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Category: Past Program

New Mapping Tool Reveals California Suburban and Rural Counties are Disproportionately Impacted by Gun Violence

While urban centers are often thought of as the leading settings of gun violence, a new mapping report by grantee Hope and Heal Fund, produced in partnership with RomoGIS Enterprises, reveals that two-thirds of California’s gun homicides during 2014-2022 occurred outside urban settings and California’s most populated cities. Using the California Gun Homicides 2014-2022 Dashboard, …

Increasing Inequalities in Silicon Valley Highlighted in New Report by Grantee SJSU Human Rights Institute

A new report by San José State University’s (SJSU) Human Rights Institute features data that highlights Silicon Valley’s persistent racial, employment, education, housing, and income/wealth inequality, as well as the astronomical concentration of wealth in the hands of a small number of households and companies. The fourth annual Silicon Valley Pain Index (SVPI) is a meta-analysis of …

Introducing Three New Colleagues

The Heising-Simons Foundation is excited to welcome two new program officers, joining our Climate and Clean Energy and Human Rights teams, and a program associate joining our Community and Opportunity team.

Q&A with Maritza Maldonado, Executive Director of Grantee Amigos de Guadalupe Center for Justice and Empowerment

Established in 2012, Amigos de Guadalupe Center for Justice and Empowerment (Amigos de Guadalupe) is a nonprofit organization based in the Mayfair neighborhood of East San Jose, California, that primarily serves the immigrant community with financial security, educational, housing, and advocacy opportunities. Amigos de Guadalupe is also one of the founding members of the Si …

Leading with Trust in Local Grantmaking

In fall 2021, members of the Foundation’s Community and Opportunity (C&O) team took part in a Remote Learning Series offered by Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) with a focus on community-driven funding. The goal of our participation in this pilot was to better support local grantee partners as they build the power of residents in San Jose, California to influence local policy and systems change.

Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley Executive Director Interview, Gabby Chavez- Lopez

We interviewed Gabby Chavez-Lopez, executive director of the Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley. The organization receives funding through the Heising-Simons Foundation’s Community and Opportunity program.

Strengthening Civic Participation and Racial Justice in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties

The Heising-Simons Foundation believes in the importance of building local resident power and supports San Jose community organizations, emerging leaders, and a strong ecosystem of city government, nonprofits, and residents. Believing that a healthy democracy is dependent upon all community members participating in the public policy process and exercising influence over the decisions that affect …

Supporting the Next Generation of Bay Area Nonprofit Leaders

Cultivating homegrown talent to serve as the next generation of executive directors for community nonprofits in Silicon Valley is challenging, due the high cost of living and lack of resources to run extensive leadership development programs. At the same time, it’s important for agencies critical to the region’s well-being to retain leadership talent rooted in, and reflective of, the communities they serve.

U.S. Census 2020: Ensuring Every Child Is Counted

In exactly one year from today, the U.S. Census Bureau will begin counting the number of people living in the United States. The data collected by the decennial census are used to determine the allocation of hundreds of billions of dollars in funding for federal, state, local, and tribal governments each year, establish a state’s number of congressional seats in the House of Representatives, and even influence where and how businesses run their organizations.