California Emerging Technology Fund
Internet for all NOW — A 21st Century Civil Right
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The CETF mission: close the Digital Divide in California by accelerating the deployment and adoption of broadband and other advanced communications services to unserved and underserved communities. CETF is a unique organization in the nation—no other state has a non-profit with a primary mission to close the Digital Divide by addressing the challenges of both “supply” and “demand” to increase the use of technologies enabled by ubiquitous high-speed Internet access.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
School2Home
School2Home is an innovative statewide initiative to close both the Achievement Gap and Digital Divide at low-performing middle schools by integrating the use of Internet-enabled computing devices into teaching and learning coupled with significant parent engagement. It is anchored in research and best practices for improving academic performance and effectively using technology. School2Home employs a compendium of mutually-reinforcing interventions that transform school culture to improve student outcomes on a range of measures.
Telehealth–Telemedicine
Telehealth-Telemedicine is the ability to promote healthy behavior and provide medical care remotely using broadband connectivity between facilities, thus expanding access to vital services and improving the quality of care by linking critical expertise to medically-underserved communities.
Neighborhood Transformation
Residents in low-income neighborhoods face an interrelated set of factors that constitute a “wall of poverty” and a major barrier to broadband adoption. CETF launched Neighborhood Transformation Initiatives in pacesetter communities to align county, city, and school resources to support community leaders and to achieve better outcomes for students and their families, and join forces to tackle poverty.
Digital Literacy
CETF works statewide with a network of community-based organizations (CBOs) and public agencies to increase Digital Literacy. Since 2008 CETF grantees and partners have provided Digital Literacy Training to almost 1M people, including: delivering stand-alone training courses in community facilities; assisting unconnected households become sufficiently digitally-proficient to sign up for an affordable home Internet service and acquire a computing device as part of achieving adoptions; and training parents of students participating in School2Home.
Smart Housing
Smart Housing refers to the policy to ensure publicly-subsidized housing has affordable high- speed Internet connectivity in all units to help residents get out of poverty and transform their lives. There are about 300,000 publicly-subsidized multi-family housing units in California, but most residents are not online. CETF has been a leading voice nationally to advance Smart Housing.
Smart Communities
Smart Communities refers to a policy commitment and focused effort by local governments and civic leaders to optimize broadband deployment as a community grows or redevelops, incorporating it into major public buildings, transportation facilities, and other infrastructure projects. It also means optimizing the use of broadband and other information technologies to deliver public services and integrating it into solutions to major problems to increase efficiency and enhance quality of life. CETF has published several reports that are considered significant reference materials for policymakers and continues to facilitate public policy forums.
The Public Awareness and Education
Internet For All Now (IFAN) and Get Connected! are initiatives of California Emerging Technology Fund, a non-profit organization providing statewide and national leadership to achieve Digital Equity by accelerating broadband deployment and adoption for unserved and underserved communities through public policy and community investments. Today, Internet For All Now (IFAN) and Get Connected! serve as a catalyst for closing the Digital Divide with the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF) providing a consumer-focused platform with information and resources for obtaining affordable home Internet access and digital skills. The IFAN website provides information on affordable high-speed home Internet in multiple languages, Digital Literacy classes and events, Digital Equity advocacy, and tools for community leaders to conduct outreach and increase awareness in digitally-disadvantaged communities.
Adoption: Achieve At Least 90% Adoption Statewide
The California Emerging Technology Fund calls Digital Equity a 21st Century Civil Right. Rural and low-income residents stuck on the wrong side of the Digital Divide are being left behind at an accelerating pace—unable to apply for jobs, keep up in school, or access information about public services. Today 22% of California households are digitally-disadvantaged—12% are Unconnected (not online at home) and 10% are Underconnected (have only a smartphone). Getting residents connected at home to the Internet is called Adoption. Given the depth of economic insecurity among digitally-disadvantaged populations, CETF set an aggressive target of 500,000 Adoptions in 5 years (2018–2022) to achieve a net 90% Adoption statewide. While availability and access to broadband infrastructure is It takes targeted strategies and intense outreach in-language and in-culture by “trusted messengers” to overcome 3 primary barriers for low-income households: (a) cost; (b) relevance; and (c) digital literacy.
Deployment: Achieve At Least 98% Deployment in Each Region
CETF sponsored the Internet For All Now Act of 2017 to add $330 million to the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF), which is administered by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and set the official State Deployment Goal so that at least 98% of all residential households in each region have access to high-speed Internet infrastructure by 2022. Building broadband infrastructure is referred to as Deployment. Since the Legislature and CPUC established CASF in 2008 with $100 million, CETF has sponsored all subsequent legislation related to CASF, adding $545 million with dedicated funding for Regional Consortia, Public Housing, and Adoption. CETF has taken an active role in CASF rulemaking and continues to recommend streamlined procedures to accelerate broadband Deployment.
