Barbara Pullen-Smith, M.P.H., started her career in 1981 as a health and human services specialist for the North Carolina General Baptist State Convention, developing and implementing. In this position, she developed and implemented health promotion and disease prevention programs in Black churches in NC based on the lay health advisor model. Her other community-based work included serving as a district representative for the American Cancer Society, in 1984. In 1985, Ms. Pullen-Smith started her career with the State of North Carolina as the first consultant for the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program in the Division of Maternal Child Health. In this capacity, she assisted 33 projects throughout NC in the areas of community organization, coalition building, program development and evaluation.

In 1990, Ms. Pullen-Smith was hired as the Program Coordinator for Local Health Services in the NC Division of Adult Health (now the Division of Public Health). On February 1, 1993, she became the first Director of the new NC Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities (OMHHD), a position she has held since then. As director, she provides leadership and develops initiatives to improve the public health system's ability to respond to the specific needs of racial and ethnic minorities. Ms. Pullen-Smith works closely with programs in the Department of Health and Human Services, local health departments and other public and private agencies and organizations, including minority community-based organizations, in a collaborative and advocacy role to ensure that minority health issues are addressed.