Directors

Reginald E. Arrington is the Director of Maintenance for the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). He has 33 years of maintenance experience in transit and in the military. Mr. Arrington’s knowledge of overall maintenance helps CATS to provide safe and reliable vehicles to the Charlotte region and its public. He also is involved with Central Piedmont Community College, serving on the advisory board in their Heavy Diesel program. He also is involved with the Mayor’s Youth Program, which is certified by the State Labor Board, to employ high school students as apprentices in maintenance for eight weeks in the summer. Mr. Arrington has been a member of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) for the past 10 years. He also served 23 years active duty military and in the Army National Guard. He also serves as a member of the APTA Roadeo Committee.

Mr. Arrington has a Bachelor of Arts in business management and an Associate Degree in general studies from Montreat College. He received the Army Commendation Medal for Outstanding Service and Dedication in Iraq while serving as Maintenance Motor Sergeant for the 113th Field Artillery Battalion and the 1st Infantry Division.

Stephanie currently serves as the Transit Field Supervisor for the Gastonia Transit public transportation system for the City of Gastonia.  Previously, she served as Gastonia Transit Dispatcher and ADA Coordinator for ten years. She has been employed by the City of Gastonia for fourteen years.

Stephanie is trained in several areas which include, OSHA safety training, ADA Training, Paratransit and Accessible Fixed Route Operations, and Paratransit Eligibility Determinations for Urban Systems.  Stephanie is NIMS certified and provides the NIMS training for the Fleet Services Division. Stephanie also serves on the city’s Wellness committee, as well as both the Departmental Safety Committee and the City of Gastonia’s Executive Safety Committee.

As a longtime resident of Gaston County, Stephanie lives in Gastonia with her son Ethan 12, and also has three grown children and two grandchildren. When not working, Stephanie enjoys visiting her vacation home in Holden Beach NC, where she enjoys, swimming, fishing, kayaking, and enjoying the local beach.

Sheila L. Blalock is Director of Mitchell County Transportation. Sheila has lead Mitchell Transit forward as director since March of 2010. Having been in transportation since 1991, Sheila has helped to evolve Mitchell transportation from – “the van that just the old people rode” to a transportation system that is ranked superior in its peer group. Sheila heard the phrase “no one’s goal in life is to work in transportation, transportation picks you” and thought “they are talking about me!” Starting part-time with transportation and coming up in the ranks, Sheila cannot think of a more rewarding job. Sheila has earned the respect of her staff because they know she has been there, done that, and survived!

Sheila attended Mayland Community College where she studied business administration. She loves being an active member in her church and community where she serves on multiple boards. Her favorite title that she is most proud of is Nana to Chesney Faith who loves to plan excursions for her and Nana to take.

Kelly Blazey is the Assistant Transit Director for the City of Fayetteville. She has been in the public transportation industry for eight years, first serving as the Senior Financial Analyst for the City before transitioning to her current role. Given Kelly’s financial background, her experience centers on budget development, grant management, policy and procedure oversight and special projects.

Kelly holds an MBA from Georgia Southern University and a Bachelor of Science degree in broadcast journalism and marketing from Syracuse University. She is a Forty Under 40 award recipient, a graduate of the Institute for Community Leadership and a graduate of the LEAD Program at the University of Virginia's Senior Executive Institute.  She is also an ASQ Certified Six Sigma Green Belt.  In her spare time, Kelly teaches financial management classes for the University of Phoenix and serves as a board member for the NCLGBA and Horses That Heal, Inc.

Matthew Cable is a Planner III with the Buncombe County Planning and Development Department and is responsible for transportation planning and financial and grants administration for the County’s transportation program and Mountain Mobility. Mountain Mobility, Buncombe County’s Community Transportation System, provides community transportation services for Buncombe County and ADA Complementary Paratransit Services for the City of Asheville. He has over 7 years of experience in public transportation that include operations management, system planning, service development, public and media relations, grants, budgeting, and federal/state compliance.

Mr. Cable holds a Bachelor of Science in Geography from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He is a graduate of the Transportation Leadership Program and has obtained his AICP (American Institute of Certified Planners) Certification.

Mike Catuto is the Director of Cherokee County Transit. He has been in the transit industry for five years, four of which have been in a managerial role. Prior to transit, Mike had 12 years of experience managing businesses, including being a business owner. Mr. Catuto is still expanding his transit knowledge each day with his current position. As Director, Mike has focused on increased efficiency for his system, supported by current performance statistics.

