After experiencing a vacancy for several months, the UNC Board of Trustees has an addition to round out its ranks going into the university’s next academic year.
The UNC System’s Board of Governors approved Dr. Kristin Baker of Cabarrus County during its meeting on May 21, selecting the psychiatrist to fill the seat left by John Preyer, who resigned from the Board of Trustees in January. Baker will complete Preyer’s four-year term, which runs through the summer of 2027.
Baker — who earned her bachelor’s and medical degree from Carolina in 1985 and 1989, respectively — most recently served in the North Carolina House of Representatives and retired in 2025 after a round of redistricting altered her Cabarrus County-based District 82. A self-described “life-long Republican,” she chaired the House’s health committee and served as vice chair of the appropriations committee during her four years in elected office. Some of her most notable legislative efforts included vocally supporting North Carolina’s updated abortion restrictions in 2023 and helping lead the approval of a bill to outlaw transgender girls from playing on school or college athletics teams that align with their preferred gender identity…