Carla West

Carla West brings more than 30 years of experience in health and human services to her role as Interim Deputy Secretary for Opportunity and Well‑Being at NCDHHS. She provides executive leadership for multiple divisions that support North Carolinians across the lifespan, including Child and Family Well‑Being, Social Services, Child Development and Early Education, Aging Services, Employment and Independence for People with Disabilities, Services for the Blind, and Services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Collectively, these divisions operate with a combined budget of approximately $4.4 billion and are supported by more than 3,000 full‑time employees.

Since joining NCDHHS in 2017, Carla has played key strategic roles in the Department’s emergency and rapid‑response operations. Her leadership has contributed to statewide efforts during the COVID‑19 pandemic, implementation activities associated with HR‑1, and recovery operations following Hurricane Helene—reinforcing her commitment to strengthening North Carolina’s resilience and ensuring continuity of essential services during times of crisis.

A past president of the Eastern Regional Interstate Child Support Association (ERICSA) and former board member of the National Child Support Engagement Association (NCSEA), Carla has long been a driving force in advancing child support policy and practice nationally. She currently serves on the boards of the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities (NCCDD) and the North Carolina Interagency Council for Coordinating Homelessness Programs (ICCHP). Carla holds both a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Bellevue University.