County Commissioners

Arthur serves on the Board of County Commissioners, representing all of Mecklenburg County’s 1.2 million residents. He was first elected as commissioner in 2022. Arthur retired as a senior vice president for McGraw-Hill Education in New York. At McGraw-Hill Education, he led a national business development team collaborating with school superintendents and administrators in identifying strategies and solutions to achieve their institutional goals. In 2014, he was responsible for and achieved a $670 million-dollar revenue target at 101%.

Prior to joining McGraw-Hill Education, Arthur served 17 years on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education. He led the board as Chairman from 1997 to 2002. During this period, Arthur served as a member of the National Assessment of Educational Progress Advisory Committee (NAEP); guest lecturer at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education; University of Virginia’s Partnership for Leaders in Education; resident faculty member of the Broad and Texas Institute for School Board Members; member with distinction on the Executive Committee of the Council of the Great City Schools and Steering Committee member of the Council of Urban Boards of Education. He is nationally recognized in public school governance.

Working to balance the scales of justice, for 20 years Arthur  worked as a litigation paralegal at Legal Services of Southern Piedmont. While working for Legal Services, he represented clients before state and federal administrative law judges in public benefits, housing, unemployment insurance and Social Security Disability.

Arthur  served his country in the United States Army as a soldier and Infantry Platoon Leader in Vietnam (1970-71) and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. 

Arthur  has a deep history serving his community as a trustee at Central Piedmont Community College, Renaissance West Community Initiative, Board of Directors Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services, Mecklenburg County Court Guardian Ad Litem, Mecklenburg County Human Services Council, Head Start Policy Council, Charlotte Housing Authority Commissioner, Children’s Law Center, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee, Urban League of the Carolinas, Charlotte Area Fund, Mecklenburg Medical Auxiliary, Council for Children and many other community-based organizations.

Arthur earned a Bachelor of Science in liberal studies from the University of the State of New York at Albany. He is a Charlotte native and married to Alicia Elston Griffin. They have two adult children and three grandchildren attending Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.