Mr. Catuto has an Associate of Arts degree in business from Florida Southwestern State College and is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Science in business administration at Western Carolina University’s online program.

Bob Davis is the Executive Director of Transportation Administration of Cleveland County (TACC). He has 26 years of experience working in Mental Health and Adult Services. He has been the Executive Director of three nonprofit agencies and served in leadership roles as a board member and as board chairs including three Transportation Advisory Boards prior to beginning work with TACC in July of 2010. He was founder of the Youth Assistance Program of Cleveland County, which is a mentor program for troubled youth. He has directed several camps for youth with disabilities and has coached basketball at several levels for over 28 years. He was a member of two high school state champion basketball teams and has coached several other championship teams.

Bob has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in social work from Limestone College. He is married to Wendi and has two sons, Hobie, 17, and Cutter, 15, and a daughter, Whitney, who died of SIDS in 1997. Bob enjoys sailing, camping and time with his family.

Kristal Ford has been the Transportation Manager for Lincoln County since 2013. Prior to this, she had experience in many facets relevant to the transportation industry.  She has worked for non-profits, healthcare companies and wholesale distributors. She has done everything from grant writing to logistics and fleet management, and has managed a staff of more than 90 employees.

Kristal has a Bachelor of Science degree from the Pennsylvania State University. She also graduated from the Transportation Leadership Development Program and is NIMS certified.

Adam Fox is the Vice President of CTS Software Inc. a North Carolina based Corporation formed in 1993. He has worked with CTS to provide quality transportation software and consultation services to customers across North America since 2002 and currently to over 25 Counties here in North Carolina. Mr. Fox has experience in both Public and Private, Rural and Urban, and Fixed and Demand services.

Mr. Fox has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from The University of North Carolina at Wilmington with a double major in Management and Marketing. Adam was born and raised in Winston-Salem, NC and has lived in Wilmington, NC since 1998. Adam is an active member of NCPTA, APTA, CTAA, and many other state transportation associations.

Kerry Giles is the Transportation Services Director for Rutherford County, which encompasses both Public Transportation and Emergency Medical Services. She has been involved with public transportation for the past five years and has implemented numerous efficiency changes within her organizations. Ms. Giles also has 20 years of experience in the field of marketing and spent 10 years in the area of economic and community development.

Ms. Giles holds a Bachelor of Science degree in both business administration and communications. She was awarded the NCDOT Western Division Director’s award in 2013 for her contributions to public transportation. She serves as a board member and officer of the RHI Legacy Foundation, which distributes annual grants for the health and wellness of citizens in Rutherford County. She is also a 2008 graduate of Leadership North Carolina.

Mark E. Kirstner is the Director of Planning for the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation. He has over 29 years of experience in transportation, land use, environmental and recreation planning. During the past seven years he has focused on transit planning and the relationship between development patterns and effective transportation infrastructure. Mr. Kirstner has guided the development of comprehensive land use plans, strategic organizational plans, a regional transit development plan and a regional sustainable communities plan. During a three-year period Mr. Kirstner portrayed the “Lone Rider” as part of a campaign promoting walking, biking, and transit.

Mr. Kirstner holds a Master of Arts degree in geography from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and a Bachelor of Arts degree in geography from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was the project manager for Piedmont Together: A Comprehensive Regional Plan, which won the NC American Planning Association 2014 Marvin Collins Outstanding Planning Special Theme Award for Equitable Development. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, a trained facilitator, strong advocate for the development of equitable transportation infrastructures and embraces his secondary title of marketing goober.

Lawrence Kopf is the Chief Operations Planning Officer for the Charlotte Area Transit System. He has been in the transit industry for 36 years, the last 14 with the Charlotte Area Transit System. He began his career for the Bi-State Development Agency in St. Louis, Missouri where he was part of the team that launched the first light rail system for the area. He followed that up in similar fashion in Charlotte, where he once again helped to get light rail off the ground by spearheading the bus/rail integration process. His expertise is in the areas of transit scheduling, transit route planning and transit operations.

