We are excited to welcome Eric Iskowitz to the L.A. Compact team in his role as Research and Evaluation (R&E) Manager! In this role, Eric will be engaging in a range of R&E projects across the organization.

We are excited to have Amber Chatman join the L.A. Compact team as our new Director of Workforce Systems and Policy. In this role, Amber will lead strategies to increase the capacity of public workforce systems, build political will for equity-centered workforce strategies, and influence employer practices to improve economic mobility for opportunity youth and low-income workers.

We are thrilled to have Dominique Rougeau join the team as our L.A. Compact Coordinator. In this role, Dominique will support the day-to-day tasks of L.A. Compact work groups, including co-convening the L.A. Unified School District's Community Schools Steering Committee. She will also be responsible for enhancing the Compact's visibility and elevating the work of UNITE-LA and the Compact partners across multiple communication platforms.

Since Mid-February, L.A. Compact staff, also serving as regional conveners of the L.A. Region K-16 Collaborative, have been bringing stakeholders together from across the county to disperse $13.9 million in funds. The L.A. Region K-16 Collaborative builds on the work and partnership of the L.A. Compact, formed to eliminate enrollment and completion disparities for BIPOC students in health care, computer science and engineering pathways.

In February, the L.A. Unified Community Schools Steering Committee welcomed 21 new schools as the fourth cohort of the Community Schools Initiative. The schools will start their transformation journey during the 2023-24 school year, with each school receiving a community school coordinator and a community representative. In March, L.A. Unified applied for a 2023 California Community Schools Partnership Program Implementation Grant, which would provide an additional $33.4 million to support Cohort 4 community schools over five years.

In 2021, more than 25,000 additional 16- to 24-year-olds were disconnected from school and work in Los Angeles compared to 2019. Notably, students recorded gains in their connection to school in 2019. In response, UNITE-LA, New Ways to Work and the L.A. Opportunity Youth Collaborative (OYC) are reconvening leaders to renew the LAP3 strategic plan, reaffirming our commitment to transforming systems and improving opportunity youth outcomes.

The L.A. Compact's Postsecondary team developed a digital tool outlining 17 state investments that advance education and economic equity for students. Each investment will close equity and opportunity gaps to better serve students' social well-being and prepare students for college and career success.

The pandemic disrupted life for all of us and had a particularly deleterious impact on youth employment and education. More than 156,000 (more than 1 in 8) 16-24 year olds were out of work and out of school in 2020, according to new data from the American Community Survey (ACS). Prior to 2020, the number of 16-24 year olds disconnected from jobs and education in L.A. County had been steadily declining, but the pandemic robbed young people of critical, early workforce and educational opportunities, disproportionately impacting Black and Latinx communities, especially 20-24 year olds. The most disturbing impact is for 20-24 year old Black men, 42 percent of whom were neither in school nor working, followed by Latinx young men and Black young women. You can view the full breakdown of the data by race/ethnicity, gender and age in our Charting Progress Dashboard.

In September, the L.A. Compact's postsecondary transitions work was featured at two different conferences dedicated to K-12 and higher education policy and practice – the 2022 National College Attainment Network (NCAN) conference in Atlanta, GA, and Ed Trust-West's Education Equity Forum in Los Angeles. They highlighted a collaborative effort between LAUSD's Office of Intervention and Support (housed within the Division of Instruction), and Compact partners – CSUN and LACCD – to strengthen district-wide student completion of financial aid applications and postsecondary planning. This effort, which began in October 2021 in response to an LAUSD School Board resolution, has led to an implementation plan with student-informed recommendations to help the district to augment their postsecondary readiness strategies. Additional partners include government agencies, direct student service providing non-profits, and students, parents, and alumni of LAUSD.

UNITE-LA officially welcomed Alysia Bell as its President effective Sept. 1. Bell succeeds David Rattray, President & CEO of UNITE-LA for the past 24 years, who announced his retirement in March. Before becoming President, Bell served as Executive Vice President for UNITE-LA.