This spring, the L.A. Opportunity Youth Collaborative joined key public and private partners in the final meeting of an 18-month strategic planning process, which aims to reduce the number of disconnected youth by 32,000 over the next four years. Building from the successes of the L.A. Performance Partnership Pilot (LAP3) strategic plan, the new Horizons 32K plan will facilitate the connection of an additional 32,000 young people annually to sustainable education and employment pathways.

We extend heartfelt thanks to our partners, including the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the City of Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development Department (EWDD), the Los Angeles City Youth Development Department, the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE), the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), Los Angeles County's Youth Development and Mental Health departments, LAUSD's Adult Education division, and the Los Angeles Community College District.

Los Angeles County is home to more than 143,000 Opportunity Youth—youth ages 16-24 who are not in school or working, or who are at high risk of disconnection due to their involvement in the homeless, child welfare or justice systems. Through the Horizons 32K initiative, partners will implement preventative and intervention strategies to engage these young people in education and career pathways. This initiative aims to cultivate foundational knowledge and workplace opportunities that are critical to youth development.

UNITE-LA and our partners are identifying metrics needed to track the ambitious goal of reducing the number of disconnected youth, with plans to publish the detailed strategic plan and roadmap this fall.

For more information, please reach out to Amber Chatman, Director of Workforce Systems and Policy, at [email protected].