Leadership Council
WakeEd’s Leadership Council provides guidance and strategic input to the Board of Directors. While it is primarily an advisory body, the Leadership Council is made up of members who are deeply involved in public education.
2023-24 Leadership Council
EMMA BROWNING | WAKEED BOARD CHAIR
Emma Browning is the Founder and Managing Director of Paradox Consulting Partners, a management consulting company based in the Triangle that aligns talent strategy with business strategy. She founded Paradox after almost a decade with a national consulting firm to create impact in the community where she lives. Prior to business school, she worked as Director of Communications and Director of Social Enterprises at an arts education nonprofit in Washington, D.C. She is passionate about innovation and creating equitable opportunity. She has a BA from Wake Forest University and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. She enjoys spending time with her kids and family and exploring the dynamic business and arts scene in the Triangle.
Christopher Bell
Triangle Region President
Truist Bank
Gordon Brown
Executive Vice President of Finance & Administration
Alfred Williams & Company
Richard Daugherty
IBM, Retired
Sandra M. Fain
News & Observer, Retired
Dudley Flood
Education Consultant
Benjamin Goldstein
President
CAPTRUST Financial Advisors
Robert Jones
Chairman
Davidson and Jones Corporation
John Mabe
Attorney at Law
Nexsen Pruet, PLLC
James Maynard
Executive Chairman
Investors Management Corporation
Caroline McCullen
SAS, Retired
Tom Oxholm
Vice President of Finance
Wake Stone Corporation
Virginia Parker
Triangle Market Executive
Bank of America
Richard Urquhart
Investors Management Corporation, Retired
Blount Williams
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Alfred Williams & Company
Smedes York
Chairman, York Properties, Inc./McDonald York Building Company
Ex-Officio Members
Chris Heagarty
Wake County Board of Education, Chair
Shinica Thomas
Wake County Board of Commissioners, Designee
More about WakeEd
Learn more about the Wake Education Partnership.