On Monday, the Board of Commissioners voted to reappoint two members of The Endowment’s board for additional three-year terms in a 3-2 vote, with Democratic members dissenting.
Commissioners appoint five of The Endowment’s 13 members, with six appointed by Novant Health, and two appointed internally. That structure, which avoids a majority of appointments made by the county, allows The Endowment to remain a private entity that is not covered by the state’s open meetings and records laws. The appointment system was part of the creation of The Endowment, which came out of the sale of the county hospital to Novant (and negotiations with then-Attorney General Josh Stein to approve the deal).
Both of the county’s appointees whose terms were up applied to serve another term: Woody White and Mary Lyons Rouse. White is an influential conservative, a former county commissioner who helped set up the founding structure of The Endowment, who has also served on numerous public boards, including for UNCW and the UNC system. Rouse is a long-term member of Cape Fear Academy’s administration…