Rep. Coleman, key legislator for schools, retiring

Duluth Republican, chairman of education panel, served 26 years.

A top Georgia lawmaker in education policy has announced he will not run for re-election this year.

Rep. Brooks Coleman, R-Duluth, will retire at the end of this term after serving 26 years in the Georgia General Assembly, the House of Representatives announced Monday.

As chairman of his chamber’s Education Committee, Coleman was responsible for vetting new bills affecting schools. His committee could make or break an education policy proposal by deciding whether it should get a vote by the full House of Representatives.

In 2016, Coleman Middle School, named in his honor, opened in Gwinnett County, where he was a

teacher and then rose to the assistant superintendent’s office. He attended public school in the city of Atlanta, then graduated from Mercer University with a bachelor’s degree and the University of Georgia with a master’s, eventually earning a Ph.D. from Georgia State University.

Coleman authored or co-authored numerous bills dealing with everything from low-performing schools to teacher retirement benefits. Most recently, he has backed the expansion of a tax-credit program for public schools that he pushed through the General Assembly last year.

Coleman’s retirement will allow the House to appoint a new leader of the Education Committee after this year’s elections.