Where we work
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
California Broadband Adoption Overall Priority Populations
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Economically disadvantaged people, Ethnic and racial groups, People with disabilities, Adults, Students
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Home broadband adoption grew from 55% to 91%, but 9% still are not connected. 13% of California households remain digitally-disadvantaged: 9% are unconnected and 3% are underconnected.
California Broadband Priority Populations - Low-Income Households
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups, Economically disadvantaged people, People with disabilities
Related Program
Adoption: Achieve At Least 90% Adoption Statewide
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
California Broadband Priority Populations - Latino Households
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Adoption: Achieve At Least 90% Adoption Statewide
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
California Broadband Priority Populations- People with Disabilities
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Adoption: Achieve At Least 90% Adoption Statewide
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
California Broadband Priority Populations - Rural Households
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Adoption: Achieve At Least 90% Adoption Statewide
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Overall CETF 3 year Goals
3-Year Strategic Plan Achieving Digital Equity for Community Justice. This horizon aligns with the State’s timeline for investing $6 billion in broadband approved in 2021 by the Governor and Legislature. I t also provides a reasonable arc for the State and stakeholders to gain traction in effectively investing the $1.5+ billion authorized in collections over the next decade into the CPUC California Advanced Services Fund. A hallmark of CETF is a disciplined focus on outcomes and accountability for results. The 3-Year Strategic Plan continues a focus on aggressive Overall Goals to achieve at least:
Achieve Ubiquitous Deployment
• 99% Deployment Each Region
• Sufficient Speeds >100/20 Mbps.
Achieve Universal Adoption
• 99% Adoption Statewide
• 90% Low-Income Households
Achieve Deep Institutionalization
• Action Plan Implementation
• Digital Equity as Agency Culture
CETF also strives to build capacity in other public and private institutions to incorporate Digital Inclusion policies and practices into their ongoing operations and programs. This is called “institutionalization” so that Digital Equity is “rooted” into the organizational culture and actively pursued by all public agencies and major organizations that serve large numbers of low-income households and other disadvantaged populations.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
• Secure increased funding for broadband Deployment, especially the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) administered by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and promote effective implementation.
• Collaborate with State Agencies to assist and facilitate broadband Deployment and incorporate Digital Equity into all policies and programs.
• Support Regional Broadband Consortia (RBCs) and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) pursue Request for Qualifications for Prospective Partnerships (RFQPP) that accelerates ISP competition, and ISPs applications for CASF and other public funding to reach all unserved households (HHs).
• Provide technical assistance and resources for Local Governments to accelerate Deployment.
• Ensure ISPs comply with Deployment public benefit obligations in MOUs with CETF governing corporate consolidations.
ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL ADOPTION
• Achieve 500,000 Adoptions by low-income households through performance-based grants to community-based organizations (CBOs) and public agencies.
• Mobilize to promote affordable home Internet offers, especially the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) under the leadership of the California Broadband Council (CBC) and California Department of Technology (CDT).
• Lead School2Home to close the Digital Divide and Achievement Gap to transform practice and policy for excellence in education.
• Support City of San José to advance Digital Inclusion as a leading model to get online 50,000 low-income households in a decade.
• Optimize Telehealth to improve patient outcomes and increase overall population health.
ACHIEVE DEEP INSTITUTIONALIZATION
• Advance State policy and leadership to achieve Digital Equity.
• Promote legislation for Digital Inclusion programs and funding.
• Pursue performance-based regulations to accelerate broadband Deployment and Adoption in CPUC Proceedings and in filings with the California Air Resources Board (CARB).
• Support Regional Broadband Consortia (RBCs), Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), and Local Governments to achieve Digital Equity.
• Engage civic leaders, build community capacity, and foster public-private partnerships.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
CETF is the only statewide non-profit directed to be established by the CPUC to close the Digital Divide and achieve Digital Equity. CETF has more experience on-the-ground with all stakeholders in all communities and regions of California with a solid record of performance. CETF delivers on results. As a mission-driven statewide organization with extraordinary public-reporting responsibilities, CETF is more transparent and accountable for quantified results than most non-profits, yet also is able to operate with greater agility and innovation than the typical government bureaucracy. These unusual structural characteristics give rise to CETF serving as a catalyst for action by bringing together stakeholders to reach agreement on policy and strategies to accelerate broadband deployment and adoption and to mobilize partners for implementation. It should be underscored that CETF is technology-neutral and refers to “broadband” as a generic term for high-speed Internet infrastructure including wireline and wireless networks, which is the official definition in State statute and is an example of CETF shaping public policy.
CETF develops and manages programs to overcome the 3 primary barriers to broadband adoption by low-income households: (1) Cost; (2) Relevance; (3) Digital Literacy. CETF provides grants to community-based organizations (CBOs) as “trusted messengers” and “honest brokers” to outreach in-language and in-culture to low-income communities and vulnerable populations to get unconnected households online—achieve adoptions—by addressing the 3 barriers. CETF also provides collateral materials, sponsors advertising, and trains and coaches CBOs to increase adoption rates.
