As Director of Operations at SV@Home, Sonia brings with her more than 25 years of professional experience in operations management and leadership development with corporate, nonprofit and government agencies. She worked alongside Senator John Vasconcellos for 14 years as he chaired the Public Safety, Education, and Economic Development committees, as well as the Senate Subcommittee on Aging. Sonia and her family have a long history and lifetime commitment to working on social justice, immigrant issues and other needs in the Latino community. The Avitia Family was awarded the La Familia Award from the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley in 2003.

Born in Durango, Mexico and arriving as an infant she considers herself a San Jose Native and is bilingual and bicultural. She is is a Santa Clara University graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Currently, she continues to run her own business as Sales Director with Mary Kay Cosmetics, co-parent her niece Dahlia and her nephew Carlos Joaquin, enjoys spending time with her husband of 18 years and loves to escape into a good book.

Regina has spent her entire career working towards housing and economic justice through affordable housing and community development. She has most recently served as Director of Housing Development at First Community Housing, a leading San José-based affordable housing developer. Previous to joining First Community Housing, Regina was a member of the National Development Council’s East Team providing housing and economic development consulting services to several East Coast municipalities, leading NDC’s green initiatives, and teaching several courses on community and housing development finance. She has also worked at the National Housing Trust, structuring financing for and overseeing the rehabilitation of occupied affordable housing properties while employing green construction features.

Born and raised in Richmond, CA, after a significant stint on the East Coast Regina has called San José home for many years, having both of her daughters here in the heart of Silicon Valley.

As Policy and Research Senior Associate, Alison’s work supports evidence-based policy through qualitative and quantitative research across a broad range of housing topics. She believes that now more than ever, policymakers need access to nuanced, accurate, accessible data to make effective housing policy that engages and respects our communities. Alison holds a Master of Public Administration from San Jose State University and a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Central Florida.

A long-time Bay Area resident living in a vibrant East San Jose community, Alison is involved in hands-on organizing and service, especially around housing and public education. In her free time, Alison enjoys experiencing a great local adventure with her family, taking a class, hiking with friends, or curling up with a great book.

Antonia has spent 14 years in business and operations management. She most recently joins us as a Brand Experience and Client Development Manager for a major, upscale retailer supporting the C-suite with scheduling, accounting, public relations, events production, and client development. Previous to that, as a small business administrator, she thrived in a fast-paced, growing company while managing human resources, sales analysis and reporting. Antonia has experience managing and growing teams to deliver top-notch customer service and improved business efficiency, processes and procedures. She is a proud San Jose resident and looks forward to contributing her time and talents to advancing SV@Home’s mission for a more vibrant and equitable San Jose. In her spare time, Antonia enjoys creating memories with her family. Together they enjoy exploring the outdoors– biking, camping, fishing and swimming.

Tom is an avid traveler who worked for the City of San Jose’s housing department for many years. He retired in 2016 and now provides statistical analysis and research for Silicon Valley at Home.

As Director of Strategic Initiatives, David spearheads SV@Home’s strategies for achieving high levels of affordable housing through major planning areas and projects. This means collaborating closely with community advocates, local elected officials, city staff, and developers, both non-profit and for profit, to craft land use proposals that respond to our shared affordability crisis.

A former U.S. diplomat, David has experience living and working across eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, and the former Soviet Union.

When he’s not at work, you can find David enjoying a hike with his wife in the Bay Area’s incredible parks, training for the next triathlon, or maybe just reading a good book at a local coffee shop.

David holds an MSc in comparative politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science as well as a BA in International Affairs from George Washington University. He speaks French and some Russian.

In the role of Communications Manager, Tom offers more than 30 years of experience in the planning and execution of external communications efforts to help SV@HOME raise awareness, improve audience engagement and boost participation to support the organization’s mission. Prior to this, he served as a communications professional in the technology industry concentrating mostly on semiconductor firms in the Silicon Valley and around the world.

Tom’s first encounter with Silicon Valley’s affordable housing issues came in 1999 when his landlord imposed a 35 percent increase in monthly rental fees while he was earning industry recognition for his business reporting as Senior Editor at Electronic News. Before that, he earned a journalism award for his work on an environmental clean-up of the beach town of Avila Beach as a Senior Reporter for the Santa Maria Times.

