Board of Directors

Chris Ayers
Chair

Chris Ayers has served on the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2016. He is the executive director of the North Carolina Utilities Commission Public Staff, which represents utility customer interests in cases before the Utilities Commission. He also serves as president of the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates and volunteers on various national committees and advisory boards representing utility consumer interests.

Ayers previously practiced law with Hunton & Williams LLP and later with Poyner Spruill LLP, focusing on regulatory and utilities law.  He served one term on the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission.  He also served on the Board of Directors of Global Hope India, North Carolina 4-H Alumni and Friends Association, N.C. 4-H Honor Club, and the North Carolina 4-H Development Fund.

A native of Rutherfordton, Ayers received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Duke University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law.

Mona Moon
Vice Chair

Mona Moon has served on the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2016. Before retiring, she held the position of chief operating officer of the Medicaid program for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

Previous positions also include executive administrator of the State Health Plan for Teachers and State Employees within the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer, chief financial officer of the State Health Plan, chief business operations officer for the Division of Medical Assistance with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, and principal fiscal analyst with the Fiscal Research Division of the North Carolina General Assembly.

Moon received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration and a Master of Science in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Stelfanie Williams
Secretary / Treasurer

Stelfanie Williams has served on the SECU Board of Directors since 2017 and the SECU Foundation Board of Directors since 2016. She is vice president for Durham Affairs at Duke University. She presents nationally, consults on leadership and workforce development, and actively participates on numerous public and private boards.

Williams previously served as president of Vance-Granville Community College, a four-campus institution in Northeastern North Carolina, and has served in various faculty and administrative roles within the North Carolina Community College System.

She is a graduate of Duke University and completed her doctoral studies at North Carolina State University, where she also serves as adjunct faculty in the College of Education.

Bob Brinson

Bob Brinson has been a member of SECU since 1980 and has served on the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2007. He is a former member of the SECU Audit Committee and past chair of the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards. Prior to retirement, he served as chief information officer of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

Brinson has a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering from North Carolina State University, a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant.

Lee Brown III

Lee Brown III has served on the SECU Foundation Board since 2019. He is the dean of the College of Graduate and Continuing Studies and Professor of Management at Coastal Carolina University.

He previously served as the interim provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs, dean of the Broadwell College of Business and Economics, and special assistant to the Chancellor for Business Innovation at Fayetteville State University. Other work experience includes 14 years at multiple levels of management for Fortune 500 companies. Brown has also held positions on executive boards of several organizations including the Greater Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, the Career and Technical Education Advisory Board for Cumberland County Schools, and Greater Fayetteville United.

Brown earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University, his Master of Business Administration from Strayer University, and his Doctor of Philosophy in strategic management and international business at the Strome College of Business at Old Dominion University.

Michael Clements

Michael Clements has been a member of SECU for over 40 years and was elected to the SECU Board of Directors in 2023. He previously served on SECU’s Loan Review Committee, Member Advisory Board, and the SECU Foundation Board. He is the former Vice President for Community Investment at the Winston-Salem Foundation where he directed the Scholarship Department and the former director of the Downtown Health Plaza of Baptist Hospital.

Clements serves as a liaison to many organizations in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County area and is a dedicated community volunteer. He has served on the boards of March of Dimes, American Red Cross, Goodwill Industries, and as an officer with The American Public Health Association Council on Affiliates. He was elected president of the North Carolina Public Health Association and appointed Chairman of the Governor’s Council on Sickle Cell Disease.

Clements was a frequent speaker for community health care issues and has been a regular lecturer at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Winston-Salem State University.

He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Shaw University and Master’s degrees in Social Work and Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Mark Fleming

Mark Fleming has served on the SECU Board of Directors since 2019 and the SECU Foundation Board of Directors since 2018. Prior to his retirement from the State of North Carolina, he was vice president of Government Affairs for Blue Cross North Carolina, vice president of Government Relations for the University of North Carolina System, and assistant to the chancellor for North Carolina State University.

Fleming also worked six years in the United States Senate and is a veteran of the United States Army.

He is a graduate of North Carolina State University and received his Master of Business Administration degree from Bellarmine University.

