Carla J. Nelson is a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota Senate.
Education
Nelson graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, receiving her Bachelor of Surgery in special education. She went on to the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, earning her Master of Education in teacher leadership, and her reading specialist certification.
Career
She is the owner of the Olmsted Group, an insurance and investment firm in Rochester. She was previously an elementary and middle school teacher in Rochester. Nelson was first elected to the Senate in 2010 and was re-elected in 2012.
Her special legislative concerns include health care, commerce, higher education, and taxes.
Nelson was named an assistant minority leader in November 2012.
Politics
Republican Party of Minnesota, Republican Party.
Membership
A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, she represents District 26, which includes portions of Olmsted County in the southeastern part of the state. She previously served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2003 to 2005, and was a member of the House"s Education Policy, Higher Education Finance, and Local Government and Metropolitan Affairs committees. Nelson was an appointed member of the Minnesota Higher Education Finance Authority Board from 2005 to 2009, of the Capitol Area Architectural Planning Board (CAAPB) from 2005 to 2010, and of the Minnesota Academic Excellence Foundation Board from 2008 to 2010.