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New Board of Advisors member Marcia Turnage shares her plan for Board 

by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle 

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work is pleased to welcome five new members to its Board of Advisors for the 2024–25 academic year.   

The members, who were appointed to a two-year term, will help the School identify and achieve its goals as it works to advance equity, transform systems and improve lives.  

We spoke with one of the newest Board members, Marcia Turnage, to learn more about her passion for social work, her background and what she hopes to accomplish on the Board. This transcript has been edited for clarity. 

Can you tell me about your work background? 

I started my career as an airline employee with Piedmont Airlines in Winston-Salem, N.C. I worked for Piedmont for 23 years. I was in consumer affairs for a few years and then was a marketing analyst for a major part of my career in the airlines. We went through several transitions and Piedmont Airlines was acquired by USAirways. The Piedmont/USAirways merger was one of the biggest airline mergers at the time and took a few years to successfully complete. Then, in 2003, my department was relocated to Washington, D.C. I elected to remain in Winston-Salem and therefore, was laid off.  

I had a year of transition where I did some part-time work and then a year later, I went to work for Merrill Lynch. I became a financial analyst after obtaining the proper licenses and worked with a small team of advisors there. I stayed at Merrill Lynch until I retired in 2019. So, I’ve been retired for a little over five years. 

What makes you passionate about social work? 

I’m really interested in solutions to social problems. These issues have always been a passion for me—particularly women’s rights, homelessness, food security, child abuse/neglect and racism. (Social work) has become even more of a passion for me since I retired. I have more time and I want to be able to give back and try to make a difference.  

What made you decide to take the step and join the School as a Board member? 

I’m a friend of (Board of Advisors member) Alice Washington and (Board of Advisors member) Sam Niegelsky. They’ve always talked about the School and the Board of Advisors so fondly. I’ve always been very interested in their perspectives. I also like spending time with forward thinking people.   

As I said, I now have more time to be involved and give back. I’m very passionate about Carolina and really like being involved with the University. I probably couldn’t have contributed this much when I was still working, but now I have more time to devote. Alice and Sam have always spoken about how much they enjoy the people they’re involved with on the Board and all the wonderful projects being accomplished. 

Are there any specific goals that you have in your time on the Board as you look forward? 

I would like to get more involved with the Tiny Homes Village project. It’s very interesting to me. I’m open to anything I can do to raise awareness or help with fundraising. We had talked about writing letters or making phone calls to potential donors. I feel that I’m good at that and I’ve done a lot of marketing with my previous jobs. Even though we were in the financial business, our team at Merrill Lynch did quite a bit of marketing, special events, and related support.   

Also, I don’t think many people realize the School is No. 4 (tied) in the country (in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools” list among schools of social work). Everyone should know that. I would like that to be a focus, too—to make that accomplishment more widely known.   


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