Clayton Henkel

4 days ago | averyjournal.com | Clayton Henkel

RALEIGH — When North Carolina House and Senate budget writers begin hammering out a compromise between their two proposed budgets, one of the more pressing problems will be how to address the crisis in North Carolina’s prisons. During a confirmation hearing this month, Department of Adult Correction Secretary Leslie Dismukes told lawmakers the state is now faced with a 40% vacancy rate for correctional officers.

1 week ago | newsfromthestates.com | Clayton Henkel

Over the past six years, few public servants in North Carolina have had a bigger or more positive impact under more difficult circumstances than former State Board of Elections executive director Karen Brinson Bell. Despite woefully inadequate appropriations from the state legislature and relentless attacks from uninformed conspiracy theorists, Brinson Bell persevered, strengthened North Carolina elections and kept them among the nation’s most efficient and honestly run.

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Clayton Henkel

NC's Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Dev SangvaiOne of North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein’s first acts upon assuming office earlier this year was to name a new Secretary of the state Department of Health and Human Services, and from the looks of things thus far, the person to whom he turned, Dr. Dev Sangvai, was a winning selection.

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Clayton Henkel

Clayton HenkelMon, May 19, 2025 at 7:32 PM UTC1 min readBob Phillips, Executive Director of Common Cause North Carolina (Screengrab)Bob Phillips, Executive Director of Common Cause North CarolinaIt seemed like it might never happen, but we now know the winner of last November’s election for an associate justice seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court.

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Clayton Henkel

NCIOM President Michelle Ries and NC Child's Erica Palmer Smith (courtesy photos)For nearly three decades, a pair of nonprofits – the North Carolina Institute of Medicine and NC Child – have released a biennial study known as the Child Health Report Card. The goal, as you might expect, is to provide legislators, public health officials, school administrators, parents and other nonprofit leaders with the latest information on the health and well-being of our state’s kids.