Katie Grays Dorsett (July 8, 1932 – July 6, 2020) was a Democratic member of the

North Carolina General Assembly The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, State government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...

representing the state's twenty-eighth Senate district from 2003 to 2010. Her district included constituents in

Guilford County, North Carolina Guilford County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population is 541,299, making it the third-most populous county in North Carolina. The county seat, and largest municipality, is Greensboro. Si ...

. In the 2009–10 session, Dorsett served as the Majority

Whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Education and career

Dorsett was born in

Shaw, Mississippi Shaw is a city in Bolivar and Sunflower counties, Mississippi, United States, located in the Mississippi Delta region. The name was derived from an old Indian tribe northeast of this region. The population was 1,952 at the 2010 census. History ...

. She attended local public schools up to the eighth grade and then a private boarding school. Dorsett attended

Alcorn State University Alcorn State University (Alcorn State, ASU or Alcorn) is a public historically black land-grant university adjacent to Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871 and was the first black land grant college established in the United States. O ...

for her undergraduate work and then earned her master's from

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...

. After attending several schools in pursuit of her doctorate, she eventually finished at the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-al ...

in 1975. Dorsett taught business at North Carolina State A&T University in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte and Raleigh, the 69th-most populous city in the Un ...

, 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 James Baxter Hunt Jr. (born May 16, 1937) is an American politician and retired attorney who was the List of governors of North Carolina, 69th and 71st Governor of North Carolina (1977–1985, and 1993–2001). He is the longest-serving governo ...

. This position made her the first African American woman to hold a

North Carolina Cabinet The North Carolina Cabinet is the group of unelected heads of the executive departments of the Government of North Carolina. It is separate and distinct from the North Carolina Council of State, the members of which are elected statewide, and wh ...

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. She was inducted into the

North Carolina Women's Hall of Fame The North Carolina Women's Hall of Fame is an initiative that emerged from the Governor's Conference for Women in 2009 to recognize women who have provided leadership in community service, their professions, or advocacy for women’s rights in North ...

in 2010. She died on July 6, 2020, two days before her 88th birthday.

References

External links

Civil Rights Greensboro: Katie G. DorsettNorth Carolina General Assembly - Senator Katie G. Dorsett
official NC Senate website
Project Vote Smart - Senator Katie G. Dorsett (NC)
profile *''Follow the Money'' - Katie G. Dorsett
2008200620042002
campaign contributions
Oral History with Katie G. Dorsett
1932 births 2020 deaths 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians County commissioners in North Carolina Greensboro, North Carolina City Council members Democratic Party North Carolina state senators State cabinet secretaries of North Carolina Alcorn State University alumni Indiana University Bloomington alumni North Carolina A&T State University faculty University of North Carolina at Greensboro alumni Women state legislators in North Carolina People from Shaw, Mississippi American women academics {{NorthCarolina-politician-stub