Mr. Kopf holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from St. Louis University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics from the University of Missouri at St. Louis. He is a two-time customer service champion for the City of Charlotte, and is chairman of the Education Committee planning the American Public Transportation Association Bus & Paratransit Conference scheduled for May 14-18, 2016 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Kurt Neufang is a Senior Transportation Planner with AECOM Technical Services of North Carolina, a transportation engineering, planning and consulting firm in NC. He has 32 years of experience in the public transportation industry. Prior to joining AECOM, Kurt worked for URS Corporation, the North Carolina Department of Transportation – Public Transportation Division, the City of Greensboro and the MPO in Atlanta. Kurt was a transit manager for systems in Chapel Hill, NC, Georgia Tech and the University of North Texas.

Kurt holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Secondary Education from the University of Alabama. Kurt served as President of the Southeast Chapter of the Association for Commuter Transportation (ACT). He is currently on the Advisory Board for the State Employees Credit Union and is active both in his community and in his church.

Pierre Owusu manages GoDurham (formerly Durham Area Transit Authority). He joined the City of Durham (Transportation Department) in 1996. Pierre has 25 years of transit experience and has been very instrumental in the growth and development of GoDurham, the third largest transit system in North Carolina. Pierre has vast experience in organizational management, in particular, transit operations, planning, and management He is a member of the Transportation Coordinating Committee of the DCHC-MPO and the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE).

Pierre holds a Doctor of Management degree from the University of Phoenix, a Master of Arts from the University of Georgia, a Master of Science from The Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in geography from the University of Ghana. He is currently the Co-Chair of the NCPTA Roadeo Committee.

Marie Parker is the General Manager for GoRaleigh (formerly Capital Area Transit). She has over sixteen years of comprehensive hands on experience in public transportation ranging from Finance to Operations. She is responsible for planning, directing, managing, and overseeing Operations, Maintenance, and Finance Departments. She has been heavily involved in technology implementation and innovation, capital improvements, internal training initiatives, and facilitating new community service projects.

Ms. Parker has her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, with a Finance concentration from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.

Camille Sterling is the Executive Director of Western Piedmont Regional Transit Authority d.b.a. Greenway Public Transportation. She has 14 years of Transit Management experience ranging from a county-run system, nonprofit, and currently a large urban system providing urban and rural public transportation.

Ms. Sterling holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Gonzaga University.

Linda Thomas Wallace is the Transportation Program Manager for Durham County ACCESS. She has over 25 years of experience in rural and urban transportation programs, policy, administration, finance and advocacy. She launched her career in transportation as a lobbyist and association management expert where she served as the Executive Director for the Illinois Public Transportation Association. She is passionate about public transit, association management and policy and throughout her career has successfully served as Government Affairs Officer for the Regional Transportation Authority, Chicago; Assistant to the Director on the City of Chicago’s Circulator-- light rail project, Executive Director of CalACT, Sacramento, CA; Executive Director of the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce, IL; Executive Director of NCPTA and Assistant Director of Administration for NCDOT-PTD managing the Safety and Financial Management Units and the ARRA funds.

Ms. Wallace has served as Executive Director of the National Black Caucus of State’s Institute consultant to the National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women and managed several political and judicial campaigns. In addition to NCPTA, Ms. Wallace is a member of APTA, CTAA, WTS and COMPTO.

Ms. Wallace holds a Bachelor and Master’s degree in Education from Bradley University.

L.J. Weslowski is the Transit Manager for Concord Kannapolis Area Transit (Rider). He has over 21 years of experience in public transportation, working up through the ranks as a bus operator, dispatcher, supervisor, van operator, CDL trainer, and motor coach operator before transitioning into operations and planning and now system management, working to improve safety and service delivery at each step along the way. Mr. Weslowski has an extensive background in small to mid-size public transit operations with specific focus in the critical areas of safety, security, and customer service delivery. Having worked on both the private sector and public sector sides of public transportation, he also brings extensive experience with funding, procurement, technology implementation, labor negotiations, regulatory compliance, planning, grant writing and management, and financial and asset resource management.

Mr. Weslowski holds a master’s degree in sport studies from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst Isenberg School of Management and a Bachelor of Science degree in natural resources studies from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Selected in 2010 as one of Mass Transit’s Top 40 Under 40, he is also a past bus Roadeo champion and an award-winning photographer. He is an active member of several Cabarrus Health Alliance committees, including the 2016 Healthy Cabarrus Community Planning Council.