Tom earned a bachelor’s degree in English from The College of New Jersey. In his spare time, he enjoys the beach, redwoods, and breathtaking sunsets with his family.

As Preservation and Protection Associate, Emily assists in the implementation of SV@Home’s approach to tenant protections, affordable housing preservation, and comprehensive anti‐displacement policy solutions, all undertaken in an equity framework.

Prior to joining SV@Home, Emily worked at a political consulting firm, where she had the opportunity to work on campaigns for Congresswoman Anna Eshoo and Close the Gap California, an initiative to recruit progressive women to the State Legislature. From 2009 to 2017, she brought together technology startups and community groups for events at The Tech Museum of Innovation in Downtown San Jose. Outside of work, Emily volunteers as a member of the City of Mountain View’s Rental Housing Committee, a board director of the Community Services Agency of Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, and with the League of Women Voters Los Altos – Mountain View Area’s Housing Committee.

Emily holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the California Maritime Academy. She is a tinkerer and loves to look at the source code for everything. She finds great joy in exploring uncommon uses for tools and processes and her life’s work is to enable exceptional people and great institutions to change the world. Born and raised in the Bay Area by Filipino immigrants, Emily is passionate about keeping Silicon Valley an innovative, inclusive and diverse community.

Mathew leads the policy team at SV@Home working across Santa Clara County for stable and affordable housing for all. He has a decades long commitment to affordable housing development, preservation and policy. Beginning as a tenant organizer in New Jersey in the 1990s, he has worked to bring community interests to housing policy discussions and to insure that affordable housing is a part of our understanding of inequality and our movements for social justice.

In the Bay Area, he has worked in the public, non-profit, and the private sectors as a housing demographer, a social policy evaluator, and an organizer.

Mathew holds a PhD in Urban Sociology and Social Policy from Northwestern University.

Kenneth (he/him) has been a grassroots organizer and an environmental planner for the past 14 years in the South Bay. He worked with the City of San José for just over five years implementing environmental compliance programs with the Planning Division and the Environmental Services Department, including environmental clearance of development projects under the California Environmental Quality Act and municipal-regional green stormwater infrastructure regulations for new and redevelopment projects. Before the City of San José, Kenneth worked with the Sierra Club, Loma Prieta Chapter for over two years to support volunteer leaders on several environmental campaigns, such as (but not limited to) sustainable land use and anti-fracking advocacy efforts. Kenneth has also been an active member in his community since moving to Ohlone Muwekma/Tamien lands in 2007 – he has been involved in local environmental issues, progressive politics, and coalition-building efforts across a large diversity of social justice organizations.

Kenneth is a child of Nicaraguan immigrant parents. He was born in San Francisco but was raised in Daly City until he left the nest to earn his BS Environmental Studies major/Political Science minor and master’s in Urban and Regional Planning degrees at San José State University. He is a sci-fi and fan fiction nerd; he loves to skateboard and hike; and he is a big “music-head” who enjoys collecting vinyl records and learning to DJ and play the bass guitar.

As Community Engagement Senior Associate, Cory works on state, regional, and local housing campaigns, and also supports SV@Home Action Fund’s legislative program.

Prior to joining SV@Home, Cory worked in and with government in multiple roles: as an elected official, staffer, consultant, and advocate. On the Palo Alto City Council from 2015 – 2018, he prioritized addressing the housing crisis through accessory dwelling unit liberalization, zoning reform, and tenant protection. In addition to housing policy, he has worked on initiatives relating to transportation, climate action, fair wages, civil liberties, and electoral reform. Cory has mentored numerous local candidates and their teams, sharing lessons learned from his first-hand experience in politics and public service.

Cory holds a B.A. in Political Science / International Relations from the University of California, San Diego. When not working or volunteering, he enjoys exploring the region’s neighborhoods, hiking trails, and backroads. A Silicon Valley native, Cory is committed to helping create a more equitable, prosperous, and sustainable future.