CETF established the California Statewide Survey on Broadband Adoption in 2008 to set a data baseline and track progress in achieving adoption of the use of Internet access at home. Since then there have been 4 different independent research partners to conduct the Survey and analyze the results, most recently partnering with the University of Southern California (USC).
The Statewide Survey is used to focus attention and direct investment of resources. It has shown that targeted outreach accelerates broadband adoption and that less than 1% of households today say they don’t want to be online. Once adequate high-speed Internet access is available, the biggest barrier to adoption is “cost” which includes the affordability of both Internet service and an appropriate computing device.
CETF recognizes that technology is only a tool—powerful and empowering—but embraced by digitally-disadvantaged residents (or “adopted”) only when it has relevance to their lives to save time and money. CETF has launched and led major statewide initiatives that are the leading edge of optimizing the impact of broadband, including:
• Secured the Governor’s Executive Order on Digital Literacy
• Founded the California Telehealth Network
• Developed and leads School2Home
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
DEPLOYMENT
• Secured $1B CASF collections, supported $6B State investments for >98% Deployment.
• Advised $100B broadband investment to U.S. Council on Competitiveness.
• Detailed CASF implementation recommendations on effective Deployment strategies in CPUC legal and rulemaking proceedings.
• Guided State Transportation “dig smart” Broadband Corridor strategies.
• Sponsored Preferred Scenarios for ISP CASF and public funding applications.
• Updated Local, Regional Government Resource Guide. Templated Strategic Action Plan Outline, and refined Best Practices Check List to fast track general plan elements, policies, and ordinances.
• Recruited 50 public WiFi locations for ISP MOUs obligations.
• Consulted RBCs to deploy T-Mobile 5G service to 10 rural fairgrounds.
ADOPTION
• Reached >525,000 Adoptions-91% in 2021.
• Launched public awareness campaign and Community Based Organization Adoptions Support Call Center.
• Developed digital literacy training metrics for results evaluation statewide.
• Produced Get Connected! California to enroll 90% of ACP-eligible HHs by 2024, organized 49 events. Built web-based ACP Enrollment Tracker with CDT, CSU Chico, USC.
• Partnered with utilities and 110 School Districts to inform >1.9M low-income customers; and >.96M families about ACP.
• Obliged ISP MOUs to achieve: >800K Adoptions; donate, distribute 25K Chromebooks to needy students (41 Districts, 43 Tribal Organizations).
INSTITUTIONALIZATION
• Convened State Agencies, stakeholders at California Economic Summit to reach Broadband Action Policy consensus, spotlight Governor’s Broadband for All (BFA) Initiative.
• Authored Digital Equity Bill of Rights and Affordable Internet and Net Equality Act.
• Mobilized affordable housing leaders to secure funding to get all publicly-subsidized housing residents online.
• Organized Digital Equity Coalition collaboration with CPUC to optimize CASF impact.
• Urged CARB to recognize broadband as a “green strategy” and promote Digital Equity in AB617 Communities.
• Organized SANDAG-SCAG as “Southern California Transformation” (216 Local Governments, 60% state population) to prioritize Digital Equity, streamline permitting.
• Funded RBCs to engage Local Governments to incorporate broadband Deployment and Adoption best practices, policies.
• Secured SCAG Caltrans grant study: broadband potential to reduce vehicle trip generation, decrease associated greenhouse emissions.
• Convened LA civic leaders with UCLA and released systems change framework to transform schools and neighborhoods with integrated services and Digital Inclusion.
• Established research study to analyze cost-effective models for affordable Internet service, ACP.
• Engaged college leaders statewide as Digital Equity Fellows – future Digital Equity Champions.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We serve the technically disadvantaged, with limited access: online, text , paper, cell, phone.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
California Emerging Technology Fund
Board of directorsas of 03/18/2024
Barbara O'Connor
Professor Emeritus, California State University, Sacramento
Term: 2021 - 2023
Rich Motta
Retired, AT&T
Renée P. Martinez
Emeritus, Los Angeles City College
Jeff Campbell
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Martha M. Escutia
University of Southern California
Jim Kirkland
Trimble Inc.
Tim McCallion
California State University, Los Angeles
Darrell J Stewart
Intel, Americas
Barb Johnston Yellowlees
The Castleton Group
Frances Marie Gipson
Claremont Graduate University
Lenny Mendonca
Former Chief Economic Advisor for Governor Newsom and Senior Partner Emeritus, McKinsey & Co.
Carlos Ramos
Maestro Public Sector
Shireen Shantosham
Nextdoor Kind Foundation, Nextdoor
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 04/28/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.