Former UNC-system president. Bowles became UNC-system president in 2006 after an extensive public servant and business career. He was born in Greensboro, N.C. and graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1967.
Prior to becoming president, Bowles was part of former President Bill Clinton’s administration. In 1993, he was appointed director of the Small Business Administration. In 1994, he was appointed deputy White House chief of staff and in 1996, chief of staff.
Following his years in the White House, Bowles became a partner in Forstmann Little, a private equity form in New York City. He also ran twice for a U.S. Senate seat (in 2002 and 2004). Prior to his White House years, he founded and acted as chairman and CEO for a Charlotte-based investment firm, later known as Bowles Hollowell Connor and Co., and also founded Kitty Hawk Capital, a venture capital company, and Carousel Capital, a private equity company.
Bowles has also shown his commitment to public service by holding leadership roles in organizations intended to bring economic development to rural North Carolina as well as Carolinas Medical Center and Duke Endowment. He was an instrumental force in efforts to create a center in Charlotte for studying Lou Gehrig's Disease and held a leadership role in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
