DeKalb County School District

Board of Education

Board Members


board memberDr. Melvin Johnson
District #6 (Chair)

board memberMr. James L. McMahan
District #4 (Vice Chair)

board memberMr. John W. Coleman
District #1

board memberMr. Marshall D. Orson
District #2

board memberMr. Michael A. Erwin
District #3

board memberMr. David Campbell
District #5

board memberDr. Joyce A. Morley
District #7

board memberMs. Karen W. Carter
District #8

board memberMr. Thaddeus Mayfield
District #9

Dr. Melvin Johnson, Chair
District #6

updated bio coming soon...

email link icon contact via email [ melvin_johnson@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. James L. McMahan, Vice Chair
District #4

updated bio coming soon...

email link icon contact via email [ jim_mcmahan@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. John W. Coleman
District #1

Mr. Coleman is a strategic planning manager at Invesco. Previously, he was a manager at McKinsey & Company. He also serves on various non-profit boards.

Coleman has a master's in Business Administration from Harvard and a master's in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School. He resides in Brookhaven.

email link icon contact via email [ john_w_coleman@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. Marshall D. Orson
District #2

updated bio coming soon...

email link icon contact via email [ marshall_orson@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. Michael A. Erwin
District #3

Mr. Erwin is a U.S. Navy veteran and has been a graduate research assistant at Duke University Medical Center and the University of South Carolina. He has worked for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Services and is a past chair of NOAA fisheries committees researching the biological status of fish species inhabiting the northeast Atlantic Ocean.

In 2008, he earned a Ph.D. in Biological Science from the University of South Carolina. He has been a member of the faculty at Georgia Gwinnett College since 2009 and teaches undergraduate students in biological science. He graduated from North Carolina Central University with a bachelor's in Biology and a master's in Biological Science. Erwin resides in Decatur.

email link icon contact via email [ michael_a_erwin@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. David Campbell
District #5

updated bio coming soon...

email link icon contact via email [ david_campbell@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Dr. Joyce A. Morley
District #7

updated bio coming soon...

email link icon contact via email [ joyce_a_morley@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Ms. Karen W. Carter
District #8

Ms. Carter serves on the faculty of Georgia Perimeter College where she is chair of the Business and Social Science department. She received her bachelor's degree in Speech Communications from Denison University in Granville, Ohio and law degree from The Ohio State University.

Carter has served as a classroom teacher and has held several senior administrative roles in the field of education. She is a graduate of Leadership DeKalb and is an active community volunteer and resident of the Lakeside Community.

email link icon contact via email [ karen_carter@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]

Mr. Thaddeus Mayfield
District #9

Mr. Mayfield is a senior partner with FOCOM, Inc., a Georgia-based business development firm. He holds a master's degree in Business Administration from Mercer University and received a bachelor's degree in Political Science from Tougaloo College.

He co-chaired the successful Friends of DeKalb Education SPLOST IV Campaign and is an active member of several business and civic organizations in the metropolitan area. Mr. Mayfield is a resident of Lithonia.

email link icon contact via email [ thaddeus_mayfield@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us ]


Suspended board members pending the outcome of the appeals process:

  • Ms. Sarah Copelin-Wood
  • Mr. Jesse "Jay" Cunningham
  • Ms. Donna Edler
  • Ms. Nancy Jester
  • Dr. Pamela Speaks
  • Dr. Eugene "Gene" Walker