Candidate Biography (submitted by campaign):

Richard Morgan was born and grew up in the small resort town of Southern Pines, North Carolina.  His parents lived and worked in the community.

Soon after high school graduation, Morgan enrolled at Sandhills Community College where he obtained an Associate in Arts degree with honors and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honorary Society.  He completed his formal education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science.  Throughout his education, Morgan worked to pay the costs.

He married the former Cindy Richardson.  She is an Associate Vice President with the Association for Home and Hospice Care of North Carolina, a nurse and a Moore County Commissioner.  They make their home on a farm near Eagle Springs and his office is in Pinehurst.

Following college graduation and North Carolina Government service, he started his own insurance brokerage firm “from scratch.”  Through long hours and determination, he built it into a successful business serving clients throughout North Carolina.  He is involved with several businesses.

Richard Morgan received the Distinguished Alumnus designation from Sandhills Community College.  He served a three-year term as a member of the board of directors of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill General Alumni Association.  

Morgan was elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives and served eight consecutive terms.

Elected as Speaker of the House, he has experience at the highest levels of state government.  He participated in crafting state budgets which ranged from eleven to eighteen billion dollars!

He served as Speaker Pro-Tempore, House Minority Leader, House Rules Chairman, House Financial Institutions Chairman and V ice-Chairman of the House Finance Committee.

His Education Committee assignments for multiple terms included the following: Full Appropriations Committee; Appropriations Sub-Committee on Education; Substantive Policy Committee on Education.

This year the voters will determine who will be the next Chief Executive Officer for Education in North Carolina.

I want to continue to work hard to improve the quality of education.  My vision is that we will be a leader in improving student achievement.   We must realize that our state and our world is changing , and we must respond to that change by insuring our children are provided the education they need to compete in a world-class economy. 

It is clear that North Carolina's economy is undergoing some very fundamental changes that have far-reaching implications.  Over the past fifteen years, this state has lost 200,000 manufacturing jobs -- roughly 60,000 in one year alone.  These jobs -- which paid well and didn't require much education -- aren't coming back, and our state must find viable ways to replace them with good-paying jobs that will be here for decades to come. 

I am among those who believe that investing in education and training, in research and technology, and in the creativity and talent of our people is the key to creating economic opportunity and a better quality of life for North Carolinians. 

Quality education is critical to maintaining our competitive advantage in creating jobs for the future.  Jobs that will build new hopes and new dreams for all citizens!

If we are to be able to take advantage of the opportunity for high-wage, but also high skill jobs of the future, it will require the training and infrastructure needed to extend our advantage in this arena.  It will require a renewed commitment to education at all levels -- especially K-12 education.  By any measure education is the foundation for economic development in all segments of the new knowledge economy.

During the course of this campaign, I hope to earn your confidence and your vote.