New federal regulations will restrict how long international students can attend U.S. colleges, and schools are scrambling to work through the problem as the fall semester begins. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finalized a rule that limits most international students on F-1 visas and J-1 exchange visitor visas to a four-year education...
Has mass timber’s housing moment arrived in the South Bay?
South Bay housing advocates have long touted the benefits of mass timber, a wood-based class of construction materials said to save builders time and money. After years of false starts, it appears their long wait to see mass timber housing projects get off the ground may finally be coming to an end. An affordable housing...
State lawmaker hosts Silicon Valley town hall on Al hiring trends
State Sen. Josh Becker hosted a recent town hall focused on moving the artificial intelligence conversation beyond questions such as, “Will a robot take my job?” and toward its concrete impact. “We know that AI is already beginning to reshape people’s lives and the nature of California’s economy,” Becker said during the virtual town hall....
Santa Clara County nonprofits face the reality of budget cuts
Santa Clara County officials attempted to be as strategic as possible with the services they slashed due to a $787 million deficit predominantly caused by deep federal cuts. The shortfall forces nonprofits on the front line to constrict their services. Nonprofits across the board will be particularly hampered in prevention efforts in order to preserve...
VTA broke ridership record during Silicon Valley World Cup matches
VTA carried 230,000 passengers across the six FIFA World Cup matches hosted in the Bay Area since last month, setting its all-time special event ridership record. The public transit agency also reported setting its single-event ridership record on June 25 for the match between Paraguay and Australia, when nearly 42,000 fans rode transit to and...
Silicon Valley residents share what America means to them
Immigrants from around the world are drawn to America for the opportunity to create a better life, and Silicon Valley has been a magnet for such diversity. Whether it’s foreign-born transplants looking to hit it big in tech, families escaping persecution or searching for a fresh start — their dream is to find freedom and...
Santa Clara County immigrant network evolved into powerhouse
President Donald Trump’s mass deportations of undocumented immigrants have turbocharged local response to protect Santa Clara County residents from harm. The Rapid Response Network (RRN), a regional volunteer-based coalition providing real-time alerts of federal immigration enforcement, has more than tripled its number of responders to 3,000 people since it began nearly a decade ago. The...
State commits millions of dollars to fight food insecurity
Santa Clara County is set to see a surge of investment in helping its hungriest residents obtain food thanks to millions of dollars from the state. California lawmakers passed a budget that provides $108 million for the CalFood program to allow food banks to purchase, transport and store produce. The budget also commits $20 million...
South County cities pass on joining ICE facility lawsuit
Advocates campaigning against a planned ICE facility in South County are expressing disappointment after two nearby cities decided not to throw their support behind a lawsuit challenging the project. Multiple city and county governments across the Bay Area and beyond have signed onto an amicus brief in support of the case filed last month by Santa...
Silicon Valley immigration advocates say birthright fight isn’t over
For more than a year, immigrant families across Santa Clara County have wondered whether a constitutional right that’s existed for generations would disappear after a Supreme Court ruling. Tuesday’s decision brought relief to many, but advocates said the fight over birthright citizenship is far from over. The U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling rejected...