Cox Communications’ $150,000 holiday gift brings stability and renewed hope to Monarch School students

As the winter solstice approaches and the holiday lights glitter from so many windows, we are reminded that not everyone is celebrating; that not everyone lives in certainty. For students experiencing homelessness, stability isn’t temporary relief but a foundation for hope, dreams, and possibility. For too many of San Diego’s students, that foundation often feels shaky. But this holiday season, one generous gift—delivered in a spirit of community care—is helping reinforce the ground beneath their feet.

Cox Communications announced this month that it has committed a $150,000 grant to the Monarch School Project. This investment will support critical basic needs of Monarch’s community, including housing, food security, and essential wraparound services.

As the nation’s only public-private K–12 institutions exclusively serving youth experiencing homelessness, the Monarch School Project has long understood that education cannot flourish without stability. For more than three decades, Monarch has provided a haven that marries academic opportunity with trauma-informed care and emotional support to help young people heal and thrive.

It’s never out of season to reflect on compassion, connection, and community, but this gift at this time sends a powerful message and underscores a core value for Cox: The importance of investing in the next generation and supporting local nonprofits in the communities Cox serves.

A gift that multiplies

Not only does this grant support Monarch’s students, but it also energizes the greater community at a pivotal moment. Thanks to Cox’s generosity, gifts made now—during the midpoint of Monarch’s end-of-year campaign—will have triple the impact, inspiring renewed momentum and deeper community participation.

“We are deeply grateful to Cox Communications for this generous investment in our students and families,” said Debra Molyneux, interim CEO of the Monarch School. “Their partnership helps ensure every child has the stability and support needed to learn and thrive, bringing us closer to our vision of a future where an experience of homelessness never defines or limits a child’s promise.”

Stability makes the impossible possible

For students at the Monarch School Project, stability isn’t just about meeting basic needs. It’s about the freedom to imagine who they can one day become.

“Monarch staff helped me discover the subject that gives me purpose and supported me through my hardest moments in school and undergrad,” said one alum from the class of 2019, now in college.

Another student, who graduated this past spring, spoke of how stability changed his family’s future.

“Hearing my mom say, ‘We might get a house soon,’ felt good. Monarch was automatically a stable environment for me. And to have a male role model, like a coach, in your life when you weren’t growing up with one…feels really good. It inspires you to actually try for those bonds with people in your life.”

These aren’t testimonials but reminders—echoed in many variations by other Monarch students—that the school’s unique and human-centered approach touches all aspects of a student’s life both during and outside of school hours. Focused on empowering students to influence their own growth through academic success and social emotional learning, the faculty and staff provide safety and belonging.

“If I ever need help or something,” said another Class of 2025 graduate, “they are going to be here, and they will help me.”

This promise, that no student walks their path alone, is bolstered by Cox Communications’ past and current commitments.

Cox’s longstanding commitment to educational opportunity

Cox has supported the Monarch School Project for nearly a decade and since 2012, the company has been a national leader on closing the digital divide through affordable internet programs like Connect2Compete and ConnectAssist.

“Supporting the Monarch School is about more than education,” said Sam Attisha, SVP of the west region network and field operations and member of the Monarch’s board since 2020. “It’s about restoring dignity, hope, and opportunity for students who deserve a chance to dream big despite unimaginable challenges.”

The news and editorial staffs of The San Diego Union-Tribune had no role in this post’s preparation.