Republican Lisa Estep currently serves on the New Hanover County Board of Education, and she’s seeking a second term this November. Her decision to run for Board of Education four years ago was personal: One of her children has special needs.
Estep: "One of the areas that I’m interested in is making the outcomes for those students better. When you’re thinking ahead for these students when they graduate, the employment outcomes for young adults with disabilities is very grim. The unemployment rate for that group is between 65% and 70%, which is fairly staggering."
Estep says another passion of hers is career and technical education (CTE), which she hopes will improve employment outcomes for New Hanover County students as well. Estep is the co-chair of the CTE work group, and she says they’re on track for the CTE high school to open next fall.