Katie G. Dorsett

Katie Grays Dorsett (July 8, 1932 – July 6, 2020) was a Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state's twenty-eighth Senate district from 2003 to 2010. Her district included constituents in Guilford County, North Carolina. In the 2009–10 session, Dorsett served as the Majority Whip in the Senate.

Katie Dorsett
Member of the North Carolina Senate
from the 28th district
In office
January 1, 2003 – January 1, 2011
Preceded byBill Martin (Redistricting)
Succeeded byGladys Robinson
Secretary of Administration of North Carolina
In office
January 1, 1993 – January 1, 2001
GovernorJim Hunt
Preceded byJames F. Lofton
Succeeded byGwynn T. Sinson
Personal details
Born(1932-07-08)July 8, 1932
Shaw, Mississippi
DiedJuly 6, 2020(2020-07-06) (aged 87)
Greensboro, North Carolina
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseWarren
ResidenceGreensboro, North Carolina
Alma materAlcorn State University (BS)
Indiana University (MS)
University of North Carolina at Greensboro (EdD)
ProfessionEducator

Education and career

Dorsett was born in Shaw, Mississippi. She attended local public schools up to the eighth grade and then a private boarding school. Dorsett attended Alcorn State University for her undergraduate work and then earned her master's from Indiana University. After attending several schools in pursuit of her doctorate, she eventually finished at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1975. Dorsett taught business at North Carolina State A&T University in Greensboro, North Carolina, from 1955 until 1987.

Political career

After retiring from A&T after 32 years of service, she served two terms on the Greensboro City Council from 1983 to 1986, the first African American woman ever elected. She then served as a Democratic Guilford County Commissioner starting in 1990. Dorsett represented District 9 until 1992, when she was appointed Secretary of the Department of Administration by North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt. This position made her the first African American woman to hold a North Carolina Cabinet post. She was elected to the state Senate in 2002.

Just before filing ended in 2010, she announced that she would not seek re-election.[1] She was inducted into the North Carolina Women's Hall of Fame in 2010.[2] She died on July 6, 2020, two days before her 88th birthday.[3]

References
  1. Overman, Ogi (March 16, 2010). "Dorsett's retirement throws District 28 Senate seat up for grabs". Jamestown News. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  2. "Katie G. Dorsett". Charlotte, North Carolina: NC Women's Conference. May 18, 2011. Archived from the original on September 17, 2011. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  3. "'She cared deeply': Katie Dorsett, Greensboro's first Black councilwoman, dies at age 87".


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