Dr. Martha Jee Wong, born Martha Jee,(1939–)Distinguished HISD Alumni
." ''

Houston Independent School District The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is the largest public school system in Texas, and the eighth-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and ...

''. is a Texas politician who was the first

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...

woman to be elected to the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

, representing Houston's District 134. She served from 2002 to 2006 as a Republican. Moreover, she was the first Asian American woman part of Texas Spirits, an honorary spirit, service, and social organization on the campus of University of Texas at Austin. Texas Spirits is the oldest spirit organization at the University of Texas, founded in 1941.

History

Wong was born at St. Joseph Hospital in January 1939. Wong lived in the

Houston Heights Houston Heights (often referred to simply as "The Heights") is a community in northwest-central Houston, Texas, United States. "The Heights" is often referred to colloquially to describe a larger collection of neighborhoods next to and including ...

, initially within her parents' grocery business and later. She attended Hogg Junior High School, and then Reagan High School (now

Heights High School Heights High School, formerly John H. Reagan High School, is a senior high school located in the Houston Heights in Houston, Texas. It serves students in grades nine through twelve and is a part of the Houston Independent School District. Height ...

) in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. In 1993, she became the

Houston City Council The Houston City Council is a city council for the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas. Currently, there are sixteen members, 11 elected from council districts and five at-large. The members of the Council are elected every four years, w ...

's first elected Asian American Councilwoman, and was elected to three successive terms. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas and both a master's degree and doctorate from the University of Houston.Martha Wong Biography. Asian-American Net.
/ref>

References

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With it ...

''. Saturday January 11, 1997. A30. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Wong, Martha Living people American politicians of Chinese descent Republican Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Houston City Council members Women city councillors in Texas 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Asian-American city council members Asian-American people in Texas politics Women state legislators in Texas 1939 births Asian conservatism in the United States

History

See also

References

External links