The founder of the Education Advocacy Law Group (EALG), Yolanda Johnson spent nearly a decade as a member of the Atlanta Board of Education (Board). She was elected in December of 2005 and re-elected in November of 2009. During her time on the Board, she used her legal background to guide the development of policies and procedures related to student discipline and special education. As a school board member, she saw firsthand the challenges teachers and school systems face in their efforts to educate all children with resources that are constantly shrinking.
Professionally, Yolanda spent 10 years as an attorney with the Georgia Department of Corrections (DOC), an experience that inspired her run for the Board. She came to believe that the key to keeping children out of prison lies in exposing them to options for supporting themselves, and the best way to do that is through quality education.
She has now turned her focus to making sure that education work for all families through the EALG. Yolanda is leveraging the EALG to shape the way parents engage with school systems through reasoned and informed advocacy. When advocating alone does not work, the group will create solutions that may include litigation as a last resort. As a lawyer, she understands how we can educate parents to be the
first and best advocates for their children by simply knowing their rights and the rights of their children.
Yolanda continues to serve the community through projects within Impact Church, where she holds the title of Impactor. Also, she chairs the Board of Directors for “The Scholarship Academy (TSA).” TSA shows students how to finance their education after high school and throughout their futures with little to no debt. She serves on the Executive Board for the Women in Transition (WIT) experience, which works with women coming out of prison and transitioning back into our communities.
Yolanda is originally from Oklahoma City, and she received a B.A. in Journalism and a Law Degree from the University of Oklahoma. Yolanda lives in historic Adams Park, and enjoys swimming, biking and these days, running for fun.
