About Ellen

Ellen Cohen is the State Representative for District 134, which includes Bellaire, West University, River Oaks and parts of Meyerland and Montrose.  On November 7, 2006, Ellen Cohen was elected to the Texas House of Representatives with 55% of the vote and by the largest margin of any challenger to an incumbent in Texas. 

Ellen pledged in her first campaign to work diligently to restore balance and integrity to the Texas Legislature and her work and voting record continues to reflect her commitment.  Ellen's priorities include supporting public education, restoring children's health insurance, improving air quality and keeping personal life decisions with Texas families, and not the Texas Legislature.

Ellen is a 30-year resident of Houston.  For 18 years, she served as President and CEO of the Houston Area Women's Center, which is dedicated to eliminating domestic and sexual violence.  In that capacity she led a $6.2 million dollar, 120 person staff serving over six thousand women, children and men.

Ellen and her late husband, Lyon, moved to Houston with their two children, Marcie and Eric, in 1977.  Shortly thereafter she began serving as executive director of the American Jewish Committee.  For ten years she worked with the leadership from Houston's diverse religious and business communities to foster mutual understanding and tolerance for one of the nation's premiere human relations organizations.

Before moving to Houston, Ellen and her family lived in Lyon's hometown of Montreal where she founded Reach to Recovery of Canada.  This self-help post-mastectomy group was started two years after her own breast cancer surgery.  Allowing women in hospital rooms to help other women was a completely foreign idea.  By virtue of Ellen's leadership and persistence the program was in all Montreal hospitals by the time the Cohen family left Quebec.

Ellen is the recipient of numerous awards including being honored by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as an outstanding contributor to civil and human rights in Houston.  In May 2008, she received the Woman of Wisdom Award from the Houston Area Women's Center.  Other awards include the Vivian Miles Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault; Women of the Year Award; The Shattered Glass Award; Women on the Move; Celebration of Life Honoree; Leadership Houston Distinguished Alumnus Award; NAACP Outstanding Service Award and the American Jewish Committee's Max H. Nathan Award.  She also serves or has served on the Boards of Congregation Beth Israel; Faith Trust Institute; American Jewish Committee; American Leadership Forum; Houston Area Adult Protective Services and the National Violence Against Women Advisory Task Force.  Cohen is also a former President of Leadership Houston and the Medical Center Hospital.