Paula Brooks

Paula L. Brooks (born August 14, 1953) is an American politician who is a former member of the Franklin County, Ohio Board of Commissioners. Early life, education and career Brooks was raised on her family's farm in East Liverpool, Ohio as the oldest of five daughters. Her father was a Navy veteran and her mother was a nurse. Despite her family's humble financial situation, Brooks worked her way through Youngstown State University as a hairdresser, and subsequently earned her J.D. from Capital University Law School while working as an investigator at the office of Ohio Attorney General William J. Brown beginning in 1975. After law school, Brooks worked for Ohio Governor Richard F. Celeste as Chief Counsel for the Ohio Department of Liquor beginning in 1985, and later as the assistant director of the Ohio Department of Administrative Services, managing a $3 billion budget, the state's largest department. Brooks then worked for several years in private practice with a focus on health care and employment law. Brooks served on the Upper Arlington, Ohio City Council from 1996 to 2004, and was vice mayor from 1998 to 2002.