In 2018, Cisco made a groundbreaking and ambitious commitment to tackle homelessness in Santa Clara County. We pledged $50 million in grants over five years—then the largest corporate donation of its kind—to achieve the following goals:
- To make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring in Santa Clara County.
- To develop a replicable model for other regions beyond Silicon Valley.
- To inspire other companies to join the fight against homelessness.
Our funding has been allocated in three main areas:
- Supportive Housing Development: Our flexible funding has been combined with public funds from the Measure A Housing Bond, enabling us to accelerate the creation of over 3,380 new homes across 35 developments in Santa Clara County. This funding has leveraged more than $1.5 billion from other sources.
- Homelessness Prevention: We supported the pilot and expansion of a county-wide program aimed at preventing homelessness and maintaining housing stability for high-risk individuals and families. This initiative, initially funded by Cisco, has been successful in testing and refining the model, resulting in its adoption by the County of Santa Clara as a permanent service for residents at risk.
- Technology Enhancement: Cisco’s contributions have also addressed the digital divide by improving connectivity for those receiving services. This includes:
- Launching MyConnectSV, an information management portal for people experiencing homelessness.
- Providing in-home Wi-Fi at supportive housing sites.
- Establishing the TECHquity Fund, which offers small grants to nonprofits and individuals for acquiring necessary technology tools.
