Tehra Coles (she/her)

Advisory Board Member

Tehra Coles is the Executive Director of the Center for Family Representation (CFR). CFR is based in New York City and provides free legal representation, social work services and access to system-impacted parent advocates. CFR primarily represents parents targeted by the family policing system, including during the investigation stage. They also provide assistance with public benefits, housing, immigration and criminal matters.

Ms. Coles joined CFR in 2011 as a staff attorney in CFR’s parent defense practice. Ms. Coles developed a series of attorney and social work training on topics including representing clients in cases involving intimate partner violence, cross examination and trial skills. Ms. Coles also served as CFR’s first Supervisor of Policy and Government Affairs, working alongside impacted communities seeking to dismantle the family policing system. She also served as Co-Chair of the Practising Law Institute’s Children’s Law Institute. In 2021, Ms. Coles left CFR to join Civil Rights Corp (CRC) as Senior Policy Council. At CRC, Ms. Coles’ work focused on eliminating money bail, non-carceral community safety, legislative advocacy at all levels of government, and coalition building. Ms. Coles earned her juris doctor from Albany Law School and both a Bachelor and Masters (Social Science) from Hollins University.