The County of San Mateo is dedicated to advancing equity. Equity is the goal of just and fair inclusion into a society in which all can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential. To achieve equity, we must create the conditions that allow all to reach their full potential.
To identify the ways the County structure can create the right conditions, a Chief Equity Officer was hired in May 2021. The Chief Equity Officer has built an internal cross-departmental team with seven committees that are working to develop a countywide Racial and Social Equity Plan with specific countywide and departmental actions to advance equity. The County is planning to build a community advisory committee to support equity efforts, as well as an Office of Racial and Social Justice to hold the capacity to provide support across the county departments as we collectively advance equity.
The San Mateo County Recovery Initiative started over a year ago and through input from community leaders, cities, and institutions, millions of dollars were allocated to support food access, housing, childcare, digital access, small businesses and more.
We continue to experience more severe impacts on our communities of color and low-income communities. We want to make sure we are still prioritizing the right things to support those most impacted.
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[1] PolicyLink. PolicyLink is a national research and action institute advancing racial and economic equity by Lifting Up What Works®. https://www.policylink.org/