State Senator Irma Clark-Coleman has moved through her life with a purpose. Born in a small town in rural Georgia, Sen. Clark-Coleman and her family moved to Detroit as part of the “Great Migration.” She was the first in her family to graduate from college; strengthening her resolve to be a life-long education advocate. While rearing her own family, she earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at Wayne State University in Detroit.

In 1967, Sen. Clark-Coleman began working for the Wayne County Road Commission. For seven of her thirty-one years of employment at the County, she simultaneously served on the Detroit Board of Education. Her hard work and determination to make equal, effective education available to the masses was recognized when her peers elected her president of the school board. Sen. Clark-Coleman served in that capacity for three years. In 1998, she retired from the County, leaving the position of Director of Human Relations. Sen. Clark-Coleman was one of the first African-American women to hold a management position at the Wayne County Road Commission. Her retirement from the County also marked the end of her tenure as president of the Detroit Board of Education.

That same year, Sen. Clark-Coleman was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives, District 11. She served two terms. While in the state House, Sen. Clark-Coleman sponsored legislation to limit classroom size for Kindergarten through third grade students. She also sponsored legislation to ease the requirements for grandparents who adopt or become foster parents to grandchildren of whom they have custody.

In 2002, Sen. Clark-Coleman was elected to the Michigan Senate, where she is now in the first year of her second term. She sits on the Appropriations committee. She has sponsored legislation to implement higher standards for pupil promotion and to allow students in theology, divinity, or religious programs to receive grant funds.

In March 2004, Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm appointed Sen. Clark-Coleman to the National Education Commission. Sen. Clark-Coleman’s zeal for education is reflected in her educational affiliations. She is a former member of the National School Board Assoc., Board of Directors; Michigan Assoc. of School Boards, Board of Directors, and the National Alliance of Black School Educators.

A snapshot of Sen. Clark-Coleman’s civic and political affiliations include: life member, NAACP, God Land Unity Church, Trade Union Leadership Council, 14th Congressional District Precinct Delegate, United Way, Detroit Goodfellows Drive, Co-Chair, and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Sen. Clark-Coleman has received several awards for her dedication to the City of Detroit and its children. She has also been recognized for her influence in the business community. Sen. Clark-Coleman’s honors include: the Michigan Girl Scouts “Tomorrow Power” award, Mana de Michigan’s Adelita (sister) award, the American Business Women’s Association award, the Women of Wayne State University Alumni Association “1997 Headliner” award and the Women Informal Network “1997 List of 150 Most Influential Black Women in Metro Detroit” award. In 2009 Sen. Clark-Coleman was named Michigan State Director of the National Foundation for Women Legislators.