Governor Roy Cooper has declared March 2017 Women’s History Month in North Carolina. This year’s national theme is Honoring Trailblazing Women in Leadership and Business.
“Women have helped shape North Carolina in every discipline and industry, from manufacturing, medicine, and law to business, the arts, and sciences,” Gov. Cooper said. “Let’s celebrate the pathbreaking role of women in our state during the month of March and beyond.”
North Carolina also celebrates the 54th year of the Governor’s Council for Women and Youth Involvement this year. The Council for Women and Youth Involvement is an advocacy agency within the Department of Administration that provides guidance to the Governor and legislature on issues impacting women.
The Council actively supports women across North Carolina. Examples include domestic violence education, acting as a resource for local women’s commissions and councils, and supporting programs providing self-sufficiency development for women and families in transition.
In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Council will sponsor the Women’s Commission of North Carolina Inaugural Luncheon on March 30 in Raleigh.
“Women’s History Month is an opportunity for our state to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary and significant historic accomplishments of women,” Secretary of Administration Machelle Sanders said. “This state continues to prosper because of women’s intellectual power, strength and resilience. I am so grateful for women of yesterday and today who inspire me to contribute to a better North Carolina.”
Some prominent women in North Carolina’s history include:
- Dr. Annie Lowrie Alexander, the first licensed female doctor in North Carolina
- Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown, educator and founder of the Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute
- Lillian Exum Clement, the first woman to serve in the North Carolina General Assembly
- Tabitha Ann Holton, the first licensed female lawyer in North Carolina
- Harriet Morrison Irwin, the first woman to patent an architectural design
- Mary Jane Patterson, from Raleigh, the first African-American woman to receive a bachelor of arts degree in the U.S.
- Eliza Jane Pratt, the first female to represent North Carolina in the U.S Congress
Today, women make up 51 percent of the population in North Carolina.
For more information on Women’s History Month events and activities, visit the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources website.