 2019.She began her career as a biologist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, followed by several years at CCCC. Her tenure at the college included serving as a biology instructor, department chair, academic dean, and Executive Vice President for Instruction/Chief Academic Officer. Chapman left CCCC in 2014 to serve as the Sr. Vice President/Chief Academic Officer of the North Carolina Community College System, a position she held for 5 years before returning to Central Carolina as president. In addition to her full-time responsibilities, Chapman also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Practice at North Carolina State University Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research as well as serving on various state and local boards.A 20-21 Aspen New Presidents Fellow, Chapman holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from UNC-Chapel Hill, Master of Science in Physiology from East Tennessee State University, and Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Carol Hayes is the Program Coordinator for the Global Scholar of Distinction Program and serves as the liaison between World View at UNC Chapel Hill and Forsyth Technical Community College. She currently serves on the Global Distinction Steering Committee creating strategies to promote global education statewide. She has facilitated many workshops on understanding soft skills, recognizing perceptions and impressions through verbal and nonverbal communication, and understanding cultural diversity. She is an adjunct instructor at Wake Forest University School of Medicine teaching Conflict Resolution and Negotiation. Hayes received her MA in Professional Communication from Clemson University and has been teaching interpersonal communication and public speaking for 15 years.

Arne L. Kalleberg is a Kenan Distinguished Professor of Sociology at UNC-Chapel Hill. He studies labor force issues at the interface of sociology, economics and psychology. He has written extensively on the emergence of nonstandard work arrangements and his work has been captured in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and the Australian Financial Review. He received his B.A. from Brooklyn College and his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He was previously a professor of sociology at Indiana University in Bloomington. He served as the secretary of the American Sociological Association from 2001 to 2004 and as its president from 2007 to 2008. He has been a visiting professor at universities in Germany, Norway, South Korea, and Sweden.

John Loyack is the Vice President of Economic Development for the North Carolina Community College System. In this role, John leads the operation of the Economic Development Division which includes ApprenticeshipNC, BioNetwork, Customized Training and the Small Business Network. The Economic Development team provides education, training, and support services for new, expanding, and existing business and industry in all 100 North Carolina counties through our network of 58 community colleges.

Before joining the NCCCS team, John worked for the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Commerce as well as with companies like MercuryMD, Thomson Reuters, Time Warner and Esteve Laboratories.

John earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Spanish from Gettysburg College and holds an MBA in International Business Management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management. He is fluent in Spanish, is a patent holder and a Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP®). In addition to being Chair of the Board of Go Global NC, he is also a member of the NC Apprenticeship Council and the NC MEP Advisory Board.