Chapel Hill, North Carolina (October 12, 2023) – North Carolina Institute of Medicine President and CEO Kathleen Colville, MSPH, MSW, PhD, will step down from her role in January. A leadership search is underway, led by the NCIOM Board of Directors.

“Our team has accomplished so much in these last three years, and this has been a dream job for me. After considerable reflection, I have decided to resign my role at the NCIOM for two reasons: so that I can be fully present with my family while my husband takes a new opportunity that will move us abroad, and to assure that the NCIOM has fully committed leadership at this important point in the organization’s trajectory,” said Dr. Colville. “I’ll be here, working hard, until the beginning of January, and available to offer support and guidance to the whole team (board, staff, and key partners) through the transition period.”

Dr. Colville joined the NCIOM as President and CEO in December 2020. During her tenure, she oversaw the convening of six task forces and nearly a dozen additional projects and publications, all aimed at improving the health of North Carolinians by informing health policy.

In her three years at the helm, Dr. Colville led the NCIOM through a time of great change for the organization and the state during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her leadership extended to the NCIOM’s convening of the NC COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee; participation in the revision of the statewide protocol for the allocation of scarce critical care resources; and convening of the Carolinas Pandemic Preparedness Task Force with the South Carolina Institute of Medicine and Public Health (SC IMPH). The NCIOM President and CEO serves as the co-publisher of the North Carolina Medical Journal, the state’s leading source of health policy analysis and debate. Since 2021, the NCMJ has earned two national awards, launched an annual symposium, and published highly regarded issues, such as those focused on American Indian health in North Carolina and firearm violence prevention.

“Kathy has been a passionate leader focused on developing practical policies and solutions that would improve access and care for all residents of North Carolina,” said Adam Sholar, Vice Chair of the NCIOM Board of Directors and President and CEO of the North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association.

Dr. Colville directed the NCIOM in a process of clarifying its identity as an anchor organization for health policy in North Carolina, bringing people together with common purpose, and commitment to better health for all North Carolinians. This process has included conducting an organizational assessment, developing a communications strategic plan, and initiating an ongoing collaboration with the SC IMPH to formalize each organization’s processes for meaningful engagement, legislative relationships, communications and evaluation, and task force facilitation.

“Kathy has provided tremendous leadership to the NCIOM and the entire North Carolina health community,” said Dr. Carrie Rosario, NCIOM Board Chair and associate professor in the School of Health and Human Sciences at UNC-Greensboro. “We will deeply miss her wisdom and expertise at the NCIOM."

The NCIOM President/CEO reports to an independent 21-member Board of Directors appointed by the Governor, the President Pro Tempore of the North Carolina Senate, and the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives. The position description and application can be accessed through UNC-Chapel Hill Human Resources at this link.

The North Carolina Institute of Medicine (NCIOM) is forward-looking and focused on solutions. The organization was founded in 1983 by the North Carolina General Assembly to serve as a source of non-partisan information and analysis to promote effective health policies focused on improving the health and well-being of all North Carolinians. Learn more at nciom.org.