Dr. Jesse L. White, Jr., is Director of the newly formed Office of Economic and Business Development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill .  He also holds the title of Adjunct Professor in the School of Government .   Prior to coming to UNC-Chapel Hill in January 2003, he served for almost nine years as Federal Co-Chairman of the Appalachian Regional Commission; and from 1982–1990, he led the Southern Growth Policies Board as its executive director.  White was also a Fellow at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University in 1990 and a private consultant in economic development in the early nineties.

White received his B.A. at the University of Mississippi in political science and history, a master’s degree in international relations from the University of Sussex , and his Ph. D. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, serves on the boards of Regional Technology Strategies, Rural LISC, the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, and the Association of Appalachian Colleges.