Kimberly Carson, Burlington’s director of racial equity, inclusion and belonging, has resigned after 18 months on the job to take a new position in North Carolina.

Her $131,624 position won’t be filled this year, according to the city, as officials try to balance a $13.1 million budget shortfall. Another five positions in the racial equity department will also remain unfilled. The city estimates those vacancies will save $650,000. Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak has proposed leaving nearly two dozen vacant positions across city government unfilled next year to reduce the deficit.

WCAX-TV first reported on the city’s decision to not immediately hire a new racial equity director.



Kerin Durfee, the city’s human resources director, will also serve as interim director of the racial equity department, which will undergo a “re-envisioning” process in the coming months, according to Joe Magee, the mayor’s deputy chief of staff. Many positions in the department were paid for with one-time federal coronavirus relief aid, Magee said, making it difficult to maintain funding. The department currently has three staffers; the city plans to add one more this coming fiscal year.

“Equity work is a priority of this administration,” Magee said. “The mayor made that very clear in the campaign, and that is still a top priority for us. [There will be a] collaborative process with the staff to ensure that equity work is built into the structural budget.”
Carson, who was hired in November 2022, told Seven Days on Wednesday that she’s been on medical leave since “late January or early February” and “is still healing.” She said she’s accepted an offer to do similar work in North Carolina and is moving there in part to be closer to family, including her aging parents.

Because of her medical leave, Carson had not interacted with Mulvaney-Stanak, who won election in March and took office on April 1. Asked about her experience working in Burlington, Carson described it as “a mixed bag.”

“There was a lot of transition and change and things going on when I walked in, but overall, I had a pretty good experience,” she said. “What I'd say is, I really learned a lot.”

Former mayor Miro Weinberger created the racial equity department in 2020 and hired Tyeastia Green as its first director. Weinberger focused on racial equity in his 2021 State of the City address, and Burlington held its first Juneteenth celebration that year as the department expanded to include more than a dozen staffers.

But Green and Weinberger had a rocky relationship, and Green ultimately resigned in March 2022 when she took a similar position in Minneapolis. Three managers in the department left in ensuing weeks.
Carson was hired that November and kept a fairly low profile during her tenure. In an interview on Wednesday, Carson pointed to last year’s Juneteenth and her department’s work with new American farmers after July’s flooding as two of her proudest accomplishments. Carson said she had four to six staffers in the department during her 18-month tenure.

The city budgeted $1.7 million for the department during the current fiscal year. About $65,000 will go to OKAY!!OKAY!! Marketing and Creative, a local agency that will help put on this year’s Juneteenth event.

In a January memo about the expenditure, Carson cited her department’s “limited staffing” and “extensive ongoing hiring process.” OKAY!!OKAY!! also helped out on previous Juneteenth celebrations. This year’s event is scheduled for June 15.

“The current staff has been working very hard on Juneteenth, and we're looking forward to a really positive event,” Magee said.