Kristie E Vanauken

Kristie VanAuken serves the Department of Public Instruction as the special advisor to State Superintendent Truitt: workforce engagement. With more than two decades of leadership experience in the private and nonprofit sectors, VanAuken is a seasoned executive. Kristie leads the NC Portrait of a Graduate work, helps build relationships with employers, implements the Superintendent Truitt’s workforce goals, leads the LAUNCH statewide cohort, and has worked tirelessly to shift the narrative regarding career and technical education, helping all students successfully transition to employment, enlistment or enrollment following graduation. Before coming to DPI, VanAuken served as vice president of stakeholder engagement for Research Triangle Park (RTP) Foundation; facilitating business committees with blue chip corporations and attracting new resources to support STEM education, diversity, communication, economic development, and the environment. Prior to RTP, Kristie served as Vice President, Communications and Community Affairs at RDU airport. VanAuken is the Superintendent’s designee to the NC Works Commission, the myFutureNC Strategy Working Group and serves as a member of the North Carolina Education and Workforce Innovation Commission. Kristie is a proud first-generation college grad who attended Community College, University and earned a master’s degree in public administration from Western Michigan University.