60 second q&a with dr. cardra burns: “i ground myself in knowing who i am, what i bring, and what i stand for.”

A hill I will die on: moms are public servants.

A public servant is traditionally defined as someone who dedicates their work to the benefit of others, without expectation of proportional reward. And to me, mothers fit – and oftentimes extend – that standard.

In this case, I think Dr. Cardra Burns might be the ultimate public servant.

Besides dedicating her life to raising two daughters, she also has more than 20 years of experience as a public administrator. This includes working as a nutritionist for the WIC program, leading North Carolina's testing and vaccine deployment operations during COVID, and serving as the Academic Director for the Master of Public Administration program at Wake Forest School of Professional Studies, where she helps to prepare future public administrators.

We’re spending all month celebrating moms in honor of Mother’s Day, and since this week is also Public Service Recognition Week, I cannot think of anyone better than Cardra to kick things off.

It’s an honor to know Cardra, and it’s an honor to share this Q&A with you today. Enjoy.

– Steph

toth shop (ts): We’re celebrating moms all month long in honor of Mother’s Day. What’s given you the most joy in motherhood (so far)? And what's been the most challenging?

Dr. Cardra Burns (DCB): Honestly, I never really said I wanted kids. My family was both surprised and happy that the baby of the family decided to have the baby of the family. And now, I cannot imagine who I would be without my girls. The love I have for them is hard to put into words, and they make me a better person every single day.

My daughter is 8, and my bonus daughter is 7. Watching them grow into their own brings me so much joy. Seeing how they think, what excites them, and how they show up in the world is something I do not take for granted. I am very intentional about not just telling them what is possible, but showing them. Being an example matters to me.

When my daughter was born, I told her she could be the future leader of the free world, and I still tell her that today. I want both of them to grow up believing there are no limits on who they can become.

The most challenging part has been the balance. Balancing the weight of my work with being fully present at home is not always easy. There are moments when both demand more of me at the same time. I have had to learn to give myself grace and accept that I will not get it perfect every day. But I stay grounded in being present, being consistent, and making sure they always know they are loved and supported.

ts: In less than 10 words, what’s ONE piece of advice you would give to young women today?

DCB: Don’t let anyone define your limits. “Can’t” isn’t an option.

ts: Public administration involves decisions that affect real people's lives. What's a story from your work where a deeply human moment reminded you why this field matters?

DCB: I was the Health Director in Halifax County, and we were running one of our Community-Centered Health Homes Listening Sessions. A woman came up to me afterward. She wasn't there to give feedback. She just wanted to say thank you for caring. She told me that for the first time, she felt like the health department was actually for her. Not a building with forms or a place you go when you have no other choice, but for her.

That moment stayed with me. I believe people and communities should be seen, heard, and valued. So hearing that really stopped me, because no one should feel surprised to be seen by the very system meant to support them. The fact that it did told me a lot about what our systems had been missing for decades.

Too often, the very systems designed to help people forget to center the people and communities they were created for. That moment is why I stay in this work. Policies matter. Metrics matter. But when a system finally feels human to the people and communities it was meant to listen to and build solutions with, that’s the whole point.

ts: How has your personal identity – as a woman, a leader, a professional – shifted over time?

DCB: When I was earlier in my career, I thought my value came from being the most prepared person in the room. I studied hard, earned my credentials, and believed having the right answer was the safest way to show I belonged. Over time, that understanding shifted. I realized my value was not just in what I knew, but in how I showed up. Listening closely, asking thoughtful questions, and creating space for others became just as important as having the answer.

As a Black woman, often the only one in the room, I also had to unlearn the quiet pressure to constantly prove I deserved to be there. That pressure is real, but living from a place of constant proving is exhausting. I ground myself in knowing who I am, what I bring, and what I stand for.

Motherhood shifted me too. It made me think more deeply about the example I am setting, and the kind of world I want my daughters to believe is possible for them.

Today, I feel more settled in who I am than I ever have. I trust my voice, my values, and the path that brought me here.

ts: You’ve earned several degrees in your life, including a doctorate in business and information systems management. What role has education played in shaping your path in life?

DCB: I grew up in South Carolina, the youngest of five. My mom finished middle school, and my dad finished high school. I am the first person in my family to go this far in my education. They knew they had a smart kid, but they did not know how far that could go because they had never seen that path themselves. But my dad did give me the mindset – in our house, “can’t” was not a word I could use. If something was hard, I had to figure it out. I had to keep going, no matter the obstacles.

For me, this journey has always been about more than earning degrees. It has been about breaking generational ceilings and showing those coming behind me what becomes possible when you refuse to settle for “can’t.”

ts: Every person we interview answers this same question last – Mile 18 is generally considered to be one of the hardest miles in a marathon. You’re hitting a wall. You’re forced to dig deep. What’s mile 18 in your line of work or at a point in your career, what do you tell yourself when you find yourself in the middle of a mile 18?

DCB: Mile 18 for me has been those moments when the weight of the work feels real. When the decisions are complex, the stakes are high, and you know those decisions could mean life or death, whether someone has enough to eat, or whether they have a place to live. I have felt that most in crisis moments, especially during the pandemic, when there was no perfect answer and no extra time to figure it out.

In those moments, I come back to what I was taught early on. “Can’t” is not an option. Not because it is easy, but because someone is counting on the decision on the other side of that moment.

So, I slow myself down, focus on what I do know, and take the next step forward. I remind myself that I do not have to have everything figured out all at once. I just have to keep going, stay grounded in why the work matters, and trust that steady, thoughtful action will get me through it.