RALEIGH, NC – Public sector employees from state agencies and public institutions were recognized Monday for completing the rigorous North Carolina Certified Public Manager® Program (CPM) during the program’s commencement ceremony, March 10, 2025.

The graduation was held at 3 p.m. at the State Archives of North Carolina to celebrate the 43 graduates of the 2024 program. State Transportation Secretary J.R. “Joey” Hopkins joined the Office of State Human Resources (OSHR) in celebrating these graduates as the ceremony’s keynote speaker.

Managed by OSHR’s Learning and Development Program, the North Carolina Public Manager Program was established in 1982 to enhance the effectiveness of public sector organizations across North Carolina by developing the leadership capabilities of mid-level managers. This intensive 14-month program includes in-person and virtual instructor-led training days, asynchronous assignments and a capstone project totaling over 300 hours of effort. 

Since its inception, more than 2,580 mid-level managers across federal, tribal, state and local governments have completed the program. Including today’s recipients, 1,798 of those graduates have been awarded the Certified Public Manager® designation following the program’s first accreditation by the National Certified Public Manager Consortium in 1988.

Framed certificates signed by former Governor Roy Cooper,; former State Human Resources Director Barbara Gibson; Learning, Performance and Organizational Effectiveness Manager Joel Jordan and CPM Program Director Dr. Reed Altman were provided to each graduate, as well as "swag-bags" and one free year of membership courtesy of the North Carolina Society of Certified Public Managers.

All honorees are based in Wake County unless otherwise noted:

·        Administrative Office of the Courts: Felicia Suzzan Kisselburg and La’Vonda C. Seafus

·        Central Carolina Community College: Jonathan Dalton White (Lee County)

·        Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services: Billy D. Howell and Susan Leigh Vick Tyre (Martin County)

·        Department of Commerce: Jackie L. Gallion

·        Department of Environmental Quality: Stephanie C. Bolyard, Karyn Ann Kurek (Iredell County) and Dawn L. Reddix

·        Department of Health and Human Services: Ashley M. Arrington, Candice M. Bailey, Aretino JaShun Fluker, Stephanie Hanes, Deanna Jones (Chatham County), Alison M. Keisler and Jennifer S. Price

·        Department of Information Technology: Patrick M. Doran, Mallory V. Thomas and David B. Hartford (Rutherford County)

·        Department of Justice: Francisco Benzoni

·        Department of Labor: Hollis Yelverton and Neesia Johnson Hill

·        Department of Revenue: Cheryl E. Benedetto, Veronica M. Pace, Angelina Artis Harvey and Marcy Lee Liberatore

·        Department of Transportation: John A. Bailey, Steven J. Bolyard, Robert Wayne Bullock (Durham County), Zachary T. Clark, Adam Anderson Cole, Marshall B. Gill (Chowan County), Heather J. Hildebrandt, Christy Wright Huff (Cumberland County), Scott Andrew Jones (Forsyth County), Kerry Vallant Morrow, James Michael Nordan (Durham County), Adam Pearsall (Pender County), Nicholas A. Pierce, Robert Tyler Rogers (Henderson County), Ryan L. Shook (Chowan County), Alex David Stewart and Kenneth Charles Thornewell Jr.