This report provides critical data to identify both areas of progress for women in North
Carolina and places where additional improvements are still needed. The report analyzes
issues that profoundly affect the lives of women in North Carolina, including employment,
earnings, and education; economic security and poverty; health and
well-being; and political participation. The report also tracks women’s progress in
North Carolina over the last two decades (1990–2010) by comparing its findings with
those from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research’s 1996 report, The Status of
Women in North Carolina (IWPR 1996). In addition, the report examines the social
and economic status of women in different regions of the state as well as in the nation
as a whole. The data on women’s status that it presents can serve as a resource for advocates,
community leaders, policymakers, and other stakeholders who seek to develop
community investments, program initiatives, and public policies that will lead to
positive change for women in the state of North Carolina and nationwide.