Terry Lewis Coleman (born December 5, 1943) is an American politician from the state of Georgia.

Political career

Terry Coleman is a former member of

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly ...

and speaker of the house. First elected to the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2005. T ...

in 1972, he chaired many House Committees and was elected as the Speaker of the House for the 2003-2004 Legislative Session. He served as Assistant Commissioner for the

Georgia Department of Agriculture The Georgia Department of Agriculture is the oldest state department of agriculture in the United States of America. Summary In 1874, the Georgia Department of Agriculture was established. The department regulates food, fiber, and the agricultura ...

under

Tommy Irvin Thomas Telford Irvin (July 14, 1929 – September 14, 2017) was an American politician who served as Georgia's Commissioner of Agriculture from 1969 until January 2011. Irvin holds a record as the longest-serving Commissioner of Agriculture in ...

from 2007-2010, when he stepped down to run for Commissioner of the

Georgia Department of Labor The Georgia Department of Labor is an administrative agency of the U.S. state of Georgia. With approximately 4,000 employees in 2008, it provides services to the state's current and emerging workforce. History The department was originally create ...

Personal life

Born and raised in Dodge County, Coleman graduated from

Dodge County High School Dodge County High School is a public high school located in Eastman, Georgia, United States. The school is part of the Dodge County School District, which serves Dodge County. Overview Dodge County High School is a SACS ( Southern Association ...

in 1961. From there, he went on to attend

Reinhardt College Reinhardt University is a private university in Waleska, Georgia. The university has an off-campus center in Alpharetta and offers some programs in Cartersville, Marietta, and Canton, and online. Reinhardt is affiliated with the United Methodi ...

where he earned an associate degree. He later obtained his

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in Criminal Justice before obtaining his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the Woodrow Wilson College of Law. He is currently employed by Coleman and Company Benefits, Inc. which deals with business insurance. He has also been a member of the Eastman Volunteer Fire Department for the past 23 years. As Speaker of the House he cast the deciding vote to allow Georgians the opportunity to vote for the state flag of their choice. His community involvement includes membership on the Board of Directors for the Bank of Dodge County and the Colony Bank Corporation. He served on the Mercer medical School Board of Governors from 1990–2002,Special Projects Shrink Georgia Scholarship Program's Cut of Lottery Proceeds
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. November 11, 2003. and was a President of the Chamber of Commerce from 1985-1987. He continues to play an active role in the Huddle House Franchise in Eastman and McRae-Helena, Georgia. Representative Coleman is married to Carol Cofield Coleman; they have 2 children and 3 grandchildren. He is a member of the First Methodist Church of Eastman.

References

, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Coleman, Terry 1943 births Living people People from Dodge County, Georgia Reinhardt University alumni 21st-century American politicians Speakers of the Georgia House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers

Political career

Personal life

See also

References