Dr. Libby Cohen Named Executive Director of Raise Your Hand Texas

Cohen Brings Deep Knowledge and Experience to Position

Austin, Texas (July 15, 2024) – Raise Your Hand Texas today announced Dr. Libby Cohen as its new executive director. Dr. Cohen, who joined Raise Your Hand Texas in 2018,  previously served as the senior director of advocacy for the organization overseeing its statewide advocacy efforts. 

“Dr. Libby Cohen is a proven dynamic leader who will enhance Raise Your Hand Texas’ mission-driven work,” said Elizabeth Lorenz, a Raise Your Hand Texas board of directors member. “Libby’s deep commitment to empowering Texans to engage in and advocate for public education will continue to transform the work of Raise Your Hand Texas and lead the organization into its next chapter.”

In her previous role, Dr. Cohen was charged with helping the organization use grassroots advocacy to support public education in the state Capitol. Since then, grassroots advocacy efforts have been a key ingredient in the organization’s policy successes, including expanding funding for full-day pre-kindergarten, securing billions of dollars of federal COVID-19 relief funding for public schools, advancing accountability reform legislation through the Texas House, and standing strong against vouchers. 

In 2019, Dr. Cohen created Raise Your Hand Texas’ regional advocacy team to help Texans successfully engage with the state legislature. As one of the largest full-time grassroots advocacy teams in the state, the regional advocacy team has brought thousands of Texans deeper into the electoral and legislative processes that shape our public schools. 

“I believe wholeheartedly in Raise Your Hand Texas’ mission to educate, engage, and activate Texans through public education policy and advocacy,” said Dr. Cohen. “Public schools in Texas serve 5.5 million children. They are essential to helping each child discover and embrace their full potential, and to helping communities flourish by preparing our future workforce. So many people are counting on our public schools, and we need their voices in the political process to ensure Texas kids have the schools they deserve.” 

As executive director, Dr. Cohen will be responsible for developing the organization’s strategy to increase civic engagement for the benefit of public education. Her duties include staff and operational management, strategic planning, issue campaigns, and guiding statewide advocacy initiatives. 

Prior to joining Raise Your Hand Texas, Dr. Cohen developed her theoretical and practical expertise in grassroots advocacy in academic and real-world settings. She earned a doctorate in history from the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes scholar, and worked as a community organizer for the Baltimore affiliate of the Industrial Areas Foundation.

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About Raise Your Hand Texas

In 2006, Charles Butt and a group of Texas business and community leaders founded Raise Your Hand Texas with the belief that all Texas children should have equal access to high-quality education. Raise Your Hand Texas supports public policy solutions that invest in our students, encourage innovation and autonomy, and improve college, military, and workforce readiness. For more information, visit RaiseYourHandTexas.org.

Contact: Anne Lasseigne Tiedt, APR

atiedt@ryht.org, c: (512) 784-3805