Jennifer Haygood

Jennifer Haygood has served on the SECU Board of Directors since 2019 and the SECU Foundation Board of Directors since 2018. She is a former member of the SECU Audit Committee and branch Advisory Board. Haygood is the chief financial officer at the University of North Carolina System. She previously held positions with the North Carolina Community College System, including acting system president, chief of staff, and chief financial officer.

With an early focus on education, Haygood began her career as a Teach for America corps member and elementary classroom teacher in New Orleans before transitioning to the North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention as a Governor’s Public Management Fellow in the Education Section. She subsequently worked in the Fiscal Research Division of the North Carolina General Assembly, serving as an education team leader and senior fiscal analyst.

Haygood received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rice University and a Master of Public Policy degree from Duke University.

Ben McLawhorn

Ben McLawhorn has been a member of SECU since 1985 and has served as a member of the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2022. Prior to joining the Board of Directors, he served for many years as an at-large member of the Audit Committee, as a member of SECU’s Loan Review Committee, and as a Member Advisory Board volunteer. With more than 31 years of service with the State of North Carolina, McLawhorn retired in 2022 as the Audit, Risk, and Compliance Service Director for the North Carolina Office of the State Controller.

McLawhorn received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a double major in accounting and information systems from Appalachian State University and a Master of Business Administration from Campbell University. He holds the following professional certifications: Certified Information Systems Auditor, Certified Information Security Manager, Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified Internal Control Auditor, and Certified Government Chief Information Officer.

Brad McMillen

Brad McMillen has served on the SECU Foundation Board of Directors since 2021. He is the assistant superintendent for Data, Research, and Accountability for the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS).

Prior to joining WCPSS in 2006, he worked for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in the Division of Accountability Services. McMillen has served in leadership positions and on boards for multiple professional organizations related to educational research and assessment, including the North Carolina Association for Research in Education, Directors of Research and Evaluation, the National Forum on Education Statistics, and the American Educational Research Association. He also volunteers with the Western Wake Crisis Ministry.

McMillen earned his Master of Education and Doctor of Philosophy in Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Barbara Perkins

Barbara Perkins has been an SECU member for 48 years and has served on the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2023. She previously served eight years on the Member Advisory Board and over 25 years on the SECU Loan Review Committee.

Perkins retired as a systems accountant for the North Carolina Office of the State Controller. Her other state government experience includes accounting and systems accounting positions at the departments of Corrections, Public Education, Environment & Natural Resources, Medical Assistance, North Carolina State University (NCSU), and as a high school educator. She has worked in private industry as controller or accounting advisor to numerous businesses, including law, real estate management and development, insurance, and accounting. Perkins has been a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), North Carolina Association of CPAs, and National Association of Accountants. She is currently the treasurer of her high school alumni association and has served as a volunteer/treasurer for many membership and civic organizations.

Perkins holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Math Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, completed post graduate work at NCSU, and retired her CPA certificate after 40 years of practice.

Chuck Stone

Chuck Stone has been a member of SECU for over 45 years and has served on the SECU and SECU Foundation Boards of Directors since 2023. Previously, he was a Member Advisory Board volunteer and served on SECU’s Loan Review Committee.

Prior to retiring from state government service, Stone served as administrative officer at O'Berry Center in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. He then served the State Employees Association of North Carolina (SEANC) as a membership representative, lobbyist, and director of operations. He is a past SEANC president and board member. Stone also served on the North Carolina State Health Plan Board of Trustees, the North Carolina Alliance for Health, and as chair of RENU Life, Wayne County Special Olympics, and his parish advisory committee.

Stone has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science / History and a Master of Public Health Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Master of Arts in Guidance Counseling from East Carolina University.

McKinley Wooten Jr.

McKinley Wooten Jr. has been a member of SECU since 1994 and has served on the SECU Board of Directors since 2000 and the SECU Foundation Board of Directors since its inception in 2004. He is past Chair of both Boards. Wooten is the assistant secretary of the North Carolina Department of Revenue.

He has served in several senior level positions in state government, including inspector general, deputy secretary of the Department of Administration as well as director and deputy director of the Administrative Office of the Courts. Wooten also serves on the advisory board for the Alexander YMCA in Raleigh, the North Carolina Museum of History Foundation Board, and the University of North Carolina School of Government Foundation Board.

A native of Kinston, Wooten holds degrees from Morehouse College and Vanderbilt University School of Law.