Kings Mountain Mayor Scott Neisler to lead NCLM over next year
Strong organizations require strong leadership, and the most recent elections of officers and board members for the N.C. League of Municipalities shows that the organization should have strong leaders for years to come.
Announced at CityVision 2022, League members from across North Carolina chose Kings Mountain Mayor Scott Neisler to lead NCLM as president for the next year. Joining Neisler as elected officers are Fuquay-Varina Town Commissioner William Harris as first vice president and Durham Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton as second vice president.
The elections took place by electronic ballot from April 15–20, after the League’s 13-member Nominating Committee had met three times this spring to interview candidates and select a slate of nominees. The membership vote was unanimous.
In addition to the officers, which also includes immediate past-president Karen Alexander, the following members of the Board of Directors were elected to new terms: Mayor Elizabeth Morey, Southern Shores; Mayor Terry Mann, Whiteville; Council Member TJ Walker, Rocky Mount; Alderwoman Sona Cooper, Spring Lake; Mayor Mike Horn, Lewisville; Mayor Pro Tem Phyllis Harris, Mount Holly; Council Member Leonardo Williams, Durham; Mayor Pro Tem Yvonne Johnson, Greensboro; Council Member Larken Egleston, Charlotte; Council Member Owen Thomas, Lumberton; Mayor Pro Tem Martha Sue Hall, Albemarle; Council Member John Ellen, Kure Beach; Tasha Logan Ford, Manager, High Point; Brenda Blanco, Clerk, New Bern; and Karen McDonald, Attorney, Fayetteville.
League Executive Director Rose Vaughn Williams praised the experience, thoughtfulness, and commitment to public service of the officers and board members.
“It is due to local leaders like Mayor Neisler that our state is as strong as it is, and that our organization is as robust as it is. I could not be more proud to have Mayor Neisler, Commissioner Harris and Mayor Pro Tem Middleton, along with the entire Board of Directors, lead the NC League this coming year,” said Williams.
Neisler’s selection as president follows a long tenure of public service. Neisler served one term on the Kings Mountain city council beginning in 1989, and three terms as mayor beginning in 1991. He was then re-elected mayor in 2015. In addition to his elected positions, Neisler worked 37 years in his family’s textile business, Dicey Fabrics, and he is presently the general manager of radio station AM 1450 WGNC in Gastonia.
In his remarks at CityVision, Neisler lauded the accomplishments of his peers, and spoke of his vision for the future of the organization.
“The successes of our state and our cities and towns did not happen by accident. This next year will be no different as we tackle our biggest issues, move our state forward, and continue to serve our communities,” Neisler said.
Harris has more than three decades of experience as an elected official, has served two terms as mayor pro tem, and has been an adjunct professor at Shaw University teaching the Public Administration Department. Middleton is pastor of Abundant Hope Christian Church in Durham and is serving his second four-year term on the Durham City Council.
The officers and board members, in addition to their oversight and policy-setting roles at NCLM, also play key roles in using their voice to advocate for state policies that benefit all cities and towns.
Alexander, in her departing remarks as NCLM president, pointed out how elected leaders, including those active with NCLM, can act in concert with one another to bring about positive change.
“We have to adapt and change with the change that occurs around us. And it is only by leaning upon one another, by coming together through organizations like this one, that we can do that, and meet the challenges of a changing world,” Alexander said.