College Leadership
Board Welcomes New and Returning Trustees
RALEIGH, N.C. (August 18, 2026) – Amgen executive Paul Lewus is the newest member of the Wake Tech Board of Trustees.
Appointed to a four-year term by the North Carolina House of Representatives, Lewus is vice president and head of site operations for Amgen North Carolina, where he leads operational startup and manufacturing for the company's new drug substance manufacturing facility in Holly Springs. He has worked at Amgen since 2004, holding leadership roles in site operations, quality, plant management and process development across multiple locations. Prior to Amgen, he worked as a process engineer with Merck & Company. He holds bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in chemical engineering.
Meanwhile, Jamie Thomas and Dr. Saundra Williams are returning to the board as trustees.
Thomas, general manager of strategy and development at IBM, is returning for a third four-year term. A member of the board since 2018 who also served two terms as board chair, Thomas was reappointed by the North Carolina Senate.
Williams joined the Wake Tech Board of Trustees in 2020. Appointed by the Wake County Board of Commissioners, Williams served as senior vice president and chief of information technology at the North Carolina Community College System for 16 years before retiring. She is an author, speaker, strategist, leadership coach and chief executive officer of WMS Corp., a professional development consulting and training company that supports women leaders across multiple sectors.
New Student Government Association President Etoo Owaraga, who is pursuing Associate in Science and Associate in Engineering degrees, will serve as the board's ex-officio, non-voting student representative for 2026-27.
Lewus, Thomas, Williams and Owaraga took their oaths of office during Tuesday's regular board meeting.
Also at the board meeting, Williams was elected chair of the board for a second term, and Walter Davenport was elected vice chair for a second term.
Finally, the college recognized retiring trustee Ed Paradise for his 14 years of service. Paradise is a longtime Cisco executive and community leader who serves as senior vice president of engineering for the company's Security and Trust Organization.
Wake Tech trustees establish policy, approve the annual budget and advocate for the college and its mission. Under state law, four trustees are appointed by the North Carolina House, four by the North Carolina Senate and four by the Wake County Board of Commissioners. The SGA president serves a one-year term as a non-voting member, sharing student ideas and concerns with the board.
Wake Tech is North Carolina's largest community college, serving more than 76,000 students annually.
