Photo from www.newsobserver.comNancy McFarlane has served as Mayor of Raleigh since 2011, when she was elected with a 61% majority vote. She officially took office on December 5, 2011 with the swearing-in ceremony for the 2011-2013 City Council. Mayor McFarlane was reelected in 2013, this time with 73% of the vote. She served as a city councilor from 2007-2011, and has lived in Raleigh with her family for nearly 30 years.

Mayoral Experience

During Mayor McFarlane’s first term in office, Raleigh saw a 20% reduction in unemployment and a $448 million increase in the city's commercial and residential tax base. A small business owner herself, Mayor McFarlane oversaw the creation of a Small Business Office to help entrepreneurs get their businesses up and running, as well as an Economic Development Office to attract established businesses to Raleigh. The offices have helped bring more than two dozen new companies to Raleigh, creating over 1,000 new jobs.

Mayor McFarlane helped forge a partnership between the city, Triangle Transit Authority, NCDOT and USDOT to fund the Union Station public transportation project, and oversaw the acquisition of the Dorothea Dix property for construction of a world-class park. After the state legislature went back on the Dix Park agreement in 2013, Mayor McFarlane has worked tirelessly to work out a solution that will make Dix Park a reality.

Another of Mayor McFarlane's initiatives is a move toward open-source government data, fostering citizen access and participation, as well as sustainable initiatives such as LEED Platinum standards on city facilities, designated parking spaces for plug-in vehicles and solar-powered trash compactors.

City Council Experience

Photo Credit: ??

First elected to city council in 2007, Nancy defeated an incumbent in a contested District A city council race. Two years later, Nancy ran without opposition and was re-elected.  For both of her city council terms, Nancy has also served on the city’s Budget and Economic Development Committee.  Nancy graciously accepted Mayor Charles Meeker’s appointment in 2007 to serve as the Chair of the city’s Comprehensive Planning Committee.   She was also nominated by Mayor Meeker to serve as Mayor Pro Tem in 2011.

Nancy has worked tirelessly with her fellow council members to focus on maintaining the fundamentals of good planning as Raleigh undergoes the development and approval of the city’s next 20 year Comprehensive Plan. The underlying Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) also must be finalized. Collectively, these guidelines will frame how our city evaluates numerous issues including Land Use, Transportation, Environmental Protection, Economic Development, Housing, Public Utilities, Parks, Recreation & Open Space, Community Services & Facilities, Urban Design, Historic Preservation, Arts & Culture, Regional & Inter-Jurisdictional Coordination, and Downtown Raleigh.

Nancy serves as City Council liaison to a variety of groups, including the Upper Neuse River Basin Association, Wake County Elected Officials Transit Work Group, Raleigh Arts Commission and United Arts Council, Stormwater Utility Advisory Commission, Substance Abuse Advisory Commission, Environmental Advisory Board, Triangle J Council of Governments, Water Utility Transition Advisory Council (WUTAC), Sister Cities International, Wake County Public School, Public Art & Design Board.

 

Business Experience

In 2002, Nancy and her husband Ron launched MedPro Rx, Inc., an accredited specialty infusion pharmacy that provides medications and services to provide support for clients with chronic illness.  They had a vision to create a pharmacy that would focus on the patient first. Merging medication therapy management with existing community resources, has allowed MedPro  to serve as an advocate for the bleeding disorders community and other communities affected by chronic illness.

MedPro Rx has grown tremendously over the past decade, with a relentless focus on taking care of its clients, doing what’s right and letting the results speak for themselves. MedPro Rx is fortunate to have been recognized for these accomplishments by many different publications. These include:

  • Recognition as the Triangle Business Journal’s No. 1 fastest growing privately held company in the Triangle in 2008. MedPro ranked No. 5 in 2009, No. 16 in 2010, and No. 28 in 2011.
  • Recognition by Triangle Business Journal as a Top-Women Owned Business in 2009 and 2010, and Best Places to Work list in 2010.
  • Recognition by Business Leader magazine as the No. 1 Small Business in the Triangle in both 2009 and 2011. In 2009, this same publication also named MedPro Rx as the No. 3 Small Business in North Carolina out of the Top 100.  In 2011, MedPro Rx was also named the Number 2 Small Business in the South out of the Top 300 award winners.
  • INC 5000 award MedPro Rx was ranked #502 in 2009, #1540 in 2010, #2654 in 2011
  • Nancy was named one of the Top Women in Business in 2009 and 2010 by Triangle Business Journal.
  • Nancy was a 2008 recipient of Women Extraordinaire, an award that recognizes women business leaders who are innovators, problem-solvers and inspirations to other women,
  • Nancy was named a 2008 Impact Women Business Owner.

MedPro Rx has several community outreach programs, including a substantial “Education is Power” national scholarship program for students with bleeding disorders. Since its inception in 2006, just under 300 recipients have received a total of $298,500 in scholarship money from MedPro Rx.

Community Involvement

Nancy has always volunteered for leadership roles in her community.  Nancy has a history of advocating for improving our public schools, protecting our neighborhoods and the environment, and serving as a diplomat for Raleigh.  She has established great relationships with many existing and emerging communities across our city.

  • North Area Vice President of the Wake County PTA Council
  • PTA Vice President at Durant Middle School
  • President of Ligon Arts Boosters
  • Sanderson Area Advisory Council member
  • As a City Councilor she served as the official liaison to the Wake County Public School System
  • Key voice advocating for clean drinking water supply during the Falls Lake Rules process
  • Liason to the Raleigh Sister Cities program
  • Women on Board Steering Committee
  • Women’s Forum of North Carolina

Education

As a high school student with an aptitude for science, Nancy was stunned when she encountered the gender-biased comments accompanying her results on an aptitude test: “If the taker of this test is male, he should be a surgeon, a physician, an attorney, or an architect; if the taker of this test is female, she should be a nurse, a surgical assistant or a teacher.” These comments drove Nancy to prove herself by earning a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Pharmacy at the Medical College of Virginia.

Nancy has worked as a drug-store pharmacist and spent 15 years as a pharmacist at Raleigh Community Hospital while raising her family. Nancy has always been dedicated to the healthcare field, and embodies the inherent values of accessibility and trustworthiness that are true to the profession of pharmacy.

In 2010 Nancy received a Distinguished Pharmacy Alumni Award from Virginia Commonwealth University for notable contributions to the profession. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Pharmacy Foundation of NC at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Edit tags