A passionate advocate for providing high quality education to all children, Dr. Sharon L. Contreras has spent more than 25 years dedicating her life to ensuring each child graduates from high school ready for college or a career.

In August of 2016, Dr. Contreras made history when she was sworn in as the first woman, and first Latina Superintendent of Guilford County Schools. From the moment she took on her new role, Dr. Contreras has been singularly focused on one goal – to improve the life outcomes for every single student.

In 2018, Dr. Contreras joined Chiefs for Change, a diverse, bipartisan network of state and district leaders dedicated to supporting policies that prioritize students’ needs.

The group’s 31 members lead education systems that collectively have approximately 7 million students, 435,000 teachers and 14,000 schools.

During the course of her nearly 30 year career, Dr. Contreras has won countless awards for her civic work and leadership including: YWCA Champion of Opportunity Award; The Network Journal’s 25 Influential Women in Business Award; Interdenominational Ministers’ Alliance Drum Major for Social Justice Award; Nosotros Radio Latina of the Year; Delta Sigma Theta Sorority’s Fortitude Award; Southwest Community Health Center Leadership Award, Upstate University Hospital Community Leader Award; the NAACP Community Award and the NAACP Freedom Award. She is also a proud and active member of The Links Inc. and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.