Woody White, chairman of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, will join the University of North Carolina Wilmington's Board of Trustees and has resigned from the Board of Trustees of Cape Fear Community College, according to an announcement Friday.

White was appointed to the UNCW board by N.C. Speaker of the House Tim Moore on Jan. 10 and will be filling the unexpired seat of former trustee Christopher Leonard.
 
“Our university is pleased to welcome to our board a dedicated public servant and a civic leader recognized throughout the region,” said UNCW Chancellor Jose Sartarelli in a news release. “I am certain that Woody’s passion for everything he pursues will be a terrific addition to an already terrific board.”

White served on the CFCC board from 2013 to 2015 and from 2017 until Thursday. He was a vocal member of that Board of Trustees, at one point questioning a CFCC enrollment figure and its use in justifying the need to spend $40 million more in bond funds to add facilities. The enrollment data questions came up in the weeks leading up to the resignation of former CFCC president Ted Spring in 2015.

White has served on the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners since 2012, representing the board in various public capacities, including on the Legion Stadium Commission, the New Hanover County Financing Corporation Inc., the Southeastern Economic Development Commission, Southeastern Partnership Inc./Economic Development and the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, the release stated.
 
“As a longtime supporter and fan of UNCW, it is such an honor to join the Seahawk family as a trustee,” White said in the release. “I look forward to working alongside my fellow Board members, under the strong leadership of Ms. Wilma Daniels, to continue this university’s 70-year tradition of excellence and integrity, and I thank the Speaker and Chancellor Sartarelli for this humbling opportunity.”
 
White, an attorney, has been a member of the N.C. State Bar since 1994, and is certified by the Bar in state/federal criminal law. In 2004, he served as a North Carolina State Senator (9th District).
 
White is a lifelong resident of Southeastern North Carolina. He received his law degree from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 1994 after receiving his bachelor's degree from Southern College in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He has practiced law in New Hanover County since 1995 and owns the law firm of Woody White Law PLLC. White is married to Tammie Mentzel White and they have two children.
 
The UNCW Board of Trustees' next quarterly meeting will take place Thursday and Friday. White will be sworn in at 10 a.m. Thursday in the Burney Center on the UNCW campus.

New Hanover County Commissioner Pat Kusek is set to take White's place on the CFCC Board of Trustees, an appointment that will be on the consent agenda for a vote at the Jan. 22 Board of Commissioners meeting, White said Friday. New Hanover County Commissioner Jonathan Barfield was appointed to the CFCC Board of Trustees for a four-year term during the summer by Gov. Roy Cooper.