North CarolinaGovernor Beverly Perdue
A native of southwestern Virginia and longtime resident of New Bern, North Carolina, Governor Perdue graduated from the University of Kentucky and earned master's and doctoral degrees in education administration from the University of Florida. Her early career included service as a public-school teacher and director of geriatric services at a community hospital. In 1986 Perdue was elected to the first of two terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives, and in 1990 she was elected to the state senate, where she served five terms. She was elected North Carolina's lieutenant governor in 2000 and re-elected in 2004. In that role she launched the North Carolina Military Foundation to attract defense, aerospace, and homeland security jobs to the state; created the North Carolina Green Business Fund to invest in clean energy technologies; and worked to increase classroom technology to better prepare students for the global workforce. She was elected governor in November 2008. |
