Jo has lived and worked in western Massachusetts since the late 1990s, arriving fresh out of New York City’s Hunter College School of Social Work where she focused on homelessness policy, prison reform, and earned an MSW. 

In the region, Jo led a crisis intervention outreach team through the Center for Human Development focused on creating a high-impact team capable of addressing the myriad and often intersecting root causes of crisis. She then organized for seven years as the director of the western Massachusetts American Friends Service Committee, moving to direct the programs of The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts where she worked to meet the immediate demands of hunger and launched a pilot program to reduce food insecurity in the region.

After The Food Bank, Jo led National Priorities Project, a national budget and tax priorities research organization, as its executive director. NPP garnered a Nobel Peace Prize nomination in Jo’s final year. After NPP, Jo was a Campaign Director for MoveOn focusing on a range of issues from gun safety to health care.  Jo’s wife, Ann, is a public school teacher and member of the Northampton School Committee. Jo and Ann have two children. They live in Northampton with their dog and two cats.

Senator Sal DiDomenico has proudly served as State Senator for the Middlesex and Suffolk District of Massachusetts since May of 2010.  He represents a diverse district that includes the communities of Charlestown, Chelsea, Everett, and half the city of Cambridge. Throughout his tenure in the Massachusetts Senate, Sal has remained committed to enhancing the lives of his constituents and residents across the Commonwealth.

Since his election to the Senate, Senator DiDomenico has been a vocal advocate of ensuring high quality and accessible early education and care for children in the Commonwealth, tackling environmental injustice, improving economic opportunities for working families, fighting food insecurity in our communities, increasing public education funding, and providing world-class healthcare for all children and their families in Massachusetts. Some of Senator DiDomenico’s recent legislative accomplishments related to food access include passing Breakfast After the Bell and Universal School Meals to ensure no Massachusetts student goes hungry in school, increasing funding for food banks, creating a common application to expand access to SNAP benefits, and increasing cash assistance programs to families in need.

Senator DiDomenico currently serves as Assistant Majority Leader of the Massachusetts Senate, Chair of the Senate Committee on Bills in the Third Reading and Vice Chair of the Joint Committee on Education.  He also serves as a member of the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, Senate Committee on Steering and Policy, Senate Committee on Personnel and Administration, and the Joint Committee on Export. 

During his time in the State Senate, Senator DiDomenico has filed several pieces of landmark legislation that have been signed into law focusing on issues of community development, education, children's health, economic development, human and social services, food insecurity, and public safety.  Senator DiDomenico has also been recognized by over sixty organizations for his advocacy in the Legislature.

Prior to his election to the State Senate, Sal began his work in public service by holding four terms as an Everett City Councilor and serving as President of the Everett City Council, as well as Chief of Staff to former State Senator Anthony Galluccio.   Before entering state government, he spent twelve years working in the hospitality industry at Sonesta International Hotels and Marriott International.

Senator DiDomenico is a graduate of Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School and earned his B.A. in Business Administration from Boston College. Sal and his wife Tricia, a special education teacher, reside in Everett with their two sons, Matthew and Sal, and their dog Buddy.