A $250 million state investment that will create K-16 Education Collaboratives to address equity gaps and enhance education-to-career pipelines in each state region includes $18 million for UC Riverside and the Inland Empire.
Key Takeaway:
- Beginning in 2022–2023, the Inland Empire K16 Collaborative will use the grant money over four years. Smaller groups will get funding from the cooperation. Additionally, the initiative will allocate for community service, technology, internships, scholarships, career development, and low-income students’ tuition support.
- A minimum of one school district, one community college, one university or four-year college, and a workforce partner will be part of route programs that groups create.
We Covered this in our Weekly Wire Roundup
Developing Education-to-Career Pipeline Programs
California Governor Gavin Newsom announced prizes for Los Angeles County, the Southern Border area, and the Inland Empire on August 25. The program was awarded to the Central San Joaquin Valley, North State, Kern County, Redwood Coast, Orange County, and Sacramento districts earlier this summer.
To foster collaboration between the University of California system, the California State University system, community colleges, K-12 school districts, and workforce partners, the Regional K-16 Collaborative Program was created. It is jointly run by the Department of General Services, Office of Public School Construction, and Foundation for California Community Colleges.
The Riverside County Office of Education and the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools will act as co-convenors on behalf of other regional partners that agreed to the project. UCR is the lead applicant for the grant and will hire a staff person to manage the initiative. All 12 Inland Empire/Desert regional community colleges, California State University, San Bernardino, several private non-profit colleges and universities, K–12 school systems, non-profit organizations, and corporate and workforce partners are collaborators in this initiative. After UCR receives the money, a steering group of local partners will ensure they are distributed fairly throughout San Bernardino and Riverside counties, particularly in rural regions.
The initiative will get assistance from Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) and the Riverside County Education Collaborative (RCEC), two area organizations. Both have much experience organizing educational partnerships in the area.
Regional officials discussed using GIA and RCEC to support “equitable educational and economic opportunities for students and address equity barriers in career and technical education pathways in the areas of Healthcare, Engineering and Computing, Business, and Education” in the 93-page Inland Empire application.
Wrap Up!
The $18 Million funds for education purposes are part of UCR’s ongoing commitment to improving the economic development and business climate in the Inland Empire region. By encouraging students to pursue four-year degrees and career-relevant certificates, the university hopes to set Inland Empire students on more successful paths toward high-quality careers supporting their upward mobility.
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