Our Initiatives
What would it look like if residents could shape their neighborhood and build their own solutions?
Children and Youth Master Plan
This initiative is led by Grail Family Services and SOMOS Mayfair.
The Children and Youth Master Plan is aimed at creating and expanding support pathways for all San José children and young adults (from birth to age 24). The City of San Jose has chosen the Collective and our work in the Mayfair District as one of two demonstration sites. We have the opportunity to design and refine a neighborhood-level system of care that can be expanded city and countywide.
In Mayfair, this system would follow a “No Wrong Door Approach” that ensures families receive the support they need regardless of how they access the system. Community leaders will help in designing an effective and streamlined referral system across agencies, improving service coordination, and training promotores and outreach staff to connect families seamlessly to appropriate services.
Community Development
Current Assets
Amigos operates Safe Parking, a motel program and a tiny home community.
GFS operates two state funded preschools and supports a network of licensed child care providers.
Mexican Heritage Plaza is a legacy cultural institution with a Pavilion, theater, classrooms, and reception area.
SOMOS operates 3 Family Resource Centers and organizes 600+ residents across our local schools, neighborhood, and city.
Veggielution is a 6-acre farm with open green spaces, Pavilion area, kitchen, and farmstand.
Projects in the Pipeline
A museum & community organizing hub at the recently purchased Cesar Chavez historical home.
Expanded space for childcare providers to serve families.
A cultural district that brings more businesses, arts, housing, and vibrancy to the Alum Rock Corridor.
Developing a housing co-op and bringing homes into community control
A commercial kitchen to support local food entrepreneurs and their small businesses.
Mayfair Neighborhood Trust
On behalf of the Sí Se Puede Collective and the East San José community, the Mexican Heritage Plaza and SOMOS Mayfair are leading a joint effort to revitalize the historic MACSA site. Together, these organizations have formed a joint venture — the Mayfair Neighborhood Trust — to lead a community-driven process rooted in equity, cultural preservation, and neighborhood resilience. This initiative will bring together key partners in education, employment, health, and social services to transform MACSA into a vibrant community hub. This work is part of a broader vision to build the strong, supportive community our families deserve.
Jobs to Grow
An Initiative Led by Grail Family Services and Veggielution
As one of our most exciting initiatives, Jobs to Grow advances economic mobility in East San Jose by training and supporting residents interested in starting their own business. We currently offer two tracks of participation: childcare provision and food entrepreneurship.
Participants receive 80+ hours of training on industry-specific knowledge and how to run a business. Veggielution and Grail Family Services serve as project leads, providing trainings ranging from first aid & CPR classes, to tax preparation workshops, to individual support navigating local license requirements. Participants involved in the program participate in year-long cohorts, where they also receive one-on-one mentorship, case management and referral services. In 2023, our 2nd cohort graduated through this program. Jobs to Grow alumni have gone on to start small local businesses and co-ops across San Jose! Learn how to join this program.
You can learn more about the full impact of our Jobs to Grow
program in our Year 2 Evaluation Report.
%
attendance rate of participants IN business workshops
%
of Participants had an increase sense of community-belonging
%
of Participants had an increase in business knowledge
Silicon Valley Guaranteed Income Project
An initiative is led by Amigos de Guadalupe.
The ¡Sí Se Puede! Collective is proudly working with a coalition of partners on the Silicon Valley Guaranteed Income Project. This is a 2-year project designed to help participants achieve housing stability as well as greater independence over their lives, finances, and future. 150 Santa Clara County families who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness will receive $1,000/month in no-strings-attached income for 24 months.
This unconditional income is meant to give families the flexibility to decide how best to meet their needs – and participants will have complete freedom to use these payments however they choose.
