We have some exciting changes coming for Team Cohen starting in the new year. I’m proud to share that, with my enthusiastic support, my Chief of Staff, Brooke Boyett, has accepted the role of District Director for Congresswoman-elect Lizzie Fletcher. In addition, two months ago, I encouraged my Senior Director of Constituent Services, Janae Winfield, to accept the role of Chief of Staff for District K Council Member Martha Castex-Tatum. I could not be more proud of their success and wish them all the best in their new roles.
Consequently, we have a new roster to serve our District in 2019!
Meet the New District C Team
Traci Buttram has been promoted to Chief of Staff. She will serve as a senior advisor on public policy matters and will process the City Council Agenda each week, as well as managing the administration of the District C office. Traci will continue to oversee our communications, including speech writing, press relations, our weekly newsletter, and social media.
A native Houstonian, Traci obtained her Bachelor’s in Political Science from the University of Houston. She joined Team Cohen in 2010 as a Civic Houston intern, and her previous political experience includes State Representative Jessica Farrar’s district office as well as the Annise Parker for Mayor Campaign.
Valerie Luna-Pena has been promoted to Senior Director of Constituent Services. In this capacity, she will oversee high-level constituent relations, as well as coordinating the Council Committee on Quality of Life and staffing at the weekly City Council Public Session. She will also manage District C’s involvement in the Storm Water Action Team (SWAT) Program.
Born and raised in Houston, Valerie obtained her Bachelor’s in Political Science from the University of Houston and is a Certified Public Manager. She joined the District C Team in 2013 as a Civic Houston intern, and her previous experience includes State Representative Ana Hernandez’s district office and Mayor Annise Parker’s final mayoral campaign.
Ngan Nguyen has joined our team as Scheduler and Director of Constituent Services. In this role, she will interact with both constituents and City departments in order to solve day-to-day problems throughout the District, in addition to coordinating our office calendar. Ngan will also manage the District C volunteer initiative, the Cohen Ambassador Program.
Born in Vietnam and raised in Houston from the age of 2, Ngan is currently pursuing a degree in Political Science from the University of Houston. She began serving as a summer intern as part of the Mayor’s Hire Houston Youth Program in 2016 and her previous political experience includes District F Council Member Steve Le’s office.