Joe Coto was born in Miami, Arizona, one of four children, to Mexican-American parents.
14 Facts About Joe Coto
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Joe Coto's father worked in copper mines for over 30 years, and encouraged Coto and his three sisters to attend college.
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Joe Coto earned a bachelor's degree from San Diego State University.
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Joe Coto received his administrative credential from California State University, East Bay, as well as a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix.
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Joe Coto began his career as a Social Studies teacher in the Oakland Unified School District.
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Joe Coto worked in a variety of administrative positions and left the school district to serve as a City Councilmember for the City of Oakland.
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Joe Coto returned to the school district and ultimately became Superintendent of the Oakland Public Schools in 1984.
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Joe Coto was able to bring nearly half a billion dollars in grant monies and improvement bonds to the East Side Union High School District.
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Joe Coto was elected to the California State Assembly to represent California's 23rd Assembly district in 2004.
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Joe Coto authored a bill to protect students from vendors trying to entice them with gifts to get them to apply for credit cards.
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Joe Coto was responsible for establishing an eminence credential for Native American languages to be taught in California's schools.
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Joe Coto recently completed a two-year term serving as Chair of the 26 member Latino Legislative Caucus.
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In December 2011, Joe Coto announced that he would run for California State Senate to represent District 15, which includes the cities of Campbell, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Saratoga, and San Jose.
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Joe Coto's campaign focused on improving education to create a competitive workforce, balancing the budget, and solving the issue of income inequality.