Olga Bernstein Kohlberg (August 2, 1864,– August 12, 1935) was a Jewish Texan philanthropist and founder of the first public kindergarten in Texas.^[1] Kohlberg served as president of the Woman's Club of El Paso for two terms, one from 1899-1900 and the other from 1901-1902.^[2] Kohlberg lived in the historic Sunset Heights neighborhood.^[3]

Olga Bernstein Kohlberg was born in Elberfeld, Westphalia on August 2, 1864.^[1] Kohlberg married Ernst Kohlberg in 1884 and moved with him to El Paso, Texas.^[4] She learned both English and Spanish quickly.^[1] Kohlberg quickly became involved with the women's club movement in El Paso, Texas.^[4]

Kohlberg was involved in the creation of the Child Culture Study Circle in 1891.^[4] This group helped create the first kindergarten in Texas which opened in El Paso in 1893.^[4] Later, the Child Culture Study Circle changed their name and their focus to the Current Topics Club.^[1] In 1894, members of the Current Topics Club helped Mary Irene Stanton with the creation of a small library.^[5] In 1895, Kohlberg served on the board of the El Paso Library Foundation.^[6] She and other women petitioned the El Paso City Council for land to build a library building.^[7] In 1903, she served as president of the El Paso Public Library board of directors and stayed on in that petition until 1935.^[1][8] With her husband, Ernst, the couple helped found the Mount Sinai Congregation in El Paso in 1898.^[4]

Kohlberg became involved with the Woman's Club of El Paso (which had grown out of the Current Topics Club) in the 1890s.^[9][10] In 1899, she became president of the group.^[11] She was a delegate to the General Federation of Woman's Clubs at their Los Angeles meeting in 1902.^[12] She would stay involved with the club until her death.^[10]

In 1892 Kohlberg was responsible for the creation of the Ladies' Benevolent Association, a group that opened the first hospital in El Paso.^[1] Kohlberg and others were involved in creating a board of directors for the Cloudcroft Baby Sanitorium which was opened in 1911.^[13] She was also involved in groups that later became the Family Service of El Paso.^[1]

In 1910, Ernst Kohlberg was shot by an angry tenant.^[4] Olga Kohlberg died in El Paso after a short illness on August 12, 1935.^[14] She was buried in the Mt. Sinai Cemetery in Concordia Cemetery.^[15]

In 1972, the El Paso County Historical Society named Kohlberg in the Hall of Honor.^[16] Two different schools in El Paso are named after Kohlberg.^[16] In 1992, the Olga Bernstein Kohlberg prekindergarten/kindergarten was named in May of 1992.^[16] In 1997, the Olga B. Kohlberg Elementary School was opened.^[16]