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• Irma Cota, MPH

Irma Cota, MPH

President & Chief Executive Officer

Irma Cota is the President and Chief Executive Officer of North County Health Services, a non-profit community health care organization in the north region of San Diego County. She has been serving in this capacity for over 13 years. Under her direction, NCHS serves more than 60,000 individuals annually at 11 clinic locations, providing comprehensive medical, dental, mental health, and health education services. In addition, Ms. Cota oversees a WIC program serving over 11,400 women and children and a county-wide HIV/Case Management program.

Ms. Cota has extensive experience in executive management, strategic program planning, finance, and operational management in both the public and private sector. Under her direction, NCHS has become an organization with an annual budget of $40 million and a staff of more than 500. NCHS is accredited by the Joint Commission of Accreditation for Healthcare Organization (TJC), joining a handful of community health centers nationwide that have achieved this distinction.

Ms. Cota is well respected nationally for her commitment to excellence, as well as for her business acumen. She is active in addressing social health and education inequities through various organized efforts locally and statewide.

Ms. Cota serves on numerous boards. She is the Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Cooperative Bank and Board member of the Council of Community Clinics in San Diego. She recently served on the California State University San Marcos’ University Council and serves in the Board of Directors for the San Marcos Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to a Masters degree in Public Health from San Diego State University, Ms. Cota holds three certificates in health administration from John’s Hopkins University, University of California, San Diego and UCLA Johnson & Johnson.

Ms. Cota has received many honorswhich include recognition by The San Diego Business Journal as one of the region’s “Women who Mean Business,” recognition by North San Diego Lifestyle magazine as one of the region’s “50 People to Watch,” and as the 2001 “Woman of Distinction” by the Oceanside Soroptimist Club. In 2003 she received San Diego County’s Public Health Champion Award and in 1993, the “Distinguished Alumni” award from the San Diego State University School of Public Health. More recently she was a 2009 Finalist for the San Diego Business Journal's Most Admired CEO Award and in March 2010 was recognized by KPBS and Union Bank's celebration of Women's History month.