Jefferson County Schools

Mr. James Fleming, Board Chairman

Term: 01/01/2023 – 12/31/2026

Mr. Fleming began his term on the Jefferson County Board of Education in July 1983. He is a native of Jefferson County, and a graduate of Wrens High School. Mr. Fleming graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in pharmacy. He recently served on Governor Nathan Deal’s School Boards Advisory Committee. He has served as Vice-President of the Georgia School Boards Association (GSBA) and is a former District Director for GSBA.

He and his wife, Sharon, have five children, all of whom have graduated from Jefferson County schools. The Flemings live in Wrens, where Mr. Fleming is a pharmacist with Barney’s Pharmacy in Wrens and Louisville.   

Ms. Farlyn Hudson, District 1

Term: 01/01/2023- 12/31/2026

Ms. Hudson, the newest member of the Board of Education, is a native of Jefferson County and is a graduate of Wadley High School. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Paine College and is currently a Research Associate at the Georgia Regents University. Ms. Hudson is a former science teacher with the Richmond County School System.

Ms. Hudson’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Farris Hudson, Sr. of Wadley, are retired teachers from the Jefferson County School System; her father also served as principal of Wadley High School. Ms. Hudson has two sons both of whom are graduates of Jefferson County High School, and she has served on the School Council for Jefferson County High School.  

 Ms. Teresa Brooks, District 2

Term: 01/01/2021-12/31/2024

Ms. Brooks was recently appointed to the Board of Education to fill the District 2 seat left vacant with the death of Mr. Charlie Brown.  Ms. Brooks brings a wealth of experience in education in that she has spent over 40 years with the Jefferson County School System, starting as a teacher, becoming a counselor, assistant principal, and then principal. 

Ms. Brooks has two daughters, Tia Brooks Kittles and Tiffany Brooks, both of whom graduated from Jefferson County schools.  Since retiring from the school system in 2014, Ms. Brooks is working at the Washington State Prison as a Lead Teacher for Adult Basic Education.  She also volunteers as a Pink Lady at Jefferson Hospital.

Mr. Steve Norton, District 3, Vice Chair

Term: 01/01/2023-12/31/2026

 Mr. Norton began his term on the Board of Education in January of 1997. Mr. Norton is a native of Jefferson County, and a graduate of Wrens High School. He also graduated from Augusta Technical School and attended Augusta College. Mr. Norton served in the U.S. Navy, and retired as the Preventive Maintenance Planner for Austin Industrial at DSM Chemicals in Augusta.

Mr. Norton and the late Debra Norton, have two children, both of whom are graduates of Jefferson County High School. Their daughter is a graduate of the University of Georgia and is employed by the Bryan County School System. Their son is a graduate of Georgia College and State University and is employed by the Department of Defense.

Ms. Julia Wells, District 4

Term: 01/01/2021-12/31/2024

Ms. Wells, a native of Jefferson County, represents District 4. She replaced the late Mr. Bobby Butts, who represented District 4 for over a decade. Ms. Wells is a forty-year educator who retired from the Jefferson County School System. She has worked in each of the communities in Jefferson County. She began her career at Wadley High School as an English teacher before joining the staff at Wrens High School in the mid-eighties. She was a member of the inaugural staff of Jefferson County High School in 1995. She then moved to Louisville Academy as an assistant principal before being assigned principal at Wrens Middle School as principal, from which she eventually retired. 

Like her and her siblings, she has had several nieces and nephews to graduate from the Jefferson County School System. Currently, she shares guardianship of her nephew, Stephen, who is currently a sophomore at Jefferson County High School and a niece, Madison, a fourth grader at Louisville Academy. 

Since her retirement, Ms. Wells has been actively involved with the Jefferson County Unit of the Georgia Retired Educators Association. Most of her days are spent doing genealogical research, reading, watching documentaries, cooking, catching up with old friends from her collegiate days and being at home with her mother, Sarah. 

She is a member of the Hardeman Sprinqfield Baptist Church. She is a life member of the Fort Valley State University Alumni Association as well as a life member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.