Six North Carolinians were honored for their achievements Thursday, Nov. 9, by Governor Roy Cooper, who presented each recipient with the state’s highest civilian honor, the North Carolina Award. The awards were presented at a ceremony at the Raleigh Marriott City Center.
The 2017 honorees are Margaret Donovan Bauer of Greenville for Literature; Philip G. Freelon of Durham for Fine Arts; R.K.M. Jayanty of Cary for Science; the Honorable Loretta E. Lynch of Durham for Public Service; Jane Smith Patterson of Chapel Hill for Public Service; and James H. Woodward of Charlotte for Public Service.
A video tribute to each winner and a video of the awards ceremony are available on YouTube.
Also recognized were the N.C. Teachers of the Year from across the state. Those in attendance included Lisa Godwin, Onslow County Schools and 2017 Burroughs Wellcome North Carolina Teacher of the Year; Juandalynn Ray, 2017 Sandhills Regional Teacher of the Year, Clinton City Schools; Adam Reeder, 2017 Piedmont-Triad Regional Teacher of the Year, Asheboro City Schools; Deborah Brown, 2017 Charter Teacher of the Year, Research Triangle High School Teacher; and Teryn Odom, 2017 North Carolina Virtual Public School Teacher of the Year, North Carolina Virtual Public School. The Governor honored these teachers for creating the next generation of potential North Carolina Award winners.
This event is generously sponsored by Diamond Sponsors Martin Marietta, RTI International and Bob Barker Company; Ruby Sponsors Thomas Kennan III, Joseph M. Bryan Jr., Capitol Broadcasting, INC Research, and UNC-Charlotte; and Sapphire Sponsors Perkins+Will and PepsiCo, and sponsor Creative Visions. Special thanks to Lenovo for sponsoring the Teachers of the Year recipients.
For more information, please visit http://ncdcr.gov/NCAwards. The awards are administered by the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.