San Francisco. This past Monday, at the encouragement of Mayor Ed Lee, sf.citi helped organize leaders within the tech industry to share best practices and marshal the resources and talent of the tech sector to help address common challenges in housing, education, jobs and affordability facing San Franciscans.
Following that meeting, sf.citi is proud to announce the creation of three new committees that, in partnership with Mayor Lee, members of the Board of Supervisors and experienced leaders in their respective fields, will engage the broader tech community to give back and partner to develop innovative solutions to some of the most pressing issues impacting San Franciscans.
“More than ever, the industry as a whole is ready to roll up its sleeves and work together on issues impacting all San Franciscans and to make sure our City’s economic success reaches all of our residents and neighborhoods,” stated sf.citi Chairman Ron Conway.
In collaboration with SPUR, the Salesforce.com Foundation, and the San Francisco Unified School District, sf.citi will launch and spearhead committees that will advocate for affordable housing development, increase philanthropic efforts and social responsibility within the tech community, and build a local jobs pipeline that will expand technical education programs for San Francisco students.
Gabriel Metcalf will lead the Affordable Housing Committee. sf.citi will also extend invitations to representatives from various sectors including housing advocates, real estate and housing development. Metcalf is the Executive Director of SPUR, and has authored several articles on urban planning.
“As someone who participated in Monday’s meeting, I was not only impressed but inspired to see that the tech community understands the opportunity we have in front of us,” said Metcalf. “I am honored to help play a role in bringing together interests from multiple sectors to help craft tangible solutions to the housing predicament in San Francisco.”
Suzanne DiBianca will lead the Philanthropy Committee which will help tech companies establish foundations and engage their employees in meaningful volunteer efforts within the community. As President of the Salesforce.com Foundation, DiBianca leads Salesforce.com’s 1/1/1 model of integrated corporate philanthropy. To date, the foundation has given more than 500,000 hours of volunteer time, more than $53 million in grants, and more than 20,000 non-profits use Salesforce to manage their organizations.
“I look forward to helping other local tech companies establish their own foundations,” said DiBianca. “Together, we can tackle some of the most pressing issues facing the City today.”
Laura Moran will lead the Education Committee to build a local jobs pipeline which will consist of three stages: early exposure to coding for elementary and middle school students, expanding high school IT curricula, and creating internship and job opportunities for students at San Francisco State University. Each stage will focus on engaging under served populations throughout San Francisco. Laura Moran is the Chief of Staff to San Francisco Schools Superintendent Richard Carranza.
These committees will begin meeting in early January and will help shape ongoing policy initiatives within sf.citi. sf.citi’s mission is to unite the technology community in San Francisco while tapping into the innovation and talent of tech employees to solve historic problems facing San Francisco.
Media Contact: Alex Tourk (415) 291-9501
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