Howard Nathaniel Lee

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Howard Nathaniel Lee (born July 28, 1934) is an American politician.

On May 6, 1969, Lee was elected mayor of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He was first African American to hold the position in a predominantly white city. Lee was mayor of Chapel Hill from 1969 to 1975, during which, among other things, he helped to create a useful city busing system. His election was considered a step forward for the ongoing American civil rights movement, as it helped to set the stage for higher African American positions in government.

In 1976, Lee sought the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina, but was defeated in the primary by Jimmy Green. In 1977, Governor Jim Hunt appointed Lee as the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Natural Resources and Community Development, a post he held until 1981.

Lee returned to electoral politics in 1990 when he was elected to the North Carolina Senate. He served from 1990 to 1994 and 1996 to 2002. While in the Senate, he concentrated particularly on issues affecting public education. On May 1, 2003 the North Carolina State Board of Education elected him as its chairman. He is also a member of the North Carolina Utilities Commission, having been appointed by Governor Mike Easley on April 1, 2005.

A recent national study (2006) found that North Carolina’s high school graduation rate was 66 percent – ranking the state 45th nationwide. The numbers were even lower for African American and Hispanic males – 49 and 47 percent, respectively. The newly formed House Select Committee on High School Graduation and Drop-out Rates is touring the State of North Carolina in an effort to find the cause and reverse this trend which has deterioriated the North Carolina Education system greatly in just the last few years. They will be reporting back to the Legislators at the beginning of the 2007 session.