Commissioner Carolyn D. Cummings currently serves as 2023-2024 Chair and has served the citizens of Leon County since 2020.
Carolyn was elected to the Board of County Commissioners on November 3, 2020. A native of Mississippi, she received her undergraduate degree from Alcorn State University, performed graduate studies at the University of Southern Mississippi and Laney College and she received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida Law School.
A Leon County resident for over thirty years, she has been a practicing attorney in the public and private sectors, including the State of Florida Department of Labor and Employment Security as Assistant General Counsel, Legal Advisor to the State Retirement Commission, and Senior Attorney at the Florida Department of Administration. She was a partner in the law firm of Cummings & Hobbs, P.A. for over thirteen years and is now the owner of Carolyn Cummings, P.A. where she practices primarily in the areas of family law and probate.
As an undergraduate, she became committed to public service through her membership in Delta Epsilon Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She has been and is currently actively involved in many community organizations that are designed to enhance the quality of life for all citizens, including the National Association of University Women, where she currently serves as president, the Senior Citizens Center Advisory Foundation and the Lincoln Center Foundation. She provides free legal services to Senior Citizens through her affiliation with both organizations and she has provided pro bono services to indigent clients through the local Legal Aid Foundation.
Carolyn is a member of several professional organizations including, the Tallahassee Barristers Bar Association of which she is a Past President and Past Vice-President, Tallahassee Bar Association, Tallahassee Women Lawyers Association, and the Florida Bar Association. She has served as Past President and current Board Member of Legal Services of North Florida, Inc. for over (25) twenty-five years and through the Thunderdome Project she has mentored young lawyers in the family law area. She has been recognized by the Florida Supreme Court for her level of free legal services provided to senior and low-income citizens.
Carolyn is a Life Member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a member of the Tallahassee Branch of the NAACP. She is a member of the Tallahassee Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, Inc., a Board Member of the Bethel Empowerment Foundation, and the current President of the Tallahassee Area Coalition Center of Excellence Advisory Board. She is also a Golden Life Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and a local member of the Tallahassee Alumnae Chapter. Carolyn has been a member of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, Tallahassee, Florida for over thirty-five years where she serves as the Church Attorney, Sunday school teacher and choir member.
She is the proud Mother of one son, Dr. Terrell Cummings, a 2004 graduate from the Rickards High School International Baccalaureate Program, a 2009 graduate of the University of Florida in Biochemistry and a 2013 Harvard Medical School graduate. He is presently a practicing anesthesiologist in Arlington, Texas.
Community Involvements Past and Present
- Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Golden Life Member
- President, Tallahassee Branch National Association of University Women
- Past President & Board Member Legal Services of North Florida, Inc.
- Board Bethel Empowerment Foundation, Inc.
- Board, Ready 4-Work Program
- Capital City Democratic Women’s Club
- Board Lively Vocational Center
- Board Tallahassee Urban League
- Board Lincoln Center Foundation
- Board President, Tallahassee Area Coalition Center of Excellence Advisory Board
- Board NAACP, Chair Legal Redress Committee
- National Action Network
- Advisory Board Tallahassee Housing Foundation
- Board Lafayette Oaks Homeowners Association
- Inaugural Member Thunderdome Initiative, Second Judicial Circuit, Mentoring Attorneys
- Pro Bono Legal Services, Senior Citizens Center, Legal Aid Foundation, Lincoln Neighborhood Center and Bethel Tower