REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Action on the Establishment of a Silicon Valley Power Scholarship - Silicon Valley Power Sustainable Futures (SVPSF) Program and Delegate Authority to the City Manager to Negotiate a Final Grant Agreement with Santa Clara University
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Manage Strategically Our Workforce Capacity and Resources
Enhance Community Engagement and Transparency
Promote Sustainability and Environmental Protection
BACKGROUND
Since 2006, Silicon Valley Power (SVP) has offered local scholarships for traditional four-year institutions as well as trade and community college opportunities. Over 56 students in the Santa Clara community have benefited from scholarship awards ranging from $2,000 to $5,000.
U.S. clean energy employment accounts for 3.01% or 484,980 jobs in California growing annually by 2.2%. Fields in energy and sustainability are expanding locally and across the nation, and there is a growing awareness of the importance of an equitable and just transition into the emerging green jobs sector.
Providing educational and employment opportunities for the next generation is critical to Silicon Valley Power’s Vision Statement: Innovating creative energy solutions for a resilient and sustainable community. Investing in a green jobs workforce pipeline is critical to achieving SVP’s Vision Statement and the City’s Climate Goals. The skillsets needed to compete in the emerging green jobs is expanding rapidly. This is particularly true for employees trying to advance in this field in the Bay Area where the energy, sustainability, and climate drivers are leading the way in accelerating this field.
SVP is proposing to add a new multi-year scholarship program focused on creating access to education in the field of sustainability through partnerships with Santa Clara University (SCU) and Mission College. The primary scholarship program is the Silicon Valley Power Sustainable Futures (SVPSF) Program, in partnership with Santa Clara University. This program will target over 35 students over the five-year program beginning with the Fall 2022 School Year, including a Sustainability Fellowship Program with SCU.
An additional effort to support Mission College students in areas related to sustainability is being developed in partnership with Mission College to provide a comprehensive, scaffolded approach to supporting Santa Clara students in sustainability and green jobs related educational pursuits. With this more tailored focus on needed talent development, SVP will also be ending the former scholarship program after this year’s selection and consider additional focus talent and diversity development options.
DISCUSSION
The Scholarship:
The goal of the SVPSF Program is to catalyze an education and green workforce pipeline of diverse talent and leadership in sustainability and clean energy sectors. Awards will be offered to students pursuing education in fields of study related to environmental sustainability, clean energy and/or climate resilience and based on the following premises:
• Access and Affordability: The SVPSF Scholarship will support annual gap scholarships that improve access to undergraduate studies at SCU with a preference for community-college transfer students from traditionally underrepresented socio-economic backgrounds.
• High-Impact Learning Experiences: The SVPSF Fellowship will support annual high-impact learning experiences that provide real-world perspectives and experiences, as well as opportunities to build critical applied skills that enhance students’ early-career and post-graduate success.
• Partnership Opportunities: Using a model of student-led projects that provides increased understanding of local climate or sustainability related problems, the City and the SCU can build opportunities for developing local solutions and recommendations through student research and community outreach while providing exposure to green jobs.
Scholarship Award Amounts/SVP Financial Commitment:
SVP/the City will enter into an agreement with Santa Clara University allowing SVP to provide annual funds of $75,000 per year to be distributed to scholarship recipients over a five-year period beginning in the Fall of 2022. Administration of those funds will be managed by the Santa Clara University Enrollment Management Division. Student selection criteria will be developed by the SCU with input from the SCU Sustainability Department and SVP/the City. The SVPSF Program will be broken into two focus areas:
1. SVPSF Scholarship Program - $60,000 awarded to a minimum of four (4) unique scholarship recipients at an average of $15,000 each to qualified students in each year of the five-year grant term. SCU will prioritize the selection of candidates who:
• Demonstrate a clear intention to pursue undergraduate studies and a career path in sustainability or clean power jobs.
• Come from backgrounds historically underrepresented in sustainability.
• Apply for transfer from a two-year course of study, with preferences for students transferring from Mission College and other Santa Clara County community colleges.
2. The SVPSF Fellowship Program - $15,000 distributed to at least three (3) unique fellowships of $5,000 each ($15,000 in total) annually to qualified students in each year of the grant term. The SVPSF Fellowship experience is designed to enable students to explore intersectional issues surrounding the global climate crisis as well as application and scaling of climate solutions at the local level, using the SCU campus and the City of Santa Clara as living laboratories.
A. The goals/qualifications for the SVPSF Fellowship established by SVP/the City include:
1. Integration of Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) practices into sustainability projects; and
2. Focus on climate and sustainability issues at the local (City of Santa Clara) level.
FISCAL IMPACT
Sufficient funds are available in the department’s advertising and community promotion operating budget for this program. Funding for future years will be incorporated into the biennial budget.
COORDINATION
This report has been coordinated with the Electric Department, the City Manager’s Office, and the Finance Department.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov <mailto:clerk@santaclaraca.gov> or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Delegate authority to the City Manager to negotiate a final Grant Agreement with Santa Clara University to establish the Silicon Valley Power Sustainable Futures Program to be administered by Santa Clara University and for Silicon Valley Power to commit $75,000 per year over five years.
Staff
Reviewed by: Manuel Pineda, Chief Electric Utility Officer
Approved by: Rajeev Batra, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Santa Clara University Grant Agreement