Peggy Terhune, Ph.D., MBA, OTR/L

Peggy Terhune, Ph.D., MBA, OTR/L has served as CEO of Monarch since June 1995, leading the organization through transformative growth in both scale and scope. Under her leadership, Monarch has expanded its services to support individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental illness, substance use disorders and traumatic brain injuries — always with a focus on compassionate, high-quality care.

At the heart of Peggy’s vision is a commitment to person-centered services that empower individuals and families. She has championed evidence-based practices, strengthened community integration, improved customer satisfaction and invested deeply in employee development. Her leadership has fostered innovative programs that serve people with complex and multiple disabilities. Peggy is frequently invited to speak at national conferences and technical workshops, sharing insights on emerging practices pioneered at Monarch.

A lifelong advocate for people with disabilities, Peggy has dedicated more than 50 years to advancing inclusion and equity. She is a founding board member of the North Carolina Providers Council and a past president of the National Conference of Executives of The Arc. Her public service includes appointments to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Waiver Advisory Committee, the N.C. Commission on Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services, and the N.C. Council on Developmental Disabilities. She has also served on the boards of NAMI North Carolina and Benchmarks.

Peggy’s exceptional leadership and commitment has been recognized with numerous awards, including:

Distinguished Professional Award in Diversity and Cultural Competency (The Arc, 2016)
Lifetime Achievement Excellence Award (i2i Center for Integrative Health, 2017)
Champion Award (National Conference of Addiction Disorders, 2020)
Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina’s highest civilian honor (2020)

She holds a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy from Indiana University, an MBA from Rochester Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. from UNC Greensboro.

Beyond her professional achievements, Peggy is a devoted mother of seven, grandmother of ten and wife to Bob. Together, they have fostered children with and without disabilities for over two decades. A servant leader, she is a Certified Lay Preacher in the Lutheran Church, ELCA Synod and she served as an adjunct faculty member at Duke University, Wingate University and Pfeiffer University, mentoring future health care professionals, until she enrolled in seminary.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family, knitting, reading, and traveling.