Representative Zack Hawkins

📢 LET’S TALK BUSINESS: Supporting Durham Businesses After the Elimination of the HUB Office
Join Representative Zack Hawkins, Senator Natalie Murdock, the North Carolina Department of Administration, and community partners for an important conversation about what the elimination of the State HUB Office means for Durham businesses and what comes next.
📅 Monday, October 19
🚪 Doors Open: 3:00 PM
🕞 Program Begins: 3:30 PM
📍 Stanford L. Warren Branch Library
1201 Fayetteville Street, Durham, NC 27707
🚨Registration Link🚨 https://forms.gle/PM3zeqyuqgxYkTHHA

Attendees will hear directly from the NC Department of Administration about changes resulting from the HUB Office closure, programs and services that remain available, opportunities businesses may still qualify for, and how businesses can continue accessing support.
The conversation will also include a community open mic and Q&A, giving business owners an opportunity to ask questions, raise concerns, and share what resources and support they need moving forward.
Hosted by: Representative Zack Hawkins and Senator Natalie Murdock
In collaboration with: NC Department of Administration, Greater Durham Black Chamber of Commerce, Give it to the People, and Infinity Bridges, Incorporated.
We encourage Durham business owners, entrepreneurs, and community partners to join us, ask questions, and learn more about the resources available to support their businesses.

Let's Talk Business - Community Conversation Supporting Durham Businesses After the Elimination of the HUB Office Date: Monday, October 19 DOORS OPEN 3:00PM Program to begin at 3:30 pm Location: Stanford L. Warren Branch Library - 1201 Fayetteville Street Durham, NC 27707 Hosted by: Representative Zack Hawkins and Senator Natalie Murdock In Co...

From college fan to star: Durham native Joshua Suiter shines in Netflix’s A Different World reboot Durham native Joshua Suiter is now streaming in Netflix’s reboot of the beloved series “A Different World”.

Charlie Scott grew up in Harlem, not North Carolina, and moved south by himself around age 15 to attend Laurinburg Institute, a small historically Black prep school that had already turned out a run of talented basketball players. 🏀 It was there, not in New York, that college recruiters found him.

In 1966, Scott signed with the University of North Carolina, becoming UNC's first Black scholarship athlete, a distinct milestone from the ACC's first, which had actually happened a year earlier at Maryland. NCAA rules of the era barred freshmen from varsity competition, so Scott didn't take the court for UNC until the 1967-68 season. Once he did, he became a two-time All-American, led the Tar Heels to back-to-back Final Fours in 1968 and 1969, and averaged 27.1 points a game as a senior.

He won Olympic gold with Team USA in 1968, then went on to a decade-long professional career across the ABA and NBA, winning an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics in 1976 and earning three All-Star selections along the way. In 2018, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inducted him, more than fifty years after a teenager from Harlem walked onto a small prep school campus in Laurinburg and changed where his path would lead.

What do you think it took for a 15-year-old to move to a new state alone, knowing he'd be the one breaking a barrier once he got there?

We’re officially ONLY A FEW DAYS AWAY from Bourbon & Bow Ties 2026!

There’s still time to join us for one of our biggest gatherings of the year—but get your ticket online before Thursday at midnight!

This year, we’re bringing together leaders, supporters, and candidates running in competitive districts across North Carolina. You’ll have a chance to meet the people working to win seats and change the balance of power in the General Assembly.

We’ll also hear from Justice Anita Earls, celebrate and honor the extraordinary legacy of former Durham Mayor Bill Bell, and recognize organizations and leaders who have helped shape our community.

Bourbon & Bow Ties is about more than one evening. It’s about bringing people together around a vision for a better North Carolina—strong public schools, greater opportunity, thriving communities, and a government that works for everyone.

Come be part of the energy. Meet the candidates. Celebrate our honorees. And help us build the momentum for what comes next.

🥃 Bourbon & Bow Ties 2026
📅 Friday, September 25
🎟️ Get your ticket online before Thursday at midnight!

We’re only a few days away. I hope you’ll join us!

Zack

🎓 NC HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS — CHECK YOUR COLLEGE OFFERS!

If you’re a senior in a North Carolina public high school, you may already have a college admission offer waiting for you — without filling out a traditional college application.

Through NC College Connect, more than 67,500 NC seniors have already received direct-admission offers to participating four-year colleges and universities for next fall.

Here’s how it works: students who are on track to graduate can participate, and those with a 2.8+ weighted GPA, fourth-level math, and other program requirements can receive direct admission to participating UNC System universities and independent colleges. Students on track to graduate can also receive direct admission to their local NC community college.

Even better: for the schools where you receive direct admission, there are no essays, recommendation letters, or traditional application required to claim your spot. You can claim spots at multiple schools, and doing so does not bind you to enroll.

Parents, teachers, counselors, coaches, churches and community organizations: share this with the seniors in your life.

➡️ Check your offers and learn more:
NC College Connect — CFNC⁠ https://www.cfnc.org/nc-college-connect/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Your next opportunity might already be waiting for you. 🎓Durham Public Schools Durham Technical Community College

NC College Connect NC College Connect is a new program that provides a simpler way to apply to college. The best part? If you’re a high school senior at a public high school with a weighted GPA of 2.8 or above, you are eligible. Look out for a letter that will be mailed to you in October with details on how you can ...