Nick Tennyson is named Secretary of Transportation

Gov. Pat McCrory today announced the appointment of Nick Tennyson as the new Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Transportation. Tennyson has served as Chief Deputy Secretary since March 2013, and succeeds Tony Tata, who resigned last week.
 
“Nick Tennyson is the perfect choice to continue the momentum we have made in North Carolina’s transportation strategy,” said McCrory. “He has been involved in planning all of our key transportation strategies over the last two and half years, and is equipped to hit the ground running to continue our progress.”
 
Tennyson has been serving as acting Secretary of Transportation since Tata’s resignation. McCrory cited his experience in making the appointment permanent.
 
“Nick served as the Mayor of Durham during some challenging times in our state’s transportation,” said Governor McCrory. “He served on the Metropolitan Planning Organization for his region, which often tackled transportation issues.”
 
Tennyson served two terms as mayor of Durham from 1997 to 2001. Tennyson served as the Executive Vice President of the Home Builders Association of Durham, Orange and Chatham Counties from 1995 until 2013, when he was appointed Deputy Secretary.
 
“I am humbled and honored to serve as North Carolina’s Transportation Secretary under Gov. McCrory’s leadership and vision for our state,” said Tennyson. “We’ve accomplished many great things over the past 32 months with our incredible NCDOT team, and we look forward to continuing that momentum to better connect North Carolina and provide a safe and reliable transportation network for our citizens.”
 
Secretary Tennyson and the NCDOT team will continue to focus on expanding and safely maintaining the state’s transportation network through the Governor’s 25 Year Vision, support new funding strategies including the bonds to Connect NC, strengthen ports to make the state more globally competitive and deliver other infrastructure projects to help grow the state’s economy and create jobs.
 
Tennyson has a bachelor of arts degree from Duke University and master’s in human resources management from Pepperdine University.
 
A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Tennyson served as a commissioned officer on active duty from 1972 – 1977. After leaving active duty, he continued his service as a member of U.S. Naval Reserve, ultimately retiring in 1996 as a captain.
 
He and his wife, Jennifer, have two sons and a daughter, all of whom were educated in Durham Public Schools.
 
Tennyson will begin his role as secretary immediately.