| Katie G. Dorsett | |
|---|---|
| Member of the North Carolina Senate from the 28th district |
|
| In office 2003 – present |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | July 8, 1932 Shaw, Mississippi |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Warren |
| Residence | Greensboro, North Carolina |
| Alma mater | Alcorn State University, Indiana University, University of North Carolina at Greensboro |
| Profession | educator |
| Religion | African Methodist Episcopal |
Katie G. Dorsett is a Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state's twenty-eighth Senate district since 2003. Her district includes constituents in Guilford County. In the 2009-2010 session, Dorsett served as the Majority Whip in the Senate.
Katie Grays Dorsett was born in Shaw, Mississippi. She attended local public schools up to the eighth grade and then a private boarding school. Dorsett attended Alcorn State University for her undergraduate work and then earned her master’s from Indiana University. After attending several schools in pursuit of her doctorate, she eventually finished at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1975. Dorsett taught business at North Carolina State A&T University in Greensboro, North Carolina, from 1955 until 1987.
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. This position made her the first African American woman to hold a North Carolina Cabinet post. She was elected to the state Senate in 2002.