Irene Taylor
| Irene Taylor | |
|---|---|
| File:Helen-mirren.jpeg | |
| Secretary of Commerce and Labor | |
|
Assumed office November 10th, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Glass |
| Senator | |
|
Assumed office November 17th, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | James Bruhman |
| Secretary of Education, Dixie | |
|
Assumed office November 4th, 2022 | |
| Assemblywoman, Dixie-4 | |
|
Assumed office October 11th, 2022 | |
Irene Dorothea Gallagher Taylor (née Gallagher, born July 26, 1958) is an American musician, educator, and politician currently serving as the Secretary of Commerce and Labor and as Senate Majority Leader in Dixie's Class I Senate seat. Concurrent with these roles, Taylor is also the Dixie Secretary of Education, Party Chair of the New American Left, and assemblywoman of Dixie's fourth district. She announced on December 16, 2022, however, that she would not seek the assembly seat again.
Born and raised in Pigeon Forge, Dixie, Taylor graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1981. She served in the Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce, as Director of Marketing and Sales from 1983 to 1991 and then as Executive Director from 1991 to 1993. Taylor left the Chamber that year in a bid to become Superintendent of the Sevier County Public School System, which she garnered in 1994. From 1994 to 2021, Taylor served as Sevier County's head educational official, a tenure notable for the implementation of CTE programs in the county's high schools, the School Board's approval and negotiation with the local teachers union, and Taylor's personal advocacy for masking and vaccinations amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Taylor announced her retirement from the position in the summer of 2021, alongside her successful completion of the federal bar exam.
On October 11th, 2022, Taylor became the newest assemblywoman for Dixie's fourth state district, after running a small and unopposed campaign. Her tenure in the body has been marked by minor legislative activity and, more recently, a high-profile corruption hearing surrounding Draven Prince's illegal activity as Dixie's Attorney General. Governor Grant of Dixie announced Taylor's nomination to the Secretary of Education in early November, and on the fourth of the month, she was formally confirmed and sworn in. Perhaps the most inactive of Taylor's responsibilities, she's primarily focused on expanding programs outlined under the self-authored CATT Act and the teaching of Indigenous histories and cultures of Dixie in the state's high schools. Despite being nominated under President XRT, Taylor was not formally confirmed as the United States Secretary of Commerce and Labor until November 10th, 2022. In this position, Taylor has executed and aided a number of significant measures, including a resolution to the Ddet Patent Controversy and a newly consummated trade deal with the United Kingdom.
On
Role in the New American Left
Dixie Assembly
Taylor was a founding member of the New American Left and the primary author of its present constitution and platform.