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President’s Message
Welcome Back! I am excited to begin our 2026-2027 NC State University Woman’s Club meeting year – a chance to renew our relationships and share experiences from the summer. Hopefully everyone had a great summer and stayed cool. It is hard to remember a summer as hot and dry as this year. Surely we are all looking forward to the cool, crisp days of autumn.
Luckily our first speaker for the year, Kat Campbell, WRAL-TV meteorologist, is an expert on weather forecasts and will let us know when we may see the change over from summer to fall.
The Woman’s Club monthly meetings will be held at the NC State University Club. The cost for the meeting room, set up and clean-up of the room and the luncheon meal will be $30 this year.
The 2026-2027 Yearbooks are ready and will be distributed at the September meeting. Look forward to seeing everyone on September 17th at 11:30 a.m.
– Dean Simpson, President
Program Committee
2026 – 2027 Program Series: Women Making a Difference
Join us this academic year for eight programs celebrating women of NC State who are making a difference in roles across campus and throughout our community. The Program Committee is pleased to share this interesting, informative, and inspiring speaker series.
Each program highlights women in a specific field:
• September: Women in Meteorology – Kat Campbell, NC State graduate and WRAL-TV meteorologist, who brightens our days.
• October: Women in Veterinary Medicine – Dr. Kady Gjessing, NC State graduate, who helped launch the outpatient NC State Omega Transitional Care service to provide terminally ill pets with compassionate palliative care.
• November: Women in Philanthropy & Education – Jacqueline Whittenburg, Executive Director of the Dereck Whittenburg Foundation, which provides financial assistance to help college students complete their degrees.
• December: Women in Music – NC State’s Ladies in Red, campus a cappella music ensemble, who return to provide us joy and enthusiasm during the holiday season.
• January: Women in University Leadership – Dr. Janice Odom, Director of the Caldwell Fellows since 2003, who will share stories from her twenty-four-year career.
• February: Women in Aerospace Engineering – Dr. Laura Paquin, Assistant Professor of Aerospace Engineering at NC State and former member of the Spacecraft Engineering Division at the Naval Research Lab.
• March: Women in Journalism – Staci Kleinmaier, Associate Editor of NC State magazine, who most recently wrote the cover story for the Summer 2026 issue.
• April: Women in Science – Barb Prillaman, NC State graduate and popular lecturer in the Data Science and AI Academy, NC State College of Sciences. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us throughout the year!
– Betse Hamilton, Chair
From Our Speaker – Kat Campbell, Meteorologist, WRAL
“I’m honored to have served the community as a meteorologist at WRAL for the past 8 years. From Hurricanes Florence and Helene, to EF-3 tornadoes, and a few of my favorite snow storms, it’s an honor to be trusted with viewers’ safety. Immediately before coming to WRAL, I worked as a meteorologist at WAFF-48 News in Huntsville, AL. While in Huntsville, I covered severe weather, southern winter weather and tropical storms.”
Before moving to Huntsville, I worked part-time as a weather graphics producer at WRAL – so WRAL feels like home! I also have on-air experience as a freelance meteorologist at WCTI News in Eastern NC and Carolina Week. While at NC State, I was president of the Broadcast Meteorology Club and interned at WXII News in my hometown. I also interned for a weather data and forecasting company, WeatherBell Analytics, in New York City.”
I earned my B.S. in Meteorology from North Carolina State University…GO PACK! NC State was a no brainer for me. Their meteorology program is top notch and I loved the small program within a large school. My dad went to NC State and my sister did as well, so we are a big Wolfpack family. Our tailgates are always an epic event!”
What I like best about North Carolina: we get a taste of everything – all 4 seasons, the mountains, lakes and beaches! And my family is here.”
Born in Winston-Salem, I enjoy spoiling dogs, pilates, finding great deals on thrifted dresses, vegetarian food, and skiing. I live with my yorkie, Jazzy, and bring her almost everywhere I go. I got married in October of 2024 to my high school sweetheart.”
Reservations/Name Tag Committee
We are looking forward to seeing everyone at our first 2026-27 NC State University Woman’s Club meeting on Thursday, September 17th and hope that you have had a wonderful summer….it was another very hot one!
Your reservation will be handled in the same fashion as last year — your reservation is due by either calling or emailing our President, Dean Simpson, regarding your attendance. As a reminder—Reservations are due by Fridays prior to our Thursday meetings.
Due to the increase in food items and services at the NC State University Club, our lunch price has increased and will now cost $30.00 per person. Please have your checks ready and made payable to the “NC State University Woman’s Club” at the time of registration.
If you are paying with cash, please have the correct amount as we do NOT have cash available to make change for you.
As in the past, the same policy remains — No refunds for cancellations later than the due date. If you make a reservation, but do not attend or cancel your reservation by the deadline, you must still pay for your lunch(es).
To make a lunch reservation, please call or email Dean Simpson as follows:
Cell: 919-616-3649
Cost: $30.00 per person
Make check payable to: NC State University Woman’s Club
Lunch will be served at 11:45 a.m. (meeting convenes at 11:30 a.m.)
Looking forward to seeing everyone on Thursday, September 17th.
– Helen Crane and Carolyn Bunn, Co-Chairs
Feed the Pack – The Food Pantry at NC State
Ladies. Thank you so much for your support of Feed the Pack for so many years.
NOTE: Feed the Pack often receives a surplus of certain goods, and so they request that donors limit the amounts of the following: canned green beans, canned corn, canned applesauce, tampons, pancake mix, chicken noodle soup, and gravy.
If you want to make a monetary donation, make checks payable to: NC State Foundation and write Food Pantry on the memo line. Remember to give your checks to Luann Peterson, Treasurer, so that the NC State Woman’s Club can be identified as the source of the donation.
You will find a link to needed items below. GO PACK!
https://packessentials.dasa.ncsu.edu/support-feed-the-pack/#donate
– Toni Downey and Helen Hauser
Dean Simpson, President
919-616-3649
[email protected]
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