Candidate for
Councilmember; City of San Luis Obispo

Born 1957 in Austin, TX to the Rev. John Paul Carter, an Episcopal minister, and Joan Carter, a homemaker. Five brothers and sisters.

Grew up in The Plains, VA, a town of 450 people, 50 miles west of Washington, DC.

Graduated high school from Salisbury School, Salisbury, CT, June 1975. Spent junior year abroad at Le College Cevenol, Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, France, 1973-74.

Attended Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 1975-79. Graduated with a BA in Politics, June 1979. Hiked the 2100-mile Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine, 1977.

Won competitive paid internship with United Way of America, Alexandria, VA, 1979-80. Joined United Way of Tompkins County, Ithaca, NY, as Associate Executive Director, 1980-83.

Attended the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 1983-85. Graduated with an MBA in Marketing, June 1985.

Worked as Account Executive at Young & Rubicam, New York, NY, 1985-88. At the time, Young & Rubicam was the largest advertising agency in the United States.

Worked at Nestlé Waters North America, Greenwich, CT, in various marketing capacities, 1988-1996. Nestlé Waters is the largest bottled water company in the United States and the world. It owns Perrier and San Pellegrino plus numerous domestic bottled water brands including Arrowhead and Calistoga.

Moved to San Luis Obispo, May, 1996. Worked as Marketing Manager for Dioptics Medical Products and then IPTech, 1996-97. Dioptics manufactures SolarShield sunglasses. IPTech develops software for the printing and prepress industry.

Worked as a freelance writer and stay-at-home dad, 1997-2004. Taught marketing at Cal Poly's Orfalea College of Business, 1999-2000.

Worked as Sales and Marketing Manager at CellularOne of San Luis Obispo, 2005-08. CellularOne is a regional wireless communications company. Taught marketing at University of LaVerne and advertising at Cuesta College, 2010.

Regular attendee and speaker at City Council meetings, 2001 to 2006. Served on city's Housing Element Update Task Force, 2003. Served on Planning Commission, 2005-06. Ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2002 and 2004. Elected to City Council, November 2006. Endorsed by The Tribune in all three campaigns. Served as Vice Mayor, 2009-10.

Current board member, Economic Vitality Corporation. Current member, Chamber/City/ County/Cal Poly Collaboration Committee and Citizens Advisory Committee, California Men's Colony. Past member, Chamber Economic Development and Economic Visioning Committees. Past board member, Workforce Housing Coalition, Residents for Quality Neighborhoods, and United Methodist Children's Center. Former Girl Scout cookie chair for 9 years.

Married to Liz Johnston since September 26, 1988. Four children + Rebecca, William, Charlotte, and Eleanor. Family resides at 1283 Woodside Drive.

Ms. Johnston has an MSW and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She is the social worker at Twin Cities Hospital in Templeton and has a private counseling practice in San Luis Obispo. She is working on her PhD and has taught at Cal Poly and the Smith School for Social Work, Northampton, MA.