Wake County's Incumbent Chair
Meet Shinica Thomas
Commissioner Shinica Thomas, her husband Raymond and their sons, Eli & Khalid, have made Wake County home for more than two decades and is she one of the most enthusiastic leaders you’ll meet.
She grew up the daughter of Trinidadian immigrants. Her father served in the US Army for over 20 years and she traveled the world as an Army brat. She later went on to serve as a military spouse during her husband Raymond’s time in the Air Force. Those travels taught her at an early age how to adapt and work well with many different types of people.
Shinica was dedicated to public service long before she joined the board in 2020. Previously, she worked for the North Carolina Community College System in the Information Technology and Workforce Development department and as a Human Resources professional writing policy and conducting grievance and mediation sessions in the workplace. Using learned techniques of understanding group dynamics and personality models, Commissioner Thomas is one who understands and values the input and opinions of others how to work with people of various backgrounds and beliefs.
Recently having served as the Director of Advocacy and Educational Partnerships for Girl Scouts - North Carolina Coastal Pines, creating valuable opportunities for more than 26,000 young leaders across Central and Eastern North Carolina.
After years of community involvement, Shinica Thomas was appointed to the North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service in 2019 by Governor Roy Cooper.
In her time on the Board of Commissioners, she’s lead the great government and economic strengths committees.
She’s also lent her talents to multiple state and national policy work groups, focusing on artificial intelligence technology and broadband access. She’s a first-generation college graduate who’s earned degrees from Fayetteville State University and Regent University.
And Chair Thomas is a lifelong learner!
In 2023, she spent her summer studying in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at Harvard Kennedy School’s Senior Executives in State & Local Government program.
Creating lasting change and addressing complex challenges facing our community.
Strategic Thinker. Innovative . Collaborative
Shinica is honest in her analysis, and not afraid to make tough decisions. She strongly believes that those decisions should be aligned with what is in the best interest of the community and its future.
She is an advocate for young people. This is one of the reasons that, in addition to her daily work with schools, Shinica served on the Town of Wake Forest Parks & Recreation Advisory Board, the Kerr Family YMCA Advisory Board, and the Heather Heyer Foundation Board.
Shinica’s family has also always been very active in their local community. Her husband has been a football and basketball recreation coach for more than 12 years with both the city of Raleigh and the town of Wake Forest.
Shinica has helped establish Wake County as a place where there are personal and professional opportunities, where veterans and their families feel welcome and supported, and where its residents know that they have a great place to live, work, play, and belong!
Vote for Shinica Thomas on November 5th!
