Joey Hopkins became secretary of the North Carolina Department of Transportation in October 2023. He oversees one of the largest state-maintained highway systems in the country, along with aviation, ferries, rail, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian transportation, the Division of Motor Vehicles and the Office of Civil Rights. A registered professional engineer, Hopkins has worked at NCDOT for more than 30 years in roles including chief operating officer, deputy chief engineer and division engineer. He helped develop the Strategic Prioritization Process, which led to the Strategic Mobility Formula and the 2013 Strategic Transportation Investments Law, improving how transportation projects are prioritized and funded. Hopkins is a graduate of N.C. State University. He is a member of Amelia Christian Church and the Clayton Civitan Club, where he served as president. He lives in Garner with his wife, Terry, a retired NCDOT engineer. They have two sons, Kelly and Billy